Main toolbar > Material/Map Navigator
Select a Light object. > Projector Map group (This is either in the light-specific Parameters rollout, or for Omni lights, in a Projector Parameters rollout.) > Click Map button.
The gmax Material/Map Navigator lets you choose a material or map. Its interface is similar to the Asset Browser. The Material/Map Navigator lets you search various resources for materials and maps:
The scene itself
A material library (MAT) file
File systems
The World Wide Web
You can drag a material from the Navigator to an object in the scene. This applies the material to the object.
You can also drag a map in the Navigator to map buttons in the gmax user interface, although you canÆt drag maps into the Material Editor.
See also
Applying a Material to an Object
Applying Multiple Materials to a Single Object
Interface
The Material/Map Navigator contains the following controls:
Resource Pane: The main part of the Material/Map Navigator dialog, on the right-hand side, shows various resources.
If you are browsing the scene or a material library, resources appear as a scrollable list of materials and maps. The list indicates a material with a blue sphere, and indicates a map with a green parallelogram. When you list both materials and maps, the materials are listed first.
If you are browsing a file system, the pane is split in two: the left shows a file system hierarchy, and the right displays either resource thumbnails or Web pages. The file system and Web navigation controls are identical to those of the Asset Browser.
Pane and controls for browsing file systems and the Web
Note: When Show Map In Viewport is turned on for a map, the Navigator displays its parallelogram icon in red. If Show Map In Viewport is turned on for the entire material, then the materialÆs ball icon is red, and the map icons are displayed in their usual green.
Text entry: This text field is at the upper left, above the sample slot. As you enter a material name in this field, the first matching text item is selected in the list. Press ENTER to select the next matching name, and so on.
For example, if you enter ch when the list includes the material names Cherry Red, Chrome Blue, and Chrome Zinc, Cherry Red is selected first. Press ENTER, and the Chrome Blue is selected. Press ENTER again, and Chrome Zinc is selected.
The search is not case-sensitive.
Sample slot: Below the text-entry field is a single sample slot. When the current selection is a map, this area displays it. You can drag the sample to objects in the scene or to material buttons in the user interface. The sample slot display is interruptable, so you can quickly click from one list item to the next without waiting. In addition, if you complete the display of one sample, then move on to another sample, when you return to the first sample, it displays instantly.
Current selection: This text field above the resource panel shows the name of the currently selected map or material. If there is no selection, it displays "None."
Apply Material to Selected Object: Click to apply the current material to an object selected in the scene. This button is available only when a material is selected.
You can also apply a material to multiple selected objects, or to certain kinds of sub-object selections.
Open gmax Material Editor: Click to display the Material Editor dialog.
Browse From group
The controls in this group choose the source of the resources displayed in the resource pane.
Scene group: Displays materials that are present in the scene. There are three options for displaying scene materials:
Entire: Displays all materials and maps in the scene. This includes materials that are in the Material Editor but not applied to objects, and maps applied as light projections.
Tip: If you drag a material from the Navigator to an object, so the material is never in the Material Editor, and then delete the object, you can recover the material by using the list displayed by Entire.
Selected: Displays only materials applied to currently selected objects.
Applied: Displays only materials applied to objects in the scene. This excludes materials that are in the Material Editor but not applied to objects.
Material Library: Displays the contents of a material library file. When you set this option, the buttons under File become visible (see below).
In gmax dev, you can also load a library from a MAX file. When browsing from the Material Library in the Material/Map Navigator, click Open, and then choose 3ds max (*.max) from Files of type. Select and load a MAX file. All materials applied in that scene are listed in the Navigator.
File System: Displays a file hierarchy and either resource thumbnails or Web pages. The controls for file system and Web browsing are identical to those for the Asset Browser.
While browsing a file system, the File group disappears, and the Show group is disabled.
Show group
These options filter what is displayed in the list. They are unavailable when browsing from a file system.
Materials: Turns display of materials and sub-materials on or off.
Maps: Turns display of maps on or off.
Either Materials or Maps is always on, and both can be on at the same time.
Root Only: Turns display of maps and sub-materials on or off. When on, the list displays only the top level of a material with bitmaps assigned, or the top level of a multi/sub-object material.
List: Turns display of map and material names on or off.
File group
This button group is displayed when you've chosen Material Library in the Browse From group.
Open: Opens a material library.
Update Scene Materials from Library: Updates materials in the scene with the materials of the same name stored in the library.
When you click Update Scene Materials from Library, the Update Scene Materials dialog is displayed. This dialog lists materials in the library that have the same name as materials in the scene. In the list, select the materials you want to update in the scene, and then click OK.
If no materials exist in the scene that match the names in the library, an alert informs you of this.