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HOW TO: Make Tiny Prims (new)

Al Sonic
Builder Furiend
Join date: 13 Jun 2006
Posts: 162
06-19-2007 19:20
ZUZI'S HOW-TO (old):

Alrighty, as a long-overdue update on Zuzi Martinez's big handy guide, I will now attempt to consolidate all of the explanations, additions, and updates (e.g. Top Size → Taper) into one quick & handy new guide for all who would like to trim down their prims to look slimmer than the limit :p (below the so-called 0.010m × 0.010m × 0.010m prim size).


FIRST, for all of you who like a good visual demonstration...
THE VIDEO: Torley's "How to make tiny prims – Video Tutorial"
@ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6XqQM9hgB0

This alone could be quite enough to get you going tiny, but here are some pointers to help get your thoughts going all the better.

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:) THE METHODS
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THE BASIC METHOD: CUT 'N' HOLLOW

Let's start with the most evident answer to the problem, fairly easy to figure out if you just play with the shaping values in the Build window → More» → Object tab. Anything labeled "Cut" or "Hollow" can help you to cut away from your prim, so that although its "Size" (more like the 'original size') may be .01m each way, it can have much of that trimmed right off of it. On the three toroidal prim types (torus, tube, & ring), you can also squish the prim with its "Hole Size" settings.

THE HIDDEN HACK: "DIMPLE" IT

Imagine for a moment that your Cube, Cylinder, or Prism prim is like a sliced (or about-to-be-sliced) loaf of bread. Normally you work with the whole loaf, but you can also choose to work with just the first, last, or middle couple of slices, or most any range of slices really, if you uncover these two hidden parameters...

It's easy. Just temporarily change your Building Block Type (Object tab again) to Sphere. You'll see two "Dimple" values at the end, which default to 0.00 and 1.00 (that's 100%). Changing them will cut off part of the sphere, and when you change your Building Block Type back, will leave 'slices' removed from the ends of your 'loaf'.

This can be used in powerful combination with Taper, as the center (or especially top) slice of a pyramid or cone is smaller than that of a prism or cylinder.

IF ALL ELSE FAILS: USE ITS INSIDES

If the outside of your prim is just too big, maybe the inside isn't. So give your prim an inside surface by turning the Hollow value above 0. Then, using Select Texture and the Texture tab, make the outside disappear by selecting just the outside texture(s) and applying a full-alpha texture (freebie texture packs might offer something named "alpha" or "totallyclear";).

To keep these innards from looking like innards, you'll either have to turn the surface direction inside-out, or give it very flat coloration. To completely flatten the color, in the Texture tab, make it Full Bright, then set the Texture to Blank, and apply a Color afterward if necessary.

NEW POSSIBILITIES: SCULPTED TININESS?

Sculpted prims give the appearance of any shapes you model within a limited cubic space. So, what if the modeled shape does not use up all of that given space? The resulting sculpted prim will be smaller than the size you set it to! Just avoid making it as small as possible, as there's a limit to how little you can model before the system says this is just too tiny, and defaults to a sphere. Also, the smaller you model the shape, the more detail you will have to sacrifice, making round shapes look rougher.

A quick & easy (though quite limited) place for anyone to start sculpting is ROKURO – http://kanae.net/secondlife/. If you use it to draw a rectangle smaller than the size of the window, you should end up with a cylinder smaller than your in-world specified size (likewise, circle=sphere, triangle=cone, and so on). For more sculpty-centric tools, check http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Sculpted_Prims:_Resident-made_Tools.

If you already have a sculpt map that you want to shrink down, all you need to do is reduce the image's contrast, i.e. bring the whole image toward gray (the center color). Using a contrast adjustment tool or adding a gray layer on top of it should work just fine in any decent image editor (e.g. the free GIMP).

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:D THE EXAMPLE USES
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Build these, then Ctrl-Shift-shrink 'em down as far as they go, and you'll see just how tiny they are.

THE BASIC TINYCUBE – 0.005 × 0.005 × 0.005m minimum

Start with a Sphere prim, just to set its Dimple values to .25 and .75 (although any values .5 apart will work). After that, change Building Block Type to a Cube prim, and change its Cut Begin and End to .125 and .375 (or .375 & .625, or .625 & .875).

