spanning single texture over multiple objects

im trying to figure out how to span a single texture image over multiple (flat) objects. can anyone please help??

Which way round?

If you just want multiple copies, like brickwork, you apply it to each of the correct faces. If you want it to match nicely you might want something tiling - making seamless textures there are threads about around the place.

However, I assume you've got a sign you want to blow up big? That's pretty easy too.

You build your matrix, and apply the texture full size to each of the faces again. Then you scale the texture... say you've got a 2 X 4 rectangle with 4 long, that will be vertical repeats 0.5 and horizontal 0.25 - that's 1/2 and 1/4 as decimals, and that's the process. You can, or could the last time I did this, only use 2dp, but 0.33 works OK for a third still.

Then it's fun and games with offsets. There is a rule for working it out... but I never remember it. Rule of thumb... for even repeats it will be some value based around half the repeats value. For your 2 repeats the repeats value is 0.5, so it's going to be ±0.25. The 4 repeats has 0.25, so it's going to be ±0.125 and ±0.375 (it could also be 0.25 btw, although it happens not to be). For odd repeats... the middle one is 0, the ones around are based around the repeats value directly.

If someone has worked out (or one of the pros has it to hand) I'd love the proper rules.

thanks!! i look forward to trying it tonight.

What Eloise said, but with one caveat.

SL will simply not do anything that requires splitting an image onto three prims.
ALWAYS work with fours, twos, eights, etc.

For instance if you upload a picture that is 3 units long by 1 unit high, - even if you use the 256, 512, 768, 512 size regime - SL will simply resize it to 2 long by 1 high.

If you upload a picture that is 3 units long by 2 units high, SL will resize it to 2 by 2.

Additionally, even when you get the picture uploaded, if you try to span three prims with one image of any kind, there will ALWAYS be a line at the join because SL will not let you put in 0.33 or 0.66 as a repeat, it will consistently change it to 0.4 and 0.7. (I have never understood this as it will let you put the offset at 3.33)

In any case take any image and try to span three prims with it and you will get a faint join because of the poor rounding performance of the repeats. Every time.

Just as an aside, SL also "saves it's mistakes" when it comes to rounding errors on offsets and repeats. So if you try to do something really complicated with a single texture spanning multiple prims remember that in conditions of high lag, the engine will round off your numbers. Taking the item back into inventory then freezes the mistake and the object will forever more res with the rounded off numbers.

Although if you ask SL they will quote some huge numbers of rounding accuracy on offsets and repeats, in reality you can't really count on anything more than two digits on either and you are far better off doing really simple things in this regard that stay within the 2, 4, 6, 8 regime.

Anything more complicated is just not possible (at least reliably) despite what you may hear.

i couldnt wait to try it.. i downloaded SL at work to try it.. it works great! thank you so much for your help.