Luxology Releases modo 202

Luxology®, LLC has announced the immediate availability of modo™ 202, a robust update to its innovative 3D modeling, painting and rendering software. Boasting a peak rendering speed that is over 40 percent faster than modo 201, modo 202 features performance gains, tool improvements and innovative extensions to its overall toolset to create an enhanced workflow for artists working in game development, film visual effects, video production, graphic arts and design visualization. Registered modo 201 customers can upgrade to modo 202 free of charge, and a free 30-day full-featured evaluation version is now available for immediate download from www.modo3d.com.

At SIGGRAPH 2006 in Boston, modo 202 will be demonstrated at the ATI booth (#1513); available for artists in the Guerilla Studio (room #52); and featured in a series of video presentations that can be downloaded from the Luxology website on each day of the exhibition. For more information on Luxology and modo 202 at SIGGRAPH, please visit modo3d.com.

"modo 201 is fast, but modo 202 is blazing fast," explains Brad Peebler, president and co-founder of Luxology. "modo 202 is a significant advancement towards our grand vision for modo. We built modo from the ground up to integrate modeling, painting and rendering in a way that dramatically improves workflow for 3D designers in all disciplines. modo 202 refines this development one step further, allowing artists to focus even more on creating and less on process and repetitive steps."

Beta Testers Applaud Speed and Performance
"modo 202 is a great improvement over an already impressive first release of modo 201," said Philip Lawson, multimedia and design student. "Luxology has packed many updates, fixes and new features - all of which make modo even more enjoyable to use. Faster render speeds are very welcome and the new UV tools, such as overlap highlight and pinning are extremely handy. With this update, Luxology proves once again that they listen to user requests."

"Before getting modo 202 I used Deep Paint to paint my models in a real-time environment," said Dan Silverman, freelance 3D artist. "Now I use modo exclusively. It allows me to model, UV map and paint in the same application and get the job done easier and faster. The improvement in render times from modo 201 to modo 202 is breathtaking, with renders completing up to three times faster."

"modo 202 makes it possible for me to work with huge CAD and scientific models, handling thousands and even millions of polygons in real time without any problems," said Juan Jose Gonzalez Diaz, freelance artist.

"I've seen renders completed up to three times faster with modo 202," said Dr. Neil Hayes, BS.c. arch|visuals, Brighton, UK. "The improvement in render speed from 201 to 202 is breathtaking. modo 202’s thicken tool is one of those features you never knew you needed - it’s a real time saver. modo 202's new render region option is also a great example of Luxology's commitment to improving workflow."

modo 202’s New and Improved Features
Rendering – Performance is now optimized to achieve a peak rendering speed that is 42 percent faster than modo 201. Rendering workflow is streamlined by improvements to the render window, including a convenient way to interactively adjust gamma display and a handy way to flip between 10 images for render review. The render window now provides an editable Limited Region control for quickly rendering a specific portion of the image. Soft shadows can now be generated from point and spot lights. Faster, more accurate image map re-sampling improves final image generation, and irradiance caching improvements substantially elevate global illumination quality and performance.

Modeling – Enhancements include a new create SubDiv option for the popular Pen tool, and a thicken tool for adding inner or outer thickness to geometry. A totally new object-to-object baking capability captures the surface detail of a complex object and automatically applies it to a simpler object for real-time applications. New ‘game’ and ‘unitless’ grids further increase modo’s suitability for modeling game assets. A new bounding box display option for geometry facilitates the manipulation of large datasets. UV editing operations are expedited in modo 202 with a new filled UV display mode that highlights unwanted overlaps in the UV editor. A new interactive UV relax with a pinning feature greatly simplifies the process of untangling overlapping UVs.

Painting – 3D painting behavior is improved when working on challenging areas such as folded UVs and along UV borders. 3D painting workflow is also bolstered with a new visible image ink display mode which lets artists place an image over a model and brush the image onto an underlying model. A new image ink stamp mode speeds the interactive rapid placement of logos, dirtmaps, scars or other images on the surface of models.

Improved workflow – Enhancements include the ability to see scene lights in Advanced OpenGL, and to interactively adjust the F-Stop, focal length and focal distance of cameras. Support for Autodesk FBX and X3D formats are extended for expanded interoperability with other 3D applications.

About modo
Engineered to smoothly integrate into existing tool pipelines and work together with other leading 2D and 3D software applications, modo 202 accelerates the creation of world-class models, associated color and normal maps, and ultra high-quality renderings, all while providing a comfortable and intuitive working environment. Used in feature films such as "Manchurian Candidate," "Da Vinci Code," "Meet the Robinsons," "The Ant Bully," and "Codehunters," modo is known for being a unique and powerful artist-friendly tool that combines modeling, painting and rendering in a fused workflow for artists in a variety of markets.

Pricing and Availability
modo 202 is available now for the price of USD $895. Current modo 201 users can upgrade to modo 202 free of charge and users with earlier versions of modo (modo 10x) can upgrade directly to modo 202 for USD $395. modo 202 is available through Safe Harbor on both the Windows and Mac OSX platforms.

A free 30-day full-function evaluation version of modo 202 is also available for immediate download from modo3d.com. Streamlined in size for more rapid download, the modo 202 evaluation version includes a starter pack of sample files and an interactive exploration guide that provides an artful introduction to modo’s most popular tools.

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