Contents
Learning Maya
Maya Tutorials
Additional Learning Resources
What’s New in Extension for Autodesk Maya 2013
What's New in General
What's New in Character Animation
What's New in Rendering and Render Setup
What's New in nDynamics
What's New in API
What's New in MEL and Python
What's New in Autodesk Maya 2013
What's New in Autodesk Maya
What's New in General
What's New in Basics
What's New in File Referencing
What's New in Animation
What's New in Rigging
What's New in Modeling
What's New in Dynamics and nDynamics
What's New in Rendering and Render Setup
What's New in Documentation
What's New in MEL and Python
What's New in API
Maya module paths, folders and versions
Recommended workflow for creating a plug-in module
Installation and Licensing
Release Notes
User Guide
Basics
Maya Interface
Interface overview
Working in Maya
3D coordinates
Objects and components
Menu items, tools and shelves
Selection, tools, and actions
Menus and menu sets
Marking menus
Shelves
Work with menu items, tools, and options
Select tools and actions
Set the options for a tool or menu item
Select actions from marking menus
Select actions from the hotbox
Select actions on a shelf
Load the default shelves
Rearrange the interface
Start Maya from the command line
Customize the interface
Maya Web browser plug-in
Install the Maya Web browser plug-in
Autodesk Maya Error Report
Get help
Selecting
Select objects or components
Select multiple components
Select only unobstructed components
Select multiple component types
Select a node
Select only certain types of objects or components (selection masks)
Save and reuse a selection
Select objects based on hierarchy
Select components by painting
Soft Select components
Change one type of selection to another
Grow, shrink, or change the selected region of CVs or polygon components
Highlight components before selecting them
Viewing the scene
Move and rotate the camera
Using the ViewCube
Tumble, track, dolly, or tilt the view
Use the mouse to control camera azimuth, elevation, yaw or pitch
Center the view on selected or all objects
Return to previous views
Change and resize panels
Change the panel layout
Create a window from the contents of a panel (tear off)
Control what camera is shown in a view
Show, hide, or change the grid
Show information over top of a view (heads-up display)
Change the display of objects
Change the look and smoothness of the selected objects
Show or hide objects
Show or hide components
Show or hide object-specific UI
Show an isolated subset of objects or components in a panel
Change an object’s wireframe color
Transforming objects
Transformations
The pivot point
World space, object space, and local space
Maya interface
Construction history
Construction planes
Copies vs. instances
Transform objects and components
Use manipulators
Lock a manipulator to the current selection
Move, rotate, or scale objects and components
Move, rotate or scale components proportionally
Use the Universal Manipulator
Move components with the Tweak mode
Move, rotate, or scale components with reflection
Change the pivot point
Flip objects
Transform along different axes
Preserve textures during transformation
Set transformation values to zero
Align and snap
Snap to the grid, a curve, points, a view plane, or the center of a geometry
Snapping with live objects
Align objects
Position objects along a curve
Snap one object to another
Change history
Undo, Redo, and Repeat
Edit completed commands (construction history)
Show a custom manipulator for the selected node
Create and edit models
Create geometric primitives
Create text
Edit objects
Cut, Copy, and Paste
Delete
Duplicate
Edit component numeric values directly
Transfer attribute values
Troubleshooting Manipulators and Transformations
Issues with manipulators
Issues with transformations
Nodes and attributes
Nodes and attributes overview
Two views of the scene: hierarchy and dependency
Scene hierarchy
Dependency graph
The Outliner
The Hypergraph
Node types
Static, dynamic, and extension attributes
Creating attributes using attribute patterns
View and edit attributes
Change attribute values in the Attribute Editor or Channel Box
Show or hide the manipulator for an attribute in the Channel Box
Inline numeric calculation in multiple cells
View and edit multiple attributes on multiple nodes
Save and reuse attribute presets
Lock the value of an attribute
Create, edit, or delete custom attributes
Open multiple Attribute Editors
Control the display of attributes in the Channel Box
Use node type filtering to enhance Attribute Editor performance
View and change the hierarchy of nodes
View and edit the hierarchy of nodes
Change the visual layout of nodes in the Hypergraph
Change the order of nodes
View and change input and output history relationships between nodes
Show inputs and outputs (dependency graph)
Connect input and output attributes
Connect attributes with an expression
Break connections between attributes
Set a node’s update state
Change the display of nodes and attributes
Show or hide nodes
Control which objects or attribute types appear in an editor
Save and reuse object or attribute visibility filters in editors
Customize the Attribute Editor
Custom Attribute Editor templates
Parts of an Attribute Editor template
Create an Attribute Editor template for a node type
Create an Attribute Editor template for a specific node
Apply an Attribute Editor template
Refresh an Attribute Editor template
Use callbacks in Attribute Editor templates
Create custom attribute controls
Create an attribute control using MEL
Create an attribute control using Python
Create an attribute control using the Python global namespace
Link callbacks to scripts
Using the Node Editor
Displaying connections
Create a node
Creating 2D Textures and selecting a mapping method
Locking the Node Editor view
Changing view mode for nodes
Resizing nodes
Renaming Nodes
Selection in the Node Editor
Pinning a node to the Node Editor view
Adding a node graph to an existing network graph
Zooming in and out of the Node Editor
Disabling swatch rendering
Connect nodes
Connect nodes by dragging connection lines
Connect nodes using their default connections
Connect nodes using the Connection Editor
Connect default output to a specific input attribute
Change existing node attribute connections
Delete a connection
Connection colors in the Node Editor
Displaying a node's Attribute Editor
Create customizable marking menus
Assets in the Node Editor
Creating and using bookmarks in the Node Editor
Assign materials to surfaces
File management
Managing your files
Supported image formats (rendering)
Supported file formats
Create, open, or save a scene file
Autosave a file
Open recently saved files
Import files
Pipeline Caching
Pipeline caching overview
Pipeline caching workflows
Shade and render pipeline caches
Use MEL commands to save and load pipeline caches
Send objects to other Autodesk applications
Send to 3ds Max
Send objects to 3ds Max
Updating, adding, or deleting objects sent to 3ds Max
Convert CAT to HumanIK
Send to Softimage
ICE Interoperability for Maya
Unsupported actions and important notes
Prepare your Maya scene for Softimage
Send a new scene to Softimage
Updating, adding, or deleting objects
Send to MotionBuilder
Send Control rigs to MotionBuilder
Selecting HumanIK character data
Send a new scene to MotionBuilder
Updating, adding, or deleting objects sent to MotionBuilder
Live character streaming
Set up a local live connection
Stream animation to a skeleton
Stream animation to a Custom rig
Set up a remote live connection
Update, sync, or disable a live connection
Bake the result of a live connection
Re-establish a live connection
Send to Mudbox
Send objects to Mudbox
Receive objects from Mudbox
Export objects to a new file
Archive a scene
Export objects as a referenced file
Export and Apply Reference Edits
Organize files into projects
Create a new project
Change project file locations
Change projects
Create custom data locations
View images or animations
Recover data after a crash
Scene management
Managing complex scenes
Organizing objects
Sets and partitions
Layers
Optimize scene size
Organize objects
Change the name of one or more objects
Make an object unselectable (template)
Organize objects on display layers
Edit all objects on a layer at once
Group objects together
Create and edit sets
Create nested sets
Keep a collection of sets from having overlapping membership
Annotate and measure
Annotate or document objects
Measure the distance between two points
Show parameter or arc-length values on a curve or surface
Manage file paths
Using FBX for file translation
FBX file translator
Maya FBX Plug-in
Maya FBX plug-in What’s New
What’s new in this version
Conversion support
File textures, procedural, and map channels
Camera support
Light support
Custom properties
Level of Detail group nodes
Joint Orients
Installing the Maya FBX Plug-in
Windows installation
Macintosh installation
Linux installation
Downloading the Maya FBX plug-in
Checking your version number
Removing the plug-in
FBX Plug-in UI
Switching the FBX UI
Creating a custom preset
Storing presets
Edit mode options
Web updates
Help
About
Export/Import or Close
Export
Exporting from Maya to an FBX file
File Type Specific options
Export Preset Options
Include
Animation
Display Layers
Advanced options
Information
Collada
Import
Importing FBX files into Maya
File type specific options
Import Preset Options
Statistics
Include
Animation
Advanced options
Axis conversion
Information
Maya FBX Plug-ins Workflows
IFFFS
Renaming strategy
Single-step workflows
Maya MEL Scripting
Hiding the UI
Scripting commands
FBXClose
FBXExport
FBXExportAnimationOnly
FBXExportApplyConstantKeyReducer
FBXExportAxisConversionMethod
FBXExportBakeComplexAnimation
FBXExportBakeComplexEnd
FBXExportBakeComplexStart
FBXExportBakeComplexStep
FBXExportBakeResampleAnimation
FBXExportCacheFile
FBXExportCameras
FBXExportColladaFrameRate
FBXExportColladaSingleMatrix
FBXExportColladaTriangulate
FBXExportConstraints
FBXExportConvertUnitString
FBXExportDxfTriangulate
FBXExportDxfDeformation
FBXExportEmbeddedTextures
FBXExportFileVersion
FBXExportGenerateLog
FBXExportHardEdges
FBXExportInAscii
FBXExportInputConnections
FBXExportInstances
FBXExportLights
FBXExportQuaternion
FBXExportQuickSelectSetAsCache
FBXExportReferencedContainersContent
FBXExportScaleFactor
FBXExportShapes
FBXExportSkeleton
FBXExportSkins
FBXExportSmoothingGroups
FBXExportSmoothMesh
FBXExportSplitAnimationIntoTakes
FBXExportUpAxis
FBXExportUseSceneName
FBXExportTangents
FBXExportTriangulate
FBXImport
FBXImportAxisConversionEnable
FBXImportCacheFile
FBXImportCameras
FBXImportConstraints
FBXImportConvertDeformingNullsToJoint
FBXImportConvertUnitString
FBXImportDxfWeldVertice
FBXImportDxfReferenceNode
FBXImportDxfObjectDerivation
FBXImportFillTimeline
FBXImportForcedFileAxis
FBXImportGenerateLog
FBXImportHardEdges
FBXImportLights
FBXImportMergeBackNullPivots
FBXImportMergeAnimationLayers
FBXImportMode
FBXImportProtectDrivenKeys
FBXImportQuaternion
FBXImportResamplingRateSource
FBXImportScaleFactorEnable
FBXImportScaleFactor
FBXImportSetMayaFrameRate
FBXImportSetLockedAttribute
FBXImportShapes
FBXImportSkeletonType
FBXImportSkins
FBXImportUnlockNormals
FBXImportUpAxis
FBXGetTakeComment
FBXGetTakeCount
FBXGetTakeIndex
FBXGetTakeLocalTimeSpan
FBXGetTakeName
FBXGetTakeReferenceTimeSpan
FBXLoadExportPresetFile
FBXLoadImportPresetFile
FBXLoadMBExportPresetFile
FBXLoadMBImportPresetFile
FBXPopSettings
FBXPushSettings
FBXRead
FBXResetImport
FBXResetExport
FBXResamplingRate
Troubleshooting and Limitations
Troubleshooting
Where did the FBX UI go?
Where are my textures?
Where are my MotionBuilder layers?
Why are my cameras inconsistent?
Why are my normals locked on import?
Why does the plug-in not match the help documentation?
The plug-in does not run
Why do my MotionBuilder edges look different?
Why are my sets empty?
Why Does My Mudbox Model Render Incorrectly?
Limitations
Tangents and Binormals
Preset Bake Animation settings
Non-orthogonal matrices
Cannot cancel file overwrite
Cluster import
Scale compensation
Selection sets
Instanced geometry
Preferences and customization
Save preferences
Customize the look and feel of the interface
Show or hide user interface elements
Change user interface colors
Change the scene view background color
Arrange the interface
Create a custom panel layout
Add a new panel to the list of available panels
Change the length (scale) of normals in the display
Customize shelves
Create, rename, rearrange, or delete a shelf
Add a tool, action, or Maya script to a shelf
Edit the MEL or Python script associated with a shelf item
Create / Edit pop-up menus for a shelf item
Edit the contents of a shelf
Use a custom name or icon for a shelf item
Change the display of shelves
Customize menu sets
Custom menu sets
Manage custom menu sets
Customize marking menus and the hotbox
Create or edit a marking menu
Assign a marking menu to a hotkey
Add a marking menu to the hotbox
Customize the hotbox
Customizing the Script Editor
Maya Hotkeys
Maya Hotkeys
Assign a predefined command to a hotkey
Hotkeys in Maya for Mac OS X
Assign a MEL script to a hotkey
View a list of all assigned hotkeys
Customize how Maya works
Switch operations between actions and tools
Load or unload Maya plug-ins
Improve performance, quality, or interactivity
Switch between Y-up and Z-up
Advanced customization
Directly modify the settings files
Run MEL commands whenever Maya starts up
Run MEL commands whenever a scene is opened or closed
Create a custom heads-up display readout
Troubleshooting and Performance tips
Get the most out of Maya
Optimize the Maya Hotbox and marking menus on Linux
Set Maya to use maximum memory (increase the Virtual Memory limit)
Use node type filtering to enhance Attribute Editor performance
Understand Maya exit codes
Running Maya in Japanese and Simplified Chinese
Japanese/Simplified Chinese Maya overview
Extended ASCII characters in node and attribute names and scene portability
Run Maya with a Japanese or Simplified Chinese interface
Run Maya in English within a Japanese or Simplified Chinese environment
Prepare Maya files containing Japanese or Simplified Chinese text
Maya Help
Maya Help overview
About the web browser
Index
Search
Favorites
Contacting Customer Support
Install the Maya Help
Basics Tools
Status line (toolbar)
Panel toolbar
Command line
Tool Box
Select Tool
Lasso Tool
Paint Selection Tool
Move Tool
Rotate Tool
Scale Tool
Universal Manipulator
Soft Modification Tool (toolbox)
Show Manipulator Tool
Quick layout buttons
Layer Editor
Hotkeys
View hotkeys
Tool and action hotkeys
Transform marking menus
Basics Menus
File
File > New Scene
File > Open Scene
File > Save Scene
File > Save Scene As
File > Archive Scene
File > Save Preferences
File > Optimize Scene Size
File > Import
File > Send to 3ds Max
File > Send to Softimage
File > Send to MotionBuilder
File > Send to Mudbox
File > Export All, Export Selection
File > Export to Offline File
File > Assign Offline File
File > View Image
File > View Sequence
File > Create Reference
File > Reference Editor
File > Project Window
File > Set Project
File > Recent Files
File > Recent Projects
File > Exit
Edit
Edit > Undo, Redo, Repeat
Edit > Recent Commands List
Edit > Cut
Edit > Copy
Edit > Paste
Edit > Delete
Edit > Delete by Type > History
Edit > Delete by Type > Non-Deformer History
Edit > Delete by Type > Channels, Edit > Delete by Type > Static Channels, Edit > Delete by Type > Non-particle Expressions
Edit > Delete by Type > Motion Paths
Edit > Delete by Type > Constraints
Edit > Delete All by Type
Edit > Select Tool
Edit > Lasso Select Tool
Edit > Paint Selection Tool
Edit > Select All
Edit > Deselect
Edit > Select Hierarchy
Edit > Invert Selection
Edit > Select All by Type
Edit > Quick Select Sets
Edit > Duplicate
Edit > Duplicate Special
Edit > Duplicate with Transform
Edit > Transfer Attribute Values
Edit > Group
Edit > Ungroup
Edit > Level of Detail
Edit > Parent
Edit > Unparent
Create
Create > NURBS Primitives
Create > Polygon Primitives
Create > CV Curve Tool
Create > EP Curve Tool
Create > Bezier Curve Tool
Create > Pencil Curve Tool
Create > Arc Tools > Three Point Circular Arc, Two Point Circular Arc
Create > Measure Tools > Distance Tool, Parameter Tool, Arc Length Tool
Create > Scene Assembly
Create > Text
Create > Adobe Illustrator Object
Create > Construction Plane
Create > Locator
Create > Annotation
Create > Empty Group
Create > Sets > Set, Partition
Create > Sets > Quick Select Set
Modify
Modify > Transformation Tools > Move Tool, Rotate Tool, Scale Tool, Show Manipulator Tool
Modify > Transformation Tools > Universal Manipulator
Modify > Transformation Tools > Move Normal Tool
Modify > Transformation Tools > Default Object Manipulator
Modify > Transformation Tools > Proportional Modification Tool
Modify > Transformation Tools > Soft Modification Tool
Modify > Reset Transformations, Freeze Transformations
Modify > Snap Align Objects > Point to Point, 2 Points to 2 Points, 3 Points to 3 Points
Modify > Snap Align Objects > Align Objects
Modify > Snap Align Objects > Position Along Curve
Modify > Align Tool
Modify > Snap Together Tool
Modify > Evaluate Nodes
Modify > Make Live
Modify > Center Pivot
Modify > Prefix Hierarchy Names
Modify > Search and Replace Names
Modify > Add Attribute
Modify > Edit Attribute
Modify > Delete Attribute
Modify > Convert > NURBS to Polygons
Modify > Convert > NURBS to Subdiv, Polygons to Subdiv
Modify > Convert > Smooth Mesh Preview to Polygons
Modify > Convert > Polygon Edges to Curve
Modify > Convert > Subdiv to Polygons
Modify > Convert > Subdiv to NURBS
Modify > Convert > Texture to Geometry
Modify > Convert > Displacement to Polygons with History
Modify > Convert > Fluid to Polygons
Modify > Convert > nParticle to Polygons
Modify > Convert > Instance to Object
Modify > Replace Objects
Modify > Convert > Geometry to Bounding Box
Display
Display > Grid
Display > Heads Up Display
Display > UI Elements
Display > Hide, Show
Display > Wireframe Color
Display > Object Display
Display > Transform Display
Display > Polygons
Display > NURBS
Display > Subdiv Surfaces
Display > Animation
Display > Rendering
Window
Window > General Editors > Component Editor
Window > General Editors > Attribute Spread Sheet
Window > General Editors > Connection Editor
Window > General Editors > Visor
Window > General Editors > Display Layer Editor
Window > General Editors > Asset Editor
Window > General Editors > Namespace Editor
Window > General Editors > File Path Editor
Window > General Editors > Blind Data Editor
Window > General Editors > Channel Control
Window > General Editors > Script Editor
Window > General Editors > Command Shell
Window > General Editors > DG Profiler
