Modeling with NURBS,Subdivisions, and Deformers - Introducing Maya 2011 - page 171

Figure 5.16
History updates the
newly created loft
to keep it attached
to the isoparms and
curves used to cre-
ate it, even when
they've been moved
or altered.
Why wouldn't you want History turned on for everything? After a long day of model-
ing, having History on for every single object can slow down your scene file, adding
unnecessary bloat to your workflow. But it isn't typically a problem on most surface types
unless the scene is huge, so you should leave it on while you're still modeling.
If you no longer want a surface or an object to retain its History, you can selectively
delete it from the surface. Select the surface, and choose Edit ➔ Delete by Type ➔ History.
You can also rid the entire scene of History by choosing Edit ➔ Delete All by Type ➔
History. Just don't get them mixed up!
Using NURBS Surfacing to Create Polygons
You can create swatches of polygon surfaces by using NURBS surfacing tools, as you saw
with the exercise on creating a planar surface.
To create a polygonal surface with any of the surfacing techniques in this chapter, open
the option box for that particular NURBS tool. For example, create two simple curves. With
both curves selected, choose Surfaces ➔ Loft r . In the options for Output Geometry, click the
Polygons button to display the options for creating the polygon surface and its detail level.
History for the surface will adjust the new polygonal surface. The detail of the surface
will try to adjust as changes to the input curves are made. If you anticipate significant
changes to the input curves, make sure you create the poly surface with a high poly count
to accommodate major changes. This is probably the best way to create a single poly sur-
face, especially if you prefer a NURBS workflow.