9

Set Project Folder 393
Set Project Folder
File menu > Set Project Folder
Yo u c a n s e t a p r o j e c t f o l d e r w h e n s e t t i n g u p a
project, to provide a simple way of keeping all of
your files organized for a par ticular projec t. When
you open 3ds Max for the first time, the project
folder defaults to the install folder, but you can
set the folder to a different location. The project
folder contains a series of folders that are created
automatically. These include folders such as scenes
and renderOutput.Savingoropeningfilesfrom
the browser defaults to this location.
Setting a consistent project folder str ucture
among team members is a useful practice for both
organizing and sharing files. You can also set the
project folder from the Asset Tracking Dialog (page
3–487).
Procedure
To set the pr oject f older f rom the File menu:
1.
Choose File > Set Project Folder.
2. Choose a path from the browser and click OK
to set your project folder.
Ex ternal References (XRefs)
You can use two kinds of externally referenced
files (XRefs): XRef Objects (page 3–394) and
XRef Scenes (page 3–407). Using these external
references allows for a team approach to
animation, where the modeling, materials,
transform cont rollers, and animation can be
handled in separate files by different artists. It
can also make large fi les much easier to deal with
through t he use of proxy objects.
You access the XRef Objects and XRef Scenes
commands from the File menu.
The two types of references have distinct purposes:
• An external ly referenced scene displays the
entire contents of an external .max file in
the current scene. The objects within the
external file are visible as a reference but
cannotbeselected. Thispreventsaccidental
changes to the referenced scene while allowing
functionality such as Snap, A utoGrid, and
Clone and Align to position loc al objects in
context, as well as to pick objects as the target
location for the clones. If you need to move,
rotate or scale the referenced scene, you can
bind it to a local object. Transforming the
object the externally referenced scene was
boundtowilltransformallobjectsinthe
externally referenced scene. Scene externa lly
referenced objects can also be used as reference
coordinate system (page 1–443). When changes
to the externally referenced file are saved (such
as objects added, edited or deleted), an Update
of X ref Scene will inherit those changes locally.
• Externally referenced objects appear in the
sceneandcanbeanimated. Dependingon
the object’s XRef settings, you might or might
notbeabletoedittheobject’sentitiessuch
as its transforms, m aterials, manipulators, or
modifiers. You can add modifiers and apply
transform animation to the referenced objects,
but you cannot inadvertently change the
model’s structure. Referenced objects allow for
the substitution of a proxy object, so you can
animate a low-polygon version of a complex
model and then render the polygon-intensive
version.
In 3ds Max 9, you can also reference
transform controllers externally in addition
to materials. This is part of the process of
referencing objects, or you can also use the
special XRef controller (page 2–383) or XRef