Day 340: Literature Factory

Well, this was bound to happen one day. Factory robots have been building everything from cars to kitchen sinks. Now, theres a factory full of robots building literature in Second Life!

BTW, this is Talia, the evil Alt. But you knew that cause Im like...a 1000 times cuter :)

Thanks to that blonde mermaid's friend, Suki, for this cool tip about the Literature Factory!



The factory is totally automated. Even the receptionist is a robot named Rosie. Thats if she ever gets her nails done!



They even give you name tags to wear on the factory tour.

Hey, do I look like a "Natalia" to you?



Theres a tour robot that can tell you about all the different robots in the factory...



And even robots who serve tea and biscuits in the waiting area.

Do I look like the type of girl who drinks tea? Why dont they just put some ribbons in my hair while they're at it? :P



Hard hat REQUIRED?

On second thought, where are the ribbons?



Finally, heres the factory! Ooo...giant machines...



The factory floor is full of robots running around making words and putting them together. You know...just like any factory that makes stuff!



"Awarer the glass erik the poky secant?" Hmm...I really dont think Erik the Poky Secant knew that the glass was there! :P

If you would like to see how literature will be created in the future, come check out the Literature Factory. Click on Search, select the Places tab, and enter "literature factory" as the keyword. The SLURL is Kula 2(187,7,24).



Pssst...excuse me, Mr. Robot, can I like...copy from your job application?

Day 338: Wonders #3-5: Christ Redeemer, Colosseum, Taj Mahal

Continuing my journey to visit all New 7 Wonders of the World (or their equivalents) in Second Life, heres World Wonders #3-5 (in alphabetical order): Christ Redeemer, Colosseum, and Taj Mahal.



The famous Brazilian landmark, Christ Redeemer, overlooks Rio de Janeiro. In SL, he also stands atop a mountain, overlooking the Gourdneck sim.



The SL Christ Redeemer was built by Blaze Columbia (who owns Blaze Fashions). The description welcomes all visitors and asks them to leave a candle at the base of the statue.

So I left a messy candle there and made a wish. Come see what my wish is and leave your own candle! (Lol I think Miss Second Life is getting to me ;P)

Click on Search, select Places, and enter "redeemer" as the keyword. The SLURL is Gourdneck (136,180,121).



The Colosseum in Rome, Italy is more of a challenge...

I couldnt find a serious attempt to duplicate the Colosseum in SL. There are many amphitheaters in SL. Like this amphitheater in Muse Isle.



The ROMA sim has the Hippodrome, where you can race chariots! Its not exactly the Colosseum, but it certainly has that ancient Rome feel to it :)



Theres sorta a replica in "Little Roma" in the "Perfect Island" sim. Its a disco though :)

But dont fret...I read that "Rome Reborn" may be coming to SL. If so, there will be a super detailed Colosseum in SL soon :)



As for the Taj Mahal, there is one in SL. Its a model of the Taj Mahal and its for sale...

Click on Search, select Places, enter "taj" as the keyword. The SLURL is Orion (241,179,57).



Its not a particularly complex build, probably to conserve prims.

So for now, if you are looking for the Indian experience, check out either Bollywood or the Desi Beatz Club.



Excuse me, Mr. Peacock, do you know where I can find Machu Picchu in SL? No...no...not a macho peacock! I mean the ancient ruins in Peru!

Day 337: Sirena 2 Women/1 Men's Hairstyles (Wild Hairs)

Its Monday!

This is Talia, the evil Alt. Natalia dozed off, so Im doing the announcements this week! Bwahahahaha!

Its almost September...that means Fall and Halloween! Its time Natalia started making hairstyles for me :) Ive planted pictures of Goth, Punk, and other cool styles all around the house. So theres going to be some wild hairstyles between now and Halloween. She wont know what hit her ;P




Rockstar can be a stylish salon cut, or a dramatic rockstar hair. The hair extension on top is detachable, so you can pick a look that suits your mood. Dramatic waves of hair and flexis all around bring this Rockstar to life...



Shy is mysterious...a fashion model-look that hides and accentuates your face. Perfect for that first date, or when you feel reserved. Comes with a color-change flower hair clip...



Maximilian is that authority figure you see in the movies. He's often the bad guy: the head vampire, the mob boss, or the evil tyrant. He has a swept-back front with a free, mid-length back full of wavy and flexi hair. And he has a mean streak... :P


These Sirena hairstyles include built-in Face Lighting so you always look your best. Just try on a demo and see the difference!

All hairstyles come in 3 sizes, (S)mall, (M)edium, and (L)arge for easy fitting and adjustment.

There are 48 textures in 12 color packs to choose from. And all hairs can be color-tinted (with 66 colors) to give you even more color choices!

Check them out online at www.SirenaHair.com or at Sirena Hair & Fashion. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "sirena" as the keyword. The SLURL is West Sunset (160,50,22).




"Party Like a Rockstar!"

Dont your think Im like a 1000 times more fun than that blonde mermaid? ;P

Day 335: HUD Attachment Tutorial

Have you ever wondered how HUD attachments work? You know, those thingies that attach to your screen instead of your avatar. From the ZHAO II that makes me look like a model :P, to the Babbler Translator that helps me understand "Hey Sexy" in 8 languages :)

At least for me, theyve been really mysterious gadgets for the longest time. But as it turns out, they are super simple. And if youve ever built any prim attachments in SL, you already know how to make one :)

In this tutorial, we are going to talk about what a HUD attachment is, and how they work. We will also make a HUD Event Invitation for inviting people to events.

