Easiest head to use

[kali Wylder]

So, in my continuing adventure in starting over, I'm trying to put together a new avatar and I think I'm ready to get a head.

Kali has a pre-evo Lelutka head that I've worn for years and refuse to change because I've looked that way so long that it's me.  But I don't particularly like their hud and I don't use it often enough to understand it.  I got demos for their new line but found it way too frustrating to match a skin to both head and body and quit in disgust. 

I went to the Catwa store and was overwhelmed with the choices there and left without ever getting demos.  Ditto Genus.

Today I went to the LAQ store and was delighted with the demo so far.  Maybe it's because I've been stumbling about with various free skins and my system head long enough to get the hang of it again, but, I was able to put demo head and skin on and matched the skin to my  Maitreya body right out of the box!  They get an A++ from me for ease of use.

I just saw there's a free head out there and so I halted my adventure with LAQ to go pick it up.  I'd love to find out if the free head is not to hard for this old newbie to learn. 

Meanwhile, I thought I'd take advantage of the knowledge base here and ask, what head do you think is the easiest?

Edited November 7, 2021 by kali Wylder
typos

[Rowan Amore]

7 minutes ago, kali Wylder said:

So, in my continuing adventure in starting over, I'm trying to put together a new avatar and I think I'm ready to get a head.

Kali has a pre-evo Lelutka head that I've worn for years and refuse to change because I've looked that way so long that it's me.  But I don't particularly like their hud and I don't use it often enough to understand it.  I got demos for their new line but found it way too frustrating to match a skin to both head and body and quit in disgust. 

I went to the Catwa store and was overwhelmed with the choices there and left without ever getting demos.  Ditto Genus.

Today I went to the LAQ store and was delighted with the demo so far.  Maybe it's because I've been stumbling about with various free skins and my system head long enough to get the hang of it again, but, I was able to put demo head and skin on and matched the skin to my  Maitreya body right out of the box!  They get an A++ from me for ease of use.

I just saw there's a free head out there and so I halted my adventure with LAQ to go pick it up.  I'd love to find out if the free head is not to hard for this old newbie to learn. 

Meanwhile, I thought I'd take advantage of the knowledge base here and ask, what head do you think is the easiest?

FWIW, the Evo HUD is much easier than the pre-Evo hud.  I disliked the original, too but found the newest one, the most intuitive out of the major brands.

[kali Wylder]

16 minutes ago, Rowan Amore said:

FWIW, the Evo HUD is much easier than the pre-Evo hud.  I disliked the original, too but found the newest one, the most intuitive out of the major brands.

Well, that's good to know.  Maybe I will try again, I have the demos in a folder that I set aside for later.  I'll post an update after I give it another go.

[Rowan Amore]

Just now, kali Wylder said:

Well, that's good to know.  Maybe I will try again, I have the demos in a folder that I set aside for later.  I'll post an update after I give it another go.

Just to add that the Evo heads now can be switched via the HUD to Evo and EvoX so 2 heads for the price if one.  

[Marianne Little]

I am biased. I use Lelutka too. Both I and my alts got the free head from them, even if I don't use it. But I use another head updated to EvoX. So Lelutka is my #1 head.

I also got the free Catwa Queen head, and to be honest.... the HUD has become too much for me. I had Catwa on other alts, but as I don't use them so much, I forgot the HUD and I find it hard to pick up where I left. The males who have the Catwa head still, has got the BoM update, and I don't use any other features.

The Logo head we got for free too, was easy to use. Also, I like the free Genus head, but the neck issue has become too visible. It is like Genus has left SL. Maybe they are working on something big. Rumor had it that they were working on a male head.

But for all my heads, I find out where to turn on BoM and forget the rest. A mesh head with BoM activated works like the old default heads 90% of the time. Wear skin, add, take off and sort tattoo layers up or down. I only click the hud when I want to change eyelashes or wear HD makeup. Or play an animation.

 

[Krystina Ferraris]

LeLutka EvoX absolutely… so easy to customise and so many bits and bobs available for it from creators. I love the Lake head, I bought it way back when it first came out and upgraded it since to EvoX, all free of charge from LeL. I always wanted a head I could tweak to resemble my RL features (ok I know ) and Lake was my choice after demoing lots of different ones. There are many skins available for it too though I got mine custom made. Very happy with everything I ever bought from LeL, heads and hair and all their other creations.

