Softimage 3D
 | |
 Screenshot of Softimage|3D 3.9.2 | |
| Developer(s) | Softimage, Co. |
|---|---|
| Initial release | January 1989[a] |
| Stable release | 4.0
/ August 2001 |
| Operating system | Windows NT,IRIX |
| Type | 3D computer graphics |
| License | Proprietary |
| Website | softimage |
Softimage|3Dis a discontinued high-end 3D graphics application developed bySoftimage, Co.,which was used predominantly in thefilm,broadcasting,gaming,andadvertisingindustries for the production of 3D animation. It was superseded bySoftimage XSIin 2000.
History
[edit]In 1986,National Film Board of CanadafilmmakerDaniel Langlois,in partnership with software engineers Richard Mercille and Laurent Lauzon, began developing an integrated 3D modeling, animation, and rendering package with a graphical interface targeted at visual artists. The software was initially demonstrated atSIGGRAPHin 1988 and was released forSilicon Graphicsworkstations the following year as the Softimage Creative Environment™.[1]
Softimage Creative Environment was adopted by major visual effects studios likeIndustrial Light & MagicandDigital Domainfor use in their production pipelines, which also typically included software fromAlias Research,Big Idea Productions,Kroyer Films,Angel Studios,Walt Disney Feature Animation Inc.,andPixar Animation Studios Inc.as well as a variety of custom tools. Its character animation toolset expanded substantially with the addition ofinverse kinematicsin version 2, which was used to animate the dinosaurs inJurassic Park.[2]In 1994,MicrosoftacquiredSoftimage, Co.with the intention of introducing high-end 3D animation software to itsWindows NTplatform, and subsequently renamed it "Softimage|3D."[3]In January 1995, Softimage|3D was announced as the official 3D development tool for theSega Saturn.[4]
The first Windows port of Softimage|3D, version 3.0, was released in early 1996.[5]Softimage|3D Extreme 3.5, released later that year, includedparticle effectsand themental rayrenderer, which offered area lights,ray tracing,and other advanced features.[6]3D paint functionality was added a year later in version 3.7.[7]
In the late 1990s, Softimage Co. began developing a successor to Softimage|3D codenamed "Sumatra," which was designed with a more modern and extensible architecture to compete with other major packages like Alias|Wavefront's Maya.[8]Development was delayed during a 1998 acquisition byAvid Technology,and in the summer of 2000 Softimage|3D's successor was finally released asSoftimage XSI.[9][10]Because of Softimage|3D's entrenched user base, minor revisions continued until the final version of Softimage|3D, version 4.0, was released in 2002.[11]
Release history
[edit]| Version | Platform | Release date | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Softimage Creative Environment 1.0 | SGI | Jan 1989 | Beta debuted at Siggraph '88, v1.0 commercial release in 1989[12] | |
| Softimage Creative Environment 1.5 | 1989 | |||
| Softimage Creative Environment 1.65 | 1989 | Addedtexture mapping | ||
| Softimage Creative Environment 2.0 | 1991 | $30,000 | Introduced Actor module, IK,constraints,deformation lattices | |
| Softimage Creative Environment 2.5 | 1991 | |||
| Softimage Creative Environment 2.6 | 1993 | Added clusters, weighted envelopes. Used inJurassic Park[13] | ||
| Softimage Creative Environment 2.65 | 1994 | |||
| Softimage 3D 3.0 | SGI / WinNT | Jan 1996 | $7,995 | First Windows release |
| Softimage 3D 3.5 | May 1996 | $7,995, $13,995 (Extreme) | Introduced Extreme edition (metaballs, mental ray) | |
| Softimage 3D 3.7 | Apr 1997 | $7,995, $13,995 (Extreme) | Added 3D paint, NURBS surface blending | |
| Softimage 3D 3.7 SP1 | Aug 1997 | $7,995, $13,995 (Extreme) | New selection & viewing tools, RenderMap,Nintendo 64support | |
| Softimage 3D 3.8 | Jul 1998 | $4,995 | Added animation sequencer, polygon/color reduction tools | |
| Softimage 3D 3.8 SP1 | Jan 1999 | $4,995 | First release by Avid Technology, Plus & Performance options | |
| Softimage 3D 3.8 SP2 | Aug 1999 | Mental Ray 2.1, Surface Continuity Manager, DropPoints & SlidePoints, GoWithTheFlow | ||
| Softimage 3D 3.9 | Mar 2000 | $1,995, $3,995 (Extreme) | Improved envelope weighting, updatedGUI | |
| Softimage 3D 3.9.1 | May 2000 | |||
| Softimage 3D 3.9.2 | Dec 2000 | |||
| Softimage 3D 3.9.2.2 | May 2001 | |||
| Softimage 3D 4.0 | May 2002 | $1,495, $2,495 (Extreme) | Added multi-UV texturing, vertex colors. Final release |
Features
[edit]The Softimage|3D feature set was divided between five menu sets: Model, Motion, Actor, Matter and Tools, each corresponding to a different part of the 3D production process:[14]
Model:Tools for creating spline, polygon, patch, andNURBSprimitives (later releases also includedMetaballs).Boolean operations,extrusions, revolves, and bevels, as well as lattice deformations and relational modeling tools.Subdivision surfacemodeling was available via a third-party plugin from Phoenix Tools called MetaMesh.
