lmckenzie, the problem is simply this:

If realism isn't built into a figure right from the start, it's nigh impossible to add it later on.

So, unless I build my very own mesh exactly the way it'd needed to be built, I'll have to convince others that still have the energy and health to finish such a project to do that instead.

Sadly, both SM and DAZ moved away from realism and now put the emphasis on easy content creation.

And the 3rd party figure artists mostly want to create a figure they can imprint some of their own personality on and not create a neutral 'tool" for others to use.

And I don't have the money to have a mesh custom made after my own specifications.

So all I can do is throw some pictures out and tell people:

1. Realism is possible even in Poser.

2. If you want it, here's how to achieve it.

Sadly, those two simple concepts seem to be to hard to understand for most people.

Instead they act as if I want to take beautiful Vicky away and replace it with some fugly old hag.

As for the DAZ vs TheRestOfTheWorld skirmishes...

Remember I was mostly on the receiving end as I was always PRO BETTER FIGURES, regardless who made them.

That's just human nature. DAZ gave a lot of people a very rude awakening, and if I ever find the time to search through the old DAZ forums, I can show you the exact post where I predicted years ago not just the actual rift but also the wailing and gnashing of teeth that followed.

Don't forget that "fan" is derived from "fanatic", and unlike many other "My choice is better than your choice" conflicts, the Poserverse actually was directly influenced by DAZ' decision, so on an emotional level, the anger of the Poser users was completely justified.

You can't just make people addicted to your products and then simply pull out the plug expecting them to say "Thanks for the nice times we had" and then just go away.

The only problem is that anger alone isn't very helpful and that the energy was wasted on "community projects" which never had a real chance to give Poser true independence.

(As I said, if "realism" - and versatility-  isn't built right into a mesh from the very first polygon, it is impossible to add it later.)