Window > Rendering Editors
Window > Animation Editors
Window > Relationship Editors
Window > Settings/Preferences > Preferences
Window > Settings/Preferences > Tool Settings
Window > Settings/Preferences > Performance Settings
Window > Settings/Preferences > Hotkey Editor
Window > Settings/Preferences > Color Settings
Window > Settings/Preferences > Marking Menu Editor
Window > Settings/Preferences > Shelf Editor
Window > Settings/Preferences > Panel Editor
Window > Settings/Preferences > Plug-in Manager
Window > Attribute Editor
Window > Outliner
Window > Hypergraph: Hierarchy
Window > Hypergraph: Connections
Window > Paint Effects
Window > UV Texture Editor
Window > Playblast
Window > View Arrangement, Window > Saved Layouts
Window > Save Current Layout
Window > Frame All in All Views, Window > Frame Selection in All Views
Window > Minimize Application
Window > Raise Main Window
Window > Raise Application Windows
Assets
Assets > Create Asset with Transform
Assets > Add to Asset
Assets > Remove from Asset
Assets > Asset Editor
Assets > Export Proxy Asset
Assets > Publish Attributes
Assets > Unpublish Attributes
Assets > Publish Connections
Assets > Lock Unpublished Attributes
Assets > Unlock Unpublished Attributes
Assets > Publish Node
Assets > Unpublish Node
Assets > Assign Template
Assets > Select Asset Contents
Assets > Advanced Assets > Create
Assets > Advanced Assets > Node Publishing
Assets > Advanced Assets > Node Unpublishing
Assets > Advanced Assets > Set Current Asset
Pipeline Cache
Pipeline Cache > Alembic Cache > Open Alembic
Pipeline Cache > Alembic Cache > Import Alembic
Pipeline Cache > Alembic Cache > Replace Alembic
Pipeline Cache > Alembic Cache > Export
Pipeline Cache > GPU Cache > Import
Pipeline Cache > GPU Cache > Export
Help
Menu Search
Help > Maya Help
Help > Learning Path
Help > Learning Movies
Help > How-To-Movies
Help > Tutorials
Help > What’s New
Help > Support Center
Help > Subscription Center
Help > Release Note Updates
Help > Check for Updates
Help > The Area
Help > Download Bonus Tools
Help > Download Vegetation
Help > Report a Problem
Help > Suggest a Feature
Help > Customer Involvement Program
Help > Autodesk DirectConnect Help
Help > MEL Command Reference
Help > Python Command Reference
Help > Node and Attribute Reference
Help > Browser Setup Assistant
Help > Find Menu
Help > About Maya
Panel menus
View
View > Camera Tools > Tumble Tool
View > Camera Tools > Track Tool
View > Camera Tools > Dolly Tool
View > Camera Tools > Zoom Tool
View > Camera Tools > Roll Tool
View > Camera Tools > Azimuth Elevation Tool
View > Camera Tools > Yaw-Pitch Tool
View > Camera Tools > Fly Tool
Shading
Shading menu
Shading > Wireframe
Shading > Smooth Shade All
Shading > Smooth Shade Selected Items
Shading > Flat Shade All
Shading > Flat Shade Selected Items
Shading > Bounding Box
Shading > Points
Shading > Use default material
Shading > Wireframe on Shaded
Shading > X-Ray
Shading > X-Ray Joints
Shading > X-Ray Active Components
Shading > Object Transparency Sorting
Shading > Polygon Transparency Sorting
Shading > Interactive Shading
Shading > Color Index Mode
Shading > Backface Culling
Shading > Smooth Wireframe
Shading > Hardware Texturing
Shading > Hardware Fog
Shading > Apply Current to All
Lighting
Lighting menu
Show
Show menu
Show > Isolate Select
Show > Grid
Panels
Panels > Look Through Selected
Panels menu
Basics Windows and Editors
Asset Editor
Asset Editor
Attribute Editor
Attribute Editor overview
Attribute Editor menus
Display the Attribute Editor
Work with the Attribute Editor
Attribute Spread Sheet
Attribute Spread Sheet
Channel Box
Channel Box overview
Channel Box menus
Display the Channel Box
Organize the Channel Box
Work with the Channel Box
Color Chooser
Color Settings
Color Settings
Component Editor
Display Layer editor
Display Layer editor
DG Profiler
DG Profiler menu
Generate profiling data
Export Selection As Reference Options
File Browser
File Path Editor
File Path Editor menus
File Path Editor browser
Repath and Actions Preview windows
Hotbox customization
Hotbox customization
Hotkey Editor
Hotkey Editor
Hypergraph
Hypergraph overview
Hypergraph overview
Hypergraph tips
Hypergraph limitations
Marking Menu
Editor
Marking Menu
Editor
Menu Sets
Menu Sets
Namespace Editor
Namespace Editor overview
Node Editor
Node Editor menu and toolbar
Node Editor marking menus
Outliner
Outliner
Panel editor
Panel editor
Plug-in Manager
Plug-in Manager
Preferences window
Preferences overview
Interface preferences
UI Elements preferences
Interaction Mode preferences
ViewCube preferences
Help preferences
Display preferences
Kinematics preferences
Animation (Display) preferences
Manipulators preferences
NURBS preferences
Polygons preferences
Subdivs preferences
Font preferences
Settings preferences
Animation (Settings) preferences
Assets preferences
Cameras preferences
Dynamics preferences
Files/Projects preferences
Modeling preferences
Node Editor Preferences
Rendering preferences
Selection preferences
Snapping preferences
Sound preferences
Time Slider preferences
Undo preferences
GPU Cache Preferences
DX11 Shader preferences
Save Actions
Modules preferences
Applications preferences
Preload Reference Editor
Preload Reference Editor
Project Window
Reference Editor
Reference Editor overview
Reference Editor toolbar
Reference Editor Layouts
Reference editor menus
Relationship Editor
Relationship Editor
Script Editor
Script Editor
Script Editor Menu Icons
Script Editor Menus
Shelf Editor
Update Manager
Visor
Visor
Basics Nodes
Camera node
General attributes for nodes
General attributes
Transform attributes
Display
Node behavior
Level of Detail group node
Mac OS X and Linux Specific Notes
Appendix
Using Maya with Mac OS X
Notes and Procedures
Troubleshooting Maya for Mac OS X
Using Maya with Linux
Notes and Procedures
Troubleshooting Maya for Linux
Managing Scenes, Files, and Projects
Assets
Asset overview
What are assets?
Parts of an asset
Working with assets
What is encapsulation?
Published attributes and nodes
Asset templates
Parts of an asset template
Template file format
Assets and file referencing
The Asset Editor
Asset workflows
Pre-planning Workflow
Artist control workflow
Artist workflow tips
Creating and removing assets
Create assets
Preview the contents of an asset
Remove assets
Navigating assets
Select an asset
Select asset contents
Set the current asset
Lock an asset
Hide unpublished nodes and attributes
Organize assets in the Channel Box
Organize assets in the Attribute Editor
Mark an asset with a custom icon
Navigate assets in the Hypergraph or Hypershade
Expand and collapse assets
Expand and collapse assets
Lay out nodes inside an asset
Show and hide connections
Customize an asset’s background
View assets in the Hypershade
Navigate assets in the Outliner
Showing or hiding asset contents
View published attributes
Customize how an asset is treated in the UI
Editing Assets
Add nodes to an asset
Remove nodes from an asset
Publish or unpublish attributes
Publish ramp attributes
Publish swatch attributes
Publish attributes connected to external nodes
Publish multiple attributes to one published name
Edit published attribute values
Publish or unpublish nodes
Example: Swapping arms on a robot (Advanced Assets only)
Bind/unbind an attribute or node
Autobind an asset
Rename a published name
Connect asset attributes
Transfer attribute values between assets
Example: Duplicating animation on non-matching hierarchies
Assign a custom command or menu to an asset
Creating templates and views
Create an asset template
Assign a template to an asset
Edit an asset template
Reload an asset template
Save an asset template
Change the template search path
Organize asset templates into packages
Create a binding set
Customize a template binding set
Add a view to an asset template
Set the active view for an asset
Customize a template view
Localize the asset user interface
Example: Creating a template and a view
Assets and file referencing
Prepare an asset for referencing
Reference an asset
Export an asset as a file reference
Replace referenced assets
Example: Referencing and swapping a car in a scene
Lock referenced assets
Create a proxy asset
File referencing
File referencing overview
What is file referencing
Create file references
File referencing basics
Modifying a file reference
File referencing workflows
Work with file references
Creating file references
Unload and reload file references
Preview unloaded content
Duplicate file references
Replace file references
Remove file references
Import file references
Export file references
Edit reference paths
View selected references
Locking a file reference
Lock file references
Exclude attributes from locked references
Selecting the contents of a file reference
Reference edits
Reference edits overview
List reference edits
Remove reference edits
Export reference edits to an offline file
Assign reference edits to an offline file
About saving reference edits
Save reference edits
Saving reference edits to grandchild files
Edit animation curves from referenced files
Best practices for reference edits
Proxy references
About proxy references
Work with proxy references
Proxies with shared edits
Proxy referencing workflows
About proxy tags
Proxy referencing tips
Namespaces
What are namespaces?
Create namespaces
Edit namespaces
Displaying namespaces
Remove namespaces
File referencing tips
Managing files for file referencing
File hierarchy assembly
File reference locator
Instancing file references
File referencing and shading
Shared display layers
File referencing helper scripts
Illegal character handling for namespaces
Unknown reference nodes
File referencing environment variables
Scene Assembly
Assembly representations
Assembly definitions
Assembly references
Expanding assembly reference hierarchies
Scene Assembly edits
Build a scene with Scene Assembly
Prepare to create representations
Create assembly definitions
Add assembly representations
Assemble the scene using assembly references
Switching active assembly representations
Remove assembly representations
Unload active assembly representations
Make attribute connections between Scene Assembly nodes
Add animation curves to Scene Assembly nodes
List Scene Assembly edits
Remove Scene Assembly edits
Use a bounding box object as a representation
Scene Assembly Reference
Scene Assembly menus
List Assembly Edits window
Scene Assembly nodes
assemblyReference
assemblyDefinition
Environment Variables
Overview of environment variables
Setting and getting environment variables within Maya
Setting environment variables using Maya.env
Setting environment variables using system commands
Standard paths
General variables
Audio variables
File path variables
Rendering variables
Mac OS X specific variables
Linux specific variables
Suites specific environment variables
Modeling
Polygonal Modeling
Polygons overview
Introduction to polygons
Polygon modeling overview
Polygon normals
Two-manifold vs. non-manifold polygonal geometry
Planar and non-planar polygons
Polygon component display
Polygon modeling features on marking menus
Polygon selection and creation
Polygon selection
Select polygon components
Select a face loop
Select a vertex loop
Select an edge ring
Select an edge loop
Edge ring and edge loop selection tips
Select border edges
Select a path of edges between two vertices
Select components based on criteria
Change vertex selection using pick walk
Change edge loop selection using pick walk
Polygon creation
Create polygon primitives
Create polygon primitives interactively
Create polygon primitives using the Create menu
Create polygon primitives using the Shelf
Create a polygon mesh
Add polygons to an existing mesh
Create a polygon face with a hole
Extrude a polygon face, edge, or vertex
Extrude polygons in an arc or wedge shape
Create symmetrical polygon meshes
Duplicate polygon faces
Polygon conversion
Convert NURBS surfaces to a polygon mesh
Convert polygon faces to triangles or quadrangles
Convert polygonal surfaces to subdivision surfaces
Convert textures to a polygon mesh
Polygon modeling preferences and tips
Polygon modeling preferences
Display the polygon count in the scene view
Combining, separating, and splitting
Merge polygons
Merge boundary edges
Merge vertices, edges, or faces into one vertex
Bridge between border edges
Combine and separate polygon meshes
Combine polygon meshes
Combine polygon meshes using booleans
Edit the original objects after a boolean operation
Separate polygon shells into separate meshes
Extract faces from a mesh
Split polygon components
Split shared vertices
Split polygon faces
Connect arbitrary components
Split multiple polygon faces
Split a face so that a vertex is added at its center
Insert an edge loop
Create edge loops that are offset from an edge
Divide polygon components
Divide faces into triangles or quadrangles
Subdivide faces by painting
Divide polygon edges
Editing polygons
Modifying polygon meshes
Bevel polygon edges
Spin polygonal edges
Crease polygonal edges and vertices
Chamfer a vertex
Deform a polygonal mesh
Make a hole in a polygon face
Fill holes in a polygon mesh
Flip triangle edges
Transfer vertex attributes
Moving polygon components
Move, rotate, or scale polygon components
Move polygon vertices along their normals
Slide polygon edges
Smoothing polygon meshes
Smoothing overview
Preview a smoothed polygonal mesh
Work with polygon meshes using Subdiv Proxy
Smooth polygon meshes
Editing polygon normals
Edit the vertex normals to affect polygon shading
Reverse polygon normals
Deleting and simplifying polygons
Delete polygon vertices and edges
Clean up, simplify, or validate meshes
Reduce the number of faces in a mesh
Sculpting surface meshes
Soft Selection
Soft Selection overview
Soft Select a NURBS or polygon surface mesh
Modify Soft Selection Falloff
Influence multiple meshes
Reflect Soft Select transformations
Soft Select UVs
Example: Expanding cheeks with Soft Selection
Sculpt Geometry Tool
Sculpt Geometry Tool overview
Sculpt a NURBS or polygon surface mesh
Sculpt a subdivision surface mesh
Smooth a surface mesh
Relax a surface mesh
Erase surface sculpting to an earlier state
Sculpt according to an attribute map on NURBS
Sculpt across seams and surface edges on NURBS
Keyframe sculpting changes
Coloring polygons
Color per vertex overview
Coloring polygons using color per vertex data
Prelighting polygons
Polygon color sets
Working with color per vertex data
Make vertex colors visible
Assign colors to polygon vertices
Assign colors to polygon vertices by painting
Assign colors to polygon vertices using Prelight
Animate polygon vertex colors
Remove colors or prelighting from polygon vertices
Create and edit color sets
Assigning Color Per Vertex per instance
Transfer color data between meshes
Coloring vertices in Viewport 2.0
Blind data
Blind data overview
What is blind data?
Working with blind data
Set up the structure of blind data
Apply blind data to components
Make blind data visible
Add component-level metadata
Appendices
Appendix A: Tangent and binormal vectors
Polygons menus
Select
Select > Object/Component
Select > Vertex
Select > Edge
Select > Face
Select > UV
Select > Vertex Face
Select > Select Edge Loop Tool
Select > Select Edge Ring Tool
Select > Select Border Edge Tool
Select > Select Shortest Edge Path Tool
Select > Convert Selection > To Vertices
Select > Convert Selection > To Vertex Faces
Select > Convert Selection > To UVs
Select > Convert Selection > To UV Shell
Select > Convert Selection > To UV Border
Select > Convert Selection > To UV Edge Loop
Select > Convert Selection > To Edges
Select > Convert Selection > To Edge Loop
Select > Convert Selection > To Edge Ring
Select > Convert Selection > To Contained Edges
Select > Convert Selection > To Faces
Select > Convert Selection > To Face Path
Select > Convert Selection > To Contained Faces
Select > Grow Selection Region
Select > Shrink Selection Region
Select > Select Selection Boundary
Select > Select Contiguous Edges
Select > Select Using Constraints
Mesh
Mesh > Combine
Mesh > Separate
Mesh > Extract
Mesh > Booleans
Mesh > Smooth
Mesh > Average Vertices
Mesh > Transfer Attributes
Mesh > Transfer Shading Sets
Mesh > Paint Transfer Attributes Weight Tool
Mesh > Clipboard Actions > Copy Attributes
Mesh > Clipboard Actions > Paste Attributes
Mesh > Clipboard Actions > Clear Clipboard
Mesh > Reduce
Mesh > Paint Reduce Weights Tool
Mesh > Cleanup
Mesh > Triangulate
Mesh > Quadrangulate
Mesh > Fill Hole
Mesh > Make Hole Tool
Mesh > Create Polygon Tool
Mesh > Sculpt Geometry Tool
Mesh > Mirror Cut
Mesh > Mirror Geometry
Edit Mesh
Edit Mesh > Keep Faces Together
Edit Mesh > Extrude
Edit Mesh > Bridge
Edit Mesh > Append to Polygon Tool
Edit Mesh > Cut Faces Tool
Edit Mesh > Split Polygon Tool
Edit Mesh > Insert Edge Loop Tool
Edit Mesh > Offset Edge Loop Tool
Edit Mesh > Add Divisions
Edit Mesh > Slide Edge Tool
Edit Mesh > Transform Component
Edit Mesh > Flip Triangle Edge
Edit Mesh > Spin Edge Forward
Edit Mesh > Spin Edge Backward
Edit Mesh > Poke Face
Edit Mesh > Wedge Face
Edit Mesh > Duplicate Face
Edit Mesh > Connect Components
Edit Mesh > Detach Component
Edit Mesh > Merge
Edit Mesh > Merge To Center
Edit Mesh > Collapse
Edit Mesh > Merge Vertex Tool
Edit Mesh > Merge Edge Tool
Edit Mesh > Delete Edge/Vertex
Edit Mesh > Chamfer Vertex
Edit Mesh > Bevel
Edit Mesh > Crease Tool
Edit Mesh > Crease Sets > Create Crease Set
Edit Mesh > Assign Invisible Faces
Edit Mesh > Interactive Split Tool
Edit Mesh > Project Curve on Mesh
Edit Mesh > Split Mesh with Projected Curve
Proxy
Proxy > Subdiv Proxy
Proxy > Remove Subdiv Proxy Mirror
Proxy > Crease Tool
Proxy > Toggle Proxy Display
Proxy > Both Proxy and Subdiv Display
Normals
Normals > Vertex Normal Edit Tool
Normals > Set Vertex Normal
Normals > Lock Normals
Normals > Unlock Normals
Normals > Average Normals
Normals > Set to Face
Normals > Reverse
Normals > Conform
Normals > Soften Edge
Normals > Harden Edge
Normals > Set Normal Angle
Color
Color > Prelight (Maya)
Color > Batch Bake (mental ray)
Color > Assign New Vertex Bake Set
Color > Assign Existing Bake Set
Color > Edit Assigned Bake Set
Color > Create Empty Color Set
Color > Delete Current Color Set
Color > Rename Current Color Set
Color > Modify Current Color Set
Color > Color Set Editor
Color > Set Keyframe for Vertex Color
Color > Apply Color
Color > Paint Vertex Color Tool
Color > Toggle Display Colors Attribute
Color > Color Material Channel
Color > Material Blend Setting
Polygons windows and editors
Blind Data Editor
Blind Data Editor
Color Set Editor
Color Set Editor
Polygons nodes
blendColorSets
Tangent Space
Smooth Mesh
Vertex Color Source
Send to Mudbox
Send objects to Mudbox
Receive objects from Mudbox
NURBS Modeling
NURBS overview
What are NURBS?
