Question for non coders - What would you want to build with Maxscript?
polycounter lvl 6
I'm trying to put together a MAXSCRIPT course as I used to be a 3D Modeler turned coder and think 3D artists can really benefit from learning some scripting.
Some ideas:
- Clean up large files (REVIT / BIM)
- Object advanced Arrays / Scatter / Painter
- Camera Rig Creator
- Creating a script installer
- Download & Import Sketchfab models
- Download API Data (i.e. Crypto prices) and animate a curve based on that data.
What kind of things do you think artists would be interesting in coding?
Replies
maybe a silly question but since it's 2022 maybe it's better to focus on python?
the API is functional now (albeit very poorly documented) and its a few orders of magnitude less mental than maxscript
pymxs is a runtime MAXScript wrapper, to know how to use it you have to know how to use MAXScript in the first place - which is also why there's not much documentation per se as you're expected to use the MAXScript documentation (with the exception of scripted plugins, custom attributes, macroscripts, scripted controllers etc which are only possible with MAXScript and not python).
As to the original question, for artists I'd start with randomization - there's a reason there are so many tools from novice coders that randomize stuff, it's usually the first project for many for a good reason - there's always need for that and it makes life so much easier.
thats a fair point. i guess im coming at this from a more general technical art perspective
id be inclined to start with useful stuff. eg. something that instances an object along a spline at fixed distances/number of intervals (using a controller so spline edits are respected ) would be of immediate benefit to most artists and would introduce some useful concepts