Adobe Director Basics

ADOBE DIRECTOR BASICS
3D basics
Using the Property Inspector for 3D
With the Property inspector, you can modify the 3D cast member without using scripts. The 3D Model tab of the
Property Inspector offers a simple way to view and control numerous aspects of the 3D world.
1 Select a 3D cast member in the Cast window, on the Stage, or in the Score.
2 Click Property Inspector in the toolbar.
3 Click the 3D Model tab in the Property Inspector.
The Property Inspector appears in Graphical view. If the Property Inspector is in List view, click the List View Mode
icon to toggle the view to Graphical.
Property Inspector at the 3D Model tab with List View Mode icon circled in red
The Property Inspector’s 3D Model tab provides the following options:
The text boxes at the top of the tab show the initial position and orientation of the default camera. The default (0,
0, 0) represents a vantage point looking up the z-axis through the middle of the screen. The values you enter in these
text boxes replace the displayed values and move the camera.
See “Cameras” on page 101 for more information on the camera view. See “Vectors” on page 361 and “Transforms”
on page 370 for more information on how the position and orientation of the camera is defined.
The Direct To Stage (DTS) option controls whether rendering occurs directly on the Stage (the default) or in the
Director offscreen buffer. The offscreen graphics buffer is where Director calculates which sprites are partly hidden
behind other sprites. When Direct To Stage is on, Director bypasses its offscreen buffer and saves time, increasing
playback speed. However, when Direct To Stage is on, you cannot place other sprites on top of the 3D sprite.
The Preload option controls how media that is being downloaded to the user’s computer is displayed. The media
can be held back from display until it has been completely streamed into memory, or it can be displayed
progressively on the Stage as data becomes available.
The Play Animation option controls whether any existing animation, either bones or keyframe, is played or
ignored.
The Loop option controls whether the animation loops continuously or plays once and stops.
For more information on animations, see “Pre-defined animations” on page 270.
Last updated 8/26/2011
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