model

Corel enters new dimension with MotionStudio 3D

Meet MotionStudio 3D, Corel's inaugural entry into the animation and motion graphics software category. Geared more toward novices and prosumers than professionals, this capable newcomer lets you create 3D text and titles, lathe objects, and a variety of animations with relative ease.

MotionStudio's interface is intuitive, which should be comforting to motion graphics novices. The Edit Window displays your project as you work, and can reflect changes in near real-time--with virtually no waiting for rendering. Also, you can drag objects directly within the Edit Window for a more tactile way to customize basic aspects like position, rotation, and … Read more

Make 360-degree animations of objects

YouSpin360 lets you take multiple shots while moving around your subject to create an image you can view from all sides. The interface on YouSpin360 is not very intuitive initially, but once you get the basics, you'll be able to make cool-looking 360-degree shots you can show as videos--even on the Web.

You start by choosing the type of shot you want to create using the options tab that slides out from the right. Whether you want to see yourself from all sides, show a car from various perspectives so you can sell it on the Web, or make … Read more

Buy a $4.8 million model of a $380,000 real car

You have a basic accounting decision to make. You can spend $380,000 and buy a Lamborghini Aventador or you can spend $4.8 million and buy a 1:8 scale model of the same car.

As you may have guessed, the model didn't come out of a box from Hobby Lobby. It's the creation of Robert Gülpen, a German engineer who specializes in making car models from precious materials. I didn't even know that was a career option.

The body, doors, and hood are made from carbon fiber with threads of solid gold. The … Read more

Should I buy a floor-model TV? (Morrison's Mailbag)

CNET reader Peter Haluszka from Cleveland writes:

I would like to buy a new plasma and ideally would like a Panasonic VT30 series but they're very pricey. I would like your opinion about the Pioneer 55" PRO-FHD1. I was thinking of buying one from the local high-end store for maybe $1,000 to $1,500 if I can get it for that price, based on the fact it was a floor model. Do you think it's worth buying? I have cable and surround so no problems with it being a monitor. Otherwise, my choices are either the ST30 or GT30 60-inch models, and if I can get it for under $2,000, the VT30 55 inch. I value your opinion probably more than anyone else.

Thank you, Peter Haluszka Cleveland, Ohio

… Read more

High-tech ghost town planned for New Mexico

Families and retirees come to New Mexico to chill in the sun; aliens come to crash-land their ships; scientologists come to build secret compounds and prepare to visit the aliens; the government comes to hide the crashed alien ships and blow stuff up; and studios come to make movies about all of the above. Now, a private company is coming to build a 20-square-mile ghost town of the future.

D.C.-based Pegasus Global Holdings is planning to build the model city to test new and up-and-coming technologies such as smart grids, renewable energy, intelligent traffic systems and next generation Wi-Fi. The company says the huge facility, dubbed "The Center," would likely be located somewhere near the Albuquerque or Las Cruces metro areas, giving the company access to multiple Interstate corridors, nearby national labs, universities, and military installations.… Read more

Moon landing, Roswell re-imagined as model kits

Japanese plastic-model-kit company Tamiya was looking to make a splash in the Vietnamese market, so it decided to drum up some excitement with a series of ads that portray famous conspiracy theories in plastic-model-kit form.

The ads depict kits for the moon landing, the Roswell UFO crash, Elvis, JFK, and Marilyn Monroe. Marketing company Ogilvy & Mather and animation company Cirkus conspired on the project.

For us techies, the moon landing is particularly compelling. It comes complete with Neil Armstrong, a director's chair, the lunar module, movie lights, and a big sack of money.

The Roswell UFO crash kit even has a partially dissected pig. I don't know why the pig is included. Maybe someone with more UFO conspiracy knowledge can fill me in. … Read more

About face

FaceGen Modeller is a powerful and surprisingly easy-to-use program that lets users create 3D faces either from scratch or based on photos. Whether you're a beginner or a professional when it comes to using this kind of technology, FaceGen Modeller can help you create impressive, realistic results.

The program's interface is plain and easy to navigate, with its major features arranged in tabs. You can have the program generate a random face and then customize it as desired, or upload one or more photos of an actual face to use as a starting point. You can select faces … Read more

Video: Tesla's Model S Alpha sedan hits the track

Tesla has released yet another preview video of its upcoming Model S electric sedan. This time, rather than a single Model S blasting down a back road, a trio of camouflaged Alpha sedans have a go at a track to collect data for the Beta sedan, which is the next step in the Model S' development. Normally one of the coolest parts of checking out a track testing video is hearing the roar of the engine, but the Model S is all electric and all silent, so you'll have to make due with the sound of wooshing wind and … Read more

Tesla to reveal Model X alpha version in December

Tesla Motors is getting the hang of this electric car thing, and plans to debut the alpha version of the Model X crossover way ahead of schedule, according to an article in VentureBeat.

During its quarterly investor call, CEO Elon Musk reportedly told listeners that the company will unveil the alpha version of the seven-seater electric SUV sometime in mid-December, which is in half the time than the company planned, and about one-third of what it budgeted. But don't add the Model X to your holiday wish list yet--the crossover isn't expected to go into production until 2013. When it does, Tesla expects to produce only 15,000 units per year of the SUV when it ramps up production in 2014.

The Model X is the third electric vehicle that Tesla is producing. The SUV is designed as a 5+2, and uses the same power train as the Model S sedan, which will also seat up to seven. Tesla recently began assembling the Beta version of the Model S electric sedan and, according to VentureBeat, expects to reveal it in October. … Read more