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Thank you all for surfing in to check out a new column. In each article I'll explore software, hardware or some other resource that affects graphics users. While I've done my share of writing in the past, I still consider myself a user and will concentrate on whether the product being reviewed will increase your productivity.
Enough of that introductory stuff, let's get down to business. I'm going to be looking at Cool 3D 3 from Ulead. In order to run it, you must have Windows 95 OSR2, Windows 98 or Windows 2000. It will not work on the original release of Windows 95 or on Windows NT as neither operating system supports the proper version of Direct X. I did my testing with Windows 2000 and the program performed flawlessly.
The name Cool 3D is certainly descriptive of what it does. Creating 3D text and other simple shapes is as easy as any program I've used and the results still look great. This simplicity comes from the Easy Palette shown at right. On the left side of the Easy Palette is a tree-structure of the various attributes you can apply with a visual representation on the right. When you find the bevel, texture, animation or other attribute you desire; simply drag it and drop on the appropriate object.
Since its first version, Cool 3D's main strength has been to create great looking text. Start by creating a new file. You can select any custom size you want or one of the many preset sizes that are sizes commonly used for video and Web design. Then you insert text by typing the text, selecting a font and clicking OK. One downside is that Cool 3D only supports TrueType fonts. Now that Windows 2000 supports Type 1 fonts natively, I was hoping to be able to use them. Once you've created the text, you can start dropping attributes from the Easy Palette onto the text. The example of the text at right can be created in only a minute or two though I'll freely admit that you should be careful about creating this kind of eye candy for a Web site.
With each of the attributes, you can select from the vast quantity of preset effects. There are 30 beveling effects of which 10 are animated to grow and shrink. Textures are even more numerous with 120 of them supplied with the downloadable version and over 500 in the boxed version. If that isn't enough, you've got 30 choices for light and color. All of these attributes are applied by dragging them onto the text and dropping.
While you learn the program, the drag and drop is fantastic. But after you've worked for a while you'll certainly want more control over your objects. Turning on the Attribute toolbar gives you that extra level of control. Use drag and drop to get an attribute on the object and then use the numeric controls, drop-down lists and sliders of the Attribute toolbar to get exactly what you want.
With the latest version, you aren't limited to just text. There are a number of pre-drawn objects that you can simply drop into your image. In addition, there are plenty of shapes and objects to choose from that already have textures and animation applied. But we all know that Murphy's Law is going to kick in and you won't find the shape you need. No need to worry as you can create any shape you want.
If you've used Adobe Illustrator, Macromedia Freehand or CorelDRAW then the tools for creating freehand shapes or bézier curves will be very familiar. Choosing to edit the graphic brings up the separate Edit Path box shown at right. Cool 3D certainly doesn't have the power of the previously mentioned software, but these drawing tools will take of almost all your needs. For those other times, you can import graphics in WMF (Windows Meta File) and EMF (Enhanced Meta File) formats. If you have other 3D programs, Cool 3D can also bring in files using the Direct X file format, referred to as X files. For a while I thought this was a way to import government cover-ups and conspiracy theories.
Animation has been present in previous versions, but the choices are much more plentiful in version 3. You can spin objects in any plane you desire, make objects grow and shrink, even change their colors. Set keyframes at whatever point on the timeline you want and Cool 3D will create all the intermediate frames automatically. If you want the animation to follow a path, all you need to do is define the path and which objects should follow it.
Taking animation one step further are the twelve different object effects and three transition effects. As an example, Jump will allow one object to jump onto another object as they transition. If you were to try these types of effects in most 3D programs, it would take many hours to get what you want. In typical Cool 3D fashion, these effects are added using drag and drop. Another great effect, Explosion, lets you blast your object into tiny pieces. Fire sets the objects ablaze. Put them together and the object can blow up and then the tiny pieces can catch on fire. With all these great effects, you just have to use them carefully so that you don't go overboard. Want more effects? The Plug In Madness II packages delivers them for an additional $24.95.