THE FLAT LITTLE COIN – 0.005 × 0.005 × 0.00025m minimum

Use a Tube prim, and turn up Hole Size Y to 0.50 (making a hole-less cylinder). Trim down the size by setting Profile Cut to .375 & .625 (or .625 & .875). Finally flatten it by turning down Hole Size X.

Note: You will need to work with Planar texture mapping to actually apply a normal coin texture rather than a radial one. (Thanx Alia and Renee!)

THE REALLY FLAT SHAPE – Makes a tiny little •, ■, or ▲ – .0002m min. thickness

Start with a Sphere prim, to set its Dimple to 0.50 & 0.52 for .005m width, or 0.75 & 0.77 for .0025m width, etc. Switch to a Cylinder, Box, or Prism, and turn up Taper X & Y to 1.00.

THE PERFECT LITTLE SPHERE – ~0.000001m minimum diameter (that's 1 micron!)

Use a sphere prim, and a transparent texture like "totallyclear" or "alpha". Twist the sphere by the same 180 at both Beginning and End, and it will be turned inside-out. Give it some Hollow (which can be turned down as low as .01, maybe lower), and you will see a solid-looking little sphere in the center. Apply the transparent texture to the outside, and only that little sphere will be left to view.

THE LONG, THIN STRING – perfect for many string instruments – 0.00025m min. width

Use a Tube prim, and turn up Hole Size Y to 0.50 (making a hole-less cylinder). Hollow it out all the way (to 95). Remove the outside by Profile Cutting to 0.50 & 0.75.

The only problem is that the very ends are not flat, but pointed, like on a toothpick. This effect largely disappears if you turn down Hole Size Y to .48 or so, uniformly adding thickness across the string. You can also cut off one of the pointed ends by Profile Cutting to .125 (giving you half of the string/toothpick).

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;) ADDITIONAL TIPS
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-Remember that although you may see only, say, 3 digits past the decimal point, you may actually be able to edit prim properties to further detail (e.g. Path cut .0625, Hollow 00.05) just by entering the values in those fields.

-If the yellow/blue glowing halo around your prims gets annoying, then before loading up SL, you can change their color to transparent, as explained at http://www.garhunt.com/hunter188/html/fun_with_sl_ui.html.

-To make your round tinyprims render rounder, try making them out of prims with a larger original "Size".


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If you know anything at all I should add or fix here, let me know and I'll be glad to improve this tiny prim guide!
Dnali Anabuki
Still Crazy
Join date: 17 Oct 2006
Posts: 1,633
06-19-2007 21:09
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
Sterling Whitcroft
Registered User
Join date: 2 Jul 2006
Posts: 678
06-20-2007 05:39
/me Claps!
Abba Thiebaud
PerPetUal NoOb
Join date: 20 Aug 2006
Posts: 563
06-20-2007 20:48
Anyone interested in a prim that has a plywood texture to it but is so small you can't see it even zoomed in all the way?

I have a sculpt map for that. Its a lumpy looking ball at 10x10x10 but it's round and consistent looking at .1x.1x.1. I dunno what it looks like at .01x.01x.01. I couldn't see it at that point, even with an Alt-left click zoom where the camera was already trained in on it.

A
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Torley Linden
Enlightenment!
Join date: 15 Sep 2004
Posts: 16,530
07-24-2007 13:41
Thanks Al, for pinging me about this! I've stickied the thread — thanx also for linking to Zuzi Martinez and many other Residents' legacy. Share the knowledge... :)
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Ilario Ferraris
Registered User
Join date: 16 Jun 2007
Posts: 7
Tiny ring
08-07-2007 10:13
very interesting thread ... acn anyone tell me the best way to make a tiny ring ? it should be used to make a chain link so don't need to be so much tiny
Kira Zobel
Registered User
Join date: 6 Jan 2006
Posts: 345
08-08-2007 11:11
I made a nearly microscopic prim on accident the other day, I should compare it to these and see if its smaller. XD
Al Sonic
Builder Furiend
Join date: 13 Jun 2006
Posts: 162
08-08-2007 21:14
:D Thanks for taking interest.
From: Ilario Ferraris
Can anyone tell me the best way to make a tiny ring? It should be used to make a chain link so it doesn't need to be so tiny.


