Hi Steve, the easiest way to work with curved text is to use the new Transform > Deform > Flow tool in MoI v3.
That will allow you to start with some simple extruded solid text and then warp it to follow a curved surface.
Check out here for some examples:
http://moi3d.com/forum/index.php?webtag=MOI&msg=4363.124
http://moi3d.com/forum/index.php?webtag=MOI&msg=4442.24
http://moi3d.com/forum/index.php?webtag=MOI&msg=4514.1
http://moi3d.com/forum/index.php?webtag=MOI&msg=4487.1
http://moi3d.com/forum/index.php?webtag=MOI&msg=4838.3
But it is also possible to do it the way you were working with earlier, you were asking:
> I tried starting with text curve , projected it on to the surface,
> then extruded it, but I have 2 problems, 1. How do I make
> the text solid,?
The easiest way to make an extrusion of a curved surface to be solid is to extrude a surface fragment rather than extruding a curve - if you extrude a curve it will only get capped into a solid if the curve is closed and planar. But if you extrude a curved surface the surface can get copied to the other side to make a capped solid.
See here for some examples:
http://moi3d.com/forum/index.php?webtag=MOI&msg=1303.10
http://moi3d.com/forum/index.php?webtag=MOI&msg=3024.4
http://moi3d.com/forum/index.php?webtag=MOI&msg=4010.4
Also another method to thicken a surface into a solid is to use the Shell command on the surface - that will produce a solid by doing an offset of the surface, it will generate a different kind of shape than extrusion, see here for a comparison:
http://moi3d.com/forum/index.php?webtag=MOI&msg=4791.13
> 2. how do "bond" the text to the circle?
This is done by using the Edit > Trim command to cut the extruded surface with the curve, the curves you are working with then will become boundaries of the cut up surface pieces.
And actually the Trim command already has projection built into it so you don't need to project the curves as a separate step, just trim with the 2D curve and Trim will project the 2D curve as part of its regular processing.
However, with the new Flow command in v3 that tends to be the easier method.
Hope this helps!
- Michael
