Maya 2020 fundamentals - modelling the real world
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# 1 05-09-2009 , 11:54 AM
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Reference Image

Heyo, I am pretty much just starting to work with Maya and just started using reference images in my models. I have only used side view images and was wondering if it would be easier to use front or side? and I am going to assume that a front and side view would be the best bet to keep the proportion of my model a little more realistic.

# 2 05-09-2009 , 12:42 PM
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Hi Ozgalis,

Yes you are right, front and side are best to keep the proportions of your models right, and if you are building something like a car sometimes a top view can help too.

It can be a good idea in that situation to put the planes on different display layers, so you can turn them on and off individually when in perspective view so the scene doesn't get too crowded.

But that's just a personal preference, everyone has a slightly different way of working.

Good luck with your modelling, and hope to see some of your progress soon!

# 3 05-09-2009 , 08:58 PM
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Thanks Dango for the quick reply, I am currently doing some of the free tutorials here to get use to nurb modeling then I will try something of my own and post.

# 4 05-09-2009 , 09:08 PM
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No problem mate, glad to help, hope it goes well!

If you need any help with the tutorials just ask away, as they are from this site, you're more then likely going to get a reply from someone who has already done the one you need help with, and will be able to advise, so you'll already be in the right place really! lol!

# 5 06-09-2009 , 04:17 AM
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One last thing, I was working on maya and forgot to save (stupid me) and lost almost 2 hours worth of work...so i started looking for an autosave function and could not find one so I downloaded a plug-in but cant figure out how to get it to work. I put the file in the plug-in folder under maya 8.0/bin.

I think I just forgot to go into the settings and set it to load but im not 100% sure and im at work so I cant check. If this does not work any ideas? or is there an autosave function built in?

# 6 06-09-2009 , 05:18 AM
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I think it's just best to get into the practice of saving very frequently (every few minutes), and also to save new copies of your file every so often just in case something goes wrong with your only copy!!

I personally find autosaves in other programs are a bit annoying as they tend to save right when you're doing something and cause it to lag for a sec...

So, get in the habit of saving often... it's a good habit to have user added image

Edit: there might be something in the temp directory on C:... maybe. I know maya uses it for some things... worth a check.

# 7 06-09-2009 , 05:19 AM
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I agree with Stwert about getting into the habit of saving often, as it's a good thing to do with most programs anyway, never know when there could be a very badly timed power cut! But there is also a incremental save feature, and you can select how often it saves.
It's in the main File menu, go to the Save option box, and in there is an option to activate it, and a slider to change how often it does it.

Not sure about the plug in, some can be different to others, they often come with a read me file so take a look at it if you haven't already.

Hope the Incremental Saves option is what you are looking for as that seems the easier choice at the moment!

# 8 06-09-2009 , 08:58 AM
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Ok thanks, i'm deffintly going to try and save more often now because I never want to loose all that work again. When it happen I didnt even know how to react lol I just stared at my screen in complete shock.

# 9 07-09-2009 , 05:41 AM
EduSciVis-er
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Not to badger on about the same point too much, if you do use the incremental save, that's fine, but if you learn to rely on that, eventually you're going to be working in a program that doesn't have a function like that and you're going to end up with a similar experience...
Just a friendly word of caution user added image

# 10 08-09-2009 , 05:08 AM
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I decided to just force my self to save every few minutes, plus I think the incremental save just saves a new file (or copy) and does not just save over the original file....could be useful but seems like it may be more of a hassle then anything.

# 11 08-09-2009 , 09:39 AM
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incremental save is a must full stop. Even if you save all the time.

It has saved my ass soooooo many times.

incremental save moves the last save file into a folder and replaces the file your working on - so the main file is always up to date. It can also be limited so it starts replaceing really old files so not to fill your hard drive up if 100`s of scene files.

As for auto save...
What version of Maya do you have as I know of a set of tools which is free that just happens to have a auto saver in it were you can also set the time of it (every 10mins, 20 mins, ect) but the tools only go up to Maya 8.5

link here anyway.

https://www.koshigaya.de/?content=download


# 12 08-09-2009 , 08:21 PM
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Oh wow I was under the impression it just made a bunch of back up files did not realize it replaced the original file also well that's good to know I will have to set that up. What do you think a good amount of increments would be?

Also thanks for the link to the auto save, i have 8.0 so it should work going to try in a little bit, have to do some photoshop work first.

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