Anyone know of a utility (preferably a free one) that can convert .3DMF files to another format, say 3ds, OBJ or DXF. Only I have a few of these files and all I can do is view them at the moment with the windows version Direct3D viewer.

This one ought to: http://www.xdsoft.com/explorer/ 3D Exploration.. very useful program. It can view mesh objects, and also converts from one type to another. =) Rosh

Poser 4 reads 3DMF files. Well it does in the MAC version. Does it not in the PC version? Anyway the explorer program is ok, unless they've improved it lately. I had bad luck with that one. A program 3DWin/3DWinOGL was much more reliable for me. http://www.stmuc.com/thbaier/ But DOES NOT do 3DMF. Hmm go figure. Maybe we should get some people to set up a format conversion program. I myself can't read any MAX files. James

The max file format was deliberately made so you would have to have 3DStudioMax in order to use it properly. People who post files in Max format are simply not thinking clearly. They could just as easily post them in 3DS format so everyone could use them. (Max can export to 3DS, no problem) I know 3DExploration tries to convert Max files, but only the smallest percent actually convert to anything usable, and none have texture mapping. SMT

Personally, I'm sick of .max and 3dmf! I haven't found free a utility to convert them yet, but there's a few no-so-free ones that apparently work beautifully. I wish people would stop posting .max files, too. It's too expensive for the rest of us. 3dmf is a BIG problem, because there's some decent sites that have models in that format that I can't use in Bryce or Poser. Grrrrrrr.

I also suggest Amapi for conversion to and from multiple types. jje

Biggest problems with 3dmetafiles? 1. It's really a Mac native format and files that end with the 4 digit extension (.3dmf) are Mac files that just won't work on a PC. 2. There are THREE forms of cross platform 3dmetafiles: .b3d (binary) .t3d (text) .3mf(useless) Whatever form you get, chances are your program can't use it. 3. Like vrml 2. 3dmetafile imbeds the texture in the geometry rather than including a seperate texture file. When you actually can get a successful conversion, it splits the imbedded texture into hundreds if not thousands of tiny uncompressed bitmap files, most of them completely redundant but each uniquely named and therefore necessary. The result is that a simple textured 3d metafile might turn into a 60 or 80 meg 3DS file with hundreds of supporting bitmaps.

Ok, thanks for trying anyway. Looks, like I might as well delete them then. Poser 4 can import 3DM (or is it 3DF) files, but NOT 3DMF unfortunately, I haven't come across anything that can. I regularly use 3D Exploration, but that doesn,t either.

Strange my (Mac) poser will open any of the 3dmeta formats. It makes no destinction. I supose its just wishful thinking that changing the extention might fool PC-Poser into complying. If you really need the files drop me a line and I can convert them into just about anything (anything but .obj that is...aint't life a b***h?). You will still need to run them thru a Mac-to-PC converter tho. jje

You're right, it is wishful thinking. 3DMF files are Mac only, no if's, and's, or but's :-(

Thanks jje, If I come across one I really want to use I drop you a line, but at the moment I only want to play around, so it's not important. Just a shame that the PC can't seem to handle them properly.

This might become the most stupid reply of all times, but... Well, 3DMF is Apple's QuickDraw 3D format but Poser4 seems to support it on PC. I just tried it under PC emulation, and it had a plug-in called "FF3dmf.arp" which suspiciously looks like a 3DMF module... Poser also shows "QuickDraw 3DMF" as importable format in its menu. If it fails on your system, then it could be either that you accidently deleted the plug-in, or you got a damaged file?

Poser PC does indeed have a 3Dmetafile import filter but it is for the .3MF format not the .3DMF format. Believe me, these two are NOT the same thing, and you can't just change the extension of the file and have it work.

