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DECEMBER 12, 2001 NewTek LightWave [7] for the Mac
Community One of the frustrating things I experienced while I was an Electric Image user was the lack of external resources for the product. Mind you, this was 1998, so I can't speak to how things are now for that particular program. But it's nice to know that when you get stuck (and with a program as complex as LightWave, it's not a matter of whether, but when) there is a safety net to fall back on. Fortunately, LightWave has a large community of active users to help you out in a pinch. In addition to the newsgroup (comp.graphics.apps.lightwave), there are many user-maintained LightWave tips and tricks sites, including some dedicated only to the Mac version of LightWave. Search for LightWave on Amazon.com, and up pops a slew of LightWave-specific books. Live and video-based training for LightWave is also plentiful, and NewTek themselves also maintain a large community board at NewTek.com, so it's nice to know that they are an active corporate "parent." The bottom line here is that LightWave has built up a large community of users over time, so it's not hard to find help when you need it. [an error occurred while processing this directive] Limitations I was very much expecting LightWave [7] to fully live up to its bad Mac rep and be buggy, unstable and generally unusable on the Mac. And, unfortunately, those bad expectations were met when I ran LightWave under OS 9. My advice: don't. The OpenGL is spotty at best, full of strange anomalies and gotchas. The performance is completely unacceptable, especially when trying to deal with models that have a modest-to-high point/polygon count. There are outrageous RAM requirements. And it crashes nonstop. So avoid LightWave on OS 9 like the plague. HOWEVER... LightWave running on OS X is a sheer, unadulterated joy. When I used previous versions of LightWave on Windows 2000, the program was remarkably stable and fast. You could get real work done without having to worry about the program could handle what you were asking of it without crashing. OS X provides that same experience. I crashed a few times, but the crashes were infrequent and random, like they were on the PC. OpenGL is marvelous under OS X, and even the modest 16 MB Radeon card in my G4 PowerBook produced smooth and accurate previews. As far as I'm concerned, as long as you're committed to running LightWave on OS X and forget about OS 9, the NewTek slate should be wiped clean of their past Mac transgressions. But, if you're completely against running OS X (and you know who you are), that presents a somewhat major limitation, since LightWave pretty much stinks on OS 9. There are a couple of other non-Mac-specific issues here as well. One of them is that I would be reluctant to upgrade to version 7 from 6.5 if I were still a PC user. Ultimately, SkyTracer, Motion Mixer, and Sasquatch Light clinch it, but it's not a slam-dunk upgrade. As noted earlier, there are some nice features built into version 7, but $500 is a lot to spend on an upgrade for what you get, especially since 6.5 still packs quite a wallop. However, I consider version 7 on the Mac to be a required upgrade because of the stability and enhanced performance on Mac OS X. I know, I know. The consumer shouldn't have to pay more for added stability, but Microsoft blazed that particular trail and now it seems like everyone is following in their footsteps. That's all I'll say about that before I go any further with what would promise to be an off-topic rant. Anyway, the other big limitation continues to be the Hub. I say "continues" because since the Hub's introduction in version 6, it hasn't really been fixed through 6b, 6.5, 7, or 7b. It just can't be trusted to do what it claims it's supposed to do. What it's supposed to do is monitor and control data passing between Layout and Modeler, and it does a very unreliable job of that. After losing a good deal of the model changes I made in Layout because the Hub "forgot" to update Modeler on what I did, I found myself reverting back to my pre-Hub workflow of compulsively using the Save All Objects command every time I made a single change to a model. I'd really like to see the Hub eliminated altogether, in favor of Modeler and Layout having the capacity to save each other's stuff, either by asking or not asking as the user desires. Some users have a great relationship with the Hub; I'm not one of them. The bottom line I realize that 3D artists are a varied lot, and I'm sure my particular look at LightWave didn't even begin to scratch the surface of what LightWave [7] can do for some of you and your particular needs in the 3D universe. However, I found LightWave [7] on the Mac to be a wonderful 3D program which can meet the needs of a wide variety of 3D uses, from game producers to character animators to special effects artists. It's only wonderful, however, if you use Mac OS X. But hey, don't just take my word for it. NewTek will graciously send you a demo of LightWave [7] for free, and you can try it for yourself before you buy. If you're an OS X kind of person and are looking for a full-featured and reasonably priced 3D package, LightWave [7] is definitely one to check out, so we're giving it a Strong Buy rating. Kudos to NewTek for finally delivering a version of LightWave for the Mac that doesn't pale in comparison to the PC version. Kevin Schmitt has been a working with just about every aspect of digital design since before it was called digital design. An award-winning multimedia producer, artist, and animator, he is currently the Digital Design Director for StudioAPCO, a creative shop housed at a communications firm in Washington, D.C. By all means, drop him a line at kschmitt@apcoworldwide.com. 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