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View Full Version : Ngons in Max: "faked" or "real"?

ThirdEye
05-01-2003, 07:16 PM
I have a couple questions for you 3DS Max users (don't kill me, i'm only curious):

1) I've heard the implementation of ngons in Max (at least in Max 3-4) is a faked one. The program automatically hides edges and turns and tweaks them everytime you work on the mesh with actions like a cut for example. If this is true is it the same in Max 5?

2) If the 1st question's right, how does (did) this implementation work? Are there any difference with a real implementation like XSI's or Maya's? Any issues with the subdivided mesh?

Thanks a lot :)
LFShade
05-01-2003, 07:32 PM
By my understanding, in terms of their dataset EPoly objects use true n-gons. In other words, the data structure of an editable poly only includes the vertices and edges that are visible in the viewport. In terms of their ultimate display in the viewports, they are quite obviously triangulated. However, I think this is always the case in any application - a requirement of most, if not all, rendering engines (both realtime and photorealistic).

I could easily be wrong; this is simply what I have speculated about the issue.

-RH
mrapelje
05-01-2003, 08:18 PM
LFShade -- Thats pretty much the same story I have been told. Even Rhino converts to tris before renders.
Dave Black
05-01-2003, 09:08 PM
Yup, in the end, software renders polygons. You're NURBS curves, patch surfaces, and N-Gons(including quads) all render out as triangles, both in the VP and in the final output.

So the answer, is that it does'nt matter, though what LFShade said is really important. It's the way MAX "sees" N-Gons as an "abstract" concept in terms of their logic and functionality. Until Max 4, it "saw" N-Gons(and quads for that matter) as what they really are: A bunch of triangles. Once Discreet changed this, it allowed us the freedom of tools such as meshtools and R5's new edit poly tools.

If that made any sense.

-3DZ

:D
ThirdEye
05-01-2003, 09:25 PM
thanks a lot, now everything's more clear :)
sebek27
05-01-2003, 09:33 PM
3rd eye, you like max ? i wish it was cheaper...
ThirdEye
05-01-2003, 10:08 PM
It's the 1st software i tried in my entire 3D life. I think that if C4D didn't exist i would have been a Max user. I love its polytools, they're the best among the best imo. I don't like its workflow or many other things like its OpenGL speed, but it's a great software for sure. But you know, i'm in love with C4D... ;)
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