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My favorite show reels. So epic. I love how they combine screen capture of the software with the rendered outcome. We don't see things like this in C4D reels any more. Vue 5 Infinite demo.mp4 Couldn't find them on the official YT channel... I had to upload them from my personal collection Vue 6 Show Reel 2007.mp4

I'm writing this post in response to the recent EOL (end of life) announced by Bentley (not the car company) about the VUE and Plant Factory products. This post is long due to the lack of hiding things while in edit mode. It's a thing attributed to the recent forum update, I hope it gets resolved soon. As I write this I have no knowledge about why this happened or even if it was planned long before but from what was announced on their site I have a feeling of abruptness. I don't know if Bentley is involved in the military equipment manufacture and got an urgent shift of focus away from this market as stated here I don't even know how Bentley used the technology of VUE in other products in order to acquire E-on Software in the first place. I discovered Vue for the first time in 2003 from a magazine offer when CDs and DVDs where common inserts when I was 13 years old. Up until then my only exposure to 3D graphics was Bryce, also demo from magazines. Intrigued and amazed by the stunning visuals it offered. That was were I discovered the magic of procedural generation. The next year the same magazine offered the 3.1 version. Both issues had a mini content guide with reviews of the offered freeware and demos. For Vue they even had 10 to 20-page tutorials as a quickstart to get the hang of it. I know, It's all Greek to you... Those mini guides were all I had to understand how that thing worked as my English weren't developed enough to cope with the jargon, but I had my practice with Bryce so it wasn't that bad. I was playing with it very often and some times I even discovered new windows with parameters like shader and noise editing which always blew my mind. My last encounter with VUE was in 3DWorld's 2011 Issue #139. It had 2 tutorials and a full version of VUE 8 Frontier worth of $99. I never did anything too good with it, not because I didn't know how to operate it or its limitations but because my computer was too mediocre It was so easy to bring my computer down to its knees. It's not only the amount of polygons from the trees involved but also the gorgeous volumetric sky literary one click away (from presets). Later I had the idea to render 360 panoramas to use as HDRIs in C4D because it was hard to find clean sky dome panoramas in the internet. Always ran out of memory or patience with those... 😅 3D on my screen wasn't enough for me. I doubled my render time to make stereoscopic images with an old app called Ana-maker. The only creation I'm proud of was an entry for an ERASMUS competition in my first year in university... My computer couldn't handle the resolution (flyer). I got a friend of mine to install and render the project as he had a computer double the speed and RAM of mine. He let it render all night long. Probably finished after school the next day. We even had to do it twice as some textures from the trees did not import correctly. I did 2 passes, one with only the sea as even for that computer it ended up taking too much time to finish. Then combined them in Corel. I wanted clouds but it turned out I forgot to set the sky so I think this is the default sky reflected here. We didn't have the patience to re-render... I used a high detailed map of Europe from the internet... re-traced it as a vector, re-exported in jpeg, turned it to terrain, added an erosion effect, sculpted 3 mountains... put a bunch of objects from the internet or from Vue's libraries (I don't remember) I think the letters are from C4D ! I like VUE as much as I like C4D. It isn't as easy to create terrains as Gaia and you can't do modeling or Mograph things as in C4D but the sky and object scattering are unmatched. Some history of VUE from archived sources Founded