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What happened here?

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  • DeksDeks200 Posts: 259Member
    I think one of the issues is that many people simply moved on.
    Heck, even I'm not into 3d as I used to.
    Many of my skills have eroded, though there's still some desire to re-ignite it, and so, occasionally I will work on my USS Nightfire.
    I guess it's something of a pet project I reopen a few times a year.

    Though I think I'm mainly waiting to get myself a new computer/laptop with cutting edge technology and top end hardware (mainly waiting for mobile Polaris or possibly Pascal - I'd prefer Polaris though due to AMD's proclivity with looking forward... and I'd honestly like Zen in the new laptop... alas, Zen mobile CPU's won't be available until sometime next year, and I really wanted a new computer this year).

    Anyway... I'm mainly a lurker here these days.
    I do other things and my focus is not explicitly on 3d art anymore - plus I turned a lot of my attention to reading peer-review medical files, longevity, biological immortality, breakthroughs in science, technology, changing the socio-economic system... it's a load of things to think about.
    Though 3d still gets on my mind from time to time, and I will likely come back to it with more powerful hardware (though it will be a pain to relearn some of the stuff I lost - but also, programs have changed too).

    It's nice to see some of the original core crowd here.
    Since I'm stationed in UK, I guess we could also arrange for live meets between those of us who live nearby or are in a position to visit.
    :-)
    Perhaps if we try to collaborate more together on joint projects, it might 'reinvigorate' the website more.


    Does anyone recall the Scifi-meshes movie I suggested a LONG time ago?
    Trek based of course, and I had various animations rendered out from that time.
    Boy do I miss that thing. It was actually relatively simple but animations I made at the time were also nothing to scoff at.
    I wonder if anyone might have them?
    I lost most of my files that were on the old computer I'm afraid and the 3d studio Max files ended up corrupted.

    Then again... perhaps we could try to do something like that again now.
  • Chris2005Chris2005675 Posts: 3,096Member
    Even I've drifted away from 3D animations... I'm not doing them as frequently as I used to, but I also have stepped my quality up drastically since way back, lol.
    AMD Ryzen 9 5900X
    Gigabyte RTX 3080 Gaming OC 12GB
    1TB NVMe SSD, 2 x 1GB SATA SSD, 4TB external HDD
    32 GB RAM
    Windows 11 Pro
  • evil_genius_180evil_genius_1804256 Posts: 11,034Member
    I comment on other people's work but haven't done any of my own for some time. Less free time and other pursuits, etc.
  • MadKoiFishMadKoiFish9711 Posts: 5,302Member
    Deks wrote: »
    Though 3d still gets on my mind from time to time, and I will likely come back to it with more powerful hardware (though it will be a pain to relearn some of the stuff I lost - but also, programs have changed too).

    hah this is the reason I do not do much animation, the time to push something out to find one small thing wrong and having to spend 8 more days rendering even with a 4770k. I just do not have the funds for 12core server station procs.

    I do remember it but I think I missed some of the early parts of it as I had left 3d for a bit between 2002 and 2005? I started back when you were making your NX01 as I found it on a search result.

    Yeah EG has been a reply maven, something that shows I am hypocritical as I just get back to working on a project after posting or have to go do things. I do follow some threads but lurk a lot more as I am not a social person or all that good at giving crits.

    Group projects/ contests. I dunno there is not enough here to activity group up, or drop current projects to join in. Even in the days of high traffic you had a low percentage of contributions.

    I cannot think of anything other than just to continue posting WIP progress no matter how small and hope the activity prompts more. Unfortunately I think new blood just bypass forums for other outlets or ones that they can control what feedback is shown or given.

    I do not think this loss in activity is just 3d forums, just forums or creative subjects in general. People find it easier to post play thoughs of games or post pictures to instagram about what their dog threw up, or what they ate for dinner, or to just show off.
    Each day we draw closer to the end.
  • DeksDeks200 Posts: 259Member
    Ah, the NX-01. I actually whipped out that bad boy months ago and rendered out a short anim with it.
    Took a while to render a relatively simple animation though and then go through the very basic setup of applying sound to it that matched.

