Maxwell Render | Official public forum

Hi,
I'm using MR wil AC 16, and I've created materials in AC and linking them to an MXM file. The textures don't show up in AC, however, even though they're linked correctly in the MXM file. Any suggestions? Should I link them in AC separately? There are several textures for each material (colour, bump etc).

Hi,

All you have to do is:
1 - link the AC material to a MXM
2 - on the texture TAB on the AC material, select the Texture on the MXM that best represents the MXM (reflect 0 map).

Cheers

Thanks.

But does that mean that when rendering with MR, MR still uses all of the textures (ie bump etc) and not just the texture added in AC? And how does this work when exporting to Studio?

Hello,

In case your AC material is linked to an mxm file, the plugin exports the mxm file and doesn't care about the texture visible in AC. The texture in AC is in this case just a "dummy" texture, which helps you to adjust the texture scaling.
(So yes, MR will use all the textures from the mxm file.)

I hope it helps!

Márton

Yes! That was what I hoped for Thank you.

Another question here: Will the MXM file be referenced or embedded if/when exported to Studio? So if I continue to tweak the materials in the Material Editor the MXMs will update in the scene?

The materials are embedded. In case you would like to change the material later, you have to do it in Studio.

Márton

Marton, that brings me a question...
Can we use reference materials in AC and keep then referenced when we export them to the studio?
That would be perfect... Actually we can use reference materials both in AC and in Studio but separately.
How about linking them? This way we could use our own material library without worrying about the process of export...
The same goes to objects!
Cheers!

Like having a check box (in the material settings) where you can switch between embedded and reference mode? In embedded mode it would export as it is now, in reference mode it would only reference the mxm so you could edit it outside studio? - it it what you ask for?

The problem what I can see from plugin side is how to set the uv mapping scale values to match AC texture scale. In case the materials are not inside the mxs file but individual mxm files, maybe it is not a good idea to overwrite the scale values because you probably use the same material file for other projects too. - Or?

I don't understand the last part. How should we apply it for objects?

Márton

What I meant was these two features which are similar but for objects...
http://support.nextlimit.com/display/ma ... +MXS+files
http://support.nextlimit.com/display/ma ... well+Proxy

The idea of a check box is great!
As for the scale I think it is not a problem but a solution. Archicad is a software for construction, virtual buildings, its main purpose is to simulate real buildings. In material options, under texture picker, there are 2 methods for the projection scale: relative and meters!
In my opinion archicad users should have a material library based on real measurements, so meters makes perfect sense!
Yes I use the same material on several projects and when I tweak them just for that project I embedded it, otherwise I prefer then referenced...

Hello,

But we Reference MXS for ArchiCAD too:
http://support.nextlimit.com/display/ma ... XS+Manager


Márton

that was why I brought it up... just as
why not do the same for materials?

I have noticed another issue in AC plugin...
In the material attributes panel, if you use the maxwell engine settings, there is no vectorial hatching for us to edit... switching engines to control it, seems ockward!

About Vector hatching options:

It is a question of taste. I don't like seeing Vector Hatching options among Maxwell Render material parameters, because hatching has no effect on the Maxwell materials and makes the view more crowded. But I can understand your viewpoint too.

In case other users would like to see the hatching options too, I will change it.

Márton

ok, fair enough
by the way I am loving this plugin, and hope it will continue to evolve...
cheers!

Since I started the thread I'll just chime in with Joao. Despite some newbie confusion from me I think it's a great plugin and I'm looking forward to using MR a lot.