I got DS the day it came out. I used their default scene and it rendered very nicely. Then I started tying my own PZ3's. Every single one fails to open correctly. Sometimes it's textures that are missing, sometimes it's complete clothing objects that are goin. Other times the props are all over the place. I've tried it with non-DAZ content and even PZ3's with nothing but DAZ content in it. Either way there is always something majorly wrong with the imported file. So I set it aside and decided to wait for it to actually be a beta before messing with it again. However having seen the results of the new toon render, I realize that it would be great for a project I'm currently working on, except I still can't bring any of my PZ3's. So my question is how are those of you who are producing images with Studio, getting your Poser work in without it ruining your work? PS: This isn't a bash against, DS. I see the full potential of this software in the future and fully realize that it is still in an alpha stage. What I wan't to know how to make the Alpha work for me...

What I have seen is a lot of the missing textures or whatever seem to be coming from multiple runtimes from Poser 5. I am not sure what you have but I just have seen a lot of posts about that. I am still waiting to use it (on a Mac) so I can't help much more than that.

It doesn't work on every Pz3 you have but I have discovered that 99% of the time it is due to BAD PATHS or Incorrect References on Pz3 files. DAZ Studio cannot itself fix these problems since they are much more due to runtime organization, I think. I have a massive library system of a dozen libraries nested under one runtime using one geom folder and one texture folder. I am also now importing in LW and MAX files via Poser (because these imports are not yet available in the Alpha) and these are working really well. I will post pictures soon. There ARE texture UV Mapping problems on some Pz3's like TransPond, Ironhart houses, etc. These appear as STREAKS on the map locations- and I have found that I can manually fix them with UV Mapper (Pro) but that may be an import "issue"-can't say for certain. With TOON shading you might also want to try using NO texture maps. You can get a flatter TOON look, but it is not necessary if you play with the lights (one or two works best) and the Diffision and Specularity settings.

Time and time again, I see posts from people who have problems opening pz3s. What's wrong with just opening cr2s? I know a pz3 has the advantage that everything's in one file, but the lights are usually hopeless in DS. I've been working almost exclusively with cr2s direct from my poser library and I have zero problems. It also gives me the incentive to use the DS lights. mac

Hi Mac, The Pz3's are more likely to have the Bad Path-Incorrect Reference problem, and I would certainly recommend that anyone having Pz3 problems use the Content-Cr2 method, since theoretically at least, those paths should be accurate if they are following the Libraries under Runtime setup. "Having said that" (man is that getting to be an overused phrase) I have actually had pretty good luck opening Pz3's myself- I think because I had previously saved them under the "logical" runtime-libaries system (and not in all kinds of weird places, etc.) In fact, my Pz3's are on drive E: and my Poser libraries are on drive D: and DAZ Studio is installed on Drive C:--- but works fine for me! And, "having said that", I actually like importing Poser lights (in some cases) with my Pz3's. They work fine for me this way. But sometimes I will delete some, or all, of them and import another Poser light set from the Content menu. And- Having Said That, I even then use Daz Studio's nice Point Lights to add highlights on metal, etc., or throw in another DS Distant Light to brighten up the overall scene in one single shot. I can then use that SINGLE LIGHT as an overall MASTER LIGHT to brighten or dim-down the scene for a final render. So for me, the Poser Lights and DS lights can be used together for great lighting effects and controls. I am extremely happy with this lighting scenerio- just would like to be able to SELECT a light in the camera view and move it around with the mouse. This would be IDEAL!

I agree re importing poser lights. I've actually had nice results with them. But then again, I've had very few problems importing pz3s. Mine all seem to work fine, apart from the odd prop issue (usually external geometry). I was just wondering why people who DO have problems don't just stick to cr2s. Oh well... mac

After reading the posts over at the DAZ Forum I was surprised to read that people who otherwise had the right system configs- Win2K or XP, Fast PIII, 512MB (or more RAM) could NOT get Daz Studio to work! Reason (apparently) these people were using Motherboard graphic displays- NOT an AGP card. Daz Studio DOES use the power of the system's AGP graphics card to help render DS scenes. Poser apparently uses the system RAM and mainly ignores whatever nice graphics card you may be using. So- if DS isn't working on your system- this MIGHT be the reason. Or if anyone is reading this who hasn't yet played with the DS Alpha- give this some thought as part of your system config. (I would guess older ISA cards also work too but they are sure to be a lot slower than AGP) Of course, I will probably be attacked for saying this, heh!

