Learning Maya 5: MEL Fundamentals [Paperback]

Alias Wavefront (Author), Alias (Author), Sybex (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1894893441 | ISBN-13: 978-1894893442 | Publication Date: August 22, 2003

"This book...is long overdue, and something that Maya users will undoubtedly welcome with open text editors"
--Joaquin Kino Gil, CreativeCOW.net

Learning Maya 5: MEL Fundamentals is you key to harnessing the full power of Maya, and you don't have to be a programmer to learn.

MEL (Maya Embedded Language) is the scripting language used by Maya and is the foundation of the Maya User Interface and of many of its tools. Knowing MEL will permit you to customize the Maya UI, automate repetitive tasks, modify existing tools, and even create your own tools. Learning Maya 5 | MEL Fundatmentals is your key to solving production challenges creatively and efficiently. This book is written for the artist, so don't be intimidated if you have no prior programming experience.

Features:
Starting from an introductory level, this book will allow you to explore advanced concepts in a comfortable format. Each topic is explored in both theory and practice so that you'll not only understand the concepts presented, you'll be able to complete easy-to-follow, step-by-step tutorials to ensure that you master them. You'll benefit from sample scripts and examples that will prove invaluable to you as your Maya skills increase. In addition, you'll take advantage of valuable chapter-by-chapter overviews provided in QuickTime(r) format on CD-ROM. Offered by Glen Chang, and Alias|Wavefront(TM) Certified Instructor, these helpful movies will allow you to gain additional insight as you work through the book.

With this book you will:
* Explore MEL's role in Maya
* Customize the Maya User Interface with MEL.
* Understand Maya's architecture, Nodes, and Attributes
* Learn MEL commands and syntax.
* Explore variables and expressions.
* Write conditional and looking statements.
* Learn scripting and procedures.
* Get advanced scripting examples.
* Create UI windows, layouts and tools.
And much more...

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

To truly know Maya is to know MEL, and to know MEL, you should read Learning Maya 5: MEL Fundamentals. MEL (Maya Embedded Language) is the underlying engine on which Maya is built. MEL makes everything possible, and with MEL you can do almost anything, from creating your own interface for Maya to creating self-animating objects to making blanket changes to a single attribute for every object in a project.

But while explaining what MEL is takes only a sentence or two, learning how it works and making it do what you want can easily take many volumes, or one good one. MEL Fundamentals is perhaps the best introduction to MEL to come along in years. Twelve chapters, 250 pages, and a CD full of files takes the beginning MEL user/Maya artist on a trip into the inner workings of Maya and shows how to use MEL for everything from adding items to shelves to altering the workspace to controlling animated objects.

There are numerous outstanding examples throughout the book such as how to rig a light to flicker on each time it turns on instead of just switching on, or how to add countless railroad ties to a set of train tracks, or how to control the animation of the flowing wings of a Manta Ray by controlling one object. The section on creating custom UIs can turn into a very valuable chapter for those looking to save time by customizing the interface. Here, you’ll learn how to create your own windows with your own buttons for the most frequently used commands, or create sets of windows that feature different toolsets for various modes of working. MEL is a powerful and complex tool, and one that shouldn’t be overlooked or thought of as a geek’s tool.

Learning Maya 5: MEL Fundamentals, part of the "Learning Maya" series from Sybex, includes a CD containing all files referred to throughout the book, and a DVD that introduces some of the features new to Maya 5, making this book and the whole series a valuable asset for any Maya artist. --Mike Caputo

Review

"This book ... is long overdue, and something that Maya users will undoubtedly welcome with open text editors." -- Joaquin Kino Gil, CreativeCOW.net

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Sybex (August 22, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1894893441
• ISBN-13: 978-1894893442
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,370,467 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars A good introduction..., June 10, 2007

By 

Krishna M. Sadasivam "pcweenies dot com carto... (Tampa, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Learning Maya 5: MEL Fundamentals (Paperback)

Finding a MEL scripting book with useful, simple examples has been quite challenging for me. MEL Fundamentals does provide a good basic foundation for
understanding what MEL script can be used for, but it could show more...

The book is broken down into several chapters, which cover the basics of the following:

-Understanding what MEL Script is used for
-Using MEL Script to customize the Maya interface
-Using MEL Script to create custom GUIs to control nodes in your scene (Graphical User Interfaces)
-Variables and Expressions
-Conditional Statements (If Else, If Else If, If Else If Else)
-Loops (FOR and FOR IN loops)
-Procedures

The book was written for Maya 5.0 - and I have yet to see an updated text that reflects the most current version of Maya to date (v 8.5 as of this review).

There are several 'real world' examples that will further help students understand how powerful MEL Script really is. One thing I wish the book covered is how to deal with negative numbers in expressions. MEL Fundamentals is sparse in several areas, but this book's intended focus is to provide a quick introduction and nothing more.

The book includes a DVD with all examples already typed in. In addition, the supplied code works in all versions of Maya I have used it with (v5.0, v6.0, v7.0, v8.0 and v8.5).

If you're curious about MEL script and want to learn more, this book provides a decent introduction. Intermediate MEL developers should look elsewhere for in-depth coverage.

0 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very good book, November 18, 2003

By 

"krishkirthi" (Delhi, India) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Learning Maya 5: MEL Fundamentals (Paperback)

I have not bought this book till now but my friend has and he liked it very much. He should have given a review but he is lazy. So, I am doing his part. A very good book to learn MEL expressions and make use of them in animation. The DVD has some cool stuff focusing on Maya 5 Features and MEL Fundamentals!