Max user wanting to learn maya, need some advice!
Hi everyone!
I will like to learn maya...and keep delaying it for some months now, because every time I "tried" using it I ended up in 3ds max as I am more used to......
the main problem I found is that I work in max using my intuos. I am very used to this workflow, as I find its hell faster & agreeable to work, than by using a mouse. (thats a personal opinion, some people might disagree)
So when I go to maya, by somehow, I find that I work faster using a mouse than a pen... (yeah thats a bit odd), might be the way the navigation is done, I am not sure. Thing is that I still find it really slow compared to the way things work in max, and I will like to start using my intuos in maya as well.
Ok I ll try to keep it short so here are some questions I have:
1) Is it possible to set the same max navigation in maya? If so, is this a good thing? or will you recommend to stick with the default maya settings, and why?
2) I saw there is a plugin by digital raster for maya users that want to use max, but havent found something similar for the inverse..... (maybe someone wrote a script/plugin that does this?)
3) Is there a way to have a "less crowded" ui in maya? I find there is hell of buttons everywhere!
4) Finally how do you deal with shortcuts in maya, in max I have many editable poly functions set to a keyboard shortcut for example. I guess maya will allow me to do this as well?
Thank you very much for your help!!!
I will like to learn maya...and keep delaying it for some months now, because every time I "tried" using it I ended up in 3ds max as I am more used to......
the main problem I found is that I work in max using my intuos. I am very used to this workflow, as I find its hell faster & agreeable to work, than by using a mouse. (thats a personal opinion, some people might disagree)
So when I go to maya, by somehow, I find that I work faster using a mouse than a pen... (yeah thats a bit odd), might be the way the navigation is done, I am not sure. Thing is that I still find it really slow compared to the way things work in max, and I will like to start using my intuos in maya as well.
Ok I ll try to keep it short so here are some questions I have:
1) Is it possible to set the same max navigation in maya? If so, is this a good thing? or will you recommend to stick with the default maya settings, and why?
2) I saw there is a plugin by digital raster for maya users that want to use max, but havent found something similar for the inverse..... (maybe someone wrote a script/plugin that does this?)
3) Is there a way to have a "less crowded" ui in maya? I find there is hell of buttons everywhere!
4) Finally how do you deal with shortcuts in maya, in max I have many editable poly functions set to a keyboard shortcut for example. I guess maya will allow me to do this as well?
Thank you very much for your help!!!
Replies
2) As far as I know this doesn't exist. To be honest keep at it, I don't know many people who've used both apps that don't think Maya's navigation is fine.
3) Most of the stuff dockable/hideable, just move stuff around until you have it how you want it. Ctrl-spacebar will go to expert mode.
4) The shortcut editor in Maya is alot more friendly than the one in max (easy to find the stuff you want, using the "query" and "find" buttons).
3. You can remove pretty much any part of the interface you want. Anywhere you see the double line of dots, you can right click on and choose to uncheck any of the menu bars you don't need.
4. The hotkey system is way better in Maya because it is a universal system, unlike max where you can have a hotkey set to 10 different functions in 10 different modes. You can set hotkeys by going to Window>Settings/Preferences> Hotkey Editor. I went from Maya to Max about 6 months ago, and I was able to keep my hotkeys almost the same across the two programs which made learning it much more intuitive.
The shelf is very useful. I would recommend making a custom shelf, and you can add any action you can do in Maya to a shelf. With a menu, if you hold ctrl shift and left click on the menu function, it will add it to the current shelf. You can also add mel scripts and record common actions just like you can do in MaxScript, though imo it's even easier in Maya. I have all my common actions set to hotkeys, and all my less common actions added as buttons to the shelf.
Almost everything you can do in Max you can do in Maya, though you will miss some of the more useful modifiers. If you need help finding the equivalent function in Maya, feel free to ask and we can point you in the right direction.
yeah I heard that people like maya navigation better than max's, I guess I just need to get use to as you said. And about shortcuts and UI thats really good to know as well! I will take your information in consideration, and go back testing. I think my main problem was to try maya and expect to have right away the same speed/comfortableness I have in max atm, and not taking the time just to explore it.
But yeah I am now wondering about modifiers theres a bunch I like using like bend, FF (2,3,4) , path deform, shell, spherify. I am sure there are some equivalents for those in maya, although if you can help me letting me know the equivalents that will be awesome!
Also if there is any link or additional info you think might help, its welcome as well!
thanks again!
Forward Rocker: Right Click
Backward Rocker: Double Click
But that's useless for Maya because you need three total inputs and using a button for double-clicking is redundant. So I end up making forward Middle Click and backward Right Click (I use middle click more to pan in the graph editor and grab keyframes, so your mileage may vary if you need to zoom more) but the idea is that you imitate a mouse's 3 buttons more accurately. Sorry if this sounds obvious or you already figured it out...
Bend is bend in non-linear deformers
Havent heard of the other two. You can find the deformers under the animation tab.
What matters is the art that you produce - that's what studios hire you for. And as a daily user of both apps, I can assure you that you wont find the equivalent of the modifiers you are looking for. They just dont exist in Maya, or whenever they do, they are way too convoluted.
If you are a level/environment artist, then it might be interesting since the snap tools are very, very good in maya. But for anything relying heavily on pure modelling - I'd say don't bother.
Again, thats just an honest opinion for someone using both apps regularly.
(one advantage that Maya had over Max is that its realtime display of normalmaps is much more in synch with its own generated normals, as opposed to Max, plagued with a bug for years. Seems like its finally fixed in 2011, good stuff.)
And I think it will prepare me as well for any future opportunity involving maya.
I really didnt know what to expect, and how much I should ve change the way I work in max to be able to feel that I am productive in maya. I appreciate your comments because it helps me to be realistic in what to expect.
Indeed modeling and shading (mental ray) are my main concerns for a 3d app. Thanks again, and if there s any more you want to share I ll be glad to listen!
Good luck with it. Dont hesitate to post specific questions here about specific things you are trying to achieve with a given app, it will be answered in no time!
as for path deform in maya, its located under animation tabs. once u swith to animation tabs. goto "animate" on the top toolbar. then go down and click "motion paths". on the side there will be "attach to motion path". after that click "flow path object". itd would best if u click the button beside it. then it will have a new window with settings for the flow path object. make sure lattice around: is set to curve.