[Maitimo]

The easiest heads to use are the cheapy ones that have no hud at all and are just BOM-only.  But of course then there are none of the hud-based features like eyelash adjustment, animations, materials, HD makeup layers etc. 

Out of all the others I'd say LAQ and LeLutka are the easiest to learn, and Catwa the hardest (though worth the effort, and the HDPRO huds are a huge improvement on the old ones for ease of use). 

[Mr Amore]

LeLutka is easy to use if you're only applying BoM layers. From the HUD, set the eye color, clear the eyeliner (because ofc male heads have this on by default),  and uncheck the eye animation (it interferes with other facial anims). And you're good to go. 

Those are the steps for a BoM build. The HUD has a whole lot of other options I haven't touched because it looks like an alien spaceship control panel.

[Stephanie Misfit]

On 11/8/2021 at 3:09 AM, kali Wylder said:

Meanwhile, I thought I'd take advantage of the knowledge base here and ask, what head do you think is the easiest?

Slink heads are super easy to use, and very affordable too.

I find LeLutka, the latest versions, very easy though.

[kali Wylder]

On 11/9/2021 at 2:40 PM, Maitimo said:

The easiest heads to use are the cheapy ones that have no hud at all and are just BOM-only.  But of course then there are none of the hud-based features like eyelash adjustment, animations, materials, HD makeup layers etc. 

Out of all the others I'd say LAQ and LeLutka are the easiest to learn, and Catwa the hardest (though worth the effort, and the HDPRO huds are a huge improvement on the old ones for ease of use). 

Alas! I gave the Catwa demo a whirl today, but,  I'm afraid I can't use this head.  The little symbols are too obscure for me and the writing is too small.  I'm just floundering pressing buttons i don't understand.  It's too bad there isn't a way to magnify the hud to be usable because I really liked the shape of the head very much.

ETA~ I just discovered a great tutorial for Catwa with big pictures so I'm gonna try the head again. 

Edited November 11, 2021 by kali Wylder

[Ajay McDowwll]

8 hours ago, kali Wylder said:

Alas! I gave the Catwa demo a whirl today, but,  I'm afraid I can't use this head.  The little symbols are too obscure for me and the writing is too small. 

If you go down to the gear icon on the HDPro Style Hud, third icon up from the bottom, there's an option to increase its size overall.  I've got that sucker kicked up to max, and it's been really helpful for me.  I've got cataracts that don't yet qualify for removal, so my entire life right now is lived in large print lol

Regarding which is easiest, both the Catwa HDPro and Lelutka Evo/EvoX heads are super easy, and even moreso once you check out the tutorials.  I've used both; my male alt wore the Evo head that was on special last year and I recently went through a ton of women's demos just for grins, and I currently wear the Catwa HDPro Queen.  I stuck with Queen because it's just more "me" if that makes sense, and as I'm more accustomed to the Catwa HUD at this point it just feels really straightforward, admittedly likely in part due to exposure.

Good luck!  The hunt for a new head is never easy

Edited November 11, 2021 by Ajay McDowwll

[Persephone Emerald]

I don't know if it's the easiest, but after using a variety of free or sale heads, all 4 of my avatars now have LeLutka Evo X heads, and I love them. Two of them are wearing free updates of Last year's Lelutka Christmas gifts - Alain and Lilly. Persephone is wearing River. Tasha is wearing Gaia. None of these show pixelization, and only with my guy's Belleza Jake body is there any neck seam. The HUD is pretty easy to use. The most important things to remember are how to turn on BOM, how to adjust and clear applier layers, and how to add and change facial animations. Make a copy of the shape that comes with your head and then Edit the Hell out of it to get exactly the look you like. I don't currently use the EvoX option because I have plenty of free or cheap Evo skins. Akeruka skins and BOM makeup work on LeLutka Evo. Genus skins and BOM makeup can work sometimes. YMMV.

Btw, see if there's an update to your old pre-Evo Lelutka head. If there is, you can basically get a brand new head with the look you like and an easier to use HUD for free.

Edited November 11, 2021 by Persephone Emerald
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[kali Wylder]

11 hours ago, Ajay McDowwll said:

If you go down to the gear icon on the HDPro Style Hud, third icon up from the bottom, there's an option to increase its size overall.  I've got that sucker kicked up to max, and it's been really helpful for me.  I've got cataracts that don't yet qualify for removal, so my entire life right now is lived in large print lol

Regarding which is easiest, both the Catwa HDPro and Lelutka Evo/EvoX heads are super easy, and even moreso once you check out the tutorials.  I've used both; my male alt wore the Evo head that was on special last year and I recently went through a ton of women's demos just for grins, and I currently wear the Catwa HDPro Queen.  I stuck with Queen because it's just more "me" if that makes sense, and as I'm more accustomed to the Catwa HUD at this point it just feels really straightforward, admittedly likely in part due to exposure.

