Announcing Thea Render

Frederik · 11 May 2009, 14:52

Hi All,

I'd like to share some news with you all...

It was a long year of hard work and advances. Some people have spotted a delay in Kerkythea updates and indeed there was a reason. Our primary focus has been shifted towards the creation of a new renderer, entering the commercial arena. The name of the new renderer is - for simplicity - the same as the commercial engine that runs behind Kerkythea.

So, what is it with Thea Render ? We believe that it belongs to a different class regarding quality, versatility and easy of use. This is a new renderer incorporating state of the art features with a lot of work and research behind it. For further discussion on the new renderer, we welcome users in our related announcement over Thea Render forum (requires registration to post or read).

And what about Kerkythea itself? We certainly won't abandon Kerkythea, our "render buddy". Most probably though, the shift in priorities will have an impact for the next updates, delaying them further. On the other hand, some related Kerkythea issues will be improved, particularly the integration with modelers (since exporters can be reused). And of course, there will be some long-promised features, that now make their appearance in Thea Render, but will also become available in a next Kerkythea edition.

Furthermore, we would like to reward the people that contributed to Kerkythea with the one or the other way (commitment, donations, hard work) as a minimal token of our appreciation and ask for their understanding for the shift of priorities.

We thank you for your continuous support and welcome you in both of our render communities.

best regards
Ioannis Pantazopoulos

Much more news to follow shortly...

solo · 11 May 2009, 14:57

Whoah!! KT and Indigo hitting the commercial market.

I have always dragged my feet to learn Kt, but now I will (yes I will) make sure I give Thea a try, looks like it's going to be a fantastic rendering solution.

Any idea of release date and price? (I cannot access the KT forum from my machine)

kwistenbiebel · 11 May 2009, 15:09

Too bad.
Something's got to remain for free.

As a lot of internet goeroes predict, the worldwidewebbernet ceases to be free in the near future.

(I do think Giannis deserves something back for his hard work, but still....a pitty)

Frederik · 11 May 2009, 15:24

@kwistenbiebel said:

Too bad.
Something's got to remain for free.

Please note...
Kerkythea will remain free - even future releases...!

Gaieus · 11 May 2009, 15:30

forum confirmation email

Frederik · 11 May 2009, 15:35

You'll get it shortly...

mateo soletic · 11 May 2009, 15:56

Frederik,
Thanks for the info,I will certainly have a go at it.
Cheers,
Mateo

dale · 11 May 2009, 18:10

I've already registered for the Forum, and look forward to Thea Render's release. I found Kerkythea to be a great program, and will most likely jump in on Thea.
Congrats.

2kemon · 11 May 2009, 18:21

Typical! I just decided to jump ship and turn to Kerkythea, because Indigo went commercial. And even though it will stay free it is already announced that upgrades will be delayed even further.
Are there any free renders out there if you're not using blender? Maybe I should even jump from Sketchup to Blender...

EDIT! I know I sound like an angry old fart, but that was just my initial feelings. I don't want to take anything away from Giannis, and at least he's still keeping Kerkythea free. So good luck with you new challenges.

kwistenbiebel · 11 May 2009, 18:50

It's the sign of the times 2Kemon
There is less and less sharing on the internet.
Have you checked the component section here on SCF lately?

There used to be a lot of free stuff there...because people considered it fun to make others happy.
Now most of the components up there are linked to commercial activity.
Good for the authors, but not as much fun as it used to be.

Luckily there are still ruby coders out there that really contribute to this community without asking money for all or some of their plugins... I love it. (Fredo,CPhilips,ChrisFullmer etc....)
For a lot of people, those 'freebies' are the reason to come to a forum like this and to participate.

2kemon · 11 May 2009, 19:06

...you're right biebel! The funny thing is, that it has actually made me consider buying modo, since it wouldn't be much more expensive than one of the render apps I've used up until now (I don't know Thea's price tag yet), and I would be getting a better 3D app thrown in the mix. And as written in the previous post, I've even considered a Blender/YafaRAY combo when Blender 2.5 is released.

But that's enough off-topic posting. Kerkythea is a great and flexible render app, and I'm not at a level where I'm limited by the features of the free version. So I'll carry on reading my tutorials. If Thea render is supposed to be better, then the future buyers are in for a real treat.

