Introduction To Maya

To start Maya in the university labs use the goMaya script from the shell. This script sets many environment variables for Maya and you can add your
own if needed by creating your own local copy of the script in /public/bin

#!/bin/bash
AW_LOCATION=/usr/autodesk
MAYA_LOCATION=$AW_LOCATION/maya
export AW_LOCATION MAYA_LOCATION

export PIXAR_LICENSE_FILE=/opt/pixar/RenderManStudio-4.0-ma
ya2013.5/rmantree/etc/pixar.license

RMSTREE=/opt/pixar/RenderManStudio-4.0-maya2014/
MAYA_PLUG_IN_PATH=$RMSTREE/plug-ins
MAYA_SCRIPT_PATH=$RMSTREE/scripts
XBMLANGPATH="$RMSTREE/icons/"

RMANTREE=/opt/pixar/RenderManProServer-16.5
RSTUDIOTREE=/opt/pixar/RenderManStudio-4.0-maya2014/

RMANFB=it
MAYA_SCRIPT_PATH=$RSTUDIOTREE/scripts
MAYA_PLUG_IN_PATH=$RSTUDIOTREE/plug-ins:˜/plug-ins
XBMLANGPATH="$RSTUDIOTREE/lib/mtor/resources/%B"
XBMLANGPATH="$RSTUDIOTREE/icons/%B"
PATH=$PATH:$RSTUDIOTREE/bin:$RMANTREE/bin
export RMANTREE RSTUDIOTREE RMANFB MAYA_SCRIPT_PATH XBMLANGP
ATH PATH MAYA_PLUG_IN_PATH RMSTREE

MI_CUSTOM_SHADER_PATH=$HOME/maya/mentalray/include
MI_LIBRARY_PATH=$HOME/maya/mentalray/lib
export MI_CUSTOM_SHADER_PATH MI_LIBRARY_PATH
#Fix the cross mouse cursor
export MAYA_MMSET_DEFAULT_XCURSOR=1

$MAYA_LOCATION/bin/maya $1
echo Maya has quit
The Interface

http://download.autodesk.com/us/maya/Maya_2014_GettingStarted/index.html
Menu Sets
In Maya menus are grouped into menu sets.

Function Key Set

F2 Animation

F3 Polygons

F4 Surfaces

F5 Dynamics

F6 Rendering
The Status Line
Most of the elements in the status line are used when modelling, hover the mouse over the icons for context sensitive help. Different item sets can be
collapsed by pressing the vertical bars

Scene Icons allow the creation of new scenes and saving of current scene.

Selection Mode lets you select by hierarchies, objects and components

Selection Masks refine the component selection to specific elements and will change based on the Selection Mode

Select by Hierarchy

Select by Component

Select by Object
The Shelf
The shelf has a number of quick access icons for frequent use. It is also possible to add your own items to the shelf directly from the menus as well a
scripts from the script editor panels.

To add a menu item to the shelf select the menu item and press Ctrl + Shift and Right mouse click
QWERTY Tools
The qwerty keys are the main shortcuts in maya. They select the tools in the following panel

Q Select an object by clicking or dragging (Marquee select)

Lasso Selects object(s) by drawing a lasso.

Paint Selection select objects by painting.

Move (W) Moves the selected object(s).

Rotate (E) Rotates the selected object(s).

Scale (R) Scales the selected object(s).

Last (Y) Selects the last tool used.

Manipulator tools
The manipulator tools allow use to Translate, rotate and scale objects. The origin is located at X, Y, Z position of 0, 0, 0. The grid also lies along the X,
Z plane.

Maya labels the X, Y, and Z axes with a colour scheme: red for X, green for Y, and blue for Z. Many tools that you use in Maya use this colour scheme
to indicate that you are accessing a particular item that relates to X, Y, and Z in some way.

The axis indicator shows in which direction, X, Y, or Z, you are viewing the Maya scene. The axis indicator is colour coded in the red, green, and blue
colour scheme and appears in the lower left corner of a view panel.

The central yellow block allows free movement for the Move and Rotate tools and a uniform scale for the scale tool.
Layouts

Single perspective

Four perspective (Top, Persp, Front, Right)

Outliner and Perspective

Perspective and Graph Editor

Hypershade and Perspective

Perspective, Graph Editor, and Hypergraph

Mode select, use this to customize current layout

Open Help pages

Channel Box

The channel box contains information about the selected object.