You will need the free "HUD Event Invitation" folder from Sirena Hair & Fashion to complete this tutorial. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "sirena" as the keyword. The SLURL is West Sunset (160,50,22). The folder is in the Tutorial Supplies area under the giant mermaid sign.

If you dont feel like going thru this tutorial, I included a ready-to-use HUD Event Invitation in the "HUD Event Invitation" folder at Sirena Hair & Fashion. :)

So here we go!


HUD Attachment Overview

A HUD attachment is simply a prim attachment that attaches to your screen instead of to your avatar. So you can actually make ANY prim object a HUD attachment.

Lets try it!



For this demonstration, we are going to make a Box with different color on each side. This way, we can tell which side is facing us as we rotate the Box.



Go to somewhere that you can build (like a Sandbox).

Click on the Build button at the bottom of your screen, and click on the ground. This will rez a Box with 0.5M on each side.



Go to the Texture tab. Click on the "Texture" square. At the "Pick:Texture" window, click on the "Blank" button, then click "Select".

Next, click on the "Select Texture" button at the top of the Edit window.

Click on one of the faces on the Box (doesnt matter which one).

Click on the "Color" square in the Edit window. At the "Color Picker" window, pick a color for this face, then click the "Select" button.



Repeat the above steps with all 6 faces on the Box, picking a different color each time.

Go to the General tab and change the Name to "Color Box".

Right-click on "Color Box" and select "Take" to take it into your Inventory.



Now, look for "Color Box" in your Inventory. It should be in the Object folder.

Right-click on the "Color Box" in your Inventory. Select "Attach to HUD >", and "Center".



You should now have a color square in the middle of your screen :) Your color is probably different than mine (SL uses one particular face on the Box when it first attaches).

So what can you do with this square?



Go ahead and Right-click on the "Color Box" and select "Edit". You should see the familiar color arrows that let you move prims around. Go ahead and drag one of the arrows to reposition the "Color Box" on your screen :)

(Doesnt it look like Im doing a magic trick or something behind the square? :P)



Click on the "Rotate" button at the top of the "Edit" window. You should see the color wheels for rotating prims. If you move the wheels around, you will notice that the "Color Box" will rotate on your screen, just like any prim attachment! :)



Guess what you can do if you clicked on the "Stretch" button at the top of the "Edit" window? Thats right, you can resize the HUD attachment. Just like any prim.

When you first attach a prim object as a HUD, the "Size Y" determines with width of the attachment, and the "Size Z" determines the height. This changes if you rotate the HUD object.

On most standard size screens, a HUD attached to the center with "Size Y" of 1.400M and "Size Z" of 1.000M will completely cover the screen. Some screens have different dimensions (like widescreen-format), so they are a bit wider than 1.400M.

Note: Be careful about the size of a HUD attachment. I attached a "Blindfold HUD" (a big black HUD attachment) in a Sandbox when I was a Newbie. I ran around screaming until a friend helped me take it off ! (Thats so not funny! :P) So keep the HUD small, or add a button to Detach it!

BTW, to Detach a HUD attachment, Right-click on it and select "Detach". Again, its just like any standard prim attachment :)

A couple more interesting facts about HUD attachments: First, you are the only one who can "see" the HUD attachment (other residents around you cant see it). Second, you can attach a single prim, or a linked set of prims (so prim attachments can get really fancy).



So why use a HUD?

In general, they are great for 2 things: providing a resident with a set of buttons to control something, or displaying information/status about something.

A common use for HUD attachments is to provide a set of buttons, sorta like a universal remote control. For example, my HUDDLES Quick Pose is a HUD that enables me to strike different poses by pressing different buttons (totally modeling gear ;P). The ZHAO II has an On/Off button, and a button that calls up a menu. These buttons usually run LSL script commands. So they can do just about anything as long as you can script it :)



The other common use for HUD attachments is to display information or status. This can range from simple On/Off type buttons, to clocks, to avatar radars (display names of avatars near you).

Of course, you can combine buttons with information display to create some really fancy HUDs, like News or blog HUDs.


HUD Event Invitation

OK, thats enough info about HUD attachments. Lets make something :)



Have you ever been invited to an SL event? You usually get a prim card that you have to rez on the ground and zoom in to read it.

How about giving someone a HUD Event Invitation? When they Wear it, it attaches to their screen so they can read it just about anywhere (even if the sim does not allow Building).

We are also going to add some buttons so the recipient can move between "pages" or textures.

Ready to get started? :)



Go to somewhere that you can build (like a Sandbox).

Click on the Build button at the bottom of your screen, and click on the ground.

Go to the Object tab and change the Size X to 0.100M.



Go to the Texture tab. Click on the "Texture" square. At the "Pick:Texture" window, click on the "Blank" button, then click "Select".

Look for the "HUD Event Invitation" folder you picked up from Sirena.

Go to the Content tab.

First, drag-and-drop these 3 files from the "HUD Event Invitation" folder to the Content tab (its important that you do this first!):

   1-Page 1
   2-Page 2
   3-Page 3

Next, drag-and-drop the "HUD Event Invitation Script" to the Content tab.

