Here are some undocumented features in Poser that you can play with: If you alt-click in the upper/ left part of your screen, the word "Poser 4" appears. You can drag it around to another part of the screen. Alt-click on it to hide. If you alt-click on the "circus" figure (outlined in red and normally behind the document window), the figure will change! Continue alt-clicking to cycle through the figures (and the last selection, no figure at all). If you alt-click in the upper/ right part of your screen, the word "MetaCreations" appears. (This may be replaced by "Curious Labs".) Alt-click on it to hide. If you double-click on the name of the tools (such as the "Light Controls", "Camera Controls", etc.), those controls will become hidden. Double-click again to show the controls. This trick also works for the Document window (by double-clicking on the document name)! --John

Here are some more undocumented features in Poser that you can play with: If you alt-click on the name of the tools, it switches the direction from horizontal to vertical. Alt-click to switch back. If you alt-click on the color "dots" (to change the foreground, background, shadow, or ground colors), you get the familiar "color dialog box", instead of the "choose a color from the gradients" floating box. If you alt-click on "Rotation Trackball" when using the Main Camera, the xOrbit and yOrbit dials are set to 0 degrees. If you alt-click on the "Roll" dot (up and to the right of the "Rotation Trackball) when using the Main Camera, the zOrbit dial is set to 0 degrees. --John

Cool.

if you alt+click on the 'zoom to face' above the camera comntrols, it will be replaced ny the selected camera...ify ou alt+click on a light it will turn off.

also if yoy alt+click and drag any of the titlebars in the window the rest will follow

now can you change the trackball into a more useful tool, like a dial or slider? that would improve the interface no end in my opinion.

At least two of these are documented in the online help. Search the PDF file for "alt-click." There are quite a few shortcuts listed, but they're scattered around.

Alt-click on any of the dials puts them back to zero-- one important thing I got from the manual, I think,thats where I got it. Thank you for the light switch, so to speak. I also finally found out-- purely by accident-- that dragging the "name" of the display window, instead of it's top bar, let me put it where I wanted. Emily

I didn't bother checking all of them, but the majority of the ones mentioned above ARE documented in various places, and there are many more. One good place to look is a lovely, handy, tidy, "Quick Reference Card" which comes in each box of software, along with the manual. It is the typical 3-fold cardstock, so is sturdy enough to stand upright next to your machine. If you open it like a gamemaster's screen or triptyche, all of the on-screen controls from the animation palette to the parameter dials are neatly labeled and explained with bright color pictures and circles and arrows. And this is why I'm mentioning the card: the back page of this card lists close to 150 keyboard shortcuts, in logical categories, for both Mac and Windows. There are a lot of weird things to play with... in fact, I just found something which might be... interesting... hmmm.... :) The information is presented quickly: it tells you how to change things with the onscreen controls and how to restore the default settings. Even if people are unwilling to read the manual, for which this is not a substitute but a supporting document, surely they can read 6 compact pages of documentation? Carolly

Seek and ye shall find. Still, thanks for posting these. It's good to be reminded that shortcuts do exist for a surprising number of things and that they are usually noted somewhere. Cards, manuals and PDF files aside however, in thinking about this, it just occured to me that Poser, with it's cool artsy interface doesn't have tooltips. Showing the hotkeys/shortcuts when you hover the mouse over a control is a Windows convention and I know it's available on the Mac (may have started there). A simple thing that would enable everyone to use the program more efficiently. I certainly hope that the Poser 5 team didn't forget basics like this while dreaming up all the neat Poser goodies.

... type "hair" on your keyboard... that's the true hidden feature ! Eric

Then of course there's "po2" for that retro feel!! "po3" to undo. :)

The "Hair" feature will also grow grass in your scene..but you better have alot of ram...and cpu power...I think that's why it wasn't in manual...beta stage that didn't get done in time for release.

I don't remember who has it but somewhere in poserland there is a stand alone program that will enable you to utilize the hair funtion, I think that it is on one of the japanese sites.

"Alt-click on any of the dials puts them back to zero" You just saved me a lot of time. Thanks! Hauk: I forgot all about that card! Gonna have to go dig it out. "hair?" what's that do? Or is it a joke?

If you can't find your reference card (or if the print is too small for you to read), look here:
http://www.renderosity.com/messages.ez?Form.ShowMessage=558297

No joke, Hiram. Poser's "TreeMaker" tool was never completed, but you can still play around with it in its unfinished state.

Launch Poser, load an object or figure, and type "hair" at any time. Play around with the settings to get different effects.

The line polygons won't render in Poser as-is, but MASA has a freeware utility called FurFur, which allows you to convert the line polygons into usable, renderable geometry.

The website also has a short tutorial for FurFur.

You can get some interesting results if you combine TreeMaker, FurFur, and transmaps.

Hiram, It's no joke, and it is the only truly hidden feature in Poser. (In 4 years we haven't found anything else.) Little_Dragon, Yes, that FurFur applet by Masa is a lot of fun... anything from chia pets to a lady's muff. I should look a bit more closely at Brycetech's fur on the bat and cat. I don't think he did it quite this way, but probably was inspired by the idea. Carolly

JHoagland, I believe I've grabbed all of these features for the new manual version I'm working on but I still printed out this thread just to double-check my work. Thanks! As for the "hair" Easter Egg - just wait 'till you see what that's going to turn into! :-) Anthony Hernandez Documentation Manager Curious Labs