@Penguinisto: Thanks for your reply. I suspected that the way an item was modeled (tris, quads, n-gons, etc.) might have an impact on how it performs in Poser, and you've confirmed that it does. I just wish I understood exactly how those factors impact performance, so that it's less of a trial and error process with various props and sets.

I'm willing to modify props and sets in my 3D modeler to get rid of n-gons and otherwise optimize the mesh (including deleting unnecessary polys). But to make good use of my time and efforts, I need a better understanding of what's causing an issue. Like why Poser would start to slow down b/c a model has n-gons or whatever. (I understand why those are problematic for sub-division, rendering, and smooth shading, but not why they might make Poser's parameter dials cease to function!)

So the next time I'm trying to choose between several props of the same type (say, desks or chairs), I should check the poly count AND the type of polys used. Anything else?

Is there a way inside Poser to check for n-gons, or would I need to bring the item into my modeler for that?

I'm deliberately not mentioning textures b/c I'm certain that's not what's causing the slow-downs I've been getting. I always optimize textures in the Advanced Material Room shortly after loading an item, I keep "hardware shading" disabled in Preview mode, and in scenes with more than a few items, I put many of them (like hair) in wireframe or flat shaded display mode.

Re: reducing polygons: I've had mixed results using Poser's "Reduce Polygons" tool on various props and sets, and I suspect that's generally easier to deal with in a modeling app.

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TOOLS: MacBook Pro; Poser Pro 11; Cheetah3D; Photoshop CC

FIGURES: S-16 (improved V4 by Karina), M4, K4, Mavka, Toons, and Nursoda's people

GOALS: Stylized and non-photorealistic renders in various fantasy styles