    I don't mind making some short anims for instance, but yes, the process can be a pain, especially if I find minute errors in the animation that I think would require fixing.
    If I had access to my older Scifi meshes movie scenes in operating condition, I'd likely do some test shots first and later on make adjustments as needed.

    I did something similar with an older animation I made with Sarod's Voyager... but the problem there was that I tried modifying and improving upon something that probably would have worked better from being completely redone in the first place (plus, I think that particular animation predates the scifi meshes movie projects I worked on as I distinctly remember that the lighting and ways I made those scene files were different).

    I still find keyframing a painful process.
    It can be easier to work with splines as path projections though, but I detest how the camera has a tendency to run amok (3ds Max doesn't make it easy).

    On the subject of 3d Studio Max, does anyone have any idea why aren't they supporting things such as HSA and HUMA or how come the core program hasn't been enhanced over the years?
    The UI and layout could certainly remain but some aspect of Max such as the SFX section are still lacking to this day (not to mention that the software doesn't take full use of hardware).
  • DannageDannage236 Posts: 634Member
    My issues with 3D modelling were largely that my version of max is so hideously old and newer versions are not completely unaffordable, but I spent Aï¿¡800 on Adobe Illustrator and have never learned to use it. Spending Aï¿¡7k on Max to just do the same thing, no way. :)

    Also I think there were many people willing to animate ships moving from one side of the screen to another, but animating people/characters is what I found nobody seemed to do much of, and that is what is needed to make decent stories. I love Star Trek Aurora and they kinda cheated in he bought a scanning thing and used real people by episode 3. :)

    Also I got a smart move and spent much time on that then a laptop. The old 'beast' computer with Max on it, hardly gets a look in these days. :)

    I really need to sell that house I never finished rennovating and move into a new one, then set up a mega kit.... And do nothing with it.

    Still, I'm in the UK, happy to do some meet and greets. :)
  • evil_genius_180evil_genius_1804256 Posts: 11,034Member
    One of the main drawbacks to professional level software is that it's professionally priced, meaning it's flippin' expensive. Too bad companies can't make a more affordable "home" version. Though, I guess they're worried about professionals taking advantage of it. I guess to make sure it would not be used for professional endeavors, they would have to cripple it in some way.
  • DannageDannage236 Posts: 634Member
    Well, I created a Wikia, threw down a bunch of 'events' and am currently downloading Sketchup. If it's good at 'simple' and 'quick', then I can produce a large amount of shapes, and start the road to 'sketchbook' style content, for others to contribute to, enhance and improve. If you can't beat em....
  • alonzo11208alonzo11208171 Posts: 0Member
    I dont know if it was stated before, but I also think its the shift in "online socials."

    For example, forums and chatrooms were the social hubs of the internet. Then it was Myspace, then FB, and Tumblr, now IG, Twitter, Vine, Snapchat, the list goes on.

    Im curious if theres a FB group for SciFi Meshes, would more people be more inclined to share works and give feedback?
  • evil_genius_180evil_genius_1804256 Posts: 11,034Member
    Some people may be more open to Facebook. On the other hand, many people also don't trust Facebook.
  • MadKoiFishMadKoiFish9711 Posts: 5,302Member
    Deks wrote: »
    Ah, the NX-01. I actually whipped out that bad boy months ago and rendered out a short anim with it.
    Took a while to render a relatively simple animation though and then go through the very basic setup of applying sound to it that matched.

    I don't mind making some short anims for instance, but yes, the process can be a pain, especially if I find minute errors in the animation that I think would require fixing.
    If I had access to my older Scifi meshes movie scenes in operating condition, I'd likely do some test shots first and later on make adjustments as needed.

    I did something similar with an older animation I made with Sarod's Voyager... but the problem there was that I tried modifying and improving upon something that probably would have worked better from being completely redone in the first place (plus, I think that particular animation predates the scifi meshes movie projects I worked on as I distinctly remember that the lighting and ways I made those scene files were different).

    I still find keyframing a painful process.
    It can be easier to work with splines as path projections though, but I detest how the camera has a tendency to run amok (3ds Max doesn't make it easy).

    On the subject of 3d Studio Max, does anyone have any idea why aren't they supporting things such as HSA and HUMA or how come the core program hasn't been enhanced over the years?
    The UI and layout could certainly remain but some aspect of Max such as the SFX section are still lacking to this day (not to mention that the software doesn't take full use of hardware).

