keyboard cowboy

hi, i'm an arch. student, working on 3Dsmax 6. i'm looking for a modelling program with greater accuracy, kinda like a mix between autocadd and 3Dsmax. i've heard that rhino 3.v could be the answer...i would gladly accept any advice on the subject. thank u!

Ernest Burden

Rhino is great, very CAD-like, great company.

FormZ is also a great, accurate, modeler, great company. I just find it weird in how it works, not at all intuitive.

Rhino is less expensive, FZ has more preset modeling tasks. In truth, you cannot go wrong either way.

If you are used to the workflow of MAX, you can also look at Cinema4D, which costs more than FormZ but much less than MAX, and is a modeler AND a great renderer.

Lightwave users seem like a happy lot, though I've never used it myself.

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Ernest Burden III
AcmeDigital
architectural rendering

mbr

I am an architect, too. FormZ is my favorite, even though I am using Max all the time now. Nothing is faster to model architecture than FormZ (from my experience).

It's OpenGL performance is lightyears above Max's, making the modeling go much faster.

Brian Cassil

The local architecture school here uses Form-Z because of it's CAD like controls.

Tim Nelson

I think all the schools use it because auto-des-sys gives it to them for free in hopes that graduates will continue to use Form-Z when they start their professional careers. People use what they are most comfortable with, so get them hooked early, right?

Ernest Burden

I would not call FormZ's controls CAD-like. Far from it.

But Rhino's I would. In fact, I already did.

FormZ is a great program, but to use it effectively you really have to drink the KoolAde.

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Ernest Burden III
AcmeDigital
architectural rendering

crazy homeless guy

maybe it is because i learned on formz first, but i find it very quick and intuitive to work with. although i have, and just did, hear others state otherwise.

i am still trying to get myself to model sloppy after years of perfect accuracy. it is actually hard to do.

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travis schmiesing

Ernest Burden

I know, same here.

But the original question is about modeling with more accuracy, so that is why I suggested FZ and Rhino.

Both, by the way, use actual, real-world units.

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Ernest Burden III
AcmeDigital
architectural rendering

Jim Mann

I was taught to use AutoCAD by a Filipina I worked with in Hong Kong back in 1992. Her words of wisdom still ring true with regards to accuracy...

"With CAD (and now 3D I guess - JM) its harder to get things wrong than it is to get them right" - Jocelyn Sanchez

To this day I still can't say "plot" without it coming out in a Filipino accent.

In terms of accuracy, I cant comment on the others but Rhino is very accurate and feels a bit like an AutoCAD clone in terms of interface/operation. That said, what problems are you having with Max and accuracy? I model to the millimeter and still seem to model more accurately than the CAD drawings that I get from the average architect. Do you really need super accurate? Once you get onto a building site, you will find accurate to be a rather flexible term.

Jim

philip kelly

Form z is good..........

But as far as a company I don't think they are up to much.
The upgrades for the last two, were average.
They have holes all over the package.
I's accurate, but at the end of the day you have to go else were to render, it's rendering is not that good, And I have used it for 6 years now, so i have enough experience to know, you really have to ush the thing to get what you want out of it.
Interior rendering is out really, as far as renderzone is concerened.

I also had the problem of switchng from v3.5 on a mac to pc a straight dongle swap.

They would not do a straight swap.
I had to upgrade, which cost all in 1000 euros for an upgrade, a complete ripoff, and they can not defend that.
They have not ated their libraries for 4 years, there are next to no plug-ins if any , they are all promised and the ones that are out are ok, you can do as good in photoshop.

saying that the modeling is good........and that's all it is.
phil