Merge and Place Assets as Proxy

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In addition to all the “Merge and Place” functionality, the  “Merge and Place as Proxy” workflow lets you create and merge a proxy of the asset you’re dragging into your scene. To do so:

  1. Select one or multiple assets in Connecter, drag the selection in the viewport of your 3ds Max scene, and release the left mouse button;
  2. Choose the “Merge and Place as Proxy” option in the Integration contextual menu, which will appear. 
  3. Choose the desired options on the “Connecter | Merge as Proxy” dialogue and click the Merge button.
  4. Complete the operation using the same interactions as in the “Merge and Place” workflow.

Select proxy type

The Integration detects the current renderer in the opened 3ds Max scene and automatically suggests the creation of the related proxy time if supported*. You can also select your preferred proxy type from the dropdown. The interface will show you the last-used option when using the workflow next.

*The currently supported proxy types are:

  • V-Ray proxy.
  • Corona proxy.
  • Maxwell.
  • Mental Ray.

Choose where to create the proxy

This option lets you choose where the proxy file will be saved. This “In the merged asset’s folder” option is selected by default. Choose the “In a specific folder” option to browse another folder.

Choose a naming pattern

This section lets you decide how the proxy files must be named. By default, the proxy file takes its name from the related asset filename. In addition, you can use the “Object name” option, which will name the proxy after the object in the asset.

If there are multiple objects in asset, and the “Create a separate proxy from each object” options is selected (see further below for more details), each proxy takes the respective object’s name. If the the option is unselected, one proxy gets created with a name ending with the number of objects (e.g. 4objects)

You can also add a specific prefix or suffix to the proxy name.

proxy_naming.png

Create a new .max file with only the proxy in it

When this option is selected, the integration will create a separate *.max asset with the proxy placed in it. This could be very helpful the next time you want to add the proxy to a scene; you can drag the *.max asset to take advantage of all advanced workflows the Integration offers.   

NOTE: Once a proxy file is created for an asset, you’d typically want to directly use it the next time you want it in your scene rather than creating a new proxy every time. For the best experience, use the “Create a new .max file with only the proxy in it” when creating the proxy for the first time. This way, you’ll have a ready-to-use *.max asset from which you can conveniently add the proxy object with the “Merge and Place” workflow the next time you need it. If you choose not to create a separate *.max asset with the proxy in it, you won’t get all the Integration benefits when using the proxy next, as the workflows it provides are only available when adding *.max or *.mat assets.  

Create a separate proxy from each object

When this option is selected, a separate proxy file gets created for each object or group in each merged asset. For example, suppose you drag a selection of two 3D assets from Connecter and select the “Create a separate proxy from each object” option. In that case, the Integration will create two separate proxy files for each asset. Furthermore, the Integration will create separate proxy files for each object or group within the asset. 

Overwrite existing files

When this option is selected, any already existing proxies or *.max scenes with proxies get replaced with the new ones from the current operation. When the option is not selected, and there is a “same names” conflict between the existing and the new files being created, the naming rules in the “Files numbering” section in Connecter Preferences > Global Settings are automatically applied. 

Merge as Proxy settings

Additional “Merge as Proxy” settings are available to customize the workflow. Click the “Connecter Preferences” option in the right-click contextual menu in the viewport and then click the “Merge as Proxy Settings” button to open its dialogue.