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Items only stretch into odd shapes....?


Mayalily
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Hi,

 

I was working with full perm items and textures for the first time this past week.  Anyhow, I don't know what I might have hit or clicked, but all items will only stretch into a square or other odd shapes.  Any idea on what I did wrong and how to fix this as I can't stretch anything without it becoming misshapen. 

 

Also, once I make my creation from full perm items, how do I change the creation into my name so I can sell them?

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Hard to say why you are having a problem stretching the item without knowing why kind it is. Are the full perm items prims, sculpts or mesh?

As far as showing yourself as the creator, if it is sculpted you should create your own items with the sculpt maps and textures or shadow maps that may have come with it.  If it is just regular prims you can either get a cloner script or rebuild it prim by prim using the full perm item as a guide. Cloners also work with sculpts if the map and everything is full perm to you,  You can't clone mesh though. You can link the item you have to a a root prim that you created.  This will make it show you as the creator of the entire piece but if someone inspects it they will see the original creator's name as the creator of each prim.

Which ever method you use be sure you are in compliance with any license that you received with the item.

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Hi Amethyst,

 

It was just a regular item I bought.  A shaped wall light sconce, like this:

 

https://marketplace.secondlife.com/p/PRIMVISION-The-Rochester-Wall-Sconce/3995190

 

It shapes into a square, and so do just regular prim flowers I tried to put in a vase I made.  Other things just prims when I stretch get all misshapen also.

 

Oh, and yes I did check all full perm requirements, but am just getting started, and everyone has to start somewhere.  I'm trying to get to a class, but first lets just see if I can correct my stretching tool.  That item linked above I need to make smaller with stretch, but can't...it just stretches into weird shapes. 

 

p.s.  And, also, I'm just practicing right now, but do need my stretch fixed for the items I do buy.   

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Hi Chosen,

 

I sent a copy of a photo I just took inworld and it shows the flowers forming into a square.  What the prims do also is they just sort of fold into themselves and/or split.  Any help would be greatly appreciated.  I'm not used to this Firestorm viewer and the new photography or even where my uploaded photo went to on my computer nor do I even remember at this time how to post a photo on here, so I sent it to you.

 

Thanks for any advice, or if u have time u can post photo here.  Sorry, I just couldn't even find where the darn photo went in my documents.  I'm still very new to Windows 7 also. 

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In the image you sent me, the flowers are constructed asterisk style, meaning they're just an aplha texture on three or four intersecting planes.  This is a very common way to create things like foliage, chandaliers, flames, or anything else with lots of little branches that would take an absurd amount of geometry to fully express as a 3D model.

When you make an object like that bigger, it becomes a bit more obvious that it's made from planes.  It's not actually changing shape in any way.

By the way, make sure Stretch Textures is turned on when you do your resizing.  In the picture, the texture is cropped at the edges of each plane, making the illusion very unconvincing.  This suggests that either the object was not well textured to begin with, or else its scaling got screwed up during your resizing.  If it's the former, you (or whoever created the itme) need to do a better texturing job.  If it's the latter, Stretch Textures will prevent the problem.

 

As for how to take a screenshot, let's talk a little PC usage 101.  First, copy the active window to clipboard, by pressing alt-printscreen.  Now, in any image editor, open a new document, and paste (ctrl-v).  The screenshot will appear in the document.  From there, save it wherever you want. 

So you know, Windows 7 works no differently from all other versions of Windows, in this respect.  The basic keyboard shortcuts haven't changed in over 20 years.  Are you perhaps new to Windows in general?

 

 

To insert an image into a forum post, click the "Insert/Edit Image" button at the top of the input field, under the Rich Text tab.  It's the one that has the little picture of the tree on it.  In the dialog that pops up, navigate to your image, and upload it to the forums.  Alternatively, you could upload the image to any other web server, and use standard HTML reference to display it.

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Looking at the link for  the light fixture it says it is only one prim and that it is not mesh or sculpted.  It too must be a texture on a square prim that goes out of whack when you stretch it. In this case it is one traditional prim.