NURBS modeling overview
The mathematics behind NURBS
Degree of NURBS curves and surfaces
Parameterization of NURBS curves and surfaces
Normals
Periodic, closed, and open geometry
Curvature and Continuity
Components of NURBS curves
Moving edit points vs. moving CVs
Multi-knots and CV multiplicity
Tips for constructing NURBS curves
Displaying and selecting NURBS components
Bezier curves
Creating NURBS curves
Draw curves
Create a curve from a surface edge, isoparm, or curve-on-surface
Create a Bezier curve
Create arcs
Create a fillet curve between two existing curves
Create a degree 3 curve to match degree 1 (scan) data
Creating NURBS surfaces
Create NURBS primitives
Create a flat surface inside a curve
Skin a surface across profile curves
Sweep a profile curve along a path curve
Sweep one or more profile curves along two path curves (birail)
Create a surface within bounding curves
Create a four-sided surface with continuity (Square)
Create a surface using Revolve
Extrude and bevel a surface from a curve
Duplicate NURBS surface patches
Create NURBS transition surfaces
Round off the meeting point between two edges
Create a fillet between two surfaces
Create a surface between two sets of boundary curves
Editing NURBS
Reshape a curve or surface manually
Align a curve with a curve or surface
Align surface edges
Smooth a curve
Lock or unlock the length of a curve
Straighten, smooth, curl or bend a curve
Extend a curve
Extend a surface
Select curve CVs: first, last or all
Edit NURBS curves and surfaces
Join curves or surfaces together
Split a curve or surface (detach)
Insert additional edit points/isoparms in a curve or surface to add more CVs
Create an offset copy of a curve or surface
Reverse the direction of a curve or surface normals
Reduce the complexity of a curve or surface
Control multi-knots and CV hardness
Automatically add spans to areas of a curve with high curvature
Convert a curve or surface to uniform parameterization
Convert a surface to non-rational geometry
Change a curve or surface’s degree or number of spans/patches
Make a curve or surface open or closed
Match the topology of one curve to another
Edit Bezier curves
Add / Remove anchors
Add / Remove tangents
Transform anchors and tangents
Open / Close a curve
Break / Smooth tangents
Weight / Even tangents
Convert a curve between Bezier and NURBS
Trimming
Trimming NURBS surfaces
NURBS Booleans
Curves-on-surface
Create a curve-on-surface
Trim or untrim a NURBS surface
Perform boolean operations on surfaces
Stitching
Stitch multiple surfaces together
Manually stitch surface edges together
Manually stitch surface points together
Sculpting surface meshes
Soft Selection
Using Soft Selection for NURBS
Sculpt Geometry Tool
Using the Sculpt Geometry Tool for NURBS
NURBS menus
Edit Curves
Edit Curves > Duplicate Surface Curves
Edit Curves > Attach Curves
Edit Curves > Detach Curves
Edit Curves > Align Curves
Edit Curves > Open/Close Curves
Edit Curves > Move Seam
Edit Curves > Cut Curve
Edit Curves > Intersect Curves
Edit Curves > Curve Fillet
Edit Curves > Insert Knot
Edit Curves > Extend > Extend Curve
Edit Curves > Extend > Extend Curve on Surface
Edit Curves > Offset > Offset Curve, Offset Curve on Surface
Edit Curves > Reverse Curve Direction
Edit Curves > Rebuild Curve
Edit Curves > Fit B-spline
Edit Curves > Smooth Curve
Edit Curves > CV Hardness
Edit Curves > Add Points Tool
Edit Curves > Curve Editing Tool
Edit Curves > Project Tangent
Edit Curves > Modify Curves
Edit Curves > Modify Curves > Lock Length
Edit Curves > Modify Curves > Unlock Length
Edit Curves > Modify Curves > Straighten
Edit Curves > Modify Curves > Smooth
Edit Curves > Modify Curves > Curl
Edit Curves > Modify Curves > Bend
Edit Curves > Modify Curves > Scale Curvature
Edit Curves > Bezier Curves
Edit Curves > Bezier Curves > Anchor Presets
Edit Curves > Bezier Curves > Tangent Options
Edit Curves > Selection
Edit Curves > Selection > Select Curve CVs
Edit Curves > Selection > Select First CV on Curve
Edit Curves > Selection > Select Last CV on Curve
Edit Curves > Selection > Cluster Curve
Surfaces
Surfaces > Revolve
Surfaces > Loft
Surfaces > Planar
Surfaces > Extrude
Surfaces > Birail
Surfaces > Boundary
Surfaces > Square
Surfaces > Bevel
Surfaces > Bevel Plus
Edit NURBS
Edit NURBS > Duplicate NURBS Patches
Edit NURBS > Project Curve on Surface
Edit NURBS > Intersect Surfaces
Edit NURBS > Trim Tool
Edit NURBS > Untrim Surfaces
Edit NURBS > Booleans > Union Tool, Difference Tool, Intersection Tool
Edit NURBS > Attach Surfaces
Edit NURBS > Attach Without Moving
Edit NURBS > Detach Surfaces
Edit NURBS > Align Surfaces
Edit NURBS > Open/Close Surfaces
Edit NURBS > Move Seam
Edit NURBS > Insert Isoparms
Edit NURBS > Extend Surfaces
Edit NURBS > Offset Surfaces
Edit NURBS > Reverse Surface Direction
Edit NURBS > Rebuild Surfaces
Edit NURBS > Round Tool
Edit NURBS > Surface Fillet > Circular Fillet
Edit NURBS > Surface Fillet > Freeform Fillet
Edit NURBS > Surface Fillet > Fillet Blend Tool
Edit NURBS > Stitch > Stitch Surface Points
Edit NURBS > Stitch > Stitch Edges Tool
Edit NURBS > Stitch > Global Stitch
Edit NURBS > Sculpt Geometry Tool
Edit NURBS > Surface Editing > Surface Editing Tool, Break Tangent, Smooth Tangent
Edit NURBS > Selection
NURBS nodes
DetachSurface node
StitchSrf node
Mapping UVs
UV mapping overview
Introduction to UV mapping
Creating UVs
Viewing and evaluating UVs
UV mapping tips
UV Texture Editor overview
UV sets
Mapping UVs
Planar UV mapping
Cylindrical UV mapping
Spherical UV mapping
Automatic UV mapping
User-defined UV mapping
Confirm UV placement
Transfer UVs between meshes
Editing UVs
Display UVs
Select UVs
Display a subset of UVs
Move, rotate, and scale UVs
Dolly or track within the UV Texture Editor
Display a texture behind the UVs
Delete UVs
Update a texture image after UV modification
Use the UV Texture Editor grid
Save an image of the UV layout
Modify UVs using the UV Lattice Tool
Modify UVs using the UV Smudge Tool
Separate and attach UV shells
Display overlapping UVs
Display UV winding order
Layout UV shells
Map border UVs to a square or circle
Straighten border UVs
Relax and untangle UVs
Unfold a UV mesh
Example: Lay out a UV shell using unfold and relax
Flip or rotate UV shells
Copy UVs and color attributes between polygons
Create a UV rectangle
UV sets
Create UV sets
Switch between UV sets
Duplicate, rename, or delete a UV set
Assign a texture to a UV set
Copy UVs from one UV set to another
Working with per-instance UV sets
Edit NURBS UVs
UVs menu reference
Create UVs
Create UVs > Planar Mapping
Create UVs > Cylindrical Mapping
Create UVs > Spherical Mapping
Create UVs > Automatic Mapping
Create UVs > Create UVs Based On Camera
Create UVs > Best Plane Texturing Tool
Create UVs > Assign Shader to Each Projection
Create UVs > Create Empty UV Set
Create UVs > Copy UVs to UV Set
Create UVs > Set Current UV Set
Create UVs > Rename Current UV Set
Create UVs > Delete Current UV Set
Create UVs > UV Set Editor
Create UVs > Per Instance Sharing
Edit UVs
Edit UVs > Normalize
Edit UVs > Unitize
Edit UVs > Flip
Edit UVs > Rotate
Edit UVs > Layout rectangle
Edit UVs > Grid
Edit UVs > Align
Edit UVs > Warp Image
Edit UVs > Map UV Border
Edit UVs > Straighten UV Border
Edit UVs > Relax
Edit UVs > Unfold
Edit UVs > Layout
Edit UVs > Cut UV Edges
Edit UVs > Split UVs
Edit UVs > Sew UV Edges
Edit UVs > Move and Sew UV Edges
Edit UVs > Merge UVs
Edit UVs > Delete UVs
Edit UVs > UV Texture Editor
UVs windows and editors reference
UV Texture Editor
UV Texture Editor overview
UV Texture Editor reference
UV Texture Editor menu bar
UV Texture Editor toolbar
UV Set Editor
UV Set Editor
UVs tool reference
Move tool (in UV texture editor)
Animation
Animation Basics
Animation in Maya
Animated rotation in Maya
Add audio to your animation
Import an audio file
Display audio on the Time Slider
Example audio workflow
Play an audio file
Set the audio playback settings
Delete audio from your scene
Set up audio on Linux
Baking simulations
Create timewarping effects
Scene timewarp effects
Create a global timewarp effect
Edit a global timewarp effect
Remove a global timewarp effect
Edit animation preferences
Import and export animation in ATOM format
ATOM file format
Define a character template for animation import and export
Export .atom animation
Import .atom animation
Playback animation
Display the frame rate of an animation
Optimize your scene for playback
Set and display timecode for the scene
Set the appearance of key ticks in the Time Slider
Use the animation controls
View object manipulators during playback
Playblasting animation
Previewing animation
Motion trails
Create an editable motion trail
Edit motion trail properties
Modify keys or tangents on a motion trail
Ghost an object
Playblast animation
Mute animation
Set Animation Snapshot and Animated Sweep
Animation Snapshot and Animated Sweep
Apply animation snapshot
Apply animated sweep
Turn Animation Snapshot and Animated Sweep on or off
Delete Animation Snapshot or Animated Sweep construction history
Turntable animation
Create a turntable animation
Keyframe Animation
Keys
Auto Key
Driven keys
Cutting, copying, and pasting keys between scenes
Keys clipboard
Keyframe animation and the Graph Editor
Keyframe animation and the Dope Sheet
Set keys
Set key preferences
Set keys
Set driven keys
Modify key attributes
Edit the keyability of an object
Disable the editability of attributes without deleting them
Use Auto Key
Edit keys
Cut keys
Copy keys
Copy and paste keys in the Graph Editor
Paste keys
Delete keys
Scale keys
Snap keys
Bake keys
Mute keys
Create Dope Sheet custom key colors
Edit curves
Add keys to a curve
Change animation curve colors
Change the timing of movements in animation
Copy and paste keys on a curve
Delete keys from a curve
Edit animation curves from referenced files
Edit tangents
Fix corrupted curves
Manipulate curves with the lattice manipulator
Move keys on a curve
Mute channels
Resample curves
Scale curves
Set curve behavior
Set rotation interpolation for curves
Simplify curves
Smooth curves
Template or untemplate an animation channel and its curve
Use single-click curve editing
View curves while editing
Breakdowns
Set Breakdowns
Set Breakdowns
Convert keys to Breakdowns
Convert Breakdowns to keys
Inbetweens
Set Inbetweens
Use the Graph Editor and Dope Sheet
Display the Graph Editor and Dope Sheet
Filter curve display in the Graph Editor
Manipulate a range of time and keys in the Dope Sheet
Navigate the Graph Editor graph view or Dope Sheet view area
Set curve display options in the Graph Editor
Turn on Pre-selection highlighting in the Graph Editor
Nonlinear Animation
What is nonlinear animation?
Nonlinear animation tools in Maya
Trax Editor
Nonlinear animation components in Trax
Tracks
Clips in Trax
Clip states
Blending clips
Characters, groups, and subcharacters
Animating HumanIK characters in Trax
Poses in Trax
Collapse, expand, and edit summaries
Expand and collapse a summary track
Edit the summary clip
Create clips and poses
Create clips
Create a source clip for subcharacter set curves
Create expression or constraint clips
Create poses
Cut, copy, and paste clips
Duplicate clips
Create, load, and highlight character sets
Create character sets
Load character sets
Highlight characters, groups, or subcharacters in Trax
Manipulate clips
Activate or deactivate clips
Create and edit blends
Create and edit time warps
Cycle clips
Display clip ghosts
Edit a clip’s animation curves
Edit clip attributes
Edit clip weighting
Enable or disable clips
Group and ungroup clips
Hold clips
Import or export animation clips
Key into a clip
Key on top of clips
Match poses and align clips
Merge clips
Move clips
Offset clip channels
Scale clips
Split clips
Trim clips
Open and view the Trax Editor
Open the Trax Editor
Set the Trax Editor view
Set the Time Slider’s playback range to reflect the range of clips in Trax
Select and edit source clips
Select source clips
Copy source clips to a character
Edit source clips
Select, create, and remove tracks
Select tracks
Add tracks
Remove tracks
Use the Outliner and Visor with Trax
Use the Outliner with Trax
Use the Visor with Trax
Work with audio in Trax
Camera Sequencer
Camera shots
Codec support
Add audio to a sequence
Associate audio with a sequence or shot
Adjust the timing of audio in a sequence
Create a single camera for all shots in a sequence
Create camera shots
Create a camera shot
Create groups of camera shots
Create a group of camera shots
Add a camera shot to a group
Select camera shots in a group
Unmute camera shots in a group
Ungroup camera shots and delete groups
Delete a camera shot
Import and export editorial content
Manipulate camera shots in a sequence
Assign an image plane to a camera shot
Change the camera used in a camera shot
Change the length of a shot
Create a hold for a camera shot
Move and re-order shots in a sequence
Remove gaps and overlaps between camera shots
Turn on ripple editing
Open the Camera Sequencer
Playblast camera shots
Path Animation
What is path animation?
Positioning your object on a path curve
Orienting your object on a path curve
Manipulating your object on the motion path
Motion path markers
Marker timing
Create a motion path animation
Create a motion path using a curve
Create a motion path using keys
Edit motion paths
Detach an object from a motion path
Delete motion paths
Animate along a motion path
Animate an object along a surface
Create a path animation
Create a path animation using the Motion Path Manipulator tool
Deform an object along a motion path curve
Orient an object on a path
Set motion path markers
Motion Capture Animation
Motion capture devices
Motion capture devices
Server
Axis
Button
Attachments
Virtual devices
Motion capture systems
Optical capture system
Magnetic capture system
Motion capture process
Motion capture process
Rehearsing the motion
Recording the motion
Filters and Resamplers
Saving files to disk
Motion capture tips
Tips for full-body motion capture
Tips for working with the data
Create motion capture animation
Create full body motion capture
Create simple motion capture
Set devices
Geometry Caching
Geometry caching overview
What is geometry caching?
Geometry cache creation
Geometry cache XML description file
Geometry cache threading
Create and edit geometry caches
Cache geometry
Work with geometry cache clips
Animation Layers
What are animation layers?
Understanding layered animation
Animation layer stack
Animation layer modes
Animation layer states
Animation layer weight
BaseAnimation
Create animation layers
Open the Animation Layer Editor
Create an animation layer
Set the animation layer modes
Add and remove attributes from animation layers
Animate on layers
Load existing animation to work with layers
Keyframe objects on animation layers
Add constraints to animation layers
Mute, Lock, and Solo animation layers
Keyframe the weight of animation layers
Display ghosts for layered animation
Select objects with attributes on an animation layer
Select an animation layer node
Organize animation layers
Re-order animation layers
Parent and unparent animation layers
Package animation layers into assets
View layered animation
Change the animation layer stack display
Filter the display of animation layers
View layer weight animation
Template the curves of locked animation layers
Manipulate animation layers
Import and export animation layers
Copy an animation layer
Extract animation to or from an animation layer
Merge animation layers
Bake animation layers
Delete or empty animation layers
Example workflows with animation layers
Use animation layers to modify existing animation
Use animation layers like takes
Use animation layers to enhance motion capture data
Keyframe two characters on separate animation layers
Advanced workflow: Use constraints and expressions with animation layers
Animation File Formats
ANIM file format
Import and export animation curves in .anim format
ATOM file format
ATOM file format
ATOM format description
Example .atom file
Animation Menus
Edit
Edit > Keys > Copy Keys
Edit > Keys > Cut Keys
Edit > Keys > Paste Keys
Edit > Keys > Delete Keys
Edit > Keys > Scale Keys
Edit > Keys > Snap Keys
Edit > Keys > Bake Simulation
Window
Window > Animation Editors > Graph Editor
Window > Animation Editors > Trax Editor
Window > Animation Editors > Camera Sequencer
Window > Animation Editors > Dope Sheet
Window > Animation Editors > HumanIK
Window > Animation Editors > Blend Shape
Window > Animation Editors > Expression Editor
Window > Playblast
Animate
Animate > Set Key
Animate > Set Breakdown
Animate > Hold Current Keys
Animate > Set Driven Key menu
Animate > Set Driven Key > Set
Animate > Set Driven Key > Go to Previous and Go to Next
Animate > Set Transform Keys menu
Animate > Set Blend Shape Target Weights Keys
Animate > Create Editable Motion Trail
Animate > ATOM
Animate > ATOM > Export Animation
Animate > ATOM > Import Animation
Animate > ATOM > Create ATOM Template
Animate > Create Clip
Animate > Create Pose
Animate > Ghost Selected
Animate > Unghost Selected
Animate > Unghost All
Animate > Create Animation Snapshot
Animate > Update Motion Trail/Snapshot
Animate > Create Animated Sweep
Animate > Motion Paths menu
Animate > Motion Paths > Set Motion Path Key
Animate > Motion Paths > Attach to Motion Path
Animate > Motion Paths > Flow Path Object
Animate > Turntable
Animate > Scene Time Warp menu
Animate > Set Time Code
Geometry Cache
Geometry Caching menus
Geometry Cache > Create New Cache
Geometry Cache > Import Cache
Geometry Cache > Export Cache
Geometry Cache > Disable All Caches On Selected
Geometry Cache > Enable All Caches On Selected
Geometry Cache > Replace Cache
Geometry Cache > Merge Caches
Geometry Cache > Delete Cache
Geometry Cache > Append to Cache
Geometry Cache > Replace Cache Frame
Geometry Cache > Delete Cache Frame
Geometry Cache > Delete History Ahead Of Cache
Geometry Cache > Paint Cache Weights Tool
Panel menus
View
View > View Sequence Time
Animation Tools
Animation controls
Animation controls menu
Animation Windows and Editors
Animation Layer Editor
Animation Layer Editor overview
Animation Layer Editor menu bar
Animation Layer toolbar
Animation Layer pane
Camera Sequencer
Camera Sequencer overview
Camera Sequencer menu bar
Camera Sequencer toolbar
Camera Sequencer shot view area
Camera Sequencer timeline and playback controls
Channel Control Editor
Channel Control Editor
Dope Sheet editor
Dope Sheet overview
Dope Sheet menu bar
Dope Sheet toolbar
Dope Sheet outliner
Dope Sheet view area
Graph Editor
Graph Editor overview
Graph Editor menus
Graph Editor Edit menu
Graph Editor View menu
Graph Editor Select menu
Graph Editor Curves menu
Graph Editor Keys menu
Graph Editor Tangents menu
Graph Editor List menu
Graph Editor Show menu
Graph Editor toolbar
Graph Editor outliner
Graph Editor graph view
Set Driven Key window
Trax Editor
Trax Editor overview
Trax menu bar
Trax toolbar
Track control area
Track view area
Trax context-sensitive menu
Animation Nodes
animClip
audio
cacheBlend
cacheFile
clipLibrary
clipScheduler
motionPath
mute
shot
Rigging
Character Setup
Character Setup overview
Setting up the components of your scene for animation
Using skeletons
Skinning your character
Creating deformation effects
Constraining objects
Character sets
Skeletons
What are skeletons?
