Plug-In

Adding LipService
Joe Alter, Inc., maker of Shave and a Haircut, has released LipService with the LBrush tool. Once a facial animation application, LipService now is a multi-resolution subdivision surface sculpting, rigging, and animation system built within an Autodesk Maya plug-in. Unlike competitive sculpting software, LipService is an animation tool, combining advanced rigging capabilities, such as pose space deformation, corrective sculpt, and a new class of blendshapes via the LBrush tool. A node-locked license costs $300, while a base (floating) license pack (one workstation and six render nodes) is priced at $799.
Joe Alter, Inc.; www.joealter.com

Rendering

Photorealistic Results
Imagination Technologies has launched the PowerVR Brazil SDK v1.0 raytraced rendering tool kit. Utilizing Imagination’s PowerVR OpenRL API SDK, the Brazil SDK v1.0 enables 3D graphics software developers to easily add high-level raytracing functionality to their applications. The Brazil SDK v1.0 facilitates interactive photorealistic visualization or final-frame rendering, and enables the addition of high-level raytracing functionality to applications accelerated by the growing range of OpenRL renderers being developed by Imagination.
Imagination Technologies Group; www.imgtec.com, www.caustic.com

Modeling*Animation

Earning Its Spots
MW3D-Solutions has upgrade its Cheetah3D consumer/professional-level 3D modeling solution for Mac OS X to Version 6.0. Developed from the ground up utilizing the latest Cocoa technologies, Cheetah3D is a lean, fast, and powerful 3D modeling, rendering, and animation package with a relaxed learning curve. It provides many popular tools, including subdivision surface modeling, joint-based character animation, UV unwrapping, texture painting, rigid- and soft-body dynamics, global illumination rendering, and more, and organizes them within an easy-to-use interface. It also integrates the Bullet physics engine for simulation. Cheetah3D 6.0 is priced at $99.
MW3D-Solutions; www.cheetah3d.com

Displays

Big and Thin
Perceptive Pixel is offering a 55-inch, multi-touch LCD projected capacitive (pro-cap) display with a high-gloss, bezel-free design and ultra-slim form factor of 2.5 inches deep. The LCD handles an unlimited number of touch points and works in concert with up to three active styluses for a natural pen and touch experience. The LCD is full-HD resolution (1920x1080) and contains remote network control capability. The display sells for $28,500.
Perceptive Pixel; www.perceptivepixel.com

Rendering

All Rev’d Up
RevUp Render is offering a new cloud-rendering service supporting V-Ray 2.0 rendering software from the Chaos Group. This on-demand service takes advantage of distributed rendering in V-Ray 2.0 software, including the capability to control and monitor rendering on the desktop. Users employing 3D software with distributed rendering capabilities, including Autodesk Maya and 3ds Max, McNeel Rhino3D, and other packages that integrate V-Ray and its distributed rendering feature, can now work completely in the cloud. RevUp Render can also convert Autodesk Revit files to render on the new V-Ray rendering platform; customers pay a nominal fee for the conversion of each Revit file and a small fee per rendered Revit view.
RevUp Render; www.revuprender.com