Share your secret weapon...!

#1

Since Maya is such a deep package, there are always those tools that someone can’t live without…and you’ve never even used! So this is the thread to tell people about the greatest tool you use in Maya, that you think nobody has heard of.

For me, it’s Subdivide. I didn’t know that you could use it to split edges, so I was always using the Split Poly Tool, but then it only snaps to the mid point. With Subdivide, I can get any number of evenly spaced verts on multiple edges. I use it all the time.

OK, your turn…

#2

i like the drawSplit Tool… you can also set it to mulit splice and get multiple evenly spaced cvs.

#3

Originally posted by Flo
i like the drawSplit Tool… you can also set it to mulit splice and get multiple evenly spaced cvs.

hehe, cool thread. let’s find out who knows the cooles tricks in maya! :buttrock:

i like using artisan with push/pull flood on geometry for easy bulge/shrink effects like push did in good ol’ soft.

matthias

#4

I love a healthy combo of MJPoly Tools, artisan, DrawSplit and lots of Lattice deformers for modeling :thumbsup:

#5

Originally posted by pearson
For me, it’s Subdivide. I didn’t know that you could use it to split edges…

Hmm…I can’t seem to get it to work. Exactly how is this done, and - if it’s just adding verts to the edges, what do you use it for?

And here’s a little secret weapon for drawSplit fans: get the cly_drawSplitDrag script from highend. Adds an interactive slide (ala MJ Poly Tools) to the split.

Cool thread…

Jay

#6

I love GI_Joe from pixho too, imho everyone should have it :slight_smile:

[edit: well, in pre-Maya 4.5 days anyway ;)]

#7

Imho, Connect Poly Shape, even for Maya 4.5, is a must.

#8

Xumi 2.0 and UV mapping a head in 2 seconds by smooth-flood->spherical map->blend shape.

#9

my fist to the monitor…

… i can’t live without that technique. it always seems to break up the cloud of doom that makes things in maya go awry…

oh, and xdugef is very handy too…

#10

Compound List Tools for variable size string matrices in MEL. StringTools to keep me away from REGEX. UltraPose for pose libraries and animation transfers. AppleScript for “telling” Maya to source and run a script from another application so I can debug it from an external editor without having to switch apps.

-jl

#11

xdugef, i keep hearing this all the time? anyone care to elaborate? bentllama maybe? pls

#12

xdugef?

…

hehe it’s just something silly :wink:

#13

export obj to Wings 3D

import obj from Wings 3D

#14

Rebo: do you know where can I find this Xumi 2.0? :beer:

#15

Utility nodes in lieu of expressions.

– Mark

#16

http://www.maya-xtools.com/

for xumi. is good.

#17

I just recently found out how to do a diagnostic render for mental ray.

your renders look like you are looking through a thermal camera.
I also love the short cuts.
did you know that you can “rip off” the view panels from Maya and go full screen. it is in the panels menu(I think).:surprised

#18

Flo - Now that I am working in quads more, I’m going to have to get drawsplit. Is it a d/l from A|W, or highend3d?

Octagon - That drove me crazy until someone showed me that trick! I kept thinking that scale had to work, but it doesn’t.

Ceql - Haven’t tried MJPT. Everyone seems to love them, so I guess I should d/l it.

Tropistic - Just grab the edges, go Edit Polygons > Subdivide. You can open the option box and set the minimum edge length (you may have to if you haven’t ever used it…I seem to recall that the default won’t work). Since I always work in tri’s at work, I just triangulate after subdividing and then I can flip edges as needed. As I mentioned above, though, in my personal stuff I use quads and this way isn’t very effective; I’m going to try drawsplit.

Rebo - This sounds very interesting…can you give a bit more info?

Bentllama - I heard it was your fist to the head of your cube-mate! Then you get him in trouble for ‘sleeping’ on the job!:thumbsup: And Xdugef isn’t a tool, it’s a way of life!!! Long live xdugef!!

bigfatMELon - What do you use MEL to do? I use it, but only to call maya functions in sequence (for example: scale -x, freeze trans, flip normals, set render opposite flags to false). I feel like I’m missing out on the power of MEL.

Great! Keep 'em coming!:thumbsup:

#19

Im using:

  • Kaydara programs for animation…
  • poly plugins like the bonus game ones and the wedge faces!

dont remember anymore… :rolleyes:

pearson: what this Flo do? :shrug:

#20

bugo > Flo is mostly doing modeling :slight_smile:

pearson > get it directly from AW … man, it took them some weeks to recompile it for 4.5. that was a tough waiting time for me.
and also get the drag addon tropistic mentioned, though it has thsi little bug (like mjPoly) that you have to manually delete the polySplit node (or edgeLoop …) node after deleting history.

Flo