In Poser, the parts form a tree, and likewise in the combined tree if one model is parented to another. But sometimes I need a closed circle of parts that can adjust itself as parts are moved about. One example is a scuba diver or frogman. His breathing tube runs from somewhere on his breathing set (part of his chest) to a mouthpiece or breathing mask (part of his head). Treating the middle of the tube as part of his neck would cause hopelessly bad behavior as his head moved. What I want is to treat the tube and mask as a "tail" of segments with the curve property. but also to order that the tube segment joints must automatically move to keep his mask or mouthpiece attached to his head as his head and neck joints move.

I ran into the same with a posable backpack flamethrower and a posable oxy-gas blowtorch with backpack cylinders; the backpack is parented to its wearer's back, but I also want to keep the gun part automatically attached to its wearer's hand or hands as I pose him. This would be useful in the Poser 5 wishlish.

This problem also occurs if you have a Poser figure holding a prop with both hands. It would be nice to be able to move the prop and for both hands to follow. Alas it is not to be (at the moment anyway).

anthony: nothing has changed since you posted this problem a couple months ago. sorry, bud. :) (did you submit it to the wish list?)

eurika! make your mask and tube conforming figures. i don't know if it works. i just like saying. eurika.

When I get Poser 4 or 4.1 I may try it. But all too likely I would find that Poser's equations / algorithms (as controlled by the joint parameters) that are adequate to describe the behavior of the flesh of his neck as his head moves, will act hopelessly wild when extrapolated to apply to a loop of breathing tube that may go out to 3 or 4 times the radius of his neck away from him. I have been on computers helping students with their projects since the late 1960's, and in that time I have had my fill of the misbehaviors and ornerynesses of extrapolated fitted equations. I had it in the last few days with my scuba set model's "stabbag0" part acting wild then I posed its stab-jacket, until I set it to "do not bend" to keep it under control.