Chapter 2: A Primer on Mathematics


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Overview

There is perhaps no single aspect of scripting that scares artists like that of math. Many artists spent most of their time in math classes drawing little doodles in their notebooks rather than paying attention, thinking I m an artist, I don t need math! Fast-forward a few years and suddenly, with our day-to-day interaction with computers to create our art, we do, in fact, need math.

People working within a 3D application like Maya have a fundamental understanding of mathematics, although they might not realize it. Unbeknownst to them, artists working in Maya perform vector calculations, derive solutions using methods used in analytical geometry, and do complex algebra calculations nearly every day. While Maya actually performs the calculations required, the artist knows both what he wants as a result, and what to use as inputs to get that result. When we as artists decide to go to the next level, and start to work with MEL, it is often necessary to gain a more robust understanding of the fundamental concepts of the mathematics used in computer graphics. We are actually in a better position than most while learning this because Maya is built to make many of the operations needed as easy as possible.

This chapter introduces us to the mathematic concepts that a scripter most often needs to know to write useful and effective scripts. This is not to say that every script we write will involve complex algorithms, or that this chapter answers every possible problem a scripter might need to solve. Rather, it is meant to impart a basic understanding to both complete the projects in this book and help solve the problems encountered when undertaking the challenge of writing original scripts.




The MEL Companion
The MEL Companion: Maya Scripting for 3D Artists (Charles River Media Graphics)
ISBN: 1584502754
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 101

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