Can a DTM be toooooo complex?

[Cloud Hidden]

I have a file with complex 3D shapes that renders fine. It's about 10 Mg. Tried to add a DTM to it to make a depression for an on-site pond. Only about 5 closed polygons. Reduced the 3D Poly complexity. No matter what I try with the DTM-mesh class, when rendering it, it won't show the texture.

Created the same thing in a new doc, withexactly the same steps and polys, and it shows perfectly. Have spent all day trying it in all sorts of variations, with same results. Even used this new one as a symbol to place in the original file, and it shows without the texture.

Is that the right class to change for Extruded Contours? And where is that even documented, be/c it took a bunch of experimenting to figure even that out? Can the number of other objects in a file affect the way one of them might render? Or might something else cause this?

[Cloud Hidden]

Ended up being easier to copy all the layers and objects from the original to the one whose DTM behaved, than fight with the textures.

Still curious how I could have learned the class controlling the contour texture besides trial and error...

[Thom]

I think that this problem is indicative of DTM. It is a complex program and if one indicator is not right, the file will not work. I know that the program is being evaluated for the future upgardes. One thing that Vectorworks needs to keep in mind is that many of us do not work in the DTM module on a daily basis, therefore the dialoge boxes should be set up so the first step is first, the second, second, etc. Try and take the complexity out of the setup routines and go to extra ends to make good documentation.

[Cloud Hidden]

You expressed my feelings well. It's great that it can do all it can do. I grow fonder of the product all the time. But the first 24 hrs with DTM's was not exactly a case of mutual attraction. Took LOTS of experiments to get the steps right, thrown off by it not working the same in two different files. But finally got it, and the painful memories are receding, and it was a good reason to clean up the file anyway...