Ok Im hating this daz thing right now I cant figure a damn thing out on it! I can manage a body and thats about it, the tut isnt helping me at allllllll

I have to say that I got loads of help from the nice folk who inhabit the Daz forums in particular the DAZ Studio forum.I too nearly gave up until I just went ahead and asked how to do something.I did this with each new problem I encountered and I can only say they have been the most amazingly helpful lot.Full of encouragement and help especially for the novice.

never feel shy to ask for help..even if it seems like a stupid question because we all  have to start somewhere.

So what exactly is the problem?

Oh, my guess is she's having the same problems I am.  The layout is not exactly intuitive, and there are no help menu's or materials. 

It's pretty much impossible to figure out

1.  Where is the best place to download the content.

2.  What is the best way to organize it (since the program seems to do a lousy job)

3.  How to add morphs and poses to the mix ... again, it's not exactly intuitive.

LOL...I have tons of questions in the forums and although I have had some very helpful ppl I just am not grasping a damn thing lol.I've been trying to work with V3 I cant seem to find anything outside of whats in daz content. I know you have to use conforming clothing Im either not finding the right things to dl, they dont work, I cant find hair and if I do it doesnt work, the organization of daz is crummy omg lol...Im almost sure Im unzipping the files right and to the right place. I cant seem to find the files, the list goes on..I've been working with it for weeks now, I got so fed up today now Im all cranky lol.

Well if you purchase from DAZ their installers are pretty good.You must remember to make sure that the files get installed into the content folder of DS.The Daz installers do the rest.Plus DO make sure to read the product page that comes at the end of the installing session because it will TELL you WHERE to find the product you just installed.I suggest making a written note about it in a small to be kept booklet, will help you find what you have installed.

Patience and perseverance are the way with DS(frankly it's easier than Poser any day).

You will find people and animals and the main millenium/daz characters/figures in the Figures section.Some under Daz people ,some under their own name,You will also find the basic part of any clothing in this section as well and there will be a separate folder for each characters morphing clothes.

Hair gets a little more complicated as some will be in DAZ hair but some will just be under their name in Figures and there may even be a DAZ hair file in Figures.

Hands contains hand poses.Faces contains face poses.

Then in poses you get all the morphs for all the characters.IE how to change shapes,how to alter faces,make a character fatter,muscular.These are INJected or plused onto a character.You can also remove a morp if you want to by clicking on a minus sign.

Also in poses you get the materials IE the fun part of setting up your characters.Here you will find hair colour,changing hair styles.You will find the different texture choices for clothing,and the body textures for you chosen character usually known as 'maps'.These will include skin texture,colour,make-up and eye colour.
Also here you get to pose your character in the position you like using ready made pose packages

In Props should be the objects that you will assign to character for their use.IE staffs,swords,guns,food,furniture.

Camera contains the camera postions for certain scenes that you can purchase.

Lighting contains the lighting that comes with those scenes as a ready made aid to save you setting up your own(the most complicated part of setting up a scene in my book and I'm pleased when I'm provided with one).

Don't forget that DS does have a pretty forgiving undo tab unlike Poser where you only get to undo once.

Now I hope I have been helpful.

Most of the file and folder organisation is dictated by the Poser library set up, though if you aren't going to use Poser you can move items and folders between libraries (for example, take the Victoria 3 folders from Runtimelibrariespose and put them in a subfolder of RuntimelibrariescharacterDAZ people (or rename the DAZ People folder to Victoria 3).

Do you have a Poser, as well as a DAZ|Studio, content folder set up? It will appear in your Content palette with aplain icon (unlike the stylised S on the DAZ|Studio content folders) and will have sub-folders with special icons for some or all of the Poser library categories.  

Thanks for your help guys and girls :) I will check it out today and see what I can figure out. And yes I do have poser 6, I dont use that one I definately can figure that one out lol........that one for sure is on hold. Have a good day!!

I learned DAZ by going through the users manual page by page while sitting at my computer. I still refer back to it once in a while. Mostly I learned by trial and error. Keep up with it you will eventually get used to it. 

Well, the latest version of DAZ Studio does not have a user manual.  So, that's pretty much out.

I am doing the best I can dealing with the installers ... which don't seem to understand where to install things, even though they are pointed at the content folder.

As for getting the poses to work, I still have no clue as to where to start.

At the moment, I have the House Mouse in front of me.  However, it seems to be stuck.  I don't seem to be able to select any of the individual parts of the mouse.  Much less be able to select a purchased pose for him ... or fit any of the clothes I purchased on him.

