Autodesk here to help

[Alfred.DeFlaminis]

Hello all and welcome to the Autodesk Community Forum! I am Alfred DeFlaminis, a 3ds Max Technical Support Specialist and I am excited to spend the majority of my time right here in the Community to help customers with how-to questions, technical issues, and investigate issues that are brought to the forums.

My experience with 3ds Max goes back to version 4.  During my career, I have been involved 3D art using Max and Maya in industries such as arch and medical visualization, video games, commercials, and learning modules for training.  I’ve also spent about 10 years as a college instructor teaching a range of topics related to art, games, Maya, Max, Udk, math and physics, and game development.  I’ve worked in the field as an FX lead, CG supe, TD (technical director), and finishing artist.  I like lighting and rendering the most when it comes to 3D and I am always looking for ways to improve my workflows.  

When I am not working in the forums, I like to watch zombie flicks, build and fix race cars (currently restoring a run down '98 BMW M3 and my neighbors '72 subaru using a separate e36 M3 engine) and I was on a NASCAR pit crew for about 2.5 years which opened up my eyes to the fun of tinkering with cars.  Also, I’ve been working for a while to perfect a balsamic vinegar reduction that tastes a bit like chocolate (almost there!) and I plan on bottling it and selling it in stores at some point.

I look forward to learning more about you here in the Community and I hope that I can help you to work productively with 3ds Max. 

Best Regards,

AJ

[Alfred.DeFlaminis]

I’d like to tell you a bit about my process here in the forums.  I get a lot of volume here and in order to keep things manageable, I tend to follow a routine.  There are a few methods I try to live by, and I’ll share them with you here.

• You are all very important to me. Whether you are a big company or an individual, I treat all people equally. It can sometimes take me a little while to answer your new posts, but I am working my way there. You are not being ignored if I don’t reply to a new thread the same day, please remember that. If you have a paid support package, you should submit your tickets that way as you will get a reply faster.  
  
  
• You can use an “@” symbol followed by Alfred.DeFlaminis to alert me to a thread or post in the case of emergency or immediate need. You should see my name come up by the time you type @Alfred.De and then you can just click the name to autocomplete. This is what it will look like if done correctly:  @Alfred.DeFlaminis.  I will get an email if my name is used in a thread in this way. Please don’t abuse this, if you are constantly cutting the line I’ll have to politely refuse at some point.
  
  
• I am not able to handle cases via private message. The private messages are for when you need to talk privately with me, have an emergency, or to reply to a PM I’ve sent you. Thank you very much for your understanding here.
  
  
• I now have access to TeamViewer so if you need to connect with me privately for a TeamViewer session that is possible.  This allows me to see your screen and offer 1st person support.  
  
  
• I make a task in Outlook for every thread I post in. I do this so I have a record of those posts and so I can follow up on my posts if needed. That follow up should come within 24 hours, but sometimes takes longer if I have many messages in my inbox in the a.m. 
  
  
• Some cases get escalated by other members of the community forums or technical support to my queue.  I do answer these posts after I do my inbox replies for the day.  
  
  
• I move threads about installation and licensing issues to the I&L forum when I see them.  I check the front page in the a.m. if possible so I can move those threads.  I may occasionally answer any quick and easy or really important/critical threads on page 1 or 2 during this time if I see them.  

• Everyone makes mistakes. I read hundreds of messages a day and sometimes I may not properly understand your issue. Please just let me know if I’m not understanding the issue, I won’t get defensive. Thank you for doing so.  I really want to help you in any way I possibly can.
  
  
• If you find a defect, I will happily log it if details are provided or you can use the Report a Defect. I often need a file or repro steps so that the issue can be properly investigated by QA. If I submit a defect report to QA without these things, it’s likely that they won’t be able to repro the issue.  If you cannot repro it consistently, a Screencast recording can also work, and thank you. 
  
  
• I cannot reveal timing of defect fixes, release dates or contents of service packs or updates, or discuss timetables of development. I know these are things that many people want information about, but I simply cannot discuss them. Thank you for your understanding.
  
  
• If you need a private folder created so that your files remain confidential while I help you, I am happy to do that. Feel free to check out the Support Terms and Conditions for more information. We use Box for these folders, and please make sure to use at least an 8 character password when creating a Box folder for the first time or there may be technical issues.  Please comment in the thread when you have uploaded as I may not notice it otherwise.  Thank you. 

I look forward to helping you in the forums and thanks for reading this far!

Best Regards,