3D Studio Max
3D Studio Max is a 3-dimensional vector graphics and animation program, written by Kinetix (a division of Autodesk) as a successor to 3D Studio for DOS, but for the Windows NT platform. Kinetix was later merged with Autodesk's latest acquisition, Discreet Logic. Current version of "3DS Max" as of October 2003 is 6.3DS Max is perhaps the most widely-used 3D software today for several reasons, namely its Microsoft Windows platform, its ubiquitous plugin architecture, and its low cost relative to other software, while still offering powerful editing capabilities. Professional 3D artists often use 3D Studio Max as a way to work at home on home user machines, where high power workstations like those made Silicon Graphics, are cost prohibitive.
Nowdays 3ds max is getting to the top with the best features. In newest version 6.0, discreet mental ray is included. This is second advanced renderer included in 3ds max. Version 5.0 had advanced lighting. Advanced lighting included radiosity and light tracer. This was very useable, and it was not so far behind profesional rendering systems like Final-Render, brazil r/s or v-ray.
3d studio now also include discreet reactor 2.0. This is very powerful solution for realistic dynamic simulation.
Besides very powerful tools 3ds max has very easy to use user interface, that is not so complicated as in other 3d softwares.
There are 4 basic modeling methods:
- modeling with primitives
- NURMS
- surface tool
- NURBS
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2 NURMS 3 Surface tool 4 NURBS |
modeling with primitives
This is basic method. The point is that you are modeling something only with boxes, spheres, cones, cylynders... you can also subtract, cut, connect... primitives together. For example you can make two spheres which will work as blobs that will connect with each other. This is called blob-mesh modeling, or baloon modeling.
NURMS
Non-Uniformal Rational MeshSmooth.
Point of this method is modeling with polygons(in 3d studio max you are working with editable mesh, or editable poly). After creating approximate model with polygons you apply meshsmooth. Advantage of NURMS meshsmooth is that every vertex and edge has its own weight. Weight symbolize how much will the final shape affected by that vertex/edge
NURMS modeling is less complicated than spline modeling, and can serve very well to not so profesional users
Surface tool
Surface tool was originally plugin and kinetix bought it to version 3.0(if i am not wrong). Point of surface tool is creating common 3ds max's splines, and then apply modifier called surface. This modifier makes surface from every 3 or 4 vertex grid.
NURBS
-Non-Uniformal rational B-splines.
see NURBS for more info
Default renderer in 3ds max is scanline. Scanline is very poor renderer that doesn's support any advanced rendering method like global illumination, radiosity or photon tracing. scanline support only raytracing. Shadows of lights can be calculated as shadow map, or raytraced shadows. The name 'scanline' is from that, that the renderer doesn't render by buckets but as line going from the top to the bottom.