Hi

I have been using 3ds max for about 5 years and I have just started learning Maya for my game design course.

Maya looks awesome but there are some tools that I just can’t find.
Firstly I can not find anything like the Windows/crossing tool that I use all the time in 3ds max.
I know AutoCad has it too so I assume Autodesk have added something similar since they took over Maya.

Another thing that I just don’t get is how to scale on 2 axis at once. For instance in 3ds Max there is a line connecting the x to the y axis that you can select to scale x and y simultaneously.

Transform type in This tool i used constantly in Max to get objects in the correct position. I realize that Maya is more of a freehand sort of thing but I can not believe that there is no way to move an object 200mm along the x axis.

There are lots more that I just can’t think of right now.

I did not think I would have to create a new thread for this as there are so many people who use both packages but I have not been able to find any good resources that help one move from Max to Maya.

Thanks for any help. :D

And that as they say is that.

hi HavocVulture,

Unfortunately I haven’t used max in such a while I dont actually know what the windows/crossing tools does, but will have a lookup and check for a maya equivalent.

As for scaling on only 2 axis, ctrl+drag on the axis you want to pin, the other 2 axis will move accordingly.

Maya by default actually works in cm, so to move an object a set distance, in the channelBox, in the axis you want to move 200mm by, enter +=20 That will add on 20cm to whatever value is already there.
If thats not much help you can always go to the move tool options, enable tweak mode, and enter 20 in step size.
You can also use mayas measuring tools to assist you (Create -> Measure Tools -> Distance Tool)

I hope that helps.

Lee Dunham | Character TD
ldunham.blogspot.com

"window/crossing” is extremely useful and I have not seen a way to achieve it in Maya.  It works like this:

Window: Click-drag from left to right to perform a selection.  Only things that are fully enclosed in the dragged area are selected.

Crossing: Click-drag from right to left to perform a selection.  Anything that is fully enclosed or intersecting with the dragged area is selected.

Maya can only work like the “Crossing” method.  So you constantly have to select a bunch of things, and then de-select the things you didn’t want.  This is especially a problem when working with faces or edges.

3ds Max 2013, Maya 2013
Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit
Core i7, 12GB RAM
Nvidia Quadro FX 3700 (Driver 267.17)

Yeah i remember that tool now, but it doesn’t look like maya supports that unfortunately.
http://forums.cgsociety.org/archive/index.php/t-910327.html

Lee Dunham | Character TD
ldunham.blogspot.com

In Maya’s Status line, all the way to the right is a Ui widget that can perform a variety of tasks. next to it is a drop down arrow, click this and switch to Absolute or Relative Transform.

Thanks for all the helpful replies.

And that as they say is that.