Skeleton components
Skeleton components
Joints and bones
Joint chains
Skeleton hierarchy
Building skeletons
Building skeletons
Setting up joints for posing and animation
Skeletons and skinning
Posing skeletons
Posing skeletons
IK handles
IK solvers
IK/FK blending
Retargeting animation
Retargeting character animation
Set up joint chains
Create a joint or joint chain
Create a joint chain with an IK handle
Insert joints
Connect joints
Move joints
Move joints while using the Joint Tool
Mirror joint chains
Orient a joint’s local axes manually
Orient a joint’s local axes automatically
Reroot skeletons
Set preferred angles
Disconnect joints
Remove joints
Set up symmetric joint chains
Create symmetric joints or joint chains
Delete symmetric joints
Break a symmetry connection
Adjust the skeleton display
Display a joint’s local axis
Display all the local axes in a skeleton
Set display size of all joints
Change joint display options
Set the display of IK/FK animated joint chains
Pose with Forward or Inverse Kinematics
Pose joints with FK
Set up an IK handle
Specify the IK Handle Tool’s settings
Create IK handles
View all IK handle components
Pose joints with IK handles
Disable or enable IK handles
Delete IK handles
Set IK solver attributes
Turn all IK solver nodes on or off
Use single chain IK
Create a single chain IK handle
Pose joints with single chain IK handles
Create an ikSCsolver node in addition to the default
Use rotate plane IK
Create a rotate plane IK handle
Pose joints with rotate plane IK handles
Create an ikRPsolver node in addition to the default
Use multi-chain IK
Create the multi-chain solver
Create a multi-chain IK handle
Pose joints with multi-chain IK handles
Use spline IK
Tips for working with spline IK handles
Specify the IK Spline Handle Tool’s settings
Create spline IK handles
Pose joints with spline IK curves
Use the advanced Spline IK twist controls
Prevent flipping in the spline IK chain
Use 2 bone IK
Create a 2 bone solver
Create a 2 bone IK handle
Pose joints with 2 bone IK handles
Use spring IK
Create spring IK solver
Create and edit a spring IK handle
Blend FK and IK
Blend IK and FK animation
Retarget animation
Retargeting workflow
Using joint labels
Label a skeleton’s joints
Toggle the visibility of joint labels
Remove the labels from my joints
Skinning
What is skinning?
Deformable objects and skin objects
Direct skinning methods
Indirect skinning methods
Double transformation effects
Editing skin point set memberships
Point tweaking skinned objects
Editing node behavior to improve performance
Skinning workflow summary
Bind pose
Bind pose
Go to the bind pose
Change the bind pose
Reset bind pose from the command line
Troubleshoot reaching the bind pose
Smooth skinning
Understanding smooth skinning
Smooth skinning methods
Smooth skin objects and point weights
Bind methods for smooth skinning
Interactive bind for smooth skinning
Smooth skin influence objects
Set smooth skinning
Bind smooth skin
Use interactive bind for smooth skinning
Adjust interactive bind manipulators
Set point tweaking
Set maximum influences
Query skin weights
Paint skin weights
Create a mask when painting skin weights
Blend smooth skinning methods
Mirror smooth skin weights
Smoothing skin weights
Add an influence object
Add multiple influences at the same time
Edit smooth skinning
Smooth skin editing overview
Editing skin point weights
Painting smooth skin point weights
Smooth skin weight normalization
Hold smooth skin weights
Edit joint smooth skin attributes
Edit skin cluster channels or attributes
Edit maximum influences
Modify skin weights
Rotate joints while painting skin weights
Change a skinned object's deformation order
Copy smooth skin weights
Move weights to other influences
Replace bound geometry with unbound geometry
Reset skin point weights to default weights
Set normalization mode and normalize weights
Prune insignificant smooth skin weights
Fix smooth weights
Remove unused influences from a smooth skinned surface
Export weights
Import weights
Detach smooth skin
Example workflows for smooth skinning
Skinning a cylinder by smooth skinning
Paint skin weights for creases
Skinning a hand
Interactive skin binding example workflow
Rigid skinning
What is rigid skinning?
Understanding rigid skinning
Understanding rigid skinning
Rigid skin objects and points
Rigid skin point sets
Flexors
Checking the binding
Adjusting rigid skin behavior
Set rigid skinning
Rigid bind skin
Paint rigid skin weights
Paint rigid skin membership
Create all types of flexors
Example workflow for rigid skinning
Edit rigid skinning
Edit joint cluster channels and attributes
Edit rigid skin point weights
Edit rigid skin membership
Paint rigid skin point set membership
Detach rigid skin
Detach and reattach to skeletons
Detach and reattach to selected joints
Copy joint lattice flexors
Edit joint lattice flexor channels
Copy bone lattice flexors
Edit bone lattice flexor channels
Reassign bone lattice flexor joints
Edit sculpt flexor channels
Edit with joint cluster flexor manipulators
HumanIK
HumanIK in Maya
HumanIK character structure
Control rigs, effectors, and pivots
Set up a HumanIK character
Open the HumanIK character setup tools
Create a HumanIK skeleton definition
Prepare an existing skeleton for HumanIK
Create and define a HumanIK skeleton
Define an existing skeleton for HumanIK
Import or export a HumanIK skeleton template
Define roll bone behavior
Activate and configure mirror matching
Create a Control rig
Add auxiliary and pivot effectors
Adjusting IK Blends
Animating HumanIK characters in Trax
Set up HumanIK retargeting
Retarget animation from one character to another
Adjust retargeting parameters
Bake retargeted animation to the target character
Send Control rigs to MotionBuilder
Selecting HumanIK character data
Send a new scene to MotionBuilder
Updating, adding, or deleting objects sent to MotionBuilder
Live character streaming
Set up a local live connection
Stream animation to a skeleton
Stream animation to a Custom rig
Set up a remote live connection
Update, sync, or disable a live connection
Bake the result of a live connection
Re-establish a live connection
Convert CAT to HumanIK
Troubleshoot HumanIK character setup
Constraints
What are constraints?
Point constraint
Point constraints
Set point constraints
Set point constraint options
Create point constraints
Add target objects for point constraints
Animate target object weights
Offset constrained object’s position
Edit point constraints
Edit point constraint node behavior
Edit point constraint attributes
Edit point constraint channels
Remove target objects for point constraints
Change target object weights for point constraints
Delete point constraints
Aim constraint
Aim constraints
Set aim constraints
Set aim constraint options
Create aim constraints
Edit aim constraints
Edit aim constraint channels
Edit aim constraint attributes
Add target objects for aim constraints
Remove target objects for aim constraints
Change target object weights for aim constraints
Prevent rolling effects for aim constraints
Control motion history dependence effects for aim constraints
Delete aim constraints
Examples
Orient constraint
Orient constraints
Set orient constraint
Set orient constraint options
Create orient constraints
Add orient constraint target objects
Edit orient constraints
Edit orient constraint channels
Edit orient constraint attributes
Remove orient constraint target objects
Change orient constraint target object weights
Animate target object weights for orient constraints
Delete orient constraints
Troubleshoot orient constraint error messages
Scale constraint
Scale constraints
Set scale constraints
Set scale constraint options
Create scale constraints
Edit scale constraints
Edit scale constraint channels
Edit scale constraint attributes
Add target objects for scale constraints
Remove target objects for scale constraints
Change target object weights for scale constraints
Animate target object weights for scale constraints
Delete scale constraints
Parent constraint
Parent constraints
Set parent constraints
Create a parent constraint
Parent constraint example workflow
Edit parent constraints
Edit a parent constraint
Add target objects to a parent constraint
Modify parent constraint offsets
Geometry constraint
Geometry constraints
Set geometry constraints
Set geometry constraints workflow
Set geometry constraint options
Create a geometry constraint
Animate target object weights for geometry constraints
Animate the constrained object for geometry constraints
Edit geometry constraints
Edit geometry constraint channels
Edit geometry constraint attributes
Add target objects for geometry constraints
Remove target objects for geometry constraints
Change target object weights for geometry constraints
Delete geometry constraints
Normal constraint
Normal constraints
Set normal constraints
Set normal constraint options
Create normal constraints
Edit normal constraints
Edit normal constraint channels
Edit normal constraint attributes
Add target objects for normal constraints
Remove normal constraint target objects
Change normal constraint target object weights
Prevent rolling effects for normal constraints
Control motion history dependence effects for normal constraints
Delete normal constraints
Tangent constraint
Tangent constraints
Set tangent constraints
Set tangent constraint options
Create tangent constraints
Edit tangent constraints
Edit tangent constraint channels
Edit tangent constraint attributes
Delete tangent constraints
Point on Poly constraint
Point on Poly constraints
Create Point on Poly constraints
Edit Point on Poly constraints
Closest Point constraint
Closest Point constraints
Set closest point constraints
Edit closest point constraints
View closest point constraint result
Pole Vector constraint
Pole Vector constraints
Set pole vector constraints
Set pole vector constraint options
Create a pole vector constraint
Edit pole vector constraints
Edit pole vector constraints workflow
Edit pole vector constraint attributes
Add target objects to a pole vector constraint
Remove target objects from pole vector constraints
Change target object weights for pole vector constraints
Offset constrained pole vector’s end position
Delete pole vector constraints
Blending animation and constraints
Animation-Constraint blending
Set Driven Key-Constraint blending
Animate and constrain an object
Animation-Constraint blending workflow
Set the rest position
Turn all constraint nodes on or off
Modify constraint axes
Remove a target object
Character Sets
What are character sets?
Character node behavior
Creating character sets
Animating character sets
Redirecting character animation
Mapping animation between characters
Workflow summary
Create Character Sets
Create character sets
Create character sets within character sets
Create subcharacter sets
Select character sets
Add channels to a character set
Edit character sets
Edit character sets
Edit character set node behavior
Remove channels from a character set
Edit character set channels
Edit character attributes
View objects in a character set
Edit character set attributes
View and edit the character partition
Merge character sets
Delete character sets
Set the current character set
Map one character to another
Example workflow for mapping characters
Map one character to another
Redirect the motion of an animated character
Workflow for redirecting animation
Animation redirection example
Redirect the motion of an animated character
Character Setup Tools
Character Controls
Character Controls overview
Character Controls menu button
Bake options in the Character Controls
Character menu
Source menu
Start pane
Skeleton tab
Skeleton tab overview
Skeleton tab toolbar
Skeleton setup area
Definition tab
Definition tab overview
Definition tab toolbar
Character and Name Match views
Load Skeleton Definition and Save Skeleton Definition windows
Controls tab
Controls tab overview
Controls tab toolbar
Controls Character representation
HumanIK Controls
Retarget Specific attributes
Custom Rig tab
Custom Rig tab overview
Custom Rig tab toolbar
Custom Rig Character representation
Mapping Controls
Create a Custom rig mapping
Customize the character layout
Parts of the configuration file
Open a configuration file
Edit the configuration file
Change the background image
Adjust the position of an effector
Save and load a character layout
Character Mapper
IK Handle Tool
IK Spline Handle Tool
Insert Joint Tool
Interactive Skin Binding Tool
Joint Tool
Joint Tool marking menus
Move Skinned Joints Tool
Paint Skin Weights Tool
Character Setup Menus
Animate
Animate > Set Key
Animate > IK/FK Keys > Set IK/FK Key
Animate > IK/FK Keys > Enable IK Solver
Animate > IK/FK Keys > Connect to IK/FK
Animate > IK/FK Keys > Move IK to FK
Skeleton
Skeleton > Joint Tool
Skeleton > IK Handle Tool
Skeleton > IK Spline Handle Tool
Skeleton > Insert Joint Tool
Skeleton > Reroot Skeleton
Skeleton > Remove Joint
Skeleton > Disconnect Joint
Skeleton > Connect Joint
Skeleton > Mirror Joint
Skeleton > Orient Joint
Skeleton > Joint Labelling
Skeleton > Joint Labelling > Add Joint Labels
Skeleton > Joint Labelling > Toggle Selected Labels
Skeleton > Joint Labelling > Show All Labels
Skeleton > Joint Labelling > Hide All Labels
Skeleton > Joint Labelling > Rename Joints From Labels
Skeleton > Joint Labelling > Label Based On Joint Names
Skeleton > HumanIK
Skeleton > Set Preferred Angle
Skeleton > Assume Preferred Angle
Skeleton > Enable IK Handle Snap
Skeleton > Enable IK/FK Control
Skeleton > Enable Selected IK Handles
Skeleton > Disable Selected IK Handles
Skin
Skin > Detach Skin
Skin > Go To Bind Pose
Skin > Bind Skin > Smooth Bind
Skin > Bind Skin > Interactive Skin Bind
Skin > Bind Skin > Rigid Bind
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Add Influence
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Remove Influence
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Set Max Influences
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Move Skinned Joints Tool
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Interactive Skin Bind Tool
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Paint Skin Weights Tool
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Export Skin Weight Maps
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Import Skin Weight Maps
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Mirror Skin Weights
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Copy Skin Weights
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Smooth Skin Weights
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Weight Hammer
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Copy Vertex Weights
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Paste Vertex Weights
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Move Weights to Influences
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Reset Weights to Default
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Prune Small Weights
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Remove Unused Influences
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Disable Weight Normalization
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Enable Weight Normalization
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Enable Weight Post Normalization
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Normalize Weights
Skin > Edit Smooth Skin > Substitute Geometry
Skin > Edit Rigid Skin
Skin > Edit Rigid Skin > Create Flexor
Skin > Edit Rigid Skin > Copy Flexor
Skin > Edit Rigid Skin > Reassign Bone Lattice Joint
Skin > Edit Rigid Skin > Preserve Skin Groups > Detach Skeleton
Skin > Edit Rigid Skin > Preserve Skin Groups > Detach Selected Joints
Skin > Edit Rigid Skin > Preserve Skin Groups > Reattach Skeleton
Skin > Edit Rigid Skin > Preserve Skin Groups > Reattach Selected Joints
Constrain
Constrain > Point
Constrain > Aim
Constrain > Orient
Constrain > Scale
Constrain > Parent
Constrain > Geometry
Constrain > Normal
Constrain > Tangent
Constrain > Point on Poly
Constrain > Closest Point
Constrain > Pole Vector
Constrain > Remove Target
Constrain > Set Rest Position
Constrain > Modify Constrained Axis
Character
Character > Create Character Set
Character > Create Subcharacter Set
Character > Character Mapper
Character > Add to Character Set
Character > Remove from Character Set
Character > Merge Character Sets
Character > Redirect
Character Setup Nodes
Skeleton and IK nodes
General skeleton and IK node attributes
joint
ikHandle
effector
bindPose
IK solver nodes
Skinning nodes
General skin node attributes
skinCluster
tweak
jointCluster
jointFlexor
boneFlexor
jointFfd
ffd
Constraint nodes
General constraint node attributes
Rest Position attributes
targetObject Wn
pointConstraint
aimConstraint
orientConstraint
scaleConstraint
parentConstraint
normalConstraint
tangentConstraint
pointOnPolyConstraint
poleVectorConstraint
pairBlend
Character nodes
General character set node attributes
character
characterMap
characterOffset
Deformers
Deformers overview
What are deformers?
Setting deformers
Deformable objects, points, and sets
Nodes, history, and the deformation order
Deformation order
Modifying deformers
Editing deformer set membership
Point tweaking objects
Displaying and hiding intermediate objects
Changing an object’s deformation order
Changing evaluation performance
Modeling with deformers
Setup and animation with deformers
Editing node behavior to improve performance
Create deformers
Paint deformer set membership
Prune deformer set membership
Edit deformation effects
Edit deformer set membership
Change deformation order
Mirror deformer weights
Set the display of deformation objects
Set deformer node performance
Edit deformer sets with the Relationship editor
Work with the tweak node
Export and import deformer weights
Blend Shape deformer
What are blend shapes?
Target shapes, base shapes, and blend shapes
Blending objects with different topologies
Create blend shape deformers
Delete a blend shape deformer
Edit blend shape deformers and deformer effects
Add target object shapes
Delete a target’s object
Edit blend shape deformer channels and attributes
Match the position, rotation, and scaling of targets
Paint blend shape deformer weights
Propagate topological changes from base shapes to their target shapes
Remove target object shapes
Save a blend shape as a new target
Scale the influence of all targets
Set target weights for blend deformers
Set keys for blend shapes
Swap target object shapes
Open the Blend Shape editor
Select a blend shape deformer node
Cluster deformer
What are cluster deformers?
Understanding cluster deformers
Creating cluster deformers
Editing cluster deformation effects
Create cluster deformers
Edit cluster deformers
Paint cluster deformer weights
Jiggle deformer
What are jiggle deformers?
Creating jiggle deformation
Using a disk cache for jiggle animation
Create jiggle deformers
Edit jiggle deformers
Paint jiggle deformer weights
Lattice deformer
What are lattice deformers?
Lattices
Influence lattice and base lattice
Lattices as deformable objects
Lattice deformers and lattice flexors
Skinning with lattice deformers
Create lattice deformers
Edit lattice deformers
Maya Muscle
What is Maya Muscle?
Nonlinear deformers
Bend deformer
What are bend deformers?
Create a bend deformer
Edit bend nonlinear deformers
Flare deformer
What are flare deformers?
Create a flare deformer
Edit flare nonlinear deformers
Sine deformer
What are sine deformers?
Create a sine deformer
Edit sine nonlinear deformers
Squash deformer
What are squash deformers?
Create a squash deformer
Edit squash nonlinear deformers
Squash deformer example
Twist deformer
What are twist deformers?
Create a twist deformer
Edit twist nonlinear deformers
Wave deformer
What are wave deformers?
Create a wave deformer
Edit wave nonlinear deformers
Wave deformer example
Create nonlinear deformers
Paint nonlinear deformer weights
Point On Curve deformer
What are point on curve deformers?
Create point on curve deformers
Edit least squares modifier attributes
Sculpt deformer
What are sculpt deformers?
Create sculpt deformers
Editing sculpt deformation effects
Edit sculpt deformers
Soft Modification deformer
What is soft modification?
Use the Soft Modification Tool
Example 1: Soft modification with history
Example 2: Soft modification without history
Example 3: Moving a character’s ear using the Soft Modification deformer
Example 4: Symmetrically deforming a character’s nose using the Soft Modification deformer
Resize the Soft Modification Tool falloff manipulator
Wire deformer
What are wire deformers?
Create wire deformers
Editing wire deformation effects
Edit wire deformers
Paint wire deformer weights
Wrap deformer
What are wrap deformers?
Skinning with wrap deformers
Create wrap deformers
Editing wrap deformation effects
Edit wrap deformers
Wrap deformers example
Wrinkle deformer
What is a wrinkle deformer?
