3ds Max - Troubleshooting & General Discussion

[SimFox 802]

well that fact that it doesn't rotate means only one thing - it isn't really bound to the helper.

solution - delete both helper and rig. Simply reseting it wouldn't work.

[AndisArt 2,068]

pageflip

[gtaki 5]

(Sorry for double post if my 1st post is back)

Hi all.

I have got a error code 2 when I try to export my model with any lights exist on or night-library loaded into the scene.

There dont have any problem when I only do a day view export.

How can I fix this issue?

I use MAX8 with BAT4MAX 2.5 + jasoncw lightRig, Mental Ray

ADDITION :

so I have found the error 2 occurs only when there are lights with night-lighting prefix or night library on the scene.

Lights that turn on ALL THE DAY will not crash my export.

And using a simple box LOD CANNOT solve the problem.

[patriots_1228 51]

i had that problem before, a page or two back.

[SimHoTToDDy 2,939]

Well I realize that this is probably something that cannot be fixed, but I figured I would ask before I completely give up on it.

While I was working on my model in 3ds max, My computer was abruptly shut off/restarted by some sort of power surge, I wasn't using max when It happened though (I was tweaking a texture in Photoshop). Now, when I try to open that file back up, it tells me "File open failed ". When I try to import it into a scene it tells me "no appropriate import module found" followed by "improper file format".

Now I figure nothing much can be done since I can't even open it, but I would at least like to be sure before I say I have wasted 3 weeks on it...

-Todd

[Jasoncw 11,933]

I don't know how to fix it (if it's possible, which is seems like it may not be), but I think I wrote something in the BAT - Mega FAQ about preventing this in the future.

[SimHoTToDDy 2,939]

Holy **** Jason, your the man. I wish I had remembered about the autoback folder!!! It would have saved me from all the shock and horror of this.

I just about had an aneurysm when ( I thought) I had lost all my work on my baby, the Battersea. I had saved it immediately before switching to Photoshop and the "crash" happened, so I suppose it was still working with the file when it got cut off, and missed writing some of the information needed to open the file. I was about 5 minuets from informing everyone that this beloved project had gone down the drain!

Thank God for that FAQ,

-Todd

[Jasoncw 11,933]

lol, no problem.

[patriots_1228 51]

Im in a quagmire. When i use my night library and it works, the MR problem where it gets darker and darker because the nightlights dont reset occurs. but when i place a light in the scene to fix that, then the night libraries dont work. Any suggestions?

[Jasoncw 11,933]

I go to architecture school and the computers they have there have that on it. It just has some features specific to design. As far as BAT4Max it should work the same.

But I don't remember which of the most recent 3ds Max version are incompatible with BAT4Max. Someone else knows.

[TV-VCR 15]

Well, I was able to get ahold of 3ds Max 09... design.

Can someone tell me the specific difference between 3ds Max 09 and 3ds Max 09 Design? And most importantly, can I use the BAT with it?

Chris

[TV-VCR 15]

Originally posted by: Jasoncw I go to architecture school and the computers they have there have that on it. It just has some features specific to design. As far as BAT4Max it should work the same.

But I don't remember which of the most recent 3ds Max version are incompatible with BAT4Max. Someone else knows.quote>

I'm using release 11.0.

[Jasoncw 11,933]

At the sticky at the top of this forum.

[SimFox 802]

Currently Max 2k9 family has only limited compatibility with Bat4Max - eg you can't use Mental Ray - leads to the framing problem.

[jayo 44]

i'm in the process of buying 3Ds & i was wondering if any of you could point me to ANY 3Dsmax tutorials.

Thanks

[Jasoncw 11,933]

It comes with (or at least it's online) a massive tutorial that covers the entire program. Then the internet itself is crawling with 3ds Max tutorials and online forums devoted to 3d modeling. Even just searching google for "3ds max tutorials" and you'll get stuff.

[AndisArt 2,068]

ok I finally have my new laptop after my PC died, with Vista and Max 9.

Still have the same problem as earlier but I think the problem is not that the rig is not turning.

Actually it´s a very strange issue.. It occurs when I load a nightlibrary and attempt a render (rendering the model without nightlibrary goes all fine).  The very first render is fine, day ok, night as well (shows nightlibrary). Then from the second round, when it changes the view, the day render suddenly is much darker, and from then on just becomes darker each time the view is changed until it´s almost black. In game this is reflected by only ONE side of the Zoom 5 shows the model correctly, all other views AND zoom levels show only a black model...

Something I noticed as well is that from the 2nd render part, when the issue occurs, the viewport becomes entirely black...

here´s how it looks:

EDIT:  

I have another problem that occurs sometimes and I don´t know how to get rid of it. Sometimes the x/y/z  arrows become very thin, and also the vertexes become only little points instead of crosses and I don´t know how to change this.

[Jasoncw 11,933]

What's happening for the night stuff, is it's not resetting itself back to day. So it becomes night, and then the next night time it becomes even more night, and then it becomes even more night.

If you're using the new BAT4Max, I think you should use TruNite instead. Even if you don't use a custom lighting rig, it makes the exporting process easier. Here, you basically export two different scenes which are both technically day only exports, but one of them looks like night, and then BAT4Max can automatically convert one of them so that it appears at night during the game. With this method you can eliminate any night related errors.

For your other problem, try pressing "x" on your keyboard. If that doesn't solve the problem, press "x" to toggle it back.

