T-Splines takes the wish lists of many modelers into account by creating a method of modeling with the precision of NURBS, adding much more speed and freedom, all wrapped up in a neat Maya plug-in.

T-Splines is a new modeling plug-in for that allows users to go beyond basic NURBS modeling. Taking the wish lists of many modelers into account, T-Splines LLC (yep, they like their product so much they named the company after it) has created a method of modeling with the precision of NURBS while adding much more speed and freedom. T-Splines models are seamless, meaning that portions of a low-resolution model can be high detail, with no gaps in between. In addition to the speed gained by using T-Splines, users may convert to and from NURBS models without any loss of detail, as well as convert reasonably well to polygons. One of the main benefits is increased render speeds. NURBS models can be more than halved when converted to a T-Splines model. The rest of Maya's workflow remains the same, including mapping, rigging and animation. This may all seem like magic, but truth is, the plug-in works as promised. As with most first-generation software, one or two elements will surely benefit from the improvements in future updates.

Getting T-Splines set up takes a bit of grunt work, but nothing an average user can't handle. After installing the plug-in, you've got to manually create a shelf and T-Splines menu in Maya. This would be much more gracefully handled within the installer. That's a small gripe, though. Once installed, you'll find a T-Splines menu and a shelf containing just about everything you'll need to access when creating T-Splines models. If you've done any NURBS modeling in Maya, you'll be able to pick up T-Splines quickly, most likely with just a few clicks on the shelf.

Users can choose to create T-Splines model primitives or convert existing geometry to T-Splines models. If you go for the direct T-Splines method, you can change options through your NURBS settings. This is not entirely intuitive, as T-Splines is presented as a separate modeling method when really it is a modifier on top of an existing model. This confusion aside, once you get going, the process rolls smoothly.

T-Splines allows users to insert points without creating unnecessary, unwanted geometry. The overall shape is initially unchanged, but the additional points allow great flexibility in sculpting new shapes. All images courtesy of Fred Galpern.

There are many different aspects to the overall plug-in. One of the first things likely to catch your attention is how T-Splines offers the ability to insert a point without creating unnecessary, unwanted geometry. This is done by first selecting a series of edges and then clicking the insert point button. It sounds simple and it is. This tool functioned as expected each time I added additional points, with no surprises.

T-Splines also introduces its own new flavor of geometry called T-Junctions. These are spots in the model where a point touches three faces but is only considered a point by two of those faces. This is in many ways something modelers have been dreaming of for years. It means your mesh can contain varied levels of resolution yet still be continuous. Another treat is that you can use T-Junctions to join dissimilar portions of a model together seamlessly. As with any tool that offers such a treat, users will need to be cautious and realize it cannot do the impossible. However, common tasks such as joining appendages to torsos will be handled quite elegantly.

In addition to T-Junctions, T-Splines also uses a new kind of point, the somewhat awkwardly named extraordinary points. T-Splines considers any point with more than four edges connected to be an extraordinary point. When modeling with T-Splines, users need to be aware of where they create these extraordinary points, as they will sometimes adversely affect T-Junctions. This limitation is easily worked around and, in fact, can be an aid in creating quality models. In other words, it can serve as a reminder to clean up your geometry, something that certainly doesn't hurt when you're trying to stick to tight graphics budgets. If you're careful, though, the model doesn't suffer and you gain the ability to create complexity only in selected portions of the overall model.