Crosswalk [version]

Indicates which version of the Crosswalk toolset is currently installed.

Check For Updates

Opens a Netview window displaying the Softimage Crosswalk web page where you can download and update your Crosswalk installation with the most current released version.

[Format]

The following formats are available for export:

• .XSI 5.0 (Text)

• .XSI 5.0 (Binary)

• COLLADA 1.4.1

• .XSI 6.0 (Text)

• .XSI 6.0 (Binary)

Export

Exports scene data using the options you have set on the Export, Settings, and Animation tabs.

File name

Specify the path (the default location is the dotXSI folder of the current project) and the file name to be exported. Choose the Browse (...) button to select a specific location and filename from a browser.

Verbose

Activates verbose mode and logs the export progress details to the script editor history pane.

Keep Referenced Paths Relative

When this option is on, all referenced paths (such as references to images, FX, and CGFX files) within the Crosswalk file are resolved (kept) as relative to the exported file.

When this option is off, all referenced paths are resolved to absolute paths.

Preserve IK Chains

When this option is on, IK animation is preserved and exported.

When this option is off, IK animation is plotted to FK.

Note that this option is not implemented for the COLLADA exporter.

Selection Only

When this option is on, only selected objects in the scene are exported. When this option is off, the entire scene is exported (including the scene root) regardless of the selection.

When exporting a selection of objects, all node-selected objects are removed from their hierarchies and are exported with their local transformations. You must branch-select objects if you want to preserve their hierarchies.

If a constrained object is selected without its constraining object, only the constrained object will be exported. The plotted fcurves are exported with the constrained object.

Materials

When this option is on, all materials defined in the scene are exported, regardless of whether you are actually exporting the entire scene or just a selection.

When this option is off, the Image Clips and Used Materials and Image Clips Only options are no longer available. The reason for this is because when Crosswalk removes all the materials, all the image clips are also removed.

To export all materials (whether they are being used or not) without any image clips, select the Materials checkbox and deselect the Image Clips and the Used Materials and Image Clips Only checkboxes.

To export all used materials only (without any image clips), select the Materials and Used Materials and Image Clips Only checkboxes and deselect the Image Clips checkbox.

To export all materials and all image clips (whether they are being used or not), select the Materials and the Image Clips checkboxes and deselect the Used Materials and Image Clips Only checkbox.

For details about material libraries, see Managing Material Libraries [Material and Shader Basics].

Image Clips

When this option is on, all materials and all image clips defined in the scene are exported, regardless of whether you are actually exporting the entire scene or just a selection.

When this option is off, none of the image clips defined in the scene are exported.

Note that you cannot export image clips only without materials. When the Materials option is off, the Image Clips and Used Materials and Image Clips Only options are no longer available. The reason for this is because when Crosswalk removes all the materials, all the image clips are also removed.

Used Materials and Image Clips Only

When this option is on and you are exporting the entire scene, only the materials and image clips that are being used by the objects in the scene are exported.

When this option is on and you are exporting a selection, only the materials and image clips that are being used by the selected object(s) in the scene are exported. Make sure you have also selected the Selection Only checkbox.

For information about finding out which objects use specific materials and image clips (and vise versa), see The Material Manager [Material and Shader Basics].

Animation

When the Animation option is on, all animation defined in the scene is exported.

When the Animation option is off, none of the animation defined in the scene is exported. In addition, the Animation > Shapes, Animation Plotting, Animation Resampling, and Action Sources option groups are no longer available.

IK animation is still exported as long as the Preserve IK Chains option is on. If the Preserve IK Chains option is off, the automatic conversion of IK to FK cannot take place because it requires animation plotting (which is not available when the Animation option is disabled).

Polygon Meshes (Nulls exported when off)

When the Polygon Meshes option is on, all polygon mesh objects in the scene are exported.

When the Polygon Meshes option is off, none of the polygon mesh objects defined in the scene are exported. Nulls are exported in their place.

The Used Materials and Image Clips Only option is no longer available. This is because when Crosswalk removes all the geometry, all the associated materials and image clips become unused.

In addition, the remaining options in the Exported Polygon Mesh Data group and the Animation > Shapes option group are no longer available.

Convert Meshes to Triangles

Triangulates polygon mesh objects by subdividing quads and polygons with five or more sides to form triangles. Existing triangles are not affected.

Apply Subdivision to Meshes

This option only affects subdivision surfaces created through the method of geometry approximation. For more information, see Applying Geometry Approximation [Polygon Modeling].

When this option is on, polygon meshes are exported with their subdivision level baked directly into the geometry and the local geometric approximation property is removed.

When this option is off, polygon meshes are exported as their original low-resolution geometry. No subdivision information is exported.

Local subdivisions and subdees generated as separate objects from a low-resolution one, are always exported with their subdivision level applied directly onto the geometry (and the mesh subdivision operator is removed) regardless of whether this option is on or not.

Export Tangents and Binormals as Vertex Colors

Exports tangent and binormal data as Color At Vertices (CAV) properties. For more information, see Working with Tangent and Binormal Maps [Texturing].

