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212 Chapter 5: Creating Geometry
automatically updates to follow the changes you
make. Rail paths can occupy three-dimensional
space.
When you create the lower rails, posts, and fencing
components of a Railing object, you use a special
version of the Spacing Tool to specify the spacing
ofthosecomponents.Theprogramdisplaysthe
Spacing Tool dialog for each railing component:
Lower Rail, Post Spacing, or Picket Spacing. For
moreinformationontheSpacingTool,seeSpacing
Tool (page 1–455).
For details on Rai ling parameters and information
on c reating a Railing object, see Railing (page
1–217).
Cr e at in g Wal ls
Use the Wall button (page 1–223) on the Create
panel, in the AEC Extended category, to produce
straight-wall objects. A wall object is made up of
sub-object segments that you can edit with the
Modify panel.
Yo u c a n :
• Break or inser t wall segments to create separate
wall objects.
• Delete wall segments.
• Connect two wall objects.
When you create two wa ll segments that meet at a
corner, 3ds Max removes any duplicate geometr y.
This “cleaning up” of the corners might involve
trimming. 3ds Max cleans up only the first two
wall segments of a corner, not other wa ll segments
that might share the corner. 3ds Max does not
clean up intersections.
You can edit the segments of a wall using
sub-objectselectionmodeontheModifypanel.
For example, you can define a wa ll’s heig ht profile.
3dsMaxmovestheactivegridtotheplaneofthe
wall you’re editing. This allows you to snap to the
profileverticesintheplaneofthewall.
If you move, scale, or rotate the wa ll object, the
linked door and window moves, scales, or rotates
along with the wall. If you move the linked door or
windowalongthewall,usingthedoororwindow’s
Local coordinate system and activating Restrict
to XY Plane in the Axis Constraints toolbar (page
1–437), the opening will follow. Also, if you change
adoororwindow’soverallwidthandheightinthe
Modifypanel,theholewillreflectthosechanges.
Usage Tips
The following are a few t ips for working w ith wall
objects:
• Use the Top viewport when creating wall
objects.
• Single walls with many windows and doors can
slow down snap calculations and movement
of the wall object. To speed up insertion and
editing, use multiple wa lls instead of a sing le
wall.
• Youcanspeedupperformanceinascenewith
many wa lls, windows, and doors by collapsing
them. First save an uncollapsed version for any
future parametric changes you might want to
make. Then right-click the wall and pick Select
Children from the right-click menu. Next use
Collapse in the Utility rollout to collapse them
all.
For complete information, see Wall (page 1–223).
To create a wall:
1.
OntheCreatepanel,intheAECExtended
categor y, click Wall.
2. Use Customize > Units Setup to establish
precision, and then set the parameters for the
Width, Height, and Justification of the wall.
3. In any v iewport, click, release the mouse, drag
thewallsegmenttothelengthyouwantand
click again.