9

Working with Drawing Files 417
• Advanced rendering material effects that
simulate the rich visual variety of any
imaginable material. You can take advantage
of m aterials that appear on objects created
in 3ds Max, and you can create your own
material effects u sing the Material Editor.
Materials created with the Material Editor
canbeassignedtoanycomponentinyour
scene.
• Bitmaps for use as environment
backgrounds. You can use still images
in a variety of formats, or even animated
movies, as a rendering background to create
stunning photomontages that appear to
place your proposed desig n right into the
actual location.
See also
File Link Manager Utility (page 3–422)
Working with Drawing Files (page 3–417)
Resetting Transforms on Linked AutoCAD Objects
(page 3–442)
Working with Drawing Files
You can attach any DWG file (page 3–931) (or
DXF file (page 3–931))withtheFile Link Manager
(page 3–422).Thisfeatureallowsyoutoworkin
another desig n software’s environment, such as
AutoCAD
®
,Autodesk
®
AutoCAD Architecture, or
Autodesk Revit
®
while maintaining a single design
database.
Note: For this documentation, the term “drawing”
refers to DWG or DXF files created with AutoCAD
and AutoCAD Architecture, or exported f rom
Revit.
Creat ing L inks to Files
You can establish, reload, and detach links to
any number of linked files. You can a lso edit out
unnecessary information by using layers and
other filters. The File Link Manager defines which
geometry is included in the scene from the linked
file, how the geometry is organized, and when
it’s regenerated. You can also create links to files
using the drag and drop feature. The objects that
you bring in f rom linked files behave just like any
other object created in 3ds Max. You can scale,
rotate, and move them as well as attach modifiers
and materials.
When 3ds Max stores lin ked fi le data, you’ll need
to decide how the objects from t he linked files will
be organized in the scene. For example, drawings
are commonly organized by layers, blocks, and
objects, and 3ds Max scenes are organized by
hierarchies of objects. For translating between
systems, 3ds Max includes object ty pes c a l led
VIZBlocks (page 3–1031) and Block/Style Parents
(page 3–918).
Work ing with V IZBlock s and B lock /Style
Par ent s
A VIZBlock and a Block/Style Parent is like
a nested block; it has an object/sub-object or
parent/child hierarchy struc ture. In many cases,
linked drawing data initially appears as a VIZBlock
or Block/Style Parent (depending on the Derive
AutoCAD Primitives By options you choose).
Using V IZBlocks is helpful when you’re working
w ith layering and color schemes. You can create
multiple links to the same linked file, so you can
use the same geometry in different combinations.
Dynamic Blocks in 3ds Max
Dynamic Blocks give blocks flexibility and
intelligence. A dynamic block reference can easily
be changed in a drawing while you work. You c an
manipulate the geometr y through custom grips or
custom properties.
The File Lin k Manager handles dy namic blocks
much the same way as any other block found in a