Creating A Thread for My Newbie Questions
 

My Newbie Questions Thread:playfull:

1- How can I create a 5th panel with out breaking away from the 4 modeling panels by default?:help:


2 - While modeling in Maya, is it smart to smooth the mesh as you model the section and when you do
How to avoid that cage that wraps around it:help:

3 - Are we limited with the options regarding "create Polygon Tool"?:help:

4 - As we model the marque tool selected stay on it's own plane. How can we get it to turn as we turn or model along a curve contour?:help:

5 - Thanks "Dom" for this suggestion a slight misunderstanding between us:)

For your fourth question on this list if I understand it correctly you want to either use curve snapping or you need to make the mesh that you want to model against "Live" so you can draw directly onto the model.

2. Don't use Mesh > Smooth... just use the 1, 2, and 3 keys. 3 won't have a cage.

No 4 I think you select normals in the move tool...................dave

You can essentially tear off any of the viewports I don't believe however that you can dock more than 4 viewports. Just go to Panel -> Tear off or make copy if you want to leave the original 4. You can then change the camera of the copied one.

You can also use panel editor to save your layouts :)

Hope that helps.

Questions


6 - Using Tubes to create - poles and spirals and such. Lets say I wanted to create a spring
spirals and springs or phone coiled cords of some kind. What examples or tool will allow this in Maya?:help:

7 - Materials, Are we very limited in this area like class effects or clouded glass
metal for rods and pipes. Textures of cloth, wood, marble, cast iron, leather.:help:

8 - Ruler Tool, Is there one here at all:playfull:

9 - Is "Road Kill" for UV's a feature built into Maya or do we have to activate it from the installation folder some how?:bounce:

6 - There is a helix primitive in the create menu
7 - No, there is no limitation. Maybe look up the difference between textures and shaders.
8 - Yes, Create > Measure tools > Distance
9 - No, it's a separate plugin

6) Using NURBS Extrude: Maya 2011 Essential Training from lynda.com - YouTube

7) I don't understand this question.

8) Distance tool: http://www.3dtutorialzone.com/tutorial?id=106

9) RoadKill is an external application. There is something like it in Maya; unfold. Maya UV unwrap (unfold) mini tutorial - YouTube

Damnit stwert! :D

Those Unwrap settings are actually working pretty well for a built in Maya function ;)

Thanks In Advance :playfull:

10 - The "Display Layers" System has me trip up for some reason:playfull:. I look around read about it and still confused.:(
is there a better way that someone can break it down. I have this subject that I am modeling and I
need sections on it own Layer and once I am done I can bring it all together again. It would also help If I understood how to when moving things into it's own Layer the have wire frame on the bottom element to see how close to get things related on the layer above it.

Thanks :playfull:

I'm not quite sure I understand you, but layers don't work the same as they do in PS or Illustrator, they don't define any spatial organization (e.g. above and below), they are just for grouping objects. Can you be more specific?

Ok I have this thing I'm working on that has several parts. I need the parts on it's on Layer to work on other parts.

Like when I make a selection, I am selecting other verts from the other section as well and that is not what I want. I need to adjust all of the parts while on there own layers. So once I've adjusted the sections. I bring them all back to one solid shape or character.:playfull:

However as I move around, I need to see in xray or wire frame of what's under what I am working on to keep things even and set up correctly as I go.

You're correct the Layer system here does not work like PS OR Illustrator. It's very different. I played around and got lost. There's the one layer on the file that I want to erase. I right click on the layer and it want give me the option to get ride of it.

I would like to start from a clean slate but got stuck while trying on my own.

You should be able to RMB on the layer and select Delete Layer...

But it shouldn't be too complicated. Just select the objects you want on a separate layer and click the right most icon (Create a new layer and assign selected objects). Then you can turn the visibility on and off by clicking the V. Read up in the documentation on layers, it should all be there.

Stwert-

I am reading it now. It's a bit tricky when never used before. Also when I RMB on this layer it does not give me the drop down box of options to get rid of it. Is there another way to erase it. so I can just start with no layers to do it correctly again?

Thanks :)