I've used Houdini a bit too, and I really don't think it can be
considered a serious competitor to Adesk's offerings just because it
does not offer an end-to-end solution for production (keep reading).
Houdini is not capable of creating 3d models with the ease and speed
that most 3d apps have. Their modeling tools feel to me like they're
there to either massage geometry brought in from other 3d packages, or
to really spend time creating procedural assets that will shine on later
down the pipeline (and in that respect, I don't think any other 3d app
can touch Houdini :-) ). But to quickly know down models and start using
them, Houdini can't get close to other tools (and I think SideFX knows
it, and they've been smart about focusing their efforts in the aspects
of Houdini that make it a truly strong contender in the DCC market
(which are the more technical aspects of it... actually, I tend to think
of Houdini not as a 3d application in the traditional sense, but as a 3d
environment for visual programming).
I'd actually think Softimage is the best alternative to Houdini. Even
though ICE does not have the same breath and ease of use that Houdini
has, it is the closest one to offering similar workflows and procedural
concepts, while at the same time offering a solid all-around 3d toolset
for many different aspects of production. Unfortunately for Softimage,
it's competition didn't come from other companies and their products,
but from its own siblings. :-\
My very own $0.02...
*Sergio Mucino*
Lead Rigger
Modus FX
On 30/09/2013 12:57 PM, Dominik Kirouac wrote:
http://www.sidefx.com <http://www.sidefx.com/> :P
Le 30/09/2013 12:44 PM, Sergio Mucino a écrit :
Ugh. Tough cookie. This is one of those very delicate topics that
usually end with rotten vegetables flying from camp to camp. It just
happens that some people take the tools they use quite personally.
I think it's all a matter of perspective, and personal preference. Of
course, we can all start arguing over technical aspects of each
product's architecture and data models, but that's just another
rabbit hole. Workflows... tools... aesthetics... all rabbit holes.
I've had to work with Maya, Max, Modo, and now Soft, and each app has
its strengths and weaknesses (granted, some have more of one than the
other), and depending what kind of job you have, and what kind of
stuff you have to deal with, your tool is either going to make it a
pleasant job, or your worst nightmare.
However, you've pretty much hit the nail on the head. Adesk is a
company who's primary objective is to make money, and we may like it
or not, but absolutely nothing on this planet (short of a complete
fail of the international money markets) will change that. And when
it comes to making money, Adesk will of course put all its money on
the horse that's winning the race. And we may like it or not, but
that is Maya (and by winning the race I mean purely making more money).
I don't want to start yet another discussion over the virtues or
defects of each product and their future. Just trying to keep in the
picture the fact that Adesk looks at this from a completely different
perspective than users (and it's not only about how much money it's
making, but also about how much it costs). So, let's just focus on
the facts...
* Adesk has 3 completely redundant products on its product line (Max,
Maya, and Soft... they all are end-to-end DCC applications. They do
things differently, but they all produce quality results).
* There are 3 different development teams working on these products.
* Max and Maya compete for the most seats in different industries.
So, as a purely software development-focused entity, you'd ask
yourself "Why do I need three? What if I had all my users only using
one?". It does make sense... less development costs for same revenue
(this is all "in theory" of course). And from that POV, it makes more
sense to try to move less users to a different product than more of
them... hence, Maya is their winning horse (whereas users decide to
leave their current tool of choice for Maya is still to be seen).
So, it doesn't really matter how great ICE is, or how more modern
Softs architecture is, or how friendly Max is. These are all things
that can eventually be implemented in another code base (technical
issues and business concerns aside). It's a matter of getting
favorable quarterly results. Period.
I think the real unfortunate aspect of this is that there is NO real
contender/alternative to an application of Maya/Soft's maturity and
capabilites. And Adesk knows it. Therefore, they can afford to play
different strategies withl little risk involved.
And I think I've gone on long enough, and it's lunch time (and not to
mention, Monday...)
*Sergio Mucino*
Lead Rigger
Modus FX
On 30/09/2013 12:05 PM, John Richard Sanchez wrote:
I agree. But numbers do count as most studios use maya and I need to
go where the work is.
On Mon, Sep 30, 2013 at 12:01 PM, Andi Farhall <hack...@outlook.com
<mailto:hack...@outlook.com>> wrote:
I approached learning a bit as an occupational hazard. The job
needed ncloth for legacy reasons so i thought, ok, how bad can
it be. nCloth seemed to do the trick, and no doubt there are
other parts of maya that are good but good lord it's unpleasant
to use. As many of us suspect, it's simply a case of seat
numbers and nothing to do with how good a package is as to where
AD pitch it. If they seriously expect something like maya to be
the future they're all barking mad....... and as such I'm failry
sure that can't be the future. Fingers crossed.....
just my 5 pence worth.....
...........................................................................
http://www.hackneyeffects.com/
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http://www.linkedin.com/pub/andi-farhall/b/496/b21
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lord_hackney/
http://spylon.tumblr.com/
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