Hi Nikhil,

Thanks for the suggestion, still working with that one. Some people prefer to have absolute control over each joint in the fingers, and some prefer the attributes that do more broad changes.

I will either make it an option for the initial setup as to which format to use, or create a hybrid with more group nodes, so you can use both.

As far as learning MEL, I don't really have one source I would recommend. Instead, I have learned through several channels. Probably the best thing you can do to just start understanding how MEL works is look at the script editor, and anytime you perform an action, have a look and see what commands are being called. This was how I first started playing with MEL, and then creating shelf buttons from some of that code to automate repetitive tasks.

There is a book called "MEL Scripting for Maya Animators" which I find to be really good for giving you a solid understanding of what is going on under the hood.

Also the "Art of Rigging" series is great for showing you how to rig and then how to automate a lot of that process with MEL.

Other than that, checking out forums and using the MEL Command Reference under the Help menu in Maya are both extremely useful when getting over roadblocks.

The one thing I have found with learning MEL or Python or whatever, is having a need for it. If you do repetitive tasks, try using a script to speed things up. If it is something you are going to do later on, create a button in your shelves that you can easily get to.

I am not very strong at scripting, I am better with the rigging stuff. So what I do for most of my scripts is figure out how to build something in Maya and then write down the steps to how I did it. The steps that you write are now the english version of what your final script will look like. Now follow your steps inside Maya, and check out what the script editor is doing. Copy and paste anything useful. Once you start to understand how this works, picking up the rest will come gradually.

Just keep it as simple as possible in the beginning.

Good luck!

Dustin

Hey Dustin,

Thanks for that. Really helpful. I guess I'll start by looking at how your script works :D. I'm looking forward to this :)

Hey Nikhil,

In version 1.2.6, which I just uploaded today, there is the RapidAnim UI with a couple buttons that should help for posing the fingers. The "Controls Up & Dn" button will select all the controls of any finger(s) where you already have one or more controls selected. The "Controls Across" selects the same control on all fingers. For example, if you select the first control of any finger, and press "Controls Across", all the first controls of every finger will be added to your selection. Hopefully you find this useful.

I still prefer to have maximum control of the fingers be adjusting each finger manually, but this is something that I will try to improve as I get the time.

Hi Nikhil, I have also built an add-on called "Rapid Pose" that you can purchase which makes it much more user-friendly for selecting and posing your rig, but even just using the RapidAnim script, it should be enough to quickly select and pose your fingers. I feel this is the best all-around solution that is fast enough to still allow maximum control over the fingers.

Thanks again for your input!

Dustin

Finger channels have been added to the IK/FK Switch control, which can be used in conjunction with the finger controls.

Dustin