Create wrinkle deformers
Editing wrinkle deformation effects
Edit wrinkle deformers
Deformer Tools
Soft Modification Tool
Wire Tool
Wrinkle Tool
Paint Blend Shape Weights Tool
Paint Cluster Weights Tool
Paint Jiggle Weights Tool
Paint Wire Weights Tool
Paint Set Membership Tool
Edit Membership Tool
Deformer Menus
Edit
Edit > Delete by Type > Non-Deformer History
Animate
Animate > Set Blend Shape Target Weights Keys
Create Deformers
Create Deformers > Blend Shape
Create Deformers > Lattice
Create Deformers > Wrap
Create Deformers > Cluster
Create Deformers > Soft Modification
Create Deformers > Nonlinear > Bend
Create Deformers > Nonlinear > Flare
Create Deformers > Nonlinear > Sine
Create Deformers > Nonlinear > Squash
Create Deformers > Nonlinear > Twist
Create Deformers > Nonlinear > Wave
Create Deformers > Sculpt Deformer
Create Deformers > Jiggle Deformer
Create Deformers > Jiggle Disk Cache
Create Deformers > Jiggle Disk Cache Attributes
Create Deformers > Wire Tool
Create Deformers > Wire Dropoff Locator
Create Deformers > Wrinkle Tool
Create Deformers > Point On Curve
Edit Deformers
Edit Deformers > Edit Membership Tool
Edit Deformers > Prune Membership
Edit Deformers > Blend Shape > Add
Edit Deformers > Blend Shape > Remove
Edit Deformers > Blend Shape > Swap
Edit Deformers > Blend Shape > Bake Topology To Targets
Edit Deformers > Blend Shape > Edit Normalization Groups
Edit Deformers > Lattice > Reset Lattice
Edit Deformers > Lattice > Remove Lattice Tweaks
Edit Deformers > Wrap > Add Influence
Edit Deformers > Wrap > Remove Influence
Edit Deformers > Wire > Add
Edit Deformers > Wire > Remove
Edit Deformers > Wire > Add Holder
Edit Deformers > Wire > Reset
Edit Deformers > Wire > Show Base Wire
Edit Deformers > Wire > Parent Base Wire
Edit Deformers > Display Intermediate Objects
Edit Deformers > Hide Intermediate Objects
Edit Deformers > Paint Blend Shape Weights Tool
Edit Deformers > Paint Cluster Weights Tool
Edit Deformers > Paint Nonlinear Weights Tool
Edit Deformers > Paint Jiggle Weights Tool
Edit Deformers > Paint Wire Weights Tool
Edit Deformers > Paint Set Membership Tool
Edit Deformers > Export Deformer Weights
Edit Deformers > Import Deformer Weights
Edit Deformers > Mirror Deformer Weights
Muscle menu
Deformer Windows and Editors
Blend Shape Editor
Deformer Nodes
General deformer node attributes
Advanced deformer options
tweak
blendShape
ffdLatticeShape
ffd
cluster
clusterHandle
bend
flare
sine
squash
twist
wave
sculpt
softMod
jiggle
jiggleCache
wire
dropoffLocator
wrap
leastSquaresModifier
Paint Effects and Artisan
Paint Effects and 3D Paint
Paint Effects and 3D Paint Tool overview
What is Painting in Maya?
Maya Paint Effects
What is Paint Effects?
How the Paint Effects Tool works
Prepare to use Paint Effects
Painting in 2D
Paint in 2D
Display the Paint Effects canvas
Set up the canvas
Paint on the canvas
Flip Tube Direction
Erase paint from the canvas
Smear and blur paint on the canvas
Paint pixels
Clear the canvas
Zoom and track
Create new images
Create seamless repeating textures
Modify textures applied to surfaces
Paint on existing images and textures
Save images
Painting in 3D
Paint in 3D
Set up to paint in 3D
Paint different ways in 3D
Select which UV set to use for Paint Effects (polygons only)
Automatically paint multiple strokes on a surface
Select strokes
Delete strokes
Modify existing strokes
Create a Paint Effects modifier
Attach brushes to curves
Modify tube behavior using control curves
Hide and show strokes and curves
Modify stroke display quality
Convert Paint Effects to polygons
Optimizing Paint Effects Mesh quality
Convert Paint Effects to NURBS
Convert Paint Effects to curves
Painting in the Paint Effects Panel
Paint in the Paint Effects Panel
Switch between views for painting
Show and hide the Paint Effects panel toolbar
Save a snapshot of the Paint Effects panel view
Save depth as grayscale values
Change the Brush Type
Change the panel lighting
Display RGB, luminance, or alpha channels
Switch between a stylus and the mouse
Working with brushes
Work with brushes
Select preset brushes
Define template brush settings
Reset the template brush
Create new brush presets
Modify brush settings for existing strokes
Select brushes in your scene
Map file textures to color and opacity
Blend preset brush settings
Animating strokes
Add spring behavior to strokes with tubes
Keyframe brush and stroke attributes
Animate tube growth, gaps, twist, and textures
Animate the stroke path
Make tubes react to forces
Create animated textures
Animate textures on strokes
Loop brush animations
Paint Effects samples and techniques
Animate rain effects
Animate a plant growing up a column
Animate a starfield
Create textures from painted 3D objects
Work on an animation project
Rendering scenes with Paint Effects strokes
Prepare to render scenes with Paint Effects
Render scenes with Paint Effects strokes
Troubleshooting Paint Effects
Troubleshoot Paint Effects
3D Paint Tool
What is the 3D Paint Tool?
How the 3D Paint Tool works
Preparing your model for the 3D Paint Tool
Paint textures on 3D objects
Restrict the paint area on polygons
Flood the surface
Reflect paint
Paint over existing textures
Paint attributes not seen in hardware texturing
Layer painted textures
Save textures
Paint attributes not shown in the Texture list
Switch nodes and painted textures
Paint Effects and 3D Paint Tools
Paint Effects Tool
3D Paint Tool
Paint Effects and 3D Paint Menus
Modify
Modify > Convert > Paint Effects to Polygons
Modify > Convert > Paint Effects to NURBS
Modify > Convert > Paint Effects to Curves
Display
Display > Rendering > Paint Effects Mesh Display
Display > Rendering > Stroke Display Quality
Texturing
Texturing > 3D Paint Tool
Paint Effects
Paint Effects > Flip Tube Direction
Paint Effects > Paint Effects Globals
Paint Effects > Paint Effects Tool
Paint Effects > Make Paintable
Paint Effects > Paint on Paintable Objects
Paint Effects > Paint on View Plane
Paint Effects > Apply Settings to Last Stroke
Paint Effects > Apply Settings to Selected Strokes
Paint Effects > Get Settings from Selected Stroke
Paint Effects > Share One Brush
Paint Effects > Remove Brush Sharing
Paint Effects > Select Brush/Stroke Names Containing
Paint Effects > Create Modifier
Paint Effects > Auto Paint > Paint Grid
Paint Effects > Auto Paint > Paint Random
Paint Effects > Curve Utilities > Simplify Stroke Path Curves
Paint Effects > Curve Utilities > Set Stroke Control Curves
Paint Effects > Curve Utilities > Attach Brush to Curves
Paint Effects > Curve Utilities >Transfer All Strokes To New Object
Paint Effects > Curve Utilities > Make Pressure Curve
Paint Effects > Mesh Quality Attributes
Paint Effects > Get Brush
Paint Effects > Template Brush Settings
Paint Effects > Reset Template Brush
Paint Effects > Preset Blending
Paint Effects > Save Brush Preset
Paint Effects > Brush Animation > Bake Spring Animation
Paint Effects > Brush Animation > Make Brush Spring
Paint Effects > Brush Animation > Loop Brush Animation
Paint Effects and 3D Paint Windows and Editors
Paint Effects panel
Paint Effects panel
Paint Effects Brush Settings
Paint Effects Brush Settings
Render Settings window
Paint Effects Rendering Options
Paint Effects Rendering Options
Paint Effects and 3D Paint Nodes
strokeShape node
lineModifiernode
Artisan
Artisan overview
What is Artisan?
Tools that use Artisan
Reset Artisan brush tools
Using Artisan brush tools
Using Artisan brush tools
How Artisan brush tools work
Paint strokes
Flood paint
Paint reflected
Restrict an area for painting
Map attributes
Set stylus pressure
Change the brush outline color
Create an Artisan tool shelf
Use Artisan hotkeys
Use Artisan marking menus
Painting with MEL scripts and the Paint Scripts Tool
Painting with MEL scripts and the Paint Scripts Tool
Overview of MEL script painting
Script paint
Set Paint Scripts Tool settings
Script paint on restricted surface areas
Flood surfaces
Write MEL Scripts for the Paint Scripts Tool
Painting attribute values
Painting attribute values
Paint attributes
Restrict an area for painting
Flood surfaces
Map attributes
Set Paint Attributes Tool settings
Make an attribute paintable
Artisan Menus
Modify
Modify > Paint Scripts Tool
Modify > Paint Attributes Tool
Artisan Windows and Editors
Artisan Tool Settings
Dynamics and Effects
Dynamics
About Dynamics
Introduction to dynamics
What you can do with Maya Dynamics
Particles
Overview of particles
Particle objects
Control complex motion and forces
Emitters
Goals
Goals
Particle goals
Nonparticle goals
Multiple goals
Particle collisions
Colliding Particles
Particle collision events
Rendering particles
Rendering particles
Hardware rendered particles
Use the Particle Cloud shader
Particle Sampler Info node
Create particles
Place particles on a surface
Animate particles
Work with particle attributes
Edit particle attributes
Choose how particles render
Use lights, reflections, refractions, and shadows
Set particle color
Set particle opacity
Set particle Lifespan
Set attributes on a per particle basis
Set particle attributes with the Component Editor
Set particle attributes with a ramp texture
Connect and disconnect fields, emitters, and collision objects
Dynamic Relationships Editor examples
Instance geometry to particles
Instance strokes from Paint Effects
Deform particles
Work with advanced dynamics
Make an object move with a dynamic parent
Adjust frame-to-frame velocity conservation
Apply forces in an object's local space
Control execution time of particle dynamics
Duplicate particle objects
Assign image sequences to sprites
Export particle data
Work with emitters
Create emitters
Edit attributes of an emitter
Edit attributes of emitted particles
Duplicate emitters
Connect emitters and particles
Vary emission from different points of point emitters
Use a texture to color emission or scale the rate
Tips for advanced users
Work with emission randomness
Spread emission more evenly from NURBS surfaces
Work with goals
Create goals
Edit goal attributes
Animate goal behavior
Create particle collisions
Make particles collide with a surface
Edit particle collision attributes
Duplicate collision effects
Create particle collision events
Edit a particle collision event
Delete a particle collision event
Create a MEL procedure for collision events
Render particles
Before rendering particles
Preview hardware particles
Render hardware particles at final production quality
View rendered hardware particles
Apply shadow casting to particles
Software rendered particles
Create raytraced shadows with particles
Create a Particle Sampler Info node
Examples of using the Particle Sampler Info node
Set Particle Sampler Info node attributes
Troubleshoot particles
Fields
Overview of fields
Work with fields
Create fields and connect objects to them
Edit field attributes
Work with per-particle field attributes
Keep particles inside a volume
Set field attributes with workspace manipulators
Use manipulator icons
Duplicate fields
Types of fields
Work with air fields
Work with drag fields
Work with gravity fields
Work with newton fields
Work with radial fields
Work with turbulence fields
Work with uniform fields
Work with vortex fields
Work with volume axis fields
Work with volume axis curves
Soft and Rigid Bodies
Soft bodies
Rigid bodies
Rigid body constraints
Springs
Soft and Rigid bodies limitations
Create soft bodies
Create soft bodies
Duplicate soft bodies
Render soft bodies with motion blur
Paint Soft Body Weights Tool
Special uses of soft bodies
Use attributes for advanced applications
Create rigid bodies
Create rigid bodies
Edit attributes of a rigid body
Edit attributes of a rigid body solver
Control complex motion and forces
Convert rigid body animation to keys
Segregate collisions with multiple solvers
Work with rigid body constraints
Create a Nail constraint
Create a Pin constraint
Create a Hinge constraint
Create a Spring constraint
Create a Barrier constraint
Edit constraints
Key and parent constraints
Create springs
Create springs
Edit spring operation
Troubleshoot Dynamics
Fix rigid body problems
Fixing problems with constraints
Fix playback problems
Effects
Overview of effects
Fire
Smoke effects
Fireworks
Lightning
Shatter
Curve Flow
Surface Flow
Create Fire
Create Smoke
Create fireworks
Create lightning
Create shatter
Connect shards to fields
Create curve flow
Create a surface flow
Surface Flow procedures
Effects limitations
Troubleshoot Dynamics
Avoid twists in the flow manipulators
Solvers and caching
Particle caching
Particle disk caching
Particle startup caching
Memory caching
Dynamic Animation
Animating with dynamics
Set the initial state of dynamic objects
Work with dynamic animation run-up
Lessen playback time with dynamics
Disable dynamics for particles or rigid bodies
PDC File Format
Use the PDC File Format
Dynamics Menus
Window
Window > Relationship Editors > Dynamic Relationships
Particles
Particles > Particle Tool
Particles > Create Emitter
Particles > Emit from Object
Particles > Use Selected Emitter
Particles > Per-Point Emission Rates
Particles > Make Collide
Particles > Particle Collision Events Editor
Particles > Goal
Particles > Instancer (Replacement)
Particles > Sprite Wizard
Particles > Connect To Time
Fields
Fields > Air
Fields > Drag
Fields > Gravity
Fields > Newton
Fields > Radial
Fields > Turbulence
Fields > Uniform
Fields > Vortex
Fields > Volume Axis
Fields > Volume Curve
Fields > Use Selected as Source of Field
Additional Field Attributes
Soft/Rigid Bodies
Soft/Rigid Bodies > Create Active Rigid Body
Soft/Rigid Bodies > Create Passive Rigid Body
Soft/Rigid Bodies > Create Constraint
Soft/Rigid Bodies > Set Active Key
Soft/Rigid Bodies > Set Passive Key
Soft/Rigid Bodies > Break Rigid Body Connections
Soft/Rigid Bodies > Create Soft Body
Soft/Rigid Bodies > Create Springs
Soft/Rigid Bodies > Paint Soft Body Weights Tool
Effects
Effects > Create Fire
Effects > Create Smoke
Effects > Create Fireworks
Effects > Create Lightning
Effects > Create Shatter
Effects > Create Curve Flow
Effects > Create Surface Flow
Effects > Delete Surface Flow
Solvers
Solvers > Create Particle Disk Cache
Solvers > Edit Oversampling or Cache Settings
Solvers > Interactive Playback
Dynamics Windows and Editors
Particle Collision Event Editor
Particle Collision Event Editor
Dynamic Relationships Editor
Dynamic Relationships Editor
Sprite Wizard
Sprite Wizard
Dynamics Nodes
Particle nodes
particleShape node
Emitter node
geoConnector node
List of particle attributes
Sprite attributes
geoConnector attributes
Particle Cloud attributes
Particle Sampler Info node
dynGlobals
Soft and Rigid Body nodes
rigidBody node
rigidSolver node
rigidConstraint node
springShape node
Classic Hair
Convert classic Hair to nHair
Set up hair constraints
Assign hair constraints
Make hair collide
Use hair caches
Hair nodes
hairSystemShape
hairConstraintShape
Fluid Effects
Introducing Maya Fluid Effects
Fluid Effects overview
Types of fluids
Getting started with Fluid Effects
Creating Fluid Effects
What are the components of a fluid?
Defining the contents of a fluid container
Fluid examples
Import Fluid examples
Create dynamic fluid effects
Create non-dynamic fluid effects
Create fluid containers
Add properties to fluid containers
Add properties as predefined gradients
Emit fluid properties into grids
Controlling fluid emission
Create a fluid container with a fluid emitter
Add fluid emitters to containers
Emit fluids using emission maps
Emit fluid properties with nParticles
Paint fluid properties into grids
Add color to fluids
Display fluid container contents
Display subvolumes of 3D containers
Emit fluids from objects
Set Contents with Curve
Add predefined initial states to fluid containers
Modifying fluids
Modifying fluids
Changing fluid container size
Dynamically resize a fluid container
Controlling auto-resized boundaries
Auto-resizing fast moving and high resolution fluids
Change fluid resolution
Change the size of a fluid container
Set a fluid container to dynamically resize
Change the resolution of a fluid
Modify fluid attributes
Set fluid attribute ramps
Change dynamic fluid behavior
Using external forces (fields) with fluids
Change fluid behavior at the container boundaries
Define an arbitrary falloff region for fluid containers
Liquid simulation setup
Converting fluids to polygons
Convert a fluid object to polygons
Set fluid output mesh properties
Setting the output mesh color set
Use fluid attribute presets
Object interaction with dynamic fluids
Object interaction
Make fluids collide with geometry
Move geometry with the force of a fluid
Move particles with the force of a fluid
Modify geometry with the force of a fluid
Work with motion fields
Create motion field
Playing fluids
Fluids playback
Fluids initial state
nCaching fluids
Set the initial state of a fluid
Delete the initial state of a fluid
Save the current state of a fluid
Create fluids cache files
Playing back fluid effects in Viewport 2.0.
