PolyTrans Native Plug-In Installation Instructions for 3ds Max and VIZ ---------------------------------------------------------------------This file describes how to install

the special "PolyTrans-for-3dsMax" native plug-in system directly into 3ds Max or VIZ. This will allow 3ds Max & VIZ users to directly import and export all of the PolyTrans supported 3D file formats from a custom user interface directly inside these programs. This PolyTrans-for-3dsMax native plug-in module (ptio.dlu) is automatically installed into 3ds Max or VIZ by executing the "Okino Plug-ins Super Installer" program, as described below. To move data to/from Maya, install PolyTrans-for-Maya into Autodesk Maya and then convert between 3ds Max and Maya using the Okino .bdf file format. See the section "Moving Data Between Maya and 3ds Max" at the end of this document. Quick Start on Running "PolyTrans for 3dsMax" ============================================ After the "Okino Plug-ins Super Installer" program has installed "ptio.dlu" into the 3ds Max or VIZ "plugins" directory you will most likely follow these steps to run the PolyTrans-for-3dsMax plug-in for the first time: 1) Ensure that you have first installed the stand-alone PolyTrans or NuGraf full installation. If you are running a non-demo version then please enter the serial numbers into the stand-alone program too. 2) Go to the Utility panel section inside 3ds Max or VIZ. 3) Add the "PolyTrans I/O Converters" to the list of Utility panel plug-ins. 4) Click on the "PolyTrans I/O Converters" button in the Utility panel list. 6) It is no longer required that you reboot your computer after the plug-in installation. All of these steps are outlined further below in the "Automatically Installing the PolyTrans-for-3dsMax "ptio.dlu" Plug-in Module" section. Important Notes --------------1) This plug-in module is to be plugged into 3ds Max or VIZ directly. It is NOT to be plugged into Okino's PolyTrans or NuGraf stand-alone software (as do all other Okino plug-in modules). Once you have this module installed, you will be able to access all of Okino's import/export converters via the utility panel. 2) After installing and running PolyTrans-for-3dsMax press the "Help" button on the PolyTrans custom user interface (while inside 3ds Max) to view more detailed runtime and user information about this special version of PolyTrans. Overview -------Okino Computer Graphics has dedicated a significant amount of time since 1995

developing its PolyTrans-for-3dsMax and PolyTrans-for-Maya native plug-in versions of PolyTrans. PolyTrans-for-3dsMax allows 3ds Max and VIZ users to dire ctly import and export all of the Okino supported 3D file formats. This differs from the other plug-in modules Okino develops which plug in to its NuGraf and PolyTrans stand-alone programs. The following instructions describe how to install these two plug-in modules in the 3ds Max 'plugins' directory. Runtime Prerequisites --------------------The following is required to run the PolyTrans-For-3dsMax plugin module: 3ds Max 8.x through to 3ds Max 2012 3ds Max Design 8.x through to 3ds Max 2012 3D Studio Viz 7.0 (2007) and 2008. Okino's PolyTrans or NuGraf, November 2010 release or newer. If you wish to convert native 3ds Max scenes to/from Maya then you will also need: A copy of Maya 8.0 or newer. The PolyTrans-for-Maya native plug-in for Maya. Automatically Installing the PolyTrans-for-3dsMax "ptio.dlu" Plug-in Module --------------------------------------------------------------------------1) To install the PolyTrans-for-3dsMax plug-in module, execute the "Okino Plug-ins Super Installer" program. Your will be asked to confirm the location of 3ds Max on your computer such a s c:\program files\autodesk\3dsmax2012 You will also be asked to confirm the location of Okino's NuGraf or PolyTrans software on your computer. Prior to installing the PolyTrans-for-3dsMax plug-in you must install a full copy of Okino's standalone NuGraf or PolyTrans software. After the location has been confirmed the installer will add the directory path of the NuGraf or PolyTrans home directory to the "PATH" global environment variable (viewable/editable from the Windows "System" control panel applet). This will be necessary so that the PolyTrans-for-Maya plug-in can access all of the Okino vc4_*.dll DLL files located in the main NuGraf or PolyTrans home directory. After the installation has completed the 3ds Max "plugins" directory will contain these extra files: ptio.dlu ptexp.dle ptimp.dli ptio.hlp ptio_max_install.txt PolyTrans-for-3dsMax plug-in module Dummy File/Export plug-in Dummy File/Import plug-in PolyTrans-for-3dsMax online help file This file that you are reading

