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Sisyphus Software MAXTRAX II and this manual are Copyrighted, Audrey M. Peterson, 1998.
Reproduction of the software or associated digital information or of this manual, other than for
those excepted purposes expressly described within, is forbidden. All Rights are Reserved.
Acknowledgments
Our thanks go out to the many beta team testers who helped make MAXTRAX II a
reality. Consistently excellent software cannot be produced without a solid and supportive
beta team, and we know just how lucky we are to have one.
Table of Contents
Copyright Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
List of Figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.0 Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2.0 How to Reach Us . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.0 System Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
4.0 License Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
4.1 Warranty and Disclaimer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
5.0 Upgrade Policy and News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
6.0 Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
6.1 Files on the Disk. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
7.0 Using the Plug-Ins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
7.1 General Terminology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
8.0 Sisyphus MAXTRAX 2 Particle System. . . . . . . . . . . . 6
8.1 MTrack Particle Trail. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
9.0 Sisyphus MAXTRAX 2 Geometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
9.1 GTrack Trail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
9.2 GTDisk Emitter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
9.3 RingWave . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
10.0 Tutorial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
11.0 Sample Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
12.0 Technical Appendices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
12.1 Mapping Tire Tread Marks and Similar Effects. . . . . 17
12.2 Sample Exercises for MAXTrax 2. . . . . . . . . . . . 18
List of Figures
Figure 1 - CREATE/GEOMETRY (Sisyphus Particles). . . . . . . 6
Figure 2 - MTrack Basic Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Figure 3 - MTrack Load/Save Presets. . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Figure 4 - CREATE/GEOMETRY (Sisyphus Objects). . . . . . . . 9
Figure 5 - GTrack Basic Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Figure 6 - GTDisk Basic Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Figure 7 - RingWave Basic Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
1
1.0 Introduction
Thank you for purchasing MAXTRAX version 2.01 from Sisyphus Software. MAXTRAX II
consists of three distinct plug-ins. The first, MTrack, is the standard path-generator familiar to
MAXTRAX I users. Notable improvements to this system include an on-off and cyclic timing
queue and the ability to use shapes as cross-sections along the MAXTrax path. GTrack, the
second plug-in, is a geometry-based version of MTrack. It possesses the similar capabilities,
but since the object created by a GTrack operation is composed of geometry, and can be
collapsed into an editable mesh, you can use GTrack as an animated lofter.
MAXTRAX II is a direct upgrade of MAXTRAX I for 3D Studio MAX, which was itself an upgrade
of the Sisyphus product MAKE TRACKS for 3D Studio R4.
Sisyphus was the legendary king of Corinth, in mythology, who was doomed to perpetually
manhandle a boulder up a mountainside in Tartarus - the bottomless pit below Hades - only to
have it roll back down every time. We try to keep your job from feeling like that by
selling you powerful, versatile products that are rock solid and dirt cheap.
We check the message areas in CompuServe's AMMEDIA and KINETIX forums at least twice
daily. You can send us email about our products at ericpeter@compuserve.com, or at our
web site, www.sisyphus.com.
Sisyphus Software
6402 Stable Drive
Leon Valley, TX 78240
We can't guarantee that there will be someone available 24 hours on the phone line, but if we
get a call in the middle of the night looking for technical support, we'll try to return it. If you
have a project coming up, give us some advance notice and we'll arrange to be available at
any time leading up to your deadline.
2
4.0 License Information
You have purchased a single-user, single-station usage license for Sisyphus MAXTRAX II. You
may install MAXTRAX II on those machines, either singly or in a network slave configuration,
which operate(s) under a single-user Kinetix 3D Studio MAX 2 license. If you intend to install
multiple copies of MAXTRAX II, each functioning with a separate licensed copy of 3D Studio
MAX, then you must purchase an equal number of MAXTRAX II licenses or a single Site
License. Contact Sisyphus Software or one of our dealers for details. See additional warranty
and license terms on the media envelope.
Updates may be made to this documentation and incorporated into later editions.
6.0 Installation
Before proceeding you should make a back-up copy of your distribution diskette.
To auto install, select the START option from your Windows task bar and click ARUN@. Then,
type AA:\INSTALL.BAT C:\3DSMAX2@ in the Filename space. (if your disk drive is not your A
drive, or MAX 2 is not on your C drive, substitute the correct drive letters). Click on OK.
If you only want to install some of the components of MAXTRAX II, you will need to use the MS-
DOS prompt from your MAIN group to individually install each portion that you want added.
For the main program containing only the particle and geometry plug-ins, go to the
3DSMAX2\PLUGIN directory and type AA:\program@ and press enter.
