San Francisco-based MetaCreations Corp., which develops and markets 2D and 3D
visualization software for graphic artists and the World Wide Web, has
announced Carrara 1.0, a 3D modeling and animation solution for print,
video and the Web. Carrara will contain a hybrid Ray Tracer, advanced
shader editors, multiple modelers, real-time Metaballs, particle systems,
3D light sources, lens flares, motion blur, key framing, physical effects,
deformers and more. Carrara will introduce a workflow called SmartFlow that
will allow users to "walk" projects through a series of production steps,
with each compartmentalized area featuring the tools required to complete
tasks. Carrara will also support the industry standard MetaStream file
format to allow the creation of high-quality, compact 3D objects for
streaming over the Web. Carrara is expected to be available in the fall of
1999 for Windows 95/1998/2000/NT and Power MacIntosh on CD-ROM. For more
information visit
www.metacreations.com/products/carrara . MetaCreations
Corp. has also announced KPT Vector Effects 1.5, an upgrade to the plug-ins
for Adobe Illustrator. The upgrade, expected in September 1999, will be
available for the first time for the Windows platform and will offer full
compatibility for users of Illustrator versions 7 and 8. KPT Vector Effects
reduces the number of steps required to produce results with Illustrator
without adding complexity. Vector Effects can be used to create 3D looks
from line art, shadows, warped text and images, and more. Vector Effects is
expected to ship in September 1999, with an estimated retail price of US
$149. For more information visit
www.metacreations.com/products/vectoreffects .
