Fitted Mesh & Avastar Updates 2014-8

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Today we did get a new nightly build of Blender. You can find the builds as 2.69.1 and the 2.7 test build. These are NOT the same files. One is 76k± and the other is 78k±. I know the 2.7 test build will not load the AvaStar 979 version. I also know it will not correctly export the SL Avatar. See the images.

Blender 2.7 Test Still having problems?
Blender 2.7 Test Still having problems?

I also downloaded the Feb 20 build blender-2.69-e7f3424-win64. It too will not install AvaStar 979. Bummer. But, it will install 978. It also does not have a Collada export that works correctly. You get the same skinny avatar mess.

Also, as I try various options in the plain Blender export, I find I am just crashing Blender. So, today is still not the day for Fitted Mesh.

What a downer. May be tomorrow…

Blender Fitted Mesh #SecondLife Alert

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I see that Gaia has posted in the SL Forum that a new nightly build of Blender is out. This is important as the 2/19 builds still lacked the Collada fix needed for Fitted Mesh export. I covered that problem yesterday.

Get the new builds from these two locations:

I’ve downloaded the test build and will be playing with it later.

There is also another test build of AvaStar out: avastar-1-1-979_blender-2-65.

WARNING: 979 seems to be broken. It refuses to install. Others in the Blender Avastar group are having the same problem.

Notice: the 979 file has been replaced (2/21). This file installs as expected.

Jo on Ebbe Altberg

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Jo Yardley, the 1920’s Berlin creator, was invited to the recent in-world meeting with Ebbe Altberg. She has posted her take on the meeting and expressed her opinions. See: Chatting with Ebbe Altberg, new CEO of Linden Lab.

Jo Yardley - 1920's Berlin
Jo Yardley – 1920’s Berlin

Jo gives more  information about the meeting than the other reports I’ve been reading. That alone makes it worth reading. Some of the points I found interesting follow. 

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More Fitted Mesh News

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Obviously I am messing with Fitted Mesh. Since it has been released lots more people are attempting to work with it. The result is things are changing quickly because a larger number of people are attempting to work with it. That increase in interest tends to reveal more problems as more users do more things and find the problems not discovered during development, which is what is happening.

Current Blender Problem (up to 2.69.10-6466454-win64)
Current Blender Problem (up to 2.69.10-6466454-win64)

Today I found out Gaia has published: Fitted Mesh Kit. The key piece of information is that Blender and Fitted Mesh are only compatible starting with Blender 2.70, which has yet to be released. You will probably be able to get a current build of the planned Blender 2.7 from GraphicsAll.org. But, as of today I don’t see one.

However, the nightly builds are available. Download at Blender.org. Gaia provided the link in the Kit article. But, I don’t see a 2.7 build. The RC builds may not appear until March.

The current plan from Blender.org is to release 2.7 in early March. The RC is to be frozen March 2nd, according to December plans. We may not have a usable plain Blender, meaning without Avastar, until we see that RC release. 

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Ciaran on Daniel on Ebbe Altberg

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Daniel has an article about a meeting with Linden Lab’s new CEO. Ciaran Laval has an article on the article and noticed the Mr. Altman has posted in the SL Forum.

Ebbe Linden Robot - Image by Daniel Voyager
Ebbe Linden as Robot – Image by Daniel Voyager

See: Ebbe Linden first Meet and Greet with SL Press

And…

See: Ebbe Altberg Lands With Informal Post But No Mention Of Orcs

As we learn more about Mr. Altberg I am more hopeful about the directions he will take Second Life and Linden Lab.

Mr. Altberg has studied fine art and computer science. I consider that a good sign for a business that deals in creative spaces.

 

 

Avastar Updates & News

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Another test version of Avastar is out: avastar-1-1-978_blender-2-65. There was a problem with the hands not animating. That has been fixed in this version and probably other things.

[2014/02/18 12:25]  Gaia Clary: hands work again in: avastar-1-1-978_blender-2-65.

Gaia Clary was talking in Blender Avastar group about not having enough time to answer questions and get development work done too. So, expect to see less of Gaia in the group. Personally I would prefer to have Gaia working on software and video tutorials than answering questions. Plus there are some knowledgeable people that hang out in the Avastar group that do a good job of answering questions.

SL Wiki Avatars

The sample files found in the SL Wiki were last updated in December 2013. There are; Blender files, FBX files, Collada files, and Maya files. I am now certain the Blender versions are broken. The weighting really sucks. Legs and arms of the avatar do not work as well as they did for the previous SL avatars.

Examining the files I find the weighting is not the same in the current Fitted Mesh avatar files as in the previous avatars I’ve written about in: Second Life Mesh Clothes Blender 2.6 Setup 2012 Tutorial.

I am experimenting to see if I can create a file that has the best of both sets of files.

May be I don’t know what I am doing, but as I see it now things are a mess.