Unless I'm forgetting something, it seems to me that about the closest shape I can reach would be a Torus with settings adjusted somewhere near...
Hollow 50
Hollow Shape - Square
Twist 47 & 47 (I'd use 45 if only the toroid prims could be adjusted that precisely)
Hole Size .40 & .40
Profile Cut .075 & .175

If you must have it more perfect, I think your best option would be to load up Rokuro (http://kanae.net/secondlife/rokuro.html) and draw up a smallish circle off to the right side of the centerline (just make sure you have the correct ratio of circle diameter to distance from that centerline). That should give you the right sculpt texture to upload, which should show up as a very shrinkable torus. EDIT: You'd have to change it to torus topology, currently only achievable with some script function like llSetPrimitiveParams([PRIM_TYPE, PRIM_TYPE_SCULPT, "sculpt map uuid", PRIM_SCULPT_TYPE_TORUS).
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Zen Zeddmore
3dprinter Enthusiast
Join date: 31 Jul 2006
Posts: 604
08-08-2007 21:28
From: Ilario Ferraris
very interesting thread ... acn anyone tell me the best way to make a tiny ring ? it should be used to make a chain link so don't need to be so much tiny


Hi Ilario, just a heads up here on chains. Very big lag causers. If you like lag go ahead, but plz don't come near my sim. OK? LOL seriously though do read up the sticky on how to reduce lag some darn good info there too.

I've made all sort of super teeny tinies( former watchmaker obsessed haha). So my advice is actually go ahead and make them but wait for havok 2,3,4,or 5 to deploy them on a regular basis.

IM me in world I'll walk you through some severe twisting. :)
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Alia Whitfield
Registered User
Join date: 7 Mar 2007
Posts: 1
Texture distortion
09-03-2007 20:32
I followed the process to the letter for making a tiny coin. I want to make a pendant for a necklace. I put my texture on it and it went completely crackhead! Is there some trick to dealing with that?

Thanks in advance!
- A.W.
Renee Roundfield
Registered User
Join date: 10 Mar 2006
Posts: 278
09-03-2007 20:41
Try using planar texture rather than default.
Muna Arai
Registered User
Join date: 10 Sep 2007
Posts: 0
01-11-2008 03:07
Does anyone know how to link tiny prims?
For example if i make a necklace, when i want to link it gives me the message "prims are too far away one from each other" and I can't link it. I've seen necklaces made from really tiny prims, so I'm sure it is possible just that I don' know how to do it.
Hunter Benazzi
Registered User
Join date: 8 Mar 2008
Posts: 18
10-22-2008 11:09
Great thread, thanks - don't forget that Torley Linden has also made a video tutorial on making tiny prims - available either from the KNowledge Base or on Youtube
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Kronos Avro
Under Construction!
Join date: 15 Dec 2007
Posts: 25
Check the thread Hunter
10-22-2008 13:23
If you may notice Hunter Torley has already STUCK the thread and I think adding his name is kinda moot. but yeah I have seen that vid he makes a lot of vids on building stuff..hi ya Torley good work
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Hunter Benazzi
Registered User
Join date: 8 Mar 2008
Posts: 18
10-22-2008 14:36
From: Kronos Avro
If you may notice Hunter Torley has already STUCK the thread and I think adding his name is kinda moot. but yeah I have seen that vid he makes a lot of vids on building stuff..hi ya Torley good work


Oops! Will read the thread more carefully in future.

I'm sure you've never made that mistake yourself ;)
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Laney Juliesse
Registered User
Join date: 16 Aug 2008
Posts: 4
11-11-2008 03:07
i made one now i lost it and can't find it
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Siddean Munro
Artist!
Join date: 21 Apr 2007
Posts: 113
01-12-2009 03:44
I have made a few tiny sculptie prims by decreasing the contrast on the sculpt map once I have created it. Upload that to SL and you can reduce the bounding box to 1x1x1, but the actual visible sculptie is much smaller, depending on how much you reduce the contrast. I reduced one by 50% and didn't see any loss of detail on the reasonably simple shape I was making.

