Tutorial: Creating S3 Custom Poses with Milkshape or Blender

[reinmag]

If you're using MS this is the way I would do it:

Create the pose for the first model, set your keyframe, click out of anim mode and export as smd.

Go back into anim mode and then export it as an obj also. You'll get a warning message when you do the export as obj in Anim mode but you can ignore that. When you reimport that obj back into MS it will be in the pose you gave the model so it's a perfect template for making the next model's pose with.

Once you've exported the model as an obj you should first bring the obj into MS by itself. Go to the Groups tab and select all the groups so that the entire model lights up red.

Hit the Regroup button.

Then export it again as an obj to overwrite your first instance.

Now when you import this in with the working rig it will not be sharing group names with the rig and is easily deleted by going back to the Groups tab, selecting it on the list and hitting Delete.

I made an eye image that can be applied to the eyes in MS using an eye texture by Shady. I posted about that here:

http://www.modthesims.info/showthre...25#startcomment

in post 1055. This will make it easier to see what the eyes are doing. To get a closer view of the face use your Shift and middle mouse buttons to position your view of the rig. You can check your work with the blue joints hidden by clicking the Joints tab and then unchecking the Show skeleton button in the Vertex Weights section. To get a better view of the rig you can also put your mouse in the viewbox and click the Space bar on your keyboard to go to full screen mode. Just click the space bar again to go back to the 4 viewport view. I've posted more about making face poses in various places within this thread also.

If you're using Blender I posted several tutorials, including a couple's pose tutorial that allows you to pose both rigs at the same time, at Simlogical here:

http://dino.drealm.info/den/denforum/index.php?board=48.0


Wonderful (using MS). Going to have a go and see what happens. Thank you so much! I've already got the pose finished and in game, so I'll have to figure out that part.

I really appreciate your help.

[orangemittens]

Wonderful (using MS). Going to have a go and see what happens. Thank you so much! I've already got the pose finished and in game, so I'll have to figure out that part.

I really appreciate your help.It's fine if you've already got the pose in the game. The .smd that you saved still has your pose. Open the rig in MS, import the .smd that you saved of your pose, and then follow the steps from there. :)

[reinmag]

k, i'm sitting her clicking around trying to figure out how to export as obj. :/


help? (I'll bake you cookies)


ETA: figured out it was the Wavefront obj. Now I'm trying to get the darn thing to light up red. :)

[orangemittens]

k, i'm sitting her clicking around trying to figure out how to export as obj. :/


help? (I'll bake you cookies)


ETA: figured out it was the Wavefront obj. Now I'm trying to get the darn thing to light up red. :)Open the rig and import the .smd. Click the Anim button so your pose shows up.

Go to the Groups tab and left click on the first line in the groups list. It should be the "top". Then look below the group list and you'll see a button that says Select. Click that button. You should see the top portion of the rig turn red.

Then go back to the list and left click the next item on the list which should be "bottom". Again click the Select button and you'll see the bottom portion of the rig turn red.

Repeat for every rig part on the list.

Once they are all selected click the Regroup button which you will find one row down and one column over from the Select button. The result will be that the whole list is collapsed into a single line that says Regroup00 or something similar.

Once you have that click File in the upper left corner of your MS screen and then pick Export/Wavefront OBJ.

If you don't know what I mean post again...I took pictures of this and posted them previously in this thread and I can dig them out for you.

[reinmag]

thank you!
I got it (never went red though)

So, now I'm off to import it into the new pose.
I appreciate this so very much (I feel like I'm talking to a celebrity LOL -- I should squeal and ask you for an autograph)

[reinmag]

Well, eyes worked GREAT!
but when I imported the pose as object they locked into each other and made a very strange and scary monster.

[kenatipu]

hey... why it not working on my sims....,i follow all step....someone help me,....
i miss step or something like that...??plezz help me...

[reinmag]

I had to go through the steps carefully a few times to get it.
Still, there are things I need to figure out! I certainly appreciate the pose specialists out there!

