Well, here we are with a new version of Max, and the first question on the minds of existing users is "Did the interface change?" The answer is a gleeful "not much." Most serious users would rather go through root canal surgery than have their user interface (UI) change, and although Autodesk has learned and respected this valued opinion, you'll find some minor changes.

As you look around the new interface, you'll see that everything is still there but that Max has several clever, new additions. You may find yourself saying, as you navigate the interface, "where did that come from?" But, just like encountering a new house in your neighborhood, over time you'll become accustomed to the addition and might even meet some new friends.

Why is the software interface so important? Well, consider this: The interface is the set of controls that enables you to access the program's features. Without a good interface, you may never use many of the best features of the software or spend a frustrating bit of time locating it. A piece of software can have all the greatest features, but if the user can't find or access them, then the software won't be used to its full potential. Max is a powerful piece of software with some amazing features, and luckily the interface makes these amazing features easy to find and use.

The interface is all about making the features accessible, and in Max you have many different ways to access the same command. Some of these access methods are faster than others. This design is intentional because it gives beginning users an intuitive command and advanced users direct access. For example, to undo a command, you can choose Edit?Undo (requiring two mouse clicks), but as you gain more experience, you can simply click the Undo icon on the toolbar (only one click); an expert with his hands on the keyboard will press Ctrl+Z without having to reach for the mouse at all. All three of these methods have the same result, but you can use the one that is easiest for you.

Has the Max interface succeeded? Yes, to a degree, but like most interfaces, it always has room for improvement, and we hope that each new version takes us closer to the perfect interface (but I'm still looking for the "read my thoughts" feature). Discreet has built a loophole into the program to cover anyone who complains about the interface? customization. If you don't like the current interface, you can change it to be exactly what you want.

The pull-down menus at the top of the Max interface include most of the features available in Max and are a great place for beginners to start. Several of the menu commands have corresponding toolbar buttons and keyboard shortcuts. To execute a menu command, you can choose it from the menu with the mouse cursor, click its corresponding toolbar button if it has one, or press its keyboard shortcut. You can also select commands using the keyboard arrows and press the Enter key to execute them.

The main menu includes the following options: File, Edit, Tools, Group, Views, Create, Modifiers, Character, reactor, Animation, Graph Editors, Rendering, Customize, MAXScript, and Help. Unlike some other programs, these menu options do not disappear if not needed. The list is set, and they are always there when you need them.

If a keyboard command is available for a menu command, it is shown to the right of the menu item. If an ellipsis (three dots) appears after a menu item, that menu command causes a separate dialog box to open. A small black arrow to the right of a menu item indicates that a submenu for this item exists. Clicking the menu item or holding the mouse over the top of a menu item makes the submenu appear. Toggle menu options (such as Views?Show Ghosting) change state every time they are selected. If a toggle menu option is enabled, a small check mark appears to its left; if disabled, no check mark appears.

You can also navigate the menus using the keyboard by pressing the Alt key by itself. Doing so selects the File menu, and then you can use the arrow keys to move up and down and between menus. With a menu selected, you can press the keyboard letter that is underlined to select and execute a menu command. For example, pressing Alt, then F (for File) and N (for New) executes the File?New command; or you can press Alt, use the down arrow to select the New command, and press the Enter key.

Now that you've learned the menu two-step, it is time for the toolbar one-step. The main toolbar appears by default directly under the menus at the top of the Max window, and the reactor toolbar appears docked to the left edge of the interface. Using toolbars is one of the most convenient ways to execute commands because most commands require only a single click.

You can make any docked toolbar a floating toolbar by clicking and dragging the two vertical lines on the left (or top) end of the toolbar away from the interface edge. After you separate it from the window, you can resize the floating toolbar by dragging on its edges or corners. You can then drag and dock it to any of the window edges or double-click on the toolbar title bar to automatically dock the toolbar to its latest location. Figure 1-3 shows the main toolbar as a floating panel.

On smaller resolution screens, the main toolbar is too long to be entirely visible. To see the entire main toolbar, you need to set your monitor resolution to be at least 1280 pixels wide. To scroll the toolbar to see the end, position the cursor on the toolbar away from the buttons, such as below one of the drop-down lists (the cursor changes to a hand); then click and drag the toolbar in either direction. Using the hand cursor to scroll also works in the Command Panel, Material Editor, and any other place where the panel exceeds the given space.

If there is one place in Max, besides the viewports, where you'll spend all your time, it's the Command Panel (at least until you're comfortable enough with the quadmenus). The Command Panel is located to the right of the viewports along the right edge of the interface. This is where the object parameters, settings, and controls are located. The Command Panel is split into six panels, each accessed via a tab icon located at its top. These six tabs are Create, Modify, Hierarchy, Motion, Display, and Utilities.

You can pull away the Command Panel from the right window edge as a floating dialog box, as shown in Figure 1-5, by clicking on the open space to the right of the tabbed icons at the top of the Command Panel and dragging away from the interface edge. You can also dock it to the left window edge, which is really handy if you're left-handed. While it's a floating panel, you can resize the Command Panel by dragging on its edges or corners (but its width remains constant).

After you've pulled the Command Panel or any of the toolbars away from the interface, you can re-dock them to their last position by double-clicking on their title bar. You can also rightclick on the title bar to access the pop-up menu of floating toolbars, but the pop-up menu also includes options to Dock (either Left or Right for the Command Panel or Left, Right, Top or Bottom for toolbars) and Float.