Pixologic Presents: Action Hero Contest

[C-Mad]

Simply awesome!

We have 6 entries started after the first day, and they are all fascinating characters!

Time Thief - A gal who uses the time of others for HER purposes,
ONE - A Bodisatva warrior, who becomes the light of consciousness that eradicates all evil,
Wired - A former rapper, turned vigilante,
Damage - A genetically engineered fighter, who stands for the small man,
Nitrate - A villainess who secretes Nitric acid from her skin at will,
The Package - A former male exotic dancer, who now, with the aid of his "Codpiece of Justice," and his signature Pelvic Thrust, battles double-crossing Government Intelligence agents and a mysterious cult of religious zealots.

And this is JUST THE START...

~OM

[aurick]

Dear Aurick/ZBrush Central moderators,

I was extremely excited to find about this contest recently and was literally counting the days until the 19th, thinking up ideas and looking forward to finding out more information.

I think the contest sounds great, but have been severely disappointed to find that amateurs such as myself cannot enter using a trial copy of the software. I have been out of University for under a year now and am unemployed, residing back at home with my mother, and currently living off 60 Pounds a month (less than $90 US) in government benefits.

It absolutely impossible for people like me or those in a similar situation to afford the full software, and I find it unneccessarily harsh to stipulate that a full license must be owned.

Unemployed artists such as myself stand to gain the most from contests such as this. The exposure gained would be incredibly valuable, providing a major boost towards getting a career in such a competitive industry.

I am sure it does not escape you that many amateurs use trial software and cracked versions in order to learn the software and become proficient enought to gain employment. This situation is obviously benificial to Pixelogic, as market suaturation is more easily achieved if people are using their tools as opposed to the numerous alternatives (which are becoming more and more popular).

People purchase licenses not out of fear of prosecution, or because they will be excluded from competitions such as this, but because they feel morally obliged to pay their dues to a company that has provided them with a wonderful tool that they appreciate. Needlessly petty restrictions only serve to alienate potential customers, and I am certain that I am echoing the concerns of many other ZBrush users on this very forum when I say this.

Either way, I have always been happy that forums like this exist, and that the Pixologic team generally fosters such a nurturing environment for it's users. I hope to purchase a copy of the software in future because I love it, and I love the community that surrounds it. I just hope you realize the real danger of putting others off.

Best regards

Kazpah

We do understand where you're coming from, and this was something that was given a great deal of thought. There's a very simple and logical reason why trial copies cannot be used for completion of this contest: The contest runs for 8 weeks. The deadline for entry is 2 weeks in, which means that even if you waited until the last minute to enter there are still 6 weeks to go. The trial works for 4 weeks. Even if you waited until the day that you entered to install it, there would still be two weeks during which you could not be working while everyone else still is. That's a huge disadvantage! The disadvantage is made worse by the fact that the contest is a WIP challenge. This means that everyone is expected to show regular updates of their work and respond to comments from others. Once your trial copy runs out, it becomes much harder for you to participate on the WIP level.

So it is just plain impractical for someone to compete and have any real hope of winning with a trial copy. But we also didn't want to exclude trial users altogether, which is why the rules were written to allow you to begin your entry with the trial version.

[C-Mad]

I just sent Aurick a PM regarding the "You can use your Work copy of ZBrush" allowance, stating that I was not posting here, to avoid starting a fight, since there has already been enough whining about how "HARD" and "DRACONIAN" the contest rules are...

I am a bad person, becuase I AM now going to go against my word, and ask about it in this thread, so we ALL can get a better handle on this "who can enter" situation...

It seems somewhat unfair to allow those who use ZBrush in a work capacity to then enter with their work software license, rather than being required to buy their own copy...

Just because your workplace has a copy of ZBrush does not mean you are authorized to use it for personal work. Will there be a requirement for a written authorization submission from your boss? There should be.

What about if the license is owned by a family member? Shouldn't that count? People using work licenses aren't any more exempt from the license requirement just because they use it at work. If you do housework, that could loosely be considered "employment," thereby authorizing you to use your "employer's" licensed copy, no? That is as valid a justification for using any copy not licensed to you as the work excuse.

And, if the "commercial license" aspect is taken into consideration, are we talking a workplace that has AT LEAST 5 or more ZBrush licenses? How about 2? What if it is 'XYZ' graphics, with just one copy that the boss has in the business name?

I'd be interested in the explanation of how working with ZBrush entitles these individuals to not have to own a copy in order to STILL be eligible to win valuable prizes...I assumed that part of the purpose behind this contest is to promote ZBrush sales, which of course, is being accomplished just by the requirement in order to enter. What value is it in giving away stuff to people who don't have to follow that requirement, when the rest of us still do?

Is the Graphics Industry THAT tight knit, that to push the use of this app, you will give them an "edge" in this competition?

Just like the "for fun" entries, I think if you don't own a licensed copy, you should not be eligible to win prizes. The license cost is your Entry Fee to any and every Z-Brush contest for life. The contest organizers should not then be letting people in for free, or on someone else's ticket...You can still get the fame and acclaim, just not the cool goodies. Those are for people who have "paid the entry fee." Commercial usage should not apply. That's why businesses pay a discount for their licenses.

