Cheetah 4.0 adds character animation tools
updated 07:55 pm EDT, Thu March 22, 2007
Cheetah 4.0 for 3D art
Cheetah 4.0 is a major update to the powerful 3D modelling, rendering and animation solution for Mac OS X. The fourth major update to the application brings new character animation tools, including joint-based skeleton system, Forward/Inverse kinematic (FK/IK), IK constraints, a joint tool, vertex weight painting, a new take manager to record independent animation clips, a poser manager to record often used poses for later usage, morph targets for facial animation and muscle animation, and FBX animation export/import. In addition, the software had new interface with redesigned icons, the ability to group different views to a tab view, object grouping, and more. Version 4.0 also offers new modelling tools (transform gadget, ruler) and accelerated SDS modelling on multi-CPU Macs (as well as rendering support for Macs with up to eight CPUs). It is available for $130 and as a $60 update. Discounts of $20 and $10 (respectively) are available through April 1st.
