You say, “Blender! I already have one of those in the kitchen!” We’re not talking about that kind of Blender! We are talking about the cool 3D Animation program, Blender!
In the Complete Blender Creator course lecture “How to Install Blender”, our instructor, Michael Bridges, teaches us how to install this powerful 3D animation software. Blender is open source and free for commercial and personal use. It also has all of the tools we need to reach the sky, as animators! Now, let’s get started, with some tips and tricks for installing Blender on a Mac and PC.
How to Install Blender on a PC
1). Go to Blender’s official download page:
https://www.blender.org/download/
2). Scroll down to the Windows download section.
If you have a 32 bit operating system:
Choose the 32 bit download by clicking on either “NL 1” or “NL 2”, in the 32 bit column.
If you have a 64 bit operating system:
Click on the 64 bit download by clicking on “NL 1” or “NL 2”, in the 64 bit column.
3). Wait a few minutes for the download to complete. We are going to save your download to your Desktop.
To find your download in Firefox:
Click the green arrow, at the Top-Right, to see the download. Click on it and drag it onto your desktop.
To find your download in Internet Explorer:
Click on the small gear icon, at the Top-Right. In the menu, click View Downloads. You will see a button that says Save. Click the small black arrow on the right side of that button, and a drop down menu will appear. Select Save As. In the Save As screen, click Desktop, which is on the Left-Hand side. Last, click the Save button, at the Bottom-Right.
4). Look at your Desktop, and find the Blender Installer File. If it compressed, Right-Click on it, and choose Extract All. After that, Right-click on the Installation Icon or Installation Folder, and click Run As Administrator.* Next, follow the on screen prompts to complete the installation.
* Running installation programs as administrator, keeps Windows Firewall from blocking them.
5). Open Blender and have fun!
How to Install Blender on a MAC
1). Go to Blender’s official download page:
https://www.blender.org/download/
2). Scroll down to the Mac download section. Start your download by clicking on either “NL 1” or “NL 2”, in the 64 Bit Download Column. Blender only supports 64 bit versions of Mac OS X 10.6 or higher.
3). In the Safari browser:
Click on the Download button, at the Bottom-Left. The button will show the Blender file name. The Downloads list will open. Click on the Blender file and drag it to the Applications folder, which is located on the Left. At this point, Blender should be finished installing.
4). If you already have an older version of Blender on your Mac, a box will appear and you will be asked if you want to Stop the installation or Replace the older version of Blender. Click Replace.
5). Open Blender and have fun!
An Optional Alternative Way to Install Blender
In the Complete Blender Creator course lecture, “An Alternative Way to Install Blender” our instructor, Michael Bridges, introduces us to an alternative and convenient way to install this awesome program. He shows us how to install Blender via Steam. Doing this will allow Blender get automatic updates.
1). Go to:
http://store.steampowered.com/
2). Click on the green Install Steam Button, which is located at the Top-Right.
3). Click on the green Install Steam Now Button, which is located at the Bottom-Left.
4). Follow the on screen prompts to complete the installation on your PC or Mac.
5). After the installation, click on the Steam logo, at the Top-Left to return to the homepage.
6). Type the keyword blender into the Search box, which is to the Top-Right. Press the Enter key on your keyboard.
7). Click on Blender, in the search results.
8). Click on the green Free button, to start the download.
9). You will see the file specs for Blender, such as file size, etc. Click the Next button, at the bottom right.
10). Check the box that says Create Application Shortcut for Blender, and click Finish to complete the installation.
I have enjoyed showing you the various ways to install Blender on your computer. Have an awesome day! Have fun! Your journey into 3D animation has just started!
About the Author:
I’m Elizabeth R. Laurie, and I’m taking the Complete Unity Developer Course, Complete Blender Creator Course, and Game Physics Course. I love to learn!
I have always been fascinated with animation and video games, and I plan to use these platforms to make clean, family oriented, entertainment. I also plan to revolutionize education, and make it fun for everyone!
The picture of a model plane, which appears at the end of the article, is from a project I made in Blender. It is Copyright Elizabeth R. Laurie, 2015.