One of the faces on the box will display the "HUD Event Invitation" texture. This is the front of the HUD display :)



Press and hold the [Shift] key and pull down on the Blue arrow to make a copy of the prim.



Go to the Content tab. Delete all of the files in the Content tab.



Go to the Object tab. Change the Size Y and Size Z to 0.100M.



Go to the Texture tab.

Click on the "Select Texture" button at the top of the Edit window. Click on the front face of the prim we were just working on (the side that will be the front of the HUD display).

Click on the "Texture" square. At the "Pick Texture" window, go to the "HUD Event Invitation" folder and select the "Arrow" texture.



Click the "Position" button at the top of the Edit window.

Move the arrow prim to the bottom left of the bigger prim.



Press and hold the [Shift] key and pull down on the Red arrow to make a copy of the arrow prim towards the right side.



Go to the Texture tab. Click on the "Flip" checkbox on the "Repeats Per Face"/"Horizontal (U)" line. This will flip the arrow to the right.



Press and hold the [Shift] key and pull down on the Red arrow to make a copy of the arrow prim towards the right side.



Go to the Object tab. Change the Size Y to 0.200M.



Go to the Texture tab.

Click on the "Select Texture" button at the top of the Edit window. Click on the front face of the prim we were just working on (the side that will be the front of the HUD display).

Click on the "Texture" square. At the "Pick Texture" window, go to the "HUD Event Invitation" folder and select the "Detach" texture.

Click on the "Flip" checkbox on the "Repeats Per Face"/"Horizontal (U)" line. This will correct the orientation of the texture.



OK, just a couple little things to finish up :)

First, we need to put the scripts into the 2 buttons with arrows.

Edit the prim with the Left arrow (the left-most prim). Drag-and-drop the "Back Button" script into the Content tab of the prim.



Edit the prim with the Right arrow (the middle prim). Drag-and-drop the "Next Button" script into the Content tab of the prim.



Next, we are going to link all of these prims together.

Press and hold the [Shift] key. Then click on the Left arrow, Right arrow, and Detach boxes on the bottom first to select them. Click on the big prim on top last. This will make the big prim on top the Root prim.

Click on the "Tools" option at the top menu. Select "Link" to link all the prims together.

Go to the "General" tab. Change the Name to "HUD Event Invitation (Wear to use)". You should include "(Wear to use)" or something like it in the Name, so the recipient would know what to do with it.

Right-click on the "HUD Event Invitation" and select "Take" to take it into your Inventory.



Look for the "HUD Event Invitation (Wear to use)" object in your Inventory (it should be in the Object folder). Right-click on it, select "Attach to HUD >", then "Center".

Congratulations! You just created a HUD attachment, complete with control buttons and changing textures :)

To create your own HUD Event Invitation, just replace the 3 texture files in the HUD with your own. You can put as many pages as you like!

Just remember that the texture files are presented alphabetically. You can start the texture file names with a number (like "1-xxx", "2-xxx", "3-xxx", etc.) to control the sequence.

Have fun with your events! :)




"And for our next magic trick, we shall cut this lovely mermaid in half!"

Hey, wait a minute!!!

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Day 333: Escapade Zoo & Safari Park

When was the last time youve been to the zoo? If its been a while, heres your chance to do it in Second Life :)



The Escapade Zoo & Safari Park is the perfect place for some monkey business. Literally...



Its got all kinds animal exhibits (including some snakes *Eeek*). The cool parts are these boxes next to the displays. They give you notecards loaded with info about the animals.

Hmm...its really weird being on this side of a fishtank. Everything looks smaller from this side :P



They even have pengiuns! I saw "March of the Pengiuns" a bunch of times...they are so adorable!!!



You can even ride a llama! Heehee they are so weird :P



And wait...the zoo is just a portion of the sim!

You can hop on the train for a tour around the entire sim...



Theres a safari park in the middle of the sim...



...where you can go pet the elephants. Dont try this in Real Life! :P



And they have the most beautiful park for Tinies! :)



The Tinies park has the cutest little play area and beach! I think I need to get a Tiny AV! :)



Oh, and theres a romance area for the big people. Havent you ever seen a romance area in a zoo before? :P



And if its night, be sure to stay away from the creepy graveyard. Say, what kind of zoo is this?

For a bit of monkeying around, come check out the Escapade Zoo & Safari Park. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "escapade" as the keyword. The SLURL is Apollonia (161,107,26).



Zippy! What are you doing here at the zoo? Youre not checking out the zebras, are you?

Day 331: Wonder #2 - The Great Wall of Second Life

Since visiting Chichen-Itza a couple weeks ago, Ive been inspired to visit all of the New 7 Wonders of the World (or their equivalents) in Second Life :)

In no particular order, heres World Wonder #2: The Great Wall of Second Life. Nothing nearly as spectacular as the Real Life Great Wall of China, but work with me here :P



Built during the early days of Second Life, only the finest prims rezzed by the best artisans were used in its construction. The Great Wall kept the Mainland safe from the invading hoards of griefers... :P

OK...actually, the Great Wall is a Linden-created landmark that stretches from the Athetis sim to the Horisme sim, across 14 different sims! This is possibly one of the largest single structure in SL!



The Great Wall has 2 levels: the top level is open to the outside.

Since the Great Wall has been around for a while, some residents built their own structures to blend into it. Like this castle behind me at the Athetis sim.