in 1997, e-on software creates, markets and supports the highest quality 3D graphics products that exemplify ease-of-use and professional results, specializing in the natural world. E-on software's flagship products, VUE xStream and VUE Infinite, are the winner of many computer graphics and animation awards worldwide. Like all e-on software products, VUE empowers artists to translate their passion for art into digital works using intuitive tools. Other e-on software products, including LumenRT, PlantFactory, CloudFactory and Carbon Scatter product lines, extend and integrate this paradigm into the leading tools of the 3D still graphics and motion picture industry. E-on software's team of expert software engineers, programmers, trainers, and technicians assists users from installation through production, and for years of growth to come. "At e-on software we believe that the tools you choose are only as good as the support staff that stands behind them". Responsive and dedicated, our team is thoroughly trained to provide fast, effective, and professional support. E-on software's products are available worldwide in English, for both Microsoft Windows and Apple Computer's Mac OS X platforms, making full use of the native software and hardware acceleration. E-on software is located in Beaverton, Oregon and has a European office in Paris, France. E-on software was founded in 1997 by Vue d'Esprit creator Nicholas Phelps. Vue d'Esprit, e-on software's scenery generator was created in late 1992. Vue d'Esprit 1.0 was completed in 1994 and version 1.2 released one year later. Vue d'Esprit 2 was released in 1997, Vue d'Esprit 3 in 1999, Vue d'Esprit 4 in 2001, Vue 4 Professional in 2003, Vue 5 Esprit and Vue 5 Pro Studio in late 2004, Vue 5 Infinite in 2005, Vue 5 xStream in 2006, the complete Vue 6 line in 2007. End of 2008, e-on software started a twice yearly release schedule and released the complete Vue 7 line in November, and Vue 7.5 6 months after, in April 2009. The entire Vue 8 product line was released end 2009, 8.5 in April 2010, the whole Vue 9 family was released in November 2010, Vue 9.5 Infinite and xStream were released in May 2011. Vue 10 and 10.5 were release respectively in November 2011 and May 2012, Vue 11 and Vue 11.5 in November 2012 and May 2013, Vue 2014 in November 2013, and VUE 2015 in April 2015. VUE T-packs, 3D SuperHero and VUE Frontier were discontinued with VUE 2015. The current VUE product line is now organized in 3 families: VUE for CG Professionals, VUE for 3D Artists and VUE for 3D Enthusiasts. Each familiy provides Digital Nature authoring with the best blend of capabilities and features: VUE for CG Professionals: VUE Infinite and VUE xStream. Offers CG professionals the premiere solution for creating exceptionally rich and realistic Digital Nature environments with seamless integration into any production workflow. VUE for 3D Artists: VUE Esprit, VUE Studio and VUE Complete. Provides 3D artists with powerful modular applications to create richly natural 3D Digital Nature scenery and landscapes. VUE for 3D Enthusiasts: VUE Pioneer. Features content-filled, easy-to-use scenic nature creation for home and family use. E-on also develops a set of plug-ins for the VUE product line for 3D Artists and 3D Enthusiasts, helping them to animate their scenes, named HyperVUE (superseding to Mover in 2005), Botanica, LighTune, DeepAccess, 3D Import, RenderUp, EcoSystem, EcoPainter, Zephyr, AdvanceGraph, KronosFX, and Exporter. Mover 1 appeared in 1996, then in its second version in 1998 (Mover 2), Mover 4 (allowing animated Curious Labs' Poser model import) in 2002 and finally Mover 5 in 2004. All other plug-ins were released between 2004 and 2011, and are upgraded at every new generation. CloudFactory Ozone E-on also created an atmosphere generator as a plug-in, made from a part of VUE's rendering engine, named Ozone. Ozone 3D for Lightwave 3D was created in 1999, then e-on developed Ozone 2.0 for lightWave in 2002 and made it possible also for Cinema 4D in 2003. Ozone 3 was released in 