Export XSI Normals

XSI normals (XSINormal) are the implicit normals that are automatically generated by XSI, as opposed to user-defined normals (UserNormals) that are treated as user data and are not recomputed by XSI.

• When this option is on, XSI normals are exported.

• When this option is off, XSI normals are not exported.

• If defined, user normals are always exported with the scene object(s).

Animation

Note that this is the same option as Settings > Exported Data > Animation. The option is duplicated here for ease-of-access.

When the Animation option is on, all animation defined in the scene is exported.

When the Animation option is off, none of the animation defined in the scene is exported. In addition, the Shapes, Animation Plotting, Animation Resampling, and Action Sources option groups are no longer available.

IK animation is still exported as long as the Settings > Preserve IK Chains option is on. If the Preserve IK Chains option is off, the automatic conversion of IK to FK cannot take place because it requires animation plotting (which is not available when the Animation option is disabled).

Shapes

Choose how to export shape animation. Note that these options are not implemented for the COLLADA exporter.

• Export Shapes (ShapeKey Only): Exports only the shape sources (shape keys) that are stored in the model’s Mixer > Sources > Shape folder. Any shape clips that are stored in the model’s Mixer > Tracks > Shape folder are not exported. This option is useful when you only need the shape key such as for lip synching in a game where the game engine does the work of calculating the interpolation between shapes.

If you store and apply shape keys in mixed weight mode (the default), a custom parameter set containing each shape clip’s weight parameter is saved for the object. These shape clips (and the shape weight parameter defined for each clip) are not exported when this option is active. If you imported the file back into XSI, you would have to re-animate the shape weight using the shape editor, animation mixer, or the ShapeWeight custom parameter set. If you want to preserve the shape animation use the Plot all deformations option.

• Plot all deformations: Plots deformations (including shape animation) that are in all regions of the construction mode history. This means that all deformations on the selected object or cluster are plotted, whether or not the deformation is a product of the tools that were used for authoring the shape animation.

For shape animation and animated deforms the exporter compares each vertex on a surface and only the resulting differences are plotted and exported.

Plot All Animation

Plots all animation within the time span (start and end frames) and frame step.

Start

Sets the start frame for the range of frames to be plotted.

End

Sets the end frame for the range of frames to be plotted.

Step

Sets the step value to specify the frame step increment. If this value is 1, every frame is evaluated and a key is set at every frame; if this value is 2, every other frame is evaluated and a key is set at every other frame.

Interpolation

Choose the interpolation type you want for the function curves. You can choose to keep the current interpolation type or set a new one:

• Use Existing FCurve Interpolation: Determines how movement will be calculated in an fcurve between keyframes by using the currently defined interpolation type.

• Constant: Uses a constant interpolation that repeats the value of a key until the next one. The movement is characterized by sudden changes at keys and static positions between keys.

• Linear: Uses a linear interpolation that connects keys by straight line segments. The movement is characterized by constant speed with sudden changes at each key, creating a mechanical feel to the animation.

• Cubic: Uses a curved spline interpolation that accelerates and decelerates into (ease in) and out of (ease out) each keyframe, resulting in a smooth transition.

Make Rotations Continuous

Processes rotations to ensure continuity by treating orientation as a single entity instead of individual X, Y, and Z rotation function curves. This allows the plot processing to avoid “spikes” in the continuity of the rotation curves, when they may jump between equivalent (but discontinuous) representations.

Filter Keys

Reduces the number of keys on the function curves resulting from the plot.

% Tolerance

Sets the tolerance level for how close the function curve with the filtered keys fits the function curve you would have gotten without filtering. The lower the tolerance value, the higher the number of keys on the filtered curve, resulting in a closer fit.

Export All Action Sources

When this option is on, all action sources defined in the scene, including their associated action clips and tracks, are exported.

When this option is off, the Models drop-down list becomes available and you can choose to export the actions for a specific model in your scene.

Models

From the Models drop-down list, choose the model whose action sources you want to export.

Note that the Scene_Root appears in the list because it is considered a model, although in most cases it will not have its own Mixer with action sources defined.

Refresh

Updates the items listed in the Action Sources table. Click the Refresh button when you have removed, renamed, or created new actions for the specified model.

Reset All

Selects all the items in the Action Sources table for export.

[action sources table]

Lists the action sources defined in the Mixer folder of the specified model. A checkmark in the Export column indicates that the action will be exported.

Note that if you skip (deselect) even one of the action sources for a given Mixer, none of the action tracks for that Mixer will be exported. In other words, you must export (select) all the actions for a specific model in order to get all of its action tracks exported as well.

To export action sources

1. Deselect the Export All Action Sources checkbox.

2. Select from the Models drop-down list the model whose action sources you want to export.

3. In the Export column of the table, select (or deselect) the action sources to be exported.

Export XSI Extra

Exports XSI-specific information as <extra> elements in the COLLADA file. For example, this information includes neutral poses and transformation limits. This information may not be understood by other tools and applications. This option does not apply to dotXSI files.

Note that custom properties are always exported as <extra> elements. If your scene contains items imported from a third-party application, any “foreign” <extra> elements are also always exported.