Objects: Other Compile-Time Switches - PRG MBOX User Manual

Therefore, when compiling vertex array files, Mbox's default action is to normalize all models and digital gobos.
Normalization is accomplished by scaling objects to fit into a bounding cube that is 2 generic units on each side.
Objects are scaled up or down so that their largest dimension (X, Y, or Z) is two generic units and then their other
dimensions are scaled proportionally.
Normalization converts all objects a similar size, but in many cases, it is very important to have objects be different sizes.
For example, when projection mapping and using .obj files for the objects to map onto, it is critical that the objects used
are the correct scale and also in correct proportion to each other.
CAUTION! When making 3D objects it is very important to use the same unit scale for all objects. AS noted previously,
2D modeling applications allow the use of different unit scales, but each of these units of measure will be saved as a
generic unit in an .obj or .svg file. This can mean that an object sized to 1000mm tall will be 1000 units tall when saved
as an .obj and an object sized to 1000ft tall will also be 1000 units tall - and therefore both will be the same size if the
"noscale" file suffix is used.
To stop the compiler from normalizing an object, the suffix ".noscale" can be added to the object's file name before the
file is compiled. If this option is used, the object will not be normalized. Example:
a file named - 001.MyObject.obj would be renamed as - 001.MyObject.noscale.obj
To create an object with a specific scale factor (relative to its size if using the noscale suffix), use the ".scale" switch. In
the following example, the second file would appear at half the size of the noscale original:
a file named - 023.DigiGobo.svg would be renamed as - 023.DigiGobo.scale_0.50.svg
For .svg objects that need to have a scale matched to a particular piece of 2D content (which is measured in pixels), the
compiler can scale the object so that generic units are treated as pixels, add the suffix ".pixels" to the file's name before
it is compiled. Example:
a file named - 001.NewObject.obj should be renamed as - 001.NewObject.pixels.obj
In this case, an .svg object that is 200 generic units tall will appear as 200 pixels tall within Mbox. With default scale
settings the object would appear onscreen as 200 pixels tall.
Due to 3D camera changes in Mbox v4, using the .pixels suffix with .obj objects does not result in 1:1 scaling: generic
units to pixels. However, these objects can still be displayed at near-perfect 1:1 scale if the layer's scale is adjusted to
a value of 30624, or if the layer is assigned to an Output Master mix and that Output Master's 3D Camera Z-Position
parameter is set to a value of 42940. Note that althought this scaling is very close to 1:1 scale, it is not absolutely
perfect.
Note: The scaling switches do not affect the texture (UV) mapping for object files, only the size of the object onscreen.
3D Objects: Other Compile-time Switches
There are a few additional compile-time switches that can be enabled by editing the filename of an object.
To cause the object's vertex array file to be rebuilt every time Mbox performs a rescan, the suffix ".rebuild" can be added.
This can be useful if the object file is being edited and saved with the same index number and name.
To enable openGL smoothing for the lighting on a object, the suffix ".smooth" can be added. The smooth function
affects lighting on the object by averaging adjacent face normals for lighting, and can result in a smoother looking object
under certain lighting conditions.
Note: The capitalization of all file name suffixes (e.g. 'preload' or 'noscale') are case insensitive.
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