I'm sure it's a very nice program, but the manual ... non existant as it is .... and lack of regular online help (you all are very nice, but you can only go so far) .... well, it sucks.

here is the link to the manual

http://documentation.daz3d.com/studio/

OK wooo hooo for me I figured out the stupid file system crap lol...now for the rest one step at a time I guess. Oh and I actually got some clothes to fit V3 :D

starr_moongoddess, when i first started using daz studio i got frustrated because i had no idea what to do with it and i gave up on it for a few months.  I still have some problems with the program but at least now i'm not having v3,m3,a3 or steph standing there naked and bald....

wait till you start to do shadow work in the program then the fun starts lol

Every program has its learning curve. And unlike word processing applications, 3-D graphics programs all seem to work so differently from each other. I down loaded DAZ Studio last week. The program seems managable, but I am already familiar with other software like RayDream, Bryce, Vue D'Sprit, and my favorice Cinema 4D. DS seems like a reasonable free product. Not nearly as powerful as Blender (which I think has a terrible interface) but somewhat intuitive with its dail system. Download the manual and work through it. The manual might not be for exactly the current version but about 80% of it still applies. If you are new to 3-D it just takes some getting used to. Start small if you need. Even if you resort to making spheres and planes to play with materials and lightin. I still do that to this day with Cinema 4D when I am trying to figure out something about it that I have not dealt with before. Then work from what you know, to what you want to know in small steps. And, this is importaint. Repeat stuff several times until you can do it with minimal reference to the instructions/tutorial. Do the simple stuff over and over. Stack cubes, give them different materials, etc. Its hard to do something complex when you have too many new things happening at once.

Henry

Henry i have to agree withh al you said. I use bryce and still mess around with the terrains and spheres/cubes trying new things out. Even though bryce is no where near Vue or cinema 4d which neither of them i have it is still an interesting program to use and learn.

Main thing is no mater which program you use it pays to read the manual or an tutorials you find for that program.

I lucked into Cinema 4D as I was working at a community college for a while and qualified for the academic pricing. Without that I could not afford it. However, that was years ago and its several versions behind now. I had Bryce 4 for a while but switched to Vue D'Sprit 4 during one of their special offers. (Under $100) Bryce and Vue seem to leap-frog each other in features. I found I liked Vue a little better and its interface seemed a little more professional.

But as you say, at first, and even now, I use simple primative objects when trying something new. And at first I played with just a few simple objects over, and over, and over,... again until the interface seemed natural and second nature. And then work through the manual and tutorials. ANd work throught them more than once. Work through a tutorial several times until you almost dont have to read the instructions to do it.  Then go through it some more only do things differently with different settings or objects. And so on.

DS seems to be a good free program if you dont expect Maya like things from it and take your time to learn it in steps.
Henry

Quote - here is the link to the manual

http://documentation.daz3d.com/studio/

Have you visited that link lately??  It is "updated" with an apology for most (actually mostly all) of it not being there.  So, I am back to no manual, along with a lot of other folks.

rickymaveety: Did you load the mouse into the scene by double-clicking an icon in the Content palette, in some sub-folder of the Figure library in a Poser content directory, or did you use File>Import to load the OBJ files from RuntimeGeoemtries? The OBJ file has the shape, but it doesn't have the information on how the figure should pose (or how it should be textured).

Right what you need is an OLD copy of the quick start section of the manual...which I did print off at some point...

However I've not kept the original copy on my PC.I wonder if anyone else has a copy?

I tell a lie..I do have a copy in PDF format

Who wants a copy?

Ok I took a break and now back to the drawing board. I actually got all my files in order because of someones help thank you! I actually got past what I couldnt, which was dressing v3 and actually the clothes fit lol...Im going to learn this damn thing if it kills me hahahaa....thanks all for your help still pluggin away at it.

I haven't been able to get any of the stuff I downoad to install properly, although it is installing to the content folder.

Also, Agent Smith over at Bryce got me a PDF copy of the manual (the old one), so at least I now have something to work with.

Now, if I can just figure out how to get the mapping to work properly.  As you can see by my WIP, I still have a lot of problems.

Quote - I imported it as an obj file because there aren't any icons in the content library.  The program didn't install any except for some dragon flies and a naked Vicky.

I haven't been able to get any of the stuff I downoad to install properly, although it is installing to the content folder.

Also, Agent Smith over at Bryce got me a PDF copy of the manual (the old one), so at least I now have something to work with.

Now, if I can just figure out how to get the mapping to work properly.  As you can see by my WIP, I still have a lot of problems.

