Avastar

Gaia has posted an announcement about AvaStar 1.1-Alpha. The announcement has caveats and assurances. I’ve downloaded the release but have not had time to try it out.

See the announcement: Avastar-1.1 Alpha Release.

An Alpha version of AvaStar is out. The usual software release order is; Proof of Concept, Alpha, Beta, RC, Final. As an RC version had been released (reference), I took the following Test Versions to be RC releases too. But, apparently not. Bad assumption on my part. Whatever we call this release, it is the next step in the progression.

This Alpha release has all the TEST version changes up to Test Version 1076. The official release name is now:  avastar-1-1-alpha_Blender_2-70.

I am running Blender 2.70a. So, I can’t tell if this version works with previous Blender versions. What I do know is that newer video tutorials will most likely be showing the Blender 2.70+ user interface. So, it is probably a good idea to update your Blender to the latest version: Blender 2.70a.

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There have been the typical flow of update RC’s coming out for AvaStar. This morning we are up to version avastar-1-1-1071_blender-2-65.

Starting with version 1062 we can use older AvaStar models in these versions. I haven’t tested or seen an explanation of what this means, exactly. But, I think it means we can open older files and work on models without having to re-parent to the newer AvaStar rig. I’ll have to try that.

Some bugs and error notices have been fixed too.

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I found out today there is a workflow outline for working on Slink Feet with AvaStar. It is a written thing.

I haven’t tried to work with Slink Feet so I have no idea how good or bad this work flow may be.

Find it here: Workflow for Classic Rigging with Slink Feet.

I see there is a new video out on AvaStar and the Second Life Avatar. It is a mix of promotional information and ‘How To’.

[youtube kSXChLL7kJM]

The current release candidate of the AvaStar plug in for Blender is still avastar-1-1-1057_blender-2-65.

When talking about what AvaStar plug in does the wording is much better. There are numerous things we can do in Blender to replicate what we see in Second Life. But, several of those things cannot be transferred into Second Life.

AvaStar, since the 1057 candidate, does a pretty good job of showing how what we model in Blender will behave once inside Second Life. It is certainly better than the 1054 version I was previously using.

To see Gaia’s videos on AvaStar and Fitted Mesh visit YouTube – Gaia Clary. To learn more about AvaStar and modeling with it visit Machinimatrix.org.

Gaia Clary announced today that Avastar RC 1.1.-1054 is out and has a fix for the shape sliders. See her announcement here: Avastar-1.1 Custom Shape Sliders fixed. The article explains what has been going on.

The big change is getting shape sliders in Blender to represent what happens in SL. See the 7 minute video.

[youtube 5hhMEiPjslY]

Another LARGE improvement is you may now use any custom shape. Until version 1054 we needed to model to the default/Ruth shape.

Quoting Gaia, “If you export your mesh with a specific shape slider configuration, then the System will minimize the distortions when you wear exactly the same shape in SL.” This is going to be a big help.

Gaia is hoping this is the change we have all been looking for. I know I have been scratching my head testing avatar, weighting, and weight transfers via Avastar and Blender to figure out how to get the best results. This change may give me better results. Once I have my tests done I’ll make a post.

I’m downloading now…