Curious Labs has launched Service Release 1 for its Poser Pro Pack application.
Poser, the 3D-character animation and design tool for digital artists and animators, was acquired from MetaCreations by Curious Labs earlier this year. You can use it to create images, movies, and posed 3D figures from a collection of fully articulated 3D and animal models. The US$219 product requires a Power Mac, System 8 or later, 32MB of application RAM, a color display, CD-ROM drive, and 240MB of free hard disk space.
Pro Pack is a set of essential tools and plug-ins that expand the functionality of Poser 4. A key feature of this service release is plug-in support for Discreet’s 3ds max 4, which was released earlier this year. Existing Pro Pack owners can obtain Pro Pack Service Release 1 update directly from the Curious Labs Web site.
The cross platform Pro Pack adds new export options, 3D integration solutions, features, and content to Poser, according to Steve Cooper, president of Curious Labs. It also offers improved workflow for the creation of custom figures.
Poser Pack lets users host Poser 4 scene files in Newtek’s LightWave and Discreet’s 3D Studio MAX including animated 3D characters with the plug-ins included. You can add animated character content created in Poser to Web sites and other interactive projects by exporting Viewpoint Experience Technology for 3D and Macromedia Flash for 2D. All new characters and animations are Web-ready, allowing users to export content immediately, Cooper said.
“3ds max 4 was released just as we launched Pro Pack, and our customers asked us to develop a plug-in that would allow them to continue hosting Poser scenes within 3ds max,” Cooper said.
Pro Pack was an immediate hit with Web developers, animation producers and advanced users, he said. It enhances Poser 4’s production capabilities with new export options, 3D integration solutions, new features and content, and improved workflow for the creation of custom figures. These features allow users to easily and affordably create characters for the Web, print, film and video, Cooper said.
Pro Pack Service Release 1 is a free update to the existing version of Pro Pack, and the full version of Pro Pack is available for US$149 U.S. The update is available for download at the Curious Labs Web site and Pro Pack can be purchased at the company’s online store.