Anxious about extra feet, bodies, etc.

[kgbee]

I have been seeing things about new mesh avatars on some SL fashion blogs, and frankly it makes me anxious.

The whole business of putting together an avatar (shape, skin, hair, eyes, clothes) is already a lot to know, but I think I've got that down.

Next, mesh clothes takes some learning and adjustments, but I've got that now.

After that, there's all these extra body parts you can buy: feet, butts, boobs, and they all need "appliers". Okay, they all seem pointless to me, but I can understand that some people want them.

Until yesterday when I mistakenly bought a pair of shoes that require Slink feet. Alright -- I will have to get them and learn about them. The store where I bought my skin doesn't have appliers, so I'll have to find out what one does in that case.

Now there is all this stuff about new, different avatars, and what clothes do and don't work with them, and does hair work with them...

I am so not ready for that.

Is there somewhere on the web that explains about all the extra body parts and new mesh avatars? If I could read some explanations, I think I'd feel better about it. Personally, I'm happy enough with the way avatars are now.

 

[Ethan Paslong]

there is no reason at all to change if you like your avatar

[Chic Aeon]

I agree with Ethan, no reason to change. It will be awhile until the "classic" avatars are out of touch.

I also don't understand about all the added body parts and only have some mesh feet (not the main brand as I cannot for the life of me get them to work for my avatar). Those I DO love.

 

Meanwhile if it wasn't my article that set you in a tizzy, you might want to read it as many things are explained.  http://chicatphilsplace.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-new-sl-avatars-how-do-they-rate.html

While many of us old timers will probably stay with what we have and the voluminous inventory that goes along with it, they are a big step up for the new folks AND a picture of things to come in the future.

[kgbee]

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Chic Aeon wrote:

Meanwhile if it wasn't my article that set you in a tizzy, you might want to read it as many things are explained. 

http://chicatphilsplace.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-new-sl-avatars-how-do-they-rate.html

While many of us old timers will probably stay with what we have and the voluminous inventory that goes along with it, they are a big step up for the new folks AND a picture of things to come in the future.

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Thanks - I appreciate your and Ethan's answers.

Your article was great, and it did tell me what I wanted to know.

I actually follow your blog and like it a lot, but I only scanned that article. Sorry! (For all the fashion blogs, I usually look at the pictures and then read when some item or look grabs me.)

I did wonder whether the first female avatar's foot was in permanent high-heel position.

Reading it reminded me of when mesh hair and clothes first appeared. I remember these steps:

 

• thinking "I will never..."
• HATING the idea of standard sizes
• thinking "Snob!" when I heard people say they didn't want to wear non-mesh clothes any more
• changing my avatar to match standard sizes and liking the difference
• trying mesh clothes...
• preferring mesh clothes...

 

[LoriLexa]

I'm with you on this one and I just recently learned a bit about these new mesh avatars from someone inworld who was wearing one (although I would like to know more). This is what I know so far based on this person and their avatar:

>You wear alphas that make your whole default avatar invisible

>The layer clothes (system clothes) won't appear at all because of the reason above

>The new mesh shape is like one entire piece or they come in components that include hands, feet, head, and body

>most of the mesh clothes out today  will not fit (the person I spoke to told me that they can only wear the outfit that came with the avatar)

>Their new mesh avatar can not be modified

>The eyes do not blink

>It did not look any better than what we have been using already, just "different"

It's like those animal avatars that come in our inventory except the new mesh avatars are human form.

 

[kgbee]

That makes me feel a lot better.

[Bobbie Faulds]

The standard avi feet look like paddles with lines on them. The Slink feet fix that. There are a number of shoe designers that are making shoes for the three different heights. The hud makes matching easier, especially since there are a number of prematched settings on the website. 

Appliers are simply textures that are made by the skin maker that will match the basic skin.

The hands allow for a more natural position and eliminate some of the weird positions the SL hands get into. They also eliminate the floating jewelry problem those positions cause. There are also a number of designers that have made appliers for the nails for.polish looks.

The breasts are for those that want larger than about a 60 on the sliders although some do go overboard. If a female wants to be a bit chesty, the SL avi starts to deform at that point and you start getting odd peaks from the polygons in the default avi. Same applies to those that want to be a bit more zaftig and want larger/heavier hips and thighs, hence the mesh for those parts. You do have to have both skin and clothing appliers for those to apply the textures for th clothing.

I have the Slink hands and feet and love the look.

Hope this info helps

[Marianne Little]

I will only talk about Slink feet, since you already bought shoes for them. First thing you need to check, is that there is flat, medium high and high feet. Your shoes folder should have some information about what feet they used. Shoes for high feet will not fit medium high feet, and same goes for all three feet. If you aren't sure, go back to the vendor or marketplace ad. Also, you should try the demos in the slink store, or demos from the marketplace.