[orangemittens]

Well, eyes worked GREAT!
but when I imported the pose as object they locked into each other and made a very strange and scary monster.I'm not sure what you mean by that...could you post a pic of your MS screen when that happens?

hey... why it not working on my sims....,i follow all step....someone help me,....
i miss step or something like that...??plezz help me... I can't tell from what you posted what isn't working for you. Please post what you're trying to do, what you're trying to do it with, and what the undesired outcome is.

[kenatipu]

I'm not sure what you mean by that...could you post a pic of your MS screen when that happens?

I can't tell from what you posted what isn't working for you. Please post what you're trying to do, what you're trying to do it with, and what the undesired outcome is.

i follow all step until last step,after finished making pose use milkshape,i go to animate>set keyframe>click anim(right and under box)....n i go to fail>export>half-life smd n save in same place like before(smd file)..next i open animtool n convert smd to clip...
open s3pe go to file>new>resource>import>from file>animation(clip) n click go back to resource>export>to package>set name n finish...
n i put in sims3 mod....(i hav pose player)

is right?or i miss something???

[orangemittens]

i follow all step until last step,after finished making pose use milkshape,i go to animate>set keyframe>click anim(right and under box)....n i go to fail>export>half-life smd n save in same place like before(smd file)..next i open animtool n convert smd to clip...
open s3pe go to file>new>resource>import>from file>animation(clip) n click go back to resource>export>to package>set name n finish...
n i put in sims3 mod....(i hav pose player)

is right?or i miss something???I can't tell for sure from what you've written that you're converting your new pose .smd. Are you sure you are converting that and not just the original .smd that you got from Anim Tool when you first converted the CLIP?

What exactly is happening that isn't what you want to be happening?

Also, I'm not clear what you mean by this part of what you said:

"go back to resource>export>to package>set name n finish..."

When you're creating your .package all you need to do is: 1 create a new .package, 2 import your CLIP into it as a resource and 3. save your .package

there is no export step when you're assembling your pose.package

[reinmag]

I can't tell for sure from what you've written that you're converting your new pose .smd. Are you sure you are converting that and not just the original .smd that you got from Anim Tool when you first converted the CLIP?

What exactly is happening that isn't what you want to be happening?

Also, I'm not clear what you mean by this part of what you said:

"go back to resource>export>to package>set name n finish..."

When you're creating your .package all you need to do is: 1 create a new .package, 2 import your CLIP into it as a resource and 3. save your .package

there is no export step when you're assembling your pose.package


When things go wrong (think the anim tool was not switched at right time)

http://i1071.photobucket.com/albums/u513/CloudwalkerSims/Screenshot7.jpg

When things go weird...

http://i1071.photobucket.com/albums/u513/CloudwalkerSims/thingsgonewrong2.jpg

and, when things go right...

http://i1071.photobucket.com/albums/u513/CloudwalkerSims/Screenshot-455.jpg



And a bunch I made just never played at all (yep, put them in a few times). Back to the drawing board, literally.

thank you so much for your help!!!

[orangemittens]

When things go wrong (think the anim tool was not switched at right time)

http://i1071.photobucket.com/albums/u513/CloudwalkerSims/Screenshot7.jpg

When things go weird...

http://i1071.photobucket.com/albums/u513/CloudwalkerSims/thingsgonewrong2.jpg

and, when things go right...

http://i1071.photobucket.com/albums/u513/CloudwalkerSims/Screenshot-455.jpg


And a bunch I made just never played at all (yep, put them in a few times). Back to the drawing board, literally.

thank you so much for your help!!!It seems from your last picture that you got it working in the end :) If this isn't the case please post again.

[reinmag]

Yep. Got a couple of good poses, but the ones with the couples failed.
I'll retry soon.

Thanks again.

[orangemittens]

Yep. Got a couple of good poses, but the ones with the couples failed.
I'll retry soon.

