I started using blender around the 1.6x mark I think, back in the 90s. It was the only 3D software I could afford (you could unlock features with a c-key back i

I started using blender around the 1.6x mark I think, back in the 90s. It was the only 3D software I could afford (you could unlock features with a c-key back in those days, I still don't know what c-key means) that would also run on IRIX. I had an SGI o2 back in those days and no clue about how to use any of it. Blender was difficult to learn, but it was a lot of fun and thankfully the community was extremely helpful with tutorials and what not. When NaN (the company that developed Blender) went belly up in the early 00's I like many others had absolutely zero confidence that Ton and gang would be able to raise the $100k to buy out the IP from the venture capitalists who'd invested in NaN, only to then give it away for free and open source to boot. It sounded absolutely mad, and I'm overjoyed that Ton and gang managed to prove doubters like myself wrong. Here's to hopefully many more years of success!