3ds Max 2012 Bible - Kelly L. Murdock [153]
Note
The vertex order is critical in determining the direction in which cross sections are swept when using the Loft and Sweep commands. You always can identify the first vertex in a spline because it is yellow. •
Figure 12.17 shows a simple star shape that was converted to an Editable Spline. The left image shows the spline in Vertex subobject mode. All the vertices are marked with small plus signs, and the starting point is marked with a small square. The middle image has the Show Vertex Numbers option enabled. For the right image, the vertex numbers are shown after the Reverse button was used (in Spline subobject mode).
FIGURE 12.17
Several spline shapes displayed with vertex numbering turned on
At the bottom of the Selection rollout, the Selection Information is displayed. This information tells you the number of the spline (or segment) and vertex selected, or the number of selected items and whether a spline is closed.
Note
The Soft Selection rollout allows you to alter adjacent nonselected subobjects (to a lesser extent) when selected subobjects are moved, creating a smooth transition. See Chapter 10, “Accessing Subobjects and Using Modeling Helpers,” for the details on this rollout. •
Controlling spline geometry
Much of the power of editing splines is contained within the Geometry rollout, shown in Figure 12.18, including the ability to add new splines, attach objects to the spline, weld vertices, use Boolean operations such as Trim and Extend, and many more. Some Geometry buttons may be disabled, depending on the subobject type that you've selected. Many of the features in the Geometry rollout can be used in all subobject modes. Some of these features do not even require that you be in a subobject mode. These features are covered first.
Tip
The quadmenu provides quick access to the main features for each subobject mode. After you are familiar with the various features, you can quickly access them through the quadmenu by simply right-clicking in the viewport. •
Create line
While editing splines, you can add new lines to a spline by clicking the Create Line button and then clicking in one of the viewports. You can add several lines at the same time, and all these new splines are part of the same object. Right-click in the viewport to exit this mode. Any new lines are their own spline, but you can weld them to the existing splines.
FIGURE 12.18
For Editable Splines, the Geometry rollout holds most of the features.
Break
Selecting a vertex and clicking the Break button in Vertex subobject mode breaks the segment at the selected vertex by creating two separate end points. You also can use the Break button in Segment subobject mode by clicking anywhere along the segment to add two separated vertices on the segment, thereby breaking the segment into two. You can also use the Break button in Vertex and Segment subobject modes.
Attach and Attach Multiple
The Attach button lets you attach any existing splines to the currently selected spline. The cursor changes when you're over the top of a spline that can be attached. Clicking an unselected object makes it part of the current object. The Reorient option aligns the coordinate system of the spline being attached with the selected spline's coordinate system.
For example, using the Boolean button requires that objects be part of the same object. You can use the Attach button to attach several splines into the same object.
The Attach Mult. button enables several splines to be attached at once. When you click the Attach Mult. button, the Attach Multiple dialog box (which looks much like the Select by Name dialog box) opens. Use this dialog box to select the objects you want to attach to the current selection. Click the Attach button in the dialog box when you're finished. You can use both the Attach and Attach Mult. buttons in all three subobject modes.
Note
If the spline object that is being