2) Execute the stand-alone NuGraf or PolyTrans programs and (optionally) exit the program. You should also ensure that the product registration

information has been entered into these stand-alone programs as described in the respective product manuals. Running these stand-alone programs will initialize an environment variable which will tell the PolyTrans-for-3dsMax plug-in where the PolyTrans import/export converter modules are located (in the "vcplugin" directory under the NuGraf or PolyTrans installation directory). 3) Once the ptio.dlu plug-in has been loaded and registered with 3ds Max, runnin g PolyTrans-for-3dsMax is as simple as selecting the "PolyTrans I/O Converters" button from the Utility panel section of 3ds Max. If this button is not visib le then please use the controls on the Utility panel section to select if from the list of potential Utility panel plug-ins. At this point the PolyTrans-for-3ds Max custom user interface will appear. Importing or exporting via PolyTrans is then a matter of clicking on one of the listed file formats shown. To learn more about the usage of PolyTrans-for-3dsMax, press the "Help" button located on the PolyTrans-for-3dsMax user interface dialog box or click on the ptio.hlp file using Microsoft Windows Explorer. Common Mistakes Made During Installation ---------------------------------------Every known end-user installation problem is listed in this online WEB page: http://www.okino.com/faqs_output_dir/4.htm#9 Some of these common installation issues are: 1) The global PATH variable is not set up properly. The Okino plug-ins super installer will change this automatically, and you will not need to reboot your computer. However, if this PATH variable does not point to the main PolyTrans or NuGraf home directory then the 3ds Max plug-in will not work. Also, Microsoft Windows has an internal maximum length to this PATH variable, so you may have to trim it down to be shorter. Go to the "System" control panel and make sure the "PATH" system environment variable contains only a single path to the NuGraf or PolyTrans home directory (not the 3ds Max home directory). This is described further below. If you ever moved NuGraf or PolyTrans to a different directory on your machine in the past then there is a chance that this "PATH" environment variable might have a reference to the old directory rather than the current home directory - change this as necessary. 2) You purchased PolyTrans but installed NuGraf from the CDROM, or you purchased NuGraf and installed PolyTrans. You must install the product you purchased. 3) You did not register the PolyTrans or NuGraf product by entering the stand-alone program and entering the serial numbers into the registration dialog box (available from the Help menu). 4) You /may/ need to reboot your machine after installing the 3ds Max plug-ins, but this should not be necessary if you used the Okino plug-ins super

installer. 5) You may have old demo PolyTrans plug-ins installed into the 3ds Max plug-ins directory. Please replace them with the live working version of the 3ds Max plug-in. All known users have been able to get the 3ds Max plugins to work properly. For further information see the 3ds Max plug-in FAQ available from the general online FAQ manager at www.okino.com. Trouble Shooting The Plug-ins Operation --------------------------------------1) If PolyTrans-for-3dsMax does not show up in the 3ds Max or VIZ Utility panel then the 'Path' environment variable has not been initialized properly. This 'Path' variable is necessary so that Microsoft Windows knows where to locate and load the main Okino DLL modules from (vc4_nu.dll, vc4_imp.dll). If you had placed quotation marks around the path name then try removing these quotes and try again (it has been known to work). 2) You may also be executing 3ds Max from a plug-in modules will not show up because PATH environment variable only available executed from a Windows icon or from the command line. The they depend upon the when the program is Windows START menu.