2007, and Ozone 4 in 2009, getting additional compatibility with 3ds Max, Maya and Softimage at the same time. Ozone 5 was released in January 2011, Ozone 6 in March 2012, Ozone 2014 in June 2014 and CloudFactory Ozone 2015 in December 2014. Carbon Scatter The Carbon Scatter plug-ins integrate e-on's patented EcoSystem™ algorithms directly inside leading CG applications. Carbon Scatter allows artists to populate their scenes with millions of native objects using the native instancing technologies of 3ds Max, Maya, and Cinema4D, and render them with their favorite renderer. The Carbon Scatter plugins were previewed at Siggraph 2010 in Los Angeles. Carbon Scatter for 3ds Max was released in March of 2011, and versions for Maya and C4D in July 2011. Carbon Scatter 2 was released in December 2012, and Carbon Scatter 2015 in October 2014. LumenRT LumenRT is a powerful 3D solution for visualizing architectural and design projects in real-time. LumenRT extends the concept of static rendering by adding the ability to move around "inside pictures", in fully photo-realistic quality. LumenRT was previewed at Siggraph 2010 in Los Angeles. The first release version of LumenRT was released in June 2011, LumenRT 2 in January 2012, LumenRT 3 in August 2012, LumenRT 4 in March 2013 and LumenRT 2015 in October 2014. LumenRT 2015 in available in 4 versions: the free LumenRT VIZ, LumenRT Architect, LumenRT Studio and LumenRT GeoDesign. PlantFactory PlantFactory is a revolutionary technology for creating and rendering high-quality 3D plants. PlantFactory allows users to create procedural plants with unlimited control. PlantFactory is designed for the CG, SFX, Architecture and Gaming communities. It offers solutions custom-tailored for all audiences. The technology available in PlantFactory represents the culmination of e-on software's decades of expertise in the field of digital nature and delivers unsurpassed realism and performance. The PlantFactory product line comprises 3 main products - PlantFactory Designer, PlantFactory Studio and PlantFactory Producer, plus 2 specialty versions - the free PlantFactory Exporter and PlantFactory Artist- each of which addresses specific customer needs and budgets. PlantFactory 2014 was initially released as a public Beta in February 2013, and officially released in September 2013. PlantFactory 2015 was released in March 2015. Press Releases By Date (until 2015) 2015 September 14, 2015: Bentley Enlivens Reality Modeling through Acqui... July 21, 2015: E-on Software Ships Carbon Scatter 2015.5! July 13, 2015: E-on Software Announces LumenRT 2015.5 June 29, 2015: E-on Software Ships Free Versions of VUE and PlantFactory 2... June 15, 2015: E-on Software Ships Language Versions of VUE 2015 for 3D Ar... April 23, 2015: E-on Software Ships VUE 2015 Product Line for 3D Artists April 1, 2015: E-on Software Ships VUE 2015 Professional Solutions March 31, 2015: E-on Software Ships PlantFactory 2015 March 10, 2015: E-on Software Extends LumenRT Product Family with LumenRT ... 2014 December 22, 2014: E-on Software Announces LumenRT 2015.1 Update and Free ... December 5, 2014: E-on Software Offers Free Carbon Scatter 2015 Trial! December 2, 2014: CloudFactory Ozone 2015 Now Shipping! November 20, 2014: LumenRT 2015 Introduces GRAPHISOFT® ArchiCAD® Integrati... November 17, 2014: LumenRT 2015 Adds Enhanced MicroStation Features November 12, 2014: Alabama DOT Uses LumenRT 2015 for Massive Mobile River ... October 30, 2014: E-on Software Announces Immediate Availability of LumenR... October 13, 2014: Carbon Scatter 2015: Edit and Populate Millions of Plant... September 22, 2014: E-on Software Ships Free PlantFactory 2014.6 and VUE 2... September 10, 2014: E-on Software Ships PlantFactory 2014.6 and VUE 2014.6 July 22, 2014: E-on Software Releases Ozone 2014 PLE! July 2, 2014: Announcing the "3D Environment Competition 2014"! June 30, 2014: Ozone 2014 Now Shipping! May 22, 2014: Cornucopia3D Opens the Exchange Area May 21, 2014: E-on Software Ships VUE 2014.5 May 20, 2014: E-on Software Releases Plant Factory 