Poser 11 SR3 and Content Update

[Ken1171]

This thing is so surreal that even Netflix decided to make a TV series to depict it. The upcoming series doesn't have a name yet, but production has already started. In the meanwhile, I live it.

As for the upcoming 11.0.4 update, chances are it might come out in the next few days. Fingers crossed! ^^

 

[Miss B]

Yikes!

You can say that again!! Geeze Ken, not fun at all!!

 

[Ken1171]

At least I can't say life if boring when everyday is an adventure! LOL

 

[Miss B]

That's an understatement.

 

[TylerMcDowell]

Has there been any rumors on when the next version of Poser is coming? I am looking to upgrade from 2012 and would like to just do it once.

 

[Miss B]

Hi Tyler, welcome to the HiveWire forums.

As to the next "version" of Poser, are you referring to a new Service Release, or a whole new version. Poser11/PoserPro11 just came out the end of last year, so if you're looking for a whole new version, that won't come until sometime next year I would assume.

If you're looking for the next Service Release which will be 11.0.4, if I'm not mistaken, according to a post I read on the new Official Poser forums, it should be very shortly, as in the next few days (hopefully). That said, that won't be the last Service Release, as Smith Micro is always looking to improve their software, so there may be further Service Releases down the road. How often they'll happen, is anybody's guess, but I can say the first 3 have come a lot quicker than they have for earlier versions of Poser, so that's a good thing.

 

[Ken1171]

Indeed, Poser 11 just came out a few months ago, so it's still brand new. I didn't even have time to try all the new features yet. Last night I have used the new Measuring Tool for the first time, and it was very cool to be able to scale models to real size for the 1st time! Version 11.0.4 is indeed coming out in the next few days, and the only reason it hasn't been released yet is because SMS has been serious about including as much as they can from the list of fixes and improvements as possible. I have already added some issues to the 11.0.5 list, so it doesn't stop there.

An important thing to consider is that all these fixes and improvements will NOT be retro applied to previous versions, so if you may want to make sure you upgrade to the version they are still supporting. I was very attached to PP2014, but more recently I found myself compelled to switch to P11 because of the new rigging tools I simply cannot live without. If you want to upgrade, P11 is still brand new, and there won't be another full version for another 18 months or so.

 

[TylerMcDowell]

Thanks for the information. I am looking to go from 2012 pro to the latest version along with a new PC to put it on. I didn't want to empty the bank only to see a month later version 12 roll out. Now I need to start figuring out what I need in a PC.

 

[Ken1171]

You can rest assured Poser 12 is not even in the horizon right now. What you need in your new PC will depend mostly on what rendering engine you plan to use. If it's just Firefly, you need a strong CPU with as many cores as possible, and lots of RAM. If you want to render with the new SuperFly (Cycles) or Octane, you might want to add a strong video card for fast GPU rendering.

I render mostly with Octane in Poser, so I bought a GTX 980 Ti 6GB with ACX 2.0+ cooling, and it does wonders every time. When I render with Octane or SuperFly in GPU mode, the CPU is basically idle. When I render with Firefly, it's all done in the CPU, and the video card idle, but in either cases, Poser needs a lot of memory.

So if you already know what rendering engine you will be using, choose the proper hardware and don't save on RAM! ^^

 

[Miss B]

You can rest assured Poser 12 is not even in the horizon right now.^^

Thanks for confirming that Ken. I always thought they came out with a new version every other year, which would make Poser 12 sometime in the Fall of 2016.

 

[Ken1171]

That can actually be a problem, like it has become visible that P11 wasn't ready when it was released, just because it was trying to keep a schedule. The same has been happening every year with Autodesk, forcing products to receive new full point releases with just bug fixing and no actual new features - at least none that deserve a full point release. For example, the ads for 3DSMAX 2016 were about having an edge chamfering tool that actually worked. LOL

 

[TylerMcDowell]

Just about any PC is going to be an improvement for me. My old duel-core has been crippling along for... close to ten years or more. The tentative plan is to build my own and start continually upgrading. $600 for just the video card, I instinctively balk at but I know it is probably the main driving force for the PC. Looking at the comparison of the three render engines, Octane seems to be the more elegant of the three. This seems to be getting way off topic for this thread though.

