.3ds or .max with opengl

I’m making a program using c++ with opengl. I’ve created models in 3ds max and I need to load them into my program.
HOW ???

Wont it be easier to just convert the .3ds file into a .x file using the conversion utility that comes with dx8 sdk ? U then have access to all aspects of the mesh and animation from within yr s/w without any long winded coding. Of course, extensive doccumentation on 3ds file format is available form www.wotsit.org, complete with code samples … Must admit, when DX8 was released … I trashed all my opengl work, and converted
to DX8 … never looked back.
Best regards
Cybermike3D