File menu > XRef Scenes
Externally referenced scenes, XRef scenes, appear in your current file, but are actually referenced from other .max files. As a result, the source scenes are protected from any modifications you might make to the XRef scenes. Updates or changes made to the source scenes are also updated in the target file once the changes are made and saved to the source file.
XRef scenes allow a team working on a project to have access to each otherÆs work without the risk of changing the files. A modeler can create a setting, a second modeler might create a character. The animator can externally reference the setting as a scene and animate the character in the setting without being able to make changes to the setting. If the setting file is changed, those changes will be reflected in the animatorÆs scene.
XRef scenes do not appear in the Select Objects dialog, the modifier stack, or the Track View. They can be animated in the current file only by using the Bind To Parent function in the XRef Scenes window.
Choosing XRef Scenes from the File menu displays the XRef Scenes dialog.
Procedures
To add an XRef scene:
Choose File > XRef Scenes.
Click the Add button. An Open File dialog appears that lets you locate the .gmax file you wish to reference. A thumbnail display is provided to help you identify your file.
Click Open to bring the XRef scene into your current .gmax scene.
The path and file name of the selected file appears in the XRef Files window.
You can add as many files as you like; each one appears in the XRef Files window.
Make additional choices in the XRef Scene window if you want.
You can affect the display of the XRef scene, making it visible or not, or making objects in the referenced scene appear as bounding boxes. You can ignore the file's lights, cameras, shapes, helpers, or animation. You can control when the file updates, either automatically or on demand. You can have the file enabled or disabled, or you can merge in it completely, severing the XRef relationship and inserting the scene into your current file. You can bind the scene to a Parent object to reposition or animate the XRef scene.
To scale, rotate, or reposition an XRef scene:
Create an object in your current scene to be the parent object.
Choose the XRef scene from the XRef File window.
Click Bind (in the Parent group), and then select the parent object by clicking it in the viewport. The XRef scene jumps to match the pivot point of the parent object.
Transform the parent object. The XRef scene will follow.
This works best if both the parent object and the XRef scene have their pivot points positioned at 0,0,0. You can do this by using Transform Type-In to move the parent object.
If the XRef scene was created a large distance from the origin you can run into a problem. As you try to scale, the XRef scene will move away from the center. To counteract this problem you can create a second dummy object centered over the XRef scene. Then select and link the original dummy object to the centered dummy object. You can then scale the centered dummy and the XRef will not move toward or away from the origin.