8

Exportin g to VRML97 641
Normals—
Generates real normals for objects.
Some browsers need normals to do smoothing
properly. Check this box if you are exporting
geometr y that uses smoothing groups in 3ds Max,
to see the correct shading. Default=off.
Coordi nate Inter polator s—Exports animation
effects that involve actual modifications of the
mesh objects, and not just move, rotate, and scale.
Examples include the Taper, Bend, and Twist
modifiers, and space warps. This option can
generate large files, because the exporter has to
calculate the position of every vertex for this kind
of animation.
If your animations aren’t exporting correctly, try
exporting with this option chosen. An example
of animation motion requiring Coordinate
Interpolatorsisastickfiguremadeupofsimple
rectangular boxes that have bones Linked to the
boxes as a skeleton. Even though these boxes
move through space w ithout any noticeable shape
morphing, t heir mot ion will not be exported
withouttheuseofCoordinateInterpolators,
because their motion isn’t derived from simple
transforms. Any animation achieved us ing
the modifier stack or object parameters needs
Coordinate Interpolators. This includes animated
XForm modifiers.
Cert ain types of animations are not possible with
Coordinate Interpolators; for example, when
the mesh b eing animated changes size b etween
frames. An example of this is animating the
number of segments in a sphere. 3ds Max warns
you if it detects this type of animation on export.
Indentation—Indents the VRML97 source code so
it is easy to read. Default=on.
Export Hidden Objects—Exports hidden objects.
Default=off.
Primitives—Exports V RML97 primitives, which
reduces the fi le size be cause these primitives are
describedverysimply(forexample,asphere
is described by its radius). To see how many
polygons are in the scene, turn off this box to
export 3ds Max primitives, which have an indexed
face set for each object. Default=on.
Flip-B ook—Exportsthescenetomultiplefiles.The
sample rate is set in the in the Flip-Book section
oftheSampleRatesdialog. Thefilenameyou
specify becomes the base for the sequence of files.
For example, if you specify the file name
test.wrl
,
chooseonefileperanimationframe,andhavefive
frames, 3ds Max exports the following:
test.txt
contains general info, start/stop times, and
number of frames.
test0.wrl
through
test4.wrl
are snapshots of the
animation in frames 0 through 4.
Co lor Per VertexExports the vertex colors of
geometry.Ifthisisturnedon,theColorPerVertex
Source lets you choose the source of the ver tex
color.
Polygons Type
Determines how geometric faces are wr itten out as
VRML97 IndexedFaceSet nodes.
Ngons—Writes faces with as many edges as
possible.
Qua ds—Writes quadrilate r al faces where possible
(otherwise t riangles).
Trian glesWrites only triangular faces.
Visible Edges—Breaks faces at interna l edges that
are marked as being visible.
Initial View
Sets the entry camera for the scene and controls
what first appears in the browser. If there are no
cameras in the scene, the scene appears with a
defaultviewpoint(whichmaygiveonlyapartial
view).