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DECEMBER 12, 2001 NewTek LightWave [7] for the Mac
The next thing you'll notice is that LightWave's UI is, to put it mildly, less than Mac-like (Figure 2). While some might be annoyed with LightWave's Amiga-esque interface, I'm not going to fault NewTek one bit for not "Macifying" their product. LightWave's interface has evolved over a decade and has spanned several platforms, so kudos to NewTek for sticking with what works for their users and not slapping some confusing and unlabeled icons on the toolbar just for the sake of what they might perceive to be more Mac-friendly. And coming over from the Windows version, it was a treat to not have to re-train myself to use the identical program on another platform. Anyway LightWave's interface is probably indicative of things to come as the Mac community transitions more fully to the Unix-based OS X, so the best thing to say here is that you'll get used to it. 
[an error occurred while processing this directive]Fig. 2: Do these interface elements look like part of a Mac application to you? Does it even matter any more?
Overall, LightWave's interface takes a while to get the hang of, but once you do you'll appreciate the fact that the tools are organized very thoughtfully into tabs (Figure 3) and that each tool is labeled only by its text name rather than icons (and subtly color coded as well to help you keep track of what's what). Plus, you have an enormous amount of control over how your interface is laid out, as LightWave provides numerous customization options (more on that later). 
Fig. 3: Sure, the tabs and text look boring. But you can get a lot done this way. Features You could literally write thousands of pages on all the stuff crammed into LightWave [7], and indeed, some already have. The included manual is about five inches thick, and some of the third-party LightWave books I've seen are even thicker. Since this is a review and not one of the aforementioned manuals, I'll try to be as concise as possible, but there's a whole lot to cover here. So in an attempt to go about this in a calm and orderly fashion, let's go through LightWave [7] categorically to see what it offers, but if you want a complete list of LightWave [7]'s features, check out NewTek's Web site. Prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Next Related sites: • Animation Artist • AV Video • Creative Mac • Digital Animators • Digital Game Developer • Digital Media Designer • Digital Post Production • Digital Producer • Hollywood Industry Related forums: [an error occurred while processing this directive] 
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