If it appears 3D in world it may give the illusion of being round due to a script that always faces the texture towards you, similar to the way hover text works.  If you walk around it it appears round.

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Chosen Few wrote:

In the image you sent me, the flowers are constructed asterisk style, meaning they're just an aplha texture on three or four intersecting planes.  This is a very common way to create things like foliage, chandaliers, flames, or anything else with lots of little branches that would take an absurd amount of geometry to fully express as a 3D model.

When you make an object like that bigger, it becomes a bit more obvious that it's made from planes.  It's not actually changing shape in any way.

By the way, make sure Stretch Textures is turned on when you do your resizing.  In the picture, the texture is cropped at the edges of each plane, making the illusion very unconvincing.  This suggests that either the object was not well textured to begin with, or else its scaling got screwed up during your resizing.  If it's the former, you (or whoever created the itme) need to do a better texturing job.  If it's the latter, Stretch Textures will prevent the problem.

 

As for how to take a screenshot, let's talk a little PC usage 101.  First, copy the active window to clipboard, by pressing alt-printscreen.  Now, in any image editor, open a new document, and paste (ctrl-v).  The screenshot will appear in the document.  From there, save it wherever you want. 

So you know, Windows 7 works no differently from all other versions of Windows, in this respect.  The basic keyboard shortcuts haven't changed in over 20 years.  Are you perhaps new to Windows in general?

 

 

To insert an image into a forum post, click the "Insert/Edit Image" button at the top of the input field, under the Rich Text tab.  It's the one that has the little picture of the tree on it.  In the dialog that pops up, navigate to your image, and upload it to the forums.  Alternatively, you could upload the image to any other web server, and use standard HTML reference to display it.

Yes, have had stretch textures clicked as well to try to fix this problem.  I stretched that flower prim before and it never looked like that, and I also have several of those sconces in my sl home and they never stretched all out of whack or looked misshapen.  Something is wrong. 

As far as computer knowledge, XP was so easy compared to Windows 7 which I hate.  I also don't use many nor need many geek computer shortcuts as most of my computer useage has been Ebay almost since Ebay started.  My knowledge is adequate for what I need and do on the computer.

 

As far as trying to post that image here, I'm getting a pop up window that says that type of file is not supported by Windows...?  I may just go to a sandbox and see if someone knows what might be wrong, as in the Summer I stretched lots of plants and they never looked like what I sent u in the pic.  I also stretched plants and put them in vases and they never looked like what it showed in the photo I sent.

 

I'll just keep trying.

 

Onto the subject of "full perm" as Amethyst brought up, most simply say do not sell as a package (meaning the full perm package one would purchase) and do not sell for less than what they are charging as that would undercut them (unless u buy a package of several items, of course and are selling each item separately).  As far as the textures, it says do not copy and resell these textures as this "package", but you may use them in your builds, etc, etc.

 

Anyhow, I've tried to put image here, Windows keeps popping up a window that says "file not supported".  That's okay because I use Firestorm support inworld when I need it, but they didn't even have a clue what this was.  Neither do I as all those items stretched fine before. 

 

 

 

 

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Chosen Few wrote:

 

As for how to take a screenshot, let's talk a little PC usage 101.  First, copy the active window to clipboard, by pressing alt-printscreen.  Now, in any image editor, open a new document, and paste (ctrl-v).  The screenshot will appear in the document.  From there, save it wherever you want. 

So you know, Windows 7 works no differently from all other versions of Windows, in this respect.  The basic keyboard s

In windows 7 there's also the snipping tool. By default it's on top of the start menu I think. Just open it, drag a square around the part you want a screenshot of and save as image.

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Kwakkelde Kwak wrote:


Chosen Few wrote:

 

As for how to take a screenshot, let's talk a little PC usage 101.  First, copy the active window to clipboard, by pressing alt-printscreen.  Now, in any image editor, open a new document, and paste (ctrl-v).  The screenshot will appear in the document.  From there, save it wherever you want. 

So you know, Windows 7 works no differently from all other versions of Windows, in this respect.  The basic keyboard s

In windows 7 there's also the snipping tool. By default it's on top of the start menu I think. Just open it, drag a square around the part you want a screenshot of and save as image.

