|
About exporters
Director 8.5 ships with an exporter for 3D Studio Max 3.1 and Character Studio 2.2. Discreet will provide updated exporters for Max 4.0 and Character Studio 3.x. There are many other vendors who will make their own exporters or importers available for Shockwave 3D, and presumably each will have unique qualities. The following section discusses the functions of the Max exporter. For more detail, see the 3D Studio Max Exporter User Guide in the Translators folder on the Director 8.5 installation CD.
More important than the specifics of any exporter is the workflow plan established between the 3D artist and the Lingo programmer. As stated earlier, the workflow plan involves nomenclature, asset sizes, streaming issues, scene organization, and so on. You may have to revise your workflow plan as you work through a project. Because Director is more than a "game engine," it doesn't involve the traditional relationship between artist and programmer; instead, you can create and assemble art assets in the Director environment—depending on your specific goals, you may be required to do so. This is why reading the "Shockwave 3D Authoring Guidelines" before beginning is essential.
Remember, Shockwave 3D is not built to work like your 3D package (which is more forgiving); by understanding the limitations of what will export successfully to Shockwave 3D, and the features you can implement in Director after export, you will be able to work efficiently and avoid wasted time.
|
