Generate group

Turning on any of these options increases the size of the VRML97 file generated by the export process.

Normals

Generates real normals for objects. Some browsers need normals to do smoothing properly. Check this box if you are exporting geometry that uses smoothing groups in 3ds Max, to see the correct shading. Default=off.

Coordinate Interpolators

Exports animation effects that involve actual modifications of the mesh objects, and not just move, rotate, and scale. Examples include modifiers whose parameters can be animated.the Taper, Bend, and Twist modifiers, and space warps. This option can generate large files, because the exporter has to calculate the position of every vertex for this kind of animation.

If your animations aren't exporting correctly, try exporting with this option chosen. An example of animation motion requiring Coordinate Interpolators is a stick figure made up of simple rectangular boxes that have bones Linked to the boxes as a skeleton. Even though these boxes move through space without any noticeable shape morphing, their motion will not be exported without the use of Coordinate Interpolators, because their motion isn't derived from simple transforms. Any animation achieved using the modifier stack or object parameters needs Coordinate Interpolators. This includes animated XForm modifiers.

Certain types of animations are not possible with Coordinate Interpolators; for example, when the mesh being animated changes size between frames. An example of this is animating the number of segments in a sphere. 3ds Max warns you if it detects this type of animation on export.

Indentation

Indents the VRML97 source code so it is easy to read. Default=on.

Export Hidden Objects

Exports hidden objects. Default=off.

Primitives

Exports VRML97 primitives, which reduces the file size because these primitives are described very simply (for example, a sphere is described by its radius). To see how many polygons are in the scene, turn off this box to export 3ds Max primitives, which have an indexed face set for each object. Default=on.

Flip-Book

Exports the scene to multiple files. The sample rate is set in the in the Flip-Book section of the Sample Rates dialog. The file name you specify becomes the base for the sequence of files. For example, if you specify the file name test.wrl, choose one file per animation frame, and have five frames, 3ds Max exports the following:

test.txt contains general info, start/stop times, and number of frames.

test0.wrl through test4.wrl are snapshots of the animation in frames 0 through 4.

Color Per Vertex

Exports the vertex colors of geometry. If this is turned on, the Color Per Vertex Source lets you choose the source of the vertex color.

Polygons Type

Determines how geometric faces are written out as VRML97 IndexedFaceSet nodes.

Ngons

Writes faces with as many edges as possible.

Quads

Writes quadrilateral faces where possible (otherwise triangles).

Triangles

Writes only triangular faces.

Visible Edges

Breaks faces at internal edges that are marked as being visible.

Initial View

Sets the entry camera for the scene and controls what first appears in the browser. If there are no cameras in the scene, the scene appears with a default viewpoint (which may give only a partial view).

All scenes should have at least one camera, so you can control how the scene initially renders. Add more cameras to the scene than you might ordinarily use, so the viewer can switch between cameras if his VRML97 browser allows it. This lets you set up your scene with pre-installed vantage points. Otherwise, if the world is very large, it can overpower the viewer’s system and make navigation difficult. Some browsers animate camera moves, so the extra cameras can make viewing the scene more pleasant.

Initial Navigation Info

Specifies the Navigation Info helper object to use when the world loads in the browser.

Initial Background

Specifies the Background helper object to use when the world loads in the browser.

Initial Fog

Specifies the Fog helper object to use when the world loads in the browser.

Digits of Precision

Sets the number of decimal points used for calculating dimensions. The default of 4 is usually sufficient. Set this number greater than 4 if parts of your world were created 100,000 units away from the center of the scene. Setting the value to 3 reduces the file size.

Show Progress Bar

Gives you the option to view a progress bar as the scene is exported.

Vertex Color Source group

Lets you choose the source for the vertex color when Color Per Vertex is turned on.

Use Max's

Exports the current vertex color of the object defined in the scene.

Calculate on Export

Calculates the diffuse color at the vertices during export, based on the current lighting and the objects’ materials.

Bitmap URL Prefix group

Lets you specify a URL prefix for bitmaps assigned to objects in the scene. You must keep all your texture bitmaps in either the same directory as the WRL file or in one other location, which you specify here. If your maps are stored in other locations, you will have to manually search for the map in the WRL and change its location. Not all browsers will display error messages if the maps aren’t found on the WWW server.

Use Prefix

Enables the prefix mechanism. If this box is turned off, image maps must be in the same location as the WRL file.

Prefix

Adds the prefix you enter here to the names of all assigned bitmaps. The name can be a full URL (beginning with HTTP), or it can be a relative path (a subdirectory of the location of the VRML97 file). For example, if you enter "Maps" for the prefix, when the browser opens a VRML97 file that has a texture map assigned to it, it will look for the subdirectory "Maps." “Maps” must be a directory that is directly under the directory where the VRML97 file resides.

Use forward slashes (not backslashes) to enter longer paths; for example: Myfiles/maps.

Sample Rate

Displays a dialog that lets you specify sample rates for controller-based and coordinate-interpolated animation, as well as the Flip-Book output rates. Setting sample rates lets you trade off between animation fidelity and file size. The default values give good results in most cases. For the greatest animation precision, use a lower number (a higher sampling rate).

World Info

Lets you enter information about the world. This has no effect on the visual appearance or behavior of the world. Some browsers can display what you enter in the Title field, for example, in the browser window’s title bar. You can use the Info field to provide author, version, and copyright information.