Ok I am a  3DS guy,  but if you looked at my hard drive you would find a dozed
                or more 3d applications and utilities.  There is no best 3d program (except for
                Maya which I may never get up to speed on).  So I view 3d modeling like golf.
                You will never master it, and you need different clubs form you bag of software
                programs.

                Enter Nedo.  When I first look at this little modeler I said, "very powerful
                but too strange to work with."    Nedo actually may be easier for someone who
                has never modeled before, on the other hand that same person he will find the
                industry standard apps totally unexcitable if he does start Nedo.  Going back
                to it I found a VERY powerful object creator.  This program blows 3D Studio
                Max2 away when it comes to organics.  Organics  are all the things you really
                want to make, but would rather gnaw off you foot because they are so hard.
                Nedo models with "digital clay", within an interface based on traditional
                sculpting.  What does that mean? When you were a toddler you probably played
                with blocks.  You could make different thing, but it still look lime blocks.
                If you had a magic want  you could then transform your blocks into Leggos.
                Leggos can start to look more like what you are tying to do but still a bit
                blocky.  After adding some detail now to your model you use you magic want
                again and you get clay.   Some finally touching up and you have a nearly
                finished Model.  Nedo starits out with a simple primative and you add more
                surfaces and detail as you go.  Objects slowly are transformed form a block in
                to a finished model.  The reason I say nearly finished is the reason I am so
                excited with this product.  Nedo come with a paint program.  You actually paint
                your model and can export it in VMRL format to your web page or 3DS MAX2, with
                a color map!!!!!!!  For any one that models, having a color map is one of the
                most power features that you would want.

                If you can think more like an artist with a lump of clay, rather than spline
                based paths,  defome fits, Edge tesselation and face extrusion, Nedo is for
                you.

                Nedo is made by Nichlmen Graphics and sell for $99.  There is a demo to try
                before you buy.  I strongly suggest that if you do not like it at first, to
                give it a second chance.  For those that don’t know what VMRL is, or what it
                can do for your web page, that would be a totially different article but let me
                say you are in for a very pleasant surprise.
 

                http://www.nichimen.com/

                Rob Frydyrck
                Frydryck@nauticom.net
                http://www.fortunecity.com/rivendell/chronos/254/
                IRC:  Guyon