For the example and tutorial scenes, go to the 3DSMAX2\SCENES directory and type
AA:\scenes@ and press enter.
For the map files, go to 3DSMAX2\MAPS and type AA:\maps@ and press enter.
For the sample meshes, go to 3DSMAX2\SCENES and type AA:\meshes@ and press enter.
3
those systems. No authorization for slave systems is required. MAXTRAX II
will not run in interactive mode on lockless stations at all. European versions
may require an unlock code obtained from your reseller.
After installing MAXTRAX II, try to create either an MTrack or GTrack object.
The moment you click in the viewport to actually create the emitter, you'll get
a dialog that tells you:
your lockbox ID
You can't right away, of course, because you don't have the code. Write down
your lockbox ID and hit cancel.
Then, fill in the registration card and mail it to us, fax it to us, or send us
all the registration info via e-mail. We'll register you for upgrades and bug
fixes and then give you an authorization code. If you have a site license,
don=t worry! We=ll authorize all your copies when you register.
If you try to load a file that uses the MAXTRAX II plugins before MAXTRAX II is
authorized, you=ll get an error on load and the authorization screen will pop
up. If you authorize MAXTRAX II during the load, your file will not load
properly the first time. Reset MAX, then re-load your file.
The authorization code is tied to your lockbox. If you change the lockbox on
your machine, you will need to enter the new code that matches your new
lockbox.
The distribution diskette is write-protected to prevent the user from inadvertently damaging or
erasing the distribution files.
Each diskette will include some sample meshes for your use. These meshes aren=t
necessarily related to the plug-in you=re buying, and what you get depends on how much
space we=ve got left to fill on the disk, but they are royalty-free and you may use them
however you please. You asked for them; we=re giving them to you.
In the unlikely event you already have a plug-in routine, map, project file, or image whose
name is the same as one supplied with MAXTRAX II, it will become necessary to rename either
the existing files or the MAXTRAX II file with the duplicate name. See your Windows 95 or NT
manual for the use of the RENAME command in the Windows Explorer or File Manager.
INSTALL.BAT - Batch file which unzips and installs the files into MAX 2.
PROGRAM.EXE - The particle system and geometry plug-ins.
SCENES.EXE - example and tutorial files.
MAPS.EXE - New textures for use with the example and tutorial files.
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MESHES.EXE - Sample meshes by the folks at Sisyphus included for your use.
When deciding whether to use MTrack or GTrack for a particular project, keep in mind that
MTrack can make use of particle space warps and is somewhat easier to set up, while GTrack
uses geometry space warps and is also an object that you can collapse into an editable mesh.
Additionally, MTrack cannot be instanced or referenced, but contains a load/save presets
rollout to help you more easily make copies of a given MTrack configuration. The trail
generators use a Contact Patch to direct the creation of their trails. While the particle version
is both Contact Patch and trail emitter in a single icon (MTrack), the geometry version uses
GTrack as its emitter, and GTDisk as its Contact Patch. You must make your GTrack a child of
your GTDisk to generate a trail (the GTrack will disappear; this is normal).
Although MAXTRAX II can detect the number of subcurves in a referenced shape, there is no
good way for it to detect the step setting for the individual segments in order to reproduce the
shape exactly as it appears on your screen. In general, there are two ways to improve how
accurately MAXTRAX II replicates shape cross-sections.
Use Autodetect Side Count to find the number of major knot points
(vertices) in the shape, and use a multiple of this number. This
method has the disadvantage that straight segments may be broken
into sections unnecessarily and that the MAXTRAX II capper may have
problems with these straight lengths of parallel segments.
Set Steps to zero and edit the shape, making all segments linear
and inserting vertices manually to approximate curved surfaces (you
5
can insert pieces of many-faceted n-gons to great effect here). You
can then use Autodetect Side Count to set an accurate number of
sides. This method is reliable and robust, but requires a great
deal of preparation.
Keep in mind that MAXTRAX II can never cap nested shapes. A referenced shape
must always be a single open or closed spline. Should a shape contain multiple
unconnected splines, the second and later splines are ignored.
'Period' is a parameter which defines how long, in your currently selected display units, a
particle takes to complete some repetitive motion, such as the back-and-forth movement of
bubble motion or the circular orbit that particles follow in HALO.
'Phase' variables refer to a shift in position of a particle when it is first created. When applied
to Bubble Noise, for example, a uniform Phase might mean that all the particles start out to
the right and then move left across the path of motion. If you then apply Variation (below) to
that Phase value, the particles will vibrate Aout-of-sync@.
