Recently, HP announced that small- and medium-size digital content creation (DCC) customers would now have application tuning support for 3D Studio Max with the HP Performance Tuning Framework, a new initiative for individuals and small business owners of content creation studios.

The framework is designed to allow workstation customers to easily tune their Intel Pentium or Xeon-based workstations running 3D Studio Max for enhanced performance, stability and productivity with 3D graphics driver installation and system optimization.

Once 3D Studio Max is installed, the HP Performance Tuning Framework, via the Web, is designed to automatically query the HP graphics certification database and recommend an appropriate driver for the users’ graphics card and installed applications.

The framework is designed to expose system and application tuning opportunities by searching information collected by a team of HP consultants that are working with major workstation application vendors. HP’s Performance Tuning Framework is designed to automatically update itself via the Web when new 3D Studio Max drivers and optimization applications become available.

"We've designed the Performance Tuning Framework for small companies that don't have an IT staff," says Mike Diehl, product marketing manager for HP Workstations. "The software, after querying the workstation, provides the user with simple "What ifs" that show how each suggested change will effect performance. The software also resolves any driver conflicts--which, as users know, can be very difficult to track down--as well as solving any graphics cards problems such as instability."

Due to HP’s ability to engineer workstations that deliver the functionality users want and need, HP is making it easier for SMBs to get the most out of their Pentium and Xeonbased workstations. With changes in software and workstation hardware designs, HP SMB customers have key performance benefits typically delivered to large enterprise customers supported by a dedicated and costly IT staff.

“HP is committed to providing its SMB customers a flexible, powerful and simple technology experience that helps enable them to run and grow their business at an affordable price,” said Jim Zafarana, vice president and worldwide marketing manager, Workstation Global Business Unit, HP.

“With the Performance Tuning Framework, HP is helping to enable our DCC SMB customers to stay competitive by providing them with enterprise-level solutions at an SMB price.”

The Performance Tuning Framework was initially offered in September 2003 to MCAD customers of HP workstations to support Autodesk Inventor 6.0 & 7.0, UGS PLM Solutions Unigraphics 18, NX1, and NX2. Since the introduction six months ago, HP is now providing the framework to support more MCAD applications: Autodesk Inventor 8.0, IDEAS 9 & 10, Pro/ENGINEER 2001 & Wildfire, CATIA V5 and SolidWorks 2003 & 2004 as well as the DCC application 3D Studio Max 5 & 6.

For more information, visit www.hp.com/workstations/software/framework/index.html.