GenArts has released a new version of its industry-standard collection of VFX plug-ins, Sapphire. This version sets a new standard for creating breakthrough visual effects by integrating dynamic controls, thousands of creative options, and unmatched quality into a single, comprehensive visual effects solution. New features in version 6 include a customisable lens flare editor, a new visual presets browser, and access to more presets via the FX Central service. 

NVIDIA has updated 3.x generation of PhysX physics engine to version 3.1 available for Windows PC, Linux, Mac OSX and, for the first time, Android platforms. The new update comes with a lot of new features and also fixes starting with VC10 support and upgraded GPU tech to CUDA 4. A new solution for cloth simulation, the new PxCloth cloth solver in SDK 3.1 is a rewrite of the PhysX 2.x deformables, oriented on clothing simulation. It is promised to offer better performance (especially on consoles) and cloth behaviour.

Next Limit released for the newest version of Realflow 2012 an updated to version 6.0.1.0070 which is immediately available for download. This update is fixing numerous bugs which came with the new version and also some minor improvements. Most bugs were fixed by the Caronte Body Dynamics Solver which is RealFlow's cutting-edge in-built rigid and soft body dynamics solver. Caronte allows the user to do fast, reliable calculations – even with complex, large-scale scenes creating realistic environment and fluid dynamics.

CG portal 3Dtotal.com now offers for their readers something special. Your artwork can be a part of upcoming Digital Art Masters: Volume 7. Artists are not limited by number of entries. However, you should comply with the following rules. You must own the copyrights for any image that is submitted for consideration of inclusion in DAMv7. If your artwork has been created as fan art then you cannot submit to this project and some more. The deadline for submissions is 28th November.