Add Object Settings Dialog

The Add Object Settings dialog is described below with functions for how to access it. A list of the controls on the dialog box can be found in the table below.

What It Does

Specifies the settings of the imported object that is being added to the Mari project. This relates primarily to whether selected objects are merged, and how, and how the object mapping is handled.

How to Access It

• Menubar | Objects > Add Object > select object and Open

• Right-click | in Objects Palette > Add Object > select object and Open

• Right-click | object in Objects Palette > Add Child Object > select object and Open

• Button | Objects Palette > > select object and Open

Add Object Settings Dialog Fields

Control	Type	What it does	Notes
Mapping Scheme	dropdown	If there is a UV map available, and you would like to use it, select UV if available, Ptex otherwise. If you prefer to use Ptex, select Force Ptex. This option loads the selected geometry and replaces the existing UV map with a Ptex map.	Only available when choosing .obj, .abc, or .fbx files in the file browser.
Selection Groups	dropdown	Selection groups have two options, to either: • Create From Face Groups - this is the default behavior and allows the use of selection groups in Mari. • Don’t Create - if you choose not to create a selection group, Mari does not create any from the file.	Only available when choosing .obj files in the file browser.
Multiple Geometries Per Object	dropdown	If your .obj consists of multiple geometries, you have the option to Merge Geometries Into One, which is the default behavior, or Create Separate Geometries (Ptex Only). If you select Merge Geometries Into One, Mari combines the individual geometries into a single geometry, while selecting Create Separate Geometries (Ptex Only) creates individual geometries.	Only available when choosing .obj files in the file browser. Even if you select Create Separate Geometries (Ptex Only), Mari only displays a single geometry on the canvas. However, when you export a channel you have the option to export individual .ptx files for each geometry.
Merge Type	dropdown	For Ptex files, there are two choices for the geometry mesh options: • Separate Meshes - creates only one object with one geometry. • Single Mesh - creates only one object, but has multiple geometries within it.	Only available when choosing .ptx files in the file browser. The option Single Mesh is essentially the inverse of the Ptex channel export process, and allows project reconstruction.
Merge Type	dropdown	Choose whether to merge selected items from the object hierarchy tree as: • Single Mesh - merges selected geometry into one single mesh in a GeoEntity. Note that this implies that the information about the original geometries cannot be accessed once the merge is done. • Just Merge Nodes - merges selected geometry into one GeoEntity while retaining the metadata and mesh information about the original individual geometries. Note, this information can only be accessed by more technical users using the C API.	Only available when choosing .abc or .fbx files in the file browser.
Take	dropdown, information	If an object has been exported with animation takes, the takes are shown in the dropdown menu. Otherwise, information regarding the only take available is shown.	Only available when choosing .fbx files in the file browser. When adding an object with animation takes, the take can only be selected on import and cannot be changed at a later point.
Scene	information	In the object hierarchy, shows all the objects, cameras, and lights that are part of the Alembic file.	Only available when choosing .abc or .fbx files in the file browser.
Merge	checkbox	Select the checkbox to determine if a geometry is to be merged with another on project creation.	Only available when choosing .abc or .fbx files in the file browser. For more information on merging Alembic or FBX geometry, see Creating a New Project with Alembic and FBX Files
Start Frame and End Frame	text field	Set the frame range from the source file to import.	Only available when choosing .obj, .abc, and .fbx file sequences in the file browser.
Single Frame	button	Sets the start and end frame fields to only import the first frame from the animation in the object file.	Only available when choosing .obj, .abc, and .fbx file sequences in the file browser.
All Frames	button	Sets the start and end frame fields to import the entire animation from the object file.	Only available when choosing .obj, .abc, and .fbx file sequences in the file browser.
Frame Offset	text field	Set by how many frames to offset the loading of an animated object. You can specify a frame range, or simply a number of frames.	Only available when choosing .abc files in the file browser.
Ok	button	Accepts the object settings and imports the selected objects.
Cancel	button	Cancels the object import and closes the Add Object Settings dialog.