Re: What do you think...I still think it stinks!!!

I guess that for $499 is it a no brainer...

...unless you are looking to acquire a skillset - in which case I would avoid it like the plague. As an addition to an established artist's toolbox I can see that it could be argued as "a steal" even if it's only ever used for pulling an awkward key once in a blue moon...

...there again you could - as has been muted - splash the cash on primatte or keylight...

To be honest, I would personally save your hard earned dosh and not spend it frovolously on acquiring a marginalised skillset that is by all accounts about to be made redundant.

Lets not forget: if Apple are fast about developing a replacement - the faster Shake skills become redundant.

If I were a head of tech ops at a large facility, having forked out $000's for a large number of Shake seats at $3k a pop, I would be seething about my outlay, and then I would be seething about the cost of re-traing staff, then I would seeth about seeking advice for a replacement software. No end of seething.

If I were a shake op, I would be seething about having to learn fusion, nuke or C* to the level I know Shake. I would worry where I could get some downtime for the reskilling; I would worry about my shop's committment to Shake and how their workflow might be altered in the near future to accommodate new tools...

Basically, if you've invested in Shake, either as a facility or as an artist with a skill, the cynical dropping of the product will cause you big problems and you will have to jump ship sooner or later.

Good luck! :-0

Justin Discriminate