Maya Projects

Maya lets you organise the various files associated with scene files into projects. A project is a collection of folders for different file types, and consist
of the following:

Project root directory

This is the top level directory associated with a Maya project. A project is referred to by the name of this root directory. You can specify the location of
the project root folder in the Project Window when you create a new project.

Project definition file

A Maya project definition file is named workspace.mel and is stored in the project's root directory. This file contains a set of commands that define
where various types of files are located. The locations are usually relative to the root directory of the project but can also be arbitrary locations
external to the project directory and defined by absolute paths. These locations are used when resolving file paths at runtime, and is a standard mel
script.

Project sub-directories

Sub-directories are used to further manage the project files. These sub-directories, organised as Primary Project Locations, Secondary Project
Locations, Translator Data Locations, and Custom Data Locations, are generated by default when a new project is created. You can change the
directories of these project locations.

Workflow
Usually when working with maya you will create a new project for the current project. This can then be set using the “File->Set Project” menu. Maya
will remember this project next time you start it.

When we save individual scenes maya will place it in the scenes directory for this project. 

Objects and Components

We can switch between different selection modes by using the F8 Key

Objects and Components
In Component mode we can right mouse click to bring up more selection objects
The Pivot Point

Pivot points control how objects rotate and scale, and also represent the exact locations of objects in space. All transformations to an object are
relative to the pivot point. You can change the pivot point of an object or the selected components by pressing Insert or Home and using the pivot
point manipulator.
Set transformation values to zero
When you transform an object, Maya stores it in a transform node as the difference from its original (zero) position. These menu items let you control
this saved transformation information for an object.

To .. Do this

Reset transformations on the selected object back to Select Modify > Reset Transformations.
zero (return to first or last “frozen” position).
Make the selected object’s current transformations be Select Modify > Freeze Transformations.
the zero position.
Grouping Objects
Maya lets you group objects together. Once objects are grouped you can apply transformations to the group.

To .. Do this

Group the selected objects together. Select Edit > Group.

Ungroup the selected group. Select Edit > Ungroup.
Select a group. Open the Outliner (Window > Outliner) and expand
the group node to show the objects inside the group,
then click the object you want to select.
Tool Operations

Return Complete current tool

Insert Enter tool Edit mode

Shift Q Select Tool, or with left mouse button for Component marking
menu

Alt q Select Tool, or with left mouse button for Polygon marking menu

q Select Tool, or with left mouse button for Selection Mask

marking menu

w Move Tool, or with left mouse button for Move Tool marking
menu

e Rotate Tool, or with left mouse button for Rotate Tool marking
menu

r Scale Tool, or with left mouse button for Scale Tool marking
menu

Ctrl t Show universal manipulator tool

t Show manipulator tool

y Selects the last used tool that is not one of Select, Move,
Rotate, or Scale
 j Move, Rotate, Scale Tool Snapping (press and release)

= Increase manipulator size

- Decrease manipulator size

d With left mouse button move pivot (Move Tool)

Insert Switches between move pivot and move object (Move Tool)

Display Settings

4 Shading > Wireframe

5 Shaded display

6 Shaded and Textured display

7 Lighting > Use All Lights

0 Default quality display setting

1 Rough quality display setting

2 Medium quality display setting

3 Smooth quality display setting

Selecting Objects and
Components

F8 Select > Object/Component (Switch between

object and component editing)

F9 Select > Vertex

F10 Select > Edge

F11 Select > Face

F12 Select > UV

Ctrl i Select next intermediate object

Alt F9 Select > Vertex Face

< Shrink polygon selection region

> Grow polygon selection region

Edit Operations

z Edit > Undo (also Ctrl+z)

Shift Z Edit > Redo

g Edit > Repeat

Shift G Repeat command at mouse position

Ctrl d Edit > Duplicate

Ctrl+Shift D Edit > Duplicate Special

Shift D Edit > Duplicate with Transform

Ctrl g Edit > Group

p Edit > Parent

Shift P Edit > Unparent

Ctrl x Edit > Cut

Ctrl c Edit > Copy

Ctrl v Edit > Paste

References
I. http://download.autodesk.com/global/docs/maya2014/en_us/
II.