Non-mesh vs. Mesh

[Lillith Hapmouche]

1 hour ago, RowanMinx said:

you must have media turned on for it to work

What... the ... friggin... ... ?

[animats]

I spoke too soon. The Meshbody Classic really is just an updated TMP. It can wear some fitmesh based clothes intended for classic avatars, though. Tops and bottoms work, but not long coats - the butt is too big. I'd tried wearing it with a classic body, which works but isn't that useful.

2 hours ago, RowanMinx said:

you must have media turned on for it (the Meshbody HUD) to work.

Yes. There's some dependency on an external server in there.

3 hours ago, Skell Dagger said:

I've been doing that myself, and believe me, using fitmesh isn't going to cut it, because many menswear stores aren't creating it anymore and new users won't have any of it in their inventory, so finding it will be a bit of a pain.

The New Resident Island people are trying to put together a male tutorial to go with their new one for women. The women's one ends with you wearing open-source Ruth and some basic outfits. That works well. Open source Roth doesn't work as well, and they're trying to get enough pieces together to make it work. I was showing them the same outfits on different avatars to see what fits.

Fitmesh is a big convenience for new users because they don't have to fuss with HUDs and alphas. The target audience is a 0-day user who got stuck with the 70s Disco Guy avatar and desperately wants to stop looking like a n00b default.

[Marianne Little]

2 hours ago, Lillith Hapmouche said:

What... the ... friggin... ... ?

ONLY for switching on the skins in the HUD. That is literally one time, if you turn on BoM you do not need media again. Using alphas work without media. Changing feet height too.

This need for media is if you will use the included skins that TMP/Meshbody provides. They are probably in the TMP server, so if you do not have media on, the HUD can't contact the server. With BoM, all that stress is gone.

[Marianne Little]

24 minutes ago, animats said:

I spoke too soon. The Meshbody Classic really is just an updated TMP. It can wear some fitmesh based clothes intended for classic avatars, though. Tops and bottoms work, but not long coats - the butt is too big. I'd tried wearing it with a classic body, which works but isn't that useful.

Yes. There's some dependency on an external server in there.

The New Resident Island people are trying to put together a male tutorial to go with their new one for women. The women's one ends with you wearing open-source Ruth and some basic outfits. That works well. Open source Roth doesn't work as well, and they're trying to get enough pieces together to make it work. I was showing them the same outfits on different avatars to see what fits.

Fitmesh is a big convenience for new users because they don't have to fuss with HUDs and alphas. The target audience is a 0-day user who got stuck with the 70s Disco Guy avatar and desperately wants to stop looking like a n00b default.

He is going to look worse than a n00b in Roth.

I have no experience with other than SL, but is it not work involved in changing your avatar in other "games"? If they just push a button to change avatar, they are all clones from that selection of avatars. Avatar add-ons, avatar mods and avatar customization exists only in SL?

Edit: And you do not have enough experience with mesh avatars to set together a manual for new users. Layering mesh upon mesh like a coat over a pair of pants, and you see that the butt clips through in all sort of bodies. It is because of this that clothes in sets sell so well. The clothes in the set is rigged so the jacket or coat lays over the pants. Use a coat from another store or even the same store, and you can get mesh clipping through.

It is not possible to layer mesh freely and without clipping with the technology that exists in SL today. That is why we say "Demo and see if the clothes fit together".

For me, it sounds like the persons that want your tutorial is not interested in demos either.

Edited October 11, 2020 by Marianne Little

[Rowan Amore]

40 minutes ago, animats said:

I

Fitmesh is a big convenience for new users because they don't have to fuss with HUDs and alphas. The target audience is a 0-day user who got stuck with the 70s Disco Guy avatar and desperately wants to stop looking like a n00b default.

But @Skell Daggersaid: I've been doing that myself, and believe me, using fitmesh isn't going to cut it, because many menswear stores aren't creating it anymore and new users won't have any of it in their inventory, so finding it will be a bit of a pain.

If anything, trying to use fit mesh will only confuse them further as they'll be lost trying to find anything that works.  They need to learn about alphas if nothing else, huds if they go with the TMP Classics 1L mesh body.  Trying to ignore a major step in avatar creation isn't wise.  The walk in avatars have alphas.so why trying to pretend it doesn't matter?  Fit mesh is actually an inconvenience.

I understand what you're hoping to accomplish.  I just don't feel you have the necessary tools to make it work.

 

 

Edited October 11, 2020 by RowanMinx

[animats]

31 minutes ago, Marianne Little said:

Avatar add-ons, avatar mods and avatar customization exists only in SL?

Pretty much, yes. Most games offer some pre-made outfits with options, but not that many of them. A few systems have Unity uploads; you can build a whole character offline and upload it. What Fortnite calls "skin creation" we call "getting dressed" - you assemble some premade clothing items into an outfit. SL/Open simulator seems to be unique in offering general mix and match.

32 minutes ago, Marianne Little said:

And you do not have enough experience with mesh avatars to set together a manual for new users.

True. Someone at NRI is doing the tutorial. She did the female side, which uses Ruth. We were just going through some available male bodies and clothing.

39 minutes ago, Marianne Little said:

He is going to look worse than a n00b in Roth.

Roth does have problems. Some of them can be fixed with the appearance sliders. Not all. Roth is free and can wear a good selection of casual wear. It's BOM, so all the classic freebie clothes work. Much, but not all, fitmesh for classic avatars works. It's a start.

[Wulfie Reanimator]

7 hours ago, Marianne Little said:

I have no experience with other than SL, but is it not work involved in changing your avatar in other "games"? If they just push a button to change avatar, they are all clones from that selection of avatars. Avatar add-ons, avatar mods and avatar customization exists only in SL?

I've played a wide variety of games my whole life, and no, there is no other game I've come across that is as extensive in the ways of character customization as SL. The closest second (as far as non-niche games go) is The Sims. Then maybe Role-Playing Games, but options in those are often very limited (relatively speaking) unless the developers have enabled the players to import their own mods, which is also relatively rare.

Edited October 12, 2020 by Wulfie Reanimator

[Jaide Beck]

On 10/4/2020 at 3:18 AM, animats said:

On the left, classic avatar. On the right, mesh avatar.

I've been trying to duplicate my non-mesh look, which I rather like, in mesh. Here's what I have so far.

The avatar on the right is built from the open-source Roth, the "BOM 2000" version. You can buy this on Marketplace for L$10. Roth is the male counterpart of Ruth. Ruth is used often; Roth not so much.

(The version on Marketplace is not ready to use. Out of the box, there's a see-through section at the neck and the head and body don't match, even with with the same skin. After fixing the see-through section (one face is 30% transparent for no good reason) and setting the alpha mode consistently (body was "alpha masking", head was "alpha blending") for body and head, it looks OK.)

Biggest problem with Roth is skinny lower legs. I have to turn up "leg muscles" to get a big enough leg size down at the boots. Roth's thigh to ankle ratio is more female than male. (There's no separate adjustment for lower leg size, is there?)  I should bulk up the arms a bit, which is an option. Other than that, not too bad.

Alphas are a problem. The supplied "alpha HUD" only lets you blank out areas at the level of "lower leg", "upper leg", etc. No fine adjustments. No good reason for that; the HUD for Open Simulator has more control. You also don't get any of the fancy stuff like nail color adjustment.

I have a non-rigged leather jacket that fits, but it takes some fussing because the alpha layer it comes with doesn't hide some shoulder areas just below the neck.

 

I think you did well.  Hope you have a good day/night. 😆  Tc.