Skinning

I am brand-spanking-new to SL and am wondering about skins and skin design. I would like to create my own skin but am having problems finding info on how to do it. I do not want to simply use the template heads, torsos, etc, in the appearance editor - I want to create a totally independent head, etc. Can anyone point me to a site or documents that goes into this with any depth? I seek to create an avatar that is a human/animal chimera without it being an "outfit" that can come off.

So far, looking over the skins available I am primarily seeing different variations of standard human, but then, with so many skin shops out there I have only been able to sample a handful thus far...but they're all pretty much the same in this regard.

I'd appreciate any aid.

Hi Tempus. Welcome to SL.

It sounds like what you're looking to do is make a whole new avatar mesh. This is not possible. All avatars in SL are created by applying a range of pre-existing morphs (controled by sliders) to the basic avatar mesh model, which is humanoid.

This parametrically defined customization is how SL is able to operate in real time. Unlike other online 3D applications such as video games, which store the world on your local hard drive, everything in SL is streamed to you (the only way to do it since the whole place is user-created). The reason SL is able to stream quickly is because it doesn't actually transmit geometry data. What gets streamed are just simple customization parameters for modeled objects your client already knows how to make (prims, avatars, land), which is a realtively tiny amount of information. Were custom meshes to be allowed, all the data for every single vertex on every single model would need to be streamed, and that's an awful lot of data. As if that weren't enough, custom meshes for character models (avatars) would almost certainly require at the very least custom rigging, another huge amount of data, and custom UV mappings. The internet's just not that fast yet to handle it all.

The anthropomorphised animals you see walking around (commonly known as "furries" are created by attaching prims to the basic human avatar. Good modeling (building & texturing) combined with clever use of animations can produce fantastic results. It just takes a little time and experience to get used to SL's somewhat unorthadox methods if you're already used to traditional 3D modeling tools.




EDIT: And just so you know, the term "skinning" in SL means something a little different than it does in traditional 3D modeling. Like any place in the real world, SL has its own local dialect. The classic definition of "skinning" in 3D modeling is to apply solid polygonal faces over a wireframe or to apply a polygonal mesh over a skeleton, but in SL "skinning" means the process of creating textures for an avatar's "tattoo" layers that more realistically resemble human (or animal) skin to cover or augment the rather flat looking base skin textures of the default avatar.

Alright. The modelers I have used are povray-related (AC3D, midnight modeler). Are these compatible? What format does a mesh need to be to work?

I just bought an Anubis skin (furry?) and it is closer to what I am after in some respects but I'd still like to generate my own.

Maybe I wasn't clear when I said "this is not possible". You can't create your own meshes for SL. All you can do is parametrically morph the existing avatar mesh (by using the appearance sliders) and/or attach prims to it. All of this is done inworld.

The only things that get made externally are textures, sounds, and animations. All gemoetry is made inside SL. That's it.

I mistyped. You were clear. I meant to ask about prims. I have already toyed with the sliders in "edit appearance". I meant that for outside modelers and paint/image edit programs I know AC3D, Gimp, and a few others...and speaking of Gimp, I recently downloaded a model eye (PSD format) and edited it so that the pupil was horizontal, much like a horse or goat. I saved it, uploaded it, and applied that to my SL eyes and...the pupils are vertical instead of horizontal. Is there something I am missing here?

I'll take your second question first, because that's easy. There's a peculiarity of the avatar texture mapping that rotates the eye template 90 degrees.

I'd recommend you read the instructions that come with the templates. It explains that, and many other things you should know. You can get it on the downloads section of this site.

As for whether or not SL modeling is like using AC3D, I would have to say no. I should qualify that by mentioning I've never actually used AC3D, but judging by the info on their website, it primarily uses extrusions. SL's more like building with legos. You form complex shapes by sticking primitives together. I'd recommend you visit the Ivory Tower of Primitives for a visual samples of how the basic parameters for each available prim type affect their appearance, and for some good explanations of how the building tool works.

I see now. "Prims" means "primatives". I'll check out the tower.

Thank you.