I'll try that later.  Right now I'd like to know how to rez this cube prim.  I'm clicking on the magic wand and nothing is happening.  Waiting for a building class to start at 6 SLT, but no one is there.  How do u rez this cube?  Thanks. 

 

(Don't laugh, I just started a few days ago!!!!!!!!!!!!!)  Anyhow, how do I rez this stupid cube?   

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Mayalily wrote:

Anyhow, how do I rez this stupid cube?   

To rezz a basic cube, right click the ground, select "build", then when the magic wand appears, click the ground. You'll have a plywood cube, 0.5x0.5x0.5 meters big.

You do need to make sure building is allowed on the land. If it's not, SL will give you a message. If the parcel is full, SL will also give you a message. Sometimes rezzing on a megaprim gives problems. If that's the case, try rezzing on the ground.

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Kwakkelde Kwak wrote:


Mayalily wrote:

Anyhow, how do I rez this stupid cube?   

To rezz a basic cube, right click the ground, select "build", then when the magic wand appears, click the ground. You'll have a plywood cube, 0.5x0.5x0.5 meters big.

You do need to make sure building is allowed on the land. If it's not, SL will give you a message. If the parcel is full, SL will also give you a message. Sometimes rezzing on a megaprim gives problems. If that's the case, try rezzing on the ground.

Thanks.  No, I know about sandboxes, and that's where I went to make the cube.  Finally made one!  Thanks.  Put the sculpt map in, had to change to torus, but the textures just are not working like when I made my samples from the original sculpt sample.  I need a class which I hope will be starting after the holidays.  With the holidays almost here, the classes keep getting cancelled. 

Building is a lot harder than I thought. 

 

Have a nice holiday everybody! 

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Mayalily wrote:

I stretched that flower prim before and it never looked like that, and I also have several of those sconces in my sl home and they never stretched all out of whack or looked misshapen.  Something is wrong. 

All I can say is this.  The screenshot very, very, very clearly shows what type of item is in question.  As I said, it's an extremely common construction method.  It's used not only in SL, but also in video games, all the time. 

I can't speak inteligently as to why you didn't notice it before.  There are all kinds of factors that can impact how apparent it is.  Other items in the scene, the camera distance, the camera angle, your graphics configuration, your graphics driver version, etc., etc., etc., can all play a role.

You mentioned you only recently upgraded from Windows XP to Windows 7.  Perhaps the ancient drivers in the old OS simply weren't as good at displaying things how they actually are.

Or, perhaps as you're gaining experience, your own powers of observation are increasing to the point where you now can see through illusions that used to fool your eye.  We can only speculate.

Regardless, it is what it is.  If you want a different type of effect, use a different type of item.  The asterisk illusion only goes so far. 

So you understand, the asterisk is generally worthwhile, since it tends to express the item adequately, even if less than perfectly, with minimal resource consumption.  In any real-time simulation, success is always about striking the best balance between visual fidelity and performance.

 


Mayalily wrote:

As far as computer knowledge, XP was so easy compared to Windows 7 which I hate.

Everyone says that at first.  The reason XP seems "easy" is because it's what you're used to.  In its day, it was a great OS (or at least, it BECAME a great OS, once it had been around long enough for so many of its bugs to have been fixed).  Once you've gotten used to 7, you'll find that it comes with tremendous improvements, across the board, many of which will make your computing life significantly easier.  Just give it time, and you'll see.

 


Mayalily wrote:

I also don't use many nor need many geek computer shortcuts as most of my computer useage has been Ebay almost since Ebay started.  My knowledge is adequate for what I need and do on the computer.

Your knowledge is adequate, yet you're having problems because of things you don't know.  You don't need keyboard shortcuts, yet you couldn't perform such an everyday task as a screenshot.  The fact that you know how to use eBay is more than good enough for you, yet now here you are, doing things other than eBay.   You're having trouble doing quite a few things, yet you still seem to be saying the fact that you know how to use eBay is good enough for you.

