There are lots of modeling communities, but not sure about Hexagon yet. I have bookmarked some great modeling sites so will take a look at them.
So far, I have had a few minor crashes, usually internal program errors when I'm trying to figure out how to do something, probably in the wrong order, and also after repeatedly clicking multiple times. Generally, tho, if I take my time and watch what I'm doing the program seems pretty stable.
One nice thing is you can set the undo level in the preferences as well as a few other things that are nice. You have a customizable tool bar that lets you add the selection tools you use most and float it in the workspace. The side panels are movable and resizable.
I don't recall any animation controls, so don't think so.
V2 was (I hope) all done by the Eovia team since Daz released it immediately after the announcement. The development team at Eovia went with the deal, so they should hopefully be on for any updates and bug fixes for awhile, anyway.
I'm starting to see the history part everyone has been eluding to. I see
bryce on sale everywhere for dirt cheap. I hope this doesn't mean the begining of Bryces slide to oblivion because, although I haven't used it a lot, it has some very useful features.
Any more questions just ask and I'll try to find the answers. Hexagon may not be max or lightwave, but it is pretty easy to get the hang of.