ashishdantu
11-19-2005, 04:16 AM
Hi maxers ....
i wud like to get some help in understanding the XREF concept in max. This is very helpful, but suddenly its sooo limiting when used.
questions :
1) when i use "xref objects" option to xref (base_rig.max) file into a new anim file (anim1.max).. is it only that i can do T, R and S operations ?
like if i have, morpher applied on the head mesh, how do it access it ? b'se the modifier tab shows me only the Xref properties.. but doesnt allow access to the morpher or other stack,
which are there in the base file ?
2) when the above anim1.max file is opened, i can select and " DELETE " any object ??? can i lock items being deleted or avoid even renaming of objects ? I was expecting that XREF will
take care of this.. since there is always a chance of things being deleted, hirarchy changed.. to break my rig !!
3) i am developing a script which will provide an interface to the facial morphers and bones... to ease facial animation. but to do it, i have to use wiring and script controllers to link them up. Since the rig when XREFed , doesnt show the objects to be in the current file space.. how do i access them , to be driven by my UI controls.
in the help, i found "XREF Scene" and some help on persistent global variables.. but is there a way to get access to the individual object and its modifiers ? some example of code will help alot.
from the help file :
aXref=xrefs.getXRefFile 1 -- returns first XRef Scene object
aXref.tree.children -- objects in the XRef Scene object,
-- for example, may return:
-- #children($Box01, $Box02)
aXref.tree.children[1].width -- returns width value of $Box01
the above code works, when the "XREF SCENE" is being used. whats the work flow with XREF objects ? the "XRefObject : Node" allows me only to assign and manage the proxy options for objects. how do i get access and modifier stack in "XREF objects" mode ? any code example will be a boon !
4) in the base rig , i have a dummy which is driving (through wiring) the spine bones. say the translate Z is driving the spine rotations. when this file is XREFed, the wiring is available. But when i update the rig file or change the wiring parameters, and when i reopen the animation file.. the wiring doesnt update, what so ever.....i do ??? sometimes it does when i try using "merge animation" ?? i thought this is to merge keys information , but it does the wiring .. strange.. but this works only randomly. is there a method to keep the rig updates, to update in other files.. properly ?
5) how do i impliment the use of "persistant global" variables if my scene whcih contains 25 animation controls ? what are the DOs and DONTs of this method ?
6) what can be the ideal workflow and possible pit-falls using XREF ? any links or tutorials on how one can "USE" XREF in max ?
phew ! sooo many doubts.... any TD or gurus, pls drop me a line....any help, is much awaited...
rgds,
i wud like to get some help in understanding the XREF concept in max. This is very helpful, but suddenly its sooo limiting when used.
questions :
1) when i use "xref objects" option to xref (base_rig.max) file into a new anim file (anim1.max).. is it only that i can do T, R and S operations ?
like if i have, morpher applied on the head mesh, how do it access it ? b'se the modifier tab shows me only the Xref properties.. but doesnt allow access to the morpher or other stack,
which are there in the base file ?
2) when the above anim1.max file is opened, i can select and " DELETE " any object ??? can i lock items being deleted or avoid even renaming of objects ? I was expecting that XREF will
take care of this.. since there is always a chance of things being deleted, hirarchy changed.. to break my rig !!
3) i am developing a script which will provide an interface to the facial morphers and bones... to ease facial animation. but to do it, i have to use wiring and script controllers to link them up. Since the rig when XREFed , doesnt show the objects to be in the current file space.. how do i access them , to be driven by my UI controls.
in the help, i found "XREF Scene" and some help on persistent global variables.. but is there a way to get access to the individual object and its modifiers ? some example of code will help alot.
from the help file :
aXref=xrefs.getXRefFile 1 -- returns first XRef Scene object
aXref.tree.children -- objects in the XRef Scene object,
-- for example, may return:
-- #children($Box01, $Box02)
aXref.tree.children[1].width -- returns width value of $Box01
the above code works, when the "XREF SCENE" is being used. whats the work flow with XREF objects ? the "XRefObject : Node" allows me only to assign and manage the proxy options for objects. how do i get access and modifier stack in "XREF objects" mode ? any code example will be a boon !
4) in the base rig , i have a dummy which is driving (through wiring) the spine bones. say the translate Z is driving the spine rotations. when this file is XREFed, the wiring is available. But when i update the rig file or change the wiring parameters, and when i reopen the animation file.. the wiring doesnt update, what so ever.....i do ??? sometimes it does when i try using "merge animation" ?? i thought this is to merge keys information , but it does the wiring .. strange.. but this works only randomly. is there a method to keep the rig updates, to update in other files.. properly ?
5) how do i impliment the use of "persistant global" variables if my scene whcih contains 25 animation controls ? what are the DOs and DONTs of this method ?
6) what can be the ideal workflow and possible pit-falls using XREF ? any links or tutorials on how one can "USE" XREF in max ?
phew ! sooo many doubts.... any TD or gurus, pls drop me a line....any help, is much awaited...
rgds,