On Jun 4, 3:43 pm, "john" <l...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> Thanks, really thanks !
>
> I had a slightly deeper problem: I needed this to align the facades of
my
> building to the layout and then model the building. Everything is
wireframe,
> and nothing is exactly in the xyz coordinates.
>
> I transform a line of the facade, and a line of the layout into
surfaces,
> and then align the normals, so the facade fits onto the layout. I have
to
> learn to group things, but i ll learn through the help file, not to
bother
> you anymore.
>
> Again thanks for your time ! !
john,
Its no bother. If it was, I wouldn't write. Now that you've revealed a
little more about your scenario, I'm starting to understand what you
are trying to do.
First of all, _everything_ is in xyz coordinates-even materials.
Wireframe has nothing to do with it. You can align any object with
another using the align tool as I described. If you are not seeing the
results you expected, try changing the coordinate system to Local as I
discussed, then try again.
You can change the view in a view****t from wireframe to something a
little more revealing by right-clicking on the name of the view****t at
the top of each view****t. By default, only the Perspective view****t
has "Smooth + Hightlights". The others are wireframe, but you can
change them at any time if wireframe is giving you grief.
If you want to change a specific object in a view****t, select it, then
right-click and select "Properties", you'll see a nifty group called
"Display Properties". Try messing with a few of these to see the
results.
As for grouping, I seldom do. I use them to tem****arily group a few
objects right before isolating them (Alt-Q), then ungroup them
afterward. A fantastic tool to become familiar with is the layers
tool. It has its "quirks", but is a fantastic tool for complex models.
With it you can do anything a group can, and a lot more. For example,
you can create layers for your spline cage, but toggle the render
option off. You can also group objects that don't need radiosity
calculations-saving resources and render times. In addition to the
light lister, you can use layers to group lights. If you need to work
on the inner workings of your model, you can turn off whole sections
of your building's exterior (make them invisible), and even just
render the elements you are working on while modeling (saving time
instead of having to render the whole scene every time).
You'll find all the tools that are the most useful (except the light
lister) in those icons at the top of the interface. The layer manager
is just to the right of the align tool.
I'm still not sure why normals are an issue in alignment. When you say
"align the normals", I can't visualize what you mean, or why that is
necessary. I'm not even sure what that means! :) Perhaps you mean
"flip" normals? What is a "layout"?
Anyway, this should help you solve your dilemma. If not, just give a
little more information, or nail down the exact problem holding you
back. Screenshots or .max files are very helpful, so feel free to
email any to me directly.
Hope this helps!
Bogus Exception
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