All the tools you are looking for is there, I find myself looking for Modo's tools in Maya.

Building upon Rabbid_Cheeze's answer, some good modeling hotkeys.
Shift + X = Extrude
Z = Edge Extend
V = Spin Edge
B = Bevel
P = Make face (after selecting vertices, preferably counter clockwise)
Ctrl + L = Connect Vertices
F = Flip Face
H = Hide selected components
U = Unhide all
L = Make loop selection
Backspace = Kill edges (and remove lone vertices, "Delete Edge" in Maya)
Shift + G = Select Between
Shift + C = Edge Slice

With many tools you can press Middle Mouse Button to redo the tool in some way. Slice tools and so forth lets you put a new slice/loop down, extrusion redo's the extrusion, translates translates again etc.

I also use the Add Loop and Add Point tools all the time, they blow Maya's equivalent out of the water. Sadly they don't have hotkeys by default.

In Modo 601 the Ctrl + 5 and 6 Pie Menus are very useful.

@Computron: They're not outdated. Some things are slightly different but the core hasn't really changed. Modo builds on its self. There isn't any huge revamps that make tutorials obsolete. It may feel a little weird if the UI looks a bit different but if you have any questions the inline help system within modo is super helpful in that regard. Or you can PM me. I've been using Modo for I want to say 10 years... but that seems like an awful long time. I have been using it since the end of 103.

@pior: You'll also want to use edge slice or quick key C. Most of the tools you're use to in another app are in modo they're just called something different.

Also to build off of what skurmedel said additional uses for tool functionality can be found by using shift while in a tool. For example if you don't want to drop the extend tool because you want to do that function again, you can hold shift and click off of the edge and pull. This will extend the edge another time. Rinse and repeat. Super handy.

I recommend this tutorial by luxology: http://www.luxology.com/store/06_rea...ets/index.aspx

I watched this when i tried out 301 back then. It covers sub-d modeling, texture baking etc. If i recall correctly, it shows how to set up custom hotkeys for modeling at the beginning, too.

That being said, someone really should do a similar free tutorial for the current version ;)

I made a thread trying to figure out how to select newly created geometry automatically, but no bites yet: http://www.polycount.com/forum/showthread.php?t=96094

Max lets you just shift-lmb drag to do the same thing.

Check out the "paste and select" script from Seneca: http://www.indigosm.com/modoscripts.htm but get the newer versions of his scripts from here http://forums.luxology.com/discussio....aspx?id=52061

Thanks for the helpful insight guys! I got a few more questions. what do most of you do in modo? Are there very specific things like sub-d modeling that you prefer to do in modo before switching Apps? Do any of you bake normals/ambiocc for UDK? Is the texturing at least better than viewport canvas in Max? Do studios usually require their employees to use autodesk software for their exporters, and does this effect your ability to make environments quickly?


I would prefer not having to switch between apps a million times a day, but it seems to me like a lot of polycounters only use modo for sub-d.

Its good to check Auto Activate in some tools (under lists menu). Great thing about modo is that every tool can be use however you like. Each tool is highly customizable. I'm trying to learn it since its just fun app to work with. I love uving in modo (hate doing it in 3ds max). Anyone creates low poly in modo ? Modos viewport ain't to friendly for hard surface retopo (probably can be customized but I just don't know how to ;p). Its easier to read maxs viewport when I'm doing low poly for hardsurface.

Originally Posted by Ben Apuna

I compiled a bunch of Modo related links for someone else a while ago which may be helpful to those just starting out with it:

Modo to UDK

hotkeys in modo

Max to modo switch?

Modo 501

Quick Modo Question

Symmetry in Modo

Modo 501 is out now. How are the smoothing groups?

Modo 401 for game art

Modo: Pixel Snapping UVs

Luxology Forum posts

omg you can select by smoothing group!

moto 2.0

Seneca's latest modo scripts (12-18-10)

Ariel Chai's got a lot of great Modo scripts too, be sure to check em out.
http://www.svartberg.com/tutorials/resources.html

I'm sure I'm forgetting many good links and some of the info is a bit dated as things may have changed in 601.

Thank you soooo much for this!

Coming from Maya the action centers was probably the most confusing thing ever, till now.

@Computron: Unfortunately modo doesn't have cage baking system.It does bake tangent-space normals and AO by ray distance method which isn't right unless you're baking something on a flat plane.I used to bake everything in modo but this gave me wrong results in any game-engine.So baking hi-poly in modo is not available yet.Most of modo users bakes stuff in xNormal.It's not really hard to implement into your workflow.Or you can still use 3dsmax or maya for baking.

