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Problem: drag bitmap from pc and drop it on object in 3ds max

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Message 1 of 23
3dgames4u
9742 Views, 22 Replies

Problem: drag bitmap from pc and drop it on object in 3ds max

It used to work 2 days ago. When ever I dragged any texture (BMP JPG etc.)from my computer into 3ds max I could drop it on the object. Then the object would adopt the new texture as it's new material.

 

This is very sad. It dont work anymore. I know I am noob and its a fact. I must have selected or deselected a fumction which causes the problem. 

 

Please tell me what I done wrong.

 

Thanks in advance for your time and help.

 

22 REPLIES 22
Message 2 of 23
RobH2
in reply to: 3dgames4u

What I would say is to change the way you work just a little bit. While you are supposed to be able to drag an image in like that it's really not the best way to assign a texture to an object.

 

The right way to do it is to use the Material Editor. I don't know if you are using Mental Ray, the standard render engine or VRay but it's the same for all.

 

1. Create a new material

2. Click on the box next to the Diffuse  or Diffuse Color channel.

3. Go to the Maps section and choose "Bitmap" by double clicking on it.

4. Now, navigate to your image or file on your Desktop or in your folder and double click it.

5. It will now wt in the material under 'Bitmap Parameters'

6. Drag the preview Sphere onto your object and it will have the map on it.

 

Now, here is where you can drag a new bitmap to use. Simply drag a new bitmap to the "Bitmap" box under "Bitmap Parameters" and it will replace the one that was there.

 

Although you "can" drag a file from the desktop directly to an object in Max, it's not a good way to operate. Just don't do it that way as it causes problems as you can see. Just do it the way I outline and you'll be good to go I think.

 


Rob Holmes

EESignature

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3ds Max (2022-2024.2), V-Ray 6.2, Ryzen 9 3950-X Processor, DDR 4 128MB, Gigabyte Aorus X570 Master motherboard, Sabrent Rocket NVMe 4.0 M.2 drives, NVidia RTX 4090, Space Pilot Pro, Windows 11 Pro x64, Tri-Monitor, Cintiq 13HD, Windows 11 x64
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Message 3 of 23
3dgames4u
in reply to: RobH2

RobH2@ It seems working, your theory on step 1 to 6. Thanks but I still do whish to activate the drag & drop function, It saves lots of time when you are just experimenting with textures.

 

 

I remember this drag and drop function was disabled after I used morpher. Any possibilty to switch it on again without re installing the entire program?

 

 

Now, here is where you can drag a new bitmap to use. Simply drag a new bitmap to the "Bitmap" box under "Bitmap Parameters" and it will replace the one that was there.

 Where is this bitmap parameter supposed to be? 

Message 4 of 23
RobH2
in reply to: 3dgames4u

I understand the convenience of quickly dragging a map on to an object. But, no matter how much time it saves, if it's not the right way to do it then you aren't gaining anything. I have no idea why Morpher would disable that functionality. It sounds like it could be a Windows issue or conflict. Have you rebooted and tried again?

 

The "Bitmap Parameters" is here:

 

1. Look at an A&D material slot. Under 'Main Material Parameters' you'll have 'Diffuse'

2. Next to 'Diffuse Level' you'll see 'Color', a color swatch and gray square.

3. Click the gray square

4. The 'Material/Map Browser' will open and under the 'Maps/Standard' section choose 'Bitmap.'

5. You can navigate to your folder of images or just hit 'Cancel'. Hitting 'Cancel' dumps you in 'Bitmap Parameters'

6. Under that you'll see 'Bitmap' and a bar labeled 'None.' That's where you can now drag your images. Click it to navigate to an image.

7. Now drag the sample sphere to your object. There is a little icon you have to hit so the map shows up on the object. It's up under the row titled 'Tramsmittance.' Look for a little checkerboard with a yellow light bulb in the lower right corner. Click that.

 

Now that the material is assigned to the object, each time your drag a photo to the slot that was labeled 'None' (but now lists the path to an image) it will change.

 

Beyond that, go through the 'Help' file. It's really good in regards to showing you how to put a material on an object.

 

As to getting your original drop and drag workflow going again, I can't tell you what to do. It's not the right way to be doing it in my opinion and since you are a newbie, this is the perfect time to "unlearn" bad habits before they get too ingrained. What you want to do in my opinion is a "bad habit" no matter how time saving it might seem.

 

 

 


Rob Holmes

EESignature

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3ds Max (2022-2024.2), V-Ray 6.2, Ryzen 9 3950-X Processor, DDR 4 128MB, Gigabyte Aorus X570 Master motherboard, Sabrent Rocket NVMe 4.0 M.2 drives, NVidia RTX 4090, Space Pilot Pro, Windows 11 Pro x64, Tri-Monitor, Cintiq 13HD, Windows 11 x64
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Message 5 of 23
blakestone
in reply to: 3dgames4u

I was not aware that you could drag'n drop texture files directly onto an object a quick test and you can, cool! In my instance I had an object which had 5 Material ID's each linked to a different texture, dragging and dropping replaced all 5 textures, something to be aware of. I also had a "Skin" modifier in the stack and also added the "Morpher" modifier and was still able to drag'n drop textures onto the object.