Speed up playback
Preview fluid effects
Open water effects
Open water effects
Ocean and Pond examples
Oceans
Ponds
Wakes
Floating objects
Create ocean effects using example oceans or ponds
Create new oceans
Preview a patch of ocean
Convert wave displacement to polygons
Add locators
Add a buoy to an ocean
Make objects float
Make boats float
Create an Interactive boat simulation
Create Ponds
Create wakes
Troubleshoot open water effects
Ocean jitters along the horizon
Texturing and shading fluids
Fluid Effects texturing and shading
Texturing fluids
Fluids as textures
Fluids as materials
Fluid Shape shader as a particle shader
Ocean shader and texture
Texture a fluid
Texture a fluid using the Mandelbrot texture
Apply a fluid texture to an object
Assign a fluid shape material to a volume shape
Shade particles using the fluid shape shader
Rendering fluids
Rendering fluids
Prepare to render fluids
Lighting fluids with internal lights
Cast fluid shadows onto objects
Cast shadows onto fluids (fluids receive shadows)
Create motion blur
Set the properties of rendered images
Render scenes with fluid effects
Optimize rendering times
Improve the render quality of fluids
Fluid Effects Nodes
fluidShape
fluidEmitter
motionField
cacheFile
cacheBlend
cache_fluidShape
oceanPreviewPlane
locator (Fluid Effects)
oceanShader / ocean (texture)
Fluid Effects Menus
Modify
Modify > Convert > Fluid to Polygons
Fluid Effects
Fluid Effects > Create 3D Container
Fluid Effects > Create 2D Container
Fluid Effects > Add/Edit Contents > Emitter
Fluid Effects > Add/Edit Contents > Emit from Object
Fluid Effects > Add/Edit Contents > Gradients
Fluid Effects > Add/Edit Contents > Paint Fluids Tool
Fluid Effects > Add/Edit Contents > With Curve
Fluid Effects > Add/Edit Contents > Initial States
Fluid Effects > Create 3D Container with Emitter
Fluid Effects > Create 2D Container with Emitter
Fluid Effects > Get Fluid Example
Fluid Effects > Get Ocean/Pond Example
Fluid Effects > Ocean
Fluid Effects > Ocean > Create Ocean
Fluid Effects > Ocean > Add Preview Plane
Fluid Effects > Ocean > Create Wake
Fluid Effects > Ocean > Add Ocean Surface Locator
Fluid Effects > Ocean > Add Dynamic Locator
Fluid Effects > Ocean > Add Boat Locator
Fluid Effects > Ocean > Add Dynamic Buoy
Fluid Effects > Ocean > Float Selected Objects
Fluid Effects > Ocean > Make Boats
Fluid Effects > Ocean > Make Motor Boats
Fluid Effects > Pond
Fluid Effects > Pond > Create Pond
Fluid Effects > Pond > Create Wake
Fluid Effects > Pond > Add Pond Surface Locator
Fluid Effects > Pond > Add Dynamic Locator
Fluid Effects > Pond > Add Boat Locator
Fluid Effects > Pond > Add Dynamic Buoy
Fluid Effects > Pond > Float Selected Objects
Fluid Effects > Pond > Make Boats
Fluid Effects > Pond > Make Motor Boats
Fluid Effects > Extend Fluid
Fluid Effects > Edit Fluid Resolution
Fluid Effects > Make Collide
Fluid Effects > Make Motion Field
Fluid Effects > Set Initial State
Fluid Effects > Clear Initial State
Fluid Effects > Save State As
Fluid nCache
Fluid nCache > Create New Cache
Fluid nCache > Delete Cache
Fluid nCache > Attach Existing Cache File
Fluid nCache > Disable All Caches On Selected
Fluid nCache > Enable All Caches On Selected
Fluid nCache > Replace Cache
Fluids nCache > Merge Caches
Fluid nCache > Append to Cache
Fluid nCache > Replace Cache Frame
Fluid nCache > Delete Cache Frame
Cache Format
Fluid Effects cache format
Fur
Introducing Maya Fur
Fur overview
Fur workflow overview
Fur Presets
Load Fur
Creating and modifying fur
Preparing polygon and subdivision surface models for fur
Create fur
Use Fur Presets
Delete fur
Attach and detach fur
Select the surfaces a fur description is attached to
Select which UV set to use for Fur (polygons only)
Preview fur using fur feedback
Reverse fur normals
Offset the direction fur grows
Style fur using hair curves
Change fur attributes
Edit fur descriptions
Paint fur attribute values
Map fur attribute values
Update fur maps
Remove maps from fur attributes
Make fur clump together
Copy fur descriptions into other scenes
Animating fur attributes
Animate fur attributes
Adding movement to fur
Add movement to fur
Create a hair system to be used with fur
Attach and detach hair systems to/from fur
Delete fur curve attractor sets
Set the start position of hair curves to the fur position
Change fur curve attractor set attributes
Manually keyframe fur movement
Make fur move using dynamics
Adding fur shading effects
Fur shading effects
Fur shading
Create fur shading and shadows
Create fur shading and shadows using the mental ray for Maya renderer (Method 2)
Rendering scenes with fur
Rendering fur
MEL scripts for Advanced Fur Rendering
Set up Fur Render Settings before rendering
Render scenes with fur
Fur samples and techniques
Create body fur, whiskers, and eyelashes
Part fur
Work on an animation project
Create fur shadows in the alpha channel
Troubleshooting Fur
Troubleshoot Fur
Troubleshoot general Fur issues
Troubleshoot rendering Fur in the Maya Software renderer
Troubleshoot rendering Fur in mental ray for Maya
Fur Tools
Paint Fur Attributes Tool
Fur Menus
Fur
Fur > Attach Fur Description
Fur > Edit Fur Description
Fur > Paint Fur Attributes Tool
Fur > Update Fur Maps
Fur > Fur Description (more)
Fur > Reverse Fur Normals
Fur > Offset Fur Direction by
Fur > Fur Shadowing Attributes
Fur > Fur Render Settings
Fur > Attach Hair System to Fur
Fur > Detach Hair System from Fur
Fur > Edit Curve Attractor Set
Fur > Set Start Position To
Fur > Delete Curve Attractor Set
Fur Windows and Editors
Fur Render Settings
Fur Render Settings
Fur Nodes
FurFeedbackShape node
Fur Description node
FurCurveAttractors node
light Shape node
nDynamics
About nDynamics
Introduction to nDynamics
Maya Nucleus solver properties
nDynamic Collisions
Constraining Nucleus objects
nDynamic Force Fields
Nucleus objects and external dynamic forces
nCloth
nCloth overview
nCloth introduction
Making a mesh nCloth
Optimizing geometry for nCloth conversion
nCloth collisions
Constraining nCloth
nCloth and external dynamic forces
nCloth simulation and caches
Creating nCloth
Create or remove nCloth
Edit nCloth
Paint nCloth property maps
Create and edit nCloth collisions
Create and edit nCloth constraints
Generate Force Fields with nCloth
Create rigid nCloth shells
Create external forces for nCloth
Create and edit nCloth caches
nCloth Examples
nCloth Zipper
nCloth Confetti
nCloth Bag of Marbles
nCloth Tree
nCloth Balloon
nCloth Soda Can
nCloth Shirt
nCloth attribute presets
nCloth material presets
nCloth tips and troubleshooting
Tips
Troubleshooting
Optimizing nCloth
nParticles
nParticles overview
nParticles introduction
Creating nParticle systems
Setting nParticle object properties
nParticle internal ramps and per-particle attributes
nParticle Lifespan and Size properties
nParticle collision and dynamic properties attributes
Shading properties
nParticle emitter properties
Force Field Generation properties
nParticle Rotation
Liquid Simulations
nParticle output meshes
Goal properties
Instancing properties
nParticle collision events
Constraining nParticles
nParticles and external dynamic forces
nParticle simulation and caching
Creating nParticles
Create nParticles
Set nParticle internal ramps
Set nParticle Lifespan
Set nParticle size
Set nParticle collision properties
Set nParticle Dynamic Properties
Generate Force Fields with nParticles
Create Liquid Simulations with nParticles
Convert nParticles to polygons
Set nParticle output mesh properties
Setting the output mesh color set
Set nParticle Emission Attributes
Set nParticle Shading attributes
nParticle Per Particle (Array) Attributes
Create and Edit nParticle Constraints
Create and edit goals
Instance geometry to nParticles
Use the Particle Collision Event Editor with nParticles
Create and Edit springs for nParticles
nParticles and non-Nucleus dynamics
Create and edit nParticle caches
nParticle Examples
nHair
nHair overview
nHair introduction
Basic workflow for nHair
Start, Rest, and Current Position curves
Passive hair curves
Creating nHair
Overview of creating nHair
Creating other models and effects with nHair
Use Hair presets
Creating nHair on surfaces
Create nHair using surface UVs
Create nHair on selected components
Choose which hair curves to display
Select hair, follicles, curves, and CVs
Set hair curve positions
Assign a selection to a hair system
Select which UV set to use for nHair
Make curves dynamic
Transplant hair
Delete nHair
Convert classic Hair to nHair
nHair simulation and caching
Play an nHair simulation
nCaching hair
Modify and style nHair
Modify and style nHair overview
Paint hair follicles
Paint hair textures
Modify hair system attributes
Modify hair follicles
Adjust the hair length
Edit hair curves
Assign a Paint Effects brush to Hair
Select curve components for nConstraints
Create nHair constraints
Rendering nHair
Rendering scenes with nHair
Set up hair shading
Set up hair self-shadowing
Render an nHair simulation
Samples and techniques for nHair
nHair styling tips
Sample hairstyles
Braid hair
Create wavy, curly hair
Create ponytails and braids
Sample dynamic curve scenarios
Dynamic spline IK chain illustrated using a butterfly tail
Advanced tips for working with nHair
Troubleshoot nHair
Hair Tools
Scale Hair Tool
Paint Hair Follicles
Paint Hair Textures
nCaching
nCaching overview
What is nCaching?
nCache creation
nCache XML description file
nCache threading
Create or import nCaches
Work with nCache clips
Rename nCaches
Scale nCache clips
Cycle nCache clips
Hold nCache clips
Trim nCache clips
Split nCache clips
Append nCaches
Merge nCaches
Blend nCaches
Replace nCaches
Detach nCache files
Delete nCache clips
Send to Softimage
ICE Interoperability for Maya
Unsupported actions and important notes
Prepare your Maya scene for Softimage
Send a new scene to Softimage
Updating, adding, or deleting objects
nDynamics menus
nParticles
Modify > Convert > nParticle to Polygons
nParticles > Create nParticles
nParticles > Use Selected Emitter
nParticles > Per-Point Emission Rates
nParticles > Get nParticle Example
nParticles > Particle Collision Event Editor
nParticles > Goals
nParticles > Instancer (Replacement)
nParticles > Sprite Wizard
nParticles > Create Springs
nMesh
nMesh > Create Passive Collider
nMesh > Create nCloth
nMesh > Display Input Mesh
nMesh > Display Current Mesh
nMesh > Rest Shape
nMesh > Get nCloth Example
nMesh > Remove nCloth
nMesh > Delete History
nMesh > Convert nCloth Output Space
nMesh > Paint Vertex Properties
nMesh > Paint Texture Properties
nMesh > Convert Texture to Vertex Map
nMesh > Convert Vertex to Texture Map
nHair
nHair > Create Hair
nHair > Scale Hair Tool
nHair > Paint Hair Follicles
nHair > Paint Hair Textures
nHair > Get Hair Example
nHair > Display
nHair > Set Start Position
nHair > Set Rest Position
nHair > Modify Curves
nHair > Convert Selection
nHair > Assign Hair System
nHair > Make Selected Curves Dynamic
nHair > Assign Paint Effects Brush to Hair
nHair > Add Paint Effects Output to Hair
nHair > Add Output Curves to Hair
nHair > Transplant Hair
nHair > Randomize Follicles
nHair > Delete Entire Hair System
nHair > Classic Hair > Make Collide
nHair > Classic Hair > Assign Hair Constraint
nHair > Classic Hair > Create Constraint
nHair > Classic Hair > Create Cache
nHair > Classic Hair > Append to Cache
nHair > Classic Hair > Truncate Cache
nHair > Classic Hair > Delete Cache
nConstraint
nConstraint option windows
nConstraint > Transform
nConstraint > Component to Component
nConstraint > Point to Surface
nConstraint > Slide on Surface
nConstraint > Weld Adjacent Borders
nConstraint > Force Field
nConstraint > Attract to Matching Mesh
nConstraint > Tearable Surface
nConstraint > Disable Collision
nConstraint > Exclude Collide Pairs
nConstraint > Remove Dynamic Constraint
nConstraint > nConstraint Membership Tool
nConstraint > Select Members
nConstraint > Replace Members
nConstraint > Add Members
nConstraint > Remove Members
nConstraint > Paint properties by Vertex Map
nConstraint > Paint properties by Texture Map
nConstraint > Convert Texture to Vertex Map
nConstraint > Convert Vertex to Texture Map
nCache
nCache > Create New Cache
nCache > Delete Cache
nCache > Attach Existing Cache File
nCache > Disable All Caches On Selected
nCache > Enable All Caches On Selected
nCache > Replace Cache
nCache > Merge Caches
nCache > Append to Cache
nCache > Replace Cache Frame
nCache > Delete Cache Frame
nCache > Transfer Cache to Input Mesh
nCache > Paint Cache Weights Tool
nSolver
nSolver > Assign Solver
nSolver > Initial State
nSolver > AE Display
nSolver > Interactive Playback
Fields
Fields menu overview
Effects Assets
Effects Assets > Apply Effect
Effects Assets > Collide with Effect
Effects Assets > Get Effects Asset
nDynamics nodes
nClothShape
nParticleShape
Emitter node
Hair Nodes
pfxHair
hairSystemShape
follicleShape
hairTubeShader
nucleus
nRigidShape
dynamicConstraintShape
nComponent
cacheFile
cacheBlend
nDynamics tips and troubleshooting
Troubleshooting
Effects Assets
Overview
Effects Assets and collision objects
Published nodes
Importing and modifying Effects Assets
Dynamics plug-ins
MayaBullet physics simulation plug-in
Load the MayaBullet plug-in
Rendering and Render Setup
Shading
About shading and texturing surfaces
Shading
Surface shading
Surface texture
Swatch rendering for any renderer
Shading networks
About shading networks
Render nodes
Render node attributes
Render node connections
Maya materials
Surface, displacement, volumetric materials
Layered shaders
Double-sided shaded surfaces
Maya textures
2D and 3D textures
Procedural textures
File textures
Adobe Photoshop texture networks
Texture filtering
Mapping and positioning textures
Texture mapping
Mapping methods
2D and 3D texture positioning
Texture placement vs. label mapping
Object space, world space and tangent space
Transfer Maps
Hardware shaders
About hardware shaders
CgFX shaders
HLSL shaders
Build shading networks
Overview of building shading networks
Open and customize Hypershade
Open and navigate Hypershade
Show top and bottom level tabs
Hide shape and transform nodes in Hypershade
Create Hypershade tabs
Hide, resize or customize the Create bar
Creating and using favorites
Organize render nodes with Hypershade sorting bins
Change default connection line colors
Troubleshoot Hypershade limitations
Create nodes
Create a node
Duplicate a node
Delete a node and its network
Import and export shading networks
Connect nodes
Show node connections
Assemble nodes into logical groupings using assets in the Hypershade
Connect render nodes using their default connections
Connect default output to a specific input attribute
Connect render nodes by dragging existing connection lines
Connect render nodes using the Connection Editor
Change existing render node attribute connections
Delete a render node connection
Adjust node attributes
Set node attributes
Animate a node attribute
View the Shader Library Gallery
Assign a shading group from the Shader Library
Create and assign materials to surfaces
Create a material
Assign materials to surfaces
Assign shaders to polygon faces
Layer shaders
Create double-sided shaded surfaces
Troubleshoot changing polygonal topology may affect shader assignments
Map and position textures
Map a 2D or 3D texture
Position 2D textures and labels
Position 3D textures
Use a layered texture
Display layered textures in the hardware renderer with multiple UV sets
Create Texture Reference Object
Convert a texture or shading network to a File Texture
Create texture maps with the Transfer Maps editor
Creating normal maps for use with hardware shaders
Viewing tangent space or object space normal maps
Creating and using mirrored normal maps on a character or object
Hardware shading limitations
Texturing limitations
Filter features and compatibility with the mental ray for Maya renderer and Maya software renderer
Troubleshoot normal direction of normal maps are flipped
Creating substance textures
Internal texture baking in Viewport 2.0
Previewing Ptex textures
Use Adobe Photoshop files in Maya
Use PSD Networks as textures in Maya
Create a PSD file with layer sets from within Maya
Display the alpha of a PSD file in the scene view
Open a PSD network in Adobe Photoshop from Maya
Sketch out guidelines (“lipstick”) for paint application
Edit PSD Networks
Convert a PSD node to a file texture
Adjust conversion options
Update PSD Networks
Photoshop integration limitations
Test textures
Test textures (and texture ranges)
Disable the initial load of a file texture image
Using hardware shaders
Work with hardware shaders
Work with CgFX shaders
Work with HLSL shaders
Semantics and annotations supported by DirectX 11 in Viewport 2.0
Override a Maya shader in the scene view using a hardware shader
Troubleshoot working with HLSL shaders
Display high dynamic range images
Display a high dynamic range image
Troubleshoot Maya materials and textures
Troubleshoot movies don’t play on Image Plane
Troubleshoot NURBS surface blend renders incorrectly
Troubleshoot warped textures
Troubleshoot can’t see the place2DTexture swatch
Troubleshoot when I move a referenced object, the texture swims
Troubleshoot movies files are slow to load
Troubleshoot textures on deforming surfaces
Troubleshoot Normal Mapping
Troubleshoot texture mapping
Surface Relief
About surface relief
Bump maps
Displacement maps
Feature-based displacement
Connect a texture as a displacement map
Connect a displacement map
Preview the displacement results
Adjust displacement sampling rates
Convert a displacement to polygons
Change bounding box scale
Troubleshoot displacement textures ‘pop’
Troubleshoot black holes appear on rendered surfaces with displacement maps
Troubleshoot my blurred file texture looks crisp, not blurred
Troubleshoot bump maps
About backgrounds
Basic color and texture backgrounds
Image file backgrounds
Create a basic color background
Create a texture background
Create, edit, or position an image plane
Depth compositing with image planes
Create a static image file background
Create an animated image file background
Create a 3D image file background
Size and position an image file background
Remove or hide a background
Troubleshoot grainy or jagged background image
Reflection and Environment
True reflections
Simulated reflections
Create true reflections
Simulate reflections with Env Ball
Simulate reflections with Env Cube
Simulate reflections with Env Sphere
Troubleshoot cube maps swap front and back images
Troubleshoot environment reflection maps
Atmosphere
Fog, smoke, dust, and silt
Simulate fog, smoke, or dust
Change the visual effect of fog, smoke, or dust
Troubleshoot Environment Fog problems
Baking textures and Prelighting
Baking illumination and color
Bake sets
Create a bake set
Adjust bake set attributes
Assign objects to existing bake sets
Create a Bake Set tab in Hypershade
Render node utilities
Render node utilities
Use render node utilities
Use the Array Mapper utility
Use the Blend Colors utility
Use the Bump 2d utility
Use the Bump 3d utility
Use the Clamp colors utility
Use the Clear Coat utility
Use the Condition utility
Use the Contrast utility
Use the Distance Between utility
Use the Double Switch utility
Use the Gamma Correct utility
Use the Height Field utility
Use the Hsv to Rgb utility
Use the Light Info utility
Use the Luminance utility
Use the Multiply Divide utility
Use the 2d Placement utility
Use the 3d Placement utility
Use the Plus Minus Average utility
Use the Projection utility
Use the Remap Color, Remap Hsv, or Remap Value utilities
Use the Reverse utility
Use the Rgb to Hsv utility
Use the Quad Switch utility
Use the Sampler Info utility
Use the Set Range utility
Use the Single Switch utility
Use the Smear utility
Use the Stencil utility
Use the Studio Clear Coat utility
Use the Surf. Luminance utility
Use the Triple Switch utility
Use the Vector Product utility
Shading menus
Window
Window > Rendering Editors > mental ray > Shader Manager
Create
Create > Volume primitives
Rendering menu set
Lighting/shading
Lighting/shading > Material Attributes
Lighting/shading > Assign New Material
Lighting/shading > Assign Favorite Material
Lighting/shading > Assign Existing Material