I have a copy also if anyone is interested.

Can you post a screenshot of your Content palette, with all of the branches collapsed, and of your Edit>Preferences>Directories tab showing the Poser content directories. I suspect you're looking at DAZ|Studio files, which is why you don't see anything since the mouse is in Poser format.

Thought I would share the evolution of my WIP.  I still have to add the little book for the mouse who will be reading.

And, I've got more questions, but those will be for another thread.

Quote - Thanks RHaseltine, I finally figured out that I need to let the program do it's thing and search.  Of course, now my content palette is a little goofy, but I assume that I can just delete all directories and start with a fresh search.

Thought I would share the evolution of my WIP.  I still have to add the little book for the mouse who will be reading.

And, I've got more questions, but those will be for another thread.

See I knew you'd start getting the hang of it..Well done.

Glad to have helped. The image has worked well, neat idea.

The image has progressed quite a bit since that WIP was posted.  I'll likely post the next update tomorrow in the morning.  I'm rendering in Bryce with HDRI and it takes about 5-6 hours to render.

Dont ever give up Tina, You CAN do it!!!!!!! :)

THANKS STEVE :D I am going to do it you wait!! hopefully I'll have something accomplished here soon lol....

Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it :) Always ask questions because people around here are just so nice. The Daz Forum over at DAZ3D is also very helpful.

Oh joy .... what fun ..... ick.

On a lighter note .... here is the final rendering of the project that I posted towards the top of this thread.  I can't say I have the hang of DAZ yet, but I will work on it.  Starr ... if you need someone to commiserate with, I'm here.

I will for sure be getting back with you RickyM because you know I do :D I've been getting the hang of it a little more and working on something right now, it just seems to take a little more time seeing I dont know what Im doing just yet. Hope to have something finished here really soon.

There is an excellent beginners tutorial that I would recommend to everyone.

www.tuitzone.com/DazTut.html

I still find DAZ easier to handle than Poser  shrugs

True, I was initially baffled by installers and directory structure but after some reading up in the forums and some really silly questions posed and answered, I've managed to get very good results - although I'm by no means a pro! It's easier to work with DAZ as it loads faster and has more user friendly camera and light controls. The materials section may be somewhat lacking out of the box, but if you play around (and even get pwSurface) you're in for a very pleasant surprise! :)
At the end of the day, it's what you feel better with that counts! :D

Since all I use D|S for is dressing and posing the characters, I really don't need to worry about the lighting or other aspects. For me, that is easier to do in Bryce, if only because I've been working in Bryce for ..... well, forever .... since it first became available on PC.

I do find the way that DS decides what is or is not a "character" or a "pose"  or a "prop" to be counter intuitive and a general pain in the tush.   To me it borders on the insane to call a texture change a "pose" or an outfit of clothing a "character."

However, I do think it is easier than Poser when it comes to actually working with the objects.  A pain, but easier.

Well, the library structure is Poser's (and if you weren't using Poser youu could move all hair related files into the hair library, put the mat files in with their clothes and so on). Native files (.daz scene files and .ds/.dsb preset and script files) can be arranged how you want - you don't even have to keep them in a D|S content folder, if you don't mind using File>Merge to add them to your scene.

Hmmm ... well, I'm not using Poser, and DAZ was the program that set up this odd ball directory structure.

Yes, but the material settings in the Pose library is with Poser content rather than DAZ|Studio content. It's the contentt type that determines how it has to be laid out, not the application that's being used to open it (Poser 6 allows mixing too, though unfortunately not in the same way).

Hmmm .... although one would think that DAZ could set up Studio so that it wasn't the content type that determined how the directory was laid out.  For example, that it would have a drag and drop function so that you could easily rearrange things.

If you aren't using Poser then you can rearrange the content as you wish.  Studio does have some drag and drop file sorting its just better to do it using the OS's file handling.  I prefer it this way, after all why waste time and resouces and adding redundent functions to Studio if you don't have to.

I tried doing it via the OS, however, I had some problems getting D|S to recognize the files after I moved them.  Even after I did another search for content.

This is good tut for Poser file folders structures:

http://www.morphography.uk.vu/fileguide_1.html

It should help you understand what files and folders you can change and which you should leave as they are.

Thanks.  I'll install Poser, work with this tut, and then re install DAZ.

I recommened the tut because some of the restrictions as to how you can and cannot re-order your files and folders apply to Studio.  Especially the parts about path lines inside many of the main files.  Its the path lines that point to other files, usually object files (*.obj) or textures.  Thats why you shouldn't mess with Geometry or Texture folders and their contents.  As bad as Poser's folder structure is I prefer to try to stick to it in case I ever do get Poser.

