Synopsis:
A command line renderer for 3DS Max R3 that doesn't require a dongle to render frames.  Supports odd frame ranges like 1,4,5-8.  Also supports rendering of Video Post queues.

Motivation:
We needed a simple way to run max rendering with scripts and we also needed a way to pick up odd selections of dropped frames.  I also wanted to be able to render test frames while developing shaders without having to start up max, load a file, click render, etc.  Now I just create a script to render the desired frame(s) and use that to make the test frames.

Installation:
This is an exe file, so it can be run from anywhere - however, you may have to explicitly specify the path to max.

Usage:
MaxRender filename [-f [framerange]] [-k num] [-v] [-m maxpath][-h] [-q[!]] [-d] [-r[!]]

    -f [framerange]     Frame Range, ie: "1,3,5-12". Default: 0
    -k [num]            Maximum number of frames to render before restarting max. Default: Don't restart.
    -v                  Render video post. Default: Don't render video post.
    -m                  Path to 3dsmax.exe. Default: "."
    -h                  Show usage, ie. this text.
    -q                  Run in "quiet" mode:  Error messages only.
    -q!                 Run in "silent" mode:  No messages at all.
    -d                  Output debug messages.  This can be overridden by -q.
    -r                  Output Job report before rendering.
    -r!                 Output Job report only.  Don't do any rendering.

example:  >MaxRender d:/3dsmax/scenes/test.max -m d:/3dsmax/ -f 0-29

This will render frames 0 through 29 of max scene file, "test.max."  This command line tells MaxRender that max is installed in my d:\3dsmax directory, and the scene file is in max's scenes directory.

To Be Done:

General:
The usual disclaimers apply - Blur studio cannot support or guarantee this thing in any way. Its gratis - enjoy. If you have any comments or questions, direct them to blurbeta@blur.com - If we have the time, we'll do what we can.  See also:  the license agreement. our generic readme, this current bug list.

You may not distribute this without permission from blur studio.

If you use it, your company has cool T-Shirts, and your looking for a way to show your gratitude, send a shirt or two to:

R&D at Blur Studio, Inc.
1130 Abbot Kinney Blvd.
Venice, CA 90291

software@blur.com
Scott Kirvan - Blur.

Last Modified : 02/15/00