Anyway, just thought I'd throw that in there, it took me a bit of research to find that out myself :)
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Amaranthim Talon
Voyager, Seeker, Curious
Join date: 14 Nov 2006
Posts: 12,032
01-12-2009 04:36
From: Laney Juliesse
i made one now i lost it and can't find it

Just curious if Laney found the tiny prim :) - they are escape artists!
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Firebird Nightfire
Registered User
Join date: 28 Feb 2008
Posts: 14
Coralling tiny prims
02-06-2009 01:30
That's why you should always use a building bench for your prims. A 1m cubed box textured blank and colored black or dark blue, then locked, makes a good building bench. You'll always know where to start looking; and if you have to, you can take the entire bench, nanoprims and all, into inventory.

The freebie building grid texture available at nearly every freebie place can also be useful. Put it on a flat prim about .1 x .1 x .01, then you can build your nanos on the grid. This will also help you know what section to look in.
Welleran Kanto
Registered User
Join date: 15 Mar 2008
Posts: 64
02-10-2009 10:59
I took a really, really good class on tiny prims, offered in-world by NCI. The teacher gave the same advice, and I took it to heart. I made a 2-prim "jeweler's bench", basically a wide flat rectangle that has one vertical wall. It's L shaped, when viewed from the side. Both prims are coloured dark blue, but linked, so changing colours is quick and easy.

Having a "back" wall on one side makes it easier to see tiny prims, because you can Alt-zoom and spin your view quickly. If a tiny prim's too dark to see against the dark back wall, a quick turn of my view can show it backlit against the bright blue sky.
Andreaus Beck
Registered User
Join date: 15 Oct 2007
Posts: 53
assist in zooming in
04-27-2009 16:56
i design and make jewelry and i find using larger prims set behind the tiny prims you are trying to work with is good as you can set these back as far as yo ulike behind your tiny prims and use these to assist you in zooming in much closer,

i always set the tiny prims to full bright and make my bench black working in midnight
also helps you to keep track of these slippery little beggers :)

happy creating and remember its fun :)

Andreaus Beck

J's Gemstones
Keira Wells
Blender Sculptor
Join date: 16 Mar 2008
Posts: 2,371
04-27-2009 17:19
From: Andreaus Beck
i design and make jewelry and i find using larger prims set behind the tiny prims you are trying to work with is good as you can set these back as far as yo ulike behind your tiny prims and use these to assist you in zooming in much closer,

i always set the tiny prims to full bright and make my bench black working in midnight
also helps you to keep track of these slippery little beggers :)

happy creating and remember its fun :)

Andreaus Beck

J's Gemstones

You can also press CTRL+0 to zoom in farther than the camera allows. CTRL+8 will zoom out (And distort the view), and CTRL+9 will return to normal zoom.
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Jilli Amaterasu
Registered User
Join date: 4 Nov 2008
Posts: 1
Tiny Crescent Moon?
07-08-2009 02:37
I am making a jewelery design that includes a crescent moon, and I have tried just about everything I can think of at this point and I can't get one that looks good. I'm hoping maybe someone here might have some suggestion that I haven't tried yet.
Meg Frequency
Registered User
Join date: 12 Sep 2009
Posts: 2
09-23-2009 22:13
Thanks this thread was very helpful.

Somehow it doesn't seem as mean to torture very small prims
Hugsy Penguin
Sky Junkie
Join date: 20 Jun 2005
Posts: 851
01-24-2010 16:56
Regarding:

From: someone

-If the yellow/blue glowing halo around your prims gets annoying, then before loading up SL, you can change their color to transparent, as explained at http://www.garhunt.com/hunter188/html/fun_with_sl_ui.html.


Updated info for version 1.23 (probably for some older versions too):

1. In the viewer, turn on the Advanced menu by pressing Ctrl-Alt-D.
2. Select Advanced -> Debug Settings...
3. In the drop-down, type SEL. This will auto-scroll the drop-down to the SelectionHighlightAlpha option.
4. Enter a value (0.0 = completely transparent, 1.0 = completely opaque).
5. Restart the Second Life viewer.
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