Thanks again.Np. If it still gives you trouble when you try another couple's pose post again.

[kenatipu]

I can't tell for sure from what you've written that you're converting your new pose .smd. Are you sure you are converting that and not just the original .smd that you got from Anim Tool when you first converted the CLIP?

What exactly is happening that isn't what you want to be happening?

Also, I'm not clear what you mean by this part of what you said:

"go back to resource>export>to package>set name n finish..."

When you're creating your .package all you need to do is: 1 create a new .package, 2 import your CLIP into it as a resource and 3. save your .package

there is no export step when you're assembling your pose.package

yeah...u right,...i miss this step 'When you're creating your .package all you need to do is: 1 create a new .package, 2 import your CLIP into it as a resource and 3. save your .package'...

I will try it again...if not working or working,i will tell you...

[reinmag]

Why it didn't 'turn red' discovered.

I had 'textures' on and not 'wireframe'

[orangemittens]

Why it didn't 'turn red' discovered.

I had 'textures' on and not 'wireframe'Yes...that would do it. Thank you for posting your finding as I think other people will find your observation helpful :)

I hope you're having better luck with your couple's pose now. One thing to be sure of is that you only have one jointed model in Milkshape at a time when making and exporting a pose. The only second model you should have in there is one that you've made into a .obj. The .obj extension doesn't carry joint information so it allows you to essentially turn the first pose into a prop.

[midnightsky]

I can't import the SMD file into Blender 2.57. I had the newest version but I uninstalled that and installed this older version and the older 0.1510 SMD file to follow the tutorial since before the model turned out looking distorted. But now I can't even import it. When I click Import addon and then click the file, it just leads me back to the Import/Export page and I can't fine the SMD addon, therefore I can't check mark it. What should I do? I've been trying this for a while now and getting frustrated. Thanks! :)

[orangemittens]

I can't import the SMD file into Blender 2.57. I had the newest version but I uninstalled that and installed this older version and the older 0.1510 SMD file to follow the tutorial since before the model turned out looking distorted. But now I can't even import it. When I click Import addon and then click the file, it just leads me back to the Import/Export page and I can't fine the SMD addon, therefore I can't check mark it. What should I do? I've been trying this for a while now and getting frustrated. Thanks! :)Using AnimTool and the smd.py is no longer the method of choice for Blender users to make poses with. I don't support using it because it causes all kinds of frusterating problems like the ones you've had.

The new tool for Blender users to make poses with is the ClipTool by A. He posted it at Simlogical here:

http://dino.drealm.info/den/denforum/index.php?topic=862.0

It requires Blender 2.63. It's much easier to use, comes with a full set of rigs including animal rigs, and allows you to make couple and group poses easily.

I posted a set of tutorials for its use and they are also at Simlogical here:

http://dino.drealm.info/den/denforum/index.php?board=48.0

If you have questions about those tutorials please ask them in those threads. I'm trying to separate out the Blender from the MS questions to make information easier for people to find. :)

[midnightsky]

Thank you! :) But I can't find a reply button there.. :o

EDIT: Nevermind, I found it near the top.

[orangemittens]

Thank you! :) But I can't find a reply button there.. :o

EDIT: Nevermind, I found it near the top.No problem :)

[katya_b]

hello guys! i can't find mesh and clip file for small dogs, can someone tell me where i can download it? ;( would be very grateful

[orangemittens]

hello guys! i can't find mesh and clip file for small dogs, can someone tell me where i can download it? ;( would be very gratefulIt was just uploaded to Simlogical yesterday. It's here:

http://dino.drealm.info/den/denforum/index.php?topic=862.0

You'll need the CLIPTool for Blender to use it and that tool is in the same download thread.

[katya_b]

It was just uploaded to Simlogical yesterday. It's here:

http://dino.drealm.info/den/denforum/index.php?topic=862.0

You'll need the CLIPTool for Blender to use it and that tool is in the same download thread.

oh thhaaank you! you saved me :)
may be a stupid question, but what file i need open in s3pe and export\rename to create a pose for small dog?

