September 20, 2001 15:41
NewTek Releases LightWave 3D [7b] Update
Free Maintenance Update Includes Speed Increases and Optimizations
SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- NewTek(R), Inc., manufacturer of industry-leading 3D animation and video products, announced today that they have released a maintenance update for the immensely popular LightWave 3D(TM) version [7]. LightWave [7] was announced and released on August 13, 2001, at NewTek's standing-room only user event during SIGGRAPH, and has been embraced by the 3D-user community since that announcement. Only a month later, the LightWave development team has completed massive speed increases and optimizations for both the Intel SSE2 instruction set and the Apple AltiVec instruction set (also known as the Velocity Engine), allowing for an unprecedented performance improvement.
NewTek returned from SIGGRAPH 2001 to work closely with both beta testers and end users to find out what areas of the software could benefit from additional work or enhancements, and in a few short weeks, the update has been finished and made available to all LightWave [7] users free of charge. NewTek worked closely with partners such as Apple, Intel, Curious Labs and other third party developers to enhance the way LightWave 3D works with their products. LightWave 3D plug-ins are working more smoothly than ever, and the enhancements made for SSE2 from Intel for the Pentium 4, and the AltiVec from Apple for the PowerMac G4 make LightWave 3D incredibly fast on those platforms.
"LightWave [7b] has turned into a very significant update, not only taking care of minor bugs in the [7] release, but adding the significant speed increases; both as a result of the SSE2 and AltiVec optimizations and also due to some work on the core LightWave code," commented Brad Peebler, executive vice president of 3D graphics for NewTek. "We have been in constant contact with our users and our partners, and this update to LightWave [7] is a result of their input. We were very proud of the LightWave [7] release, and the 'b' patch makes it that much more powerful."
From now until September 30, 2001, all registered LightWave owners may upgrade from any version to the new LightWave [7] for US$495. After September 30, 2001, registered owners of LightWave [6] may upgrade to version [7] for US$495, and registered owners of LightWave 5.6 or earlier may upgrade to version [7] for US$595. LightWave owners interested in taking advantage of this upgrade special should visit lightwave.com or call NewTek customer service at 1-800-862-7837 or 1-210-370-8000.
New Features
-- SSE2 and AltiVec optimizations for Intel P4 and Apple G4 processors
-- Use of the Motorola math library for Mac OS X version boosts render
performance
-- OpenGL optimizations that yield a 20% to 80% speed-up in some instances
-- Ability to double-click to add channel name to current expression in
Graph Editor
-- SkyTracer 2 and Image World will now take advantage of multiple
processors
-- Motion Mixer speed optimizations relating to the use of expressions
-- Mac OS X version now supports true type fonts
User Comments
"LightWave has been advancing at an incredible rate, this patch is another great step ahead," said Rob Baldwin, animator at Nickelodeon Animation Studios/Nick Digital West, who currently works on Invader ZIM, among other projects. "There are so many new features in [7], that we haven't even had the chance to use all of them yet! We'll use 'em though. Use 'em to create even more Doooom!"
"The added speed and stability of LightWave [7b] lets us tackle complex projects that other packages wouldn't even attempt in the same timeframe," said Mike Stetson, animator at Foundation Imaging.
Benchmarks
In benchmarks performed at NewTek comparing render speeds for different scenes, using different operating systems and hardware, LightWave [7b] has proved to have significant increases in speed, with render times dropping by as much as 87%.
