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Installation

MCA Editor is distributed as a single Python file that you drop into Maya's plug-ins folder. No installer, no dependencies to manage — Maya handles everything.

Download

Download the mcaEditor.py file for your Maya version:

Maya Version File
Maya 2024 mcaEditor-Maya2024.py
Maya 2025 mcaEditor-Maya2025.py
Maya 2026 mcaEditor-Maya2026.py

Use the correct version

Each Maya version requires its own build. The files are not interchangeable — Maya 2024 uses Python 3.10 while Maya 2025/2026 use Python 3.11.

Install

Step 1: Copy the file

Rename the downloaded file to mcaEditor.py and place it in your Maya plug-ins folder:

C:\Users\<you>\Documents\maya\<version>\plug-ins\mcaEditor.py

~/Library/Preferences/Autodesk/maya/<version>/plug-ins/mcaEditor.py

~/maya/<version>/plug-ins/mcaEditor.py

If the plug-ins folder doesn't exist, create it.

Step 2: Load the plugin

  1. Open Maya
  2. Go to Windows > Settings/Preferences > Plug-in Manager
  3. Find mcaEditor.py in the list
  4. Check Loaded
  5. Check Auto load to have it load every session

Step 3: Open MCA Editor

Click the Script Editor button in Maya's toolbar. MCA Editor opens instead of Maya's built-in editor.

First Run

On first load, MCA Editor will:

  1. Extract its packages to a local cache directory
  2. Create a managed virtual environment for third-party dependencies (like the AI chat SDK)
  3. Install required packages automatically

This happens once and takes about 30 seconds. Subsequent launches are instant.

Where files go

  • Package cache: %LOCALAPPDATA%\MCAEditor-Maya<version>-py3.XX\ (Windows)
  • Virtual environment: ~/Documents/mca_preferences/.venv-3.XX/
  • Settings: Stored in your OS settings (QSettings / Windows Registry)

Update

To update MCA Editor, simply replace the mcaEditor.py file with the new version and restart Maya. The plugin detects version changes and re-extracts automatically.

Uninstall

  1. Uncheck Loaded and Auto load in Maya's Plug-in Manager
  2. Delete mcaEditor.py from your plug-ins folder
  3. Optionally, delete the cache folder at %LOCALAPPDATA%\MCAEditor-Maya*\