2014.5 March 20, 2014: Cornucopia3D Opens the Plant Factory Nursery March 10, 2014: Esri and E-on Software Provide 3D Toolset for Planning, Ge... February 5, 2014: E-on Software Ships Language Versions of VUE 2014 for 3D... 2013 December 17, 2013: E-on Software Announces Immediate Availability of Lumen... December 12, 2013: Esri CityEngine 2013 Incorporates e-on software Plant F... December 5, 2013: E-on Software Releases Vue 2014 PLE and Trial Versions! November 27, 2013: E-on Software Ships Vue 2014 Digital Nature Solutions f... November 6, 2013: E-on Software Ships Vue 2014 Professional Solutions October 24, 2013: Philadelphia University Adopts LumenRT for its Groundbre... October 21, 2013: E-on Software Announces Immediate Availability of LumenR... September 23, 2013: E-on Software Releases Free Version of Plant Factory! September 9, 2013: E-on Software Announces Plant Factory July 25, 2013: E-on Software Releases the Vue 11.5 Personal Learning Editi... June 26, 2013: E-on Software Announces Immediate Availability of LumenRT 4... May 13, 2013: E-on Software Announces Availability of LumenRT 4.1 Studio April 30, 2013: E-on Software Ships Vue 11.5 April 29, 2013: Carbon Scatter 2 in Action March 20, 2013: E-on Software Announces Immediate Availability of LumenRT ... February 26, 2013: E-on Software Announces The Plant Factory February 21, 2013: E-on Software Ships Language Versions of Vue 11 for 3D ... January 30, 2013: E-on Software Offers Free Carbon Scatter 2 Trial! 2012 December 17, 2012: Carbon Scatter 2: Edit and Populate Millions of Plants ... December 4, 2012: E-on Software Releases Vue 11 PLE and Trial Versions! November 20, 2012: E-on Software Ships Vue 11 Digital Nature Solutions for... November 5, 2012: E-on Software Ships Vue 11 xStream and Vue 11 Infinite October 23, 2012: E-on Software Unveils Vue 11 October 4, 2012: Announcing the "3D Environment Competition 2012"! August 9, 2012: E-on Software Upgrades Immersive Media for Architecture! June 12, 2012: E-on Software Releases the Vue 10.5 Personal Learning Editi... May 21, 2012: E-on Software Ships Vue 10.5 April 26, 2012: E-on Software Unveils Vue 10.5 March 13, 2012: Ozone 6 Now Shipping! January 31, 2012: E-on Software Ships LumenRT 2 Review for SketchUp! January 23, 2012: E-on Software Ships Language Versions of Vue 10 for 3D E... January 16, 2012: E-on Software Ships Vue 10 Linux Rendering Solutions! 2011 December 20, 2011: E-on Software Releases Vue 10 PLE and Trial Versions! November 24, 2011: E-on Software Ships Vue 10 Digital Nature Solutions for... November 3, 2011: E-on Software Ships Vue 10 Infinite and Vue 10 xStream October 12, 2011: E-on Software to Ship Vue 10 Early November September 6, 2011: E-on Software Ships LumenRT Review Release 1.3! August 4, 2011: E-on Software Offers Free Carbon Scatter Trial Version! July 12, 2011: E-on Software Ships LumenRT Review Release 1.2! July 7, 2011: Carbon Scatter for Maya and Cinema 4D Released July 6, 2011: Announcing the "3D Environment Competition 2011"! June 1, 2011: E-on Software Resellers Announce Summer Road-Show Seminar Sc... May 26, 2011: E-on Software Ships LumenRT Review for SketchUp! May 4, 2011: E-on Software Ships Vue 9.5 April 27, 2011: Carbon Scatter: The Power Of EcoSystems With Native Instan... April 15, 2011: E-on Software Showcases LumenRT Videos! April 13, 2011: E-on Software 2011 Show Reel Call for Submissions! April 7, 2011: E-on Software Unveils Vue 9.5! March 10, 2011: Carbon Scatter for 3ds Max Released! January 31, 2011: Ozone 5 Final Release Now Shipping! January 12, 2011: E-on Software Ships Language Versions of Vue 9 for 3D En... 2010 December 9, 2010: E-on Software and Procedural Together Introduce CityEngi... December 2, 2010: E-on Software Releases Vue 9 PLE and Trial Versions! November 17, 2010: E-on Software Ships Vue 9 Digital Nature Solutions for ... November 4, 2010: E-on Software Ships Vue 9 Infinite and Vue 9 xStream October 12, 2010: E-on Software to Ship Vue 9 Early November October 6, 2010: Free Open Beta of Carbon Scatter for 3ds Max Released