What I suggest is merging all your data into a new max file and give it a try:

1. Reset your scene : File > Reset
2. Merge your scene : File > Import > Merge
3. Select all objects in the list to merge them all into the new scene
4. Save scene : File > Save

Now try drag'n dropping textures and see how you go.

 

Note: I totally agree RobH2... this is not the best way to work with 3ds Max and would recommend following his steps and checking the Help Flie

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Technical 3D Graphic Artist
Autodesk 3dsMax 2015 - Service Pack 4
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Message 6 of 23
RobH2
in reply to: 3dgames4u

I like the way you are thinking about this blakestone. It could be file corruption if a Windows reboot did not solve it. I will have to say that the newer versions of Max are less and less prone to corruption. Much less than versions 5, 6 and 7 were.

 

I hope this solves the issue. Good thinking.

 

Other than that, I don't know of any switch in Max that turns drop and drag, on or off. So it don't think something was switched off in Max that began to disallow it.


Rob Holmes

EESignature

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3ds Max (2022-2024.2), V-Ray 6.2, Ryzen 9 3950-X Processor, DDR 4 128MB, Gigabyte Aorus X570 Master motherboard, Sabrent Rocket NVMe 4.0 M.2 drives, NVidia RTX 4090, Space Pilot Pro, Windows 11 Pro x64, Tri-Monitor, Cintiq 13HD, Windows 11 x64
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Message 7 of 23
AdrianWise8371
in reply to: RobH2

having looked at your problem the only way i can replicate the no entry icon on drag and drop is when i have an active dialog box or window open [not all open window types prevent the drag and drop].

 

it will allow me to attempt to drop and invalid file type [zip file] on the geometry but obviously doesnt apply it as a material.  even if i remove the uvw from the mesh it will still allow me to drop jpg on the mesh and create the material, it just wont render without uv's

Message 8 of 23
thatweirdguy
in reply to: 3dgames4u

I believe once apply "Run as Adminstrator" to 3dsmax you loose the ability to drag bitmap,models, max scenes e.t.c into 3dsmax interface.

Remove this setting to get back this feature, but this sometimes prevents some features from working properly e.g. Resource Collector

Message 9 of 23
Steve_Curley
in reply to: thatweirdguy

Installation advice is to install (RunAs) Administrator and to run Max itself at least once, again as Administrator, otherwise certain things don't get registered properly and normal (LUA) users can't use it. Therefore every (correctly) installed system would fail to work, if what you say is correct.

Max 2016 (SP1/EXT1)
Win7Pro x64 (SP1). i5-3570K @ 4.4GHz, 8Gb Ram, DX11.
nVidia GTX760 (2GB) (Driver 430.86).

Message 10 of 23
thatweirdguy
in reply to: Steve_Curley

Reading my initial post again i realise i wasn't very clear

 

True, you always install as Admin for programs to work properly. But there's also the option of Right click on icon, Click on Properties, Under Compatibility Tab, Privilege level - check "Run this program as adminstrator".


I do this to get Resource Collector to work, but you then loose the ability to drag fom Windows into 3dsmax interface.

 

 

Message 11 of 23
Steve_Curley
in reply to: thatweirdguy

Well, I just tried this 3 ways. Starting Max as normal, by using the right-click "Run As Administrator" and by using the setting on the Compatibility tab.
I have an Explorer looking in the project/sceneassets/images folder. I create a Box, convert to Editable Poly, Polygon level, select a poly, drag an image from the Explorer onto the selected poly. Repeat as many times as I like. Works perfectly every time.
I should say that I'm logged in as Administrator - UAC is disabled here.

There's also the fact that the OP does state this was working and has now stopped, so unless he's been playing with these admin settings something else is causing his problem.

Max 2016 (SP1/EXT1)
Win7Pro x64 (SP1). i5-3570K @ 4.4GHz, 8Gb Ram, DX11.
nVidia GTX760 (2GB) (Driver 430.86).

Message 12 of 23
thatweirdguy
in reply to: Steve_Curley

Wow thanks, when you log in as Administrator dragging files from explorer into Max works everytime

Didn't think using the Administrator account could make such a difference. I had to unhide the Adminstrator account on Windows 8.

 

I would still advice the OP to check the admin settings though

Message 13 of 23
Steve_Curley
in reply to: thatweirdguy

Yes, well, I kind of object to MS forcing me to work the way they want - so I don't. Bit of a sore point you might say.
Anyway, if you can reproduce the problem on a "normal" UAC system (which many will have no choice about using) then I'd say there's a bug somewhere if one way Resource Collector doesn't work and the other way Drag'n'drop doesn't work, but it still leaves the original question open - why did it stop working? I agree he should check, but there could be other reasons.

