Datasheet

tourinG the interFace
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5
The Large Icons Option
The images in this book use the Large Icons option to better display the toolbar buttons. To activate
this option, choose Customize  Preferences to open the Preference Settings dialog box. In the UI
Display section of the General tab, check the Use Large Toolbar Buttons option, and then shut down
and reopen 3ds Max for the option to take effect.
At the top, you see a typical Windows menu bar and the 3ds Max main toolbar. You may
also see up to nine more floating or docked toolbars containing additional 3ds Max tools. In
the center, you see the viewport area, which currently shows the Perspective, Top, Left, and
Front viewports. At the lower-right corner of the screen, you see the Viewport Navigation tools
for adjusting your views in the current viewport. You also see the time controls for creating
and playing animations, the prompt line and status bar, and the MAXScript Mini-Listener (for
creating macros). On the right side of the user interface, you see the Command panel, which
contains nearly all the tools you’ll use to create and edit objects in 3ds Max. Let’s take a closer
look at each of these components. 3ds Max often provides several methods, including toolbars,
Command panels, menus, and shortcuts, for accomplishing the same task.
Touring the Interface
3ds Max offers a wealth of tools, and their sheer number can be overwhelming. To get a basic
understanding of the 3ds Max window, let’s look at each of the window components individu-
ally, starting with the menu bar.
The Menu Bar
At the top of the screen is the menu bar. Here you find the typical Windows commands for file
maintenance, as well as commands specifically for 3ds Max.
New to 3ds Max 2010 is the Application button (Figure 1.3) which replaces the traditional
File menu. The Application button is a graphical representation of the tools from the traditional
File menu, including opening and saving files, importing, exporting and referencing files. The
Application button is also where you can set a project folder, access the Asset Tracking tool,
and check statistics about the current file. If you are more comfortable using the traditional
File menu, it can be restored to the 3ds Max interface using the Customize  Customize User
Interface dialog.
The options in the menu bar are organized the same way they are in most Windows applica-
tions. Clicking an option issues a command, and you’re expected to take some action. An option
that’s followed by three periods, called an ellipsis, opens a dialog box, usually to allow you to
make changes to settings related to the option. An option with a right-pointing arrow displays
more options in what is called a cascading menu, as shown in Figure 1.4.
Try out the menu bar by taking a look at the Units Setup dialog box:
1. Choose Customize  Units Setup. The Units Setup dialog box displays.
2. Select the US Standard radio button, and make sure that Feet w/Decimal Inches is
selected below it, and that the Inches radio button is selected for Default Units, as shown
in Figure 1.5.
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