Lighting/shading > Assign New Bake Set
Lighting/shading > Assign Existing Bake Set
Lighting/shading > Batch Bake (mental ray)
Lighting/Shading > Transfer Maps
Texturing
Texturing > Create Texture Reference Object
Texturing > Delete Texture Reference Object
Texturing > Select Texture Reference Object
Texturing > NURBS Texture Placement Tool
Texturing > Create PSD Network
Texturing > Update PSD Networks
Shading Windows and Editors
mental ray Custom text editor
Connection Editor
Connection Editor
Assign New Material window
Create Render Node window
Hypershade
Hypershade window
Hypershade window
Create bar
Sorting Bins
Hypershade tabs
Hypershade top tabs
Work Area tab (bottom tab)
Hypershade toolbars
Hypershade main toolbar
Hypershade tab toolbar
Hypershade menu bar
Hypershade menus
File > Import
File > Export Selected Network
Edit > Delete
Edit > Delete Unused Nodes
Edit > Delete Duplicate Shading Networks
Edit > Delete All by Type
Edit > Revert Selected Swatches
Edit > Select All by Type
Edit > Select Objects with Materials
Edit > Select Materials from Objects
Edit > Duplicate
Edit > Convert to File Texture (Maya Software)
Edit > Convert PSD to Layered Texture
Edit > Convert PSD to File Texture
Edit > Create PSD Network
Edit > Edit PSD Network
Edit > Update PSD Networks
Edit > Create Asset
Edit > Remove Asset
Edit > Collapse Asset
Edit > Expand Asset
Edit > Edit Texture
Edit > Test Texture
Edit > Render Texture Range
View > Frame All
View > Frame Selected
View > As Icons
View > As List
View > As Small/Medium/Large/Extra Large Swatches
View > By Name
View > By Type
View > By Time
View > Reverse Order
Bookmarks > Create Bookmark
Bookmarks > Bookmark Editor
Create menu
Create > Create Render Node
Tabs > Create New Tab
Tabs > Move Tab Up, Move Tab Down, Move Tab Left, Move Tab Right
Tabs > Rename Tab
Tabs > Remove Tab
Tabs > Revert to Default Tabs
Tabs > Show Top Tabs Only
Tabs > Show Bottom Tabs Only
Tabs > Show Top and Bottom Tabs
Tabs > Current Tab
Graph > Graph Materials on Selected Objects
Graph > Clear Graph
Graph > Input Connections
Graph > Output Connections
Graph > Input and Output Connections
Graph > Show Previous Graph
Graph > Show Next Graph
Graph > Add Selected to Graph
Graph > Remove Selected from Graph
Graph > Rearrange Graph
Window > Attribute Editor
Window > Attribute Spread Sheet
Window > Connection Editor
Window > Connect Selected
Options > Create Bar
Options > Bins Sort Shading Node Only
Options > Display (Work Area Only)
Options > Keep Swatches at Current Resolution
Options > Clear Before Graphing
Options > Show Relationships Connections
Options > Merge Connections
Options > Opaque Assets
Shading Nodes
Material nodes - Maya software
Surface materials
About surface materials
Common surface material attributes
Common surface material Specular Shading attributes
Anisotropic
Blinn
CgFX Shader
DirectX 11 Shader
HLSL shader
Lambert
Layered Shader
Ocean Shader
Phong
Phong E
Ramp Shader
Shading Map
Surface Shader
Use Background
Shared surface material sections
Displacement material
About displacement material
Volumetric materials
About volumetric materials
Environment Fog
Volume Fog
Light Fog
Particle Cloud
Volume Shader
Fluid Shape
Common Volumetric material attributes
Shading group node
Shading group node attributes
Texture nodes
Overview of texture nodes
2D textures
About 2D textures
Bulge
Checker
Cloth
File
Fluid Texture 2D
Fractal
Mandelbrot
Grid
Mountain
Movie
Noise
Ocean
PSD File
Ramp
Water
Shared 2D texture attributes
3D textures
3D textures
Brownian
Cloud
Crater
Fluid Texture 3D
Granite
Leather
Mandelbrot 3D
Marble
Rock
Snow
Solid Fractal
Stucco
Volume Noise
Wood
Shared 3D texture attributes
Environment textures
About environment textures
Common Environment texture attributes
Env Ball
Env Chrome
Env Cube
Env Sky
Env Sphere
Other textures
Layered texture
Utilities
About Utilities
Add Double Linear
Add Matrix
Angle Between
Array Mapper
Blend Colors
Blend Two Attr
Bump 2d
Bump 3d
Choice
Chooser
Clamp
Clear Coat
Color Profile
Condition
Contrast
Curve Info
Decompose Matrix
Distance Between
Double Switch
Gamma Correct
Frame cache
Height Field
Hsv to Rgb
Light Info
Luminance
Multiply Divide
Mult Double Linear
2d Placement
3d Placement
Plus Minus Average
Projection
Quad Switch
Particle Sampler
Remap Color
Remap HSV
Remap Value
Reverse
Rgb to Hsv
Sampler Info
Set Range
Single Switch
Smear
Stencil
Studio Clear Coat
Surface Info
Surf. Luminance
Triple Switch
Unit Conversion
Uv Chooser
Vector Product
Image Planes
Image plane attributes
Maya Render Nodes
Rendering nodes
Substance nodes
Substance textures
Substance node Attribute Editor
Feature-based displacement map
Feature-based displacement map attributes
Bake set nodes
Texture Bake Set
Vertex Bake Set
Lighting
Basics of Lighting
Light and shadow in the real world
Absorption, reflection, and refraction of light
Indirect (global) vs. direct illumination
Direct light sources
Sources of direct light
Default lighting in Maya
Light decay
Light linking
Shadow linking
Glows, halos, and lens flares
Shadow
Shadow in Maya
Depth map and raytraced shadows
Shadow catching
Apply and adjust basic direct lighting
Plan light sources
A typical direct light/shadow workflow
Create a Maya light source
Adjust a light source’s attributes
Move a light source to another location
Interactively place a spot, area or directional light
Turn default lighting on or off
Position features of a light interactively
Show, hide, or resize a light manipulator
Move the center of interest or origin
Move the pivot point
Move the Cone Radius of a spot light
Move the Penumbra Radius of a spot light
Move the Decay regions of a spot light
Move barn doors (shutters) of a spot light
Light specific surfaces
Determine a light’s area of illumination
Link light sources to surfaces
Link sets of lights and objects
Select objects illuminated by a specific light
Select lights illuminating a specific object
Link light sources to surfaces to control shadow calculations
Control area lights
Control highlights of an area light
Control soft lighting distribution
Produce raytraced shadows
Adjust decay
Interactively set decay regions
Create custom spot light intensity or color decay
Adjust a spot light’s light circle
Control a spot light’s circle boundary
Apply barn doors (shutters) to a beam of light
Create glows, halos, or lens flares
Create a light optical effect
Adjust the size of the glow object
Create environments that glow
Create illuminated fog
Cast shadows
See shadows in the scene view
Control which objects cast shadows
Render depth map shadows
Reuse depth maps
Render raytraced shadows
Catch shadows for an alpha channel
Remove shadows
Troubleshoot direct light sources
Troubleshoot lights don’t light the object
Troubleshoot surface glows affect glow of another surface
Troubleshoot glow flickers throughout animation sequence
Troubleshoot shader glow behind semi-transparent object is too intense
Troubleshoot Shader Glow, Light Glow, and Light Fog limitations
Troubleshoot turning on Emit Ambient volume light attribute does not update the IPR render
Troubleshoot shadows
Troubleshoot shadow map problems
Troubleshoot inaccurate shadows from shadow depth maps
Troubleshoot transparent objects cast shadows for shadow depth maps
Troubleshoot shadow quality poor with light fog
Troubleshoot hardware shadows produce unexpected results
Troubleshoot lights don’t cast shadows
Troubleshoot shadows flicker over animations
Troubleshoot jagged edges
Troubleshoot jagged or flickering shadow edges
Troubleshoot grainy or flickering shadows in illuminated fog
Troubleshoot dark spots or streaks on illuminated surfaces (outside of shadows)
Troubleshoot shadow appears detached from shadow casting surface
Troubleshoot grainy or flickering shadow edges (raytraced shadows)
Troubleshoot staircase of dark triangles on surface (raytraced shadows)
Troubleshoot Dmap resolution changes don’t update in IPR
Troubleshoot translucence limitation with raytraced shadows
Lighting menus
Create
Create > Lights > Directional Light
Create > Lights > Ambient Light
Create > Lights > Area Light
Create > Lights > Point Light
Create > Lights > Spot Light
Create > Lights > Volume Light
Rendering menu set
Lighting/shading
Lighting/shading > Make Light Links
Lighting/shading > Break Light Links
Lighting/shading > Select Objects Illuminated by Light
Lighting/shading > Select Lights Illuminating Object
Lighting/shading > Light Linking Editor
Lighting/shading > Make Shadow Links
Lighting/shading > Break Shadow Links
Panel menus
Lighting
Lighting > Use Default Lighting
Lighting > Use All Lights
Lighting > Use Selected Lights
Lighting > Use No Lights
Lighting > Use Previously Specified Lights
Lighting > Two Sided Lighting
Lighting > Shadows
Lighting > Specify Selected Lights
Lighting Windows and Editors
Render Settings for Lighting
Render Settings for Lighting
Lighting nodes
Light nodes
Directional Light Attributes
Ambient Light Attributes
Area Light Attributes
mental ray Area Light Attributes (created using area light)
mental ray Area Light Attributes (created using spot light)
Point Light Attributes
Spot Light Attributes
Volume Light Attributes
mental ray attributes for lights (point, spot, directional, area)
Image based lighting node attributes
Light Effects
Shadow attributes
Glow nodes
Optical FX Attributes
Photon and final gather nodes
mapVizShape node
Rendering
About rendering and renderers
Rendering
Introduction to rendering
Hardware, software, and vector rendering
Renderers
Maya Software renderer
Maya Hardware renderer
Maya Hardware 2.0 renderer
Maya Vector renderer
mental ray for Maya renderer
Select a renderer
Camera set up
Cameras
Viewing cameras vs. rendering cameras
Maya camera types
Motion blur and depth of field
Focus and blur
fStop (aperture) and shutter speed/angle
Motion blur
Framing objects with a camera
Camera aim
Angle of view (focal length)
Safe display regions for TV production
Clipping planes
Create and use a camera
Create a camera
Adjust a camera’s attributes
Make an existing camera renderable
Turn scene view guidelines on or off
Adjust depth of field
Camera limitations
Look through (select) a camera
Select the current scene view’s camera
Look through another camera
Look through an object
Frame your scene
Move a camera to another location
Aim a camera
Look at selected objects
Frame selected objects
Frame all objects
Frame part of a scene
Save sequential camera movements
Troubleshoot Resolution Gate and Film Gate display incorrectly
Panning and zooming in 2D
Using a stereoscopic camera
Create a stereoscopic camera
Render a scene with stereoscopic camera
Create a custom rig
Create a multi-camera rig
Linking a stereo camera with a set of objects
Tessellation and Approximation
Tessellation and approximation
Introduction to Tessellation and Approximation
Maya tessellation
Primary vs. secondary tessellation passes
NURBS surface, poly, and subD tessellation
Tessellate NURBS surfaces
View Maya tessellation settings for an object
Adjust NURBS tessellation settings
Determine which objects to tessellate
Display NURBS tessellation triangles
Use span-based tessellation
Tessellate polygonal surfaces
Adjust polygonal tessellation
Tessellate subdivision surfaces
Display subdivision surface tessellation triangles
Adjust subdivision surface tessellation
Visualize and render images
Rendering methods
Interactive Photorealistic Rendering (IPR)
Render View rendering
Batch renders from within Maya (UI)
Render from a command line
Render output
File formats
Subfolders and names of rendered images
File output location
Pixel aspect ratio
Resolution
Frames vs. Fields
Color, Depth, and Mask (alpha) channels
Pre Render MEL and Post Render MEL scripts
Layers and passes
Render layer overview
Working with render layers: different layer examples
Render layer concepts
Mask and depth channels
Render passes
Render tiles in the Maya Software renderer
Render tiles
Visualize interactively in the scene view
Visualize scenes and render images
A typical rendering workflow
Choose a rendering method
Set scene options
Open the Render Settings window
Render all or some objects from a camera
Set the rendered image file format
Set file name syntax
Set rendered images output location
Set the resolution and pixel aspect ratio
Enable color, depth, and mask channels for rendered images
Create and view depth files
Modify a mask channel
Specify frame or field rendering
Run Pre Render MEL or Post Render MEL scripts
Adjust anti-aliasing
Adjust output image filtering
Create and load a plug-in multipixel filter
Set raytracing quality
Set motion blur
Maya software
Set IPR options
Set Paint Effects rendering options
Set per-material vector rendering options
Work with render layers
Work with layers
Work with layer overrides
Remove material overrides from objects in any render layer
Assign different component shading for each render layer
Work with attribute overrides
Preview layers
Render layers to PSD format
Batch and command-line render with layers
Duplicate an existing render layer
Naming render layers
Recycling rendered images to save time
Control visibility/reflection per layer
Merging display layers or render layers when importing files
Visualize a scene
Visualize interactively with IPR
See shading and lights in a scene view
Test render a low-res still or frame
Test render a low-res animation
Render selected objects
Render a region of your scene
Visualize interactively in Viewport 2.0 in Maya 2013
Visualize interactively in Viewport 2.0 in Extension for Maya 2013
Using DirectX 11 with Viewport 2.0
Assigning a UV set to a texture map connected to the DX11 MayaUberShader
DirectX 11 Limitations
Troubleshoot Viewport 2.0
Optimizing Viewport 2.0
Viewport 2.0 platform limitations
Semantics supported by Viewport 2.0 to be used with MShaderInstance
Setting up blending for transparency drawing in Viewport 2.0
Perform final renders from within Maya
Render a single frame
Batch render a still or animation
Render with several processors
Perform command line rendering
Command line rendering
Render multiple scenes
Rendering multiple scenes
Render using color management
Using color management in your scene
Color managed linear workflow
Using color management with HDR images in the Render View
Displaying HDR images in the Render View
Using color management in the Render View: sample workflow
Troubleshooting Rendering
Troubleshoot image plane displays black swatch
Troubleshoot displacement is not displayed
Troubleshoot software-rendered is too bright
Troubleshoot Multi-UVs for NURBS don’t software render
Troubleshoot NURBS surface does not appear when rendering
Troubleshoot rendered image doesn’t match interactive window display
Troubleshoot projection texture swims over an animation
Troubleshoot transparent blobby surface rendering anti-aliasing problem
Troubleshoot memory exceptions
Troubleshoot highlight artifacts close to object edge
Troubleshoot background surfaces show through
Troubleshoot objects vibrate when an animation is rendered as fields
Troubleshoot 2D Motion Blur problems
Troubleshooting Surfaces (Maya software)
Troubleshoot edits in the Texture Editor don’t update in IPR
Troubleshoot looping renders
Troubleshoot render tiles
Troubleshoot assigning objects to Render Layers through the Relationship editor
Troubleshoot render layer color indicators do not appear correctly (Linux only)
Troubleshoot Interactive Photorealistic Rendering (IPR)
Troubleshoot HDR images are clipped when used with color management
Troubleshoot color management
Troubleshoot Maya import into Composite
Quality, render speed, diagnostics
Image quality and render speed
The speed/quality tradeoff
Anti-aliasing and flicker
Artifacts
Render speed
Maya render diagnostics
Improve rendered image quality
Adjust scene anti-aliasing parameters (Maya software)
Adjust per-object anti-aliasing parameters
Reduce artifacts and flicker
Increase render speed
Increase overall rendering speed
Increase surface rendering speed
Increase shadow rendering speed
Increase camera views render speed
Global illumination and caustics
Final Gather
Reduce render memory usage
Reducing memory usage
Cache texture tiles using BOT (block ordered texture)
Delete information not relevant to the renderer
Render parts of a scene separately
Decrease file size (Maya Vector renderer)
Strategies to decrease vector render file size
Diagnose scene problems
Run diagnostics
Sample diagnostic messages
Network rendering
Overview of network rendering
Maya network rendering
Managing Maya network rendering
Network rendering with Backburner
Network render with the render command line utility
Appendices
Appendix A: Render layer presets
Work with layer presets
Render layers example: automotive preview
Appendix B: Render Passes for Maya software renderer
Work with render passes
Rendering menus
File
File > Export All, Export Selection (mental ray)
Modify
Modify > Convert > Displacement to Polygons
Create
Create > Cameras > Camera
Create > Cameras > Camera and Aim
Create > Cameras > Camera, Aim, and Up
Create > Cameras > Stereo Camera
Create > Cameras > Multi Stereo Rig
Create > Free Image Plane
Window
Window > Rendering Editors > Render View
Window > Rendering Editors > Hardware Render Buffer
Window > Rendering Editors > Render Settings
Window > Rendering Editors > Hypershade
Window > Rendering Editors > Rendering Flags
Window > Rendering Editors > Shading Group Attributes
Window > Rendering Editors > mental ray > Approximation Editor
Window > Rendering Editors > mental ray > Custom Text Editor
Render
Render > Render Current Frame
Render > Redo Previous Render
Render > IPR Render Current Frame
Render > Redo Previous IPR Render
Render > Test Resolution
Render > Run Render Diagnostics
Render > Batch Render
Render > Cancel Batch Render
Render > Show Batch Render
Render > Render Using > Maya Hardware
Render > Render Using > Maya Software
Render > Render Using > Maya Vector
Render > Set NURBS Tessellation
Render > Render Using > mental ray
Render > Export Pre-Compositing
Render > Create Backburner Job
Stereo
Stereo > Editors > Custom Stereo Rig
Stereo > Editors > Custom Multi Rig
Stereo > Create > Stereo Camera
Stereo > Create > Multi Stereo Rig
Stereo > Make Links
Stereo > Break Links
Panel menus
View
View > Select Camera
View > Camera settings
View > Camera Attribute Editor
View > Camera Tools
View > Image plane
Stereo
Stereo > Center Eye
Stereo > Active
Stereo > Horizontal Interlace
Stereo > Checkerboard
Stereo > Anaglyph
Stereo > Luminance Anaglyph
Stereo > Freeview (Parallel)
Stereo > Freeview (Crossed)
Stereo > Background Color
Stereo > Set Color Using Preferences
Stereo > Swap Eyes
Renderer
Renderer > Default Quality Rendering
Renderer > High Quality Rendering
Renderer > Viewport 2.0
Renderer > [Custom Renderer]
Rendering Windows and Editors
Approximation Editor
mental ray Approximation Editor
mental ray Approximation Editor
Render Layer Editor
Render Layer Editor
Render Settings
Render Settings window
Render Settings window
Render Settings: Common tab
Render Settings: Maya Software tab
Render Settings: mental ray tabs
Render Settings: Maya Hardware tab
Render Settings: Maya Vector tab
Render Settings: Maya Hardware 2.0 Tab
Create Render Passes window
Custom Stereo Rig Editor
Multi-Camera Rig Tool
Render View
Render View menu bar
Render View toolbar
Rendering Flags
Rendering Flags window
Rendering Flags window
Hardware Render Buffer
Hardware Render Buffer window
Hardware Render Buffer window
Hardware Render Buffer global settings
Hardware Render Buffer global settings
Hardware Render Buffer menus
Rendering nodes
Render Layer attributes
Render Layer render attributes
Render pass nodes
Render pass Attribute Editor
Render pass set Attribute Editor
Render pass contribution map Attribute Editor
Camera nodes
Camera node
cameraSet node
mental ray Approximation Editor nodes
Render View color management node
Transform node mental ray attributes
Transform node mental ray rendering attributes
Object-specific mental ray attributes - Attribute Editor
mental ray
Object-specific render attributes - Attribute Editor
Render Stats
Smooth Mesh Render
Vector Renderer Control
Texture Map
Tessellation
NURBS objects tessellation