Max 2016 (SP1/EXT1)
Win7Pro x64 (SP1). i5-3570K @ 4.4GHz, 8Gb Ram, DX11.
nVidia GTX760 (2GB) (Driver 430.86).

Message 14 of 23
thatweirdguy
in reply to: Steve_Curley

 So i went back to carry out a few tests just to be very sure. I'm on Windows 8 using a standard User account,3dsmax 2014.

 

So i was wrong about Resource Collector, whether or not you activate "Run this program as an administrator"(Properties=>Compatibility=>Privilege Level) Resource Collector still works.

 

However i still remember Resource collector refusing to collect files on a colleague's system recently, but this was rectified by activating adminstrator privileges for Max.

Also Fumefx always complained at start up about not being able to write to Fumefx.ini unless you turn on admin privileges.

 

Anyways, it appears once you activate admin privileges for Max on standard User Account, you can't drag files into Max .

 

If you are logged in as Administrator, however, you won't experience any of the problems mentioned above

 

Of course this still doesn't resolve the OP's problem

 

 

 

 

 

Message 15 of 23
3dgames4u
in reply to: thatweirdguy

Guys I reinstalled 3dsmax. And the problem is gone.  But now I dont dare to replace maps of objects when I am in morpher mode. That's when the problem started. Or shall I give at a go?

 

The system is windows 8.1 32xbit  86x

software 3ds max 2013.

 

Shall I give it another try to replace texture with drag and drop  when I am in morphing mode of a human face? Or will the annoying bug come back? It did not go away even with reset.  And you know it's a waste of time reinstalling it over and over again.

 

 

All of you thank you for your help. I am trying to give you guys thumbs up but the kudos thing dont work. 

 

Note I have windows 8.1 32bit x86. Could that be the cause? Upgrading to windows 8 is a big mistake, but if it causes stupid bugs in other programs then I should downgrade to 7.

Message 16 of 23
3dgames4u
in reply to: Steve_Curley

Steve_Curley@ I see you are staff right? If you have the same system as me I am 100% sure you will face the  problem I did.

 

Please try the following and confirm its a bug in 3ds max or a problem in windows 8

1 create or open different human faces for morpher.

2 Once in morpher if you have added a couple of keys ( eyes blinking, smiling etc.) to the face 

3 test the face the morphing thing went well.

4 Now drag any texture map from your PC and try to drop it on the face

 

5 You will see the drag and drop function dont works. Now Either reset or restart 3ds max.

6 create or load anything the drag and drop function of texture will not work anymore on anything.

Message 17 of 23
Steve_Curley
in reply to: 3dgames4u

No, I am not Staff. I'm a moderator only - I don't work for Autodesk. Apart from that I'm just another member here.

Max 2016 (SP1/EXT1)
Win7Pro x64 (SP1). i5-3570K @ 4.4GHz, 8Gb Ram, DX11.
nVidia GTX760 (2GB) (Driver 430.86).

Message 18 of 23
3dgames4u
in reply to: Steve_Curley

Sorry. But at least do what I done then I belive you will see that the drag and drop function of texture maps fails. Not even reset works. You have to reinstall it.

 

Why I think for me the drag and drop function is more usefull then the normal way. Cause I try making models for games not for video's. And the cheap game engines I use import the models without textures, the textures you have to import seprate in the game engine.

 

Since you are a moderator I have some complains of this forum:

1 You cant quote people's posts in your reply

2 You cant give thums up kudo's to people

3 You are not able to reply to multiple in one post. Edit it seems working

 

 

Message 19 of 23
Steve_Curley
in reply to: 3dgames4u

If I find the time I will, bearing in mind that I have to create a suitable object, with morphs (with which I'm not overly familiar), properly UV'd before I can even start to play with Drag'n'drop (which I never normally use - I do it though the Material Editor).

When you reply there's a button, above and to the right of where you type your message which says "Quote" (next to the Macros listbox). That will insert the post to which you're replying as a Quote block, and the Kudos do work - I just got 2 from you.

There's a proper place for site issues - the Website Support Forum. Better to post site issues there (rather than in normal threads where they may get missed) as that forum is monitored by those who administer the forums - there may be issues over which I have no control and cannot answer.


Max 2016 (SP1/EXT1)
Win7Pro x64 (SP1). i5-3570K @ 4.4GHz, 8Gb Ram, DX11.
nVidia GTX760 (2GB) (Driver 430.86).

Message 20 of 23
daniel
in reply to: Steve_Curley

Using Windows 8 here, when starting Max as Admin i am not able to drag and drop files to Max, this is a Windows behavior. Some kind of security thing, you are not allowed to paste stuff from an non Admin programm towards an programm with admin rights. This is normal and no bug 🙂

 

Only problem running Max without elevated permissions is writing to the rayhost file, but by moving it out of the program directory and back, this thing is fixed too.

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