September 7, 2010: Announcing the "3D Character Rendering Challenge 2... July 27, 2010: E-on Software Previews Digital Nature Solutions at Siggraph... June 17, 2010: E-on Software Announces Authorized Training Center Program June 8, 2010: Announcing the "Vue 3D Environment Competition 2010"! June 3, 2010: Carbon Scatter: The Power Of EcoSystems With Native Instanci... June 1, 2010: E-on Software Releases Vue 8.5 PLE! May 12, 2010: E-on Software Introduces Vue Cocoa 64 Early Beta! May 6, 2010: E-on Software Ships Vue 8.5 April 15, 2010: E-on Software Uncovers Vue 8.5 April 12, 2010: E-on Software Updates Maintenance Plan Pricing and Policy April 6, 2010: Vue 8.4 Frontier Adds Native Collada Support for DAZ 3D Mod... March 5, 2010: E-on Software 2010 Show Reel Call for Submissions! February 26, 2010: Cornucopia3D.com Unveils Artist Portfolios February 22, 2010: E-on Software Releases Vue 8.4! January 28, 2010: E-on Software Ships Language Versions of Vue 8 for 3D En... 2009 December 9, 2009: E-on Software Releases Vue 8 PLE and Trial Versions! November 5, 2009: E-on Software Ships Vue 8 Digital Nature Solutions for 3... November 2, 2009: E-on Software Ships Vue 8 Infinite and Vue 8 xStream October 12, 2009: E-on Software to Ship Vue 8 Early November September 30, 2009: E-on Software Actively Developing for Mac Cocoa 64 August 4, 2009: E-on Software Previews Vue 8 Professional Solutions at Sig... July 24, 2009: E-on Software to Preview Vue 8 Professional Solutions at Si... June 15, 2009: Announcing the "Vue 3D Environment Competition 2009&qu...; June 9, 2009: E-on Software Releases Vue 7.5 and Ozone 4.0 Personal Learni... May 27, 2009: E-on Software Ships Vue 7.5 May 20, 2009: Ozone 4.0 Released! April 29, 2009: E-on Software Uncovers Vue 7.5 March 31, 2009: Ozone 4.0 Released as Free Open Beta March 24, 2009: Vue 7 Pioneer Full Application Released for Free! March 3, 2009: E-on Software 2009 Show Reel Call for Submissions! January 22, 2009: E-on Software Releases Vue 7 Personal Learning Edition! 2008 December 16, 2008: E-on Software Releases Free Vue 7 Pioneer Open Beta! November 4, 2008: E-on Software Ships Vue 7 xStream And Vue 7 Infinite! October 17, 2008: E-on Software Announces Vue 7 Product Lineup August 13, 2008: Vue "Summer 2008 Blockbuster" Roundup August 12, 2008: E-on Software Previews Vue 7 Professional Solutions August 5, 2008: E-on Software to Preview Vue 7 Professional Solutions at S... July 1, 2008: Announcing the “Vue 3D Environment Competition 2008”! 2007 August 9, 2007: E-on Software Ships Vue 6 xStream for Macintosh OSX August 8, 2007: E-on Software Ships Ozone 3.0 Solution for Realistic Atmos... August 7, 2007: E-on Software Ships Vue Release 6.5! July 2, 2007: Announcing the “Vue 3D Environment Competition 2007”! June 19, 2007: E-on Software Releases Vue 6 xStream for SOFTIMAGE|XSI May 16, 2007: E-on Software Releases Vue 6 Personal Learning Edition! March 13, 2007: E-on Software Ships Vue 6 Easel, Esprit And Pro Studio! March 8, 2007: Industrial Light & Magic Upgrades Its Pipeline To Vue 6! February 21, 2007: E-on Software Ships Vue 6 xStream and Vue 6 Infinite! 2006 August 3, 2006: E-on Software Previews Ozone™ 3 Atmosphere Plug-in at Sigg... August 2, 2006: E-on Software Lifts The Curtain On Vue 6! August 1, 2006: Vue Helps Industrial Light & Magic Create Environments for... July 1, 2006: e-on software unveils Vue 6! June 1, 2006: Vue 5 xStream for LightWave and Cinema4D Pre-Release Availab... May 1, 2006: Announcing the “Vue 3D Environment Competition 2006”! February 27, 2006: ILM Relies on E-on Software’s 3D Scenery Solutions For ... January 31, 2006: Vue xStream for 3DS Max and Maya Released! 