This is where most of the work is done in Medit. Here you see the database you are working on in fully lit, shaded 3d - just as you will see it in the final application.
Everything you see updates in real time. You can zoom, pan and rotate the view around any point using the middle mouse button. You can fly around the database in by pressing the ctrl key.
The object palette shows miniature views of all the objects in your database. To edit an object, just double-click it with the mouse.
You can also pick up objects with the mouse, and drop them into position in the world you are building - it's as simple as drag and drop!
Each object has a complete hierarchical structure. Here you create
the fine detail of the object, including real time features such
as level of detail switching. You edit this structure using
intuitive drag and drop.
You can control the visibility of any part of the object by clicking on the eye icons. When the eye is open, you see the branch. When the eye is closed, you don't.
Inside this structure, you can define local coordinate systems and
linkages for the various branches, then add animations and
transformations to them using our unique system of "Engines".
This is the material palette, it holds all the materials in the current database. Palettes of materials can be loaded, saved and merged so you can build up librarys of materials ready for re-use.
The material palette is used together with the colour mixer to apply
colour to the models in the database. Materials give dynamic lighting
effects (the lighting depends on your viewpoint), and colours give
fine control of individual vertex colours where needed.
The colour mixer can also be used to create materials rapidly. Just
mix a colour, then click a button to create a new material.
The texture palette holds the textures in the database. You can apply textures to objects interactively with the mouse. Simply select the items you want to texture, choose a texturing algorithm, then drag the textures into position with the mouse. Textures are combined with materials or colours in real time.
Palettes of textures can be loaded, saved and merged - just like everything else in Medit.