3DS Max Naming Conventions

[IceAged]

Hi all

 

Whenever i copy objects using clone or array, for example, Max always places a number at the end. So 'wall' will become 'wall01', 'wall02', 'wall03'... Is there any way of disabling this, so that when an object is cloned, the name remains the same? In many cases i find these numbers distracting and quite unecessary for what i am doing.

 

Thanks

[notamondayfan]

so you want to use the same name for several objects? this could become very annoying when you want to select objects using the list.

 

personally id just rename objects when i need to, and keep instances as itterations of the origional.

 

youve also gotta consider how easy it would be for someone else to pick up your projects if someone else took over the project.

[IceAged]

Yes, but often i am creating objects such as groups of window frames which are then cloned several hundred times, resulting in meaningless names like 'window frame transom781'.

I find it far more efficient to organise scenes by using selection sets, groups and layers, rather than rely on each object having it's own individual number, (which become effectively meaningless anyway if i end up deleting some of the earlier objects).

 

I have rarely found these numbers to be of any help, but i cannot find a way of stopping Max from generating them - if indeed there is a way!

[jophus14]

Usually what I do if I have a geometry or a line that has many instances is to apply a material to them, even if it's only temporary, then select by material and finally group that selection of objects. It doesn't get rid of the naming convention, but it keeps everything organized.

[notamondayfan]

y not just use groups and layers then?

[IceAged]

I already use groups, layers, selection sets etc, what i want to know is if there is a way of changing the way Max names copies of objects. If this can't be done, it's no big deal really...

[Verma]

I already use groups, layers, selection sets etc, what i want to know is if there is a way of changing the way Max names copies of objects. If this can't be done, it's no big deal really...

 

Not possible for Shift+Drag copies.

You can however, rename multiple objects to a common name as you want using "Rename Objects" utility found under tools menu.

[Brian Smith]

Thomas,

Be careful creating a scene with so many objects. Unless there is a specific reason why you need things like window frames as separate entities, I highly recommend considering turning all similar objects with similar materials into one object. The reasons are numerous, not the least of which is the extra rendering time. When you first click render, you'll notice that the Render Scene dialog box says "Preparing Objects". This is a process where Max performs numerous steps of analysis on all the separate objects prior to the rendering actually begining. If you have 10 objects in your scene, this process may take up to 10 times longer than if you just had 1 object in your scene. This is dependent on a lot of things such as modifiers in the stack, material applications, # of instances, etc, so it's not always a proportional rate. The point is, when you allow your scene to contain a large number of objects, such as more the 500, chances are you're going to be spending a long time waiting for Max to be "Preparing Objects". Taken to the extreme, you could have a scene of 1000 objects that could take 5 mins to prepare objects and only 1 minute to create the rendering.

 

There are also other reasons that I would never allow scenes to contain this many objects, such as difficulty finding and selecting objects, making changes to objects, difficulty in multiple users understanding the scene, etc.

 

Just something you might want to consider.

[Justin Hunt]

The unique naming system was essensial in the days preceeding the layer manager. Max could not understand objects with the same name. Since the layer manager this has changed yet it is still important factor to consider.

 

Prime example would be when you are excluding objects from lights. If there are two objects called "BOX" but you only want the first box to be illuminated, Max not know which "BOX" to light or not. Test it and see

 

It also comes down to good project managment. Knowing what is what by looking at a list, or someone else knowing what is going one if they wernt the one who did the work.

 

JHV

[IceAged]

Hi all

Thanks to everyone for their response and advice. Justin - you've given a good reason for keeping the names of each object unique.

I should have explained earlier - often i am working with other people's ADT models that usually contain over 1000 objects with similar names. I have to rely on other methods of organising my scenes in Max, (often working in isolation mode to select individual components). Thanks Brian for your advice on lowering render times, nevertheless.

I find Max's way of assigning names relitively cumbersome, with few options for customisation - which is why i started this thread in the hope of either finding a way to disable or modify it.

As it happens you have all given me some good advice on organising scenes - everyone has their own way of working of course, and this is often dictated to by circumstance and the nature of the project.

Thanks all!

[vishesh_12]

well max has no such option for configuring the way it names new objects.

 

what u can do is, you can use the "Rename tool" in max for renaming objects after creating. with this tool, u can rename even hundreds of objects in few seconds. its a very handy tool. very easy to use too

 

Cheers !!!

[IceAged]

Great! Thanks a lot - i never knew that tool existed.

What is good about it is the ability to re-asssign numbers to each object at any time, which is useful since Max does not appear to have the option to dynamically update the object names if you delete previous objects.