Actually no, I think you might have a point. Two people I know who have Studio are completely different in results. One hasn't had a single crash and is having a blast playing with it, the other one can't get the thing to work properly at all. Asking them the difference between the two is - one has a GeForce MX4 AGP card, the other has an Nvidia MX2 built into the motherboard and they can barely run the program and have a lot of problems with it. While that's not conclusive proof, it's something to consider.

Well, I have no idea what type of card I have. It's old and crap is all I know. Nvidia Riva TNT2/32Mb. But I haven't had any problems at all with DS. One crash since I got it. Here's a curious thing. I had to re-install win 2k the other day and after I'd done it, I realised that I'd somehow missed copying the DS installer. Damn! But I'd copied the daz alpha folder to my 2nd HDD. So, I tried copying it back to the C drive, double-clicked the exe, and after a couple of hiccups, it opened up fine. Whew! I thought I was going to have to do another 40 meg d/l on dial-up. I checked the registry and it even did all it's entries. LOL. mac

The TNT2 isn't crap; it's just old. It was a perfectly fine card in its day ... a worthy challenger to its Voodoo-based competition. I owned one myself (a Diamond Viper V770 Ultra). I doubt you could run Doom 3 on a TNT2, however, even though Nvidia still provides driver support. I've missed Diamond Multimedia. I'm glad to see they're moving back into the graphics-card business.

Thanks for the consolation, LD. You make me feel better. LOL. Actually, I'm making moves to replace my entire system and should be able to do it in a few weeks. One of my problems is living up in the alps. If I buy in milan, it's a 200 kilometer journey if anything goes wrong. But I think I've found someone up here who can build me a system and service it if there's a problem. Plus, I've just had an interesting business offer which may bring in the bucks. Hooray!! Now I just need to do my research and decide what to go for. Any thoughts on that? I'm not a hardware person at all. mac

Both ATI and Nvidia have their strengths (and proponents). I doubt you'd go wrong with recent products from either company. I wouldn't recommend purchasing the latest state-of-the-art graphics cards, however, as they're usually only a few percent faster than the midrange cards, at a hefty price increase.

If you're on a budget, I'd suggest AMD processors over Intel, built around an Nvidia nForce2-based motherboard. Many nForce2 boards have integrated sound which is actually halfway decent, so you could save a few dollars and skip the sound card altogether unless you have your heart set on Creative Labs' latest Audigy surround-sound technology.

Purchase as much memory as you can cram into your system. Poser eats it for lunch, as do most other 3D apps, and the operating system itself isn't getting any leaner.

Invest in a large hard drive, also. Consider Serial ATA over the older parallel drives, if your motherboard supports it; there's little difference in price now, and it looks like it'll be the standard of the future. They're easier to configure (no jumpers), and you'll won't have to mess with those awkward ribbon cables.

A CD-burner is a must-have for backups. For a little more, you might get a DVD-burner instead ... more storage per disc = fewer discs to sort through.

Thanks for the thoughts, LD. As I said, I'm not a hardware-minded person, so I'm open to advice. I'm not exactly on a budget, but nor do I intend to shell out the absolute max for a system. I'll probably compromise in the middle. DVD and sound, I can definitely live without, and I'd rather have 3 smaller HDDs than 1 huge one. I like to use the 2nd and 3rd drives as ongoing back-ups, so 3 x 20 gigs would do me. Anyway, the thought of defragging a 100 gig HDD is terrifying! I have to say I tend towards Intel over AMD, simply because I had a bad experience with AMD years ago. I know it was just a one-off, but it put me off them. Illogical, I know. Other than that.... yep, lots of RAM and a semi-decent card. I mainly run 3d max, poser and photoshop, so I'm fairly easy to please. cheers mac

Mac, when working directly with cr2 files, how do you keep clothes and hair on a figure? When I move or pose a figure, nothing is parented or conformed. Is this even possible? I haven't had time to play with it as much as I would like, so I haven't learned as much as some of the folks here. Melanie

Hi Melanie, I have to confess, I haven't played much with human figures in DS. The cr2s I've loaded have all been my own products, rooms and furniture, etc. So perhaps there are problems I haven't come across yet. I did load a couple of posettes which were cr2s saved with the clothes already on them, but I didn't pose them. Just moved them around the scene. mac

I've been thinking about it and I seem to remember something about a "fit to" function? I'll have to go poke around in there and see what I can find. Thanks Mac. Melanie

Ah yes, I forgot about that. It's the equivalent of poser's 'Conform to' command. I don't have DS installed at the moment so I can't check which tab it's in. But anyway, that's what you need to use to conform clothes. mac