Hey everybody. Some already have seen a screen of a project I made for school in the
"Tech Artist - What are you working on: 2010 Edition!" I am making this thread to get some feedback and suggestions for getting a better script.

Some info about the script/tool :
I will start by posting the screen I already posted.



This script is a new kind of UI for modifiers that is on top of your viewport. It is a liquid design that will always adjust itszelf to the width and height of your viewport.

How to use it?

- Instal the script ... (I don't think I have to explain this, hehe)
- For practice and explaining only, add a teapot and put a Symmetry, shell and turbosmooth on it.
- Keep the object selected
- Press the button of the script
- Press on the addbutton in the right bottomcorner of your active viewport.
- Move/rotate/pan in your viewport the let the UI disappear.

When you now press again on the button to launch the script you will see a new button.
You can modify this by rightklicking on the new button and giving it a name and a color.

- Then press save button
- Again rotate/move/pan in your viewport and the UI will dissapear.

!Now you have created a new custom button. You always have to have selected a object when using the new button.

You can make Max 39 Buttons.


Known bugs :

- When having a too small viewport, the UI will be damn ugly.
- He doesn't want to make a button from some modifiers. 80% of the modifiers works.

Next features :

- The buttons will also be able to save your settings of your modifiers. Like a turbosmooth of 3 and ...
- The posibility to also save subanims, like pivots and ...


Download :

http://www.scriptspot.com/3ds-max/scripts/uimod

About some weeks I am going to release a tutorial about how to create a UI like this.
If you can give me feedback on my way of script scripting. It is always welcome

Greetz and I hope you like it.

Sounds awesome, You realise you havent posted the link to the actual script. all i can see on script spot is your image. no attachments.

Yeah, no script uploaded on your Scriptspot page, just the jpg.

Could you explain a bit more what this script actually does? It needs a summary like "This script makes a button for each of the modifiers on an object, so you can activate each modifier in sub-object mode." Or something.

Originally Posted by Nysuatro

- Instal the script ... (I don't think I have to explain this, hehe)
- For practice and explaining only, add a teapot and put a Symmetry, shell and turbosmooth on it.
- Keep the object selected
- Press the button of the script

What actually happens at this point. Like "The script then queries the object, and creates a UI button for each of its modifiers." Or something.

Originally Posted by Nysuatro

- Press on the addbutton in the right bottomcorner of your active viewport.

What does the Add button actually do?

Originally Posted by Nysuatro

When you now press again on the button to launch the script you will see a new button.
You can modify this by rightklicking on the new button and giving it a name and a color.

Why do I need to relaunch the script? Is it because the object has to be queried first, then the script can create a UI for its modifiers?? And what does this new button do when clicked?

Originally Posted by Nysuatro

- Then press save button
- Again rotate/move/pan in your viewport and the UI will dissapear.

It would help to explain why the user needs to run the script with the object selected, press an Add button, then press a Save button. What does each step do exactly.

Ow, it looks like I forgot to say it had to list in the post.
Can you download it now?

Wel first of all the script is the UI in general. But when you start it, you will not see a button. You will have to make your own buttons by putting some modifiers on a object, select it and push the addbutton in the UI. This way it makes a button that remembers all the modifiers on that object and the sequence of them.

Every time you make a new button you have to refresh your viewport by moving, rotation, ... That is because when you press the addbutton he is going to write data to a initfile. So the UI has to be reloaded to load up the new data from the initfile.

So the button for the script is only to toggle the visibility of the UI on and off. its best you assign a shortcut to the script.

And the reason why you have to select an object is because the script has to know to what object he has to add the modifiers. Or when adding a button, he has to know which modifiers he has to put in a button. But you will get a messagebox to warn you that you have to select an object.

I hope this makes it a bit clearer. if you want I can make a little video about how using the script?

awesome, i've allways fancied seeing how to get huds working in max. might have to unearth a few old plans

thanks for posting this

I am glad you like it. I will be expanding this script with some extra features. And after that I will be working on a new UI for animation. So more to come

I will also try to implement that you can link a script to a button. Someone requested this and I think it can be usefull.

If you find a bug or have a suggestion. pleas let me know

linking a button to a script should easy. The ui side will take some messing though.

You could really push this much further than you have at the moment. Have you considered other formats for the layout of the buttons. A Maya style marking menu might be worth looking at.

A marking menu? In Max? Blasphemy!

Originally Posted by r_fletch_r

A Maya style marking menu might be worth looking at.

Ok...I'm sold. make it happen!

Take a look at RadMax

You Tube

Also take a look at MZP Rucksack (from our own renderhjs)

You Tube

So you all would prefer the UI structure of Maya ? What is there that you dont like about the UI now? Just to be sure what I have to work on

Found an other example

You Tube

I would love to see a full Maya hotbox for Max: all the Max menu items, in a radial layout around the cursor, invoked via hotkey.

Would also love to see a marking menu style layout instead of the current Quad style layout. Marking menus are so fast to use, once you memorize a certain tool location, you can access it very very quickly.

However your current script seems to be built for only adding modifiers to objects.

There is a bug... if I have the UI visible and I maximize the viewport (Alt W) the Add button either disappears or moves to the center of the view.

Another bug... I have BlurScripts installed, which includes the modifier NewNoise. After I add this modifier to your UI, when I click its button I get a script error. Does this occur with all third-party modifiers?

I will look into it.
yes, he still has problems with third-party modifiers. Something I have to check.
Update will come after I finished my 2 exames.

Thanks for the reply.

Thanks to a script of Norman3D I will be able to make a UI Like Maya for my script. And even one for launching other scripts. I am going to find a good way to combine those. More updates will be coming after I finished my mattepainting and animations for my next exam

Awesome, looking forward to it!

I will try to look at the next evenings into my keystroke script to capture and assign scripts to shortcuts - maybe we can combine it all together.

It looks like I can't make dynamic rollouts. Someone has a sollution for that?
Somebody already said using .net form
But I was hoping that I could keep my rollout

there is a way to execute strings as maxscript using 'execute' followed by a string like this:

c= "print(\"hello, this is renderhjs\")";
execute c

with that in mind you can dynamically add and remove for example rollouts and or other things within maxscript. I for example redid some of the TexTools bar with that simply because every button was taking to much lines of code to add so I wanted to streamline it and make sure all buttons have the same events.

Just to let you all know that I stopped this project because of some technical problems and it looks someone else was faster then me.

http://www.scriptspot.com/3ds-max/scripts/max-hotbox

I wouldnt let him discourage you. He's posted no code so its just vapour ware. If your having tech problems post them on the boards, or over at tech-artists.org. there are some SUPER talented helpfull and generous folks on those sites.

Man dont let someone stop you from finishing your script I just learned today that MoP has an FBX exporter and importer but still working on mine

EDIT: Its always good to put on your portfolio and stuff.

Got an update.
Now you can make a buttons from every modifier and you can save the values of the properties. Check it out.

Now I will be working on the graphics. Any request?

You Tube

Script can be found at http://www.scriptspot.com/3ds-max/scripts/uimod

Little update on graphics. Also making some properties for the ui so you can custimise a bit.



Just a sidequestion. Is someone using this tool?

I would use it if it was a permanent ui, not something you have to click on a button or hotkey to bring up.
Also, to me its nice but limiting it to modifiers only is a shame, there's potential for external scripts/mel command here.... /me think silo.

I don't mind making a version for you where you don't have to click on a button or hotkey.
That is not so much work.
If you got more request for a UI like Silo let me know.
I just have to know what features you want.