Share your 3dsmax Secrets

#601

Don’t know if this has been posted yet, but.

The rename modifier (script) is very slow when dealing with large quantities of objects. It is because of the undo list it attempts to update all the time.

Go into the script (C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2008\ui\macroscripts\macro_renameobjects.mcr)
and chance the line “undo on” to “undo off”
Reboot max

Now you can rename multiple objects at once without crashing at once!

#602

Because Proboolean remembers original objects you can use it to animate negative space in an object without distorting the mesh.

Example: you create a pumpkin, you create shelled lines with morphs for various expressions, you instance your expression shapes and proboolean them out of the pumpkin. You can now animate the morphs on your original expression shapes and the booleaned-out negative space on your pumpkin will animate without distorting your mesh.

#603

Heres one more useful tip If you want to change pivot for rotating (or scaling) subObjects (like vertices, edges or polys), 1 turn on 3d Snap (dont forget to set it up by right clicking on the icon so it will snap to vertices)
2 set the coord system to global or view and transfom center to “use selection center”
3 the selection will rotate (or scale) about one of vertices that included in selection (if you selected edges or polys then it`ll happen around vertex belonging to selected sub).

This also work for entire object

#604

Well, I’ve learned a lot with 3ds max help, and I still read it when I need something that I usually don’t use. It’s invaluable. But I’ve always had problems using it with F1 key or from the help menu. When it’s open, I cannot work in max, have to minimize it, when it could be just like any other window. I’ve had this problem with many versions of max if not all.

I mean its behavior is not user friendly:

  • If help and max are minimized and you click max in the taskbar, help pops up.
  • You cannot work in max without minimizing, it won’t go behind max as usual window behavior.
  • I cannot read help normally while rendering.

When a new version of max comes out, this is one of the things I check if they fixed. Not yet…

But there is a way to “fix” it: Make a shortcut to “max folder\help\3dsmax.chm” and open it whenever you like. It behaves as a normal window…

(I’m sorry if this has been posted, I searched a bit but not too much)

#605

…and a must is a download of the manuals from the Autodesk 3dsmax homepage.

They are being read much easier than the F1 content, pretty the same but a little bit more
structured. All in pdf.

VOl 1

Vol 2

Vol 3

Meanwhile that are impressive 8167 pages.

P.S. : If it is not on the DVD.

#606

If you’re really into polymodeling, get your hands on Polyboost. Seriously.

#607

if you want to rotate around a vertex NOT belonging to the selected sub-object, you can simply lock your selection and do the same thing :wink:
this method will work with any other types of snap

#608

hey i just found this, it might be helpful to those who dont know - if u open the ram player (Rendering - RAM player) u can load the last rendered image in channel A and then load the next render on B , great for comparing renders

#609

I thought this should go in this section - anyone get swimming, dancing, jittering procedural maps?

Well here’s something that should help:

[i]Originally posted by Shea:

[/i]

The procedurals are 3D, so even on UVW 1, they will swim! There are 2D versions to be discovered on the net, in fact one fine human just posted a whole set (BerconMaps) of new proc maps, although I’m not positive they are 2D. I think Peter Watje (another fine human) was the first up to the table.

 Teach this to everybody!   I see way too many animations with swimming maps.
 
 -Shea

EDIT: Here are some more key words: noise2dV6.zip - cellular2dV6.zip - BerconMaps_23.dlt

The only down to this is that it does not work in Mental Ray - Works in scanline, VRay, finalRender, and Brazil.

Here is the link:
http://www.niksula.hut.fi/~jylilamm/BerconMaps.shtml

#610

Another down is that the links are not links :confused:

#611

Well, the links worked for me. I hope it works with everybody, as the maps are very nice.