[AndisArt 2,068]

wow, can

[Jasoncw 11,933]

I've done it before a lot in the past. One time I realized that I must have mistyped when renaming and object, and accidentally pressed a hotkey, so I went through every key on the keyboard until I hit x and fixed the problem, lol.

About the night problem, I don't remember, but it's probably written out in one of the 3ds Max related threads.

[SimFox 802]

Andisart: what Bat4Max version do you use? What version of Max?

You may have problem that has been discussed here, right in the first massage on the page: https://www.simtropolis.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=37&threadid=81699&STARTPAGE=3

[AndisArt 2,068]

SimFox, that seemed to be the problem! I put in a hidden nitelite and tada, finally it works!!! First time for me that I get my own nightmaps succesfully ingame, thanks 4 ur help guys!

---EDIT----:   I ran into another thing, not really an issue but annoying: One object I created in the Burj Dubai scene only shows black in the viewports despite having a material and UVW assigned. When I select the polygon the texture shows normally, the same when I do a render. Only in the viewport it´s black...

[delija21 295]

hi guys,could someone help me here?? i finally have a new laptop with vista but i can't install
MAX in C directory. I've been trying to install it the same way i installed it on XP,make sure it's suposed to install in C:/ but when it's done it's installed in programfiles?? Is it possible to move it from programfiles???

[SimFox 802]

nope, it isn't possible to move it.. but you CAN install it in whatever folder you want.

So my advise to you be to uninstall it and do new installation and pay attention to the selection of installation path.. it may be tricky as it is n't explicitly asked for...

[Mrqs 33]

Hi,

I'm using Max2008 and BAT4Max 2.5.  When I render my ready model everything goes ok. The render of the LODs in the gmax goes without any error (model is 20x10 big), render in the BAT4max goes well too.

Then I "make" ready model in the Plugin Manager, no errors. And now... when I try to read my file into the LotEditor, the model is invisible.  I have the grey rectangle when I replace building, but in the preview window there's nothing!  The model hasn't a night lightning at all.

I dont know what happens, help please

Why the render in the Max2008 (BAT4Max) is much worse than the same render in the  SC4 BAT?  I mean the render in the SC4 BAT is more sharp and clear than in the BAT4MAX ?  I dont use the mental ray... 

When I try to use the mental ray and "install" the "sun", the whole model lost its colors, makes all grey, no contrast...

[SimFox 802]

well... you have to learn how to use 3Ds Max... SC4 BAT is a set of scripts taking care (setting) all teh things in GMAX - like AA (or the luck of it) etc...

It is pointless using 3ds Max if you don't care to learn it's advanced features. To do so just follow the tutorials that come with the program. And use the the help. Plus it is very advisable to look through some of (very plentiful) 3D modeling /visualization sites.

Sharpness.

Your models in GMAX BAT don't use any Antialiasing and hence are sharp. But in 3Ds max some AA is turned on by default. If memory serves me correctly it is a Box filter - very-very soft one. The sharpest one is (for Scanline) Catmul-Rom.

But generally if you want to use Max9+ you have to switch to either Mental Ray or some 3rd party rendering engine (like V-Ray or Final Render) to take full advantage of the program. Scanline hasn't been developed for many years already and is in the Max only for Legacy problems. And even this may be stopped in coming versions - for instance in latest re-incarnation it isn't anymore the default rendering engine, Mental Ray is.

Your first problem is a result of some miss-match between S3D model (created out of LODs by GMAX BAT) and the index of FSH files (also created by GMAX BAT) and the actual FSHs created out of the images rendered in MAX.

There are few possible reasons - most likely "human error" for instance you haven't actually created the FSHs after renderings were done. This should present itself exactly as you describe - your S3Ds still have "invisible" FSHs - so you see nothing...

[nofunk 1,933]

I just reformatted my laptop and have installed 3dsmax8 on it. (Up to now, I've been using it on my old desktop computer.) So it's been two years since I've set everything up for BAT, and I have this CPBuildingMill.ms file, and I'm not sure what to do with it. I've searched the forums and can't find any info on it; I'm pretty sure I received the file and instructions on what to do in a pm on here that I've since deleted.

So... where do I put this? Or... do I even need it with the new Bat4Max 2.5?

Thanks in advance!

[SimFox 802]

CPBuildingMills.ms is a part of BAT. This particular script controls the actual rendering of the 20 views of the model. You don't need any additional scripts that didn't come with Bat4Max 2.5 because the version included in it has many upgrades (like support for photometric lights, color mapping etc...).

[nofunk 1,933]

Ah! Thanks SimFox!

[Mrqs 33]

Originally posted by: SimFox 

Your first problem is a result of some miss-match between S3D model (created out of LODs by GMAX BAT) and the index of FSH files (also created by GMAX BAT) and the actual FSHs created out of the images rendered in MAX.

There are few possible reasons - most likely "human error" for instance you haven't actually created the FSHs after renderings were done. This should present itself exactly as you describe - your S3Ds still have "invisible" FSHs - so you see nothing...quote>

 

Thank you, You were right - it was my fault. But I really don't know what I'm doing wrong.

I made the model - 4x3. It has night lights (not mental ray, yet). In the first render (it was only test) everything was correct. (there were the nightlights)  Then I had to make some alterations to the model, add some lights and so on. I rendered it the same way I did the first time (with the new LODs).  I have two files - one for day and for night with lights. First I rendered the day view, then night. Everything was ok, no errors or something. And yes, I pressed day-night button (after FSH Batch Built) and truenite insert button.

In the game I have no lights   I tried several times to render (with the old and new LODs) but now I have no lights and dont know what is going wrong. Can you help me?