This is a general thank you to the Poser community. My computer crashed in a fiery death (don't worry, most stuff was backed up in zip files) and I've had to try to reload everything on a new PC. The unzipping and reloading process has reminded me of how parse my Poserworld would be without the generous people who contribute their creations on the freestuff page. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!! Now I'm looking for a 3D modeling program so I can give back. 3DStudio Max is too expensive for a hobbyist like me.

I'm gonna concur with that, if I may. I'm not good at modelling or texturing for Poser, and I'll be the first to admit it. Many of you (and you know who you are) are downright amazing, both in generosity of spirit and talent. This place would be a far sadder one were you not around.

Diomede....Try the Amapi forum. There is a link to a free version of Amapi. It totally hooked me. I had dabbled in modelling before that with other programs...But that one just clicks. But, you have to do all the exercises, tutes, in that forum. Give it a whirl. You never know what you can do until you try it.

Be very careful when installing Amapi, though. During installation, it asks for a "password." I had no idea what this meant, so I typed in a password and now I can't use the program. It placed some file in my system somewhere that tells the program to go into limited demo version and I can't do anything with it. What the "password" really meant, I think, was the serial code that you get from the site. Now, I can't figure out how to get rid of that problem so I can try the program. I've tried uninstalling it, but when I reinstall it, it still detects something in my system that only gives me the same limited demo version. Does anyone know how to fix this? I really wanted to try it, but I've ruined it somehow. Why did they call it "password" when they really didn't mean that? Why didn't they say "serial number" or something? Kind of stupid, if you ask me. Melanie

Why did they call it "password" when they really didn't mean that? Why didn't they say "serial number" or something? Kind of stupid, if you ask me. Amapi started as a European program, which may explain the differences in terminology. Insofar as the "password" problem, are you on Mac or PC? If you're on Mac, simply go into Preferences and delete the Amapi prefs file.

Melanie Call them and complain... allot! I know of a large number of people that that has hapened to. their customer servace should be able to take care of you, and if they try to charge you. Keep asking for supervisors and rase hell. -Gabe-

I'm on a PC. I wasn't aware that so many people had the same problem. Thanks for the information. Melanie

All good, I hope it all works out. 8^) -Gabe-

Thanks, I'll check out the Amapi site. Are they the same people that provide support for Raydream? I'd be willing to pay $350-$450 for a 3D program that could work with Poser. What are my options?

A lot of people use trueSpace and some use Amorphium. Both are pretty good programs, but Amorphium only does organic modeling. I've seen Rhino mentioned a lot, but I think it's a more expensive program. I think Ray Dream Studio (or whateven they're called now, Carerra?) has been mentioned, too. You might even find some good, factory sealed, unregistered copies still on eBay occasionally. I've bought some brand new, unopened software from there for a great price. Just be sure it's fatory sealed so you can register it. Melanie

Hay Melanie did your problem get solved? -Gabe-

Gabe, I haven't tried it since it bombed out on me. I'll have to see if I can fix it. In the meantime, I've just been using Amorphium, Ray Dream Stuido, and a couple of others. It's sort of frustrating, though, when you can't use something that looks so interesting. Melanie

Well Best of luck, I'm having that type of problem with Win 2000, It doesn't really let anything work... -Gabe-