I hope you're starting to realize how illogical that line of thinking is.  I'd strongly recommend you do yourself the favor of opening your mind to learning a bit more about the basic fundamentals of everyday computer usage. 

Basic keyboard shortcuts aren't just for uber elite computer geeks.  They're for everyone.  That's the whole point.  They're there to make life faster and easier for every single computer user on the planet.  If you've been ignoring them, you've only been handicapping yourself.

From the way you're phrasing it, you seem to want to think there's some kind of Great Wall sized list of them that only the no-life guy from the South Park World of Warcraft episode could ever possibly know.  That's simply not the case.  Windows has had the same very small handful of shortcuts for its most common functions, for over 20 years.  They're as useful for eBay users as they are for everyone else.

Here are the ones you'll find useful every day.  They go right across the bottom of the keyboard:

  • ctrl-z is Undo
  • ctrl-x is Cut
  • ctrl-c is Copy
  • ctrl-v is Paste

If you say to yourself, "undo, cut, copy, paste," ten times, you'll have those memorized, right away.  You don't need to memorize the actual letters, since they fall right in line, right across the bottom of the keyboard.  Just remember, "undo, cut, copy, paste," and you're all set.

Those four commands are the most commonly used functions on any computer.  Whether you're typing E-mails, or chatting on IM, or placing eBay ads, or even just surfing the web, you're going to need to undo things, or copy and paste things, at least a few times a day.  The shortcuts save you a few seconds each time.  Over the course of a week or so, that can add up to several extra hours.  In a year, it grants you many days worth of extra time.  Over a month, it could be an extra day or two worth of time.  In a year, it could be weeks.  It's well worth taking ten seconds to memorize "undo, cut, copy, paste" in order to save even a few minutes, let alone hours, days, or weeks.

 

For screenshots, there are two options:

  • ctrl-printscreen copies the entire desktop to clipbaord
  • alt-printscreen copies just the active window to clipboard

Once you've got the image copied, you can paste it anywhere, just like anything else.  Open up any image editor (even MS Paint will work) and then paste it in.  Press ctrl-v to do it quickly, or if you insist on doing it the slower way, click Edit -> Paste.  Either way, you've got your screenshot.

Alternatively, you can use the snipping tool in Windows 7, as Kwak suggested. Remember I said Windows 7 has all kinds of things in it that will make your life easier?  Well, as someone who has never wanted to memorize shortcuts, this one's got your name all over it.

 

 


Mayalily wrote:

As far as trying to post that image here, I'm getting a pop up window that says that type of file is not supported by Windows...?

Does it actually say it's not supported by Windows, or simply that it's an invalid file type?  My guess is you're trying to upload a file type that the forum software does not support.  It only allows you to upload web-friendly formats: JPEG, GIF, and PNG.

If you used the SL snapshot feature to save the image, it's probably a BMP or TGA.  Those aren't allowed, because they're uncompressed, huge files, which would take up too much storage space on the server, and which would take way too long to appear in people's browsers.  Before you can upload any image to the forums (or to eBay), you'll need to convert ot to a web-suitable (compressed) format.  To do that, simply open the image any full featured image editor (Photoshop, GIMP, Paintshop Pro, Paint.Net, etc.) and then save it as one of the appropriate formats.  Alternatively, you can use IrfanView, which is a free image converter program, to very quickly and easily convert images to different formats.

As someone who regularly places eBay ads, I'm guessing you must have some sort of image editor at your disposal, and that it's capable of saving web-friendly images.  Otherwise, you wouldn't be able to include pictures in your ads. 

 

 


Mayalily wrote:

I may just go to a sandbox and see if someone knows what might be wrong, as in the Summer I stretched lots of plants and they never looked like what I sent u in the pic.  I also stretched plants and put them in vases and they never looked like what it showed in the photo I sent.

 

I'll just keep trying.

I'm glad you'll keep trying, but I wouldn't expect anyone in a sandbox would tell you anything different than what we've all already told you here.  If the object is an asterisk, it's an asterisk.  As I said, I'm not sure why you didn't notice it before, but it is what it is.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Another problem with signboard (asterisk) objects, particularly in SL is that your videocard can get confused as to which Texture is to be seen beyond the other texture. Some video cards are better at this than others. When looking through two or more textures with Alpha (invisible parts) it can create some bizarre effects. Good to avoid where you can, sometimes (especially with plants and bushes) it cannot be avoided, and must be endured.

