itsjustme

Looks cool, Robert!

The slider could be replaced with an ON/OFF pose and the relationship reworked for FK/IK switching, but the rigger would not be able to write it. The relationship would probably have to be made as a "drag and drop" from a model used as a container.

Great call, Mark! Exporting the previous model did change the 'Z' rotation some, but changing the "Roll method" to "Roll-History" appears to have fixed things. While I was at it, I changed the "Euler order" to "XYZ" on all of the rotating bones. I haven't run a test on the updated model that got it to break...but I'll do more testing tomorrow night to be sure. I'll attach the updated model here if anyone wants to mess with it. I also updated the biped installation rigs with the fix. installation_testing_08_29_2009.zip

I haven't checked after export...I'll have to do that tonight. Thanks, Mark!

It's pretty much just a bone set to "aim at" and "translate to" a target bone on each end with an identical child bone and a bone flipped upside down with "aim at" and "translate to" constraints pointing at the same target bones (but flipped). Bones set up like that will roll on their 'Z', so usually I use an "aim roll at" constraint to control the roll, but in this case the target would have to do some moving...so I went another direction. The child bone will rotate on its' 'Z' the same as its' parent, but, it also has an Expression on it that will rotate it like the 'Z' of the counter rotating bone (which rotates in the opposite direction of the parent because of its' orientation). The biggest thing, was to change the order of rotation on the counter-rotating bone to "XYZ", or it would flip the 'Z' rotation (which made it jump to correct itself). Hope that clears it up, Steve.

You could try putting the bones in the separate models, saving those, delete the geometry in each of them and save them as "guide" versions, assemble the "guide" versions using the same Action you use for the actual model, export that model as the "rig" model and then use TSM2 to rig it. That would speed things up considerably. Hope that helps.

I finished getting the biped rig installation problems worked out and have started catching the Quad installation rigs up...still a lot of testing to do on everything. The thing I worked on might be helpful to others, so I made a quick example model that I'll attach to this post. The intention is to keep the roll handles of the cheek and jowl pointing forward so that those bones are facing the front of the character. In the example model (and in the actual rig), the bones can turn the wrong direction, but only if you move their origins where they shouldn't go. The cheek's origin should always be above the "nostril_target" and the jowl's origin should always be below it. If that is true, the roll handles should remain oriented so that they point toward the front of the character (ignoring whether they are also pointing up or down, that part doesn't matter)...at least I haven't found it to not work in the tests I've run. This update will eliminate one of the manual adjustments in the installation process caused by some of the Expressions used in the face rig. installation_testing_08_25_2009.zip

You should be able to use whatever rig you want...I would use TSM2 to make things easier. If you put bones in each separate section of the model, then drag/copy each bone into a "rig" model so that they match, then use TSM2 to rig the "rig" model, you can then use an Action to assemble the model in the Chor and another Action to tie the bones in each section to the "rig" model (you could even put all of that into one Action if you want). For animating, you will probably want to make a proxy model with very simple geometry so that things don't bog down and then change it out with the actual model when it comes time to do a final render. Hope that helps. Great looking model! --------------------------- EDIT --------------------------- I just realized, it would be better to assemble your model in a Chor (with the bones in each section of the model already), delete the geometry and then export it as a model to make the "rig" model...that way the bones would be where they are going to be when assembled.

You can use the "BitmapPlus" material type to make the image a material. You should be able to tweak it into something useable using that. Hope that helps, Steve.

I'm out of time at the moment, so I'll just type a quick description...if necessary, I can make some screenshots tonight. I used GIMP, but I'm sure it can be done in any other paint program. I make a base layer of neutral gray, make a second transparent layer and use the "Filters/Noise/Hurl" to spray noise on the layer and the "Filters/Blur/Motion Blur" set to "linear" at 90 degrees with a length of about "50" to smear the noise into streaks. Then, I make a third layer, repeat the steps for the second layer except I set the motion blur to 0 degrees. Then, I flatten the image so that it is a single layer and use the "Filters/Map/Make Seamless" to make the image seamless and then save as a grayscale image. Hope that helps Steve.

I don't know what kind of weave pattern you're looking for, Steve. I just push some noise around to get a basic look like this one (it's seamless).

If you use your own character, make sure it has the necessary phoneme Poses...otherwise it won't work.

