CAP 201a - Computer Animation I

Review for First Test

The following questions are provided to help you study for the first test. Do not expect to see these exact questions on the test.

1. When 3DS Max starts up, what are the default views shown in the four viewports?
   
   
2. Assume the Front viewport is currently active. What should you do to select the Left viewport?
   
   
3. To make a new object in 3DS Max, which of the six main control panel tabs should be selected?
   
   
4. To change the properties of an object in 3DS Max, which of the six main control panel tabs should be selected?
   
   
5. Assume you want to change a property for an object. Its current value is 20, and you want the value to be 55. What are three ways to change this value on a field with a spinner control?
   
   
6. 3DS Max does not put text labels on toolbar buttons. How can you tell what a button is for, without looking it up in the textbook or the help system?
   
   
7. What is the keyboard button to switch between wireframe and smooth views of your scene?
   
   
8. For each of the following views, where is a new object actually created when you drag your mouse to create it in that view?
1. Front
2. Top
3. Left



9. What do you click in a viewport to change that port to a different view?
   
   
10. How do you select an object in a scene?
    
    
11. How do you region select several objects in a scene?
    
    
12. What happens when you drag an object while holding a shift key down?
    
    
13. The Material Editor lets you easily work with several materials at once. Name two ways to apply a material to an object.
    
    
14. Draw the icons for the Select button and the Select and Move button on the toolbar.



15. What does the icon on the Quick Render button look like? Where is this button located?
    
    
16. What is the purpose of the Auto Key mode?
    
    
17. What are some of the options you get with the Render Scene button that you do not get with the Quick Render button?
    
    
18. When saving a scene file, what is the default file extension used by 3DS Max 9?
    
    
19. What does the Plus button do in the Save As dialog box? What effect does it have on a file that has no number in its name?
    
    
20. If you wanted to create an image that would scale well without blurring, would you want a raster image or a vector image?
    
    
21. According to the text, what is the frame rate used for movies? What frame rate is used for NTSC television? What frame rate is used for PAL television?
    
    
22. What is a numeric ratio that describes the aspect ratio for a standard television or monitor? What is a commonly used ratio that describes the aspect ratio for a widescreen TV or monitor?
    
    
23. Assume you have connected two objects in a scene in a parent/child hierarchy. Which one can you move that will cause the other to move as well?
    
    
24. What are the three kinds of clones that you can make from a Clone Options dialog box?
    
    
25. Assume you have added an Edit Mesh modifier to an object. What is the advantage to doing this as opposed to converting the object to an Editable Mesh?
    
    
26. Assume you are working with an Editable Mesh. What are three kinds of sub-objects you will have access to? Describe them in terms of each other.
    
    
27. In what order is a modifier stack evaluated by 3DS Max?
    
    
28. What is a selection set?
    
    
29. One of the interesting concepts from chapter 4 was Extrude Along Spline. What can this effect do for you?
    
    
30. The rotate tool and the arc-rotate tool have similar functions, but they are different in a major way. What is it?
    
    
31. In the project that had you create a knob for a chest, what did you create first? What modifier turned the first object into the knob?
    
    
32. In the second part of the lesson on hierarchy, you saw rotation passed down a hierarchy in a bad way. What kind of object did you create to act like a shock absorber for the bad rotation?