[dearorchid]

Can someone please help me? Every time I try to export as .animation this error always pops up:

http://i47.tinypic.com/fu4dvl.png

[orangemittens]

Can someone please help me? Every time I try to export as .animation this error always pops up:

http://i47.tinypic.com/fu4dvl.pngI've written a tutorial for creating poses using Blender and the new CLIPTool and posted it here:

http://dino.drealm.info/den/denforum/index.php?topic=916.0

In the interests of keeping questions for AnimTool and CLIPTool sorted into the right place I ask that if you have questions about my CLIPTool tutorial that you post them in the thread for that tutorial. I'm happy to help you with Blender .animation export questions there if the tutorial doesn't explain it sufficiently :)

[dearorchid]

I've written a tutorial for creating poses using Blender and the new CLIPTool and posted it here:

http://dino.drealm.info/den/denforum/index.php?topic=916.0

In the interests of keeping questions for AnimTool and CLIPTool sorted into the right place I ask that if you have questions about my CLIPTool tutorial that you post them in the thread for that tutorial. I'm happy to help you with Blender .animation export questions there if the tutorial doesn't explain it sufficiently :)

I've figured out what I was doing wrong. It was such a silly mistake! ><"

[orangemittens]

I've figured out what I was doing wrong. It was such a silly mistake! ><"Excellent...glad that it worked out for you :)

[deltic9016]

How do you find the name of custom poses?, I only remember naming anything before making the template, which use multiple times in the same package file, if this is the case, how do I rename them after the blender stage.

[orangemittens]

How do you find the name of custom poses?, I only remember naming anything before making the template, which use multiple times in the same package file, if this is the case, how do I rename them after the blender stage.I'm not sure what you're asking. All my Blender Pose tutorials are here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?board=48.0

I'm happy to answer any questions about making poses with Blender in those threads if you still have questions after reading them.

If by template you mean the outdated way of making a pose list using Notepad I highly recommend you take a look at the new tool Cmo posted for making Pose Packages with Pose Lists here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=948.0

It takes all the difficulty out of creating a pose .package with a pose list and is very easy to use. :)

[reinmag]

HI, me again!

Okay, figured out the couple's poses. phew.
Now, if I want to open a saved file and tweak a bit, how do I do that?
I keep getting an error message in Anim tool.

Thanks so much.

[orangemittens]

HI, me again!

Okay, figured out the couple's poses. phew.
Now, if I want to open a saved file and tweak a bit, how do I do that?
I keep getting an error message in Anim tool.

Thanks so much.What kind of file are you trying to open and what is the error message AnimTool is giving you?

[reinmag]

I make the pose, save and it becomes a m3sd file (think that's the file extension)

then I decide to alter it, open it again (usually through recent projects), make changes, all goes well, then when I run Anim smd to clip it says it's unable to open the file.

Is there a correct way to alter a pose?

[orangemittens]

I make the pose, save and it becomes a m3sd file (think that's the file extension)

then I decide to alter it, open it again (usually through recent projects), make changes, all goes well, then when I run Anim smd to clip it says it's unable to open the file.

Is there a correct way to alter a pose?After you make the pose that you want to convert to a CLIP you need to save it as a .smd. The AnimTool doesn't recognize files saved as a .ms3d.

I'm not sure what you mean by recent projects.

[reinmag]

So, when I want to bring it in and work on it again I should be bringing in the smd.
I'll try and report back. :)

[orangemittens]

So, when I want to bring it in and work on it again I should be bringing in the smd.
I'll try and report back. :)The important part is that what you export from MS is a .smd. :)

[LFdownloads]

Hello!

I managed to make a pose and have it work in my game (Hoorah!), but the problem is after I cancel the pose my sim stays posing for another ten seconds or so. Did I do something wrong while making the pose to cause this? Other poses from other creators I have do not do this. Thanks!