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You would not go out and buy a Gucci purse and take the Gucci name off to replace with your own. If you have a sculpy designed and made by someone else that you want to rearrange and sell as your own, it is not at all cool to treat the work that is not yours as if it was. As noted you may have a parent prim that you rezzed and included someone else's work in a montage of your work, but even where you have the ability to remove their name I would not regard it a good thing to do so as it reflects badly on you and is an insult to them.

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Dragon Ronin wrote:

You would not go out and buy a Gucci purse and take the Gucci name off to replace with your own. If you have a sculpy designed and made by someone else that you want to rearrange and sell as your own, it is not at all cool to treat the work that is not yours as if it was. As noted you may have a parent prim that you rezzed and included someone else's work in a montage of your work, but even where you have the ability to remove their name I would not regard it a good thing to do so as it reflects badly on you and is an insult to them.

While I agree with the sentiment, the full perm sculpties on the market place are specifically made so the purchaser can have their own name on the finished product, that is why the merchants supply the sculpt maps 95% of the time so the purchaser can build the item from scratch.

Many merchants even have it in their TOS that the purchasers name is to be on the finished product as the creator and that the sample objects are to not be sold but they need to re-build it using the supplied sculpt map and textures.

Unless the creator of the sculpts expressively writes that their name must appear as the creator of the end product (something I have not seen thus far) everyone is free to use the products with them appearing as the creator.

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Dragon Ronin wrote:

You would not go out and buy a Gucci purse and take the Gucci name off to replace with your own. If you have a sculpy designed and made by someone else that you want to rearrange and sell as your own, it is not at all cool to treat the work that is not yours as if it was. As noted you may have a parent prim that you rezzed and included someone else's work in a montage of your work, but even where you have the ability to remove their name I would not regard it a good thing to do so as it reflects badly on you and is an insult to them.

You wouldn't do that with a Gucci purse. But you probably would with purse parts that you got for a few cents from Guangzhou Purse, Pump and Rocket Parts, Inc. in Shanghai, because that's Guangzhou PPRP's business model. And in doing so you'd be doing exactly what Gucci does.

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iCade wrote:

Unless the creator of the sculpts expressively writes that their name must appear as the creator of the end product (something I have not seen thus far) everyone is free to use the products with them appearing as the creator.

 Legally speaking, it's the other way around.  Unless the creator of ANY work, be it a sculpt map or anything else, expressly ALLOWS you to make copies and claim them as your own, then you're NOT free to do so.  This is true, no matter what the assignment of permissions in SL.

That's the reason creators tend to include a wrriten TOS with their full perms works, to make it clear what rights they are granting to their customers.  They're under no obligation to state what rights they are not granting.  Legally, if they don't come out and say you can, then you can't.

 

That said, you're of course absolutely right that many sculpt map creators do intend for their customers to put their own names on the items they make from the maps.  It's just important to understand that if that's what they intend, they should say so.  If a creator doesn't actually say it, then this or her customers legally have to assume they do not have the right.

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Dragon Ronin wrote:

You would not go out and buy a Gucci purse and take the Gucci name off to replace with your own.

I appreciate what you're trying to say, but I might suggest you pick a more suitable example.  The purse doesn't really hold up.  If someone wanted to pay all the money to buy a Gucci purse, replace the label, and then try to resell it as their own brand, there's no legal or eithical reason why they couldn't or shouldn't do that. 

Of course, there may be a compelling financial reason not to do it, since they'd most likely reduce the perceived value of the purse, rather than increase it, and they'd end up selling it at a loos.  But there's no law against being stupid like that.

Here's why the purse doesn't make a very good analog for the digital art being discussed:

First, if you own a RL item, whether it be a purse or anything else, you can resell it any time you want, regardless of whether or not it still has the original label on it.  Reselling the item does not involve making new copies of it, so there's no possible way to infringe on the creator's rights.

