Weird Things that Happen to me with Max

[boehmz]

2 Main things for now:
1. Sometimes when I open a file, I cannot undo anything. I have the undo limits set to around 50, but it won't let me use ctrl + z or the button. It is also empty when I right click on it.

2. I always have trouble animating specific vertexes. When I have an object's motion already animated, I apply edit poly and form the vertexes how I want them. Sometimes the entire scene will only show the latest changes I made, even tho I have applied them at different times. Example: A box is moving across the screen. I want it to go from a simple box at frame 0 to one with a point on top at frame 100. When I set the key at frame 100, the point will already be there at frame 0. I redo everything and the second or third time it works. What exactly should I be doing to make this less painful?

Thanks for any help!

[Church]

The only think I can suggest for the animation problem is to double check the whether you have it set to "set frame" or "auto key." I'm not really a pro so I'm sorry if that's not much help!

[Rizner]

Originally Posted by Church

The only think I can suggest for the animation problem is to double check the whether you have it set to "set frame" or "auto key." I'm not really a pro so I'm sorry if that's not much help!

Yeah, he is right. Make sure before you do anything that if you want it the way it is at frame zero, go to frame zero and set the key there.

Also, I'm pretty sure that after a file has been saved and closed (maybe after another file opens, not sure) that the undo buttons aren't saved in the memory any more. I would suggest saving multiple files if you think going back steps might be needed in the future (Scene1_v1; Scene1_v2; ...)

[BuddyB309]

ok, take a step back, let me get this strait. Your animating the vertexes in edit poly? That would be your problem. Don't animate in edit poly. Skin your object with bones or dummy objects and animate it that way. Animating with edit poly is so incredibly buggy. My goodness, I had models explode on me.

[Jreed129]

One of our animators is having a different problem but I feel that this is a weird thing happening with max.

general information:
Program: 3ds max 2009 32 bit
Computer: 3Ghz, 3GB

I know that that information my not be in the problem

Anyway, in 3ds max the student is trying to rotate and object and it will rotate but the X,Y,Z coordinates do not match up. Max does not seem to be holding where the student is moving from, so when the student tries to go back to 0,0,0 Max sets the current location of the object as 0,0,0 and does not move it at all. if the student tries to enter coordinates the difference from 1,0,0 to 2,0,0 will be a turn of more then 90 degrees.

if anyone knows of a setting that may have been messed with that would cause this to happen we would be greatfully.

[boehmz]

I'm not sure about the rotation problem. The math person in me says that the units got changed to radians, but I'm not sure if that's even possible and even if it is, then highly unlikely.
It is good to know that it wasn't me who was screwing up while animating with edit poly. I don't understand what you mean by using bones. I switched to using FFD, which animates fine for now. If bones and skinning is the best could you care to give me a brief synopsis?

[BuddyB309]

Originally Posted by boehmz

I'm not sure about the rotation problem. The math person in me says that the units got changed to radians, but I'm not sure if that's even possible and even if it is, then highly unlikely.
It is good to know that it wasn't me who was screwing up while animating with edit poly. I don't understand what you mean by using bones. I switched to using FFD, which animates fine for now. If bones and skinning is the best could you care to give me a brief synopsis?

I cant tell you your best approach without seeing your object. If you post a picture of what you are animating then I can tell you.

I know that that information my not be in the problem

Anyway, in 3ds max the student is trying to rotate and object and it will rotate but the X,Y,Z coordinates do not match up. Max does not seem to be holding where the student is moving from, so when the student tries to go back to 0,0,0 Max sets the current location of the object as 0,0,0 and does not move it at all. if the student tries to enter coordinates the difference from 1,0,0 to 2,0,0 will be a turn of more then 90 degrees.

if anyone knows of a setting that may have been messed with that would cause this to happen we would be greatfully.

Reset your Xform, which is located in the utilities tab. (the hammer) Select your object then select the button that says, Reset Xform.

[boehmz]

How would I animate my leaf man character? He's technically an extruded line. I was going to move the outermost vertexes around and have them act like hands. Moving them sometimes causes the extrude not to fill in the middle. Should I just add hands or is there a way i can do this?
http://img220.imageshack.us/my.php?image=leafmannf1.png

[McGurky]

#1 as soon as you save something, close it, and then reopen it another time, you are unable to "undo" what you have did before you saved by clicking the undo button, you will have to physically modify the object you are creating.

#2 remember that if you are using set key, you will need to set a key at frame one before you place a key at frame 100. But if you are using auto key, you should be able to just set a key at frame 100 and it will automatically set a Key at Zero!

Home it helps!!

-Team 1716

[fireball3004]

Originally Posted by boehmz

How would I animate my leaf man character? He's technically an extruded line. I was going to move the outermost vertexes around and have them act like hands. Moving them sometimes causes the extrude not to fill in the middle. Should I just add hands or is there a way i can do this?
http://img220.imageshack.us/my.php?image=leafmannf1.png

In reference to your leaf character...

Your charaacter is 2 dimensional? Well you can always attach your character to a bunch of dummy obects... I simply have never tried rigging a 2D object.

May I suggest warping a thin box and pulling out a stem ect to make a leaf, and then maybe giving him arms, legs, eyes and maybe a mouth? Although you don't need to give him any of those body parts in specific, it seems it would be prettier and maybe even a bit easier.

[BuddyB309]

Originally Posted by boehmz

How would I animate my leaf man character? He's technically an extruded line. I was going to move the outermost vertexes around and have them act like hands. Moving them sometimes causes the extrude not to fill in the middle. Should I just add hands or is there a way i can do this?
http://img220.imageshack.us/my.php?image=leafmannf1.png

You did not cut any polygons into the leaf, I'm pretty sure you just made the leaf with the spline then put the extrude modifier on it. What you need to do is put edit poly modifier on also then use the cut tool to break up your polygons. Make sure all your polygons have only four sides to them otherwise you will run into trouble.

Then rig with bones and apply the skin modifier. Set the weights of the vertices's and then you can animate the hands. If you want to an easier route. You can just apply the bend modifier but his facial features wont stay on the leaf. This is solved by making dummy objects and using the attachment constraint on the dummies to the body of the leaf. Pick a face closets to the object that how are going to link to the dummy using the motion tab. (the one with the little wheel) Then link the separate objects (facial features) to the dummies.

thank you for including a picture.