I tried that already. I definately does not work. The menu actually says QuickTime 3DMF but the file dialog box will only look for 3MF files.

smallspace, this is what I did: I took a 3DMF file from Apple's very own system CD (100% 24 carat Mac-based) called "RedChair.3dmf" and imported it to the Mac Poser to see how it looks like. Then I copied it to the PC disk: direct binary copy, no conversion of any kind involved - it is easier to control this on a Mac, so you can be assured of this. It is right that Poser refuses to open it, because it looks for the .3mf extension (Mac users know about it, but the PC Poser seems to be just as stubborn with correct file types as well... :-) so I *renamed" it to "RedChair.3mf", imported it as "QuickDraw 3DMF", and there it was - same chair, same size, same position, same shape, same colour... I don't know what "3DMF" stands for, but if there is a difference between 3MF/3Dmetafile and 3DMF then you got a double booking of the .3mf extension on PC. Is it possible that some of the 3DMF stuff is rolled into the PC version of QuickTime? Otherwise I could only guess that either your plug-in or your file is damaged, or that it might be just the other way round - Poser doesn't import 3Dmetaformat, and you confused it with Apple's format? Finally (I know one shouldn't believe everything printed on packages, but...) Poser's cardboard box clearly lists 3DMF for import on both Mac/PC, but there is no mention of 3MF/3Dmetafile as a different format.

Please go to: http://www.GreatBuildings.com/models/Aalsmeer_House_mod.html Download the 3dmf model of Aalsmeer House (Windows download if you please) - unzip it, change the extension to "3mf", then try to import it into Poser. Tell me what happens. -SMT

...just how many types of 3dmf files are there?

Ahhhh the plot thickens!!! I just went to the site and d'loaded BOTH the windows.zip and the Mac.sit file for this house and NEITHER work on my Macintosh. (in theory the Mac os should see a win.3dmf file as readable). The internal QD player in Mac OS 8.6 doesn't see either the "native" mac 3dmf file nor the windows 3dmf file as anything valid to display. I don't thik these files will work on either platform without the Design Workshop player. Poser freaks out on the Mac version of the file complaining that the geometry is missing. So it may not be the format that is causing the problem but the Bozos that created it. Whoa-Ho! So whats with this design workshop stuff anywho? jje

Hi, thanks for the URL, I checked both platform versions and they are bitwise identical - the difference is just the compression archive. If you set the file type to 3DMF (on Mac) it gets opened in QuickDraw's default browser window without problems, so it appears to be a valid file, but... If I import it to my Mac Poser, I first get a warning that it is "post version 1.1", then I get a series of "unknown tag" messages, and then it finally gives up with a "missing Geometries" error. It means that the Poser plug-in is simply restricted to an earlier QuickDraw3D version (on both Mac and PC), and I'm afraid there is nothing we could do about it, unless it gets updated to the recent version.

If you have trouble with MacOS 8.6, get the latest QuickDraw3D update from Apple's site, it doesn't require OS 9 to run.

MartinC, I get the same message in Windows, the file is 'post version 1.1', then it continues to load, but eventually says that there is no geometry. Could it be just the 3DMFs at Great Buildings, because that was where I got mine in the first place.

Unfortunately I don't have any information about the file format itself, but if the difference happened between the QuickDraw3D that originally shipped with MacOS 8.6 and OS 9 then "post 1.1" must be pretty new. It does open with the latest QuickDraw3D in the browser window, so the files are probably not damaged.

For what it's worth Corel Dream 3D for Windows, which was bundled with Corel Draw 8 (but dropped from v. 9), will import .3dmf files, and in fact came with a bunch of models in this format. Also, 3D Exploration version 1.2.5 can read .3dmf and export them in a variety of formats (although I haven't actually tested this..)

Corel Dream is an older version of Raydream Studio. Unless they've made a lot of changes I don't know about, the 3DMF files would have to be in .t3d, .b3d or the same .3mf filter that's used in Poser. 3D Exploration does indeed read some files with the 4 digit extension, but not the ones from "Great Buildings On Line".