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Animation Preferences

Sets preferences relating to animation.

Reference

The Animation preferences panel contains the following options:

Key Bracket Display

When you move to a frame, 3D Studio MAX displays white brackets around objects that have transform keys at that frame, including cameras and lights. These key brackets only appear in wireframe viewport displays.

All Objects/Selected Objects/None: Specifies which objects will display key brackets.

Use Current Transform: Displays brackets only on those frames containing a key for the transform button currently active in the toolbar (Move, Rotate, or Scale).

If no transform button is active, a bracket appears when you're on a frame containing any of the three transforms.

Position/Rotation/Scale: Specifies which type of transform will display a bracket. If only Rotation is selected, brackets appear only on those frames containing Rotation keys. These check boxes become active when Use Current Transform is clear.

Animate

Local Center During Animate: Locks the center method to local (because when animating, that’s the only center possible to animate around). If you want to animate around a non-local center, use a dummy object.

MIDI Time Slider Control

Lets you use a MIDI device to control the time slider. Select On to use the MIDI device specified in the MIDI Time Slider Control Setup dialog, displayed with the Setup button.

Sound Plug-In

Assign: Displays a dialog listing all sound plug-ins installed in the system. Select a new one to replace the current one.

Controller Defaults

Sets the default values for animation controllers capable of supporting default settings, for example, the TCB and Bezier controllers.

Set Defaults: Displays a dialog listing all controllers that have default values to be set. The Set button becomes available when you select a controller class from the list. Choose this button to display a dialog, provided by the plug-in controller, that lets you set default values.

Restore to Factory Settings: Prompts to verify if you want to reset all controllers to their default settings. If you choose yes, the defaults are reset for all controllers currently in the system.

How To

To change the default transform center

  1. Under File/Preferences, go to the Animation panel of the Preference Settings dialog.
  2. Clear Local Center During Animate.
  3. This changes the default and activates all the transform center buttons. You can now animate around the selection, coordinate center, or local pivot.

To set the key bracket display

  1. Choose File/Preferences, and click the Animation panel.
  2. Use the controls in the Key Bracket Display area to specify how you want key brackets displayed.

To specify default controller settings

  1. Choose File/Preferences.
  2. Click Set Defaults in the Animation panel of the Preference Settings dialog.
  3. The Set Controller Defaults dialog appears.

  4. Choose a controller type from the list of available controllers and click the Set button.
  5. A dialog containing the default settings supported by the selected controller type appears, for example, the In and Out tangents for a Bezier controller.

  6. Make changes to the controller settings.
  7. Once you click OK in this dialog, the controller defaults are changed. You cannot cancel from the Set Controller Defaults dialog.

    Changes to the controller default settings are written to your 3dsmax.ini file and become the defaults for all newly assigned controllers and all new scenes.

    If you decide that you want to revert to the original 3D Studio MAX defaults for all controllers, you can click the Restore to Factory Settings button in the Preference Settings dialog.

To restore the original default settings for all controllers

  1. Choose File/Preferences.
  2. Click Restore to Factory Settings in the Animation panel of the Preference Settings dialog.