Setting Up Units and Snaps

Set up the display unit scale:

Note: If you're using the product outside of the United States, you can choose to use metric display unit scale in the following steps. What's important is that the scale is a real-world measurement, rather than the default Generic Units setting in Autodesk VIZ.

1. On the menu bar choose File > Reset to reset Autodesk VIZ.

   This tutorial does not require you to load any particular file to begin. As you work through it, if you get lost you can open a snapshot file, so you can complete the tutorial.

2. On the menu bar, choose Customize > Units Setup.

   The Units Setup dialog appears.

3. In the Display Unit Scale group, choose US Standard, if necessary.

   Set the scale to Feet w/Decimal inches, if necessary.

   

   Leave the System Unit Setup as it is. This should be changed only to reset the system unit to the default setting (inches) after loading a file that uses a different system unit, or if you are working on files that are so huge or so tiny that values don't appear correctly in the numeric entry fields.

4. Click OK to accept the change.

   Now, when you make something, its measurements are displayed in the command panels in familiar real-world terms.

   Next you'll make some additions to the grid and snap settings.

Set up snaps:

1. On the menu bar, choose Customize > Grid And Snap Settings.

   The Grids And Snap Settings dialog appears.

2. On the Snaps panel, turn on Grid Points, Vertex, and Edge/Segment. Make sure all the other snaps are turned off.

   

3. Close the dialog by clicking the X button at the upper right of the dialog.

   Now, when Snap is on, you'll be able to snap to vertices, grid points and edges.

   You're ready to create a cylinder to serve as the central pole that rotates the revolving door.

4. Save your file as my_revolving_door_units.max.