Autodesk retires Softimage

[McNistor]

They acquired Softimage because they wanted the devs they say, in order to help developing the next-gen tech. and then they go patching up Maya, a 20 yrs Frankenstein.
Kudos!
I personally think that whoever is thinking that maybe Adsk will innovate and bring Maya or any other of their s/w to a stage where you'd be wowed, is extremely naive. Fool me once, shame on you ... comes to mind.

[bb3d]

Yes, and the reason to retire Softimage and not the other packages was because of the much larger user base, but they never tried to increase Softimage's user base and therefore it's a very lame excuse.
They already have the "next-gen tech", all they had to do was to bring over the few cool Maya features like PaintFX, FluidFX to Softimage, promote it accordingly and the user base would have increased. Now they are presenting "next-gen" features for Maya which are available in Softimage since 3-4 years. It's really frustrating how stupid they are.

Most of what Stefan Didak wrote in his blog expresses my own feelings about Autodesk. Maybe he should visit their HQ?

[Unaided]

They acquired Softimage because they wanted the devs they say, in order to help developing the next-gen tech. and then they go patching up Maya, a 20 yrs Frankenstein.
Kudos!
I personally think that whoever is thinking that maybe Adsk will innovate and bring Maya or any other of their s/w to a stage where you'd be wowed, is extremely naive. Fool me once, shame on you ... comes to mind.

+1

[Rez007]

So, you can still buy NEW seats of Softimage without being a previous Softimage seat holder? It is an expensive solution (Ultimate Suite) but it seems to still be there if you need a seat...

http://www.autodesk.com/suites/entertai ... d-software

[Draise]

GREAT NEWS.. well not for the pocket, but great! I will need new seats this year. I thought I was doomed definately, there still is some hope for a bit, I personally think the software can hold up more than a few years after it's official EOL.

[YKChou]

I have been using Softimage for years now.

While I am still a neophyte, it's sad things turned out this way.

So much more to learn about SI and so much potential...



It's been a great ride gentlemen...

[Phan]

Now it´s June and I am still pissed.

And I still will use SI further. Because there is no package around, that´s really (!) better, in an allrounders view. There are some nice tools, which have nice features, but if you´re used to the SI-Workflow and flexibility there is no alternative. And I surely won´t go the Maya way. MAYA is not the revolutionary technique compared to Softimage. It may be equivalent to Softimage, and some parts which SI doesn´t have, but it has nothing (!) what I do need for my actual jobs which SI doesn´t have. But it has less (ICE) in some important places.

So as I am not really a Softimage Fan Boy (((I am, but pssst))): if there is a package which is really better (and not somewhen in the future perhaps) I will transition to it. Remember: always from the allrounders / small studio View!
And I am sure (!) this revolution won´t come from a big company. It probably will be a ambitious and enthusiastic company concentrating on one product. Something like thefoundry, maxon, fabricengine. Or perhaps something Open Source based. But never a shareholder driven company...

greetings

Stephan

[thorsnuts]

I agree!

long live Softimage

[Unaided]

No other animation 3D software is best than Softimage.
Only Houdini is very powerful, but is more technical tasks and users.

[Bullit]

But never a shareholder driven company...

This silly argument probably politically driven pops again. The demise of Softimage has nothing to do with shareholders, besides all companies have shareholders. And teh public ones have much less power.
Softimage was murdered inside Media and Entertainment. It was bad management and infighting inside it.

[McNistor]

It was bad management and infighting inside it.

How do you know this, do you have a source or are you guessing? Cause I'd really like to read from that source as well to satisfy my gossip needs if nothing else.

[Bullit]

You just have to read what luceric and others have said and between the lines and the mess that was Softimage management in last years with 3 or 4 managers in a very short time. The failed project Skyline by Marc Petit or whatever was called holed Softimage when it took many developers from it.
It obviously all started when Softimagers bought by Autodesk were unable to sell the product inside the company M&E - by this i mean every department inside it pushing for Softimage -. There was also information in mailing list that while selling people would get a cut from each Maya and Max sell there wasn't any to get from each Softimage sell, don't remember or even if it was explained why was that.
You have 2 established camps inside M&E Maya and Max, appears a third more weak but that was being reborn and threatening the existing big dogs running for resources.
Over this there are the other Autodesk divisions and the top management. M&E is less than 10% of Autodesk. Softimage doesn't even register except to say yes or no in the end. Usually for this kind of non essential stuff the bosses usually defer to specific division people.

[scrambler]

I recently came across the news, and having spent a good part of my life with Softimage, I decided to register here to bring some historical perspective on a key trigger in what will have led to the death of Softimage 3D/XSI.

In 1998 AVID bought Softimage from Microsoft to gain control over Softimage Digital Studio because it was becoming a dangerous competitor to AVID Media Composer. They had no interest in 3D and the first thing they did after acquiring the company was to eradicate all the Softimage Sales force worldwide. Without its sales force, and given the AVID sales force had no interest nor any incentive to care for 3D, the 3D products from Softimage lost the ability to maintain and develop its user base.

The result is that when AVID finally accepted to let go of it and sold it to Autodesk, Softimage 3D user base was already irremediably damaged. Autodesk surely bears some responsibility in deciding to acquire Softimage after having already acquired Maya, without any will to reenergize it. They were not an entertainment company at heart, and ended up with too many 3D products on their hands.

So yes Autodesk did not help, but the biggest destructive blow that ultimately lead to the death of Softimage was the work of AVID, and their aggressive takeover of Softimage that was dictated by the fear of its sales force for Softimage Digital Studio.

Softimage 3D/XSI was an amazing product because it had been the child of an amazing company (Credit to be given to founder Daniel Langlois and Richard Szalwinski for building the original company spirit, and to Daniel Langlois for making the user interaction paramount in Softimage products). The passion that was running in the company from day one and at every level was nothing short of exceptional, and, amazingly, it survived the growth of the company, the becoming public and even the acquisition by Microsoft (who was smart enough to realize it needed to be managed aside from the main corporation to preserve its value). That passion gave birth to some of the biggest technological revolutions of the 3D animation industry.

AVID with its corporate greed and politics was a poison strong enough to destroy Softimage’s 3D business. Some of the great people at Softimage like Mark Schoennagel hanged on and continued to sustain the original spirit of the company, but the damage to its business was irreparable without a company dedicated to the task which Autodesk was not.

I raise a glass in memory of the most amazing company and most exciting product I have ever seen and had the privilege to be part of.

[Tekano]

sorry but I will not raise a glass in memory until it is actually dead. I am still using it. in production, on movies, this one was out yesterday , the next one finishes in production September

[angus_davidson]

;)

[scrambler]

sorry but I will not raise a glass in memory until it is actually dead. I am still using it. in production, on movies, this one was out yesterday , the next one finishes in production September

Nothing wrong with raising a glass to celebrate while still alive .
I raise one to your nice work!