Reactor Q

[Reality3D]

Reactor Controller:
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The Reactor controller is a procedural controller that reacts to changes in any other controller within the software. Reactor comes in five different forms: Position Reactor, Rotation Reactor, Point3 Reactor, Scale Reactor, and Float Reactor. Any animatable parameter in the software can react to changes in any other animatable parameter. Reactor is not based on time, but is based on other variables in your scene.

You can use a reactor controller to turn on a light as an object nears a given point. Muscles can bulge as an arm bone rotates. A ball can automatically squash as the ball's Z position nears the ground plane. A particle system can be triggered by any given event. Morph target percentages can be controlled by events. Feet can rotate as their heels are lifted from the floor.

Reactor Dynamics:
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http://www.discreet.com/products/reactor/

[Nemises]

Reactor does Physics simulations.

Imagine this....you have a steeply slopped cliff, and you want a shot of a giant pointy boulder tumbling down the cliff face.
Normally you would make the cliff, make the rock and painstakingly keyframe animate the fall ....... youch..thatd take a ong tim e to get it to look right.

Enter Reactor! ;)

with Reactor you would create the Cliff and Rock, and add them to a "Reactor Rigid body collection" ..... set up the rock just above the cliff face, add a little gravity (in the reactor settings), and "perform Simulation"..
Reactor will take the physical shapes and do collision detection and effects exactly as in nature.
At the end of the simulation, your rock will be nicely animated doing its tumble, and it should (if your settings and objects were realistic) look very real :)

Reactor can do Rigid and Softboy dynamics (soft body is like Jelly or a spunge), it can do a great rope dynamic ...its a really great tool for setting up realistic animation for "real world" objects.

A Great time saver (but also fairly complicated )

[derelict]

Hi Glass,

It is a plugin in max 3 and 4 (meaning u have to BUY it to use it). But it is FREE with every purchase of Max 5.:)

Reactor (Havoak) is a dinamic simulator meaning if you want to create a realistic reaction from a bolder smashing a building. u use it. If you wanna create real time wake in a pond. U use it. If you wanna create a superman cape flying and flapping behind him. U use it. If you wanna create Lara Croft kinda pony tail reacting naturaly when she runs. U use it.

Hope the above help.

[GlasS-]

Thanks for you replies! I understand exacly whats its for now, perhaps i should get a copy of 3dsmax 5 soon so i use it :)

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