Free web design helps from SitePoint - JQuery and more...

I have probably mentioned SitePoint before, but that is because they have some really useful things for web designers.

The offering that prompted me to blog tonight was some free sample chapters from their JQuery book, and better still - 100 free JQuery codes as well.

Get it here: http://bit.ly/a0sN6a

Their website is well worth checking out while you are there to see what other freebies are available.

How to Become an Animator - Free e-Book

I won't pretend it's not a marketing campaign from AnimationMentor.com, because that is exactly what it is. But if animation is what you like, and you think animation is where you want to end up, then you just may find this valuable.

It's taking about 40 minutes to download so no review of content at present. But at a price of FREE, I'm not complaining.

You can download it here: http://www.animationmentor.com/landing/becomeanimator/ebook.html

Meanwhile, I will add my review later when I have had a chance to read from it

FREE eBook - The Principles of Successful Freelancing

Whether you are a Freelance, Student or work within a studio, you will probably find Sitepoint's latest offer an interesting if not valuable read.

It's a 200 page eBook on The Principles of Successful Freelancing.

It normally costs about $30 but Sitepoint are giving it away FREE for the next 8 days.

To get the book you must either follow them on Twitter or submit your email address to their mailing list.

Sitepoint often give away selected chapters from their books as tasters, but this is the first time I have seen them give away an entire book. Clearly a good strategy for increasing their Twitter following (currently 49,662) and mailing list sign-up - we could all learn a trick there.

GO GET IT: http://twitaway.sitepoint.com/

Creative COW - a real hidden gem...

I have been recieving emails from Creative COW for ages now but only just found time to really take a look at what they were about... and that was because they sent me an email telling me about Stereoscopic 3D (something bound to get my attention, and certainly of interest to a student of mine who produced an anaglyph 3D animation recently).

So I clicked on over to Creative COW only to be astonished that they actually publish a PDF magazine you can download for free, with excellent articles by real professionals about film and media production.

I immediately downloaded the latest issue, and then all back issues.

It is not often you find something so well produced totally FREE.

Carrara 6 Pro - Free with DigitalArts Magazine

For those of you interested in 3D modelling and animation I have to recommend that you buy the April 2009 edition of DigitalArts magazine (came by mail today - expect in WHSmiths very soon I expect).

The free software in this edition is none other than Carrara 6 Pro, an extrememly powerful and versatile 3D modeller and animator. Other people have written far more detailed reviews than I ever will, but to sum up the changes:

Carrara 6 allows users to choose from an unprecedented array of tools while exploring new dimensions in 3D creation. Carrara 6 provides 3D figure posing and
animation, modelling, environment-creation and rendering tools within a single
application.

Carrara 6 features include non-linear animation, giving users the ability to create clips of animation that can be reused and combined on multiple tracks. Also includeds is dynamic hair that allows artists to style, cut, brush and drape the hair, and displacement modeling where the user can paint detail on a model using free-form brush tools.

Apart from the non-linear animating and the hair, the icing on the cake was that it can export in DirectX (.X) format, and converts procedural shaders into raster images on export. Finally, I can use a program I am extremely familiar with to make models for 3D games and export them directly without having to convert them using other programs (at least that is the implication with .X export - I will of course try it out with my copy of The 3D Game Maker, and FPS Creator (also available free for learning purposes).

Ever since version 1 I have found Carrara to be one of the most easily learned 3D animation and modelling programs. Even so beginners may be glad of a little help in which case they will find Mark Bremmer's video tutorials helpful to get started.

I am certainly not going to complain that Daz is continuing to follow its strategy of giving freebies to DigitalArts readers (or readers of any other creative journal for that matter), and earning most of its income from selling content for its Daz Studio product. On pondering why I considered 2 possible causes. First, E-on have had their open beta of Vue 7 going for a while and by launching cornucopia have thrown down the gauntlet to Daz in the pre-made content arena. Second, by giving Carrara away free on design and creative journals they may encourage more talented 3d designers to produce content which can then be sold in their store. Well... it's a nice theory. Whatever the reason, Carrara 6 for the price of a magazine has to be a bargain.

Online Developer Tutorials from .NET

I have long since been a fan of the tutorials provided by Computer Arts. But only today did I learn that .NET magazine also has some seriously useful tutorials too.

Ranging from CSS to Flash they are well worth adding to your browser favourites. Check out their repository here:

http://www.netmag.co.uk/zine/develop

TrueSpace 7.6 FREE?

Occasionally, as I look around at free software for creative purposes, I am genuinely suprised by some amazing give-aways. Usually these freebies come with one of the well known digital design journals like Computer Arts, 3D World or DigitalArts (formerly Digit).

This time though, it is well known 3D Software developer Caligari that is giving away their hard developed wares, and not even limiting it to magazine readers. This time you can download Truespace 7.6, their latest version, absolutely free. All you need to do is click the link on the home page, and set up a free membership account if you don't already have one.

What are you waiting for? Download it now >

Caligari have given away TrueSpace before. V1 and V3 have both been available for a while, but this is the first time they appear to have given away their latest version, and by the looks of things it is pretty powerful.



See how it compares with more well known competitor products:



I actually found out about this amazing offering when reading on the Computer Arts website, what the content of the new 3D World issue was going to be, then promptly zoomed over to Caligari to see for myself.

The reasons for this daring move by Caligari are to be discussed in the new issue of 3D World (which I don't have yet), but I can't help wondering if this has something to do with Daz 3D's move to give away Carrara 5 Pro on a magazine a few months ago. If so, watch Daz, because that is where the next move may be.

Whatever the reason, high competition in the 3D software industry has to be a factor, and so a good thing in the short term. The problem with this type of competition is that there are likely to be casualties, and that may hurt if you have developed a workflow around software from a company that goes under, or stops developing that title.

But while that is largely out of the control of most of us, make hay while the sun shines and download TrueSpace 7.6 today, free.

Creative Reading

Sometimes you just wish you could find that really useful resource from a source that is reliable, that is well designed, discusses creative issues in a professional way AND doesn't ask you to pay for it. The Adobe Magazine is one of those resources.

You can access it free at this address - http://www.adobe.com/products/adobemag/pastissues.html - and it includes a full archive right back to 1995.

I also read a plethora of other creative journals but this has to be one of the best of the free. What are you waiting for?