The good news is that all pedicure work the same on the different Slink feet. Search the marketplace for good buys. Inworld,  League skin store has free manicure and pedicure in natural french tones in their mainstore.

Are you sure your skin maker doesn't sell appliers? The applier works like this: The skin creator packs the skin texture for the foot with a script in a box. You "add" the applier and it will show on your screen. Click on it and watch how your feet change to match your body skin. 

The manual skin matching is a bit tricky, but not so complicated. Follow istructions here: http://slinkstyle.com/omnihud-v5/ It is harder to match, the more shaded the legs are. An even tint without highlights and freckles is easy.

Either way, when you have tinted the feet, you take off and add on shoes without having to match the feet again.

For hands, well they are more detailed than the default hands. And I never have to think about splayed hands again. And I can have a natural loose hold with one hand and a pointing or elegant hand in the other. Plus that they are very good for closeups.

Here I wear a henna tattoo plus french manicure with glitter tip from  Alaska Metropolitan. Unedited image, cropping and resized smaller.

 

 

[Marianne Little]

You posted while I was typing. We say much of the same. I love Slink products too. The downside is that when you get usd to them, it's hard to get back to default. Then you are addicted!

[Marianne Little]

SL residents can make 1000 times better avatars than LL. And that's a fact. 

The WoWmeh mesh body is interesting to demo. Free demo of course. You can google, because it is hard to post direct links here since so many reviews is nude or partial nude to show the differences.

[Pamela Galli]

This is why I never change my avatar anymore. I feel like I need an instruction manual just to change her shoes, much less attach body parts, and I am just not that motivated (no one sees her anyway, she is always working). 

Still, I would like a pretty mesh avatar -- one that did not look 12 yrs old (what is up with that anyway?) -- but will wait until I hear they have become easy to wear and clothe even for people like me. 

 

[Marianne Little]

Not 12 year old? 

This is the Slink head. They have two out. Skin designers can apply for kits so they can make skins for the heads. You don't have to look just like this..

I think the best would be to have mesh hands and feet, and not bother with the rest. It is really easy as long as you stick to a skin with appliers. 

I am a total skin addict. So I have to change skin on my hands and feet almost every time I log in, lol. But for those who are keeping a skin for months, this is not something you spend much time on. Read the notecard and see what your body fat, leg and torso muscle is now, then pick the size closest. Tweak your shape a bit so you fit one of the sizes. Wear alpha and products.  Match once and then done. And remember to use add instead of wear when you put on shoes. For manicure and pedicure, it is not harder than finding socks and gloves layers and put them on. Instead, wear a hud and click it. Nails done. 

 

[Marigold Devin]

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kgbee wrote:

I have been seeing things about new mesh avatars on some SL fashion blogs, and frankly it makes me anxious.

The whole business of putting together an avatar (shape, skin, hair, eyes, clothes) is already a lot to know, but I think I've got that down.

Next, mesh clothes takes some learning and adjustments, but I've got that now.

After that, there's all these extra body parts you can buy: feet, butts, boobs, and they all need "appliers". Okay, they all seem pointless to me, but I can understand that some people want them.

Until yesterday when I mistakenly bought a pair of shoes that require Slink feet. Alright -- I will have to get them and learn about them. The store where I bought my skin doesn't have appliers, so I'll have to find out what one does in that case.

Now there is all this stuff about new, different avatars, and what clothes do and don't work with them, and does hair work with them...

I am so not ready for that.

Is there somewhere on the web that explains about all the extra body parts and new mesh avatars? If I could read some explanations, I think I'd feel better about it. Personally, I'm happy enough with the way avatars are now.

 

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I'm anxious about it all too. :matte-motes-confused:

I feel personally very unsettled about having to build my avatar, add feet, and hands, (and bewbies!), as I have never been a "dress-up-dolly" type of girl in real life, and don't have that shoe gene that a lot of women seem to have.

As others have already said, if you're happy with how you look, there isn't (and shouldn't be) any pressure for you to pursue what seems to amount to some weird cross between OCD and a college course syllabus, to use Second Life.

There is currently a lot of talk about the new default mesh avatars that Linden Lab have added to everyone's inventory.  They appear not to be good, cannot be resized, do not work with the mesh clothing that is available, and I find my anxiety level has been exchanged for grrrrhhhh!owling.

If you just want to "plug and play", then do so.  I'm going to be wearing the boxbot avatar from now on when I go exploring, and sod it!