Motion:Animation of objects and parameters viakeyframes,constraints,mathematical expressions,paths, and function curves. Animatable cluster and lattice deformations.Motion capturethrough a variety of input devices.
Actor:Rigging and animation of digital characters usingskeletons,as well as dynamics tools for physics simulations of object interactions. Includedinverse kinematicsand weighted / rigid skinning.
Matter:Creation of materials and rendering images for output. Standard features included 2D and 3D textures, field rendering, fog,motion blur,and raytracing.
Tools:Utilities for viewing, editing, andcompositingrendered image sequences, color reduction, and importing/exporting images and 3D geometry.
Notes
[edit]References
[edit]- ^Softimage: 16 Years of Leadership and Innovation,Softimage, archived fromthe originalon 2002-10-15.
- ^3D Software Reviews: Softimage,Jeremy Birn.
- ^"An Acquisition by Microsoft",The New York Times,Feb 15, 1994.
- ^"Sega and Sony Announced their 32-Bit Systems for the U.S.".Electronic Gaming Monthly.No. 68.Ziff Davis.March 1995. p. 89.
- ^Microsoft Delivers High-End 3-D Animation Software for Microsoft Windows NT(press release), Microsoft, Jan 16, 1996, archived fromthe originalon 2011-12-29,retrieved2009-10-10.
- ^Microsoft Introduces Major Upgrade to Softimage 3D(press release),Microsoft,May 16, 1996.
- ^Softimage 3D Version 3.7 for Windows NT and IRIX Platforms Now Shipping(press release),Microsoft,Apr 7, 1997, archived fromthe originalon 2009-05-02,retrieved2007-10-13
- ^Softimage's Next-Generation 3D System, SUMATRA, Introduces Non-Linear Animation(press release), 1999
- ^The Long and Lonely Death of Softimage,DigitalArts
- ^"Softimage Co. Announces First Customer Shipment of SOFTIMAGE/XSI Version 1.0; Softimage Grants 17,000 Licenses of Next-Generation 3-D Animation Software",Business Wire,Find articles, May 30, 2000.
- ^Softimage Slashes 3D price,Broadcast now, Jun 12, 2002
- ^Helen Shortal (Apr 1992),Private Revolution: SOFTIMAGE Animation Software Breaks New Ground
- ^Remembering Softimage,fxguide, Mar 4, 2014
- ^On Powerful Wings, Imagination Soars(PDF)(brochure),Microsoft,1996.
External links
[edit]- Softimage(official website).
- Softimage – 3D Interactive Interface(tutorial), Thomas Steffen Noerregaard Olesen.
- Softimage(user's site and archive),US:UIUC.
- Softimage – 3D Tutorials,DE:Uni Düßeldorf.
- 3D tutorials,Ed Harriss.
- 3D Software Reviews: Softimage,Jeremy Birn.
- "3-D Animation Blossoms on NT",Byte.
- Carlson,"Lesson 8",A Critical History of Computer Graphics and Animation,US:OSU, archived fromthe originalon 2014-06-18,retrieved2007-10-13.
- The Long and Lonely Death of Softimage,DigitalArts.