Thanks a lot olucas:thumbsup:

#612

If you need a description or a label that “hovers” above the object, letters of constant size on screen space nomatter how far camera gets i found this little trick to do it:

We have 3 things

  1. the object of reference “xxx”
  2. object’s label
  3. camera
  • rotate camera towards the object “xxx”
  • create label object in top viewport
    ( i suggest you create label really small, at least 10x smaller than object “xxx”, because it will be rendered behind the object “xxx” the camera comes near the object )
  • place it so it is in the desired spot on screen when looking from the camera view
  • align orientation to camera if necessary with align tool, so it’s looking at the camera
  • enter edit pivot mode and align pivot with camera for label object
  • link label to the camera
  • constrain the label with rotational look at constraint, looking at object “xxx”
    (select label / motion tab / assign controler rollout / select rotation / click ? icon / look at constraint / go to look at constraint rollout / add LookAt target / select object “xxx” )
  • Look At Axis = z, flipped
  • deselect world for upnode, pick camera as upnode
  • Upnode alignment, Source axis=y, aligned to Upnode axis=y
  • remember that you need to have to center pivot in object “xxx” because label is aligned above the pivot.

Max file:
label_lookat.max

Enjoy!

#613

anyone had the problem while pelt mapping, that your cage vertecies inside the “edit pelt map” window are lost?

it is because you have the button “filter selected faces” pressed.

turn it off, and you have pelt vertecies again.

#614

i almost always have rotate snap on at 5 degrees. Just helps you easily get an object back to 0,0,0 rotation.

#615

Just open the help file (CHM) file directly from explorer. Don’t use F1 in max.

#616

Or just replace menu item with maxscript:

 
on execute do ShellLaunch ((GetDir #help) + "/maxscript.chm") ""
#617

Hi All,

just added a wanted bullet tutorial, max modeling and texture mapping, thought I should share it with you all…check it out !!

www.maxafter.com

Thanks

Shoaib Khan
www.maxafter.com

Regards

Shoaib Khan
www.maxafter.com

#618

Hello Paul

I saw the Jellyfish.mov animation using flex on 3dsmax.
I tried to recreate the scene myself without success. I need to know
which deflectors are used and the flex parameters on the mesh.

Is it possible for you to share the Jellyfish scene on your website ?

Thanks you for all your scripts and interesting tutorials.

Arno

character animator

#619

If you want to texture an object from reference photos, use the world space projection mapping. This simplifies the alignment of texture detail with mesh detail by enabling you to adjust on the fly using the camera fov and position. Bake this mapping using your object uv map as channel1 in the render to texture dialogue. Now If you a apply standard material with black as diffuse color to mesh and use a fall-off map in the diffuse map slot, and adjust output curve, and then bake as before using channel 1 map channel, you get a mask map that can be used in photoshop to combine this view with another camera mapping. Then combine these views (I find a front, side and three-quarter view sufficent),using the fall-off maps as blend masks. You could also use normal map generated by uv exporter in unwrap uvw, but I have not tried this personaly.
The above procedure beats the traditional cut and paste and rotate and healing brush routine hands down. It has the added benefit of not needing highly accurate seamless uv map, saving hours of tweaking. As long as the uv map foloows animating topology, things are pretty much laid out as seen by the projection mapping.

#620

About the issue on open exr and network rendering in 3dsMax (all releases)
This helped me:
I use it every time since 2007-06-08, shameful enough for Autodesk!
Think I should post it to ScriptSpot?

macroScript Macro7
category:“DragAndDrop”
toolTip:""
– script originally created by Richard Annema 2007-04-03
– modified by Jonas Törnros and Patrik Buckau 2007-06-08
(
(
callbacks.addScript #filePostOpen "
exrio.addChannel #ZBuffer
exrio.addChannel #UVCoords
exrio.addChannel #velocity
exrio.addChannel #normal
exrio.addChannel #nodeRenderID
exrio.addChannel #materialID
exrio.addChannel #objectID
– add other exrio (see maxscript help) commands here
" id:#exr_forcesettings persistent:true
)
)
– Please, save file before submitting to network rendering.