Blender has a weird UI

#1

I have strong production experience with 3dsmax, Softimage and Maya… I know all three very well (except programming) and had to learn them all due to working at different studios I’ve worked at, so I’m not a noob to 3d… all are quite easy to learn once you learn the first app… but I gotta say “Blender is weird”. And the only reason why I haven’t spent more than 1 hour in Blender, two or three sessions each just experimenting, is the UI and the selection, translate, rotate and shifting panels, tiny little unlabeled boxes everywhere and its scene navigation is because I feel drunk when I’m doing anything. I heard blender’s UI has a steep learning curve, so really I only need to get passed that and I’ll be on my way. Where are good RECENT tutorials covering this topic? Preferably video tutorials. Learning new software is like learning to ride a bike (not the saying: “if you fall down you gotta get back right up again” blah blah blah), but when you’re trying - all of a sudden it… it just CLICKS. You fully understand… just like when Z-Brush entered the scene and people were confused with its weird UI… but then… Zbrush clicks… You’ve got it.

I ask about Recent tuts because the sticky thread has broken/old links teaching the interface etc.

p.s. If you’re wondering why I’m learning a damn 4th program… ask my tight boss…

#2

Try the newest builds, you can change to Maya style navigation (and more to come) from the splash screen.

#3

one of my favorite places for video tutorials is blendercookie.com,
and incidentally they have been using 2.5 for tuts for a while now, hope it helps. :slight_smile:

edit: as for toontje’s comment, check out graphicall.org for development builds. :slight_smile:

#4

Welcome to the wacky, but ultimately rewarding, world of Blender! ;o)

By far the best ‘Blender Basic Video Tutorials’ can be found here…

http://blenderunderground.com/2007/11/21/welcome-main/

I can’t recommend these enough! They were the thing that finally made Blender ‘click’ for me after many, admittedly half hearted, failed attempts to get to grips with the beast.

I know you specifically asked for current tutorials and these are aimed at 2.44 whilst the current stable release is 2.49a. However, the basic controls have not really changed between versions and due to the nature of Blenders rapid development these are undoubtedly the best you’re going to get. If you want to discover the differences between the two, you can find the release logs for all versions here…

http://www.blender.org/development/release-logs/

BTW, don’t be put off by the intro to the vids, they really are very good. ;o)

You can find out more about the interface overhaul, and then some, that is blender 2.5 here…

http://www.blender.org/development/release-logs/blender-250/

It’s currently still in alpha so probably shouldn’t be considered ‘production ready’, all depending on your bravery of course. ;o)

Hope this was helpful and good luck.

[edit]
A lot of the stuff contained within these tutorials is still relevant for for 2.5 so they’re not a complete waste of time even if you do decide to venture into 2.5 land.
[/edit]

#5

It should be noted you can get new builds here:
http://www.graphicall.org/builds/

#6

Blender 2.4x does have a peculiar interface … but a very efficient one, once you get the hang of it.

(And to be quite honest… isn’t that “the way of the world” with every software package out there?)

Blender 2.5x and its successors have changed the interface completely.

#7

Every good thing is weird. If you don’t love it it will be hard to learn it. Good way to learn is to just hover cursor over buttons and read tooltips one after another.

#8

These vids will guide you quickly through the basics of 2.5 when coming from a working 3d background:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_XWhHEWLY8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wVKcwN4hBk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gk5vcA9zfkE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRvbPIOY6VQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk3VPdrpTY8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeLkk3dpnOw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fb6ER7YIZiE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAloRhnJ_gU

Also, you can get up to speed in no time (v2.49) with Creative Cow’s ‘Survival Guide’ tutorial series.
http://library.creativecow.net/video-tutorials/blender

Before Blender I used (amongst others) 3dMax, Cinema4D and Lightwave. For me, getting into Blender was a much more pleasant experience than switching to Lightwave, or learning 3dMax.

#9

Some more than others, but in a nutshell, I felt like I didn’t even have to learn Softimage’s UI. Everything is spelt out for you. It like like its made for people who have to ride the blue bus to school.

Thanks heaps guys. You’re awesome.

#10

jejeje im not the only one to found it weird . . . but once you get used to it you dont want to leave it.
I have nine years of 3dsmax and also know maya since i learned blender two years ago i dont want to touch max interface no more, its hard, square and unstable and for my surprise, the way that max works out of the box its very deficient, but its impossible to see differences if only uses standards apps, i realize this after spending four or five month to understand the way that blender works.

even if you dont like blender or you dont want to use it because looks limited, try to give it a shot, you will see things with a diferent perspective than autodesk, especially from the access to information, developing releases, and more important. . your opinion as a user counts!!!

some points over max
skinning
armature control
viewport movement
interface config(blender 2.5 and up)
UV UNWRAP!(lscm) , i didnt use unwrap in max no more, .obj to blender and then return, 5 to 50 times faster than unwrap in max this was my experience. . .
viewport functionality(max has AO in viewport and many fancy stuff, but blender is practical, it has things like zbrush masking, 3dcursor, a useful version of working pivot and stuff that makes it more more fluid)

some points down. . . (yes it have them)
2.49 it has many limitations on the animation area(2.5x is almost limitless :slight_smile:
until now (may-14-2010) particle sistem (but the developer would work in this soon)
conectivity in the industry, i talk about plug-ins and things like that. . . but if you want to max be fully useable, you will probably need more than $$ 3000 in plugins
and render engine, but its being greatly updated. . .

take this from an ex-3dsmax fan, give it a try you wont regret the experience, but yo also punch some walls during the process :slight_smile:

#11

I haven’t used 3dsmax in years… I moved over to Maya on my own and not for work. I’m a character animator so I don’t really do anything else like UV mapping anymore.

But I must say an animator’s workflow is basically the same in most apps. Curve editors are the same, dope sheets are same, rotate and translate (and scale, i guess) are nearly identical in all, timesliders etc. Regarding learning new software, an animator’s transition is perhaps the easiest in the 3d field…

… but…

I first need to learn the UI! And that’s basically it, really… so thanks again guys for your tutorial links!

I’ve noticed that Blender guys are really faithful and speak highly about it, more so than other users speak of their different 3d apps.

#12

So if it is character animation you’re doing, then the tool set alone (heck! The grease pencil alone) should really warm you up to dive head first into the GUI. I’ve read many testimonies from the industry users (some feature films guys) that put the animation tool set and/or workflow above the other packages. Take a look at the release logs for animation related features (volume preserving bone not listed because it’s just out).

#13

my course at Lynda.com on Blender covers the UI from a-z.

#14

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