9

Using Groups 97
Accessing Objects i n a Group
You c an open and close g roups to access the
individual objects contained in them without
dissolving the group. These commands m aintain
the integrity of the group.
• Open (page 1–105): Temporarily opens the
group so that you can access its member
objects. While a group is open, you can treat
the objects (or nested groups) as individuals.
You can transform them, apply modifiers, and
access their modifier stacks.
• Close (page 1–105): Restores the group when
you’re finished working with the individual
objects.
Dissolving Gr oups
You can permanently dissolve groups by either
ungrouping or exploding them. Both commands
dissolve groups, but to different levels.
• Ung roup (page 1–106):Goesoneleveldeepin
the group hierarchy. It separates the current
group into its component objects (or groups),
and deletes the group dummy object.
• Explode (page 1–106):SimilartoUngroup,
but dissolves all nested groups as well, leaving
independent objec ts.
When you Ungroup or Explode a group, the
objects within t he group lose all group transforms
not on the current fr ame. However, objects retain
any individual animation.
To transform or modify the objects within a group ,
you must first remove them from the group, either
temporarily or permanently. The Open command
lets you do this.
Compari ng Groups with Other S election
Methods
Compared to the other metho ds you can use to
combine objects in 3ds Max, grouping is more
permanent than selection sets, but less permanent
than attaching objects.
• Selection sets (page 1–64): Form a temporary
collection of objects to which you apply the
current commands. As soon as you select
another object, the s election set is gone.
• N amed selection sets (page 1–67):Letyou
reselectthesamepatternofobjects,butthe
positional relationship b e tween those objects
(their transforms) might b e different each time
you recall the named set.
• Grouped objects: Maintain th eir positional
relationshipsunlessyouopenthegroupand
rearrange them. A group also keeps its identity
as an individual object.
Each object in a group retains its modifier stack,
including its base parameters. At any time, you
canopenthegrouptoeditanobject,andthen
closethegrouptorestorethegroupidentity.
• Attached objects (see Editable Mesh (Object)
(page 1–1001)): Attached objects form a
single object. The modifier stacks of t he
original objects are lost, including their base
parameters. Youcanregaintheformofthe
original objects by detaching them, but they
become plain meshes.
• Assemblies (page 1–98) are useful for creating
combinations of geometry and light objects
that act as lighting fixtures.