3) To verify that the Okino plug-ins are loading properly, a special debugging mechanism has been written to display two messages as the plug-ins load and initialize. To enable these messages, edit a file called 'ptio.ini' in the main Microsoft Windows directory). If the file does not exist then create a new file. In this file place the following text exactly: [Default] InstallDebug=1 Then execute 3ds Max (or 3DS VIZ). During loading two message dialog boxes should appear with these messages: 1) "Okino export converter DLL has been loaded" 2) "XX export converters found." where XX is replaced with the actual number of Okino export converter modules found. After the tests have been performed then please delete the following text from ptexp.cfg: [Default] InstallDebug=1 !4) ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Worse comes to worse, copy all of the files that begin with the letters "vc4_" (such as vc4_nu.dll and vc4_imp.dll) from the main PolyTrans or NuGraf directory to the main 3ds Max or VIZ directory. This should always make the 3ds Max plugins function properly. However, you must ensure that these DLL modules get updated in the future as new DLLs are distributed by Okino Computer Graphics. This is highly discouraged, though, because it may lead to crashes further down the line when you update the main files but not the copies.

6) If you are executing 3dsmax.exe from a DOS command line, in Windows then the 3ds Max plugins probably won't work unless you modify the 'PATH' variable in c:\autoexec.bat. ============================================================================= ============================================================================= Okino .bdf "File Transfer Format" Information --------------------------------------------(as copied from the ptio.hlp online PolyTrans-for-3dsMax help file) This section describes the importance of the "Okino .bdf Transfer File Format" to your data translations. This file format is the best way to move between 3ds Max and other 3D packages which read/write the Okino .bdf Transfer File format directly, such as Okino's NuGraf, the Okino stand-alone PolyTrans program, Autodesk 3ds Max or Maya (which has native PolyTrans plugin support). If you don't use these programs then this section will have no bearing on your 3D data translations First, it should be explained how PolyTrans works. An import/export process in PolyTrans proceeds in 2 stages. For export, the data must first be transferred from the internal Autodesk 3ds Max database to the internal PolyTrans database; the PolyTrans internal database is one of the most extensive of any 3D program as it can natively store data from most 3D packages, such as 3ds Max, Lightwave, Softimage, Maya, etc. Once the 3ds Max data has been successfully mapped to equivalent entities inside the PolyTrans database, the selected export converter module (such as the PolyTrans Wavefront OBJ exporter) walks through the PolyTrans internal database and exports the data to its particular file format, in this case Wavefront OBJ. This 2 step process is necessary to make the PolyTrans exporters independent of whatever program they are accepting data from. For an import process, this 2 step process is reversed in such way that the import converters feed data to the PolyTrans internal database, then the PolyTrans internal database is mapped/copied into the 3ds Max internal database. Now that you understand the concept of the PolyTrans internal database, you will understand why the Okino .bdf File Transfer format is significant. In a nutshell, the Okino .bdf File Transfer format is a complete snapshot of the internal PolyTrans database saved to a disk file. Thus, this .bdf file contains the most complete description of the 3ds Max translated database. Now, if two programs cannot be connected together directly (such as Maya and 3ds Max), then the .bdf file format can be used to create a pseudo-data pipeline between the two programs, just as if they were connected directly through the PolyTrans internal database. Why is the .bdf file format important to my data translation work? -----------------------------------------------------------------The Okino .bdf Transfer File format will only have significance to you if you wish to transfer data to/from Maya and one of: . The stand-alone Okino NuGraf software The stand-alone PolyTrans program Maya (which has native PolyTrans plugin support). 3ds Max (which has native PolyTrans plugin support). Or, any 3D program which has native .bdf file support (no others at this time)

Moving Data Between Maya and 3ds Max -----------------------------------------In particular, those with Maya will want to use the .bdf file format at all times to move data to/from Maya and 3ds Max. Okino has developed a native plugin version of PolyTrans for both Maya and 3ds Max. Since 3ds Max can't read/write Maya files, and Maya can't read/write 3ds Max files, the .bdf file format is the best method to cleanly transfer data between these two programs. In essence, the .bdf format forms a conduit or data pipeline between the two programs just as if they were connected directly with the PolyTrans internal database forming the connecting bond. To reiterate, to move Maya data to 3ds Max, stand-alone PolyTrans or NuGraf, export out a .bdf file from Maya then read it into these application programs. Vice versa, a .bdf file can be written out by any of these programs and read into Maya directly. Inside Maya and 3ds Max, the .bdf file is read/written using the special PolyTrans plugin modules for both Maya and 3ds Max.