I won't be able to update the site for the next 2 weeks, as I will (hopefully) be soaking up some sun. I should be back in action July 1st. Dave

Changes for v1.2.0 are:
- New Maxwell viewer (-display option) lets you edit render settings and MXI files
- New 'harddisk' method (-hd option) allows rendering at high resolution
- New sub-surface scattering (only in diffuse and plastic materials)
- New MXI (high-dynamic range Maxwell image) support for light emission
- Improved core: render speed can be 3-4 times faster
- Improved core: Less memory usage allows more complex scenes
- Improved core: dielectric materials work better
- 'low quality' setting has been removed
- 'number of bounces' setting has been removed, it adapts automatically

Maxwell has now entered beta-testing. Beta version 1.2.0 is available to those who have pre-ordered the final version.

Character Animation Technologies Ltd. are getting close to releasing CAT2, the latest version of their character animation plugin. CAT2 is a massive upgrade of CAT 1 and includes a long list of enhancements and new features. If you buy CAT 1.4 today you will get CAT2 upon release at no charge. Existing users will have to pay $295 for the upgrade.

Changes for v1.1 are:
- Fixed bug when rendering more than 30 seconds output
- Fixed bug in 'Sound Ray' dialog initialization
- Memory usage changes
- Serialization for 'Normalize Level' parameter added
- Automatic search for missing files implemented
- Minor bug fixes
- 'Simple Logo' example added

Sound Ray is available for Max 5, 6 and 7, and costs $10. A demo version is available here.

This plugin enables bitmap input and output of the VRML/X3D format (*wrl, *x3d, *x3dv). It supports greyscale, greyscale with alpha, RGB and RGB with alpha. The plugin isn't finished, and doesn't support Gzipped VRML files at the moment.

Changes for v1.061 are:
- Fixes a small bug in the Display Script operator
- Adds option 'Execution Order' to Display Script operator (only relevant to the upcoming PFTools:Box#3)

Changes for v1.21 are:
- Fixes a problem with the Coverage channel and Max 7.5

Changes for v4.22 are:
- Now supports Autodesk VIZ 2006
- A warning is now given if multiple clocks are assigned to a single object
- Adds a new 'Check HUD visibility' property
- Grid objects can now be linked to clipping planes
- The new 'Random Action' fires a random action(!)

VR4MAX is available for Max 3 to 7, and pricing starts at €850. A demo version is available here.

This plugin enables X-File import and export in Max. It also exports animated meshes. Up to now it was only available for Max 6 and 7.

Changes for v1.1 are:
- Adds support for Poser 6
- Adds import of .pzz file format
- Various bug fixes

GestureMax is available for Max 5, 6 and 7, and costs $295. A demo version is available here.

Changes for v8.1 are:
- Adds a number of features from the Pro version
- Fixes a problem with lost file associations
- Slide show text now displays correctly with large fonts
- Adds a 24 hour delay to directory size computation

The commercial 3D Photo Browser for 3D Users has also been updated.

Changes for v2.6 are:
- Adds support for Poser 6
- Adds support for Max 7

BodyStudio 2.6 is available for Max 5, 6 and 7, and costs $179.

I don't know what has been fixed in this version, but there is finally a plugin for Max 7.

Sound Ray is a high-quality sound rendering solution, fully integrated with Max 5, 6 and 7. It brings a highly flexible approach to creating scene sound output using sound sources, ambient sound objects, listener objects and other sound related parameters which can all be placed by the artist.

Key features are:
- Binaural output
- High-quality 3D sound spatialization
- Real sound physics (Doppler effect, inter-aural time delay, etc.)
- Different output options (sample rate and bit depth)

Sound Ray is available for Max 5 to 7, and costs $10. A demo version is available here.