The bottom level is like an enclosed tunnel. You can enter the bottom level either from the Athetis sim end...



Or at one of several entrances along the Great Wall...

Better yet, you occasionally fall through the floor into the bottom level as you walk across sims ;P



And since the Great Wall is a bit of a Mainland landmark, theres quite a bit of advertising along the way...



The Great Wall itself doesnt have a lot of features. There are a few occasional rest areas/lookout points...



And a couple of these overhangs...



Nevertheless, its a truly impressive structure, just based on its size and history. To give you an idea, I set my Draw Distance to 512 (maximum possible) and still couldnt get a decent pix of the Great Wall!



There are a few (but not many) interesting things along the Great Wall.

Like this giant dome thing, built by people with too many prims :P Its just a really neat dome: theres no entrance nor anything inside...



And heres the other end of the Great Wall, at the Horisme sim.

Theres actually not much to do at the Great Wall. But its interesting to see a piece of SL history and culture. So stop by if you have a spare moment... Click on Map, and enter "horisme" as the sim name. The SLURL is Horisme (79,33,152).



Who said motorcycles are only for SLurgis? Although sim crossings are *very* interesting :P

To rez your bike/vehicle, you need to find a section of the Great Wall that allows building. At the Horisme side, the nearest sim is Epirrhoe.

My Mom is so going to kill me if she knows I have one of these! :P

Day 330: Sirena 2 Women/1 Men's Hairstyles (Celebrity Styles)

Feels like I just dried my tail, and its Monday already! Time for some new hairstyles :)

This week, its celebrity hairstyles...real, fictional, and virtual :)



Rachel is a long straight hair with bangs tucked into one side, which really reminded me of Rachel Greene from Friends (theres already a style named Jenny :P). Will Rachel stay with Ross? Or will they take another break? :P

Rachel comes with a color-change sculptie dolphin hair pin!



Sienna has long bangs that continue to the sides and breaks into a dramatic wave of hair in the back. The bangs reminded me of the way Sienna Miller wears her hair. Sienna comes with a French comb accessory with color change gems.



Charming is the man of every girl's dreams :) This Prince Charming is specifically the one from the Shrek movies, with a high wavy front and a full back. OK, he may not be such a nice guy, but he's got nice hair! :P


These Sirena hairstyles include built-in Face Lighting so you always look your best. Just try on a demo and see the difference!

All hairstyles come in 3 sizes, (S)mall, (M)edium, and (L)arge for easy fitting and adjustment.

There are 48 textures in 12 color packs to choose from. And all hairs can be color-tinted (with 66 colors) to give you even more color choices!

Check them out online at www.SirenaHair.com or at Sirena Hair & Fashion. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "sirena" as the keyword. The SLURL is West Sunset (160,50,22).




Will Prince Steve be there in time to save the princess? Will he fall off the demo horse and hurt himself? ;P

Day 328: Sculpted Prims Tutorial Updates

If you create or plan to make sculpties, theres great news: ROKURO and the Wings 3D Exporter have some new cool features. So sculpties are now much easier to create and texturing! I also want to mention another great sculptie creation tool: SculptyPaint.




ROKURO Update

Yuzuru Jewell, the author of ROKURO, added a new feature to the ROKURO (Windows) version 1.02 to export BMP files. This enables BMP files created in ROKURO to be imported directly into Wings 3D, without having to convert them. I updated Part 3 of this tutorial series based on this new feature.

BTW, if you use ROKURO, please consider donating inworld to support ROKURO's project website. Every little bit helps. The inworld donation box is here: Hewes (168,130,79). You can read about the donation situation in the SL Forums.




Wings 3D Exporter Update

Omei Turnbull, the author of the Wings 3D Exporter, added a new feature to automatically create a UV Map when importing a sculpt map. This makes it *MUCH* easier to texture sculpties (cuts out most of the steps!). I updated Part 4 of this tutorial series based on this new feature.




SculptyPaint

SculptyPaint is another great tool for creating sculpt maps. It's similar to ROKURO: it can creates certain types of sculpties very easily. It's slightly more complicated to use than ROKURO, but can create different types of sculpties. Best of all, its also free (for now) :)

SculptyPaint has some nice tutorials on its website to help you get started.

If you export a sculpt map from SculptyPaint using 64x64 PNG, convert it to BMP in Photoshop or GIMP, you can then import it into Wings 3D for Tweaking, just like the older version of ROKURO in the original Part 3 of this tutorial series.




So watch out! More sculpties are on the way :)

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© 2007 All Rights Reserved.

Day 327: Im Back...

Hmm...should I go back to work? I could just hide out here! No one would ever find me... :P

OK, OK, I guess I'll dry my tail and go on shore...

Heehee Im back! :)

Day 319: Vacation

Im off to Atlantis to visit my family this week! :)

I borrowed a shelltop computer so I can IM and answer Emails while in Atlantis. But its dangerous to use computers underwater! Not to mention it would totally annoy my dad if Im on the shelltop all day (Poseidon has such a bad temper!) :P So I cant really blog or make hairs this week :(

Ill be swimming back to shore next Friday, Aug 17 :)



Meanwhile, if theres a big storm at sea, you'll know my dad is mad at me :P

See you next week! :)

Day 317: Thursday's Fictions

Thanks to a tip from blog reader "K" last week, I came to see the cool new interactive experience called "Thursday's Fictions".

