Today I was trying to import an object into GMax again. As usual I used ModelConverterX to make a 3DS file and then imported that one. But, also as usual, that meant a lot of trouble with the textures. Especially since the 3DS format can only store short DOS filenames, it can be quite some trouble to get everything imported correct.

I had heard of scripts to import Wavefront OBJ files before, so I decided to look around a bit. In the end I found this script. Using it, it became a lot easier to import my objects I have to say. There were only two things I had to figure out first (and I’ll share them with you).

• To run the script go to the Utilities tab of the command panel. Press the MAXScript button there. Then run the ms file you downloaded with run script. After that you can select Wavefront OBJ Importer from the Utilities dropdown box. This will give you the GUI to load OBJ files.
• When the texture files are not found (which usually means they need to be in the same folder as the OBJ file), they are removed from the material on import. So make sure the textures are there, since else you get a material with only the colour.

But for the rest this is a much easier way to get your object into GMax than using the 3DS file. I should have found this out earlier.