Can I import 600MB of solids data into 3ds max, Maya or Lightwave?
The realistic answer is that you need to be reasonable with the size of the source data set. If the data came from a solids modeling program then the data will be in parametric or NURBS geometric format. Once this data gets converted to a mesh representation it will expand by 10 to 100 times in size on average (in terms of memory usage). If the source data is highly curved (like an oil refinery plant with many tubes) then the meshed version of the solids data will become huge. In general if your source data is very large (say, over 200MB of source data) then you just have too much data to start with in the first place remove excess and useless geometry items in the source modeling program, and use Shrink Wrap if you are using Pro/Engineer. There is no definitive answer in terms of What is too large but in our experience assemblies up to 200MB in size can generally be imported, optimized and animated adequately in programs such as Maya, 3ds max, XSI and Lightwave. – Updated: October 19,