Thursday's Fictions is hosted by the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS). Looks like the AFTRS sim is designed to make and screen movies in Second Life. It has movie production areas...



and also a screening area with a lot of short films to choose from.



If you are interested in making sounds in SL, the Robbie Dingo Sound Class is a cool tutorial on working with sound in SL :) Watch out...theres going to sound effects in the Sirena store soon :P



But the main reason Im here is Thursday's Fictions. Thursday's appears to be an Australian fantasy/dance/artistic film about a world in which people only live 24 hours (and Thursday's time is running out). Theres more information and a trailer on the Thursday's Fictions website.

Unfortunately, the film does not appear to be out yet...



The Second Life component seems to be an important part of Thursday's Fictions. Its an erry journey filled with neat effects and wonderful sounds. Robbie Dingo was probably here :P

The experience reminds me of the Devil's Labyrinth (just not as big at this point).



Umm...did I mention erry?

There arent any Japanese ghosts here...are there?



There are some cool scenes with different sounds and feel. Some are separated by little puzzles you have to solve along the way...



There will be many paths to choose. Currently, only 1 path is complete, but it seems others are in the works...

The film and the rest of Thursday's Fictions in SL promises to be a treat! I cant wait for them to be out :)

To come get a preview, click on Search, select Places, and enter "thursday's" as the keyword. Select "Esperance Island". The SLURL is Esperance (78,142,28).



"Sit on the right under the bookcase and tell me a lie?"

Umm...theres nothing fishy about me! :P

Day 316: Sirena 3 Women/1 Men's Hairstyles (Pretty/Scary)

I just found out I was mentioned in an academic paper (and its not even an abnormal psychology paper :P)! Dr. Eric Clemons from the Wharton school of University of Pennsylvania wrote a paper called "The Future of Advertising and the Value of Social Networks". On page 10 he referred to some of my pix and said, "Indeed, where but in Second Life can we find the same woman competing in and winning a global beauty pageant, bowling, and sky-diving...?" And he mentions me by name on Page 12. Thanks Dr. Clemons! This is the coolest thing thats ever happened...Im totally showing this to my Mom :)

BTW, that "same woman" is a mermaid who likes carnival rides, skates, sails, and wonders if she should go with Blue Poseball or Zippy the Unicorn. Anyone interested in writing a paper on abnormal psychology? :P



Its another beautiful summer Monday :)

This week, I started off with some pretty hairstyles, then things got a bit weird. Its a week of pretty and scary hairs (I didnt know hair can get scary either :P)



LeAnn reminds me of one of my favorite singers :) Its full of waves that fall around your shoulders, and curls that highlight your face. Comes with a jeweled hair clip tht accents the hair.



Mandy is a gorgeous formal hair that goes to the back in a braid, then falls in a wave of flexi hairs. Comes with a delicate color-change pearl headdress that highlights the braid...



Grudge is inspired by the movie of the same name. The same movie that didnt let me sleep for a whole week :P Grudge is a beautiful, long hair with flexi sides and normal bangs.

It comes with detachable Creepy Bangs that run down the front of your face. The Creepy Bangs are flexi, which makes them just so much creepier! Perfect for those days when you dont feel like yourself :P

(Hope I can sleep after making this hair!)



Paul is a short style thats messy, with layers of hair on all sides!


These Sirena hairstyles include built-in Face Lighting so you always look your best. Just try on a demo and see the difference!

All hairstyles come in 3 sizes, (S)mall, (M)edium, and (L)arge for easy fitting and adjustment.

There are 48 textures in 12 color packs to choose from. And all hairs can be color-tinted (with 66 colors) to give you even more color choices!

Check them out online at www.SirenaHair.com or at Sirena Hair & Fashion. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "sirena" as the keyword. The SLURL is West Sunset (160,50,22).




"The whole time I was in that house I felt something was wrong..."

Hello? Is anyone there?

Day 314: Creating Prim Shoes Part 5 (Boots)

In the previous parts of this tutorial series, we created a pair of sandals in Part 1, and a pair heeled pumps in Parts 2, 3, and 4. Since then, Ive received a lot of requests to write a tutorial on creating a pair of prim boots. So Ill do my best here :)



I created my infamous Dino boots last year. They look nice from the outside, but they have several problems. First, they have a lot of prims...too many to fit in a tutorial. Second, the insides dont look right (and thats why I dont sell them :P).



For this tutorial, I stripped down the Dino boots and made a simplified version. This will give you the basic shape for a pair of prim boots. You can then jazz it up by adding prims, decorations, and other effects :) Oh...and if you feel up to it, you can always try making a pair of sculptie boots!

A pair of prim boots is similar to the heeled pumps we created earlier in this tutorial series. There are just a couple of differences. First, the boots typically cover your feet completely. Second, each boot has 2 parts: the Foot attachment, and the Lower Leg attachment.



The Foot attachment is almost like a pair of heeled clogs. If you put more work into styling this portion, you can even wear this part by itself.



The Lower Leg attachment is the actual boot. Like the ankle straps we created in Part 4, we use a separate attachment so they will stay in place as you walk around.

Since you made it this far into the tutorial series, Im assuming you are comfortable with the SL camera controls and working with smaller prims. We are going to build these boots at actual size. So try the earlier parts first if you have not already done so.

