Poll with 2 questions: Are you using?
  to what extent?
Poser Animation Layers, that is.

Tried it several times, stopped using it because it's too hard to
control and unpredictable. 

When I need a layering effect, I use some of my own scripts like VarPose.

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Oh, yeah, because my answer is exactly what yours is (minus the scripting abilities and talents) that reminds me I forgot to answer the questions myself. There,  I think I just did :)

Once in awhile, the opportunity to convolute-speak presents itself in daring fashion, heh heh. Whoops, I think I just did it again. Everyone, please ignore this outburst of mine, I'm just goofy sometimes.   Back to the poll. 

Maybe they'll get it right in P8, or try something different, now that Daz Studio
has shown that animation can be a selling feature.   

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Really? Daz Studio is leading Poser / PP in animation arena? I am completely unfamiliar with DS. 

I'm still trying to perfect still pictures...;)

I wish I'd said that.. The Staircase Wit

anahl nathrak uth vas betude doth yel dyenvey..;)

I haven't used DS much, but it's clear from the activity in the DAZ forum that
animation is becoming very popular, with lots of nice plugins.

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hhhmm, interesting...but, isn't it also true that DS is basically lower end, with less features and "power" than Poser, overall? I mean, as a rude generalization.

To answer your question I haven't even looked at the layering options in Poser 7 or Pro because frankly, I don't understand what the need for them is or what the heck it is that they actually do.

In one layer, you can animate Little Red Riding Hood walking along a walk path through the woods.
On a separate layer you can animate the Wolf running ahead to eat up Grandmother.
On a third layer, you can have a bird fluttering from branch to branch scolding the Wolf.  Etc.
DPH

  STOP PALESTINIAN CHILD ABUSE!!!! ISLAMIC HATRED OF JEWS

Quote - In one layer, you can animate Little Red Riding Hood walking along a walk path through the woods.
On a separate layer you can animate the Wolf running ahead to eat up Grandmother.
On a third layer, you can have a bird fluttering from branch to branch scolding the Wolf.  Etc.
DPH

Yes, if it worked properly, that's a good example of what one might use it for.
Or, in a single character, for example, you might have all the lip-synching on one layer, facial expressions on another, hip translations on another, hand movements on another, etc...

Quote - > Quote - In one layer, you can animate Little Red Riding Hood walking along a walk path through the woods.

On a separate layer you can animate the Wolf running ahead to eat up Grandmother.
On a third layer, you can have a bird fluttering from branch to branch scolding the Wolf.  Etc.
DPH

Yes, if it worked properly, that's a good example of what one might use it for.
Or, in a single character, for example, you might have all the lip-synching on one layer, facial expressions on another, hip translations on another, hand movements on another, etc...

So you're saying the layers don't work?

 yes I am saying that the Poser animation  layers work so poorly as to be useless, and It sounds to me like Ockham agrees,

And I agree as well (if we need a consensus or something).

C makes it easy to shoot yourself in the foot. C++ makes it harder, but when you do, you blow your whole leg off.

 -- Bjarne Stroustrup

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It's really unfortunate, because it was a great idea that could have been
tremendously useful.  But the execution was incomplete and flawed.

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