The plugin adds a new Maxwell menu to Rhino's main menu, when it is set as the current renderer.
Menu
The Maxwell menu has several sub-menus:
Plugin Windows
The visibility of the various plugin windows may be toggled using these menu items.
Rendering and Export
This menu item provides access to the various ways of exporting and rendering with Maxwell.
Scene Data Management
This menu item provides access to commands used to import and export scene data and materials.
| Command | Function |
|---|---|
| Export Current State | Saves all Scene Manager parameters to an .sxl file for sharing or for later use. |
| Import Saved State | Prompts for the location of an .sxl file to import. |
Animation Control
This menu item provides access to commands used to begin, end, and cancel animations, as well as for setting Motion Blur positions (see Motion Blur) for Cameras and objects.
Toolbars
In addition to its menu, the plugin also provides a set of custom toolbars, which may be opened using Maxwell > Plugin Windows > Show All Toolbars.
Maxwell Shortcuts
Each button i this toolbar shows one of the plugin’s other toolbars as a fly-out.
Tools
Buttons in this toolbar open or close the various plugin windows:
| Button | Left-click | Right-click |
|---|---|---|
| Scene Manager | Toggle visibility of the Scene Manager. | Show the Scene Manager Shortcuts fly-out. |
| Database Manager | Toggle visibility of the Database Manager. | |
| Material Editor | Toggle visibility of the Material Editor. | |
| Log Viewer | Toggle visibility of the Log Viewer. | |
| Help Viewer | Toggle visibility of the Help Viewer. |
Scene Manager Shortcuts
Each button in this toolbar opens its related page in the Scene Manager.
Camera
This toolbar provides access to various camera tools provided by the plugin:
| Button | Left-click | Right-click |
|---|---|---|
| Camera LCD Readout | Toggle the Camera LCD readout. | |
| Camera Heads-Up Display | Toggle the Camera heads-up display. | |
| Auto-Focus to Objects | Prompts for a selection of objects, which are then used to set the current camera's focal distance and fStop. It is recommended that the current camera have Auto-Exposure enabled when using this command. | |
| Pick Camera Focal Distance | Set the current camera's focal distance by picking a point in the viewport. | |
| Pick Z-Clip Near Plane Distance | Set the current camera's near Z-Clip plane by picking a point in the viewport. | |
| Pick Z-Clip Far Plane Distance | Set the current camera's far Z-Clip plane by picking a point in the viewport. |
Environments
Use the commands in this toolbar to control the display of Image Based environment maps, and a custom-drawn compass, in the Rhino viewport.
| Button | Left-click | Right-click |
|---|---|---|
| Background | Enable display of the corresponding Image Based Environment channel in the viewport. A valid path for the environment should already be set when using this command. | Browse for an MXI/HDR map to be assigned to the corresponding Image Based channel and enable display of that map in the viewport. |
| Illumination | ||
| Reflection | ||
| Refraction | ||
| None | Disable Image Based Environment display in the viewport. | |
| Viewport Compass | Enable or disable display of a compass which indicates North (see Scene Rotation) in the viewport. | Pick the radius of the viewport compass. The Viewport Compass should be enabled before using this command. |
Functions
This toolbar contains material-related commands used for assigning, clearing, and refreshing materials.
| Button | Left-click | Right-click |
|---|---|---|
| Select Objects and Apply the Current Maxwell material | Prompts for an object selection; assigns the current Maxwell material when the selection has been made. | |
| Apply the Current Maxwell material to Selected Objects | Applies the current Maxwell material to currently-selected objects. | |
| Select Objects with the Current Maxwell material | Selects all objects which use the current Maxwell material. | |
| Remove material from selected Objects | Removes Maxwell materials from any currently-selected objects. | |
| Remove material from Layers | Removes the Maxwell material from the current layer, if it has one. | Removes Maxwell materials from all layers in the model. |
| Restore Viewport materials | Directs the plugin to run through its materials and force an update of their associated Rhino materials, since they can become unsynchronized when modified outside of the plugin's knowledge. | |
| Create MXS Reference | Prompts for the selection of a Maxwell MXS file, which is subsequently inserted into the model as an MXS Reference. |
Rendering
This toolbar contains commands related to writing, editing, and rendering MXS files, and also rendering in Maxwell Fire.
| Button | Left-click | Right-click |
|---|---|---|
| Render in Maxwell | Export the model to an MXS file and render that file in Maxwell Render. | Same as left-click, but exports only the selected objects. |
| Render Region | Select a region to render in Blow-up mode, export the model to an MXS file, and render that file in Maxwell Render. | |
| Render Blow-up | Select a region to render in Blow-up mode, export the model to an MXS file, and render that file in Maxwell Render. | |
| Write MXS and Open in Maxwell Studio | Export the model to an MXS file and edit that file in Maxwell Studio. | |
| Write MXS and send to Maxwell Network | Export the model to an MXS file and render it using Maxwell Network rendering. | |
| Write MXS | Export the model to an MXS file. | |
| Maxwell Fire | Toggle visibility of the Maxwell Fire window. | Open the Maxwell Fire window (if it is not already open), export the model, and begin rendering in Maxwell Fire. |
Animation
The commands in this toolbar are used for setting up animations and motion blur.
| Button | Left-click | Right-click |
|---|---|---|
| Begin Animation | Sets up the animation loop, creates animation-output folders, and resets the frame counter. Until the animation loop is ended or cancelled, MXS output will be redirected to the animation folders, and Maxwell Render will not be started. | |
| End Animation | Ends the animation loop (if it is currently active), and renders any queued frames in Maxwell Render. | |
| Cancel Animation | Cancels the animation loop, if it is currently active. | |
| Motion Blur | Stores the current location of motion-blur-enabled objects. The stored locations will be used to generate object motion-blur when the scene is rendered. | Stores the location of the current camera, in order that it might be used in the calculation of camera-motion-blur when the scene is rendered. |
Resetting Toolbars
If, for any reason, you would like to return your Maxwell toolbars to their default configuration, just use the command Maxwell_ToolbarReset. Note that this will cause you to lose any customizations you may have made to them.
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