Click the Helpers button, then click the button for the object you want to create.
Either drag or click in a viewport to create the object.
gmax provides options for measuring distances, angles, direction, and object data. Five helper objects create a dummy object, Grid, tape measure, protractor, and point.
Helper objects are located on the Create panel.
To create a helper object:
Click the Helpers button, then click the button for the object you want to create.
Either drag or click in a viewport to create the object.
A Dummy helper object is a wireframe cube with a pivot point at its geometric center. It has a name but no parameters, and cannot be modified. Its only real feature is its pivot, used as a center for transforms. The wireframe acts a reference for transform effects.
To create a dummy object, click Dummy and drag out a cube to any convenient size.
You can use the Grid object as a construction plane on all three orthographic planes in both directions. When you create a Grid object, it automatically activates itself and turns off the home grid. If you create the Grid with the AutoGrid feature on, your new construction plane is on the normal where you created the grid.
To create a Grid:
On the Create panel, click the Helpers button.
Click Grid, and toggle AutoGrid on or off.
Click and drag from the center point where you want to place the grid in the viewport. When you release, the grid is created and the Home Grid, or previous grid, is turned off.
Using 3D snaps, you can create a Tape object by dragging between any two points in 3D space, much like using a physical tape measure. You then read the length on the Parameters rollout.
If you turn on Specify Length, the length field lets you enter a value in current units. This is like locking a tape measure to a set length. You can position the tape object and snap to its ends.
To display length and angle settings, select only the tape end of the object, a small yellow pyramid.
To move the entire tape including its target, a blue cube, select the connecting line.
Two sets of World Space Angles give you current readouts to the three world axes (X, Y, Z) and the three world planes (XY, YZ, ZX).
The Protractor object reads angles between pivot points of two objects, measured from the center, and the protractor object.
To use a protractor:
Click to position it as a Protractor object.
On its Parameters rollout, click Pick Object 1 and select an object in your scene. The name of the selected object appears above the pick button. A line connects the protractor to the center of the object.
Repeat for a second object, then read the angle on the rollout.
To move either object while watching the Angle readout, turn on the Pin Stack button in the Modifier Stack rollout. This locks the stack to the Protractor's Parameters rollout.
You can create a Point object with a single click anywhere in 3D space. This dimensionless object lets you identify a position that has no other geometry. You might snap a Point object to a corner or another object, and use the point as one pick for the protractor.