![softimage 3d 3.7 softimage 3d 3.7](http://3drender.com/softimage/icons/Tape110.jpeg)
The interface, which has improved in recent releases, can still be a double-edged sword: it passes by standard GUI conventions (you have to tab out of dialog fields before you close a dialog box to get the program to accept the value), but is a valuable stepping stone to learning LightWave, which has a preeminent position in the effects industry. Inspire also comes with a slew of very high-quality model Object files and animation Scene files that you can incorporate into your own work. Inspire's Layout supports bones, but not inverse kinematics, so without the ability to add IK constraints to the bones their usefulness is limited to making washing-up liquid bottles dance, and the like. However, Inspire contains much of the animation control finesse of LightWave, except in one vital area: Simple motion animations can be as easy as dragging an object around and setting keyframes. Present is the same extremely high-quality (but rather slow) raytracing engine, but animation output resolution is limited to 640 x 480 pixels, making this suitable only for web-based and multimedia projects. Inspire's Layout module contains the animation and texturing controls. What is missing is Spline Patching (although MetaNURBS can make this redundant), the very useful Knife tool for adding extra geometry to fine up models, and, bizarrely, the ability to turn off Grid Snap. Other modelling tools include a full set of very robust Boolean operators and a full set of LightWave's Deformation tools. It's possible to produce remarkably fluid and detailed creations with little effort. Modelling in Inspire is extremely easy, since the package supports an easy-to-use implementation of NURBS modelling, MetaNURBS, which allows you to rough out your creation as a polygon mesh and then turn it into a super-smooth NURBS model with a tap of the Tab key. Apart from the interface colours, at first glance both programs appear identical. Modeller and Layout, where rendering and animation are carried out. Like LightWave, Inspire is split into two separate applications: Inspire 3D is a new product from NewTek, maker of LightWave 3D, the world's most popular 3D package, and it shares many features with the senior program.
![softimage 3d 3.7 softimage 3d 3.7](http://www.edharriss.com/xsi/4point0_images/quad_rig.jpg)
The first product under review here, Inspire 3D, is one that misses the price points we've set, but gets in due to its wealth of high-end features. NewTek Inspire 3D (£349) Win 95/98, NT MacOS