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When expanded, the Graphic Modeling Tools tab shows several panels of tools. Each of these panels can be separated from the Ribbon and floated independently. You also can rearrange the panels by dragging them to a new position. If the icons displayed within a panel don't fit, a small downward-pointing arrow offers access to the additional tools.

All the panels and tools that make up the Ribbon are adaptable and change depending on the subobject mode you select. Only the relevant tools are visible, which saves space and makes it easier to locate the tool you want to use.

On the CD-ROM

If you don't like the layout of the tools in the Ribbon, you can customize your own panels of tools, which is covered in Bonus Chapter 22, “Customizing the Max Interface.” •

FIGURE 14.1

The Ribbon holds several panels of modeling tools.

If you right-click the Ribbon's title bar, you can access a pop-up menu of options to hide and show different tabs and panels. There is also a Ribbon Configuration that includes options for customizing the Ribbon, loading and saving custom configurations, and switching to a vertically oriented Ribbon.

Using the Polygon Modeling panel

The Graphite Modeling tools are exclusive to Editable Poly objects or objects with the Edit Poly modifier applied. If you select any other type of object with the Ribbon open, all the buttons are disabled. However, two options are available in the Polygon Modeling panel of the Graphite Modeling Tools tab. These options are to Convert to Poly and Apply Edit Poly Mod. These commands convert the selected object to an Editable Poly object or apply an Edit Poly modifier and automatically open the Modify panel.

After an Editable Poly object or an object with the Edit Poly modifier applied is selected, the subobject modes can be selected from the top of the Graphite Modeling Tools panel. The Polygon Modeling panel, shown in Figure 14.2, includes options that work with the Modifier Stack including collapsing the stack, pinning the stack, and moving up and down between modifiers. The Show End Result button lets you see the object with all stack modifiers applied and options that apply to all subobject modes. A button in this panel lets you toggle the Command Panel off.

FIGURE 14.2

The Ribbon's Polygon Modeling panel includes options for determining which subobjects are selected.

The Polygon Modeling panel also includes buttons for turning on and off subobject selection preview and for ignoring backfacing. The Use Soft Selection button enables you to select a feathered group of subobjects. When enabled, the Soft panel appears, as shown in Figure 14.3.

Using the Soft panel, you can enable Edit mode, which lets you interactively change the Falloff, Pinch, and Bubble settings. When the Edit button is enabled, the cursor looks like two circles. This is Falloff mode, and dragging the mouse changes the amount of falloff for the soft selection. If you click in the viewport, the cursor changes to a peak indicating Pinch edit mode. Click again to access Bubble edit mode, which looks like an upside-down letter U. Continue to click to cycle through these edit modes. These values also can be set in the Soft panel using the various spinner controls.

Cross-Reference

Using the Soft Selection features is covered in Chapter 10, “Accessing Subobjects and Using Modeling Helpers.” •

The Paint button in the Soft panel opens the PaintSS panel, also shown in Figure 14.3, with buttons for blurring, reverting, and opening the Painter Options dialog box, which holds the brush settings. You also can set the Value, Size, and Strength of the soft selection brush.

The Use Edge Distance option lets you select adjacent edges to the current selection rather than using a falloff amount.

FIGURE 14.3

The Soft and PaintSS panels let you control how soft selections are made.

Generate Topology

Located at the bottom of the Ribbon's Polygon Modeling panel is an option to Generate Topology. This option opens the Topology pop-up panel, shown