Setup

The Meta-Clay->Setup command in the Model module displays information on the active meta-clay system.

You can also view and edit some settings, related to surface smoothness. The system is considered to be active if it or any of its meta-clay elements is selected, or if it is the only system in a scene (selected or not).

Procedure

1. Select a meta-clay system.
2. Choose the Meta-Clay->Setup command.
   
   The Meta-Clay System Settings dialogue box is displayed.
   
3. Modify the parameters as desired.
4. Click Ok to accept the parameters, or cancel to exit the dialogue box.

Parameters

Prefix

Allows you to enter or edit a prefix for a meta-clay system.

Name

Allows you to enter or edit the meta-clay system name.

Wireframe Slice Size

Sets the size of a wireframe slice, which is a subdivision of a SOFTIMAGE unit. The default is 0.5 units. This has a similar effect to the Step value for objects which have geometry.

The smaller the size of the slices, the more refined the surface appears in the Wireframe view. This setting affects the resolution when converting meta-clay systems to polygon mesh objects. Setting the Wireframe Slice value smaller than the default can create very "heavy" polygon mesh objects during conversion.

Rendering Slice Size

Sets the size of a rendering slice, which is a subdivision of a SOFTIMAGE unit. The default is 0.25 units. This has a similar effect to the Step value for objects which have geometry.

The setting for this parameter affects the resolution of the meta-clay object as seen in the Shade view, and the result is related to the size of the selected meta-clay element.

For example, create a meta-clay element and set the Rendering Slice Size to 1.0. The resolution in the Shade view is quite low, and the meta-clay element is probably diamond-shaped. However, if you scale up the meta-clay element, you notice that the resolution improves.

Rendering Slice Size also affects the resolution in the SOFTIMAGE 3D and mental ray renderers. The smaller the size of the slices, the smoother the rendered surface becomes.

The basic formula is: the number of slices in the x, y, or z direction is equal to size of the meta-clay element divided by the Rendering Slice Size. A meta-clay element with a diameter of 3 SOFTIMAGE units in x and a Slice Size of 0.25 has 12 rows of polygons in the x-axis.

Making the Rendering Slice Size too small can consume a large amount of memory, especially with complex meta-clay models. Make sure to test that the model can be rendered on your machine with its available memory. To do this, render at least one frame.

Surface Display

Displays or hides meta-clay element surfaces in the Wireframe view. This option is the same as choosing the Meta-Clay->Turn ON Surfaces and Meta-Clay->Turn OFF Surfaces commands.

Selecting this option lets you see the effect and extent of blending. For example, if this option is selected, two meta-clay elements which are blending appear as one surface in the Wireframe view. If deselected, they appear as two separate meta-clay elements in the Wireframe view.

No. Elements

The number of meta-clay elements in the current meta-clay system.

The following parameters with an asterisk (*) are for the currently computed surface, if any. It can be either a wireframe or shaded surface.

No. Triangles (*)

The number of triangles in the current meta-clay system.

No. Vertices (*)

The number of vertices in the current meta-clay system.

Volume (*)

Displays the meta-clay system volume after the surface is computed.

Surface (*)

Displays the meta-clay system surface area information after the surface is computed.

Last updated 02-apr-1998