CompuServe Thread

While not being completely sure of what you are asking, Mark, I'm gonna take a stab at helping you with some suggestions. I don't have time to research them completely, so please don't take them as absolutes (are there any in this business?-:) and just consider them some things to explore. This is the best I can do right now… It seems that you are trying to explode multiple objects with a dummy. Hmmm…While you can use *instances* of AXP objects in the Keyframer, I think you may have to re-think you strategy here. Simply use multiple Explode applications (depending on the amount of objects you need to explode). Now, use your dummy object to control the *animation* of said objects in the Keyframer, if needed. This, I think, should work. JackP could address this too, Jack? While I know of no BBS that is 3D mesh-specific, the new Viewpoint DataShop v1.0 CD-ROM seems to come pretty close. It's a collection of locked meshes with a browsing utility. When you find something you need, you call 'em up and they give you the code to unlock it (after you pay them, of course!). Simple as that. Give 'em a call at 1/800/DATASET. I have very little experience with AME, but the "blemishes" you describe certainly do sound like smoothing artifacts, or vertice placement problems. I would try AutoSmooth on the object level with different angle thresholds and see if you can start to make a difference that way. If you can see co-incident vertice problems in the Editor, you may try manually welding them, or turning up the Vertice Weld threshold and some "batch-welding". Then, maybe some smoothing operations may help. Anybody else out there familiar with getting AME objects to look good in 3DS? As far as I know, there is no *easy* way to create realistic, organic geometry in any 3D modeler, although a good Spline-Patch based routine is considered a somewhat easier way to go about it than polygonal by many. You could explore Playmation, which has a decent S-P sculpt module that you can export variable-resolution polygon-based DXFs from. Most people probably use various forms of the Deform operations in the Lofter when using 3DS. I have had some sucess by Deform-Fitting all the various organic shapes seperately, and attaching them in the Editor. This can be quite a bit of work, but you can end up with a pretty good-looking model, once you get the operations down. Finally, some folks get a hold of a 3D digitizer and actually "scan" in a model or real-life object. These affairs are typically expensive and complicated to use.

I said "dummy" but I ment stand in. The IPAS disk no. 4 has some sample 3DS files on it that exhibit the "explode" routine. They have a box that is somehow attached to the geometry in the model and the box determines where the "bottom" is for the gravity effects. In the "explode" AXP configuration menu you can choose the object or a box as the "effector?" of the effect. Help!!!!!!!