mental ray Rendering
mental ray for Maya Rendering
About the mental ray renderer
About the mental ray for Maya renderer
Motion Blur
mental ray for Maya motion blur
Approximation in mental ray for Maya
Approximation
Approximation nodes
Approximation styles
mental ray for Maya geometry types
Visualize and render images
Command line render
Exporting .mi files
Multi-render passes
Quality, render speed, diagnostics
mental ray for Maya diagnostics
Converting textures to optimized format
Network rendering using mental ray for Maya
Overview of network rendering in mental ray for Maya
mental ray for Maya network rendering using Satellite and Standalone
mental ray network rendering: Satellite and Standalone
Configuration
mental ray for Maya Output window messages
Work with mental ray for Maya approximation
Create an approximation node
Assign an approximation node
Edit an approximation node
Unassign an approximation node
Delete an approximation node
Override approximation settings
Obtain quads for subdivision surfaces
Troubleshoot partial creases rendering as full creases
Control Fine approximation triangles
Setting Fine approximation cache limit
Control Fine approximation triangles
Tweak Approximation node settings
Render time smoothing of polygon meshes
Smooth polygon meshes at render time
Rendering a smooth polygon mesh
Render a smooth polygon mesh using Smooth Mesh Preview
Contour rendering
Adding a contour to your scene
Work with multi-render passes
Introduction to multi-render passes: a simple workflow example
Sample workflow for multi-render passes
UV multi-render pass workflow
Exporting the multi-render passes for compositing in Composite
Previewing your composite in the Render View
Create render passes in the Hypershade
Previewing render passes in the Render View
Previewing a re-combination of your render passes
Using IPR to preview adjustments to passes
Making changes to the scene and viewing the updated re-combination
Using render layers with your re-combination
Using pass contribution maps with your re-combination
Adding a background to your re-combination
Applying color correction to your re-combination
Batch rendering your composite
Advanced workflows
Pre and post render layer MEL scripts
Exporting a render template
Previewing a part of a shading network using a render target
Set scene options
Open the Render Settings window
Modify a mask channel
Adjust anti-aliasing in mental ray for Maya
Set motion blur in mental ray for Maya
Perform command line rendering
Rendering from the command line
Export .mi files
Export a .mi file and render with mental ray
Managing your scenes using render proxies
Using render proxies in your scene
Material assignments for render proxy
Increase render speed
Increase overall rendering speed in mental ray for Maya
Increase surface rendering speed in mental ray for Maya
Increase shadow rendering speed in mental ray for Maya
Diagnose scene problems
mental ray for Maya error handling and diagnostics
Network rendering using Satellite and Standalone
Set up mental ray Satellite and Standalone
Set up a master machine with mental ray for Maya
Set up a master machine with mental ray standalone (method 1)
Set up a master machine with mental ray standalone (method 2)
Slave machine setup
Submit a job to render over the network
Dynamic Attributes for mental ray for Maya
Dynamic Attributes
Troubleshoot mental ray for Maya rendering
Troubleshoot general mental ray for Maya rendering issues
Troubleshoot mental ray standalone rendering
Troubleshoot files that should be identical appear different when using plugins that create extension attributes
Troubleshoot file load errors occur when loading legacy scenes in Maya 2012/2013
Troubleshoot render layers do not render correctly when exporting a .mi file
Troubleshoot Motion Blur
Troubleshoot Surfaces
Troubleshoot final gather causes flicker
Troubleshoot network rendering with mental ray for Maya
Troubleshoot HDR images
Troubleshoot Reflection and Refraction passes render incorrectly with contribution maps
Troubleshoot mental ray approximation
Troubleshoot exporting .mi files
mental ray for Maya Shading
mental ray for Maya shading concepts
Ambient occlusion concepts
Basics of mental ray shading
mental ray for Maya shaders
mental ray Shader connections
mental ray for Maya textures
mental ray for Maya reflections
Scattering
mental ray Surface relief
mental ray for Maya Surface relief
mental ray for Maya displacement
mental ray atmospheric effects
Fog, smoke, dust, and silt
Create light fog using mental ray for Maya sample workflow
Baking textures and prelighting in mental ray for Maya
Baking to textures and vertices
Baking with final gather
Limitations of baking to textures
mental ray custom shaders
mental ray for Maya custom shaders
The Node Factory
mental ray shader language extensions
Swatch rendering in mental ray for Maya
Advanced mental ray shading
Phenomena
Custom mental ray text
Custom vertex data
Advanced information
Basics of mental ray for Maya shading
Use a mental ray for Maya shader
mental ray for Maya shaders sample workflow
Native mental ray light linking
Render color per vertex in mental ray for Maya
Create blurry reflections using mental ray for Maya
Create lightmaps by baking textures and vertices
Bake lightmaps from the command line
Create an ambient occlusion map with the Transfer Map tool
Connecting a texture as a vector displacement map
Exclude an object from an occlusion render
Work with Scattering
High quality texture filtering with elliptical filtering
Specialized workflow examples for mia_material and mia_physicalsky shaders
Sample workflow for mia_envblur
Troubleshoot mental ray for Maya transparency mapping is broken
Advanced mental ray for Maya shading
Create and use custom mental ray shaders
Use a custom-made mental ray for Maya shader in Maya
Write a shader declaration file
Edit the maya.rayrc file
Load shaders
Relate Maya custom shaders to mental ray for Maya custom shaders
Integrating Custom Mental Ray Shaders
Specify light parameters
Custom volume shaders
Troubleshoot custom mental ray shaders
Work with phenomenon
Build phenomena
Use a phenomenon in a scene
Create custom shaders for use with multi-render passes
Creating a pass-compliant shader using the AdskShaderSDK
Work with custom mental ray text
Assign custom text to an object or shader
Assign text to entities
Rendering particles with mental ray for Maya
Using the Particle Sampler Info node with mental ray shaders
mental ray for Maya dynamic attributes
Dynamic attributes for mental ray custom shaders
mental ray for Maya shaders
Troubleshoot crash or render abort
Troubleshoot node factory errors in Script Editor
Troubleshoot error messages
Troubleshoot cannot find main function
Troubleshoot cannot open input file “shader.lib”
mental ray for Maya transfer maps
Troubleshoot Transfer Maps search envelope produces unexpected results
Troubleshoot ambient occlusion transfer map appears grainy with lost details
Atmospheric effects in mental ray for Maya
Troubleshoot volumetric fog with depth map shadows
Baking textures in mental ray for Maya
Troubleshoot 32 bit TIFF and IFF images are black
Troubleshoot baking quality with final gather
Troubleshooting mia_roundcorners shader has no effect
Troubleshooting surfaces bent incorrectly when mia_roundcorners shader is applied
Troubleshoot batch baking texture with 32bit .tif produces IMF error
mental ray for Maya Lighting
mental ray for Maya Lighting concepts
Raytracing concepts
Global illumination, caustics, and final gather
Final gather and ambient occlusion
mental ray Light Source
mental ray Area Light
mental ray Native light linking
Native light linking in mental ray
Global illumination and caustics
Global illumination
Caustics
Color bleed
Participating media
Photon maps and photon tracing
Photon maps
Photon tracing
Final gather and HDRI
Final gather
Irradiance as the source of light
High Dynamic Range Imaging (HDRI)
Image-based lighting (sky-like illumination)
Sun and sky
Simulating the sun and sky
Shadow in mental ray
mental ray shadow maps
Create a mental ray area light source
Create a mental ray area light
Render with global illumination and caustics
Global illumination and caustics workflow
Set up mental ray for Maya raytracing
Turn on photon emission for a light source
Flag objects to cast and receive photons
Set scene-wide photon tracing overrides
Render with global illumination
Tweak color bleed
Render with Caustics
See the distribution of photons
Work with Final Gather
Final gather sample workflow
Render with final gather
Store and reuse Final Gather results
Combine global illumination with final gather
Work with sun and sky
Adding sun and sky to your scene
Work with High Dynamic range images (HDRI)
Render infinitely distant (sky-like) illumination and reflection
Render finitely distant illumination and reflection
Cast shadows
To create mental ray shadow maps
Render detail shadow maps in mental ray for Maya
Use detail shadow maps for colored shadows
Troubleshoot depth map shadow settings and volumes
Troubleshoot mental ray lighting
Troubleshoot directional light does not work well with photons
Troubleshoot global illumination and caustics
Troubleshoot global illumination doesn’t work or looks incorrect
Troubleshoot caustics don’t work or look incorrect
Troubleshoot final gather and HDRI
Troubleshoot final gather ignores Render Stats settings
Troubleshoot final gather renders black
Troubleshoot final gather file problems
Troubleshoot HDR image warning message
Troubleshoot mental ray for Maya shadows
Troubleshoot raytraced shadow artifacts
Troubleshoot shadows are not motion blurred when the rasterizer is used
Troubleshooting shadow banding when light angle on a directional light is set above 15 degrees
Troubleshoot fur shadows flickering
Troubleshoot soft shadows do not render correctly when Simple Shadow Method is used
Troubleshoot depth map shadow quality with rapid scanline rendering
Troubleshoot photon tracing
Troubleshoot photon tracing limitations
Troubleshoot photons are not bright enough
Troubleshoot no photons stored after emitting 10000 photons
mental ray node attributes
Shading nodes mental ray attributes
About shading nodes mental ray attributes
Surface materials mental ray attributes
Shading Group attributes
File node
Lighting nodes mental ray attributes
About lighting nodes mental ray attributes
mental ray Area Light Attributes (created using area light)
mental ray Area Light Attributes (created using spot light)
mental ray attributes for lights (point, spot, directional, area)
Rendering nodes mental ray attributes
About rendering nodes mental ray attributes
Transform node mental ray rendering attributes
Object-specific mental ray attributes - Attribute Editor
Render Layer render attributes
Fur nodes mental ray attributes
About fur nodes mental ray attributes
FurFeedbackShape node
Fur description node
mental ray for Maya shaders
mental ray for Maya nodes
mental ray mia_material/mia_material_x shader attributes
mental ray render pass utility shaders
Recommended mental ray for Maya shaders
Appendices
Shading Appendices
Appendix A: mental ray user data nodes
Appendix B: Custom Colors
Appendix C: Custom vertex data
Rendering Appendices
Appendix A: Extra mental ray render settings
Appendix B: Creating camera output passes with mental ray for Maya
Appendix C: Additional mental ray for Maya rendering commands
Appendix D: mental ray user framebuffers
mentalrayUserBuffer node attributes
mentalrayOutputPass node
Rendering Utilities
Small Utilities
blur2d
from100to97
interlace
filePaste
fileStats
imconvert (Image Magick)
imgcvt
imf_disp
FCheck
Overview of FCheck
FCheck windows
Overview of FCheck features
FCheck options
FCheck hotkeys
Frame numbering and padded numbers
Start FCheck
Open a file in FCheck
Control animation playback in FCheck
Open image sequences
Adjust color values
Save images or sequences
Use FCheck with sound
Use FCheck with Maya
FieldAssembler
About the FieldAssembler
Reassembling Field Rendered Images
Define Sequence Dialog
Using the Command Line
Command line renderer
About the command line renderer
Render from the command line
Stop a command line render
Using customized renderer
Rendering Utilities Tools
Common flags for the command line renderer
Renderer-specific flags for the command line renderer
Fur Renderer
Rendering Utilities Windows and Editors
FCheck
FCheck options list
Display keys
Image adjustment keys
Animation playback control keys
FCheck supported file formats
Supported save formats
FCheck File menu
Fcheck View menu (Windows)
FCheck Help menu (Windows)
FCheck Mouse controls
FCheck
Control Bar
FieldAssembler
File menu commands
Edit menu commands
Help menu commands
Scripting
MEL and Expressions
Background
MEL Overview
The MEL and expressions book
MEL for programmers
Running MEL
Run MEL commands
See or record the MEL commands associated with actions
Make a shelf button for a script
Get help on a MEL command
Values and variables
Integer and floating point numbers
Strings
Explicit and implicit typing
Variables
Assigning values to variables and attributes
Printing values
Picking a random number
Arrays, vectors, and matrices
Arrays
Get and change the size of an array
Vectors
Matrices
Style
Good MEL style
Using white space
Adding comments
Naming variables
Procedures and scripts
Bullet-proof scripting
Controlling the flow of a script
Testing and comparing values
Boolean values
if...else if...else
?: operator
switch...case
while
do...while
for
for-in
break
continue
Testing the existence of commands, objects, and attributes
The difference between = and ==
Common problems
Attributes
Attributes overview
Attribute names
Data types of attributes
Getting and setting attributes
Getting and setting multi-value attributes
Procedures
Procedures
Defining procedures
Calling procedures
Global and local variables
Testing if a function is available in MEL
Checking where a procedure comes from
Animation expressions
Animation expressions
Creating animation expressions
Each attribute can only have one driver
time and frame keywords
Find an animation expression you created previously
Edit text in an animation expression
Edit an animation expression with a text editor
Delete an animation expression
I/O and interaction
User interaction
Reading and writing files
Testing file existence, permissions, and other properties
Manipulating files
Working with directories
Executing system commands
Reading from and writing to system command pipes
Calling MEL from AppleScript and vice-versa
Debugging, optimizing, and troubleshooting
MEL debugging features
Signaling with error, warning, and trace
Handling errors with catch and catchQuiet
Showing error line numbers
Showing the calling stack when an error occurs
Optimizing script and expression speed
Optimize scripts
Optimize expressions
Reduce redundant expression execution
Troubleshooting
Accessing global variables
Initialization is different from assignment
Common expression errors
Executing MEL commands in an expression can have unintended side effects
Error message format
Common error messages
Common info messages
Creating interfaces
ELF commands
Windows
Controls
Layouts
Groups
Menus
Collections
Parents and children
Naming
UI command templates
Deleting UI elements
Attaching commands to UI elements
A simple window
Modal dialogs
Using system events and scriptJobs
Particle expressions
About particle expressions
Particle expressions
Creation expression execution
Runtime expression execution
Set the dynamics start frame
Set attributes for initial state usage
Write creation expressions
Write runtime expressions
Work with particle attributes
Add dynamic attributes
Understand per particle and per object attributes
Understand initial state attributes
Assign to a custom attribute
Assign to a particle array attribute of different length
Use creation expression values in a runtime expression
Work with position, velocity, and acceleration
Work with color
Work with emitted particles
Work with collisions
Work with lifespan
Work with specific particles
Assigning to vectors and vector arrays
Assign to vectors and vector arrays
Assign to a vector variable
Use the vector component operator with variables
Assign to a vector array attribute component
List of particle attributes
Script nodes
MEL script nodes
Create or edit a script node
Prevent script nodes from executing when you open a file
Advanced
Advanced programming topics
Automatic type conversion
Limits
Local array collection
Array arguments are passed by reference
Changing the user script locations with MEL
Advanced animation expressions topics
How often an expression executes
Use custom attributes in expressions
Display attribute and variable contents
Reproduce randomness
Remove an attribute from an expression
Disconnect an attribute
Rename an object
Executing MEL commands in an expression
Understand path names
Unexpected attribute values
Data type conversions
Syntax
Command syntax
Delimiters and white space
Expressions, operators and statements
Operator precedence
Blocks
Comments
Differences between expression and MEL syntax
Useful functions
Limit functions
Introduction to limit functions
abs
ceil
floor
clamp
min
max
sign
trunc
Exponential functions
Introduction to exponential functions
exp
log
log10
pow
sqrt
Trigonometric functions
Introduction to trigonometric functions
cos
cosd
sin
sind
tan
tand
acos
acosd
asin
asind
atan
atand
atan2
atan2d
hypot
Vector functions
Introduction to vector functions
angle
cross
dot
mag
rot
unit
Conversion functions
Introduction to conversion functions
deg_to_rad
rad_to_deg
hsv_to_rgb
rgb_to_hsv
Array functions
Introduction to array functions
clear
size
sort
Random number functions
Introduction to random number functions
gauss
noise
dnoise
rand
sphrand
seed
Curve functions
Introduction to curve functions
linstep
smoothstep
hermite
General commands
Introduction to general commands
eval
print
system
FAQ
Tasks
How can I get the names of selected objects?
What is the command for getting the Set Editor?
Why are the extra attributes I added not in the Channel Box?
How can I change the order of extra attributes in the Channel Box?
How can I export selected data to an already opened file?
How can I customize AEnewNonNumericMulti.mel so that I can disable buttons?
How do I make my Qt window work consistently with Maya?
Scripting and syntax
What is the operator for raising to a power?
How can I find out what variables have been declared?
How do I list all global variables?
How can I change an integer to a string?
Can I specify a dynamic matrix?
How do I execute a statement created at runtime?
What is the difference between eval, backquotes, and ()?
How can I stop a MEL script that is running?
Why does a conversion error occur when I am expecting a flag argument to be a float?
Modeling
How can I count polygons?
How can I get the name of a (selected) shape node?
Commands to pick curve on surface
How do I get and set specific UV values on a polygon?
How can I create a closestPointOnSurface node?
How can I get an object’s pivot point in world space?
Animation, dynamics, and rendering
How do I get or set the position along the timeline using MEL?
How to randomize keyframes?
How do I export sets from a Maya file?
How can I select a set of particles?
How do I kill individual particles?
How can I make a list of what objects are connected to what shading groups?
How can I render from within a script?
How do I set the batch render directory in MEL?
What is the command to strip shaders from an object?
Example scripts
Learning from Maya’s own script files
Read animation values from a text file
Particle Collision Boundary
Point Explosion
Testing Added Particle Attributes
Testing Dynamics Events
Dynamics Time Playback
Finding Unshaded Objects
MEL Windows and Editors
Expression Editor
Expression Editor
MEL Profiler
MEL Profiler menu
Launch the MEL Profiler
Generate profiling data
Python
Python in Maya
Using PyMEL
Using Python
Python and threading
Python from an external interpreter
Important differences between MEL and Python
Current limitations
Tips and tricks for scripters new to Python
Maya API Guide
mental ray Manual
Maya documentation archive