As far as I'm concerned there are plenty of studios have modo users.Most of people in ID software are using modo for example.Nonetheless,this is highly depends on the studios decision whether allow to use it or not.

You can easily export-import stuff by using fbx exporter between max-modo-udk.I've never had real problems with it.Just open up all needed apps before starting your work.Spend a few second for clicking import-export buttons but totally this worths the time spent on modeling you would save

I feel like I should add something to my last statement- getting alpha to render correctly in the viewport is a bitch.. as far as I can tell there's no 'alpha test' option either so the mesh of transparent objects always occludes other transparent objects..

Modo is amazing, been using it for 6 years now and it's hard to model/UV in anything else. This video is a great explanation of the interface, and why the action centers are a great concept:
http://content.luxology.com/communit...MODO_ACTRS.mov

Originally Posted by skurmedel

All the tools you are looking for is there, I find myself looking for Modo's tools in Maya.

...

P = Make face (after selecting vertices, preferably counter clockwise)

...

I really recommend getting Seneca's "Make Poly" script and bind that to p instead.

Lets you select either verts or edges and make polys out of those (rather than verts).

Originally Posted by Talon

I really recommend getting Seneca's "Make Poly" script and bind that to p instead.

Lets you select either verts or edges and make polys out of those (rather than verts).

P creates a face in edge mode too, maybe it didn't in early versions?

Oh right. No in early versions you had to select the verts around the outside of the poly you wanted to create.

I've been using Seneca's script since, ehr, probably 101 or 201 and never bothered to check otherwise :P

edit: Yeah, I've just tested it and it works perfectly fine with the built-in function. No need for that script then

have the finally put in the option to have crossing box selections in 601, that has always been a annoyance with me and modo since it makes doing edge and face selections a bitch.

For UVs, is there anything equivalent to Max 2012s Straighten Selection (Takes a UV shell and average-flattens every loop in it at the same time)? Its a huge time saver when trying to get really clean UVs.

Originally Posted by Ben Apuna

Check out the "paste and select" script from Seneca: http://www.indigosm.com/modoscripts.htm but get the newer versions of his scripts from here http://forums.luxology.com/discussio....aspx?id=52061

Thanks Ben

Originally Posted by Rabbid_Cheeze

For UVs, is there anything equivalent to Max 2012s Straighten Selection (Takes a UV shell and average-flattens every loop in it at the same time)? Its a huge time saver when trying to get really clean UVs.

I love that tool, I hope its in modo as well

@Rabbid_Cheeze: Yes... there's something that's not as automated but it is more flexible. You straighten the uv edges you want and on whatever axis it needs to be on. Then you make a custom action center using the local as it's center and element as its axis. You can then select the a uv edge that you have straightened on the u or v. Activate your scale widget. You will find that the widget matches the reference edge. Uncheck negative scale and you can scale it to zero all at the same time.

You can also save this custom action center so you don't have to set it up every time. This video should show you how http://www.luxology.com/training/video.aspx?id=530

Also there's a video somewhere where Seneca shows the power of action centers... don't know if it's been posted here or not.

Seven: You mean having centers set to local with auto axis and scaling to zero right? I tried that, but it's a pita because Modo doesn't respect shell borders when using ring/loop in the UV window.

There's also a script called UVRector2.py that seems like it does the same thing as Straighten Selection, but I can't get it to work correctly in 501.

That combination should work as well but I use element as the axis because it allows me to choose a reference edge. I don't grab the boarder of the shell. I grab the internal bits using ring/loop in the uv window and it works fine for me. It's not as automated as max but it's what's there.

I'll have to look around but sometimes scripts have been updated but not every location on the internet... I know Seneca doesn't really maintain his scripts on his site any more but he has updated a few (if that's a Seneca script)

@Rabbid_Cheeze:

Check this site out: http://park7.wakwak.com/~oxygen/lib/.../category.html

What you want is one of the uvrecter scripts (sorry I forget which one is the good one). Also grab the uvratio.py and UVBlockAligner.py script while you're there. Many of the other scripts on that site are pretty useful/interesting too.

Originally Posted by seven

I grab the internal bits using ring/loop in the uv window and it works fine for me.

This is what happens when I use loop in the UV window



Notice how the loop is continuous on the geometry instead of stopping at the edges of the UV shell? It means a single loop can result in multiple loops in different axis occurring on the UV. Maybe this is something they changed for 601?

If you want to select only one part of that loop in the UV window, just double click on whichever section you want in the UV window and it will only select connected edges.

Have you noticed that in previous versions toggling subd would smooth out UVs but in 601 it doesn't do that ?