In a recent roundup of 3D tools for Photoshop CS3 Extended, Digital Arts had this to say about Strata Design 3D[in]: "Design[in]'s subtools offer impressive roundtrip capability: you can send a 3D model from Photoshop to Design 3D[in], add textures and send the model back. You can continue the texture editing/modelling process, or close and render it. An 'Un-Plug' button flips you out of the plug-in. This integration sets Strata's tools above the rest of the applications on test."

They then awarded Design 3D[in] 4.5 stars out of 5 and their "Best Buy" award.

As great as Chris Tyler's excellent new video tutorials are, all 43 hours of them, they don't do you much good if you haven't purchased the Art & Science of Strata 3D CX yet. Since we haven't done a user survey in quite some time, and the one for our first version of the Art & Science went over so well, we thought we'd give it another shot.

Fill out the linked survey here to get your coupon code for 20% off the DVD bundle, or the individual discs. Don't let this opportunity to pick up the best Strata 3D CX training pass you by.

The latest StrataCafe challenge deadline has been extended to Friday, October 24th, so there's no reason not to enter for your chance to win the Art & Science 2 or a 1TB external drive.

With all the talk about gasoline prices and hybrid vehicles, the goal this time is to create a vehicle that runs on an ecologically friendly fuel source. Become the architect of the next revolution in human propulsion, or simply point out how silly a device powered by Methane might be, it's your call.

There is a lot of crossover between Strata users and Photoshop users, and big contests like these are a great way to gain exposure.

Entries are accepted starting on November 1st, and prizes include Adobe software, training material from Peachpit Press, and a trip to Barcelona, Spain to create a cover for Photoshop User magazine!

We kept extending the Legacy Upgrade offer another month, and no matter how many times we did it, we always got a rash of calls as soon as it was over asking if they could still take advantage of the offer.

For the time being, we've simply reduced the cost to upgrade from an older version of Strata 3D to Strata 3D CX 5.5 from $299 to $149. No coupon codes to remember, no deadlines to meet, just a reduced price.

Unfortunately, it's not permanent. Eventually the price of legacy upgrades will be returned to its $299 price point. So if you are looking to upgrade in the near future, we do ask that you do it sooner rather than later. We've just made it easier to take advantage of.