    I never got much into animation just basic follow target or spline based movement with slider animation of objects IE doors opening etc. Max had a bad habit of corrupting the file and crashing, so I sort of gave up on exploring it further as I was mostly interested in modeling over everything else. The most complex was the old SOTL animation with the Mughi and Balmung.

    I am not sure what whomever owns max now is up to. So much of the updates were to a unique viewport engine with aims at realtime fluff for architecture and landscaping visualizations. Joke is it all balks once the poly count gets up there. It is nice though to see and adjust results of lights when you have more than 5 or whatever that old limit was. Made life a lot easier when rigging ships or complex building renders.
    Dannage wrote: »
    My issues with 3D modelling were largely that my version of max is so hideously old and newer versions are not completely unaffordable, but I spent Aï¿¡800 on Adobe Illustrator and have never learned to use it. Spending Aï¿¡7k on Max to just do the same thing, no way. :)

    Really unless your running max that needed those plug ins to box model or do subdivision it should do for hobby stuff. Bugs and critical crash errors were always trading places on each "improvement" of max. IE 7 and 8 had major critical error crashes on cutting edges, where 2010 and 2013 have issues chamfering verts as it'll crash randomly on that. I cannot say I am planning to buy in to the yearly update cycle max is no now nor into any of the rental schemes.

    Packages; really if someone was getting back in I would push BLENDER on them. It would make a quick transfer to LW or modo in the future as well. Nothing else compares to the pro programs.



    I should get back into doing something animation related but just having time to spend rendering it out. EXP as I keep loosing old systems that are capable of doing the chores. Old core2 just wont cut it when they cant even render a frame without taking 5hours on it. :D
    Each day we draw closer to the end.
  • DannageDannage236 Posts: 634Member
    Some people may be more open to Facebook. On the other hand, many people also don't trust Facebook.

    Also, doesn't Facebook decide it owns all the content you put on it?
  • evil_genius_180evil_genius_1804256 Posts: 11,034Member
    Dannage wrote: »
    Also, doesn't Facebook decide it owns all the content you put on it?

    I'm pretty sure that's in the user agreement. However, you still don't have to upload content directly to FB. You can link to it, as many of us here do. I believe they can only lay claim to stuff uploaded to their servers. Otherwise, Google and a whole lot of other companies with hosting sites wouldn't allow users to link to stuff on their sites.
  • nightfevernightfever361 Posts: 585Member
    I'm still here, too, but not as frequent as before. I still love 3d modelling, but also a new relationship to a wonderful person that I give myself to. So there isn't that much time to create 3d stuff, maybe some day.;)
  • JRL3001JRL3001331 Posts: 0Member
    Hey guys, it's been a long time! I donno if anyone remembers me, but I remember some of you guys still and I am glad to this this place is still here.

    I still do art and film making now, though I have not attempted to mess with 3D in ages. I'll have to post some stuff up to share with you guys. I miss this place
  • stonkystonky350 Posts: 489Member
    Soooo....are the headers going to change, like, ever?
  • PixelMagicPixelMagic471 Posts: 663Member
    stonky wrote: »
    Soooo....are the headers going to change, like, ever?

    I'd be more happy if image uploads worked again.
  • backsteptbackstept2017 Posts: 918Member
    My answer to "Where is everyone?" is Reddit. I've been on Reddit.


    Speaking of which: https://www.reddit.com/r/Scifi_Meshes/
  • DannageDannage236 Posts: 634Member
    Interestingly.. for me... Starmade (Minecraft in space) is where I've been building spaceships for the last 2 years... Got quite a few in my archives...

    The game has just released an 'export to a 3D modelling package' feature, so I may bring some blocks in here!
  • Zhor2395Zhor2395344 MN, USAPosts: 92Member
    I was just wondering where the life was. haven't seen a lot of faces around here anymore. I personally haven't posted any of my modeling work in many cycles (wb Nutsy, also)
    "It's just like bumper cars...where everyone dies." ~Penny Robinson
  • ViperViper1678 Posts: 717Administrator
    If anyone is interested in knowing still, I have tried a couple of times to completely rework the SFM website into something more modern as Web Dev is what I ended up doing for a living. Problem is that other things keep getting in the way. Also, the forum is a complicated thing to solve. AFAIK, vBulletin has become a mess so upgrading seems like a bad idea. Transporting it to another platform is also troublesome and there are no guarantees that it work. Finally, although Chris gave his blessing, I'm hesitant to try something completely different.

