Tools for digital design

A small random list of mainly software digital design tools that I’ve used over the years of art & design production or currently use and would likely recommend for various activities.

There are so many tools out there to attain similar outcomes so it’s hard to focus on any specific list but these are some of the ones that i’ve found to be useful or entertaining and likely to be of use if only for very specific functions. These software environments change often and also can be dropped without a trace overnight due to known or unknown reasons… so at any given time you often end up having to find something that does the same thing from a completely different source or to fit in with what other people are doing. These are just a few of the ones that come to mind or have given me a great deal of satisfaction for some reason.

• Processing – https://processing.org
• LiveCode – https://livecode.com
• Blender – https://www.blender.org
• Meshmixer – https://www.meshmixer.com
• ZBrush – https://pixologic.com
• FormZ – https://www.formz.com
• Unity – https://unity3d.com
• Unreal – https://www.unrealengine.com/
• Houdini – https://www.sidefx.com
• Maya – https://www.autodesk.com.au/
• MODO – https://www.foundry.com
• Cinema4D – https://www.maxon.net/en/
• Rhino – https://www.rhino3d.com
• Solidworks – https://www.3ds.com
• CLO – https://www.clo3d.com/
• Clarisse – https://www.isotropix.com/

Textures & render

• VRay – https://www.chaosgroup.com
• Renderman – https://renderman.pixar.com
• Arnold – https://www.solidangle.com/arnold/
• Substance – https://www.allegorithmic.com/substance
• Mudbox – https://www.autodesk.com/products/mudbox/overview
• 3D-Coat – https://3dcoat.com/

Operators or enhanced scripts and tools

• Houdini MOPs – https://www.motionoperators.com
• Auto-Rig Pro add-on for blender – http://www.lucky3d.fr
• Voxel heat diffuse skinning addon for Blender – http://www.mesh-online.net/voxel.html

Foliage, Terrain, weather & point clouds

• E-on Vue & Plant factory – https://info.e-onsoftware.com/home
• Lidar Widgets – http://lidarwidgets.com
• Lazpoint plugin for Cinema4d – https://cinemaplugins.com/c4d-plugins/lazpoint/
• Speedtree – https://www.speedtree.com
• The grove – https://www.thegrove3d.com
• TruSky – https://simul.co/truesky/
• Marvellous Designer – clothing – https://www.marvelousdesigner.com/

Electronics

• Arduino – https://www.arduino.cc
• Lattepanda – http://www.lattepanda.com
• RaspberryPi – https://www.raspberrypi.org
• Adafruit – https://www.adafruit.com

Further fun tools

• Magicavoxel – http://ephtracy.github.io
• Ultimaker Cura – https://github.com/Ultimaker/Cura
• Meshlab – http://www.meshlab.net
• Marmoset toolbag – https://www.marmoset.co/toolbag/
• Pixplant – https://www.pixplant.com

Formative experiences

I would like to take a nod to a few things that really changed my understanding of the virtual and digital world or gave me a great deal of amusement. ie. passing events and hardware & software… Some of these still exist and continue to be developed… some are now just historical fragments…

• Watching my Father break metal disc sections off to make programmed patterns for knitting and weaving machines.
• Manually punching input cards at school using fortran

Discovering the online community

• Apple II
• Bulletin boards & modems
• Zork, Wizardry & The Bards Tale
• SIGGRAPH in the 90’s
• Diablo
• World of Warcraft & raiding
• Collaborative event webcasts and workshops from galleries

Discovering image, audio & video manipulation

• Xylophone
• Roland MS10
• MIDI
• Performer
• Protools
• Logic
• Photoshop
• Alien Skin

Discovering interactive environments and databases

• Hypercard
• VRML
• QuickTime
• mTropolis
• AMT – Apple Media Tool
• C & Basic

Discovering procedural, parametric & solids modelling & Animation

• Paracomp SwivelArt
• Alias
• FormZ
• SoftImage
• Strata3D – https://www.strata.com
• Shade – https://shade3d.jp/en/
• Electric Image Animation System – http://www.eias3d.com
• Zoom
• ArchiCad – http://www.graphisoft.com
• Houdini
• Renderman

Things will be added to as they come to mind…