Import Export (XSISDK)
There are existing Import/Export solutions for data interchange with the common 3D content programs, for example Maya and Max. Each Import / Export solution is slightly differant and can differ in their level of support, the following table can be useful to determine in the converter you have chosen supports the data elements you require.
Many large productions, especially in the Games field have proprietary file formats. It is possible to use the XSI SDK to write custom import/export plug-ins. Version 5.0 includes an example import/export plug-in, as well as the entire source code for the dotXSI export code, so there is a lot of good starting material for writing your own importer or exporter. Import/Export tools can be written in either C++ or Scripting, but C++ is probably the best choice for dealing with huge data sets. The File System Access page gives some useful tips for reading and writing files from scripting.
There are several open-source projects for dotXSI sourceforge.net. For example dotxsi4max (http://sourceforge.net/projects/dotxsi4max).
[Point Oven (http://www.ef9.com/ef9/PO.htm)] now offers XSI support.
Some people use Kaydara's FBX format to transfer data between Maya and XSI.
XSI does not currently support directly reading or writing custom image formats, but it does support a wide range of standard image formats.
