BTW... Daz is also offering a 30day Beta version of Carrara 8.5 for anyone interested in trying it out. You can find it here:
http://www.daz3d.com/shop/carrara-8-5-beta
NOTE: Must be a registered Daz online store customer to download.
As a newbie to making models (and at this point not sure I even qualify as a newbie yet), I have questions about various programs as to their functionality & ease to learn/use, but will post that on a more appropriate thread. Hopefully this is a good place to put the Carrara freebie news.