My building tools

I like to create things in here but I didn't like that the paradise island looks like a junk yard between the building sessions and it is totally boring to clean it up all the time so I decided to do something about it.

 

This building platform is 100 * 50 meters and is made out of just 5 Megaprims. You cant link all that the normal way so I have used a Rez-Faux-mechanism for making it easy to move and build in new places. The textures on the walls are seamless and the building texture on the floor is great for fitting things together. IM me if you interested in a something like this platform.

Below the platform you can see the Art exhibition hall, and the Stardancer exhibit is still going on there and even further down are the islands.

This post will be about some of the tools I often use for building. Some of them comes from the amazing Skidz Tweak. On the first photo above you can see the very useful Robotic Land Laser. You can rez it at any hight and it shows you very precise the borders of your parcel below.... how useful.

Here you can see two of his other tools, The Skidz Primz and the TNT Primz. They are not cheap but so incredible useful. They are both intended for aligning different prims to each other but have a different twitch each of them. You rezz special prims with scripts inside or you can insert those scripts in regular prims. Skidz Primz works with both Mega and scuplty prims while TNT Primz (to the right here) only works on regular prims, but is on the other hand smoother and less prune to lag.

You use them just by clicking on those red dots and you get perfect alignment extremely fast. Every Saturday there is free of cost classes at the main shop en there are lots of great YouTube-videos showing you the usefulness of these tools. I don't build without them any more.

There is also another alternative called PrimDocker. That is very cheap compared to the Skidz tools and works also with Mega prims... but is not that sleek and fast. In PrimDocker you use a hud and click on that for the adjustments and not just but clicking on the prims them selfs. It is a bit less intuitive but when you have learned it you find that it is very fast and low demanding on resources.

Here you see the manual for PrimDocker on my building platform. On the photo you can also see the MegaPrim search tool even though I prefer http://megaprim.sl/ as it is possible to see the rotation and orientation of the Megas there and I find that extremely useful.

Behind that you can see the PrimFinder tool that lets you create normal prims but with an unusual shape very quickly.

 

And so... finally.... here is the gem! SculptCrafter! With sculptcrafter you have a reduced set of prims that you can use in a limited number of ways. To the right here you can see a buoy I have built with 29 of those prims. Then with a twist of the magic wand i can convert those into a single prim sculpt map. Totally incredible and extremely useful.

But it is a rather expensive tool and it has a number of limitation, but if you are aware of those it is the most valuable tool I have. If you accept some pointless script errors I have also discovered that it is possible to insert both PrimDocker and Skidz Primz scripts in the SculptCrafter prims and combine the tools. I just love it!

Go to the creators sandbox and play with the demo:  http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/3DBuildEasy/89/126/500

You can make real sculpty prims that you own with the demo. But you can only build them there in the sandbox and you are limited to 10 prims... but the resulting scultpy is real and can be used anywhere.

So... the new angle... my first post on shoes.

A few days ago I wrote:

"Well now I think I will quit writing about the snobbish cultural side of it all...  and start writing about..... looks, clothes, sex, shallow behaviour, intrigues, parties, tattoos and... and ... shoes?... SIGH.
Stupid, silly me.....  ROFL"

So now is time for my first post about shoes.

Well maybe not the kind of shoes you though I would write about but I really like the detailed work at display here. Look at the engravement on the metal buttons, the stitches, the leather on the heels and beautiful folds. This is really supreme craftsmanship in SL.... how great!

This is the newest person on my friendslist.... Lemondrop! Yes, it is her shoes and tomorrow I will show you the incredible Sim she and her friend has created. If you also liked the shoes, just hold your breath!

Tradewinds 2010 Boat Builders Show

 

 Yesterday on february 15 the Tradewinds 2010 Boat Builders Show opened for the public. This is what they write about it on the web page:

"Fostering a friendly and helpful environment for sailboat builders and those who love them, to network and show off their boats. With the idea that together we will all improve.
1) these are boats YOU made or are making
2) they don't have to be finished
3) Although maybe not working yet, the idea is that you intended to get these sailable"

Read more: http://docs.google.com/View?id=dcq2k35p_688g5pmsdf

 

The great thing about this all is that this also marks the release of a totally FREE building kit from Becca Moulliez. How great! There are textures and scripts... all free that you can use for inclusion in your own masterpiece. And you are welcome to expose your creations here even if they are in a very early state.

and if you are a bit overwhelmed by the though, be aware of that even mothers with babies can find the time do this... so surely... it is worth a try....  ;o)

So just run over and get your free building kit... and while you are there... get a free Fizz as well and come sailing with us!

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Dex/189/33/23

Fizz training with the Japanese sailors

The sailing community here in SL is really a fabulous crowd. In my search to be a better sailor in here I have searched all over the place and to my surprise I have been welcomed everywhere. It is certainly not like that in all the groups......  ;o)

Soon after I got my Fizz somebody told me that the Japanese group of Fizz sailors are some of the very best and as they have weekly practice races I started to sail together with them. The best way of learning is to learn from the best.