'Variation' parameters allow another setting to vary. For example, a Variation of 50% applied
to an Orbital Period value of 10.0 would set the Period of each particle to a random value
between 5.0 (50% less than 10.0) and 15.0 (50% more than 10.0). For Variation to produce
any results at all, the parameter it modifies must be set to a value other than zero.
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Timing Area
Timing Control Options - You have two methods of
controlling the timing of the MTrack path.
Use Timing Queue allows you to establish a queue of
on/off times so that Mtrack generates an intermittant trail.
The Add Pair button will create additional pairs, while the
Value spinner and the Replace button allow you to edit a
highlighted value. You can use the Delete Pair button to
remove any pair whose ON time is highlighted.
The Use Cycle Times method allows you to set an On
Length and Off Length which will repeat continuously
from your Time On value to your Time Off value. On
Length and Off Length are not animatable, although their
counterparts in GTrack are.
Fade Enabled - When this check box is not checked, the
trail created by MTrack remains indefinitely after creation. When Fade
Enabled is checked, the trail disappears after a length of time set by the
Persistence spinner, below.
Using Fade in conjunction with Initial Delay is a good way to
make a banner or flag. If you want to map your banner or flag, use the
Telescoping mapping type.
Persistence - This is the length of time that the particle
trail remains after creation when the Fade Enabled check box is
checked. When Fade Enabled is not checked, this value greys out and
has no effect.
Initial Delay - When you set an Initial Delay, MTrack
generates a trail as normal, but will not display it until after the delay
period has passed.
Display Until - This establishes when, in your
currently selected display units, MTrack will stop
displaying the trail. The trail is then invisible both to
the viewport and the renderer.
Geometry Area
Scale Width - Scale Width is a percentage multiplier that
increases or decreases the width of the default trail or the scale of the
referenced cross-section shape. Scale Width is animatable.
Sample Rate - Sample Rate is the number of face pairs
used to flesh in the trail per unit time. When your trail is moving
erratically or is making sudden turns or changes in shape, setting
Sample Rate to a high value keeps those areas from looking choppy. If
MTrack=s path won=t involve any sudden movements or abrupt
changes, then set Sample Rate to a low value to reduce face count and
improve processing speed.
Fancy Corners - When the MTrack path has sudden
changes of direction or quick switchbacks, check the Fancy Corners
checkbox. This option uses a more complex calculation process for
better corner detail. Avoid this option if you don=t have any sharp
turns, as it does slow MTrack down a bit.
Use Custom Shape - The Use Custom Shape check box
allows you to pick a shape that MTrack will use as a cross-section for its
7
trail. When this check box is not checked, the Pick Shape Object button and Steps spinner are
greyed out, and you are restricted to MTrack=s default two-dimensional path.
Using shapes as cross-sections is a powerful new ability of the MAXTRAX
II plug-ins, but it requires that you prepare your shapes very carefully. see
Section 7.0 for details on how to make sure your shapes will loft correctly.
Pick Shape Object - This button is greyed out unless the Use Custom Shape
check box is checked. When you press the Pick Shape Object button it will activate, setting
your cursor to pick mode. From here, click on a shape in your scene to select it as the cross-
section for MTrack=s path. The Object line above the Pick button will change to display the
name of the picked shape.
Autodetect Side Count - This check box is greyed out unless the
Use Custom Shape check box is checked. Checking the Autodetect Side Count box
will tell MTrack to set the Sides spinner based on the vertex count of your
shape. If your shape has any curves in it, like a circle or the letter AD@,
for example, this check box won=t set your number of sides properly, but for
other shapes it works quite well.
Sides - Sides establishes the number of line segments used to approximate the
Picked shape. If your shape consists entirely of straight line segments, use the Autodetect
Side Count check box. Sides is animatable.
Uniform Side Length - Each shape has two interpolation modes. Normally,
MAX uses the default method, which tends to respect knot points and segments. When
Uniform Steps is checked, MAX will use the other available method, which makes each side of
equal length.
Cap Beginnings - When the Cap Beginnings check box is checked, the
beginning of the trail created by a custom shape is capped. If your Timing setup causes the
trail to be created in several separate sections, each chunk will have its beginning capped.
Cap Ends - When the Cap Ends check box is checked, the end of the trail created by
a custom shape is capped. If your Timing setup causes the trail to be created in several
separate sections, each chunk will have its end capped.
8
width, or around its circumference if you are referencing a shape.
Emitter Area
Emitter Diameter - This spinner sets the emitter icon diameter. When you are
not referencing a shape, it is also the default width of the trail. Emitter Diameter is
animatable.
