[Fernando Tella]

Hi!

I'm wondering about what are the needs to make usable instances from max plugin.
I know it's better to have the modifiers stack collapsed, but I guess UVW map won't hurt instancing, right?
Which modifiers are allowed?
Any other rule?

Cheers.

[Luis Miguel]

Hello Fernando,

I don´t understand very well your question.

Instances are used in 3dsmax to save time and work besides of memory consumming. So it is not depending of modifiers.

Luis Miguel

(no entiendo cuando dices ¿Cuales modificadores son permitidos?)

[Bogdan Coroi]

You're right, UVW modifier won't affect instancing. As a start, you can give it a try using the Crowd modifier, or if you want fluid/particle behavior, use PFlow.

[Fernando Tella]

I think I read, when MW1.6 was released, that to make sure that instancing worked it was better if the geometry was collapsed into a editable mesh.
For example, I had troubles instancing a scatter object; I made a bunch of grass blades scattering a blade object on a plane and tryed to fill a lawn with instances of that scatter object. Well, that didn't worked as it should; I guess I should have collapsed the scatter object to a editable mesh and then instance that object, right?

Now, I'm wondering if all instances should be editable meshes or poly as a base object and if can add over it any kind of modifier as, for example, taper, bend, FFD box, noise, optimize or multires. Will any of those cause some trouble?

Will any kind of object work (compound objects, parametric, groups...)?

Maybe is a too wide question...

[Bogdan Coroi]

I think I read, when MW1.6 was released, that to make sure that instancing worked it was better if the geometry was collapsed into a editable mesh.

That's a handy trick if you're using File Link Mechanism or working with imported geometry from Revit/Autocad and friends.

Scatter modifier doesn't work with instancing as explained here. You can use Crowd modifier instead.

Will any kind of object work (compound objects, parametric, groups...)?

Groups are working, compound object are not (at least Scatter), parametric I don't have a clue.

Now, I'm wondering if all instances should be editable meshes or poly as a base object and if can add over it any kind of modifier as, for example, taper, bend, FFD box, noise, optimize or multires. Will any of those cause some trouble?

No, not every object should be an editable mesh, and yes, you can use bend, optimize etc.
The easiest way to check if the scene/object you're working is exported using instancing, is to check the number of meshes reported by MXCL. This picture was made of a Tube and a bend modifier, and the numbers when using instancing:
Geometry:
- Num Meshes: 1
- Num Triangles: 432
- Num Vertexes: 216
- Num Normals: 288

and the number with normal geometry:
Geometry:
- Num Meshes: 404
- Num Triangles: 174528
- Num Vertexes: 87264
- Num Normals: 116352

[Fernando Tella]

Scatter modifier doesn't work with instancing as explained here. You can use Crowd modifier instead.

I knew this example was going to be misleading. In the example I wrote I was not trying to make instances using the scatter object but instances of the scatter object. I made something like a "brush" using scatter and copied/instanced the scatter object itself (made of many non instanced blades).

Thanks for the answers; I'll try to make some test if I find the time.

Cheers

[Bogdan Coroi]

I just tried it and it works. What problems do you have? Here's the scene I've made.

[Fernando Tella]

Sorry man. I think you are right. I got the idea that it wasn't working from a scene I made some time ago but didn't make the proper tests. That lead me to think that some kind of objects couldn't be used for instancing and thus my question. I tested your scene and mine and both are working as expected.

Sorry again.

[Bogdan Coroi]

No worries. Glad it turned out OK. :)