"Please help with these models" Topic

I design my models in 3D software, then grow them on a 3D-printing rapid-prototyping machine. A company called Shapeways is trying to make this economical so we can switch from prototyping to direct digital manufacturing. Right now I'm having some difficulties with them because they set their limits much higher than what the printer is capable of doing. I've been going around and around with them for a while, even proving to them (pictures of more than a dozen of the models in questions, grown on the machine in question) that they grow fine and I'd like to step it up.

I'd like to ask everyone for a little help. I'm hoping that if the community jumps in and shows support, maybe they'll change their mind. My Shapeways page is at link (shapeways.com/hisdesign?user_id=3864). There's a 2D nice render of each model, but you'll need Flash to see them in 3D. The 3D option lets you zoom around the model and see it from all different angles, which may or may not be important to you.

What I would like is for you guys to go, check out the models and rate them. The more you rate, even if it's one you wouldn't normally be interested in, the better our odds. Be honest in your ratings. Naturally I'd love it if everything got 5 stars and that would do the best job of increasing their visibility to visitors of the site, but be honest. Also, there's a comment section for each model. Feel free use it. Liberally.

Thanks.

Lovely models, but I wonder if Shapeways would be concerned more about IP-infringement issues. Paramount and Lucasfilm have deep pockets and plenty of lawyers to feed them with.

Not to mention ADB, who will probably be less than thrilled with the obviously-derived-from-SFB D7M, D5, Sparrowhawk, Firehawk, Thunderhawk, etc. I'll admit yours are arguably prettier than their sculpts, but you could at least change the names instead of cribbing theirs.

Yeah, nice looking but a bit too close to other folks bread n' butter.

They look nice, but your headed for a long walk off a short legal plank. They are obviously IP infringing works and I am totally shocked that they have not just pulled your account to save themselves a huge lawsuit as well.

I do not understand why someone with the know how to do something this well takes the short road to oblivion and makes stuff they have no right to make.

David Why did you not invest that time and effort into something that could have been 100% yours instead of 100% someone else's????

I'll make whatever models people are interested in or ask me to make. If CBS or Lucas ask me to stop then I'll do so. Steve knows all about my models and we've talked about me doing some for him.

This thread is not going how you think it will.

I for one would not touch your renders for prototyping with a 10 foot pole. There are so many legal issues there as others have said its not even funny- and many of them you did not even try to do the "give it a weird name but the same look trick".

And waiting for Lucas films, CBS, et al to tell you to stop proves right there you dont really care about IP- you just want to make a buck off someone elses work. I would never support that- what you are doing is just as bad if not worse then recasting.

As Nap says why dont you scrap all of this and make up your own? Legal issue solved.

Yes, I do think the IP issues is Shapeway's biggest hangup here. You *could* make some minor modifications to the minis to get around that though, as there is a reasonable about of wiggle room on thios since the "Mickey and The Air Pirates" case, though how much is something that keeps lawyers in cocaine.

And I ma not goign to join in on the tone of criticism you have recieved here, Justicar, just as I wouldn't do so on someone who has done a super-accurate sculpt/painting of a PzKw 1A for instance . . . And one day that IP issue will bite in the 'historicals' side of things, and I for one will happily play Satan's laywer in discussions on that. :)

David I am not trying to be mean at all. I just don't understand for any reason why you would squander that many hours of hard work when you could have made something that was your own.

You've made obvious copies that are named exactly what they are and you and shapeways could both be looking at a stratisphericly high lawsuit against you that could mean your broke until Y3K rolls around.

Look at the guys who file shared the AD&D books each person was sued for $150,000+ Now is it worth that kind of risk just because someone wants you to make it?

and if you do have that kind of cash lying around why not do it the legal proper way and start a licenced mini's company????

There are ships on Justicar's page which no-one else is making. Lucas does NOT have exclusive rights on the concept of a wedge-shaped spaceship, nor has Paramount copyrighted the saucer – and – nacelle look of the UFP fleet. I'll be rating these babies! Maybe I'll finally get some ISD's for my WotC Imp fleet that DON'T look like they went through the warp and misjumped! (Bendy!)

It's not IP infringement if he's doing it for himself. It's no different from scratchbuilding one.

You don't have to make items on the site available for public release.

And the legal costs alone of getting a licensing agreement for something like this are prohibitive for a hobby like this. The lawyer will make sure of that. It's how they justify their fees. And the companies don't care about a few hundred or thousand fans. They could easily license these kinds of things online for a few cents to even $1 USD per model – with no lawyers involved at all – but they won't.

Soon enough the technology will be available so we will all be able to get these kinds of things created under the radar – so we win and they lose. Kind of ironic isn't it?

OK two things here, first really nice work, secound I can't support you on this for the IP reasons, I would hate it if someone was to copy my work, and I'm sure you would too! so why would you copy someone elses.

I think the issue-interpretation of Fair Use is going to come up with the folks at Shapeways if it's not already deeply inserted in the fine print there.

Ages ago I worked at a copy center when the first Fair Use policies were established by the federal government, trust me it was a real both having to 'monitor' whether a customer was copying something for personal use or committing piracy.

From that experience I say if an item-object is for a personal collection, green flag, for use at a gaming event, yellow flag and if being considered for resale, red flag.

Nice work all the same, legal issues aside.

Heh.
You are so doomed… You'll make $4 USD off these, and then get sued for $400 USD million. Those guys pay their lawyers whether they're working or not.

For your sake, I hope you don't own anything.
-Kle.

@MacrossMartin

Yes they do when its called the exact same name as there ships and it looks 100% like there ships and they have the high priced lawyers to prove it.

There is only one andramada assendant ship and it looks just exactly like that. if he had simply changed the shape to a new one he could have legally ripped off the style and did an entire fleet of them in different sizes.

He made the choice, so let him bring about his own financial ruin….

Well, *if* the guys at ADB are willing to contract with you for the sculpting, that's one thing. I'm pretty sure they'd love to get more of those minis (which don't exist currently) in hard form.

Any Lucas properties, though… just don't. His pockets are probably deep enough to *win* against the US government.

If you've ever played a post-WWI wargame then I'll accept your apology now.

For anything else, please read Rousseau and Thoreau, at a minimum, and then we can have a reasoned discussion.

Beyond that, I'd say that this thread has pretty much run it's course.

If you've ever played a post-WWI wargame then I'll accept your apology now.

For anything else, please read Rousseau and Thoreau, at a minimum, and then we can have a reasoned discussion.

Your philosophy will make a heartfelt, but utterly ineffectual defense in court.
-Kle.

You meant 'its course'.

Justicar's ceased production, according to his posts on SCN:

link