9
shape which is the emitter for the geometry trail. However, GTrack cannot produce a trail by
itself. You must also create a GTDisk, which serves as the Contact Patch, directing the growth
of the trail. When GTrack is made a child of a GTDisk, the two work
together, GTrack generating the trail and GTDisk controlling where the
trail is created. The GTrack command rollout contains two separate
rollouts, which govern basic parameters and preset controls. As an
object, GTrack can be influenced and modified by object space warps,
and can also be collapsed into an editable mesh that you can modify as
you would any other.
Timing Area
Timing Control Options - You have two methods
of controlling the timing of the GTrack path.
Use Timing Queue allows you to establish a queue
of on/off times so that Gtrack generates an
intermittant trail. The Add Pair button will
create additional pairs, while the Value spinner
and the Replace button allow you to edit a
highlighted value. You can use the Delete Pair
button to remove any pair whose ON time is
highlighted.
The Use Cycle Times method allows you to set an
On Length and Off Length which will repeat
continuously from your Time On value to your
Time Off value. On Length and Off Length are
animatable (GTrack only). The Use Cycle Times
option also features a pair of radio buttons,
Animate At Emitter and Animate Along Path, which
modify the On Length and Off Length parameters.
Animate At Emitter applies the current value in
these fields to whatever the emitter is creating
at the moment, while Animate Along Path
retroactively applies the animated value to the
entire path.
Fade Enabled - When this check box is not
checked, the trail created by GTrack remains indefinitely
after creation. When Fade Enabled is checked, the trail
disappears after a length of time set by the Persistence
spinner, below.
Using Fade in conjunction with Initial Delay is a good
way to make a banner or flag. If you want to map your
banner or flag, use the Telescoping mapping type.
Persistence - This is the length of time that the
particle trail remains after creation when the Fade Enabled
check box is checked. When Fade Enabled is not checked,
this value greys out and has no effect.
Initial Delay - When you set an Initial Delay,
GTrack generates a trail as normal, but will not display it
until after the delay period has passed.
10
Display Until - This establishes when, in your currently selected
display units, GTrack will stop displaying the trail. The trail is then
invisible both to the viewport and the renderer.
Geometry Area
Scale Width - Scale Width is a percentage multiplier that increases
or decreases the width of the default trail or the scale of the referenced
cross-section shape. Scale Width is animatable.
Sample Rate - Sample Rate is the number of face pairs used to flesh
in the trail per unit time. When your trail is moving erratically or is making
sudden turns or changes in shape, setting Sample Rate to a high value keeps
those areas from looking choppy. If GTrack=s path won=t involve any sudden
movements or abrupt changes, then set Sample Rate to a low value to reduce face
count and improve processing speed.
Fancy Corners - When the GTrack=s GTDisk parent has a path which
has sudden changes of direction or quick switchbacks, check the Fancy Corners
checkbox. This option uses a more complex calculation process for better
corner detail. Avoid this option if you don=t have any sharp turns, as it does
slow GTrack down a bit.
Use Custom Shape - The Use Custom Shape check box allows you to
pick a shape that GTrack will use as a cross-section for its trail. When this
check box is not checked, the Pick Shape Object button and Steps spinner are
greyed out, and you are restricted to GTrack=s default two-dimensional path.
Using shapes as cross-sections is a powerful new ability of the MAXTRAX
II plug-ins, but it requires that you prepare your shapes very carefully. see
Section 7.0 for details on how to make sure your shapes will loft correctly.
Pick Shape Object - This button is greyed out unless the Use
Custom Shape check box is checked. When you press the Pick Shape Object button
it will activate, setting your cursor to pick mode. From here, click on a
shape in your scene to select it as the cross-section for GTrack=s path. The
Object line above the Pick button will change to display the name of the picked
shape.
Autodetect Side Count - This check box is greyed out unless the
Use Custom Shape check box is checked. Checking the Autodetect Side Count box
will tell GTrack to set the Sides spinner based on the vertex count of your
shape. If your shape has any curves in it, like a circle or the letter AD@,
for example, this check box will produce some fairly obvious faceting of the
cross-section, but for other shapes it works quite well.
Sides - Sides establishes the number of line segments used to
approximate the Picked shape. If your shape consists entirely of straight line
segments, use the Autodetect Side Count check box. Sides is animatable.
Uniform Side Length - Each shape has two interpolation modes.
Normally, MAX uses the default method, which tends to respect knot points and
segments. When Uniform Steps is checked, MAX will use the other available
method, which makes each side of equal length.
Cap Beginnings - When the Cap Beginnings check box is checked, the
beginning of the trail created by a custom shape is capped. If your Timing
setup causes the trail to be created in several separate sections, each chunk
will have its beginning capped.
Cap Ends - When the Cap Ends check box is checked, the end of the
trail created by a custom shape is capped. If your Timing setup causes the
trail to be created in several separate sections, each chunk will have its end
capped.