Good luck!  The hunt for a new head is never easy

Thanks!  That did help so much!  Now can you tell me how to make her hold still?   I've been searching for some kind of stop animations button and I'd tear my hair out but she's bald right now.

[Cecilia Dallas]

On 11/7/2021 at 12:24 PM, Marianne Little said:

... and sort tattoo layers up or down.

Wait, you can arrange tattoo layers so my beauty moles will not need to be turned on/off anymore every single time when I wear something that messes with the BOM layers??????

How?

PS. I'm also on the LeLutka EvoX absolutely cheerleading squad. I have two of my three looks on Lel now (though one is not EvoX) and have no problems figuring out the interface. The only thing I ever need to do is open the HUD up when I load the other avatar is click the first little button Evo/EvoX and voila. 

Edited November 11, 2021 by Giselle Kiyori

[Jordyn McGregor]

I'm clinging like heck to my Catwa not-HD head and really do find it so much easier to use than Genus or LeLutka.

[Rowan Amore]

17 minutes ago, Giselle Kiyori said:

Wait, you can arrange tattoo layers so my beauty moles will not need to be turned on/off anymore every single time when I wear something that messes with the BOM layers??????

How?

PS. I'm also on the LeLutka EvoX absolutely cheerleading squad. I have two of my three looks on Lel now (though one is not EvoX) and have no problems figuring out the interface. The only thing I ever need to do is open the HUD up when I load the other avatar is click the first little button Evo/EvoX and voila. 

Go into edit outfit.  All the tattoo layers will show there.  Move them up or down using the arrow that appears on the right side when you highlight an item.

[Ajay McDowwll]

3 hours ago, kali Wylder said:

Thanks!  That did help so much!  Now can you tell me how to make her hold still?   I've been searching for some kind of stop animations button and I'd tear my hair out but she's bald right now.

I know this is a few hours behind, but if you're talking about the facial animations, I just make sure none of the expressions or moods are highlighted in the animations hud.  If they're highlighted like the top left icon in this screenshot here, then click it so the background is dark like the others. 

[Rowan Amore]

1 hour ago, Ajay McDowwll said:

I know this is a few hours behind, but if you're talking about the facial animations, I just make sure none of the expressions or moods are highlighted in the animations hud.  If they're highlighted like the top left icon in this screenshot here, then click it so the background is dark like the others. 

Always hated that she had them ALL turned on when you unpack and wear for the first time.  Why?

[HelenaNavy92]

I use Lelutka head, I have 2 - Erin and Lilly. I have the Catwa Queen head, not bad but it's just not me. I tried it, the animations were awful, why they are all turned on, it's stresfull. I really like my Lilly head, so I vote for Lelutka. Very nice and intuitive hud. 

 

[Marianne Little]

13 minutes ago, HelenaNavy92 said:

I use Lelutka head, I have 2 - Erin and Lilly. I have the Catwa Queen head, not bad but it's just not me. I tried it, the animations were awful, why they are all turned on, it's stresfull. I really like my Lilly head, so I vote for Lelutka. Very nice and intuitive hud. 

 

Oh yes, I forgot the animations. Even if Kali only asked for ease to use, and did not mention any things, it is worth pointing out. 

I 100% agree that Lelutkas animations is better compared to Catwa. Opinions can differ, of course.

Is the timing right for buying a new head? Last year may have been the exception, but we do not know if it will be Black Friday sales or Christmas/New Year sales on heads and bodies.

It is the right time to demo stuff and be prepared just in case. I remember the last sale Doux had, I could not even enter the store. If they have one this year I will fight my way in, and have the hair names written down so I can buy by Area Search.

[HelenaNavy92]

14 minutes ago, Marianne Little said:

Oh yes, I forgot the animations. Even if Kali only asked for ease to use, and did not mention any things, it is worth pointing out. 

I 100% agree that Lelutkas animations is better compared to Catwa. Opinions can differ, of course.

Is the timing right for buying a new head? Last year may have been the exception, but we do not know if it will be Black Friday sales or Christmas/New Year sales on heads and bodies.

