AlienBZ Posted May 28, 2014 Share Posted May 28, 2014 I've d/l a sketchup model of a comic book store interior from 3D warehouse, here's what I did so far: 1) I imported it into max, 2) I grouped it, 3) I made 2 more copies of it, set the copies side by side so it would have a square parameter (like the local Barnes and Noble store has, this is first thing I noticed back in 2012 when I first got involved in using 3D models to make movies) instead of a rectangular perimeter which the original copy of this particular model has. Ok, now I want to delete certain sides of these models so that the perimeter will be square instead of rectangular, so I clicked on the "group" command at the top of the quad viewport area in order to un group it, but I'm not sure if I should pick "ungroup" or "explode" or "disassemble", reason I'm concerned is if I have to rearrange any subobjects (book shelves, tables etc) in the model I don't want it to all come apart and I'll have to start my work all over again. What am I supposed to click on to get the best results? see screenshots thanks in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cad64 Posted May 28, 2014 Share Posted May 28, 2014 Ungroup: The Ungroup command ungroups one level. If you have nested groups, inside your main group, the nested groups will remain intact. Explode: The explode command ungroups all levels, including nested groups. Everything is reduced down to individual entities. Disassemble is not an option since you are working on a Group, not an Assembly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlienBZ Posted May 30, 2014 Author Share Posted May 30, 2014 Ungroup: The Ungroup command ungroups one level. If you have nested groups, inside your main group, the nested groups will remain intact. Explode: The explode command ungroups all levels, including nested groups. Everything is reduced down to individual entities. Disassemble is not an option since you are working on a Group, not an Assembly. Ok, which command am I supposed to use for best results? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cad64 Posted May 30, 2014 Share Posted May 30, 2014 Ok, which command am I supposed to use for best results? That is a question which only you can answer. Do you want to maintain any nested groups inside your main group or do you want to reduce everything down to individual entities? You really need to stop being so timid with the program. You're not going to break anything by trying things on your own. Try Ungroup and see if that works for what you're trying to do. If not, then maybe Explode is what you need. If you are worried about messing things up in your file, make a copy of the file and then experiment on the copy. If you mess it up somehow, you can always revert back to your original file. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlienBZ Posted July 12, 2014 Author Share Posted July 12, 2014 You really need to stop being so timid with the program. You're not going to break anything by trying things on your own. Try Ungroup and see if that works for what you're trying to do. If not, then maybe Explode is what you need. what do you mean, i'm being so timid with max? just wondering, that's all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlienBZ Posted July 12, 2014 Author Share Posted July 12, 2014 If you are worried about messing things up in your file, make a copy of the file and then experiment on the copy. If you mess it up somehow, you can always revert back to your original file. i did this with a telescope i d/l from one of these free sites back in aug 2012, and i was able to add jpg's from google images as a bitmap texture to the different parts of this telescope after i exploded its parts, but after i did this, how do i put it back together again in such a way that a rigged, animated character can interact with this telescope once i did this to it, or otherwise modified it? and ok, i will gladly take your advice about making a copy of the orig file and then worki9ng on the copy while keeping the orig file as the master copy/backup file, i never thought of this, thank you very much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cad64 Posted July 12, 2014 Share Posted July 12, 2014 what do you mean, i'm being so timid with max? just wondering, that's all. Like I said. You just need to experiment with the tools and learn how they work. You keep asking questions and wanting to know what is the correct procedure, but honestly, there isn't always a correct procedure, just whatever works best. And figuring out what will work best requires experimentation. I can't always tell you exactly what to do. All I can do is point you to some tools and tell you to use them. It is then up to you to figure it out from there. I don't know if Ungroup is going to work better for your situation or if Explode is the better alternative. All I can do is tell you what the commands do. The rest is up to you to figure out. So when I say you're being timid with the program, I mean you're not experimenting. You're relying on me to tell you what to do and how to do it. And that is not the correct way to learn, in my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cad64 Posted July 12, 2014 Share Posted July 12, 2014 i did this with a telescope i d/l from one of these free sites back in aug 2012, and i was able to add jpg's from google images as a bitmap texture to the different parts of thistelescope after i exploded its parts, but after i did this, how do i put it back together again in such a way that a rigged, animated character can interact with this telescope once i did this to it, or otherwise modified it? You really shouldn't have to explode models in order to apply materials/textures, but if you do feel you need to explode the model, just group it back together when you're done modifying it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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