I know, I'm not being "nice." I have a tendency to be blunt and forthright when people expect non-confrontational and bland. My apologies. But I know I am speaking for probably more members who don't use ZBrush at work, than who do, when I ask why this is considered "fair," to change the rules to favor some over others. It bothers me enough to PM Aurick, and then go back on my word, which means a lot, to me.

~OM

[skullbeast]

too many rules, means no fun.

[DAnconia]

Im sure that Pixo wasnt the only putting these stipulations for the contest. But i say stop complaining AND GET TO WORK!

[Pluie.]

you just have to spend 600$ in zbrush license to participate to the challenge
no big deal

[Blastamon]

C-Mad, your forgetting that 8 weeks of my time is worth MUCH more than 600 dollars. I am sure many would agree. So if you look at it that way, we ARE giving pixologic alot more...for free, for fun. So for $12,000 worth of prizes I bet pixologic gets $100,000+ worth of artwork, UNTAXED.

Free marketing, lots of promotional artwork, tons of exposure to amateurs and professionals alike, spreading Z-brush across the industry. I am sure even right now new people are joining the forums just to have a go at this contest. Charging an "Entry Fee" by forcing you to buy z-brush for the sake of selling more copies is minor compared to what this contest does for the Pixologic community.

[Slosh]

Can anyone elaborate on the water-tight and no holes concept? I was trying to figure out what that meant, and have come to a few possible conclusions:

a. It means that there can be no areas where you can see the room through the model, i.e. between his legs, where they form a triangle on the base, or where an arm bends and is held at the waist. Somehow, I don't think this is the answer. Little green army men have always been molded in plastic with these "A" shapes or triangular holes. But then, 3d printing is different than molding.

b. The printer, if I understand it correctly, constructs the figure from the base up, adding layers of material, until it reaches the top. If you were to slice your model, any part that was free-standing in that slice, such as the bottom of a sword, would not be able to be built up. I'm inclined to think this is the issue of "no holes".

Can anyone clarify this for me? Thanks in advance.

Slosh

[maxinkuk]

No, it only means that the mesh must be a continuous closed surface. In your example there would be a problem with the eye sockets - not the negative space of the pose like in between legs and ringers.

[skullbeast]

It is more about no severed heads with unfinished holes. You can have the items you drew in red. the fingers will be fragile but they should turn out. We did a lot of the Ironman stuff that way the guy was grown in the suit with gaps all around. sometimes the 3d printing companies will just collapse the "holed" polys in the area if they find them but that spells hefty cleanup for you after the print is made.

[Gordon Robb]

Just had a thought based on the last question. Does this mean that we cannot use subtools? Sorry if this has already been said. Working myself up to enter this contest.

[Slosh]

Thanks for the quick replies, everyone. That helped me out alot. I guess I don't quite understand the 3d printing process, because I still wonder about how it prints sections that hang down into mid-air. For example, an icicle. Of course, I'm sure this is something that they have worked out and I don't really need to know how it's done. But I do understand what you meant about the eye sockets and such. Basically, if I drop it into a bucket of water, will it fill the figure??? And of course, the sockets would have. Thanks again!!!!

[johnckl3d]

In regards to those who whine about the license stuff, I would like to point out a fact that pixologic has always been generous to a fault when it comes to providing stuff to make zbrush as accesible to amateurs as it does to pros. How many times do we see aurick replying to a troubleshooting thread even when the question has been asked a zillion times in other places? Or the extensive help webpage that has been meticulously organized and up to date? Or the turntable gallery and the numerous up to date patches?

comparing my experiences with windows, motion builder, HP customer support, adobe premiere and other ridiculously expensive softwares which pipe about customer support and ignore you once you bought their stuff.. zbrush willingness to go the extra mile is the exception in the midst of huge corporations trying to squeeze every little penny out of us...

Please be reasonable, if there is no license requirement, all the bootleggers who didn't pay a dime would flood this competition. What if the winner is a bootlegger? Wouldn't that be unfair to the other contestants who has been loyal customers all along? Their money is what makes zbrush so good in the first place.

If microsoft held a halo competition, they would ask all contestants to buy a beta version of windows vista, with a beta version of halo, complete with 12 months of subscribtion to microsoft's new gaming magazine. And after the contest is over, they'd flood your email with advertisements to upgrade your OS to vista millenium to avoid crashing problems.

I just fail to see what's the point in arguing about the license...

[Gordon Robb]

Speaking as a hobbiest, who bought the programme license, I can't see why anyone would expect to be able to enter a competition with out owning the programme.

Mind you, none of that affects the fact that I cannot, at this time, think of any superhero or villain.

what about subtools? Do we have to not use them for this then?

[maxinkuk]

The presence of subtools does not create any problem for 3d printing, as long as the subtool meshes intersect with one another as part of one body.

I should really bite my tongue but I often fail to do so, on the pretty incredible issue of people upset for the exclusion of holders of non licensed copies from the competition and with all the possible understanding for the talented people that cannot yet afford to pay for a license, the fact remains that it's through sales that Pixologic exists so long live Pixologic and good luck to them to prosper and sell more in the future.
Those that have some good reason to use non licensed copies can still post their work and learn and improve just like anybody else. Pixologic has a duty towards itself to try and sell as much as they can, and if one positive aspect of running competitions is that they get a few more people to license their copy then it's all good for them and consequently for all Zbrush users.