News: Torrent Solution

Thanks for the responses and suggestions. I appreciate them.

Well, I've simmered down and managed to come to a quick and simple solution. I will remove the download links and replace them with torrent links of my own. Official BlenderNewbies torrents. I would appreciate that any torrent downloading consist of "official" torrents created by me. That way, you can be assured of not downloading any questionable "extra" content. I just really don't like my files being bundled with other files, some of which are pirated commercial videos. That's just not good company to be in. I have nothing against torrents, I just don't like some of the presumptions that tend to tag along with them.

It will take some time to get this setup because I have no idea how to create and upload a torrent so, I'm off to learn that. Plus, it will still take time to upload them. I'll start at the beginning and will only remove current download links when there is a torrent available to replace it.

Thanks

News: Torrent Problems

Hello,

I'm seriously considering removing all of the downloadable versions of my tutorials.

What is prompting me in this direction is my recent awareness of a torrent posted on 3DBuzz that contains 61 Blender tutorials. Nineteen of those are from my site. I know that once something like this starts, it becomes seen as something to do even more. I don't view it as a way to "get the word out" about my site, especially if I'm not even asked first. There are other tutorials in the torrent from other popular websites, as well.

I feel that I've made the effort to consider the circumstances of those with slower connections while still trying to maintain high-quality tutorials. However, some see that as an opportunity to make themselves feel worthwhile by taking advantage of the hard work of others. I mean, what's next? My tutorials being sold on ebay like Blender is currently being sold...illegaly? I may not be able to stop it but, I'll do what I can to not make it so easy.

My biggest concern with all of this is that, at some point, my efforts must become commercially viable (I'll always do regular free tutorials, btw). It takes a lot to do this and many sites have failed due to a lack of vision and understanding of basic economics (i.e. everything can't be free). My hope is that BlenderNewbies is a continuing and growing success. I can't do that if all of the content of my site is all over the internet. Why visit the site if you can get it somewhere else? What if I choose to create compilation CDs of all the tutorials? I lose options like that when torrents become involved. Which means I lose an opportunity to create some income to help keep the site alive.

One reason I switched to the SWF format is because it gives me the best presentation options (along with the best picture quality) and is probably the most widely used format. The biggest reason, however, was the streaming aspect which allows viewers with slower connections to have access to the tutorials 90% faster than having to download the entire file first (10% buffering and you can begin watching the tutorial). So, not having a downloadable version shouldn't be so bad.

I haven't decided, yet. I'm keeping tabs on the torrent to see how many downloads there are. If it gets to be pretty high, I'm pulling the plug on the downloads...sorry.

What are your thoughts?

technorati tags: Blender3D, 3D, graphics, Blender tutorials

Video: Blender's Built-in HotKey and MouseAction Reference

Here's a great info resource that's been lurking right under your mouse pointer! It's a built-in HotKey and MouseAction reference, complete with search capability.

The short story is that it's located in the Help menu - "HotKey and MouseAction Reference".

For full details and how to make it even more accessible check out the short video.

What's covered:

• The HotKey Reference interface


• Creating custom screen layouts for the reference

Watch the tutorial online
(SWF streaming, Length - 2:11)
Or, Download the 5.92MB ZIP file to view it offline (load the HTML file in your browser).
Or, Download via Torrent.


Get the Free Flash Player: Windows version or Linux version

technorati tags: Blender3D, 3D, graphics, Blender tutorials, Blender hotkeys

Modeling the Blender 3D Logo

In this tutorial, we create a 3D version of Blender's 2D logo. When we're done, we'll have a very accurate model of our favorite 3D application's logo.

Examples (the tutorial does not show the creation of the following):



What's covered:

• Adding a background image (or blueprint)
• Using curves for modeling iconic images and lettering
  
• and more

Watch the tutorial online
(FLV streaming, Length - 39:17)

Link: History of the Blender Logo and Suzanne
Link: Blender Wiki - Curves
Graphic: Blender logo graphic used in tutorial

Get the Free Flash Player: Windows version or Linux version

technorati tags: Blender3D, 3D, graphics, Blender tutorials

Ten-Minute Drawing Techniques blog

Hey,

I thought I would share this blog that I came across during one my frequent internet travels. It's not Blender-related but, it does offer some very good drawing tutorials. These tutorials are done by a man named Mark Chong. He's extremely good and has worked in the visual effects industry on many big-time projects.

All of the tutorials are, you guess it, 10-minutes long. They're very focused and always have something that you can actually use in the real world. There's lots to learn, no matter what your level of experience.

I'm pointing you to his first post because the tutorials are progressive.

Click the image to check it out:

technorati tags: Blender3D, 3D, graphics, Blender tutorials, drawing

Video: How to Create Glint Effects in Blender

Adding glints to your scenes can add an extra touch of realism and excitement. This video tutorial will show you, step-by-step, how to easily add glint effects.




Topics covered:

• Halo types
• Basic Compositing using the AlphaOver node
• and more...

Watch the tutorial online
(SWF streaming, Length - 30:11)
Or, Download the 79.6MB ZIP file to view it offline (load the HTML file in your browser).
Or, Download via Torrent.

Download the .blend file, here (1.56MB packed - After loading file, go to File-->Unpack Data. Specify where you want the textures to be placed.).

Get the Free Flash Player: Windows version or Linux version

technorati tags: Blender3D, 3D, graphics, Blender tutorials, glint, sfx