1) No (but your question might need to be reworded) and it can.
2) "The grid is god" - Ut3 level designer.
3) Yes. And yes. Try pressing the "R" key a bunch of times, and see what changes.

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1)
Let's say we have a room, and I import a lamp, but when we import it, it is bigger than a room. So we pick scale tool and make it as big as it'd usually be. When you apply the mapping, does the mapping apply to the current sizue or the one which was imported (because the imported sizes of object do not change, even if you resize it.

How can I change that, because you cannot change dimensions in object properties?

Does the mapping use dimensions of the object from the viewport or it picks up the dimensions in object properties?


2)
I thought the grid is only helper and it doesn't affect anything else, just helps.


3)
This is common resizing. I'd like to resize object to the value I want from it maximum point on axis (in my case z) and resize it proportionaly. There is not problem resizing a box, it is easier to change it's properties, but with complicated object that is no good. What I did so far, was creating an helping object of the size I want next to the object and then scale it until it matched.

The problem is it is not accurate and changing multiple object is time consuming and impossible if you have too much of them.

I want to know if max has function for this, to grab multiple object and scale them to exact number on the axis you pick. Or at least change oone object.

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1)
Is this what you're trying to ask? Your question reworded:
UVW coordinates change while scaling. What OPTION within my "UVW Map" modifier OR Material do i press to make the size of my object NOT effect the texture coordinates.
If this is what you're trying to ask, your answer is:
Under your UVW Map mod: uncheck "Real-World Map Size"
AND/OR!!!!
Under your Material: uncheck "use Real-World Scale"

2)
No. The Gird is god. If you're converting from one app to another, be sure you have the correct setting so they match.

3)
After putting that statement through a super computer, we only got the answer: 42.
We still aren't sure what the question is. I can select and scale what ever I want to any exact amount.... so... I'm not clear on what you're asking.

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3. if all else fails you can work out the math for yourself.

ie, get the current height and the desired height in mm and work out the percentage you need to scale down. Then scale the object globally by that amount.

With a calculator it will take you 20 seconds if not less.

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--Matt

exactly what i do.... i tried the utility which lets you scale the entire scene at one go, but that had some glitches (don't know why).
so did the manual math, and it worked out fine

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Cogito, Ergo Sum

Theres a utility that measures an object so you can find out a models dimensions in cm or whatever. go to "more" in the utilities panel.
as for modelling to scale in max. It can be a confusing subject. The best way to work is to establish a unit scale for the project you are working on, (if not all your projects) I use cm in both system and max units. then when you model say a chair you use guide objects to snap to vertices edges etc.., or measurement tools, or grid points. etc..
utilise snapping and you can get things exact. but personally I think that unless the model is for some engineering requirement if your chair or lamp is a few cm shorter than its real world counterpart you arent going to notice in your renders. if your room is modelled to scale, when you import a lamp model that is as big as a truck scaling it down by eye or snapping it to a precise primitive object is sufficient in most cases.
As for textures not scaling with a model. textures that are in world space or procedural textures such as noise are effected by the scale of the scene but textures that are in object space should stick to your object just fine. there might be certain circumstances where you need to adjust materials to work in a new environment but chances are you will be needing to do that to some degree anyway. as I said the best way to work is to model everything to the same units scale so when you merge object into a new project they are already the right size. having a library of objects that are modelled to scale is a great time saver when you are putting together a scene. and modelling to scale can help when it comes to lighting values and stuff like reactor dynamics simulations aswell.

Another point is that often when you scale an object you need to run a reset xform on it to bake down the transform information. one example of this problem happens when you scale an object to make it longer then try to bend it with a bend modifier. the bend is calculated before the scale so the result is not what you would expect. if you reset the xform after scaling the bend works. That problem can cause all sorts of issues so I'll often reset the transform just to be sure.

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Thank you all!

Xform is amazing.

I'll give simple example for 3rd question.

We have a box x=30cm, y=40cm, z=50cm

Now I want that box fit inbetween two boexes and i know the space inbetween is 134cm.

I could do that manually with calculator, but I'd like to know if max offeres function for that.

So the result would be x=134cm, y= 187.7cm z=223.3cm

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And the snap tool wouldn't be an option....? meh. I'm still not clear.
Glad it worked out.

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Any numerical field in max can be a little calculator if you click into a field press ctrl+n to bring up the numerical expression evaluator. type your expression then hit paste.
or the maxscript listener is a calculator at your fingertips in the bottom left of the screen. type and expression then enter.

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The XForm is a real joker

Here's the thing.


If I open my file, then isolate object, ungroup it:

If I select single part, apply XForm, nothing happens.

But if I have all the parts selected the XForm resizes parts to it's original values. The result is like you never scaled.

The trick is, to then resize to the dimensions you want and hit XForm. That time it works.

But it seems random, sometimes it work and sometimes it doesn't. I know there's an explanation to that but at the moment looks like it want's to piss me off. The max isn't that good, is it?

The function just keeps resizing to it's original values. Sometimes if I select part of the ungouped object it works, sometimes it doesn't.

I really don't have time play with that randomness and my multiple objects.

Any other ideas maybe?

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I learned XForm, and what it does is to reset translations. So If I scale, XForm will reset translation and I'll get the original object. Result is simillar to undo, so it's sonfusing and sometimes the result is as you expected on the box and that why results may seem random.

That is found in max's help:

"Use the Reset XForm (Transform) utility to push object rotation and scaling values onto the modifier stack and align object pivot points and bounding boxes with the World coordinate system. Reset XForm removes all Rotation and Scale values from selected objects and places those transforms in an XForm modifier."

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Groups are really just like linking a set of objects to a dummy object, a parent object that is used to transform the rest of the group. I think you get strange results when using groups because objects inherit transforms from their parent objects. For example. the finger bones on a character inherit their rotation from the hand bone so when you are dealing directly with the x,y,z values in trackview you need to freeze the rotation controllers on the bones and apply controllers to a new listed rotation controller. Generally i prefer to link things to a dummy or attach things together as elements in a mesh over using groups, but thats just me.

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Is it possible to merge 2 objects together, so the result would be 1 object?

If I make a group, a marign is seen, because you get two differenet wrappings. I want to look it like one object and apply texture on it, so the marging won't be seen.

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You can make them all one object by attaching them together in editable poly. but you can add a uvw map modifier to all the objects at once to get the same mapping stretched around everything.

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