[reinmag]

I've had that happen too LF. I just wait it out.


ETA: Also my own poses take longer to take effect too.

[orangemittens]

I've had that happen too LF. I just wait it out.


ETA: Also my own poses take longer to take effect too.I've never seen that or heard it reported. Which tool are you using? If you're using AnimTool which CLIP are you cloning?

[reinmag]

Milkshape and 701.

The sim usually stands around in an idle pose for about 10 seconds then poses, same with clicking off. However, the more I think about it, it's poses I type in the name for (ie, not in a pose list) that take time.

I'm off to try Blender now as I want to be able to use the other rigs.

[LFdownloads]

I'm using Blender & CLIPTool.

[orangemittens]

I'm using Blender & CLIPTool.Interesting. I've never had that happen whether I use pose by name or a pose list. I suggest that you post about it in the CLIPTool download thread. Tbh, I think A can help you better with that issue than I can. :)

[Hippoz99]

So in blender, I made the pose, hit a, did the locrot. I went to export and hit sims animation, but nothing pops up! It's just this screen.
http://i1079.photobucket.com/albums/w503/Caseyn99/simsposes.png

Please help! :!:

[orangemittens]

So in blender, I made the pose, hit a, did the locrot. I went to export and hit sims animation, but nothing pops up! It's just this screen.

Please help! :!:That is the older version of CLIPTool that you're using and that's why you aren't getting the pop up. The new version requires Blender 2.63 and is easier to use. It's here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=862.0

[WhoMe331]

Has anyone ever gotten a pop up error box reading "Found group with no material! Model not exported!"? I had put in the eye textures, and its been giving me this error ever since. I made sure to follow the instructions to add the eye texture, and I remember creating one pose, and it worked fine. But now it wont let me export any poses to Half-Life SMD.


I use Milkshape, btw.

[orangemittens]

Has anyone ever gotten a pop up error box reading "Found group with no material! Model not exported!"? I had put in the eye textures, and its been giving me this error ever since. I made sure to follow the instructions to add the eye texture, and I remember creating one pose, and it worked fine. But now it wont let me export any poses to Half-Life SMD.


I use Milkshape, btw.It sounds like somehow you've saved your model with a group or groups that has nothing assigned to it. I've never had this happen before so I'm not sure exactly how it came about. When you look in the Groups list of the model what groups are there? Is each Group on that list assigned to something? Have you tried just using a fresh version of the rig?

[WhoMe331]

It sounds like somehow you've saved your model with a group or groups that has nothing assigned to it. I've never had this happen before so I'm not sure exactly how it came about. When you look in the Groups list of the model what groups are there? Is each Group on that list assigned to something? Have you tried just using a fresh version of the rig?

When I look into the Groups tab it lists:

top <No Material>
bottom <No Material>
shoes <No Material>
head <No Material>
scalp <No Material>
eyebrowns <No Material>
teeth <No Material>
eyeballs <No Material> (took out the eye texture)

The only thing that was assigned anything was the eyeball for the eye texture. And yes I did try fresh rig, but its displaying the same error.

Do you think I just need to re-install it and start from scratch?

[orangemittens]

When I look into the Groups tab it lists:

top <No Material>
bottom <No Material>
shoes <No Material>
head <No Material>
scalp <No Material>
eyebrowns <No Material>
teeth <No Material>
eyeballs <No Material> (took out the eye texture)

The only thing that was assigned anything was the eyeball for the eye texture. And yes I did try fresh rig, but its displaying the same error.

Do you think I just need to re-install it and start from scratch?When you select each of those groups is there something on the rig assigned to each one?

[deltic9016]

I'm not sure what you're asking. All my Blender Pose tutorials are here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?board=48.0

I'm happy to answer any questions about making poses with Blender in those threads if you still have questions after reading them.

