# Hiding point or polygon
**URL:** https://forum.highend3d.com/t/hiding-point-or-polygon/61291
**Category:** Xsi
**Tags:** modeling
**Created:** [January 17, 2002, 12:04pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/hiding-point-or-polygon/61291 "2002-01-17T12:04:01Z")
**Posts on this page:** 11
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@gfxman](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/gfxman)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2002, 12:04pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/hiding-point-or-polygon/61291/1 "2002-01-17T12:04:01Z")
I would like to hidesome polys or point in order to have a better view of some part of the model. is There in xsi a Hide/unhidefuncion ? ( must be, but i cannot find it ( newbiee!!! =
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### Author:  [@nohairmonk](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/nohairmonk)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2002, 12:51pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/hiding-point-or-polygon/61291/2 "2002-01-17T12:51:26Z")
I think it's possible in V2, but not in older versions
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### Author:  [@gfxman](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/gfxman)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2002, 2:53pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/hiding-point-or-polygon/61291/3 "2002-01-17T14:53:47Z")
Thx for reply, BUT THAT'S REALLY INCREDIBLE !!!!!
This a basilar feature for modelling...
sigh 
Still learning 
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### Author:  [@atyss](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/atyss)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2002, 3:48pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/hiding-point-or-polygon/61291/4 "2002-01-17T15:48:13Z")
Well maybe, but in what other package have you seen this feature?
Bernard Lebel
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### Author:  [@devdoka](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/devdoka)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2002, 3:50pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/hiding-point-or-polygon/61291/5 "2002-01-17T15:50:36Z")
It's not possible to hide portions of objects yet in XSI...or at least not in the viewports.
If you need to do it in a render, then you can use alpha channels from texture maps or apply transparency to selected polygons/subsurfaces via a shader.
Matt
* * *
Matt Lind
Animator / Technical Director
Softimage certified instructor:
Softimage|3D
Softimage|XSI
speye\_21@hotmail.com
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### Author:  [@gfxman](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/gfxman)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2002, 4:21pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/hiding-point-or-polygon/61291/6 "2002-01-17T16:21:01Z")
Hi Atyss, never heard about lightwave modeler ?
Select some polys, with no need to create groups or cluster, press the "." button ad hide poligons, press " = " and the hided poligons go unhide, and the ones non selected go " hide ".
I needed it for speeding up modelling, it's really usefull too see better some portion of the modeles !
It's incredible for me that xsi does not have a stupid feature like this one....also in the v2 ?
It's So powerfull but sometimes it lacks of basic functions....i think lightwave modeler is much more powerfull and intuitive for some tool ( taper, global deformation, general polys modelling ecc ecc ). But in xsi everything as a keyframe ! I love it for this 
Still hoping to see this " hide " feature in the V2.0.2 
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### Author:  [@geoath](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/geoath)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2002, 6:50pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/hiding-point-or-polygon/61291/7 "2002-01-17T18:50:29Z")
@@Hi Atyss, never heard about lightwave modeler ?
Select some polys, with no need to create groups or cluster, press the "." button ad hide poligons, press " = " and the hided poligons go unhide, and the ones non selected go " hide "."@@
3DMAX have also this function,but this doesn't make it's modeler stronger than XSI.. 
@@I needed it for speeding up modelling, it's really usefull too see better some portion of the modeles !
It's incredible for me that xsi does not have a stupid feature like this one....also in the v2 ?@@
One work around for this is to use clipping planes on the camera property page..
Maybe it doesn't sound as cool as the lightwave's hiding points but if u'll get used with it u'll find it very usefull..u can even create a custom toolbar with some preset clipping plane buttons (each one with different values) and make your workflow faster..
Best regards
George
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### Author:  [@gfxman](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/gfxman)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2002, 7:01pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/hiding-point-or-polygon/61291/8 "2002-01-17T19:01:42Z")
Hi George, clipping planes ? I'll try to manage with them !
I would like to say that " hide / unhide " tool doesn't make lightwave modelling better, but many other tools that it has.... maybe yes.
I like xsi very much, but i'm not completely catch with it's filosofy... i'm used to freely copy and past polygons, point and so on...so still learning 
p.s.
onether question ( don't kill me ! ) is there a command to make a " mirror " copy of a mesh ?
THX 
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### Author:  [@atyss](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/atyss)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2002, 7:48pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/hiding-point-or-polygon/61291/9 "2002-01-17T19:48:08Z")
Bonjour GfxMan,
Thanks for teaching me about Lightwave. I was curious to know if other packages than those I know (Softimage3d, XSI and 3ds max) have this feature.
By "mirror" do you mean like applying a symmetry on a given axe to an object?
If so, you have (to my knowledge) 2 options:
1-Select your object, and do Model \> Skeleton \> Duplicate Symmetry...
2-Use the effect\_symmetry script found here:
[http://www.highend3d.com/xsi/scripts/?grou...ction=utilities](http://www.highend3d.com/xsi/scripts/?grou...ction=utilities)
or into your Net View (http://www.softimage.com/xsinet/Addon\_display\_abstract.asp, in the Duplicate/Instiate section)
Hope this helps
Salutations - Cheers
Bernard Lebel
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### Author:  [@geoath](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/geoath)
#### Post date: [January 17, 2002, 9:14pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/hiding-point-or-polygon/61291/10 "2002-01-17T21:14:16Z")
Hi again !!
About mirror:One more way apart the ones Bernard mentioned is to Duplicate(or instance) your object and then scale it to -1..
I use it very often when i model with nurbs(e.g a head)but note this:if u plan to assemble or merge the 2 pieces be sure to flip the normals of the duplicate one..(since it's normals r inverted from the negative scale)
Clipping planes give u the advance to concetrate on a part of a model and get rid of selecting unwanted vertices...
For example if u have a head and u want to work it's front, with a clipping plane in the front view u get rid of the unwanted verices and geometry display of it's back..Also u don't have to select/deselect every time the unwanted vertices u want to hide/unhide..
Of course this doesn't mean that it is superior from the hide command lightwave and 3dmax have, but if u'll get used to it and automate it with a custom toolbar as i told before i'm sure u'll find it a good way to simplify your view when modeling..
I don't know Lightwave, but from my experience from 3DMAX i believe that finally comparing softwares is useless and waste of time..
Use your experience from Lightwave and learn good the tools in XSI to see where r the differences and how u can use each software's advantages..
Most times u'll discover that there is a way to have similar results (maybe with more work, or some cheating),but again all depends on your needs and the kind of workflow u prefer most.. 
Best regards
George
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### Author:  [@gfxman](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/gfxman)
#### Post date: [January 18, 2002, 6:32pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/hiding-point-or-polygon/61291/11 "2002-01-18T18:32:33Z")
Thx you all guys, things start to work ! Simply make size -1 
I didn't what to make an holy war xsi VS lightwave 
I like both of them very much, now learning Xsi makes me feel too much stupid when modelling....ahhh my beloved modeler 
Now i'm going crazy learning surfaces.....
THX you all !