Watermarking/Alpha layer Sculpts?

I've started making sculpties (using wings3d) and I'm wondering how to add the alpha/watermark layer that some creators do. I have photoshop aswell.

I've searched the net trying to find some step by step instructions on how to not only add an alpha layer (making the sculpt map invisible) but also adding my own watermark/logo, to identify my work.

Can any kind soul help me out?

Search the archives on the Texture Tips forum. It's been discussed there many times.

Ok. thanks.

Grrr.

You hit on one my biggest forum pet peeves. There's no such thing as an "alpha layer". It's an alpha CHANNEL.

See /109/cc/62741/1.html for more information on the differences between layers and channels.



Anyway, to answer your question, simply add an all black alpha channel to your sculpt map image, paint your logo or whatever on that same channel in white, and then save the image as 32-bit TGA. Upload to SL, and you're all set. The logo will show as opaque in the texture picker, and everything else will be transparent (invisible).

Specific instructions will vary from program to program. In Photoshop, all you need to do is go to the channels palette, click the button at the bottom to create a new channel, and paint away. In Paintshop Pro, you first create a mask, paint it however you want, and then save the mask as a channel. I'm not sure the exact procedure for GIMP.



Whatever software you're using, the important things to remember are these:

1. SL pulls the sculpt shape information from the RGB channels only, which means you can put whatever you want in the alpha channel, and it won't affect how the sculpty comes out.

2. SL considers every image with 4 channels to be an RGBA image, which means the first three channels are treated as color maps, and channel 4 (the alpha channel) is treated as a transparency map. So, anywhere you paint black on channel 4 will show up as transparent in SL, anywhere you paint white on that channel will show up as opaque, and all shades of gray on the alpha will show as translucent. The lighter the gray, the more opaque; the darker the more transparent.

Put all that together, and it's pretty easy to determine what to do, as long as you know your way around your graphic program of choice.

I figured it out on my own eventually, but I thank you very much - your info would have come in handy if I hadn't figured it out. It was very easy - actually couldn't believe how easy it was lol. As for the "alpha layer", I was just repeating what I've read in so many other places, and yes it certainly added to my confusion. Once I figured out it was a channel and not a layer and you just write over it in white if you want to make your mark on it, it uploaded perfectly. Very happy, and worth those 2 extra minutes to "mark" my work (not that my stuff is worth stealing, but maybe one day it will be good enough)

So, if anyone comes across this and needs help (in ps - I use PS cs3 extended)

- Open the Sculpt map in Photoshop
- Click on Channels (if box is not open go: Windows - tick Channels)
- Create new channel
- Finished, unless you want to put your logo (watermark), in which case:
- paint or write your logo/name/whatever in WHITE on the channel


I'm sure content thieves will still figure ways to get around this, but in general, it stops the 'print screen' thieves and the ones that use texture grabbing programs. And would probably help your DCMA case should you even need to file one.

But that's just my opinion.

It will stop the printscreen thieves that use the edit window to look at the sculpt texture, yes.

I dont see how texture grabbers are stopped though. All textures that are in SL are sent to your viewer (otherwise you couldnt see them, could you). The texture grabber just silently copies the original textures to local harddisk. You can open them in PS, remove the alpha channel (or add your own version) and then upload it again.

Textures (and everything else that can be "seen" are ALWAYS copyable if you use the right tools. Maybe the "right" tools should be named the "wrong" tools, because it IS immoral to do so , of course.

one way to at least tell whether a texture has been stolen would be to use hidden watermarks. That would work fine with surface textures but sculptmaps might(!) suffer from distortions.

But after all even if you know who has stolen something from you, is there any official process available in such a case to prosecute the thiefs except from telling their names to the public ? And what would that help ? Wouldn't they just jump in with a fresh Alt ?

The proper thing to do is to file a DMCA takedown notice with LL, to get the infringing content removed. After that, if you want to pursue the matter further, your recourse is to take the alleged infringer to court. IP logs can be subpoenaed to help determine the other party's identity.