3D Studio MAX 3: In Depth. Sample Chapter | 5

Editable Mesh

Even though a primitive object starts out parametric, you can choose to abandon its parametric nature. When a parametric object is changed into an Editable Mesh, it becomes simply data, like the polygonal mesh models in any other 3D application. You can no longer change its creation parameters because they are no longer available in the Modify panel. A parametric object is converted into an editable mesh object through the Edit Stack button on the Modify panel. Give this a try with the parametric box in the exercise to see what happens.

Why Convert A Parametric Object?

If parametric objects are so great, why would you ever want to convert them to mere mesh data? An Editable Mesh object is more easily edited at the mesh level than a parametric object. In other words, it's easier to move vertices and faces to sculpt the geometry. Mesh-level modeling is definitely possible with parametric objects, but it raises complications because the segmentation is not fixed in a parametric object. You can always change it in the Modify panel.

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Reproduced with permission from The Coriolis Group, copyright © 1999

Created: Sept. 30, 1999
Revised: Sept. 30, 1999

URL: https://webreference.com/3d/books/max3/1-4.html