You will need a Full Transparent texture (with a black Alpha Channel) and the Invisi-Prim Script (Invisibility Prim Public v1.1b) to make these boots. You can pick up both of these items for free at the Sirena Hair & Fashion store (in the Tutorial Supplies area under the giant mermaid sign).

So lets get started!


Creating the SL Shoe

We will need a pair of SL shoes to prepare your avatar's feet for the prim boots. This is done via the "Appearance..." window.

First, Detach and take off any SL or prim shoes you are wearing.



Right-click on yourself, and select "Appearance..." from the menu. Select the "Shoes" tab. Press the "Create New Shoes" button (if you dont see this button, press the "Take Off" button first). Enter the following settings:

Shoe Height: 0
Heel Height: 100
Heel Shape: 0
Toe Shape: 0
Toe Thickness: 0
Platform Height: 0
Platform Width: 0

Next, click in the square box above "Fabric". This will bring up the "Pick:Texture" window. Select the "Full Transparent" texture you picked up from Sirena.

When you are all done, press the "Save As" button. Enter "Boot Base" as the Name.


Creating the Foot Attachment (Boot Bottom)

The Foot Attachment part has 10 prims. Since we are going to build at actual size, we will not be using a sizing board.

Rez a prim on the ground. Press Shift-X. This moves the prim to the nearest 0.25M point. This helps us line stuff up later.



Go to the General tab, and change the Name to "1". Go to the Object tab. Change the Building Block Type to "Sphere". Change the Size X, Y, and Z to "0.100".



Go to the Texture tab. Click on the square above "Texture". This will open the Pick:Texture window. Click on the Blank button and the Select button.

Click on the square above "Color". This will open the Color Picker. Select a color for the boots. You can choose a different color for each prim. This makes it much easier to line things up. We will change the colors later just before linking.

Prim "1" will be the front bottom of the Foot Attachment. We are going to clone it to make all the other prims.



So make sure Prim "1" is selected in Edit more, and you can see the Red/Green/Blue movement arrows. Press and hold the Shift key, then click on the Blue arrow and pull it up. This will make a copy of Prim "1" perfectly lined up above.



Do this 8 more times until you have a total of 10 prims.



Starting from the bottom, Edit each prim and change the Name to a number from 1 to 10. The one on the bottom should be "1". The one on the top should be "10". This will helps us reference the prims below. Optionally, you might want to change the colors for each prim to make it easier to line things up.


Prim 1 - Front Bottom
Edit Prim "1". Enter the following settings:

   Building Block Type: Sphere

   Size X: 0.095 Y: 0.186 Z: 0.030
   Rotation Z: 270.00

   Path Cut B: 0.730 E: 1.000



Prim 2 - Toe Cover
Edit Prim "2". Enter the following settings:

   Building Block Type: Sphere

   Size X: 0.155 Y: 0.090 Z: 0.080

   Path Cut B: 0.000 E: 0.500
   Hollow: 95.0

   Dimple B: 0.000 E: 0.570



Prim 3 - Arch
Edit Prim "3". Enter the following settings:

   Building Block Type: Cylinder

   Size X: 0.025 Y: 0.090 Z: 0.114

   Rotation X: 0.00 Y: 336.50

   Path Cut B: 0.250 E: 0.750

   Taper X: 0.00 Y: 0.30



Prim 4 - Arch Cover
Edit Prim "4". Enter the following settings:

   Building Block Type: Cylinder

   Size X: 0.085 Y: 0.110 Z: 0.159

   Rotation X: 180.00 Y: 23.50 Z: 270.00

   Path Cut B: 0.000 E: 0.500
   Hollow: 95.0

   Taper X: -0.45 Y: 0.10 (Note the negative value!)



Prim 5 - Heel Insole
Edit Prim "5". Enter the following settings:

   Building Block Type: Sphere

   Size X: 0.120 Y: 0.033 Z: 0.073

   Rotation X: 270.00

   Dimple B: 0.370 E: 1.000



Prim 6 - Back Upper
Edit Prim "6". Enter the following settings:

   Building Block Type: Torus

   Size X: 0.060 Y: 0.120 Z: 0.083

   Rotation X: 90.00 Y: 0.00 Z: 262.00

   Path Cut B: 0.050 E: 0.950
   Hollow: 80.0

   Hole Size X: 1.00 Y: 0.30

   Profile Cut B: 0.500 Y: 1.000



Prim 7 - Lip
Edit Prim "7". Enter the following settings:

   Building Block Type: Sphere

   Size X: 0.066 Y: 0.059 Z: 0.077

   Rotation X: 0.00 Y: 8.00 Z: 90.00

   Path Cut B: 0.000 E: 0.120
   Hollow: 90.0



Prim 8 - Heel Stem
Edit Prim "8". Enter the following settings:

   Building Block Type: Cylinder

   Size X: 0.040 Y: 0.050 Z: 0.102

   Taper X: -0.20 Y: -0.15 (Note the negative values!)



