Introduction to Maya - Modeling Fundamentals Vol 2
This course will look in the fundamentals of modeling in Maya with an emphasis on creating good topology. It's aimed at people that have some modeling experience in Maya but are having trouble with complex objects.
# 31 08-09-2008 , 01:46 PM
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Perfecto or anyone else that might be able to help. With these set driven keys I'm making an object that is going to use them, and I'm going to put this object in another scene and then animate it. Would it be better to set up the set driven keys now or after I import it into the scene and animate it in there? Hopefully you can understand what I mean.

# 32 08-09-2008 , 03:00 PM
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Hello Rhetoric Camel! I actually learned set driven keys days before I posted this thread so I don't have the answer to that. My first thoughts are:

1. Do one simple set driven key on an object. Then import to another scene to see if the keys still work.
2. If they keys still work, then perhaps having set driven keys on the original file is best. That way you can always import the model (including the set driven keys) into any scene.

If you create keys in the animation file, then if you ever want your model in a different scene, you would have to import the animation file, which I'm guessing would import everything in the animation file and not just the model. Just guessing here, but wanted to share my first thoughts after reading your question.

Hopefully this gives you something to start with until someone more knowledgeable responds.


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# 33 08-09-2008 , 03:25 PM
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well I appreciate the reply, if someone else doesn't come up with an idea I'll have to do like you said, and just try it with one set driven key and see if it imports into the other scene.

# 34 08-09-2008 , 03:27 PM
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i don't see what's wrong with doing that

what you should do is before you go and make set driven keys on a big model and spend hours and days setting up the perfect sequence, you should try it with something small

just have an object go towards another one and make that other one react
it'll save you a lot of time rather than making a giant awesome model only to find that it doesn't work where you want it to work user added image




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# 35 08-09-2008 , 03:30 PM
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Chirone, do you know if you can rig objects that expand using the set driven key? Like in one of perfectos videos his gun on the top raised, and I was using something similar to that and was wondering if I would also be able to rig joints to it. I'm making legs come out of an object and want to animate them when they are out.

# 36 08-09-2008 , 03:47 PM
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as far as i can tell, when you make a skeleton and rig stuff to it you should be able to equal what perfecto did

you'd probably make the set driven keys apply to the joints, so then the joints come down with the legs binded or parented to them
then you'd have an animation for the joints

if you want to be using inverse kinematics (IK) rather than forward kinematics you might have some issues with the restrictions that IK gives you...




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# 37 08-09-2008 , 04:18 PM
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as far as FK vs IK. need not worry about that for set driven keys.
If someone wants I can write up how to apply set driven keys to bones, as I learned how to do that for basic character rigging/animation for making say a fist.
Anything you can do to an un-rigged model you can do to a rigged model. Just your method of approaching it may vary slightly.


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# 38 09-09-2008 , 10:21 AM
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well my idea is, I'm making this flash drive and I'm going to have legs pop out of the bottom and arms out of the side, it's going to get up from it's laying position and run away. I figured set driven keys to make the arms and legs pop out and then I'd need some kind of skeleton to rig to make it move.

# 39 09-09-2008 , 10:53 AM
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well to avoid redundancy, why not establish a scene with the pose with no rig and just the set driven keys. Take the final scene aka the pose of him just getting ready to run, and make that a new scene. Kill all the driven keys on it, rig, and animate.
Save yourself a whole lot of confusion.

Otherwise what you want to do is very plausible in a single scene. It just might get a little confusing.


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# 40 09-09-2008 , 11:06 AM
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I guess I could do that, I didn't think of that. Any other ideas or suggestions would be good to. I've never done anything like this before. Thanks for the help I appreciate it.

Perfecto sorry for jacking your thread on this subject.

# 41 09-09-2008 , 04:42 PM
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What alexander said is worth a try, and quite clever. mind you, if the set driven keys dont import over to a new scene then, that might be the best way to do it?

i'm quite curious to see this transforming flash drive in action user added image




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# 42 10-09-2008 , 07:05 AM
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yeah I'll probably attempt what alexander said. Once I get to the point of animation I'll probably start a WIP.

# 43 10-09-2008 , 07:23 AM
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Originally posted by Chirone
What alexander said is worth a try, and quite clever. mind you, if the set driven keys dont import over to a new scene then, that might be the best way to do it?

i'm quite curious to see this transforming flash drive in action user added image

They likely would import over but it is a lot easier to delete them then it is to create them.


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