2005 December 15, 2005: Vue 5 xStream for 3DS Max and Maya Pre-Release! November 3, 2005: The Return Of The Power Bundle! October 6, 2005: New Entry Level Application And Extreme Discounts On the ... August 22, 2005: Vue 5 Easel To Ship September 2005! August 16, 2005: ResPower Super/Farm™ Naturally Supports E-on Software Vue... July 31, 2005: Cornucopia: The World Of Plenty! July 22, 2005: Vue Fusion Streamlines Vue Integration! April 29, 2005: E-on Software Announces Tiger Promotion, and Spotlight Sup... March 14, 2005: E-on Software Ships Vue 5 Infinite! January 31, 2005: Vue 5 Infinite To ship March 14, 2005! January 17, 2005: E-on Software Ships Vue 5 Pro Studio and New Module Coll... 2004 December 13, 2004: Vue Professional Goes Infinite! December 4, 2004: Vue 5 Esprit and Poser® 5 Reunited! November 9, 2004: End of Year Promotion! November 2, 2004: E-on Software Releases Vue 5 Esprit Trial Version! September 30, 2004: E-on Software Ships Vue 5 Esprit! September 23, 2004: ResPower Render Farm Supports E-on Software Vue Profes... August 30, 2004: E-on Software Unveils Vue 5 Esprit! August 2, 2004: E-on Software Announces Vue 5 Esprit! May 5, 2004: Vue d'Esprit 4 and Poser 5 Reunited! March 19, 2004: E-on Software Ships Mover 5 February 9, 2004: E-on Software Announces Mover 5 February 4, 2004: E-on Software Releases Vue 4 Professional Trial Version 2003 November 5, 2003: E-on software announces new Japan partnership with e-fro... October 13, 2003: E-on software and SmartSound announce Special 3D Movie O... October 8, 2003: E-on software Ships Vue d’Esprit 4.2 Update September 16, 2003: E-on software Ships Vue 4 Professional September 8, 2003: E-on software Announces Vue 4 Professional September 2, 2003: Video Preview of Professional Product Now Online June 16, 2003: Upcoming Vue d'Esprit 4.2 Free Update to Support Poser 5 June 4, 2003: E-on software Confirms Commitment to Mac OS X Platform May 12, 2003: E-on Software Releases Ozone 2.0 for Cinema 4D March 17, 2003: Win One of Five Copies of e-on software Vue d'Esprit 4 by ... February 13, 2003: E-on software Ships Vue d’Esprit 4.12 Update January 20, 2003: Curious Labs and e-on software Announce Poser 4/Vue d'Es... January 16, 2003: E-on Software Announces Ozone 2.0 for Cinema 4D 2002 November 25, 2002: e-on software introduces OregonGrowth Education Program September 16, 2002: Vue 4 Featured During Steve Jobs Keynote Address July 23, 2002: Mover 4 Brings Complex Character Animation to Vue d’Esprit 4 July 15, 2002: Vue d’Esprit 4.1 Now Available! June 17, 2002: Vue d’Esprit Product Line to Feature Native Poser Animation! May 20, 2002: E-on Software to Ship Ozone 2.0 at Siggraph January 15, 2002: Vue d'Esprit 4 for Mac OS X wins MacWorld 2002 Best of S... 2001 June 25, 2001: Vue d'Esprit 4 Shipping! May 14, 2001: Vue d'Esprit 4 for Mac OS X May 7, 2001: Vue d'Esprit 4 Announcement 2000 June 27, 2000: E-on Software Ships Vue d'Esprit 3.1 News Letter from when Bentey acquired E-on Software Bentley Systems Acquires E-on Software Press Release September 14, 2015 Clients We are proud that the following, particularly prestigious companies rely on our products: E-on software's products are available both on the Windows and the Apple OS X platforms. We are associated with hardware and software manufacturers and work closely with them. This section represents these partners, leading the industry with competitive and superior solutions that we can be proud to recommend. Hardware Partners Software Partners HISTORIC WEB SNAPSHOTS April 2001 February 2004 February 2007

Wow, you dug really deep to find all of this old stuff. This makes me very nostalgic indeed. If you want to have anything for your own personal collection, I can look through the unpublished videos on our YouTube channel - maybe some things still exist. My story is a bit similar to yours initially. In the early 2000s, I discovered Terragen 0.9 and this was the first time I ever worked in 3D. I was a teenager at that time. From the beginning, I was fascinated by creating landscapes and environments, but I was soon missing the options to place objects and vegetation on the rather barren terrains. So, I started purchasing magazines to learn more about this "3D industry" and to look for complementary tools or alternatives to Terragen. One day in 2004, I discovered a demo of VUE 4 Pro on a magazine disc and I was hooked. Shortly after, VUE 5 was announced. I saved my pocket money for