Datasheet

CHAPTER 1 GettinG to Know 3ds Max desiGn 2010

You also saw how you can right-click in a viewport to make it active. Had you simply clicked

in the Right viewport in step 4, you would have lost the selection set you created in step 3.

Finally, you saw how objects in 3ds Max don’t conform to one of the basic rules of physics. In

3ds Max, more than one object can occupy the same space at the same time. This characteristic

can be useful in a number of ways as you build models in 3ds Max Design 2010.

Working with the Custom UI and Defaults Switcher

The Custom UI and Defaults Switcher provides an easy and uniﬁed method for managing all

the myriad preference settings within 3ds Max. Let’s explore what the Custom UI and Defaults

Switcher has to offer.

1. Choose Customize  Custom UI and Defaults Switcher, as shown in Figure 1.70.

2. Click on the DesignVIZ initial settings for tool options in the upper-left corner of the dia-

log box to see the settings listed in Figure 1.71.

3. Scroll down in the dialog box and read through the changes that the DesignVIZ settings

represent in the HTML ﬁle that is part of the Custom UI and Defaults Switcher dialog

box. There are four possible settings for tool options: Max, Max mentalray, DesignVIZ,

and DesignVIZ.mentalray.

The DesignVIZ settings are conﬁgured to provide you with good rendering performance in

large scenes with many lights; this assumes you’ll be using the Radiosity Renderer and pho-

tometric lights.

The DesignVIZ.mentalray initial settings are meant to be used in conjunction with the men-

tal ray renderer. Each of these settings automatically conﬁgures multiple preferences in lay-

ers, the Material Editor, Lights, Daylight System, Rendering, Motion Blur, Cloning, Select by

Name, i-drop, Inverse Kinematics, Viewport Shading, and Real-World Texture Coordinates.

The Max and Max mentalray initial settings are designed for use when utilizing 3ds Max for

game and video production.

Rendering with mental ray

See Chapter 11 to learn about the mental ray renderer.

Figure 1.70

The Customize

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