A step by step of what you are doing might help locate the problem. I'll list what I'm doing: 1. I open Keekat, double-click on the "Action" folder to create a new Action (selecting Keekat for the Action). 2. I select the newly created Action, right mouse-click and select "New/Dope Sheet". 3. When the "Add sentence" menu pops up, I input the sentence I want. 4. I scrub through the Action to make sure everything is there, then I double-click on the "Choreographies" folder to create a new Choreography. 5. I drag the Keekat model from the PWS into the new Choreography, then drag the Action onto the Keekat in the Choreography and check to make sure it is working correctly. Some things to check: 1. Where is your dictionary file located? If it's on your hard drive, move the file (make another folder and put it in there), go through the steps again and when it asks where your dictionary file is located, browse to the new location. Hopefully, that will cure the inability to find the file. 2. Is the Choreography adjusting to the length of the Action? Is the Action adjusting it's length to the sentence in the Dope Sheet? In the Dope Sheet, does the whole sentence show up? 3. If you're using another character, try it with Keekat...it should work with him. Hope that helps.

Looks great, Steve!

Just to keep people updated, I got rid of all of the compensates in the biped rig a couple of weeks ago...I still have an installation issue I need to fix on part of the face rig. I haven't done much on this for the past couple of weeks...lots of overtime at work. I should have time this week...hopefully, I'll get over my present hurdle quickly.

Congrats, Mark!

I don't think it was the rigs that caused the slowdown for animating TWO and SO...of course, I could always be wrong. As a test, I put 11 Squetchy Sam's into a chor. Yes, there was slowdown...until I hid the nine Sams I wasn't animating by setting "Active" to "off"...working in wireframe mode speeds things up even more. I made additional Sams active to see if things would slow down and it gradually got slower as I did so...with all 11 visible, it was a little irritating, but not unmanageable. Here's what I got: With realtime rendering set to "curved" on all objects in the chor: 11 Sams active: 1.2 FPS in shaded wireframe, 4.1 FPS in wireframe 1 Sam active: 4.4 FPS in shaded wireframe, 12 FPS in wireframe With realtime rendering set to "vector" on all objects in the chor: 11 Sams active: 3.4 FPS in shaded wireframe, 7.8 FPS in wireframe 1 Sam active: 9 FPS in shaded wireframe, 14 FPS in wireframe The performance will vary on faster or slower computers than mine, but that's the relative performance I got. So, my assumption is the slowdown was related to the visible geometry in the scenes and the realtime render method used (the Squetchy Sam I used has 4,995 patches). My thinking is that if all unnecessary objects are hidden, proxy models are used when possible and the realtime rendering is adjusted as necessary, slowdown while animating can be managed in most cases. My test method and assumptions may very well be wrong and I'm not a completely unbiased source of information, so feel free to ignore me.

Great looking strip, Mark!

Great tests, Robert!

If you used less specularity on the frame and put some wear on the seat, it would be hard for me to tell it was a model. Great job, Josh!

You could always delete the attachment and add a link to the download page for the plugin...

For initial capturing, I use the Camstudio lossless codec...here. Then, I do any editing using Virtualdub and make a finished master using the same codec (so that it remains lossless up to then). I then take that master and convert it to an H.264 Quicktime using Super. Finally, since older versions of Quicktime have trouble with video converted using Super, I open it up in Quicktime Pro and resave it as an H.264 Quicktime. I know, it's kind of convoluted, but that's what works for me. Hope that helps.

Nosir, I disagree...the 2008 rig kicks ass. The Squetch Rig still isn't going to be everyone's "cup 'o tea" and the 2008 rig is easy to install, "bullet-proof" and full-featured. It is definitely needed. One of these days, we will manage to convince you of your awesomeness, Mark. I'm still thinking about a "Mark kicks ass" float for the parade in your honor...just be prepared to wave to the crowd for the entire three mile parade route.

It keeps getting better, Mark!

The 2008 Rig kicks ass, incredibly good job on it, Mark! Also, I want to express my gratitude for all of your help on the Squetch Rig...I don't think I can say that enough. I tend to be kind of myopic when I'm working on something, so obvious things can easily get by me, unfortunately. Going over everything in the rig as much as I have over the past year has brought about a ton of improvements. I kick myself sometimes because I feel like I should have caught them the first time. As an illustration of one of the changes, here is a Zip containing the old version of Squetchy Sam's tongue (contains compensates and "aim at" constraints) and the updated version (no compensates). Sams_tongue_differences_08_06_2009.zip