Prim 9 - Heel Outsole
Edit Prim "9". Enter the following settings:

   Building Block Type: Cylinder

   Size X: 0.040 Y: 0.060 Z: 0.030

   Taper X: 0.25 Y: 0.30



Prim 10 - Invisiprim
Edit Prim "10". Enter the following settings:

   Building Block Type: Box

   Size X: 0.175 Y: 0.095 Z: 0.154

   Taper X: 0.40 Y: 0.15
   Top Shear X: -0.18 Y: 0.00




And heres the scary-looking stack of prims :)













Assembling the Foot Attachment (Prim Shoe)

OK, lets put all these prims together!

All of these prims are perfectly lined up right now. During the assembly process, you should only have to use the Blue and Red arrows to position the prims. Avoid using the Green arrow!



Move "Prim 2 - Toe Cover" down to "Prim 1 - Front Bottom". Push it as far forward as you can. Note that Prim 2 will stick out a bit in the back.



Move "Prim 3 - Arch" down to "Prim 1 - Front Bottom". Join them at about the middle of the lip in the back of Prim 1. Note that they dont look like they fit together, but once we change colors, they will blend together.



Move "Prim 4 - Arch Cover" down to cover "Prim 3 - Arch". It should fill any gaps between Prim 1, Prim 2, and Prim 3.



Move "Prim 5 - Heel Insole" into place behind "Prim 3 - Arch".



Move "Prim 6 - Back Upper" into place above "Prim 5 - Heel Insole". Note that Prim 6 is slightly slanted, so make sure there are no gaps at the back of Prim 6.



Move "Prim 7 - Lip" into place above "Prim 6 - Back Upper".



Move "Prim 8 - Heel Spike" below "Prim 5 - Heel Insole". Try to bring it as low as you can without having the top part stick out.



Move "Prim 9 - Heel Outsole" down, just behind "Prim 1 - Front Bottom". Check to make sure that their bottoms are at about the same level.



Then slide "Prim 9 - Heel Outsole" back into position below "Prim 8 - Heel Spike".



Now, lets change the color of the shoe.

Click and hold outside the shoe, and drag the yellow window around the entire shoe. The entire shoe should be outlined in yellow.



Now go to the Texture tab. Click on the square above the "Color" to open the Color Picker. Choose a color for the boot.



Click on "Prim 1 - Front Bottom". Go to the Texture tab. Click on the square above the "Color" to open the Color Picker. Click on the black square and press the Select button.

Repeat the above steps for all the prims at the bottom of the show: "Prim 3 - Arch", "Prim 5 - Heel Insole", "Prim 8 - Heel Spike", and "Prim 9 - Heel Outsole".



Move "Prim 10 - Invisiprim" down. Prim 10 will be used to hide parts of the avatar's feet. The bottom needs to be at about the same level as the shoe itself. Prim 10 looks a bit funny right now, but dont worry, we will make it invisible in a minute :)



The back of Prim 10 should be just behind the shoe.

Now, let's put the Invisi-Prim Script from your Inventory into Prim "8" (the one from the Sirena Hair & Fashion store).



Right-click on Prim 10 and select Edit. Select the Contents tab. Drag and drop the "Invisibility Prim Public v1.1b" file from your Inventory into the Contents tab of Prim 10.

Close the Edit window to exit edit mode. Wait a few seconds (could take up to a minute depending on lag). You will notice Prim 10 will disappear. Dont worry, its still there. :) Just transparent. But you should now be able to see the heel clearly.

Next, we need to link the Foot Attachment/Prim Shoe together. For this Foot Attachment, we want the Root Prim to be "Prim 1 - Front Bottom" (its the Black prim at the front bottom of the shoe).

Make sure you can see the whole shoe. Right-click on any prim and select Edit.



Click and hold outside the shoe, and drag the yellow window around the entire shoe (including the Invisiprim). The entire shoe (and the Invisiprim) should be outlined in yellow.

Now press and hold the Shift key. Left-click on "Prim 1 - Front Bottom" to de-select it. Left-click on "Prim 1 - Front Bottom" again to select it. This makes Prim 1 the last prim to be selected, and will make it the Root Prim when we link.

To link the prims, click on Tools at the top of your screen, and select Link. You will notice that all the prims are now outlined in blue, except Prim 1 is outlined in yellow.

One last thing: we need to name the shoe.

Go to the General tab. And change the Name to "Boot Bottom (L)".

Right-click on the "Boot Bottom (L)" and select "Take" to take it into your Inventory.


Creating the Lower Leg Attachment (Boot Top)



Now, lets create the top part of the boot. This is relatively easy: just 2 prims!

Rez a prim on the ground. Press Shift-X. This moves the prim to the nearest 0.25M point. This helps us line stuff up later.



Go to the Object tab. Change the Building Block Type to "Cylinder".

Enter the following settings:

   Size X: 0.111 Y: 0.090 Z: 0.200
   Rotation X: 0.00 Y: 1.00 Z: 0.00

   Hollow: 95

   Taper X: -0.05 Y: -0.10



Go to the Texture tab. Click on the square above "Texture". This will open the Pick:Texture window. Click on the Blank button and the Select button.

Click on the square above "Color". This will open the Color Picker. Pick the same color you chose before for the Boot Bottom.



So make sure this prim is selected in Edit more, and you can see the Red/Green/Blue movement arrows. Press and hold the Shift key, then click on the Blue arrow and pull it up. This will make a copy of of the prim.



