Introduce myself

Hello!
I thought I'd introduce myself since I hope to get stuck into the modeling forum in the coming months and make some units myself. I've actually been on the forums for years but never really posted that much, I'm more of a stalker lurker, but I'm now trying to get into modeling so I should be more active.
Why the sudden drive to get into making units? Well I finished my computer science degree last year and want to get into the games development industry, but while I can program, I've always liked the art side of things more. My dream would be to work for a company like Valve or GPG. Speaking of valve, I have some experience of worldcraft/hammer editing, but being able to make models would also enhance that as I can make my own props.
How far have I got into modeling? Not very far at all to be honest. I have some basic experience with XSI mod tool and now I'm learning to use Blender since I notice blender popping up an awful lot on these forums. I just bought the book "Blender for Dummies" and I getting stuck into learning it.
Anyway I just thought I would introduce myself, I'll let you know how I'm getting along and if I need help I'll be sure to ask for it here . Hopefully I'll end up being a decent modeler and can help out with community unit packs and so on.
Thanks,
/Sam|||Welcome Sam!
Feel free to ask questions about Blender in the Blender Discussion topic, most of the Blender modelers scan it once in a while so you are likely to get a decent answer there. Blender isn't a games industry standard program, but it does work like its expensive rivals, so it's a good starting point.
If you have used Blender before you may find the upcoming 2.5 update a bit confusing, as will most of us Blender users. They're changing so much in the user interface it'll look like a different program. Have a read if you haven't already:
http://www.blender.org/development/rele ... ender-250/
Have fun and enjoy modeling!|||Thanks Pureon, I'll be sure to check out that thread. The book I have is written with 2.48 in mind so it looks like I'll have to get used to a few changes, oh well, can't be helped.|||As Pureon said, Blender isn't nearly as embedded in the professional game development pipelines as is 3dsMax. So if your goal is to get a toe in that industry, you might be better served spending your time learning Max rather than Blender. It isn't that Blender isn't just as capable a tool as Max. It's just not widely used in the industry.
Of course the cost issue is a consideration but if you are still (or recently) as student you can get it cheap.