All tests done on a Dual 533 G4, 4 threads for every render, Mac OS X
10.0.4
Scene LW 7.0 LW 7.0b %
Reflective_RadiosityThings.lws 131.0s 86.2s 34%
Radiosity_Things.lws 12.7s 8.5s 33%
Raytrace.lws 304.3s 201.5s 34%
Tracer_no_Radiosity.lws 2877.2s 838.3s 71%
Tracer_Radiosity.lws 10282.4s 1317.8s 87%
Textures.lws 24.0s 15.4s 36%
Using Dual 533 G4 running Mac OS 10.0.4 and rendering with 4 threads
Scene LW 6.5b LW 7.0b %
Reflective_RadiosityThings.lws 231.2s 86.2 62%
Radiosity_Things.lws 14.7s 8.5s 42%
Raytrace.lws 293.3s 201.5s 31%
Tracer_no_Radiosity.lws 2496.0s 838.3s 66%
Tracer_Radiosity.lws 9694.8s 1317.8s 86%
Textures.lws 18.7s 14.5s 22%
Mac OS 9.1 vs. Mac OS 10.0.4, Dual 533 G4, 4 threads per render
Scene OS 9 OS X %
Reflective_RadiosityThings.lws 105.1s 86.2s 17%
Radiosity_Things.lws 10.3s 8.5s 16%
Raytrace.lws 228.6s 201.5s 12%
Tracer_no_Radiosity.lws 934.5s 838.3s 9%
Tracer_Radiosity.lws 1406.2s 1317.8s 2%
Textures.lws 16.8s 15.4s 8%
Intel 1.5Ghz Pentium 4, 1 thread
Scene LW 7.0 LW 7.0b %
Reflective_RadiosityThings.lws 171.0s 111.5 34%
Radiosity_Things.lws 13.0s 8.3s 36%
Raytrace.lws 289.8s 229.7s 20%
Tracer_no_Radiosity.lws 893.4s 825.7s 7%
Tracer_Radiosity.lws 1173.3s 1062.9s 9%
Textures.lws 7.5s 7.5s 0%
Intel 1.5Ghz Pentium 4, 1 thread
Scene LW 6.5b LW 7.0b %
Reflective_RadiosityThings.lws 300.3s 111.5s 62%
Radiosity_Things.lws 15.8s 8.3s 47%
Raytrace.lws 324.4s 229.7s 29%
Tracer_no_Radiosity.lws 939.2s 825.7s 12%
Tracer_Radiosity.lws 1266.5s 1062.9s 16%
Textures.lws 18.8s 7.5s 60%
Pricing and Availability
LightWave [7] is currently shipping for a suggested retail price of US$2495, and the [7b] update is available immediately for download from NewTek's website, as well as international NewTek partners. The patch will be available shortly in the shipping LightWave [7] package. From now until September 30, 2001, all registered owners of any version of LightWave may upgrade for US$495. After September 30, 2001, registered owners of LightWave [6] may upgrade to version [7] for US$495, and registered owners of LightWave 5.6 or earlier may upgrade to version [7] for US$595. LightWave [7] is available for Macintosh OS 9 and OS X-native, and for Windows 98, 2000, Me and NT4, and is running on AMD and Intel processors. Product is available through NewTek's channel of authorized resellers and distributors worldwide.
About NewTek
With headquarters in San Antonio, Texas, NewTek is a leading provider of full-featured video editing, animation and special effects tools including the Video Toaster, LightWave 3D and Aura. NewTek launched the desktop video revolution in 1990 with the release of the legendary Video Toaster. The company's products are used worldwide on projects ranging from home video to feature film. Recent film and television projects using NewTek software include Driven, A.I., Final Fantasy, The Time Machine, How The Grinch Stole Christmas, The 6th Day, Jurassic Park III, Charlie's Angels, X-Men The Movie, Pitch Black, Dracula 2000, Star Trek: Enterprise, Roughnecks: Starship Troopers, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, The X-Files, The Family Guy, Ally McBeal, Dune: The Miniseries, Dawson's Creek and Family Law. Recent game titles include Deus Ex, Serious Sam, Twisted Metal: Black, Quake 3 Arena, Moto Racer World Tour, Giants for PS2, Baldur's Gate II, EverQuest, Planescape: Torment, Dead To Rights, and Escape From Monkey Island. Contact NewTek at 5131 Beckwith Blvd, San Antonio, TX, 78249. Phone: 210-370-8000, fax: 210-370-8001, website: newtek.com or lightwave3d.com .
NOTE:
-- LightWave 3D is a trademark of NewTek.
-- All other products or brand names mentioned are trademarks or
registered trademarks of their respective holders.
FOR GENERAL INFORMATION
Call 1-210-370-8000
or email info@newtek.com
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SOURCE NewTek, Inc.
/CONTACT: press or review units, Hollie Wendt of Wendt Communications,
+1-831-688-1193, or hollie@earthlink.net, for NewTek, Inc./
/Web site: lightwave3d.com
/Web site: newtek.com
In the news release, NewTek Releases LightWave 3D [7b] Update, issued earlier today by NewTek, Inc. over PR Newswire, we are advised by the company that in the fourth paragraph, third sentence, the URL should read " lightwave3d.com " rather than " lightwave.com " as originally issued inadvertently.
/PRNewswire -- Sept. 20/ |
