How do you join 2 prims to make another object?

I can't believe that I am asking this question it has got to be the most basic 3D ability. I tried to do a search, but I don't know the right term for this ability in Second Life. I wish I could simply read some documentation rather than going to a class or coming here and asking such a basic question. The forums are great, classes are great and the Ivory Towers are great but to have to do one of those is every time you have a basic question is exceedingly time consuming and a waste of the bery people's time who I hope will answer this question. I would really rather wait and ask a BIG question when the time comes.

I am simply trying to make 2 simple objects (prims) become one.

Thanks in advance.

you can't make two prims combine to become 1 prim. but you can easily link 2 prims to become one object that can be manipulated as a single item. (actualy, you can link up to 256 prims to do this)

with the edit window open, select all the prims you want to link with either a yellow selection box, or by click each of them in turn while holding down shift.

you can then hit [ctrl]-L to link them into one object. [ctrl]-[shft]-L will unlink them.

something to keep in mind, the last prim you select will become the "root" prim around wich all the others are linked. the object location and main scripts will key off of it. in something like a set of stairs, which prim is root might not matter much. but in something like a vehicle or an AV attachment it can matter a great deal. so I am always carefull which prim I set as root for all objects...

thank you both for this one.

but another question, can you link objects together to make bigger objects?

say i linked a wall of 2 10x10 prims, then made and object, then brought the object out again, can i link the 4 prims (now 2 objects) to make one larger object?

Athena I am absolutely no SL expert but I remember seeing somewhere here on the forums that you cannot have hierarchical linking. That may not be your question.

Once I saw how you could link 2 prims the same proceedure is used to link as many as you wish, I don't if there is a number limit to this process.

Select all of the prims you want to link and follow Nico's stated process.

For Nico or another to answer...

After the linking success I am wondering how the warning Nico gave me would affect the animation of one prim or more. How should I sequence the linking process using Nico's suggestions?

Example 1: An object (prim) like a pole with another object (prim) sliding up in a vertical fashion. I know I could just have the one prim go up without being connected (linked) but I want the total object to be like one device.

Example 2: A central prim with another prim orbiting the first.

The examples are not exactly what I am doing but more to help clarify the intent. I assume the script should be inside to the moving prim, correct? Or not?

A second more complex question would be would be a cluster of prims acting as one raleted to another. The general question would be where should script go in this kind of object anmd how does it address the prim or group of interest, by name?

Should I cross link this question to a scripting forum?

"Just starting and lovin' the pain"

Loydin/

I believe what you wanted to do is a boolean operation (union, intersection or difference...) to form one object out of x other objects. But it is not possible in the SL modler.
What I do is "simulate" the effect by precisely juxtaposing duplicated objects that I progressively transform.

//Brad.

The limits on linking objects are no more than 256 objects in one linkset, and a maximum center to center distance of 30 M between any two parts. That maximum can end up being less, if some of the prims involved are small. It's difficult to predict exactly how far apart the farthest pieces will be, except by trying in-world.

There is no heirarchical way to link linksets. For example, if you make a bed as a linkset, and a dresser as a linkset, and a chair, you can't link them into one linkset without losing the connections that made then individual objects. If the total prims and maximum distances would fit in a single linkset, and you link them, you get a single linkset, with only one root prim, and you can't split it neatly back into the seperate items again without unlinking all the parts and re-selecting and linking just the parts for one item. Heirarchial linking is a feature that has been requested many times, and would be very welcome!

What you can do is to multi-select linksets! For example, I routinely make a house, using multiple linksets as required to conform to the limits stated above, I put furnishings in it, each piece as a single linkset, and then I select all of those at once, by either shift-clicking on each set, or by selecting one and then drag-selecting across the others - hold down shift, point to the ground, left click an drag to make a rectangle that will select all items it crosses. (Make sure you have "select only my objects" checked in the Tools menu, so you don't get other people's stuff!)

Multi-selected linksets can, with care, be moved, rotated, and even scaled as a single unit. If you take a multi-selected group of linksets into inventory, it becomes a single item in inventory, named as the last selected item was. But when you rez that object, it rezzes as the multi-selected group was. To keep the multi-selected group highlighted when you rez it, be in edit mode BEFORE you rez the multi-selected group.

There is a scripted tool called Rez-foo, and several copies of that idea such as Builder's Buddy, which allow a builder to prepare multiple linksets so they can easily be rezzed from a single in-world object, and can be moved and rotated as a unit.

I have seen vehicles made that consisted of multiple linksets, well in excess of the normal limits on vehicles. I think what they do there, actually, is there is a 'core vehicle' that is normal, and it is surrounded by 'temp-on-rez' items that make it appear to be larger and more complex. I don't know exactly how it's done, but there is a way to do it...

This is actually a great way to build houses also...it allows you to get VASTLY more prims onto a plot than your prim limit. It is done with scripited objects, similar to the rez-foo, that do temp on rez. basicaly they rez their contents then derez them over and over, and the only prim that counts against limits is the single "host" prim.

for example, my 78 prim fireplace in my house shows up as only one prim against my plot count. when turned off there is a box sitting there. when turned on the box is hidden by the fireplace which can be manipulated like normal. unfortunately being no good at scripting, I cant tell you how its done. but a search on slboutique or slexchange for "temp rezzer" should get you several choices.

Athena, that will certainly work! however, you now have a single link set with 4 prim clients. you can link linksets, or a linkset and loose prims, in exactly the same way as just loose prims. the thing to keep in mind though is that the prim counts are addative. you cannot like a 200prim linkset and a 100 prim linkset, because that will violate the 256 rule by creating a 300prim linkset. the other thing to recal as ceera pointed out, is that after linking it would be a single 300 prim linkset! if you de-linked it, you would have 300 prims, not your original 200 and 100 linksets.



Loydin, that is more a question for the scripting forum. but the basics of it is that you would most likely have a script in both pieces. scripts in client prims can be controlled by scripts in root prim, and that is FAR easier than doing it all from one script. if you just have a single script to put into one object, it can be put in after linking and will automatically go into the root prim.

in both those cases I would go with the central non-moving piece as the root, since trying to rotate or center around a moving prim is crazy impossible...

really though, you need to talk to the scripting folks about this one...

You have to love that word. Not used nearly as much as it should be