If by template you mean the outdated way of making a pose list using Notepad I highly recommend you take a look at the new tool Cmo posted for making Pose Packages with Pose Lists here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=948.0

It takes all the difficulty out of creating a pose .package with a pose list and is very easy to use. :)

When I am trying to find the pose in game it asks for the name of the pose, but I never remember giving it a name, apart from when exporting from blender. What name is it asking for?

[orangemittens]

When I am trying to find the pose in game it asks for the name of the pose, but I never remember giving it a name, apart from when exporting from blender. What name is it asking for?I'm happy to answer any questions about making poses with Blender in my Blender tutorial threads if you still have questions after reading them.

[JuBa_0oº]

Hey there orangemittens :-)
(here I am again)
I have this strange problem with one of my recent poses, the sim is "falling". It was solved before, but I didn´t quite understand what I have to do to save the actual pose, instead of remaking it, can you help me please?

[JuBa_0oº]

ups maybe i shouldn´t have posted in here, sorry I forgot

[orangemittens]

ups maybe i shouldn´t have posted in here, sorry I forgotIf it's a MS problem this is the right place to post. If you're using Blender please post in my Blender thread :) The issue looks like you may have used a joint that doesn't reliably work. Can you give more information about what you did?

[JuBa_0oº]

If it's a MS problem this is the right place to post. If you're using Blender please post in my Blender thread :) The issue looks like you may have used a joint that doesn't reliably work. Can you give more information about what you did?

Well, I´m not sure :-S I don´t remember doing nothing different, but I think I fixed it! I tried the method from the post #668 (rotate the root_bin joint in the opposite way) and now I´m waiting for the game to start and see if it worked.

Would you mind giving me the link for your blender tutorial? :-)

[orangemittens]

Well, I´m not sure :-S I don´t remember doing nothing different, but I think I fixed it! I tried the method from the post #668 (rotate the root_bin joint in the opposite way) and now I´m waiting for the game to start and see if it worked.

Would you mind giving me the link for your blender tutorial? :-)Here is the link to all 5 of the Blender pose-related tutorials I've written:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?board=48.0

Those tutorials are meant to go with A's CLIPTool. He posted that with installation instructions, rigs, and documentation here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=862.0

[elianamaite]

Hi, I'm completely new in this of MilkShape and I have a problem. After following the step, I open the MilkShape, I open the file am_body_4_anim and I get the following:

http://i46.servimg.com/u/f46/16/36/13/05/cosara10.jpg

And not to do, how I can fix it?

Sorry if I do not understand, but do not speak English and used the google translator

[orangemittens]

Hi, I'm completely new in this of MilkShape and I have a problem. After following the step, I open the MilkShape, I open the file am_body_4_anim and I get the following:

http://i46.servimg.com/u/f46/16/36/13/05/cosara10.jpg

And not to do, how I can fix it?

Sorry if I do not understand, but do not speak English and used the google translatorI apologize for the delay in answering you elianamaite...i did not see this post. That snarl of blue is the joints of the rig. To make them smaller go to File in the upper left corner and choose Preferences from the drop down menu.

http://jaue.com/om/mscj1.jpg

Click the tab that says Misc and in the line where it says joint size change the number to 0.008000.

http://jaue.com/om/mscj2.jpg

This will make the joints smaller so you can see the rig.

[darklaiiii]

Does anyone know how to do couples poses in milkshape? I've seen the tutorial for blender, but I don't want to download a separate program JUST for couples poses since I'm already so used to how Milkshape works

[orangemittens]

Does anyone know how to do couples poses in milkshape? I've seen the tutorial for blender, but I don't want to download a separate program JUST for couples poses since I'm already so used to how Milkshape worksIf you're using MS this is the way I would do it:

Create the pose for the first model, set your keyframe, click out of anim mode and export as smd.

Go back into anim mode and then export it as an obj also. You'll get a warning message when you do the export as obj in Anim mode but you can ignore that. When you reimport that obj back into MS it will be in the pose you gave the model so it's a perfect template for making the next model's pose with.