It is the right time to demo stuff and be prepared just in case. I remember the last sale Doux had, I could not even enter the store. If they have one this year I will fight my way in, and have the hair names written down so I can buy by Area Search.

You are right, it's time for demos. I want to buy a new head from Lelutka but still can't find time to demo. Lelutka always surprise us, so I hope for some good Black Friday shopping. 

[Ajay McDowwll]

7 hours ago, Rowan Amore said:

Always hated that she had them ALL turned on when you unpack and wear for the first time.  Why?

That I don't know.  The animations have never been a big deal for me, ultimately, because I shut all of them down and use my Vista facial animations hud (possibly because I wore Genus when I first came back inworld and those facial animations had some known bugs).  I've got a series of animations saved on mine that are "me".  I do use the blink animation on my male alt -- he's in the Catwa HDPro George -- but that's about it.

[HelenaNavy92]

48 minutes ago, Ajay McDowwll said:

That I don't know.  The animations have never been a big deal for me, ultimately, because I shut all of them down and use my Vista facial animations hud (possibly because I wore Genus when I first came back inworld and those facial animations had some known bugs).  I've got a series of animations saved on mine that are "me".  I do use the blink animation on my male alt -- he's in the Catwa HDPro George -- but that's about it.

I use the animations on my Lelutka heads, they are very nice and natural. I have a friend with catwa head and his animations are all turned on and he's constantly making such weird moves. At first it was funny. I'm sure he doesn't know how to switch them off. 

[Nalates Urriah]

On 11/10/2021 at 6:29 PM, kali Wylder said:

Alas! I gave the Catwa demo a whirl today, but,  I'm afraid I can't use this head.  The little symbols are too obscure for me and the writing is too small.  I'm just floundering pressing buttons i don't understand.  It's too bad there isn't a way to magnify the hud to be usable because I really liked the shape of the head very much.

ETA~ I just discovered a great tutorial for Catwa with big pictures so I'm gonna try the head again. 

You can sort of... but it depends. HUDs are usually made of prims. There are other ways to make HUDs but using and scripting prims is easy so that is how most of us do them.

Since they are prims they can be modified... if the creator made them mod-ok. Right-click a HUD and select edit. Press Ctrl-Shift and if mod-ok, you'll get the sizing handles. If you are not familiar with the viewer's build tools and editing prims use a copy of the HUD to play with.

The easiest head is the Classic Avatar head. But it is also the most limited. Pure BOM HUDless heads are also simple and limited, being most similar to the Classic head in options. Most mesh add-on heads are about options. I still prefer heads with the ability to accept Applier textures and to set transparency, glow, shiny, and etc. There are many prim attributes that are not available on an avatar. If you want simple you give up some options. Your choice. You won't lose ALL THAT much. But, for designers... simple versus providing options to get sales... you are swimming upstream.

I like my GA.EG head. The HUD is large, reaching from top to bottom of screen. So I think you'll find it easy to read. Things are spread across pages accessed by tabs for hair base, lips, etc. This is the HUD with my GA.EG Jennifer head. (actual size screen capture - I am wearing black lipstick...)

I spent lots of time trying to find a mesh head that reproduced my Classic head appearance. I got close. But it was a pain. I learned about using camera controls Ctrl-8, 9, and 0 after going through the process. Trying to get a perfect reproduction got tedious. So, my look changed after years. Close was good enough. I got used to it.

But the texture/makeup options and increased facial animations of a complex mesh head make it more fun for me. All the options allows me more creative room. I spend time doing my makeup then saving a copy of the head for use in outfits.

So the complication is fun for me and by making copies for reuse with multiple outfits of similar color I avoid the tedium of redoing things.

What one wants in a head probably depends on how one sees the creation and maintenance of their avatar.

[Ajay McDowwll]

34 minutes ago, HelenaNavy92 said:

I use the animations on my Lelutka heads, they are very nice and natural. I have a friend with catwa head and his animations are all turned on and he's constantly making such weird moves. At first it was funny. I'm sure he doesn't know how to switch them off. 

It's not hard to turn them off.  If all else fails he could check in the Catwa Head Friends group; the CSRs there are exceptionally helpful.  It's one thing that landed me on Catwa as a choice over Lelutka, to be honest.  Well, that and I love this head lol -- I also own the Lelutka Erin, and I just never could get it to be "me".  With the Catwa HDPro Queen, though... it worked. 

That's the ultimate call, creators aside:  what head is most "you".

Edited November 12, 2021 by Ajay McDowwll
I'm undercaffeinated and can't punctuate properly.