I am fortunate enough to have participated in every 3DS Viz beta since its inception in 1997 after the release of Max R1, up to last year’s release Architectural Viz 2008. Architectural design and visualization are two industries that I have always had a passion for, which explains why I was on the ‘Viz’ path. It has been five releases since I last used Max in production so I knew I was in for a big change. Now, with the shift away from Viz platform, Auto desk has released 3D's Max 2009 and 3D's Max Design 2009. The differences between the two are minute with the main difference being 3D's Max 2009 ships with the SDK (software development kit), 3D's Max Design 2009 does not.

In the author’s opinion, the logic behind eliminating the Viz platform is straightforward; it costs less to develop one platform (Max) than it does for two (Max and Viz). The SDK expandability has always been a part of the Max/Viz platforms, but in order to build the current release of Viz on the newest Max builds, so much of the feature-set had to be removed code wise, and then re-tested. This move serves to benefit the industry leader by vesting in one platform, as well as the end user because it opens the rich feature-set of Max to the visualization artists who cut their teeth on Viz.

The technologies behind the 3D's Max platform have always set the bar in the industry. Auto desk continues to find ways to increase the quality and speed of its rendering engines as well as provide the end user with intuitive, powerful tools which can be used for evaluation and examination or production and creation. 3D's Max 2009 and 3D's Max Design 2009 continues in this evolution and does not disappoint. Let’s examine the key features of this release.

One of the most beneficial tools for the artist has to be the iterative rendering technology deemed Reveal by Auto desk. This rendering technique streamlines the end users efforts to explore various design options without having to re-render the entire scene. This creative work-flow gives users the ability to render, explore, and enhance, all without compromising time.