Second Life and Autodesk 3D Studio Max

Just thinking about starting again with 3D Max tutorials for SL.
If anyone have suggestions about what they would like to learn, they are free to comment below.
Depending of people, I may give more or less priority to meshes or sculpts.
Feel free to comment any suggestion about the tutorial itself and how should be done to be more easy to follow.

Read More

Patterns: The new game from Linden Lab

Finally the new game from Linden Lab have been released today.

In a very early stage, we have a new game to build our world. It's impossible to not compare this game with Minecraft, but for now, they both seems very different even if the plot is kinda the same.

Actually, after playing for some hours, the game presents a small world where you can get some different kinds of materials to build shapes later. For now the possibilities are very limited, the world is not big enough, there aren't too much shapes to choose and either too much materials. What you can build are basic shapes connected to each other and nothing else. Each material have different physical properties, so this game seems to aim more to a complex physics world (I hope). There are no enemies get, so there aren't any objective either (while in Minecraft you have to survive, the only thing that can kill you right now on Patterns is to fall from very high). This makes the game a bit bored because, after some hours, there is nothing to do or explore.

Graphically seems interesting and very artistic, but the performance isn't as good as you could expect from a game that doesn't use complex geometry and shaders at all. The lack of options to customise the graphics doesn't help on this either. I must say, that while recording the game was at about 45fps, which isn't bad, but should go a way faster.

The sound is just "OK". There are small ambient sounds and the typical fx while breaking materials (which is a bit annoying). There aren't music yet, so we must wait before talking any longer about this aspect.

The control is a bit bad. Is simple to move, jump, , recollect, etc.. but the "walk" function doesn't seems to work for me (player should walk instead of run). The camera is not bad at all. You can use two modes, one where the camera is attached to your back and other one where you can move freely. Is in this last one where the camera fails a bit. You can move freely, but you need to move the cursor to the edges of the screen. Should be better to move the camera holding the middle mouse button for example.

Well, that's all for now. Remember that is the very first version of the game, so there aren't too much to do. A lot of things are planned to be added like mobs, pets, day/night cycle, more shapes, materials, etc...

I will upload more videos as soon as there are new features available, so you can subscribe if you are interested ;)

Read More

Layered Mesh: Shadow maps

Layered mesh is how I'm calling to some kind of meshes that due some bugs of the mesh uploader, they can be uploaded with more than one "subobject/texture" but sharing the same polygons. If you want a direct comparison, this is some kind of different "channel" for textures, but all of them shares the same UV. This allow to use one texture with some repeats and another for the shadow/AO giving more realistic effect.

The uses can vary drastically. From bodies with different skin layers or clothes, to meshes with different layers where you can apply a different effect like glow, full bright or even animations. And, since there aren't different mesh acting as a new layer (very common in some mesh avatars) there are no risk of alpha sorting problems.

I don't know yet if this will work for rigged meshes, but for now it works perfectly on static ones and I find it very useful for buildings.

I recommend to you to watch the video in HD.

Here you can download the example files.
Remember to read first the Creative Commons license:

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/

Files:
http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?gfumqzrodpnmlvz

Read More

Who want make meshes for free?

We all know how expensive are those software to work with meshes and we know aswell, how hard is to manage some free ones.

Now you haven't any excuse to start learning meshes for free!
Daz3D starts a really crazy promotion during February where you can download for FREE their products including plugins and addons! Yeah, this could sound like a bad joke, but it's completely true. You just need follow the link to the Daz3D website clicking in the image, make an account and start creating art.

Even if the three software aren't the best, they are really nice and work perfect to start on this until you think you need something "bigger".

If someone don't know, Daz3D its a modelling and rendering software. You always could download for free, but as basic edition (not PRO). But now you have the opportunity to get the PRO version. Include an easy to use animation maker that allow you to export directly the animations in BVH format ready for Second Life, something that probably you could be interested.

Asides from Daz3D Pro, they are giving for free the nice sculpting and texturing tool, Hexagon. With a really intuitive interface you can sculpt models and texture them very easily without wasting too much time learning complex way. And you know what?, even include an option to make sculpts! And when I say "sculpts" I mean the ones we can see in Second Life because includes an option to export them.

I can't say too much for Bryce, really never tried that one. It's to create landscape, something that maybe you don't need at all for Second Life. But, why not, you can use Bryce to make some cool landscape for those pics you like to do in Second Life :)

Read More

Second Life last names back!

Few days ago, some people could notice in a profile of a Linden worker, how he talk about getting back the possibility of choosing a last name from a predefined list of options.
For the most new ones, this is how SL worked always. This gives you an identity, an unique last name that only more or less people will share with you. It's have been known that most of the old users never liked the idea of calling everyone "Resident", for its last name. Asides from making a division in a range of avatars (the "news" and the "olds"), it also reduces the possibility to choose an unique name. So you will need use the display name always (something I have off always lol).

This time we said, they heard and we get. It's nothing new that really LL is changing the policy about hearing what people really want and need. This maybe isn't too noticeable for some people, even more for those who doesn't pays attention to what is happening around, since SL is not just a grid and goes beyond there with a forum, wiki, etc. where you can find how things were, are and will be.
A point for LL this time, let's see what's the next step carefully.

Read More

The Beginning

And with a new year, a new blog is open.

Long time working in this blog, but still didn't chose a theme and layout for it (I accept suggestions).

This blog will be focused in a more personal experience through SL and my knowledge about 3D (sculpts, meshes, etc.) while ::K3D Store:: will be just for updates about my items on SL.

So for those with interest in me point of view and want to learn a bit more about our metaverse, they are very welcome here.

Hope we enjoy together ;)

Read More