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586 Chapter 12: Animation
the Mixer display to the extent of clips in the Mixer,
click Set Range on the Motion Mixer toolbar.
Preparing BIP and XAF Files
To use a motion file with the Motion Mixer, it must
first be saved as either a BIP or XAF file. Many
BIP files come with 3ds Max; you can use these, or
you can make y our own. To find out how to create
your ow n BIP files, see
Loading and Saving BIP
Animation (page 2–774)
. For more information
of XA F files, see
Saving and Loading Animation
(page 3–477)
.
Impor ting XAF Files
Non-bipedobjectassetsareloadedintotheMixer
using the
Load XML Animation File dialog (page
3–479)
, from which you pick the desired motion
file (.xaf) to import. If the motion file needs a
mapping file (.xmm), you can either cho ose an
existing one or open the
Map Animation dialog
(page 3–483)
to create a new file.
Tip: Ifyouloadmultiplemotionclipsatthesame
time,youcanpickamappingfileonlyonceifall
clips use the same.
Note: The Relative/Absolute and Replace/Insert
options are unavailable when you import XAF
files.
Note: LoadingXAFclipsfromthe Reservoir (page
2–626)
follows the same workflow .
Interpreting Clip Names
When you load a clip into the Mixer, the clip
appears on the track as a solid bar, with its name
displayed on the clip.
Otherinformationcanappearontheclip,
such as the start and end frames, and the
clip scale
(page 2–591)
. You can change the information
that displays on the clip by clicking Preferences on
the Motion Mixer toolbar, and changing the Clips
options on the
Mixer Preferences dialog (page
2–628)
.
You can use the same clip numerous times in t he
Mixer. Each version of the clip displays the name
of the BIP file, followed by a number, such as 1 or
2.ThenamemightalsohavetheletterZbetween
the n ame and number. These suffixes tell you how
the clip is interpreted by the Mixer.
When y ou load a biped clip from a file, you have
the option of sett ing the lowest start ing foot height
to Z=0 (the construction plane). If you leave this
option turned on, the clip’s motion will be moved
inspacesothebiped’sfeetfallontheconstruction
planeonthefirstframeoftheclip. TheletterZ
appears af ter the clip name to indicate t his sett ing.
When you load a clip into the Mixer for the first
time , the clip name is followed by the number
1. If you clone or load the same clip to another
part of t he Mixer, the clip will display the same
number or a different number depending on
whether the new clip is an
instance (page 3–1052)
or an adaptation (page 3–999) of the original clip.
Instances are versions of the same clip used with
the same object, or different objects of the same
size. Adaptations are versions of the clip used with
objects of different sizes.