User Properties

The Shockwave 3D^* Scene Export Options control how the data will be exported from 3ds max 4^* at the scene level. Object-level control over the exported data is attained by using special keywords in the pre-node User Property data, which can be assigned to models in 3ds max 4. There are also some reserved user properties recognized by the exporter that will automatically trigger particular behaviors. These latter keywords are stored in the Shockwave 3D file for later use by your scripts in Director^*.

Setting User Properties:

User properties may be set by the following process:

Select a model in 3ds max 4.

Right-click the model and open the Properties dialog.

Select the User Defined tab.

In the text box, type the user property name and value.

User Property Syntax

User properties are specified as property name and property value pairs. Property names are associated with property values with the equal (=) sign. Property values are terminated with a semicolon (;). Property names are alphanumeric, starting with an alpha character. No spaces are allowed between the user property and the equal (=) sign, and between the equal (=) sign and the start of the property value.

There is no limit to the number of user properties. Currently, property values are restricted to 512 characters.

Syntax Examples:

MyProperty1=A Monster called Fred;
CharacterLifeForce=10 units;
sw3d_lod_adjust_normals=true;

Reserved User Properties

The following user property names are reserved by Shockwave 3D and trigger the following described behaviors when the .w3d file is loaded into Director. The exporter should be used to assign these properties to a model and programmatically implement them at export.

Note: All strings starting with "sw3d_" are reserved for future use by user properties in Shockwave 3D.

Property Value Default Description

sw3d_stream_priority [Unsigned Integer: 0...256] 256 Specifies the relative stream priority of a model and any textures used by the model (0 indicating the highest priority, with larger numbers indicating a lower priority). By default, texture priorities are set to 4 times the model priority.
Note: Priority 0 denotes inclusion in the initial Load Segment.

sw3d_texture_stream_priority [Unsigned Integer: 0...1024] 1024 Specifies the relative stream priority of a texture. This control allows you to override the priority given a texture after setting the sw3d_stream_priority user property on a model that uses the texture.
Note: Priority 0 denotes inclusion in the initial Load Segment.

sw3d_visibility

front/back/
none/
both

front

Controls initial visibility of a model.
Note: If set to none the model is streamed but not initially visible. A Lingo programmer may make the model visible later by setting model(1).visibility=#front

sw3d_lod_adjust_normals true/false true When true, creates new normals to track the new surface curvature as a model is simplified.
When false, uses normals from original model and generates no additional normals to track the simplified surfaces.
Note: When sw3d_lod_adjust_normals is set to true, the new normals are calculated according to the values of sw3d_lod_minimum_crease_angle and sw3d_lod_max_normal_error.
Hint: Set this value to false to obtain the smallest file size.

sw3d_lod_minimum_crease_angle Integer value in 10ths of a degree 750 (75.0 degrees Sets crease angle value. As an object is simplified the angles between the surfaces change. When the angles exceed this value, a hard edge is formed by introducing separate normals for each surface.
A small value results in a more faceted, chunky model. A large value results in a more realistic, smoother model with occasional shading errors.
Note: This is only used when sw3d_lod_adjust_normals is set to true.
Hint: The default value seems to work well for most models, so you probably won't need to change it.

sw3d_lod_max_normal_error Integer value in 10ths of a degree 1350 (135.0 degrees Trades off file size for lighting quality. Large values result in smaller files with more lighting errors. Small values result in larger files with better lighting through the generation of additional normals.
Note: This used only when sw3d_lod_adjust_normals is set to true.

Grouping

User properties on objects within a group don't export. Only properties set on the group will export. If you want to retain multiple user properties on exported objects, instead of grouping use linking. User properties on the linked objects will export.

Property	Value	Default	Description
sw3d_stream_priority	[Unsigned Integer: 0...256]	256	Specifies the relative stream priority of a model and any textures used by the model (0 indicating the highest priority, with larger numbers indicating a lower priority). By default, texture priorities are set to 4 times the model priority. Note: Priority 0 denotes inclusion in the initial Load Segment.
sw3d_texture_stream_priority	[Unsigned Integer: 0...1024]	1024	Specifies the relative stream priority of a texture. This control allows you to override the priority given a texture after setting the sw3d_stream_priority user property on a model that uses the texture. Note: Priority 0 denotes inclusion in the initial Load Segment.
sw3d_visibility	front/back/ none/ both	front	Controls initial visibility of a model. Note: If set to none the model is streamed but not initially visible. A Lingo programmer may make the model visible later by setting model(1).visibility=#front
sw3d_lod_adjust_normals	true/false	true	When true, creates new normals to track the new surface curvature as a model is simplified. When false, uses normals from original model and generates no additional normals to track the simplified surfaces. Note: When sw3d_lod_adjust_normals is set to true, the new normals are calculated according to the values of sw3d_lod_minimum_crease_angle and sw3d_lod_max_normal_error. Hint: Set this value to false to obtain the smallest file size.
sw3d_lod_minimum_crease_angle	Integer value in 10ths of a degree	750 (75.0 degrees	Sets crease angle value. As an object is simplified the angles between the surfaces change. When the angles exceed this value, a hard edge is formed by introducing separate normals for each surface. A small value results in a more faceted, chunky model. A large value results in a more realistic, smoother model with occasional shading errors. Note: This is only used when sw3d_lod_adjust_normals is set to true. Hint: The default value seems to work well for most models, so you probably won't need to change it.
sw3d_lod_max_normal_error	Integer value in 10ths of a degree	1350 (135.0 degrees	Trades off file size for lighting quality. Large values result in smaller files with more lighting errors. Small values result in larger files with better lighting through the generation of additional normals. Note: This used only when sw3d_lod_adjust_normals is set to true.