Edit the prim on top and enter these settings:

   Size X: 0.135 Y: 0.100 Z: 0.200
   Rotation X: 0.00 Y: 343.00 Z: 0.00

   Hollow: 95

   Taper X: -0.25 Y: -0.15
   Top Shear X: 0.50 Y: 0.00



Now bring the top prim down into the bottom prim. The top prim should go about 2/3 of the way into the bottom prim. I changed the color of the top prim to make it easier to see. Be sure to change it back before you link them!



Now lets link these 2 prims. We want the bottom prim to be the Root Prim.

Right-click on the top prim and select "Edit". Press and hold [Shift] and click on the bottom prim to select it.

To link the prims, click on Tools at the top of your screen, and select Link.

Go to the General tab. And change the Name to "Boot Top (L)".

Right-click on the "Boot Top (L)" and select "Take" to take it into your Inventory.


Fitting the Boot

Our boot is all ready for wearing :)

Look for the "Boot Bottom (L)" in your Inventory. This should be in your Object folder.

Right-click on the "Boot Bottom (L)" in your Inventory, select "Attach To >" and "Left Foot".



The "Boot Bottom (L)" will initially attach with the wrong orientation. You need to rotation the shoe until the toe portion is in front.

Go ahead and Edit the "Boot Bottom (L)" while it is on your foot. Change the Rotation Z to 270.00.



Next, drag the Red/Green/Blue arrows until the "Boot Bottom (L)" fits well on your feet. If you use the numbers at the top as a reference, this is a good position: "X: -0.033 Y:0.000 Z:0.011".

Look for the "Boot Top (L)" in your Inventory.

Right-click on the "Boot Top (L)" in your Inventory, select "Attach To >" and "L Lower Leg".



The "Boot Top (L)" will need to be re-positioned. Edit the "Boot Top (L)" while it is on your leg.



Drag the Red/Green/Blue arrows until the "Boot Top (L)" fits well on your leg and runs into the "Boot Bottom(L)". If you use the numbers at the top as a reference, this is a good position: "X: 0.014 Y:0.009 Z: -0.127".

When you are done positioning, Right-click on the "Boot Bottom (L)" and select "Detach". Right-click on the "Boot Top (L)" and select "Detach".

In your Inventory screen, Right-click on the "Boot Bottom (L)" and select Copy. Then Right-click again on the "Boot Bottom (L)" and select Paste. There should now be 2 copies of "Boot Bottom (L)".

Right-click on one copy, select Rename, and change the name to "Boot Bottom (R)". Now Right-click on "Boot Bottom (R)", select "Attach To >", and click on "Right Foot".



Go ahead and Edit the "Boot Bottom (R)" while it is on your foot. Change the Rotation Z to 270.00. You should not have to re-position it.











Right-click on the "Boot Top (L)" and select Copy. Then Right-click again on the "Boot Top (L)" and select Paste. There should now be 2 copies of "Boot Top (L)".

Right-click on one copy, select Rename, and change the name to "Boot Top (R)". Now Right-click on "Boot Top (R)", select "Attach To >", and click on "R Lower Leg".



The "Boot Top (R)" will need to be re-positioned slightly. Edit the "Boot Top (R)" while it is on your leg.

Drag the Green arrow until the "Boot Top (3)" fits well on your leg. If you use the numbers at the top as a reference, this is a good position: "X: 0.014 Y:0.003 Z: -0.127".

Once you are done position, go ahead and Right-click on "Boot Bottom (R)" and select Detach. Right-click on "Boot Top (R)" and select Detach.



Congratulations! You now have a pair of custom made boots ready for Wearing :)

You can go back to previous parts of this tutorial series and add textures, bling, Sexy walk, and prim decorations. Or do what I did: turn them into Dino boots by adding some dinosaur textures :)

Have fun with your new boots!

31908-071006-236214-20

© 2007 All Rights Reserved.

Day 312: Chichen-Itza

Heres one of the New 7 Wonders of the World! (Not me, silly, I mean the pyramid thingie behind me :P)

Welcome to Chichen-Itza, Mexico in Second Life!



The world has voted and its (almost) official: Chichen-Itza is a World Wonder!



Chichen-Itza in SL is a project by the Mexican Tourism Board. You know, the folks who want us to take more vacations in Mexico :)

The sim provides a flavor of the real Chichen-Itza. There are info Notecards at major display areas. Like these 1000 stone columns, rezzed by the finest Mayan artisans...



And check out archaeological sites. This one has some cool psychedelic displays :)



Like a pretty garden sim, there are also waterfalls and forest trails...



And the coolest part is that you can take an audio tour (thats right, audio!) of the sim on the back of a butterfly :) The audio tour is available in 3 languages: Spanish, French, or English.

Hey...do these butterflies have seat belts?



Of course, some areas you have to explore on foot...like taking a plunge into the Sacred Cenote.

Can you actually do that at the Real Life Sacred Cenote? Since its like...sacred? :P



Or partying in the ancient Mayan disco :)



And stop by now and grab some really nice (and free) Mayan Princess and Mayan Warrior outfits!

Hey, thats unfair...the guys get a spear and shield and stuff. Ooo, wait a minute...nice earrings! :)



Dont forget the sun and the beach :)

Do you like Mayan ruins or curious about one of the World Wonders? Check out Chichen-Itza in Second Life. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "chichen" as the keyword. The SLURL is Visit Mexico (195,62,38).



Oh Blue Poseball darling, will you take me on a tour to see all the other World Wonders?