27
Digital Pro
Entry Feed Trackback
Toon Boom has released the successor to Solo: Digital Pro. TB asked me a year ago to kick Solo’s tires and provide them with feedback. I did and I admit to having a really hard time with Solo overall yet was very impressed with its features. My problem was trying to overcome the dizzying array of menus and buttons and panels (oh my!). But I also ran into cerebral snags with several other UI implementations (X-sheets!). I felt like I entered a foreign country and didn’t know any of the language. I understand some software programs can take time to learn, but after what accumulated to several long hours with Solo, I barely got past drawing a ball and animating a simple squash and stretch sequence. Ugh. The luxury of free time is not something I have an abundance of and I had to put my Solo education on hold in order to pay the bills (Flash).
Toon Boom listened and has now overhauled Solo into what they call Digital Pro. The UI is simpler and with over 4 hours of online video tutorials, it has become easier to learn. With features like IK, 3D stage and Glue, I can not wait to try this product again. I have downloaded and installed the personal learning edition with hopes of spending some time with it this weekend but to my dismay the program will not let me past the splash screen where it requires me to enter a license key (which I don’t have). My only other option is to close it 
So for now, embracing Toon Boom software will remain a distant but hopeful goal, at which time I will surely blog about my experience with it here.
Hi Chris.
In order to get the PL key, you have to login to the TB website, into your account and go to downloads and there is a “Get your license key” link below the ” Toon Boom Digital Pro (PLE)” download link …. Something like this:
http://www.toonboom.com/products/trial_dwn/#digitalpro
Enjoy!
I also find the UI very hard to use, also the hot keys…. a nightmare. This happens mainly because I think in Flash terms … Hmm. Will try harder. The TB software is amazing.
Radu at Oct 29, 07 at 9:15 am
Tanks Radu - weird thing is I had logged on to my account and couldn’t find the license key - but when I tried again yesterday there it was! So I have DP running now - so far all I have tried are the drawing tools and they are very cool.
chris at Oct 29, 07 at 2:04 pm
I’ve always enjoyed using Moho 5 (now Anime Studio) for my 2D character animations:
http://www.e-frontier.com/article/articleview/1913/1/793?sbss=793
I’ve looked at ToonBoom before, besided their pricing, I never liked their bitmap based solutions (I prefer working in vectors as much as possible!)
I’ll have to look at this new package of theirs, but for the price, Anime Studio is a great package!
-Will
William Bell at Dec 1, 07 at 6:55 pm