Autodesk 12812-051462-9011 User Guide 3 - Page 712

Last Part of Cubic Map File Name Meaning _LF Left _RT Right _FR Front _BK Back For example, if you have six bitmaps on disk, labeled view_up.bmp, view_fr.bmp, view_lf.bmp, and so on, when you click one of the file buttons and choose the bitmap for that position, all six views are loaded. If you select a bitmap whose name doesn't follow the convention, or you select one with a valid cubic-map name but assign it to the wrong button, only that bitmap will be loaded. Since all assigned bitmaps must be the same size, when you assign a new bitmap to one of the windows, the sample slot doesn't update automatically. This avoids generating an error message each time you assign a bitmap. Once you've assigned all six maps and are sure they are square and the same size, click the Reload button to update all of the maps and redisplay the sample slot. You can also use the Reload button to see your changes after you've edited one of the cubic maps by using a paint program. Rendering Cubic Maps The controls in the Render Cubic Map Files group let you generate the maps automatically and save them to disk. Use the To File button to specify the folder and file name of the Up (_UP) bitmaps. Click Pick Object and Render Maps, and then click the object to map. The software creates the files and also assigns them to the six From File map buttons. Rendering cubic maps has the same effect as automatic with the advantage that map rendering doesn't have to take place at scene rendering time. The disadvantage is that you can't create an automatically animated reflections or refractions this way. Reflection and Refraction Maps | 5967