Exporting a Scene

File... Export Scene allows a description of the Chimera scene to be saved in the following formats:

• OBJ [.obj] - Wavefront OBJ (surfaces only); colors are written to a separate material definition file [.mtl]
• POV-Ray [.pov] - input for the Persistence of Vision Raytracer
  (alternatively, POV-Ray images can be produced directly)
• RenderMan [.rib] - RenderMan^® Interface Bytestream
• STL [.stl] - triangle-based format (binary) native to stereolithography CAD software from 3D Systems^®
• VRML [.wrl, .vrml] - Virtual Reality Markup Language
• X3D [.x3d]

Only what is displayed will be exported. Note that something can be displayed yet invisible due to clipping or zoning, or because it simply falls outside the current view.

See also: export, save, write, copy, Write DMS, raytracing with POV-Ray, tips on preparing images

Exports to OBJ format only include displayed surface models. The entire surfaces (even if only partially displayed) are exported in their untransformed positions. Only a single color is exported per surface piece.

A raytraced image from POV-Ray may differ from the view in Chimera in several ways.

• depth cueing
• global clipping (X3D supports per-model clipping, VRML does not)
• stereo
• Volume Viewer transparent solid displays
• normals on dot and mesh surfaces

STL does not include color, dots, lines, or text, in addition to sharing the limitations listed above for VRML and X3D.

VRML does not support variations in transparency within a single surface model; different surface models can have different transparencies, but for a given surface model, the transparency of its least transparent point will be used.

X3D viewers and plugins are available for some platforms, but this format is relatively new and continues to evolve. Annotations for clipping planes and depth cueing can be included in the file even though these features are not displayed.