Now I'll stop complaining, and start contributing instead. After My school project is over I'm planning to release different free sketchup component packs of low-poly trees, low-poly cars, cut-out people and stuff like that.

dale · 11 May 2009, 19:18

Confirmed that it will be released in Mac OS also. That's great

EscapeArtist · 12 May 2009, 14:05

I gotta admit that upon the first look at the page I too thought Kerkythea was no longer going to be supported or be free. It looks like that's not the case, and I sincerely hope that they will be able to provide updates and support for the free engine. Heck, if TR is affordable, I'd buy it - but I can't even afford SU pro...

Fletch · 12 May 2009, 18:44

I'm very happy for Giannis' new endeavor. He deserves to be rewarded for his generosity to thousands over the years, and Thea Render will be impressive, indeed.

maybe it's not obvious, but the donate button on KT's website is surprisingly dusty compared to the download button...

Gaieus · 12 May 2009, 18:46

@fletch said:

maybe it's not obvious, but the donate button on KT's website is surprisingly dusty compared to the download button...

I can imagine

Gaieus · 12 May 2009, 19:32

OK, I look at TR as researches in space industry. All new (and initially expensive) features are implemented there while with time, they "strain" down to (say) everyday "free" users of KT.

Frederik · 12 May 2009, 19:37

@gaieus said:

(and initially expensive)

No, no... I can't reveal much now, but please rest assured that it will be affordable...

@gaieus said:

features are implemented there while with time, they "strain" down to (say) everyday "free" users of KT.

Well... I guess you can say that...
So it's only a matter of patience and what you see today will (perhaps) become available for free over time...
Some after a couple of years...

Gaieus · 12 May 2009, 19:43

By the "expensive" thing I meant development. It is indeed expensive to spend much time of educated and well qualified people on something (yet) not "financially" productive which can bear the fruits only in the future.

Sorry for the misunderstandable expression.

Frederik · 12 May 2009, 19:56

@solo said:

Whoah!! KT and Indigo hitting the commercial market.

@unknownuser said:

And what about Kerkythea itself? We certainly won't abandon Kerkythea, our "render buddy". Most probably though, the shift in priorities will have an impact for the next updates, delaying them further. On the other hand, some related Kerkythea issues will be improved, particularly the integration with modelers (since exporters can be reused). And of course, there will be some long-promised features, that now make their appearance in Thea Render, but will also become available in a next Kerkythea edition.

Please note that KT - even future releases - will remain free...

@solo said:

I have always dragged my feet to learn Kt, but now I will (yes I will) make sure I give Thea a try, looks like it's going to be a fantastic rendering solution.

Yeah - it's really a shame that you've dragged your feet, cause it actually is quite easy...
But Thea Render sure is an awesome application...

@solo said:

Any idea of release date and price? (I cannot access the KT forum from my machine)

Not sure why you shouldn't be able to access the KT Forum and website...
I'd encourage you and others to visit the new Thea Render web-site...
And in particular the related announcement over Thea Render forum (requires registration to post or read)...

Regarding the price... Not sure I'm allowed to reveal that much here, but this is what you can read in the Thea Render Key Points document...

@unknownuser said:

FAIR PRICE
Thea is built for the professional user but without an elitetargeted price tag. It is affordable for one basic reason; we simply enjoy working on creating a solid and elegant application in order to meet your expectations.

Frederik · 12 May 2009, 19:57

@escapeartist said:

I gotta admit that upon the first look at the page I too thought Kerkythea was no longer going to be supported or be free. It looks like that's not the case, and I sincerely hope that they will be able to provide updates and support for the free engine.

Please rest assured that although all forces are currently aimed at the Thea Render development, new versions of KT will come...

Because of the present priorities on Thea Render development, we can't keep the same pace on developing KT - at the moment - but since KT and Thea Render share some parts of the same "engine", KT will adapt some features from the Thea Render...

For obvious reasons KT won't immediately adapt all functions and advantages as the Thea Render, but there will be improvements in future releases of KT...

Please note...
We (The KT Team) have a very strong passion for KT and the KT community...
We all feel very much engaged in the KT project and development - but without an income, KT can't last forever...

Look at it this way...
The Thea Render application is a step to ensure the survival of KT's future existense...
It's as simple as that...

@escapeartist said:

Heck, if TR is affordable, I'd buy it - but I can't even afford SU pro...

Good point...