Once you create the graphics, what can you do with them? It's easy to export to JPG, GIF and animated GIF for the Web with plenty of options for optimizing the files. New in v3 is the support for RealText 3D format. If video is your thing, there is support for AVI and QuickTime format. Options are even provided to optimize the files for NTSC and PAL television formats. Those of you designing for print can save in BMP, TIF, Targa and more. If you want to create composites in your favorite bitmap editor, an alpha channel can be saved to create transparency. About the only major format that I missed was the up and coming MetaStream format that allows 3D images to be streamed on the Web.
If you'd like to try Cool 3D for yourself, a 15-day evaluation version can be downloaded from Ulead's Web site. If you decide to buy, there are two variations. A downloadable version is $59.95. If you prefer to have a CD, the boxed version is $79.95. The boxed version contains 25 fonts, more textures and the Direct X 6.0 drivers required by Cool 3D.
When Cool 3D first appeared, it was a definite must at $40. It is still a great bargain with all the great new features Ulead has added. The only thing that kept it from getting a perfect score was the lack of support for Type 1 fonts and MetaStream output.
Do you have a product you would like to have reviewed? Send press releases to reviews@unleash.com.
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CorelDRAW X6 Font List · CorelDRAW X5 Font List · CorelDRAW X4 Font List · The Terms of Adobe Photoshop and Corel PHOTO-PAINT · CorelDRAW X3 Font List · Cropping and Rotating Files in Corel PHOTO-PAINT · The Magic of Color Styles · CorelDRAW's Find and Replace Wizard · Shorten Your Design Time with Templates · CorelDRAW's Multi-Faceted Eyedropper Tool · CorelDRAW and Special Characters · The Easy Way to Create Calendars in CorelDRAW · The Wide World of Labels in CorelDRAW · Including Variable Data with Print Merge · Resaving, Resizing & Resampling Files in Corel PHOTO-PAINT · Creating Your Own Fonts in CorelDRAW · The Evils of Using JPEG Files · Speeding Up CorelDRAW 11 and Windows XP · Symbols and Imposition · The Easiest Way to Recreate Logos · A Few Guidelines to Follow · Square Corners Can Be Sticky -- Rounding Corners in CorelDRAW · Creating Complex Shapes Easily with CorelDRAW · Identifying the Mystery Font · Two Ways to Create a Split Front Design · Last Word in Font Management · Calibrating Your Printed Colors with a Color Chart · Graphics Computing in 2001 · Hottest R.A.V.E. In Town · Get the Red Out of Eyes · Secrets of Color Management · Dressing Up Your PDF Files · How Adobe Acrobat Can Make Life Simpler · Why You Want PDF in Your Workflow · Converting a Scanned Logo to Vector in CorelDRAW · Designing 360 Degrees · Customizing Your Interface in CorelDRAW 8.0 · Fitting Text to a Path · Creating Cool Graphs Without a Spreadsheet · From CorelDRAW to Macromedia Flash, A Simple Example · Getting Rid of That Darned White Box · Converting a Bitmap Logo to Vector in CorelDRAW · Finding Clipart with ROMCAT
Xara Xtreme Pro 5.0
Serif WebPlus X2
Xara Web Designer 5.0
Xara Xtreme Pro 4.1
Macromedia Flash MX 2004 Professional
Fuji FinePix 2800 Zoom Digital Camera
Procreate KnockOut 2
Hemera Photo Objects Volume I and II
Wildform SWfx
Macromedia Fontographer 4.1 and FontLab 4
Caligari iSpace v1.5
Xara X
Macromedia Fireworks 4
Web Site Design Made Easy
Alien Skin Eye Candy 4000
Swish 1.51
Macromedia Flash 5
Corel KPT 6
Dreamweaver Ultradev
1st Page 2000
Adobe Illustrator 9
Corel KnockOut v1.5
Xara 3D 4
Cool 3D 3
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