Getting Started with Autodesk 3ds Max

       Although many of 3ds Max’s components are typical for a Windows program, quite a few

are unique to 3ds Max; therefore, a solid understanding of them is essential to using the

program effectively. To begin exploring the 3ds Max 2013 interface, start the program by

doing one of the following:

Double-click the 3ds Max 2013 icon on the Desktop.

 Choose Start ‚ All Programs ‚ Autodesk ‚ Autodesk 3ds Max 2013 ‚ Autodesk 3ds Max

2013.

If you are on a 64-bit Windows system, you will see the 64-bit suffi x on the folder and icon

names.

You’ll see a variety of components in the 3ds Max 2013 window (see Figure 1.2). Some may be

familiar to you while others may not.

figure 1.2

The Large Icons Option

The images in this article use the default Large Icons option to display the toolbar buttons better.

To deactivate this option and use the smaller icons, thereby gaining some much-needed viewport

workspace, choose Customize ‚ Preferences to open the Preference Settings dialog box. In the UI

Display group of the General tab, deselect the Use Large Toolbar Buttons option, and then shut

down and restart 3ds Max for this setting to take effect.

At the top, you see a typical Windows menu bar and the 3ds Max Main Toolbar. Depending

on your default settings, you may also see up to nine more fl oating or docked toolbars containing

additional 3ds Max tools. Beneath the Main Toolbar is the Graphite Modeling Tools toolbar.

In the center, you see the viewport area, which currently shows the Top, Front, Left, and

Perspective viewports. At the lower-right corner of the screen, you fi nd the viewport navigation

tools for adjusting your views in the current viewport. Also included are the time controls

for creating and playing animations, the prompt line and status bar, and the MAXScript Mini

Listener (for creating macros). On the left side of the window above the MAXScript area is the

new Viewport Layout Tabs toolbar. On the right side of the user interface is the Command

panel, which contains nearly all the tools you’ll use to create and edit objects in 3ds Max. Let’s

take a closer look at each of these components. 3ds Max often provides several methods, including

toolbars, Command panels, menus, and shortcuts, for accomplishing the same task.
Touring the Interface
3ds Max offers a wealth of tools, and their sheer number can be overwhelming. To get a basic
understanding of the 3ds Max window, we’ll present each of the window components individually,
starting with the Menu Bar.
The Menu Bar
At the top of the screen is the Menu Bar. Here you’ll fi nd the typical Windows commands for fi le
maintenance, as well as commands specifi c to 3ds Max.
Standard to 3ds Max 2013 is the Application button (see Figure 1.3), which replaced the traditional
File menu in the 2010 release. The Application button is a graphical representation of the
tools from the traditional File menu, including opening and saving fi les, importing, exporting,
and referencing fi les. The Application button is also where you can set a project folder, access
the Asset Tracking tool, and check statistics about the current fi le. If you are more comfortable
using the traditional File menu, you can restore it to the 3ds Max interface using the dialog box
that appears when you select Customize ‚ Customize User Interface.
The options in the Menu Bar are organized the same way as they are in most Windows
applications. Clicking an option issues a command, and you’re expected to take some action. An
option that’s followed by three periods, called an ellipsis, opens a dialog box, usually to allow
you to make changes to settings related to the option. An option with a right-pointing arrow
displays more options in what is called a cascading menu, as shown in Figure 1.4. Depending on
your version of Windows, user settings, and if you have a pen tablet attached to you system,
your menus may cascade to the left or to the right.