SoftImage XSI Tutorial
XSI is a 3D modeling and animation application offered by SoftImage. It has many of the tools and features you might expect to find in similar software like Maya, Lightwave or Blender. One of the most powerful aspects of XSI is its modeling, or mod, tools. These tools allow users to create virtually any object they can imagine. However, the modeling interface is complex and multifaceted. You might want to take some time to familiarize yourself with its basic functions.
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Instructions
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Click on the XSI shortcut on your desktop to start the application. The interface will appear. You are currently in selection mode.
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Left-click on the button at the top right corner of the view. This will change the view to four separate ones showing the scene from different angles. You can click it again to restore the main view.
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Go to the "General Navigation" tools above the views. When you hover over one of them, you will see a tag pop up describing the tool and listing the shortcuts key or keys to activate it.
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Click on the first icon or click on the "S" key on the keyboard. You can now use the left mouse button to pan, the middle button to zoom in and out and the right button to rotate the scene. Notice that at the bottom of the interface, there is a display telling you, depending on which tool you select, what action results from using the left, right or middle mouse buttons.
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Press the space bar to return to selection mode. Go to "Create" on the upper left and choose "Objects." From the options, choose "Sphere." Along with the sphere itself that now appears in the scene, a property dialog opens in which you can define the parameters of the sphere, such as size and number of divisions.
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Click "R" on the keyboard to reset the view so you are viewing the sphere from the front. Go to the "Views" panel at the top and click on "Browser." In the dialog that opens you will see contents of the scene in a hierarchy, including lights, cameras and any objects you have added. Clicking on a listed object will select it in the scene.
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Click on the "Schematic" view to see the relationship between objects in the scene. This is essentially the same information as in the "Browser, but presented as a diagram.
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