3ds Max 2012 Bible - Kelly L. Murdock [81]
The available filters include All, Geometry, Shapes, Lights, Cameras, Helpers, and Space Warps. If you're using Inverse Kinematics, you also can filter by Bone, IK Chain Object, and Point.
The Combos option opens the Filter Combinations dialog box, shown in Figure 6.2. From this dialog box, you can select combinations of objects to filter. These new filter combinations are added to the drop-down list. For example, to create a filter combination for lights and cameras, open the Filter Combinations dialog box, select Lights and Cameras, and click Add. The combination is listed as LC in the Current Combinations section, and the LC option is added to the drop-down list.
FIGURE 6.2
The Filter Combinations dialog box enables you to create a custom selection filter.
The Filter Combinations dialog box also includes a list of additional objects. Using this list, you can filter very specific object types, such as a Boolean object or a Box primitive. In fact, the Bone, IK Chain Object, and Point filters that appear in the default main toolbar drop-down list all come from this additional list.
Select buttons
On the main toolbar are several buttons used to select objects, shown in Table 6.1. The Select Object button looks like the arrow cursor. The other three buttons select and transform objects. They are Select and Move (W), Select and Rotate (E), and Select and Scale (R). These commands also are available on the quadmenu. The final selection button is the Select and Manipulate button. With this button, you can select and use special helpers such as sliders.
Cross-Reference
See Chapter 7, “Transforming Objects, Pivoting, Aligning, and Snapping,” for more details on the Select and Transform buttons. •
Selecting with the Edit menu
The Edit menu includes several convenient selection commands. The Edit⇒Select All (Ctrl+A) menu command does just what you would think it does: It selects all unfrozen and unhidden objects in the current scene of the type defined by the selection filter. The Edit⇒Select None (Ctrl+D) menu command deselects all objects. You also can simulate this command by clicking in any viewport away from all objects. The Edit⇒Select Invert (Ctrl+I) menu command selects all objects defined by the selection filter that are currently not selected and deselects all currently selected objects.
The Edit⇒Select Similar (Ctrl+Q) command selects all objects that are similar to the current selection. If multiple objects are selected, the Select Similar command selects the objects that meet the criteria for being similar to each of the selected objects. Objects are similar if they meet one of the following criteria:
• Same object type such as lights, helpers, or Space Warps
• Same primitive object such as Sphere, Box, or Hedra
• Same modeling type such as Editable Spline, Editable Poly, or Editable Patch
• Imported objects from an AutoCAD DWG file that have the same style applied
• Same applied material
• Objects existing on the same layer
Figure 6.3 shows a treasure chest of Hedra gems created in Chapter 5. With a single object selected, choosing Edit⇒Select Similar (Ctrl+Q) causes all Hedra primitive objects to be selected.
FIGURE 6.3
The Select Similar command selects all Hedra objects.
Select by Name
Choosing Edit⇒Select by⇒Name opens the Select From Scene dialog box, which is a version of the Scene Explorer dialog box, except that you can't change any parameters. Clicking the Select by Name button on the main toolbar, positioned to the right of the Select Object button, or pressing the keyboard shortcut, H, also opens this dialog box.
Cross-Reference
The Scene Explorer dialog box is covered in detail later in this chapter. •
You select objects by clicking their names in the list and then clicking OK, or by simply double-clicking a single item. To pick and choose several objects, hold down the Ctrl key while selecting. Holding down the Shift key selects a range of objects.
Select by Layer
The Layer Manager lets you separate all scene objects into layers for easy