11
Mapping and Smoothing Area
Mapping Type - GTrack allows you to set mapping coordinates using
any one of three different options. The three mapping types perform in the
following manner.
UnRolling - This option maps the total eventual length of the
trail, without paying attention to Fade. If your trail will be 100
units long, maps would be spread across the full hundred units of
length, and the map would appear to Agrow@ over the course of the
animation. Use the UnRolling mapping type to map tire tracks.
Telescoping - This maps your material across the length of whatever
portion of the trail is visible at the moment. If the trail grows
or shrinks, the maps will stretch or contract accordingly.
Telescoping mapping is a good choice when you use GTrack to make a
banner or flag.
Pulling - Pulling is the reverse of unrolling. With the UnRolling
maping type, additional portions of map appear at the head of the trail as
MTrack grows; Pulling causes the map to appear at the rear of the trail. The
effect is somewhat like pulling out a length of toilet paper from a
roll. This effect is also helpful for mapping ticker tape, paper
towels, or anything being pulled from a roll.
Most trails generated by GTrack will be very long and extremely thin. You=ll probably
need to tile any maps you use in order to get good surface effects.
Smooth Along Length - When checked, this option smooths the trail
along the length of its creation.
Smooth Along Width - When checked, this option smooths the trail
across its width, or around its circumference if you are referencing a shape.
Previous MAXTRAX users have created animated logos, bandages trailing from a
mummy, banners towed behind an aircraft, boat wakes, contrails, footprints, a
gift box whose ribbon ties itself, handwriting, paint stripping, painting,
phasor fire, skid marks, a spider building a web, ticker tape blowing in the
wind, and tire tracks. With a little experimentation, you should find even more
applications.
Use the CREATE/GEOMETRY button in the main MAX panel and select Sisyphus
Objects from the drop-down to access the creation mode for GTrack. Click and
drag to create the GTrack, and make it the child of a GTDisk. The GTrack will
disappear when you do this, and animating the motion of the GTDisk will cause a
trail to appear behind the icon. Note that the default trail is only visible
from one side. If you want it visible from both sides, you must either use a
two-sided material or check the Force 2-Sided check box in your rendering
setup. Alternately, you can use two GTrack-GTDisk pairs back-to-back. When
using geometry and mesh space warps, bind the GTrack icon to the space warp,
not the GTDisk.
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9.2 GTDisk
GTDisk is a helper object which acts as the Contact Patch
for GTrack, controlling the growth of the trail which GTrack
emits.
9.3 RingWave
13
Figure 7 depicts the RingWave Basic Parameters rollout as it appears when
accessed through the creation menu. The rollout is subdivided into four areas,
described below.
RingWave Size
Maximum Diameter - RingWave will not grow larger than this size. If your
growth method is Static Animatable, then RingWave appears at this size.
Ring Width - This is the thickness of the ring, in MAX units. Please
note that this is thickness with respect to RingWave=s X-Y axes, not its Z axis.
RingWave is completely two-dimensional, and has no thickness along its Z axis. Ring Width is
animatable.
Resolution - The number you enter in the Resolution field sets the number of
segments used to make up the ring. The default Resolution of 200 is good for most
applications.
RingWave=s ability to accurately display Cycles (see Outer Edge Breakup and Inner
Edge Breakup, below) is closely tied to the Resolution setting. For best results, Resolution
should be at least four times as large as your highest Cycle Count setting. If the ring ever
appears blocky or faceted, increase the Resolution to smooth out its appearance.
14
waves in the ring that rose and fell 15 units (0.30 x 50 = 15). Width Flux is
animatable.
Crawl Time - Crawl Time describes how fast the wave cycle moves around the
ring.
10.0 Tutorials
The following section provides you with a quick introduction to your new
software. This tutorial will cover the major functions of GTrack and GTDisk
(MTrack works like GTrack), including how to reference shapes properly, and how
to operate the timing options.
Open the file GT_Tut.max in your Scenes directory. Your screen will
display a GTrack and a GTDisk in their default configurations.
You can still select the GTrack when you need to by using the
Select By Name option on your toolbar, or by clicking on the trail
GTrack will generate once we move it around.
Select the GTDisk and move the animation to frame 100. Now we=ll
make a basic track; hit the Animate button and slide the GTDisk
across the screen in the Perspective viewport.
Move to frame 100 again, and you=ll have a nice, arcing path. Now
we=ll work with some of the GTrack parameters. Turn off the
Animate button, select the GTrack, and go to the modify panel.
First, we=ll work with learning the Use Timing Queue options.
Right now, the Queue has one entry, from time 0 to time 100.