 

[Miss B]

Only modeler I've seen with chamfering is Hexagon, and that software is just too flaky to work with.

I know what you mean though. I got an educational version of Maya 2015 last May, and sure enough there was a Maya 2016 upgrade, but don't ask me what, if anything, was actually new.

 

[Ken1171]

@TylerMcDowell I know it's expensive, but I think of it as an investment on the future. That video card can chew anything you throw on it without even heating up, even when at 100% load, thanks to the new ACX 2.0+ cooling system. It's also very silent even at full load, and is claimed to use only a fraction of the power required by the almighty GTX 580. I have build a new PC last year, and it is planned to last for at least 6-7 years. You buy a cheaper GPU, you will probably need to upgrade in the next 2-3 years. Everything indicates that the future of 3D graphics lies heavily on the video card nowadays. ^^

@Miss B I think Hexagon was abandoned by Eovia back in 2006, and DAZ decided to buy it give away to customers. Once we get something for free, we void the right to complain when things go wrong. Microsoft did the same with TrueSpace, buying it when it was no longer selling and giving it away for free to support their gaming platform. The difference was that TrueSpace was a good modeler - all the creatures from the Jurassic Park movie were created with it.

 

[TylerMcDowell]

It is something I have to ponder on. It is an investment like you said.

 

[Miss B]

[USER=20]@Miss B I think Hexagon was abandoned by Eovia back in 2006, and DAZ decided to buy it give away to customers. Once we get something for free, we void the right to complain when things go wrong. Microsoft did the same with TrueSpace, buying it when it was no longer selling and giving it away for free to support their gaming platform. The difference was that TrueSpace was a good modeler - all the creatures from the Jurassic Park movie were created with it.[/USER]

I don't recall when I got Hex, probably back then, and it was really, really cheap, but I never really got into it then, as I was already using Blender. When I finally got around to trying it, my 8 year old WinXP Pro laptop had to be replaced, so I installed it on this Win7 Pro laptop, and by then it was up to version 2.5, and it's just so unstable I uninstalled it.

As for TrueSpace, I downloaded back when it first became free, but to tell the truth, I buried it on a CD/DVD somewhere, and never tried it. Now that I've really gotten a handle on Blender, I'm not sure I would even bother trying it out.

 

[Ken1171]

@Miss B Oh make no mistake - TrueSpace was good in its own time, and that was long ago. It's a toy comparing to what Blender3D has become nowadays, not to mention TrueSpace is no longer updated. My advice would be to stick with Blender if you can get over the interface. I have seen people doing amazing things with it! There is a free GPU renderer (Cycles) that now shares shaders with Poser, and loads of features you won't find in any other free modeler. I believe at this point there is nothing you can't do with it. ^^

 

[TylerMcDowell]

I learned on Hex because I got it for $1.99, bought Silo which I do like a lot, but seeing how much Blender has changed and gotten easier over time, I have to agree. If you can learn the interface (or customize it to be easier for you) then there isn't much Blender can't do.

 

[Miss B]

@Miss B Oh make no mistake - TrueSpace was good in its own time, and that was long ago. It's a toy comparing to what Blender3D has become nowadays, not to mention TrueSpace is no longer updated. My advice would be to stick with Blender if you can get over the interface. I have seen people doing amazing things with it! There is a free GPU renderer (Cycles) that now shares shaders with Poser, and loads of features you won't find in any other free modeler. I believe at this point there is nothing you can't do with it. ^^

Oh I've been using Blender since version 4.47, or thereabouts, and I love this interface since it came out with version 5.2.

Here's a link to the first project I created with that version, following a tutorial I found --> The Castle

I'm a devoted Blender user. Just check out my ongoing Blender links list here in the Blender forum.

 

[Ken1171]

Hehe then I don't have to convince you that you made the right choice.