New home builder with questions

Hello. I've been making clothes on and off for some time now, but I'm trying something new, and would really appreciate some guidance.

I've built a home for myself. It came out really well (I think), and I've gotten a lot of compliments on it. With that in mind, I'd like to try and sell it. However, a home that works for me personally, may need more features to be truly marketable. Plus, I would like to be sure I am not breaking any rules. So, I have a couple of questions.

1. Freebies/Textures: What is the policy regarding the use of free content to build a house that will be sold? For example, I used freebie doors, both interior and exterior. Is it ethical to use these doors, or should I make my own from scratch? This question would apply to any textures as well.

2. Security/Privacy: I'd like to make privacy windows. By this I mean the kind of windows that allows blinds/curtains to appear when clicked on by the owner. I imagine this is done with scripts. Will I have to write my own window scripts, or are there ones available for builder use? This also relates to my first question. If I do have to make my own doors, will I have to create my own locking scripts as well?

Any help from you wonderful builders out there would be greatly appreciated!

As far as I know, freebie textures can be resold as a build only, you cannot sell the textures themselves as a texture, plus you need to make sure that you have full perms on the texture, if any of the freebie ones you use are no copy or no transfer, then you cannot sell those, even in a build, those will be for personal use anyway.

And as for privacy windows, there are scripts out there that you can buy for the builds, they are costly, especially the good ones with full perms, (this phrase very important to builders).

If you need any other help, feel free ti give me an IM, i'll be happy to help.

Welcome to the industry!

1. Freebies/Textures:
Most "freebie" textures (GNU, Junkyard, etc) come full permission, and are usually licensed for full use. This means you may use these textures, for free, and usually without a fee. Keep in mind when a customer asks for textures for a build (to mod, fix, etc) it is not wise to resell a free texture. (It is ok to sell textures you have made yourself.)

Anything Linden made (AF), may be given away free, and used in a build, and sold with the build, but not alone. IE: you may sell the doors with the build, but you can't sell the doors alone.

2. Security/Privacy:

Again Linden free scripts and special "freebie" scripts can only be sold "in" another project, and not by them selves. I suggest you look for a professional commercial (all perms) script that has a license for resale, OR code your own.

Good Luck!
- Sam

Welcome to the wonderful world of the Builder.

Agree with the comments on free stuff. Can't add much to that.

The simplest way to do your 'privacy windows' is a script that swaps the texture on both sides of the window - one texture for the shades up, one for them down. For example, the windows in a build I just completed use 4 textures that I created. Two for the outside view of the window (shades up and down, shades on far side of the frames for the window glass), and two for the inside view(shades up and down, shades on your side of the frames for the window glass). The script would also need to limit who could click on it, or anyone could raise the blinds.

I use the NDE window scripts for this. They have access control lists and a number of other nice features. They may be overkill for your builds though. You could certainly write your own simple script.

Thanks so much for the help, everyone! I found a texture swapping script that works perfectly for the windows. I also found a door script, but I'm having some issues with getting it to work. I posted a question about it in the Scripting Tips forum, so hopefully I can get it figured out.

I did check out the commercial systems available. They look like wonderful products, but the price is a bit much for this new builder.

Glad to help, Laurie. Feel free to IM me or send me a message through these forums if you have any questions.

Yes, the commercial door and window scripting systems are on the spendy side. I use NDE because the sim owner I am doing most of my development work for had already purchased a license for it. For one-off designs, or for a new product that you are offering for general sales, with no idea how well it will sell, it's a bit too pricy. But if I had another major contract, like 20+ homes built on-site in one sim, then a commercial system would be well worth the expense.