Starr, I have been reading all your posts here and you are experiencing the same thing all Daz users did in the beginning. I have been using it since the first build came out years ago. I have watched new users go from beating their heads against the keyboard to some of the most unbelievable artist and renderers out there. If they (we) can do it, I am sure you can too. You are going to hate it and want to destroy it, but you won't because in your most idle moment it is going to haunt you that you know you can do it and you won't be able to put it down. You will come back time and time again to capture the beast and prove to yourself you can. One day it is going to hit you and it will all become very clear just how the beast works. I know every dark corner of D/S and can do it with my eyes closed. I used to download lots of freebies but now I make everything I need with the included Daz primatives. I make my own clothes using The torso and hips parts of characters and then UV map them and texture them. Talk about a perfect fit! I have Poser 5, Bryce 5,Wings, Anim8tor, Blender, and a few more and guess what....I never even open them up anymore because I use Daz for everything now (even modeling with the primatives. You may hate it now,but you will love it in the end and will not want to part with it. Just keep working with it and read,read,read those tutorials. That's how I learned everything I know. The forums is the key and like Incognitas said the forums people will do everything they (we) can to help you because D/S is an awesome program. I am music2u4u and if you go to the Daz freepository and go about three pages you will see a thread for Honda freebies. I started that thread and just look at all the folks that downloaded the free Honda motorcycles and posted their renders. "The Ness" as he is called is about the best at all of this and his work will floor you and he is faithfully dedicated to helping others and even makes stuff for people in need,so go to the forums and keep working with it and hopefully in about 3 or 4 months I will see you up there smiling real big with the rest. If I can help I will.

oh...just one more thing here to help you...Daz is a seperate program from poser and ONLY SUPPORTS poser files. It is NOT poser. Many forget that and expect DAZ to BE poser. That is why Daz has it's "studio" folder section and poser goes into the "content" folders seperate from Daz. Once you create a scene or prop or any other thing using a poser file and then save it, it saves it in the "studio" section. It does not save the actual poser file you used but creates a link to that poser file which is in the "content" section. It creates it in a "Data" folder which is kinda like a Daz geometry files section. If you move the files around too much in the "content" folders then reopen a scene you made in Daz you may get a message saying it can't find certain things you used before you moved them around. This is rare but If this happens, just click the locate button and direct the "path" to where you moved the file to and it will load it and memorize the new location. Resave it and your good until you move it again.If you always remember that Daz is Daz and not poser you will be able to see how the structure is set up to ONLY SUPPORT poser files, not become them.

Actually the 'Data' folder does contain mesh data.  Care must be taken to not lose or erase any data content.   If data is lost, 'Scene' files will not show any objects.   The data can be rebuilt by creating a new scene with all the models you used in the original plus any morphs used.  The models don't have to be posed or position.  Saving the new scene should put the mesh data you need back in 'Data' folder.

I find DAZ Studio a much more flexible environment than Poser. I work much faster in DAZ and the render engine is great. Hang in there and keep on trying. JG

Quote - There's a lot of things you can do with DAZ, it's not a bad program, I find it better than Poser for several reasons, it doesn't take up space on your hard drive, renders reasonably fast and the quality of the work can exceed that of poser. Hard to believe but it's true...(see pic).

Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it :) Always ask questions because people around here are just so nice. The Daz Forum over at DAZ3D is also very helpful.

Wow, how did you do the lighting for that image in Daz? Amazing

Quote - > Quote - here is the link to the manual

http://documentation.daz3d.com/studio/

 

Have you visited that link lately??  It is "updated" with an apology for most (actually mostly all) of it not being there.  So, I am back to no manual, along with a lot of other folks.

You can get a manual from the support section at http://www.daz3d.com/i.x/support/downloads/-/?product=studio Select DAZ Studio in the drop down window next to the Start arrow. I just tried it and it's there.

I should send some of my first attempts - what a mess.I didn't even know how to render I used to just take screenshots.You'll find as you find free stuff that the directories in Daz are very similiar to Poser .I have heaps of Poser stuff installed in Daz.My Daz folder now is about 18 Gig.I must admit there is no real instructions to use Daz and I basically learnt by trial and error.Took me 2 years to get to the level I'm at now {average} but you will get there with practice-be patient.

The version of DAZ that I have..has a PDF file called the artists guide..its in the program menu when I start the program..It downloaded with the install. As Daz is free, I should be able to post the documentation for it.  Here it is