Select 100 in the OFF queue, type a 30 in the Value space, and
click Replace to make the track build for just the first thirty
frames.
Click the Add Pair button and set the new pair to ON-35 OFF-65.
Add another pair at ON-70 OFF-100. Now you=ve got a curving track
broken into three even segments.
When the ON-OFF values are regular and repetitive like this, it=s a
great deal faster to Use Cycle Times to control the queue. Select
the Use Cycle Times radio button and set the Off Length to 5. This
gives you the same effect as you had before, but with noticeably
less work. The On Length and Off Length fields can be animated (in
GTrack only). See your sample file helix.max for an example.
Now we=ll trim a little bit off the end. Set Time Off to 85.
While this kind of asymmetric effect might be more appropriately
done in Use Timing Queue, it demonstrates that using some of these
functions in ways not even the designers intended can yield unique
15
and valuable effects. Never be afraid to experiment or bend the
rules.
Set Time Off to 100 again. Now check the Fade Enabled check box,
and start the animation.
You can alter the length of the trail that hangs behind the emitter
by adjusting the Persistence spinner. Let=s try to get the effect
of a banner of constant length trailing behind the GTDisk. Set On
Length to 100 and Initial Delay to 20.
Well, we=ve got our banner, but its length isn=t constant. The
reason for this is the interpolation methods that MAX uses between
keyframes. We could fix this by manually adjusting the
interpolation factors, but that gets really tedious after a while,
especially if you=re using lots of vertices.
Select the GTDisk, go to the Motion panel, and select the Position
controller for GTDisk in the Assign Controller Rollout.
Click the Assign Controller button in the same rollout and double-
click on the Path option.
In the Path Parameters rollout that appears below, click the Pick
Path button, and select Line01. Now, check the Follow check box
and the Constant Velocity check box.
Run the animation once more, and we have a long trail of constant
length that could be quickly and easily mapped with some kind of
banner message.
Select GTrack and go back to the Modify panel. The first two
features of the Geometry area are Scale Width and Sample Rate.
Shift to frame 60 and slide these two about some to see their
effects; they=re both pretty straightforward. Return them to their
defaults (100% and 1.0), and we=ll skip down to the Use Custom
Shape check box.
Check Use Custom Shape, hit the Pick Shape Object button, and
select the >X=. You don=t see any immediate change in the
viewports because the Side counter is set to 2. Check the
Autodetect Side Count button.
You=ve got an >X= now, but it looks terrible. The reason for this
is that the vertices of the shape are built clockwise, which is
backwards from MAX=s perspective, so GTrack lofts the shape inside-
out. MAX build all its shapes correctly, but many fonts from which
text is constructed don=t, so this is a common problem with text.
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Select the >X=, hit the Edit Stack button in the Modifier Stack
rollout, and choose the Convert To Editable Spline option.
Go back up o the object level, select MTrack again, and check the
Cap Beginnings and Cap Ends check boxes. Run the animation, and
you should see a nicely capped >X= of constant length slide evenly
along the path.
banner.max ringtst1.max
helix.max rw01.max
logo.max rw02.max
ribbon.max rw03.max
skids.max
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in ribbon.max. MAXTRAX has been used to build tire tracks or
object trails over surfaces which themselves are subjected to
ripples, waves, or noisy earthquake-like effects. If the animator
wants the trail to stay over the animated surface, using the
geometry version is the only way to go, since the effects of the
spacewarp bound to the GTrack and the effects of the spacewarp
bound to the terrain will be identical.
Skids.max is a typical forensic animation application showing a
wagon with four tires that accelerates, decelerates, loses control
and spins. The base surface is flat but the file illustrates some
other typical advanced features: each of the four tires has a skid
mark which is timed separately, and the skids follow the motions of
tires against the surface even as the wagon spins out of control,
the skids crossing and intersecting one another repeatedly.
The four RingWave sample files include examples of that free plug-
in with various settings.
Section 12.1, AMapping Tire Tread Marks and Similar Effects,@ provides the user
with information on how to properly map the long, narrow trails characteristic
of MAXTRAX II, and includes mathematical formulas specifically tailored for tire
tracks.
Section 12.2, ASample Exercises for MAXTrax II,@ walks the user through the
creation of the five sample files that ship with this product.
The Materials Editor provides comprehensive facilities for scaling and tiling
any texture along or across any material. Thus, tiling and scaling controls in
MAXTRAX would be redundant. Worse, they would slow processing speed and
inflate the code, and that is simply not desirable.