Second, even if you somehow were to magically replicate the purse upon selling it, the fact is a purse is a utilitarian item, and as such, it is not protected by copyright law.  So even then, you wouldn't be infringing on the original creator's rights.

This is why the knock-off industry exists.  Anyone can produce a purse that looks just like a Gucci purse, and sell as many units as they like.  They just can't include protected intellectual property, such as the Gucci logo, which is trademarked, or any artistic items that could exist separately from the whole, which would be copyrighted.

There's an active argument to change all that, by the way, by broadening the laws regarding design patents, and trade dress.  If you've been following the ongoing Apple vs. Samsung saga, it's all about these kinds of questions.  Certain legalities may indeed be altered, for better or worse.  But in the here and now, things are still how they've been for a very long time.

 

Anyway, I get that your point was to respect original creators, and I do appreciate that.  It just would make better sense to use an example that is more analogous to the situation at hand.

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Chosen Few wrote:


iCade wrote:

Unless the creator of the sculpts expressively writes that their name must appear as the creator of the end product (something I have not seen thus far) everyone is free to use the products with them appearing as the creator.

 Legally speaking, it's the other way around.  Unless the creator of ANY work, be it a sculpt map or anything else, expressly ALLOWS you to make copies and claim them as your own, then you're NOT free to do so.  This is true, no matter what the assignment of permissions in SL.

That's the reason creators tend to include a wrriten TOS with their full perms works, to make it clear what rights they are granting to their customers.  They're under no obligation to state what rights they are not granting.  Legally, if they don't come out and say you can, then you can't.

 

That said, you're of course absolutely right that many sculpt map creators do intend for their customers to put their own names on the items they make from the maps.  It's just important to understand that if that's what they intend, they should say so.  If a creator doesn't actually say it, then this or her customers legally have to assume they do not have the right.

Actually, a lot if not all full perm builders include into their TOS a section of the 'Do not's'. If there's no 'you must not appear as the creator of the product' in those do nots, then you CAN assume you are allowed to. It's a given that people will appear as the creator of the finished product. How could they NOT considering most of the time, the samples given (so you know how to rebuild) are no transfer and sculpt maps are supplied.

Are you buying sculpts on a regular basis from many different creators? I do, and have not once gotten the impression that the full perm item is anything BUT full perm. As long as you abide to their TOS you're well within your rights to appear as the creator, most often because SL mechanics MAKE you.

Or how would you not appear as a creator when you buy sculpt maps and the samples are no transfer? Of course you'd have to make your own prim, apply the sculpt maps, texture it and make it part of your finished build.

This is only about 'appearing' as the creator in the build menu. This is NOT about people going around claiming they made the sculpts in external products when they indeed just bought them off the MP. That's two entirely different things.

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I think you're right that were were talking about two different things, iCade. :) 

You're of course absolutely right that when a sculpt map is applied to a prim, the name of the creator of that prim will be what shows up in the build menu, regardless of who created the map.  That's part of the expected behavior of SL, and the requisite transfer of rights for it is part of what we've all agreed to in SL's TOS.  So, that's totally a non-issue.

That does not speak, however, to the practice of downloading a sculpt map, and then re-uploading the image, in order to change the apparent creator name of the map itself.  That's a no-no, unless the creator says it's OK.

Upon re-reading your post, I realize you were talking about the former, not the latter.  Somehow, I thought you were talking aobut the latter when I first replied.  My mistake.

 

 

 

To answer your question about whether or not I regularly buy sculpties, the answer is no, I do not.  I never buy anything in SL, actually.  If I need something, I'll just make it myself.

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Wish I could do that, but I'm so horrible with making sculpts. I've tried it, but without someone there to hold my hand (so I won't procastinate, or give up) it's just not happening. I'm horrible in that respect >.<


And yes, I was definitely talking about appearing as the creator in the build menu. I do not condone at all for someone to claim they made something when they only purchased it. I've had people before ask me if I made something and told them no, giving them a link to the MP listing for the sculpt.

It's just wrong to take credit for something one didn't do.

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