3ds Max 2012 Bible - Kelly L. Murdock [382]
Block controller
The Block controller combines several tracks into one block so you can handle them all together. This controller is located in the Global Tracks track. If a track is added to a Block controller, a Slave controller is placed in the track's original location.
To add a Block controller, select the Available track under the Block Control track under the Global Tracks track, and click the Assign Controller button. From the Assign Constant Controller dialog box that opens, select Master Block and click OK. Right-click the Master Block track and select Properties to open the Master Block Parameters dialog box, shown in Figure 35.29.
FIGURE 35.29
The Master Block Parameters dialog box lists all the tracks applied to a Block controller.
In the Master Block Parameters dialog box, you can add a track to the Block controller with the Add button. All tracks added are displayed in the list on the left. You can give each track a name by using the Name field. You also can use the Add Selected button to add any selected tracks. The Replace button lets you select a new controller to replace the currently selected track. The Load and Save buttons enable you to load or save blocks as separate files.
The Add button opens the Track View Pick dialog box, shown in Figure 35.30. This dialog box displays all valid tracks in a darker color to make them easier to see, while graying out invalid tracks.
FIGURE 35.30
The Track View Pick dialog box lets you select the tracks you want to include in the Block controller.
Select the tracks that you want to include, and click OK. The Block Parameters dialog box opens, shown in Figure 35.31, in which you can name the block, specify Start and End frames, and choose a color. Click OK when you're finished with this dialog box.
FIGURE 35.31
The Block Parameters dialog box lets you name a block.
Back in the Master Block Parameters dialog box, click the Load button to open a file dialog box where you can load a saved block of animation parameters. The saved block files have the .blk extension. After the parameters have loaded, the Attach Controls dialog box opens, as shown in Figure 35.32. This dialog box includes two panes. The Incoming Controls pane on the left lists all motions in the saved block. By clicking the Add button, you can add tracks from the current scene, to which you can copy the saved block motions.
FIGURE 35.32
The Attach Controls dialog box lets you attach saved tracks to the Block controller.
Because the saved motions in the Incoming Controls pane will match up with the Copy to entries in the right pane, the Add Null button adds a space in place of a specific track if you don't want a motion to be copied. The Match by Node button matches tracks by means of the Track View Pick dialog box.
IK controller
The IK controller works on a bones system for controlling the bone objects of an IK (inverse kinematics) system. The IK controller includes many different rollouts for defining joint constraints and other parameters.
Cross-Reference
Find out more about the IK controller in Chapter 38, “Understanding Rigging, Kinematics and Working with Bones.” •
Master Point controller
The Master Point controller controls the transforms of any point or vertex subobject selections. The Master Point controller is a controller that you can select and add, but instead it gets added as a track to an object whose subobjects are transformed. Subtracks under this track are listed for each sub-object. The keys in the Master track are colored green.
Right-clicking a green master key opens the Master Track Key Info dialog box, shown in Figure 35.33. This dialog box shows the Key number with arrows for selecting the previous or next key, a Time field that displays the current frame number, and a list of all the vertices. Selecting a vertex from the list displays its parameters at the bottom of the dialog box.
Summary
The Animation Layers feature provides a simple