Some simple calculations and some work in the materials editor are required to
make things like tire tracks work. You'll need EITHER of these sets of
numbers:
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The total distance traveled by the tire as it rolls, T
-OR-
U Tiling Factor = T / L
All this means is that you're applying a map over the length of the trail as
many times as the total length of the trail is longer than the map.
U Tiling Factor = Pi * D * R / L
This says the same thing, of course, that the tiling factor is how many times
the length of the trail is longer than the length of the map. And, the
distance traveled is the total circumference of the tire rolling along the
ground, which is what the numerator in the second relationship represents.
Note: the reader will note that since both expressions describe the same
quantity, we can also equate the two to find an expression to find exactly how
many times a tire of given diameter should turn to roll a specified distance:
R = T / ( Pi * D ) - Rearranging terms
One of the textures that ships and installs with MAXTRAX II, MXTX0003.JPG
(previously tiretrax.tga) represents the tire pattern of a unidirectional high
performance tire. The length of this map is a little less than the width, or
about 6 inches. When making these calculations, therefore, it is not unusual
to have tiling factors on the order of hundreds, or even thousands.
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Sample File Creation Summary:
(1) Build a simple representative airplane. The biplane in the sample file
uses two boxes, one for the upper wing and one for the fuselage, with vertex
scaling and tapering applied. The lower wing and the tail are copies of the
upper wing, scaled uniformly and moved into place.
(3) In the top view, draw a spline path representing a convenient flying path
for the airplane. Make it at least 6 to 10 times the length of the aircraft.
(4) Change the total time for the animation to 500 frames.
(5) Select the airplane Group. Enter the Animation panel (the unicycle icon)
and open the Assign Controller rollout. Expand the track view controller
branch and highlight "Position", then press the illuminated "Assign Controller"
button that just came on.
(8) Hit Play and watch the plane travel along the path, maintaining orientation
the whole way.
(9) Turn Animate on, and in the top view rotate the aircraft to align with the
path start at frame 0, if it doesn't already. Advance a few frames until the
path changes direction, and rotate the aircraft to align with the path. Also
add some aircraft bank at each key.
(10) Repeat until the aircraft reaches the end of the path.
Note: The "Follow" and "Bank" check boxes would do almost the same thing, but
in a much more repeatable, smoother fashion. You may get more realistic motion
by keyframing the turn and bank by hand.
(12) Using Create/Sisyphus Objects/GTDisk, drag out a GTDisk object behind the
plane's tail and align the surface of the disk with the aircraft's vertical
midplane, Make the disk about as tall as the aircraft.
(14) Drag out a GTrack, and link it as child to the GTDisk as parent. Hit the
Arrow selection tool and use Select By Name with Display SubTree checked to
verify the correct hierarchy.
(15) With the GTrack still selected, select Modify. Highlight the Off Time in
the queue, enter "500" in the Value field, and hit Replace. Scroll down to the
Display Until field and enter 500 there as well. Change mapping to
Telescoping. Enable Fade. Change "Persistence" to a value of about 10. You
will have to experiment with this setting based on the scale and relative sizes
of your scene elements.
(16) Hit Play. Observe the trail form behind the aircraft and follow the path
of the aircraft as it follows the path.
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(17) If it is not selected, select the GTrack.
(18) Enter the Materials Editor. Create a new material using a Cube sample
window with the maps MXTX0001.JPG in the Diffuse Channel at 100% and
MXTX0002.JPG in the Opacity channel at 100%. Apply to the GTrack object.
Activate the "Show Map in Viewport" options for both maps.
(19) Play the animation. If the banner is upside down, spin the GTDisk about
the longitudinal axis of the aircraft 180 degrees at frame zero.
(1) Using Create/Shape, drag out a helix whose axis is vertical whose
parameters are Radius 1: 100, Radius 2: 40, Height: 200, and Turns: 2.
(3) Change the total time for the animation to 200 frames.
(5) With the GTDisk selected, open the Animation panel and expand Assign
Controller, Transforms, and highlight "Position".
(6) Push the Assign Controller button and choose "Path". Pick the helix.
Select Constant Speed as well.
(8) Hit Play. Observe a trail form over the first half of the helix and then
disappear.
(10) Select "Use Cycle Times" and change both On and Off Lengths to 20 while
changing the Time Off to 200. Also change the Display Until value to 200.
(11) Turn Animate on, go to frame 100, and change both the On and Off Lengths
to 15.
(12) With Animate still on, go to frame 200, and change both values to 5.
(13) Turn Animate off. Hit Play. Observe the way the trail forms and then
appears to "fall" or "crawl" down the helical path.
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Note: On and Off Length are not animatable in the particle version of MAXTrax
II.
(14) Activate "Use Custom Shape" and Pick the star. Set Steps to be ten.