    As I see it today, the site needs to be completely focused on art. I mainly use Artstation,com these days to see art. The majority of artists there are pros so the quality is ultra high. I started to think about making SFM into something like that. But, then another thing comes up that is the name. The name Sci fi Meshes is so specific. It's tough to create something focused on art without seeing the process of the model which is what was always so cool about this site. Seeing the project evolve over the months and sometimes years.

    Another snag is what software to do the new site in. Originally my idea was using Drupal. But the tools to convert current content aren't great, and there was some reluctance from the staff on losing content which is completely understandable. I myself wouldn't mind starting over and perhaps leaving the old forums as a legacy thing. Today I think that creating a custom software would be better. At the same time, that would be a lot of work for one person to undertake and thus doing it for free would be difficult. Patreon comes to mind, but I'm not sure that the current level of membership would be interested in investing money on a new community.

    Anyway, these are where things stand. I haven't visited the forums in a long time. Decided to enter today because I actually think about this all the time. Both this site and Scifi Art were such big influences on me, it sticks with you. To top it all off, I still model all the time, especially game mods these days. Due to gaming, my PC is always cutting edge, so I can play with all the toys. Recently I got Substance Designer, Painter and Marmoset Toolbag to work on my Kerbal Space Program mods. It has been a cool experience.

    Hope everyone here is well.

    Cheers!
  • alonzo11208alonzo11208171 Posts: 0Member
    Viper wrote: »
    If anyone is interested in knowing still, I have tried a couple of times to completely rework the SFM website into something more modern as Web Dev is what I ended up doing for a living. Problem is that other things keep getting in the way. Also, the forum is a complicated thing to solve. AFAIK, vBulletin has become a mess so upgrading seems like a bad idea. Transporting it to another platform is also troublesome and there are no guarantees that it work. Finally, although Chris gave his blessing, I'm hesitant to try something completely different.

    As I see it today, the site needs to be completely focused on art. I mainly use Artstation,com these days to see art. The majority of artists there are pros so the quality is ultra high. I started to think about making SFM into something like that. But, then another thing comes up that is the name. The name Sci fi Meshes is so specific. It's tough to create something focused on art without seeing the process of the model which is what was always so cool about this site. Seeing the project evolve over the months and sometimes years.

    Another snag is what software to do the new site in. Originally my idea was using Drupal. But the tools to convert current content aren't great, and there was some reluctance from the staff on losing content which is completely understandable. I myself wouldn't mind starting over and perhaps leaving the old forums as a legacy thing. Today I think that creating a custom software would be better. At the same time, that would be a lot of work for one person to undertake and thus doing it for free would be difficult. Patreon comes to mind, but I'm not sure that the current level of membership would be interested in investing money on a new community.

    Anyway, these are where things stand. I haven't visited the forums in a long time. Decided to enter today because I actually think about this all the time. Both this site and Scifi Art were such big influences on me, it sticks with you. To top it all off, I still model all the time, especially game mods these days. Due to gaming, my PC is always cutting edge, so I can play with all the toys. Recently I got Substance Designer, Painter and Marmoset Toolbag to work on my Kerbal Space Program mods. It has been a cool experience.

    Hope everyone here is well.

    Cheers!

    You know, looking at other..."hubs" I noticed that they do tend to be a lot more straightforward in getting your art onto a gallery or portfolio page, and allowing for cross platform integration whether thats with twitter, fb, tumbler, ig, behance, sketchfab, etcc.

    Even though SciFi Meshes is specific, I think that it works in favor of being a hub for people who want to showcase SciFi/Fantasy art, tough I can also see having it be more general would work.

    As I stated before, I think forums have been replaced by the social media mechanics of today and they pose a obstacle to those who are use to merely posting their stuff in a single place, with a click of a button.
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