The 3D program, Blender, has just been released on the Mac for the first time. It’s built using Cocoa, so it only runs on Mac OS X.
Blender is a 3D creation suite allowing modeling, animation, rendering, post-production, interactive creation and playback with cross-platform compatibility. It promises all the tools and licenses needed for 3D publishing, including a standalone player. Coming in January is the Blender 3D Plug-In for Mac OS 8.x, 9.x and X. It allows playback of Blender produced content by non-Blender users.
Blender is a product of NaN (Not a Number) Technologies. Ton Roosendaal, the company’s creative & technical director, said that, as a 3D graphics tool, Blender is used for print, video and film. It’s also a tool for creating 3D interactive media and games.
Blender has some unique advantages, according to Roosendaal. The creator component is freely available over the Internet and operates on Windows, Linux, Irix, BeOS, Sun and FreeBSD, as well as the Mac. The new US$295 Blender Publisher targets media professionals who create and publish interactive 3D content.