I got to know them and Taku who is arranging these sailing (Liv is also one of the arrangers) took a lot of time to explain the rules and the different tactics to the group. He has tought me so many great things and is so incredible patient and friendly. Thanks a lot, mate! Without his N3 navigator I wouldn't had a chance in the Americas Cup.

The Tradewinds Yachtclub is the base for the Japanese sailors and after each day of practice the winner is celebrated there and the winners boat is exposed for all to see.

This day the winner the winner was Mihwa who also competed in the Americas Cup Trophy. The Fizz is very difficult to master as it is so realistic and much more precise to sail than for example the ACA33. I don't have a chance yet against the best ones in the Fizz...

After the races there is always a discussion about the tactical details that made the difference.

Now days the Fizz is totally free (used to cost 1250 Lindens) ... so just grab a boat and come sailing with us. Starboards shopping mall in Hollywood sailing sims.

Art galleries in Second Life

This is a totally new experience... to look at art galleries. And it will keep you busy for a a while... the present number is 668 different galleries...   ;o)

Here are just a few to get you started...

Freedom House of Arts - Gallery
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Triangulum/146/82/27  

 Feathers Bay - Gallery
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Esterhal/236/233/852

Avalon Art District
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Tabula%20rasa/224/83/27

Lawst Oaradise
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Lawst%20Paradise/179/207/751

Pygmalion Art Glass Sculpture Garden
You need to go here to get some kind of overview: http://sasun.info/ArtGalleriesOfSL.aspx

Well now I think I will quit writing about the snobbish cultural side of it all...  and start writing about..... looks, clothes, sex, shallow behaviour, intrigues, parties, tattoos and... and ... shoes?... SIGH.
Stupid, silly me.....  ROFL

Art in Second Life

A few weeks ago we opened up our first exhibition here in Second Life. The response has been overwhelming and so many nice people here have said so many nice things....

One tips was to join the group of Art Galleries in SL... what a great tip!

There are nearly 700 galleries in the group and you can even get a HUD to easy navigate among them. On the creators webpage there are different ways to find the ones that may interest you.

http://sasun.info/ArtGalleriesOfSL.aspx

So much fun to TP around and experience the incredible creativity in here:

The creator of this group also has a great blog where you can follow the art scene in SL.

http://sl-artgalleries.blogspot.com/

In just a few weeks our gallery has established itself rather well in that group. The current exhibition will go on for a few more weeks. Please come and have a look and dont forget to vote for it if you like what you see:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Biriba/65/222/301

The details makes the differance

It has been a busy week! First the first round of the Americas cup challenge (that I will write about a bit later), then the opening of the gallery (and the signing up in the big group with 650 galleries... also in a later article)... and then all the ongoing projects. I am such a fanatic for the details that I have a a really tough time to decide when something is good enough and I should decide that it is finished....

Well this story is about buoys... the small stupid insignificant things that you see when you are out sailing in the beautiful oceans in Second Life. I wanted to have some buoys to mark the small canal between our islands so that people dare to sail there. You know if you are sailing in the main direction you shall have the red buoys on the left side and the greens on the right side (yes I have a skippers diploma in real life).

However those up for sale were either so ugly or consisted of a incredible amount of prims. I need 6 buoys for that canal and if each of them is up to 37 prims.... well there we go again... that ads up to 222 prims for some stupid buoys. No way... and even the low prim good looking buoys are like 17 prims = 102 prims.

So what will a handy man do? Right, build my own ones!!! You should say YAY to a challenge.... well a few weeks later I am not so sure....    ;-)

The resulting buoy itself is made in one sculpted prim and the flashing lamp is another prim. So 2 prims/buoy that makes 12 prims instead of 222 for the six buoys... Amazing. The buoy itself took me less then an hour to build and turn into a sculptie. The textures took me forever even though I have great tools. I have 13 green versions and 9 red versions before I am pleased with the worn look of them. They should look like they have been in the salt water for some time and not like they are newborn plastic ones.

Then there are the scripts. One for making the lamps flash in the right way and another one for making the buoys move in the water in a natural looking way. Those took me a few hours too.....

Then a fool never knows when to end..  ;o)

So I decided that it would be handy to be able to use them "out of Sim" as well.. so I added that functionality (2 more prims if you want to use that possibility) and lastly I had to learn how to make nice foam or wave around them (adds 1 prim if you decide to use that)

So the result is a nice looking moving and flashing buoy in 2 prims with foam for another one and "out of Sim" use for yet two more... the choice is yours.

My own joy lies in understanding all the detailed works at hand here and put together an object like this, were all is home made by my self.

Sure... a total waste of time as I can buy them on Xstreet for a few Lindens... ;o)