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Is Blender 2.8 different enough that I should wait for the beta to be released (in a couple weeks?) to start learning the software, or is 2.7 a worthwhile starting place?

Nicola Sap
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WasteTimeMachine
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  • I see why this question has been considered "mostly opinion based", but really the question is just about a very objective thing: "are the changes from 2.79 to 2.8 very big?". I think that can be answered in objective ways, and it's beneficial to other users as well. Voting to reopen. – Nicola Sap Nov 11 '18 at 08:30
  • Could have also voted to close migrate to meta. IMO It's a generic question that could be asked re any software. .. and, dare I say it, breaks down to conservative (stick with what works now) vs progressive (new is new, "going forward") or somewhere in between. Would need to know what the OP's intentions are. The context of how big the changes are will depend on which tools one chooses to learn. (egs game engine, EVEE), what one wants to achieve and when. To re-open give the question some context, such that it cannot be answered with a simple yes / no.. Closed or not, draws in the votes. – batFINGER Nov 11 '18 at 10:22
  • It requires an understanding of both versions of the software, how they are similar, how they differ, and what the learning process of both might be. That fits the requirement of needing expertise to answer. Sure, one contributor could say there is no point in waiting, and another could say that the differences are large enough that waiting is worthwhile. Perhaps the best way to answer it is if you were just coming to Blender now would you be planning on using 2.8 when it was released? Would it make sense to start with it than 2.7 given the changes? It is a totally fair question. – WasteTimeMachine Nov 12 '18 at 06:10

1 Answers1

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Learn now, and it's ok to start with 2.8

Blender 2.8 makes many changes to some fundamental aspects of how we interact with the software and with each workflow. Most notably: layers are gone and the objects are organised differently; using workspaces for different kind of tasks is now visually encouraged (with some great default workspaces!); the creation of materials is done with a new efficient LookDev mode.

Many shortcuts were changed, included commonly used ones; almost all the icons are changed too, and the interaction with the Viewport has been improved in many ways.

Since it appears that the Alpha 2 version is stable for most of the users, I'd suggest trying Blender 2.8 directly. You won't have the burden to re-learn new shortcuts and to get used to new defaults.

Just don't rely on an experimental version for anything professional, but as I understand you are just trying to pick up a new hobby/interest, and Blender 2.8 won't hurt you! Some tutorial creators have already started publishing 2.8-based videos (but 2.79 tutorials will be mostly fine too, with some effort to figure out the hotkey changes)

Nicola Sap
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    It's worth pointing out that one of the big changes in 2.8 is dropping the game engine (they're replacing it with an "Interactive Mode" at some point). So if you want to use Blender's game engine, use 2.79. – Joseph Brandenburg Nov 11 '18 at 01:48