9

Track Bar 703
K ey Mode can jump to all the keys or only the
transform keys, depending on the Key steps setting
in the Time Configuration dialog.
Tip: Right-click the slider bar to open the Create
Key dialog. This lets you create Position, Rotat ion,
or Scale keys without using the Auto Key button.
Italsoletsyoucopykeyseasilyfromoneframeto
another.
Track Bar
The track bar is located below the viewports, between the
time slider and the status bar.
The track bar provides a timeline showing the
frame numbers (or appropriate display units).
It provides a quick alternative to Track View
for moving, copying, and deleting keys, and
changing key properties. Select an object to view
its animation keys on the track bar. The track bar
also displays keys for multiple selected objects.
The displayed k eys use color coding, so you
can easily determine what kind of key exists
at that frame. Position, rotation and scale
keysarered,green,andblue,respectively,and
non-transformational keys such as modifier
parameters are g ray. You can customize the
colors in the Customize User Interface dialog (page
3–792), and depends on the selected/unselected
state of the key. The frame indicator is a similar
bar displayed in blue.
A key on the t r ack bar can represent any number
of animated parameters for the selected objects.
Transformations, modifiers, and animated
material parameters can all ha ve k eys at a
part icular fr ame.
To display a list of all keyed va lues for a key on
the track bar, right-click the key. Cho o se a key
type from the right-click menu to display its key
properties dialog. Delete keys and filter the track
bar display using options on the r ight-click menu.
The track bar right-click menu contains a
submenu that lists any procedural controllers (list
controllers, expression, reactors, springs, noise,
and so on) assigned to the current object selec tion.
If you select one of the controllers from the
submenu, the properties dialog for that controller
displaysinamodelessdialog.
The track bar can display a waveform (.wav file)
that has already been assigned to the sound object
in Track View. To display this feature, right-click
the track bar and choose Configure > Show Sound
Track. If no waveform is currently assigned to
the sound object or if you are using a third-party
sound object plug-in that is not compatible with
the waveform display, this part of the t rack bar is
unavailable.
Yo u c a n m o d i f y t h e active time segment ( page
3–904) by pressing
Ctr l and Alt while dragging
the track bar. Hold the left mouse button to slide
the start of the range, the right mouse button to
slidetheendoftherange,andthemiddlemouse
button to change both the st art and end frames
together . A tooltip at the cursor and a status bar
message will indicate the range you are setting .
Note: While the Auto Key button is depressed,
thetimesliderbackgroundishighlightedred,to
indicate that 3ds Max is in automatic keyframing
mode.
Yo u c a n e x p a n d t h e t r a c k b a r t o s h o w c u r v e s .
Click the Open Mini-Curve Editor button at the
left end of the track bar. The time slider and
track bar are replaced with the controller and key
windows, and Track View toolbars. You can resize
the t rack bar w indow by dragging the border