Ok, got Poser 5, have done SR2, but not 3 or beyond. Not sure if I want to risk SR4 from what I've read. Then again I really have very little idea of what all you're talking about with the issues between them all. heh Ok, my questions(s) are: Downloading some of the free stuff it turned out that I wasnt paying attention and some of them created a Power 4 directory! LMAO.. well that really seemed to screw things up for me so I uninstalled, then reinstalled, applied the SR, paid attention to where I'm unzipping to, but stuff again seems to have gone everywhere! the only stuff that went where it was supposed to was the stuff from DAZ and the SR. I have Clothing coming up under Figures so when I try to add it, the figure goes away and is replaced by the clothing. I have figures in Clothing, Poses and Props. Do I need to uninstall and delete eveerything again, or can I simply move stuff into the right directories and all will be good in the world? Not sure if this is part of the same problem, but I've tried to add some of the body morph's and such for 'stand alone' figures and they dont load. ??? Also, what stuff would you, anyone out there, reccomend I get for an add on? Thanks again for answering what are probably silly questions and covered somewhere in the threads. Allen

I have Clothing coming up under Figures so when I try to add it, the figure goes away and is replaced by the clothing. Most clothing items are figures, although there are exceptions (simple clothing props, dynamic clothes, etc.). The new stuff in your Pose folders are probably MAT files to apply textures to the clothing items. When loading clothing from the Library, don't double-click the thumbnail image. That replaces an existing figure with the new selection. Instead, use the double-checkmark button at the bottom of the Library panel; that will load a new figure into the scene, rather than replacing one.

The only add-ons that I consider essential are these: UV Mapper - there is a free version available for downlaod here in the freebies section. (This is useful for mapping figures, splitting vertices, etc) Correct Reference - there is a free version here in the freestuff (helps to keep Poser running smoothly by fixing the references of the various files, so that Poser can find your textures, objects, etc) P3DO explorer - there is a free version here. (an explorer type of program that can "see" 3D formats, and makes moving and making new libraries and categories easier) There are numerous threads and tutorials on how to use these, and what they are for. Later, once you are comfortable with the program, you can start worrying about things like Lipsyncing programs, clothes converters, etc.

I'd suggest you unistall, then install from scratch and apply the SR4 patch without applying any of the other patches first. SR4 is definitely worth it and it works better if it's applied to an unpatched copy of Poser 5.

Ok... I think that's the plan for when my happiness gets home tonight. Hit the SR4.1 (is that right?) after reinstalling. So far I've just been messing around so no loss there. "UV Mapper - there is a free version available for downlaod here in the freebies section. (This is useful for mapping figures, splitting vertices, etc)" - I have NO idea what he just said I'd use that for but ya'll know more about this than I do, so.... Correct Reference sounds like a good thing to have. and yes, I do feel like a total jackass for not knowing what that double checkmark was for! Read the manual? I'm getting to old for that sort of thing. ;)

Well the Poser 5 manual is really not that great. You'll get a better education asking questions here at Renderosity.

I agree... from reading the threads and the few I have asked I've already leared a lot! Just dont get me started on growing hair. I've still only gotten it to work once! (goes to raid the free section for hair objects....)

The Poser Forum FAQ at the top of this page is probably a good place to get the basics. Yep, SR4.1 straight over the top of your fresh P5 install with no other patches in between. You can install the content patch if you want, but none of the software patches. You won't need UV mapper to start with. Save that for when you know your way around a bit more.

Are these both the same thing or am I on crack? from my understanding of Correct Reference they sound similar. Just thought I'd better ask. Also, with Correct Reference... If I already have the files unzipped, and know thier in the wrong place, will CR take care of this at this point? Or do I need to have the files yanked/deleted and then drop them in again?

PInstaller is a program that installs your files. Once they are installed, as long as they are in the correct runtime, in other words not in a Poser 4 directory or in some strange place like "My documents", then Correct Reference will edit your Poser files to point to the correct textures and meshes and things. Personally PInstaller works well, but use it on a few files at a time, not on a large stack of files, and then go and manually check where PInstaller has put them. This is the fastest way to learn where things go, and why, and you will eventually need to know this when things don't work correctly.

Ok, so the problems that I'm having right now... running Correct Reference should fix it all, right? Thanks! I really appreicate all the input. I think I might finally beable to do something more complex than a stick figure after all!

Attached Link: http://www.runtimedna.com/messages.ez?forum_id=28

I don't think CR will fix your problems, no. In fact I don't think you really need to mess with that until you know your way around a bit better, though it certainly is a good tool for keeping Poser running smoothly. If you look at that FAQ I mentioned, it has a lot of info on where the different files should go. That's probably your best bet for getting your downloads installed properly.

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There are some problems Correct Reference will not fix. For instance, if the original zip file put the poses in a folder called "Poses" rather than "Pose." Correct Reference won't find those items because they are in the wrong Library folder.

I used PInstall, only briefly. Unfortunately, it wasn't easy for me to understand, and sometimes it installed stuff in the wrong folders or libraries. I tried talking to the author a few times, and really didn't get any better understanding.

Now I always unzip zip files into a temporary folder and set them up the way I want. Then I create a self-extracting "exe" zip file and install from there. I use the DAZ installers directly, and often move items about after that.

Correct Reference Pro (CRPro) is the best tool I've found to be sure everything is found once stuff is installed properly.

Message edited on: 09/14/2004 07:03

Also, when you use the SR4.1 updater be sure to also download and use the Figure updater. And read the readme! There is a background color quirk that can be fixed in just a few seconds. Carolly

ack! I never got the notification that anyone else had posted. I'm very sorry. I did the SR4.1 update but not the figure updater. Correct Reference is awesome! i got the free version and it did take care of a lot. I think that I need to go in and uninstall and delete everything again, reinstall and then pay closer attention to the readme files and the directory structure. I still have a LOT of things (like hair especially) that are showing up in odd places. hair in poses? clothes in figures, that sort of thing. I really did just let things drop out of the zip files where ever they'd went. that's on me. Thanks so muuch for the help! :)

Clothes mostly do go in figures (anything with moving parts is a figure). If you see hair in poses, it may be that you are seeing poses which set the hair style or colour. You'll also find hair that goes in props and hair that goes in figures. The categories have more to do with how each thing works than anything else. The ultimate decider is the the three leter extention on the end of each file. crz/cr2 files always go in figures for example.

In general, if there IS paths in the zips, they're there for a reason. So if a hairdo puts itself in Figures, it's because it's a conforming hair and SHOULD go there. As Ajax said, look at the extention and see where to put it more than look at WHAT it is. Things like clothes and hair that shows up in Poses are most likely MAT poses, that change colour or style of something. They're supposed to go there too :o)