For the past half year or so I have been a part of the <a href="http://www.3dbuzz.com">3D Buzz</a> community. 3D Buzz is an amazing place full of the most unselfish people in the world. Its founder, Jason Buzby, has sacrificed the past 2 or 3 years of his life making this place work. What he does is create free video training modules (VTM) for high end 3D applications and game modding.
These videos are amazing. I learned so much from them in a few hours than I ever have in my life from any other free online tutorials. These VTMs are done by professionals who know their stuff, and more importantly, know how to teach. Buzz DOES NOT accept any money from individuals who were pleased with the videos. All he asks is that you turn around and help someone else on the message boards.
All the money used to keep 3D Buzz up and running comes from sponsors (such as epic games, alias, etc.) and out of Buzz's pocket. Nobody is really doing this for the money. The only sponsors of the website are companies that create 3D software. These companies pour money into 3D Buzz partly because the people training there may someday buy that company's software, but also because it's a sort of mission for a 3D revolution. Anyone anywhere should be able to create 3D art at minimal expense. And nobody realizes this more than Epic Games.
Epic sponsored 3D Buzz to create 23 <i>new</i> VTMs for UT2K4 (that's almost as many old VTMs available at 3D Buzz currently) and I was simply thrilled. I have never been this giddy since, well... ever! You have no idea how good this knowledge, this...this free education really is.
Trust me, Laser Link. I know Jason Buzby. I've been with 3D Buzz for a long time now. This isn't a hidden form of greed. There's no catch. It's people sacrificing their time, money, their whole lives, so that people like me who can't afford training can get it. I owe 3D Buzz so much, and it just kinda hurt me to see what you said, LL.
</rant>
These videos are amazing. I learned so much from them in a few hours than I ever have in my life from any other free online tutorials. These VTMs are done by professionals who know their stuff, and more importantly, know how to teach. Buzz DOES NOT accept any money from individuals who were pleased with the videos. All he asks is that you turn around and help someone else on the message boards.
All the money used to keep 3D Buzz up and running comes from sponsors (such as epic games, alias, etc.) and out of Buzz's pocket. Nobody is really doing this for the money. The only sponsors of the website are companies that create 3D software. These companies pour money into 3D Buzz partly because the people training there may someday buy that company's software, but also because it's a sort of mission for a 3D revolution. Anyone anywhere should be able to create 3D art at minimal expense. And nobody realizes this more than Epic Games.
Epic sponsored 3D Buzz to create 23 <i>new</i> VTMs for UT2K4 (that's almost as many old VTMs available at 3D Buzz currently) and I was simply thrilled. I have never been this giddy since, well... ever! You have no idea how good this knowledge, this...this free education really is.
Trust me, Laser Link. I know Jason Buzby. I've been with 3D Buzz for a long time now. This isn't a hidden form of greed. There's no catch. It's people sacrificing their time, money, their whole lives, so that people like me who can't afford training can get it. I owe 3D Buzz so much, and it just kinda hurt me to see what you said, LL.
</rant>