[Pamela Galli]

Thank you -- that one does look like an adult :-) 

 

Use add instead of wear with all mesh shoes with feet in them?

[Bobbie Faulds]

Unless you change your skin a lot, there's not a major problem with the hands and feet at least. The boob I can take or leave. With the hands and feet, you put them on and use the appliers that come with most skins and you're done. Think of it like the texture change hud that a lot of mesh clothing comes with now. Depending on the shoes, you might have to change the feet but if you used shoes with the mesh feet, you'd have to do that anyway and have the fun of matching those to your skin. Just a thought

[kgbee]

Thanks, Marianne, for all the great info.  I will make sure I get the right feet for my shoes.

I do love the shoes I got enough to buy the feet.

And yes, Bobbie, I agree - the feet really need help.

 

[tessakennedy1]

As a person who enjoys all things mesh I can give a  pretty  decent point of view about these items.  I am one of those types who loves to see the best graphics I can see. The standard  sl body does not provide me with with the smoothness I need. Which is one of the reasons why i turned to mesh or prim addons.  The problem with most of the items is that they are done over the top.  I dont know that I've seen anyone give a general pro's and cons. So ill attempt that.

 

Lola tangos pros:

smoother breast when made larger.

Cons:

Need appliers to match skin color.

cheat never seems to match up properly.

Clothing  often lacks detail and fails to line up properly.

The bounce is fake  and looks like its pivoiting vs bouncing.

 

Phatazz/banned booty/ ghetto booty pros:

Gives you a much larger curvy shape. Smooths the body in the inner thigh.

Cons:  lacks the ability to wear mesh.

With the clothing you have to wear that ugly prim attachment.

Offen makes you look oddly bolegged. 

You have to adjust  your shape to a zero body fat to fit it.

If you have a fitted mesh booty the physics cause it to seperate when it bounces.

 

Wowmeh body pro:   Completely alters the avatars body  giving it what id like to call a much more beautiful shape.

Your body doesnt break at the chest when you dance. 

 Cons: Only about 40 percent of my clothes that are mesh fit.

The alphas are spaced oddly so that it is hard to fit into skirts shorts and short dresses.

if you are detailed like me youll notice the seam at the neck.

 

Over all I wanted to do this listen to show its mostly negatives with these addons.  I think that If I were to do it all over again  I'd get the mesh body and hands and feet and call it day.  I love the breast with the mesh body.. and they use appliers so think system clothing. 

 

Sorry if none of this made sense.. I just wanted to toss it out there.

 

 

 

[Marianne Little]

oh no, only the shoes that is sold with the Slink symbol and/or the description "Add-on for Slink feet .... (type)"

The Slink feet stay on and the add-on shoes fit perfect on them. Just add the footshaper too so you don't sink in ground. But that's for all shoes in sl, new or old. 

Example on feet in shoes is Gos. They have a skin base on the internet, where you pick skin, let us say Glam Affair America. The feet is colored via the website. Amazing, huh? http://blog.gosboutique.com/?page_id=550

Gos has only very high shoes. For mderate height, I think Slink feet has many more realistic add-ons with some height, but not superhigh.https://marketplace.secondlife.com/p/fri-EverydayHeels-DEMO/5211503I seem to remember from other posts that you want a business look, not a sexy club look.

Edited to add: The fri.day shoes I link to is not updated, they only talk about flat and medium height feet. Demo all purchases of shoes in case the description is incorrect. Shoes for medium height foot can look a lot like shoes for high foot if they have a platform.

Personally I think medium height feet is the most versatile. You can wear them barefoot and get away with it... a bit tiptoe but not so crazy tiptoe as the high feet. You can get all sorts of heels for them, summer sandals, wedges, pumps and sandals. And with a platform, also the superhigh, sexy heels if that's what you want.

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Pamela Galli wrote:

Thank you -- that one does look like an adult :-) 

 

Use add instead of wear with all mesh shoes with feet in them?

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[kgbee]

Thanks - that's a lot of good info.

[kgbee]

Marianne - I did go and get the slink feet, and was amazed at how easily the appliers work.

Pretty nice!  It's fantastic to not have to do the skin rematch for every pair of shoes that shows skin, plus having a nice barefoot look.

So now... I love the slink feet. I don't care about all the other body parts. I'll give a pass on the official mesh avatars, but I'll try the WowMeh. A lot of people inworld have been talking about it (I'm in the Skin Addiction group, and it has a great chat.)

[Marianne Little]

Glad I could help. :matte-motes-little-laugh:

If you like to have toenails and fingernails that match, Slink sells just the nails, to use with default hands. One size fits all. And you use the manicure packs made for Slink with them.

They are to the left of feet and hands . Slink Avatar enhancement nails