months and purchased a used VUE 4 Pro copy on ebay with license transfer. At that time, e-on offered either a free or a very affordable upgrade to VUE 5 Infinite which was an amazing release - it added EcoSystems and nodes, among other things. From then on, I saved as much of my little money as I could to upgrade to each future release. VUE was my entry into the 3D world, because it was so easy to use. With each new release, I learned more about 3D terminology and rendering. I eventually got the student version of Cinema 4D R10 to broaden my knowledge and create my own content to use in VUE. Fast forward to 2010. I had just finished my vocational job training after 2,5 years and spent three months in the US before starting university. At that time, e-on exhibited at most Siggraphs, and used this to run its annual 3D environment competition. The finalists and eventually the winners were announced each time at Siggraph. That year, Siggraph took place in L.A., and I was staying in San Francisco. I literally submitted my render for the competition an hour before I left for my US trip, then registered for a free exhibition pass to Siggraph and headed to the airport. Six weeks later, I took a flight from SF to L.A. and discovered that my entry was among the 10 finalists of the competition. God, I was so excited. I also met Matt Riveccie for the very first time, one of the earliest e-on employees. A year later or so, I was invited to become a beta tester for VUE and PlantFactory by the e-on founder Nicholas Phelps. In 2014, I spent a week of holidays in Paris, and Nicholas gave me a guided tour through the city and invited me into the e-on office where I met some of the developers and also Matt for the second time ("I remember you! You visited us in L.A. a few years ago!" 😮). In 2015, Nicholas sold e-on to Bentley, as Bentley was interested in the new LumenRT product which worked with Sketchup, Rhino and Microstation, Bentley's main flagship product. I continued as an alpha and beta tester over all those years, and when Nicholas left the company in 2017, Matt became his successor and the new director of product management. Over the years, I held workshops for e-on, both on-site and online, and helped with content and tutorial production on a freelance basis. In 2019, Matt approached me with a job offer to join Bentley full-time, and the rest is history. Had somebody told me that the guy I met at the booth in 2010 would eventually hire me 10 years later, I would have not believed this at all. It was May 2020 when I quit my former job and became an official Bentley / e-on employee. But in reality, my journey had started all those years ago with that magazine demo in 2004. Hadn't it been for VUE, I would never have entered the 3D industry at all, let alone professionally for a living, and discovered it as a wonderful hobby all those years before.

@HappyPolygon I think it's the easiest if I paste the message I posted on social media for our customers and community. This should give you the full context. To answer your question from the other thread: Bentley has nothing to do with the car company. We are Bentley Systems, an infrastructure company focused on city planning, water and oil pipelines, sustainable infrastructure design etc.; Bentley's flagship product is Microstation, and some of VUE's code was for example implemented in Microstation over the past few years. Edit: @HappyPolygon May I suggest to change the thread title to something like "VUE, PlantFactory and PlantCatalog are now freeware"? This way, more people will know about this and can take advantage of the free builds.

You need to download all of them. Each archive contains new models, released across the last four years.

Thank you so much for this nostalgic trip. Made me think of forgotten CGI software of late 90s and early 2000s (Cool 3D, Bryce 3D, MetaCreations Canoma, Carrara, etc. )

That seems to be the issue with latest forum software we are using where unread topics are not in bold font. Currently we're looking into source code to resolve that