Employer's feelings about external plugins

Maxim · Dec 2010

Hey, I was wondering how to employers usually feel about external plugins and 3rd party scripts. For example I need to retopologize a model. Would they look down upon it (extra cost of plugin) if I were to use something like topogun? Keep in mind this is just an example.

Jason Young · Dec 2010

If you can prove a need for it, most will buy them if the cost is reasonable. Topogun is fairly inexpensive so I imagine most would be fine with purchasing it.

Bigjohn · Dec 2010

Topogun is not a plugin. It's an external application. If you're using a free plugin (like say for 3dsmax or Maya or whatever), that shouldn't be a problem. Otherwise, I find that studios are pretty open about it. If you really feel that you need an extra tool, then they'll try and get it for you, depending on the cost/budgets/etc.

Edit:
Yeah, basically waht JMYoung said

Maxim · Dec 2010

Ok so if I already owned the program for my personal use, generally would I be allowed to use it at work. As long as all the licensing rules were followed?

Bigjohn · Dec 2010

Yeah, that should be fine I believe. As long as the license says you can use it for commercial use and whatnot. I don't know your specific circumstances, but that kind of stuff should be fine usually.

PredatorGSR · Dec 2010

I usually end up buying niche programs myself as long as the price is reasonable, stuff like draster and mystic thumbs. Sometimes it can take a while to get a program, even if they are willing to pay for it. In my experience, employers don't have any problems with you using other programs/plugins, as long as you have a license that allows for commercial use. If you have a personal use license, or worse, a pirated copy, the company is vulnerable to being sued/fined if it is found out, so that is a big no no. You might think that is unlikely, but all it takes is a disgruntled employee sending in an anonymous tip.

Mark Dygert · Dec 2010

Bigjohn wrote: »

Topogun is not a plugin. It's an external application. If you're using a free plugin (like say for 3dsmax or Maya or whatever), that shouldn't be a problem. Otherwise, I find that studios are pretty open about it. If you really feel that you need an extra tool, then they'll try and get it for you, depending on the cost/budgets/etc.

Edit:
Yeah, basically waht JMYoung said

Well... even free plug-ins can cause problems. Do other people need the plug-in to open the files you've worked on? Does the plug in effect other tools or scripts. In general its a good idea to run it past someone higher up on the food chain than yourself, if nothing more than to make sure the blame doesn't fall on you.

RyanB · Dec 2010

If your game is published by a big publisher that has a history of fighting against free software, you may not be allowed to use ANY free software, including plugins and scripts, to make the game. The terms of the contract will specifically say what can and can't be used.

Installing software at work is generally a bad idea unless you are really sure it's not going to be an issue. Free scripts are usually ok.

I got started in effects because another employee used some plug-ins that the company hadn't paid for. I had to re-do dozens of effects after he left the company.

Bigjohn · Dec 2010

Mark Dygert wrote: »

Well... even free plug-ins can cause problems. Do other people need the plug-in to open the files you've worked on? Does the plug in effect other tools or scripts. In general its a good idea to run it past someone higher up on the food chain than yourself, if nothing more than to make sure the blame doesn't fall on you.

Yeah heh, of course always ask the boss. But in my experience, they always say yeah. Never had a boss not allow me to install a free plug-in. But then again, I haven't had that many bosses.

sprunghunt · Dec 2010

As Vig said it can cause problems if it prevents others from editing your files. I have come across this and it's not something coworkers enjoy.

A smaller games company could also have problems just buying the software for you. It's not like they won't buy it but it just might take a while for them to get the money. A large company should have no problems getting you a plugin.

Eric Chadwick · Dec 2010

Check with your technical artist, if you have one. Or whomever oversees changes/fixes to the artist pipeline. Sometimes a new plugin or script will cause unintended problems, because you work in a team environment, not just a lone dude.

Others might need it in order to open/edit your files, you might need a site license, or you might need to install it on all machines. Not so likely with Topogun tho.

Mark Dygert · Dec 2010

One other thing to keep in mind is that with a new version of 3dsmax and Maya shipping very 8-12mo compatibility with old plug-ins might be an issue. Your plug-in might not work with the newer version of 3dsmax or cause problems. Normally that means waiting until the 3rd party author gets around to updating the plug-in, which if they've decided to drop it and you've come to depend on it, your sunk.

If it is updated regularly, then there is the issue of not just buying it once but possibly annually. Most plug-ins that do get regular updates need to fund those updates some way and can't rely on new sales like pixologic does. So you spend a few weeks or months in limbo, then you have to buy the new version again... this is something smaller companies aren't so fond of. If you're lucky and you bitch up a storm maybe autodesk will buy it and include it and keep it updated.

PredatorGSR · Dec 2010

Mark, maybe your experience differs, but at the places I've worked, we only updated every 2-3 versions. I actually have the opposite problem, stuff like textools only has limited functionality under Max 9 which is the one we are still using, but rumor is we are getting 2011 in a few months. My previous company was Maya 7 > 2008, current is Max 9 > 2011. It is usually pretty rare to upgrade a whole company to new software every release.

Mark Dygert · Dec 2010

It depends if the company is on subscription or not, we are and it saves us a ton of cash. If we where to spend the same amount on brand new copies we could only upgrade every 4 releases, instead for that same amount we get releases every year, plus a bunch of subscription freebies.

I honestly couldn't imagine going back to Max9. I would miss so much stuff its not even funny.

trancerobot · Dec 2010

While we're on the topic, what do studios think about an artist using the tools he bought himself?

I own a license of Silo, and I imagine not very many studios use that. While I have good experience using Max, I still prefer Silo for modeling. If I were to get a job, how likely do you think it would be that they would allow me to use my own tools in the process?

edit:

As Vig said it can cause problems if it prevents others from editing your files. I have come across this and it's not something coworkers enjoy.

I understand this also applies here. If I were to leave a studio, my license would come with me. Since that situation is undesirable, I guess I have my answer for the most part.

Eric Chadwick · Dec 2010

It's pretty likely, in my experience. But of course it depends (on how anal they are!).

Silo is not usually an end-of-the-pipeline product, so your files will likely end up in their "master" 3d format, so Silo would be needed only if they had to edit the source files. Silo is inexpensive enough if they need to revisit them, which isn't often.

Employer's feelings about external plugins

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