(16) Activate both Cap Beginnings and Cap Ends. Note that the trails are now
solid extrusions.
(18) Enter the Materials Editor and create a new material with a procedural
Gradient applied in the Diffuse channel at 100%. Select three bright colors,
different from one another.
(19) Turn on Show Map in Viewport and apply the material to the GTrack. Note
that the gradient wraps around the circumference of the section instead of
along the length of the trail.
(20) In the Gradient map Coordinates roll-up enter a value of 90 degrees in the
W: "Angle" field. Note that the gradient runs along the trail now.
(22) Note that when the AVI plays, as the sections of the extrusions crawl back
down the path the longer, earlier segments "jump" in length. This is a natural
result of their having segments representing one whole frame.
(24) Scroll down to "Sample Rate" under Geometry and increase to a value of 2.
Rerender. Note that the jumpiness has decreased. Increase Sample Rate to a
value of 8. Rerender. Note that the jumpiness of the length changes in the
early sections is virtually gone, at the expense of additional geometry created
over time early in the animation.
(1) Using Create/Shape/Text spell out "MAXTrax II" in a font that has no nested
polygon shapes. You may find that you don't have one. We used "Braggadoccio"
for this sample file, a font with an unusual art deco block style whose letters
are all composed of single un-nested shapes.
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and the plugin will turn the capping checkboxes off. Moving two of the very
short segment endpoints vertically a hair will fix the problem.
(2) Edit Spline, subobject spline, select all the letter segments, and hit the
Reverse button. This is necessary because many fonts -including all copies of
Braggadoccio we've found - have individual shapes oriented clockwise - with
vertex orders wrapped in clockwise directions around each shape. MAXTRAX II
will work with this, and even cap the geometry correctly, but the sidewalls of
the extrusion themselves will be inside-out. When you see this, reverse the
direction of the spline.
(3) Detach all the closed shapes of the lettering to individual shapes.
(4) Create an MTrack emitter and Modify, pick Shape01. Select Autodetect Side
Count. Select Cap Ends.
(5) Create a dummy. Link the child MTrack emitter to the parent dummy object.
Animate. Advance to frame 10 and move the emitter in its own plane some short
distance. Animate off. Work the following steps at around frame 9 or 10,
where a trail has already formed.
(7) Repeat until you have one MTrack emitter for each letter segment. Note
that detaching the various letter chunks from a single Text object has the
advantage of retaining the local shape origin, so all the MTrack emitters will
be coincident when referencing the correctly spaced chunks of the letters.
(1) Create a GTDisk about 14 to 15 units in diameter. Turn Animate on, advance
to frame 100, and move the GTDisk several hundred units in the X-Y plane in the
Perspective view.
(2) Go to frame 50 and move the GTDisk about half the total distance traveled
in a direction across the original direction of travel.
(6) Link the GTrack as child to the parent GTDisk. Observe that the GTrack
icon vanishes as soon as it has a GTDisk reference parent.
(7) Hit Play. Observe the curving trail left behind the GTDisk.
(8) Create a Ripple spacewarp somewhere along the path taken by the GTDisk.
Make its values Amplitudes: 4, Wave Length: 21.
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(10) Animate the motion of the Ripple icon over 100 frames. Observe the
effects of the interaction.
(1) Using the 3D Snap system, build a simple wagon consisting of a body and
four wheels. In our sample the tires each are of diameter 100 units and the
body is a box 180 by 400 by 50.
(4) In the top view Create an MTrack emitter and adjust the diameter to match
the width of the tires. Place the emitter directly under one tire, aligned
with the circumference and centered on the tire. Using Snap here is very
helpful.
(5) Make copies of the emitter for each tire. Link each emitter as a child to
its parent tire. Hit the Arrow tool and use Select By Name with Display
SubTree on to verify a good hierarchy.
(6) Turn Animate on, go to frame 200, and move the wagon some distance along
its direction of travel between 10 and 12 times its length.
(7) Back up to frame 130 or so and keyframe a rotation key about the wagon's
vertical axis. Advance one frame and keyframe another rotation key. Neither
should cause any obvious spinning. Advance to frame 200 and key in two or
three full spins of the body.
(8) Select one MTrack emitter and select Modify. Highlight the Off Time in the
queue and enter 200 in the Value field. Hit Replace. Highlight the On Time,
enter a value around 120 in the Value field, and hit Replace. Scroll down to
Display Until and enter a value of 200.
(9) Repeat for all three other emitters, using On Times varying from 110 to
150. Alternately, save the preset from the first emitter and load this present
into the other three emitter panels, modifying only the On Time.
(10) Play. Observe the skid start just before the spin and continue, timed
separately, for each wheel.
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