Move object, face, etc. a specific amount

[Anonymous]

Hello,

I'm trying to learn Maya coming from 3DS Max and one thing that I can't find is the ability to move something (object, vertex, face, etc.) a specific amount. In Max I can just right click the move tool and a tooltip with world coordinates and "move amount" will come out (image: http://i.imgur.com/X70kxQz.jpg ). Is there in Maya something like this?

This is a lot useful since as an ArchViz I have to work with real dinstances and the more I am precise, the better.

Thank you.

[bera_kuntal]

Yes U can...

Chek on the Channel Box/Layer Editor

From Display Menu-UI Elements-Channel Box/Layer Editor...

[Anonymous]

Yeah I know about that, but it's not the same thing.

In Max if I want to move something 30 units, I type 30 units even if the object is not at 0,0,0. With that I should instead calculate the sum or the difference instead of typing +30 or -30.

Maybe I miss something instead, not sure, I'm using Maya since a couple of days.

Edit: Ok, I tried your solution and that's simply the object coordinates, what I was asking was different, maybe I wasn't clear though.

[pshwayka]

You could do a quick MEL command to move a relative distance.  For example, with the object selected, if you type:

move -r 2 0 0 in the MEL command field your object will move 2 units in the X direction.

Another way (if you don't care about your transform history) would be to select the object and do a Modify -> Freeze Transformations.  Then any values you enter into the channel box will be relative from your 'zeroed' position.

[Rony_Autodesk]

hi there, I am also a newbie MAya, migrating from 3dsmax. If u want to move the object just like 3Ds max Transform type in u can click this little button just above the shelf

click the little box besides the letter X and set it to 'RELATIVE TRANSFORM'.that works exactly like Max's transform type in.

since I am also a newbie, can I throw in another question from myself?

how do u select both Objects and shift-select another Object's component (let say faces) ?

let say I have 2 objects, 2 Cubes, I want to select the first cube's Object and then shift-select the second's cube's Face.

how do I do that?

thanks 🙂

[Anonymous]

Thanks Rony, that tool works perfectly!

Thank you too, pshwayka, your solutions works too but Rony's option seems easier to use in a daily workflow.

About your question, you have to select the fist object, then right-click (and wait for the menu to pop-out) on the object that you want to select only the face, move the mouse on "face", then shift-click on the face and use the transform tool as asual.

I tried it myself and works.

[Rony_Autodesk]

ah yes, I notice it didnt work on me because I have my modelling tool kit set to AutoActivate.

currently I am happy with all Maya's tool and perhaps soon I dont have to use Max anymore 😛

cheers

[pshwayka]

Curses...I forgot all about that option.  Of course it's the better solution.  Don't mind me...I'll just be here doing things the hard way...

[Rony_Autodesk]

LOL, actually that transform type in tool is rarely used unless we are doing archViz, some of my friends are rather using discrete move to move object around precisely, step by step.

btw may I ask about one thing pal? Since u are a very experienced user, do u know if MAYA had improved its NURBS tool in the past years? 2015 is my first Maya version so I have no idea about the history of NURBS improvement by Autodesk.

as I am using Maya for Architectural design tool, NURBS Somehow is quite important in my workflow. I need Maya power of combining NURBS and Poly as I have endured a gruesome time trying to get Rhino-3dsmax combo to work.

Maya seems like focusing on its poly tool now (in terms of modelling) do u know anything about the future of MAYA NURBS? will it ever get better?

[pshwayka]

My first version of Maya was 2009...and since then, I don't recall them doing too much with the nurbs tools. Rhino has always been the go-to software for that, but I didn't realize it was problematic to use with Max.

Have you considered using Revit?  (Not so much from a nurbs standpoint, but from an Archviz perspective.)  It seems to be dominating the architecture world lately. It's amazing how far that technology has come since my AutoCad on DOS days.  (You know...back before they invented automobiles.) 

[Rony_Autodesk]

hahaha, may I know what do you do buddy? are you working in VFX company? I like Maya so much that I am afraid it will one day removes the NURBS tool completely 😞 the problem with Max is that it cannot read NURBS geometry very well. and I have to invest on sooo many plug in. combo Rhino-Maya so far is the best I think. also rhino is cheap 😜

Revit is popular in architecture because it supports what we call BIM (Building Info Model), that, it is a standard file format if you want your building to get approval from the government, however here I am more concerned about "design" approach, not so much for the "super detail model with pinpoint precision". revit is not very good at sketching stuff out. (also I cant afford too many software, I am not rich... yet :P)

may I know do u use Maya NURBS alot in your workflow? do people working in let say ILM that use MAYA expand the nurbs tool with scripting?

[Anonymous]

I did use Revit for a couple of years at work and it's really good for some things like modular objects and architectural stuff but if you want to do more "pretty" and detailed works you have to use Maya/Max/C4D/etc.

At the end depends on what you want to do, I prefer Max/Maya (and Unreal Engine lately) also for ArchViz.

[pshwayka]

Actually no...I'm not in the VFX industry.  I've mostly done construction related project management over the years. I did quit my day job a few months ago, as the privately owned company I was working for was bought by a huge publicly owned company that imposed a lot of bizarre practices. It has given me a lot of time to study Maya (which has always been a hobby.) Maybe I should work for AD tech support. 

I think the forum user known as damaggio does design work for a Hollywood studio...he may be able to give you some insight into the use of nurbs (or lack thereof.)

[Anifex09]

I used to model everything with nurbs in Maya. I would create profile curves using AutoCad (excellent program for creating precise profiles) - import the profiles into Maya and generate nurbs using the profiles - I modeled engine parts - a kitchen aid mixer - furniture - and anything I could measure - now days nurb surfaces have very little to do with the Entertainment industry so I wouldn't expect much effort to go towards this. Clean quads to be subdivided is the path.

[Rony_Autodesk]

agree, I prefer Maya too. although I am still newbie Maya now finally able to get the grasp of it. (after all the workflow isnt much different from Max for poly and NURBS for rhino). still though the final product I have to export it all to 3dsmax because most of my rendering team use Max.

[Rony_Autodesk]

perhaps I will have to create my own NURBS tool library made in MEL? cuz to be honest NURBS tool in Maya still have rooms for improvement. and learning MEL isnt easy as well I am not used to any scripting language. (which is why I expect the node editor will be improved one day to be more sympathetic to new user like me. I was hoping it would be as easy as grasshopper in Rhino but turns out I am wrong LOL)

Are you good at MEL Scipting Anifex?

somehow this post has turned into Chit Chat group LOL

[Rony_Autodesk]

can I ask a question? what is the difference between Open SubDiv and Maya Catmull for preview mesh?

[Anifex09]

OpenSubDiv is a similar algorithm but with more features such as GPU acceleration - better edge creasing interpolation - OpenSubDIv was mainly developed to improve performance in areas such as animated subdivided characters. Pixar is responsible for many of the tools we use - Incredible minds.