i was about to add scifi bar to my cart, then i saw the P8 recommended. 

 

huddling by my Poser7 for warmth.    chill chill brrr

 

Good thing you mentioned that--I have the room/corridor construction set in my wishlist and I didn't even realize it recommended Poser 8. As another Poser 7 user, I feel your pain! Right now I'm wishing that I could use Miki 3. I don't understand how Poser 8 and Pro 2010 got so popular, so quickly. I was thinking about sidegrading to Pro 2010 during the last series of sales, but the price killed that idea pretty quickly... Ugh.

Vendors, if you're reading this--please, keep supporting Poser 7! There's still plenty of us out there to buy P7 content!

@ Misty

C'est la vie, n'est pas?! *(sigh) :sad:

Maybe it comes hand in hand with DAZ3D's announcement some time ago that they were going to drop earlier versions of Poser below 7.

 

If it's the K-Azonica Sci Fi Bar it appears that the lights don't work as intended since they were set up for indirect light. The figures and props work okay though.

Since I have Poser 7, I tried using the set but couldn't even load the lights because I couldn't remember how to load a new light set in addition to the ones already in the scene. I guess I'm too accustomed to Poser Pro 2010 now.

Just because it says "Poser 8 recommended" doesn't mean it won't work at all in P7.

Quote - Since I have Poser 7, I tried using the set but couldn't even load the lights because I couldn't remember how to load a new light set in addition to the ones already in the scene.

You can't do that at all in older versions of Poser, I haven't tried to do this in P8+.

one can use IDL in poser 7 with d3d's or stefan's script, but it looks lousy compared to the same render in poser 8 and later.

Lighting is a big improvement for sure - there's also the bug with scaling in conformers that's fixed in P8+, that's pretty massively useful.

Quote - I don't understand how Poser 8 and Pro 2010 got so popular, so quickly.

I don't think that Poser 8 & Pro 2010 have become so popular, still plenty of people 'lagging' behind. You need to look at the bigger picture. The 'market' demands progress and Poser 8 has left the whole being compatible idea that Poser used to ensure. Poser is moving on, so D/S. More modern techniques are being implemented and merchants make use of these. Poser 8+ has features that are not supported by Poser 7, but these features are very interesting for vendors to use.

If you followed poser/daz related news lately, you may have noticed all of the new ideas around. None of it is really new, it's just that they're going with the more modern stuff. Whichever way you turn it Poser 7 uses outdated 3D techniques, Poser 8 + DS are somewhere in between and DAZ is now trying to incorporate modern techniques in the next version of DS and most likely Poser will as well. Making it all even less compatible with previous versions.

It's got nothing to do with popularity, it's progress.

Personally, I don't have any interest in this progress, simply because I don't need it and I don't want it. The way Poser works now is more then fine with me, it's enough for me. I've got Poser 8 and I like the normal maps features and the rendering speed is great now, but that's it for me. Poser 8 hasn't added anything else new for me at all, only annoyances, and the new features in regards to how it relates to models, I don't even use. For me Poser 8 will be the last poser I'll ever buy. All the new features discussed don't even remotely interest me. On top of that I've got plenty of content to make me happy for many years.

But... if you want to buy the newer content, you will have to upgrade in future. You have to follow the hype, you've got no choice. Poser & DS are changing in such a way that backwards compatibity isn't an option anymore. Sure you can open older scenes in newer poser versions, but expect problems the other way around.

It's just that poser needs to expand to survive. It needs to modernize to interest new customers to buy it. It needs to grow beyond the old core users, otherwise it will not survive. It's not a matter of popularity, it's a matter of survival, Poser isn't the sole one anymore, it has competition and the competition is moving fast, incorporating newer technologies.

Whilst I have PP2010, I still user Poser 7 a LOT for things. In truth, about the only thing I've found compelling about PP2010 is the improved lighting system (including GC). Since only a small part of what I do involves actual rendering, Poser 7 is still a workhorse for importing from Blender and all that sort of thing...

Attached Link: SciFi Bar

     Misty,  P8 has the same repertoire of material nodes as P7 (as far as I know), so I would also guess that the vendor is recommending the use of IDL, which is indeed nice for "interior" models with luminous materials and extra lights.  The workaround for P7 would be to increase the scene's main/default lights (generally, the three infinite lights), and maybe even add a few gentle spotlights to simulate received glow.

quoting product page:  "This product is designed to produce best output in Poser 8 and Poser 2010. It works on Poser 7 (tested) but the lights are looking a little different due to the fact that P7 cannot emulate indirect light. This product loads in DAZ with the usual limitations of lights and cameras."

     I'll dare to make a blanket statement that a P7 render won't look quite as nice as the P8/PP2010 IDL-enabled render, but this will be true for most any model, whether a vendor warns you of it or not.

     I bought a P7 license for my newest computer in addition to a PP2010 license, because I have found that P7 (and Poser Pro) import OBJs reliably, whereas P8 and Poser Pro 2010 occasionally fail.  Not often, just occasionally.  I haven't been able to figure out what characteristic(s) of a model mesh cause the problem.

     Once an OBJ is imported into P7 or Poser Pro and then saved as a prop, P8 and Poser Pro 2010 can use it without problem.

At some point, you have to let old tech go. 

Otherwise, why leave CP/M?

Quote - I bought a P7 license for my newest computer in addition to a PP2010 license, because I have found that P7 (and Poser Pro) import OBJs reliably, whereas P8 and Poser Pro 2010 occasionally fail.  Not often, just occasionally.  I haven't been able to figure out what characteristic(s) of a model mesh cause the problem.

That's weird, I import all my stuff into P8/PPro2010 and have never had a problem like that.  But then the OBJ exporter I use with Cinema (Riptide by Spanki) is written with Poser in mind, maybe that's why.

I've had no problems importing Blender-generated .obj files into PP2010, but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen to some folks. I had to jump through a few hoops getting things to work with PP2010, so it isn't inconceivable you'd be having dramas.

Quote - I don't understand how Poser 8 and Pro 2010 got so popular, so quickly.

P8 was released a year and a half ago.  How long do you think improved software should hang around before people realize that it's improved and move to it?

It's pretty hugely improved, aside from that.

Anyone having troubles importing anything in Poser should contact Support. Should work as well as in Poser 7, so there should be no reason to need to use that version to import.