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#63389 by Nick Pyner
Fri Feb 28, 2014 7:50 pm
Simply 3D has a few shortcomings but the colour matching, targetting system, and raytraced shadows make up for a lot.

A big problem is that I don't usually get the model right first time and, if additions or repairs are exported later, they will not automatically align with the original output. S3D simply puts them into best fit in the view and you take your chances at moving them.

A solution is to enclose the entire model in a box which is on its exclusive layer. S3D then locates the package(!) according to the size of the box. All that is required then is that any additions or changes are exported from DataCad using the same box, and S3D then locates them in the proper position.
#63402 by dmartens
Mon Mar 03, 2014 3:23 pm
So is this a rendering software Nick? If so then how about a plantings library (shrubs, trees etc.)? And I assume you are exporting from o2c? And what about the shortcomings? Always interested in new rendering options. Thanks.
Dan
#63404 by Nick Pyner
Mon Mar 03, 2014 7:41 pm
Ahhh.... Thereby hangs a tale. S3D3 is not new, it is old, very old, and I think the story goes back to DataCad 8 - in those halcyon days when not only was Dcad cheap, but you also got a renderer thrown in. I suspect DataCad was caught flat-footed with the renderer for V8 but saved the situation by including Visual Reality at the last moment. They might have been able to do this because they could get a good deal with Micrografx as VR was being phased out and replaced by Simply 3D.

S3D3 was never included with DataCad but people got to know about it because of its association with VR, and both of them are still being used. S3D has two huge advantages over VR - it is a true windows program and not so crash-prone, and it has ray-tracing. It is not so professional as VR. The lighting is not so sophisticated, although quite adequate, and there is no camera animation. The biggest problem is that it lacked the great attribute of VR - you can make alterations in DataCad and then replace the layer in VR automatically. This is what the cheaptrick is all about.

I think it was something of a tragedy that Micrografx did not bring out version 4 as promised. About the only things they needed to do was fix the camera animation and the maintenance issues. As they had VR and the man who made it, they knew what to do and how to do it. Unfortunately they tried to change direction, lost their way completely, and were taken over by Corel who then killed them off behind the back shed.

Needless to say, it has nothing to do with o2c. I didn't know any renderer could import from o2c. As for the libraries, I think they are much the same and as interchangeable as everybody else's, but I don't think I use any of it. Most of my stuff came out of VR, with stuff from everything else I have, plus some home-made.

You might be able to pick up a copy at a garage sale.........
#63406 by joshhuggins
Mon Mar 03, 2014 11:03 pm
Nick Pyner wrote:taken over by Corel who then killed them off behind the back shed.
As they do with everything they touch. I loath them.
#63408 by Paul Nida
Tue Mar 04, 2014 10:03 am
Yes, but the thing is Micrografx took over Visual Reality and stripped a few things out of it for Simply 3d and threw the rest away. Thus destroying Renderize Live, what goes around comes around I guess. That is when I quit using Micrografx Designer.
#63431 by jimgoodman
Tue Mar 04, 2014 10:25 pm
I too continue to mourn the demise of Micrographx in general and Visual Realty/Simply 3d in particular.

I first purchased and started using Micrografx Designer in 1987 on a Windows 3.1 AST machine. It was the first vector based illustration program written specifically for Windows. Micrografx Picture Publisher came a long a few years later. It had layers for compositing images long before Photoshop did.

I agree that Corel tore the heart out of both programs. I purchased Design X4 a few years ago but it is way overpriced and "upgraded" to a point where it's almost useless.

I am trying to learn Photoshop and Illustrator, but they are so dang complicated compared to the original Picture Publisher & Designer. Kind of a DataCAD vs AutoCAD thing I guess.

On the 3d side of things, I find Sketchup is more than a worthy substitution for Visual Realty/Simply 3d. I give Nick great credit for making those programs productive as long as he did. I will get around to publishing my tips and tricks for rendering DataCAD models in Sketchup in the near future.
#63546 by Mark Bell
Sat Mar 15, 2014 6:18 pm
I've only recently phased out Visual Reality and upgraded to a newer rendering software. I still use Visual Image (part of the DataCAD v8 Visual Reality Suite) as it still does the job. As Nick mentioned, VR (and S3D) was ahead of its time and I think a great choice to include with DataCAD when it was released. It's unfortunate it wasn't developed further as it was an easy and flexible renderer....the technology of today has overtaken it so the images now look pale in comparison to what the new packages can output.

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