Once you've exported the model as an obj you should first bring the obj into MS by itself. Go to the Groups tab and select all the groups so that the entire model lights up red.

Hit the Regroup button.

Then export it again as an obj to overwrite your first instance.

Now when you import this in with the working rig it will not be sharing group names with the rig and is easily deleted by going back to the Groups tab, selecting it on the list and hitting Delete.

The key difference between making a couple's pose with MS and making one with Blender is that with Blender you can pose both members of the couple at the same time while in MS you need to make one pose first and then work on the second using the first as a prop rather than as a jointed rig. It's more time consuming and harder to get the same precision of posing using MS than Blender. I understand being attached to the tool you're used to using but, on the other hand, I gotta say a little time investment in learning Blender will go a long way to saving you time making great poses/animations once you have it down. :)

[reinmag]

Hey there orangemittens :-)
(here I am again)
I have this strange problem with one of my recent poses, the sim is "falling". It was solved before, but I didn´t quite understand what I have to do to save the actual pose, instead of remaking it, can you help me please?

This looks as though you didn't watch the 'floor' in MS.
Make sure when you move your model you don't go below the floor.

To correct it, open the smd file again, click anim, click move, click rootbind, and move the sim above the floor and into correct position. Then hit set keyframe, and go through the same saving and exporting as you did originally.

(See OrangeMittens, you taught well. :)

[reinmag]

Question...
how do I bring in an object, like a couch or something into Milkshape to use for posing?

[orangemittens]

Question...
how do I bring in an object, like a couch or something into Milkshape to use for posing?To use an EA object as a prop in MS for posing you can clone it using s3oc, export the mesh from the .package using s3pe, import that into MS, make it into a .obj, and then import that in after you open the rig you're using to make the pose. I wrote a mini-tutorial on how to do this and posted it at Simlogical here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=614.0

[reinmag]

wonderful, I must have missed that tutorial.

Thank you again.

[reinmag]

In s3pe, the only choice to export the mlod is s3m2b
not the s3asc

which MS won't import.
I've done it a couple of times and not sure where I'm going wrong.

[reinmag]

A HA!!! i figured it out. I exported the mlod to file, then used Wes Howe's tool to decompile and bam, it was s3asc.

[orangemittens]

A HA!!! i figured it out. I exported the mlod to file, then used Wes Howe's tool to decompile and bam, it was s3asc.s3pe and Wes's MS plugins were updated over a year ago to export .s3asc files directly without the need for decompiling. If you are not getting the option to export to .s3asc in s3pe it means you don't have the correct helper installed. The one you need is here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=807.0

Install that and you will get the export to .s3asc option. The way you're using is very outdated. :)

[reinmag]

oh perfect.
See, never hurts to ask!


*so outdated her platforms came back in style*

[orangemittens]

oh perfect.
See, never hurts to ask!


*so outdated her platforms came back in style*never hurts to ask :)

[pyszny16]

Hi :) I have little problem with poses I try hundred times and still I have the same error and I don't know why. When I try export my pose Blender gives me this error
http://i1207.photobucket.com/albums/bb463/pyszny-Dish/MagicalSnap-201207011557-001.png

And anyone know why I have this error? and how to fix it ;)

[Spiro88]

It always like this. I dont know what to do!

[orangemittens]

It always like this. I dont know what to do!That snarl of blue is the joints of the rig. To make them smaller go to File in the upper left corner and choose Preferences from the drop down menu.

http://jaue.com/om/mscj1.jpg

Click the tab that says Misc and in the line where it says joint size change the number to 0.008000.

http://jaue.com/om/mscj2.jpg

This will make the joints smaller so you can see the rig.

Also, you're using an outdated version of Milkshape that won't work for Sims 3 poses. You need to get version 1.8.5.

[Minigini]

i was looking for a bunch of child poses but the ones i want to have are not up anywhere. i thought I'd give my posemaking skills a try and got the milkshape trial. up to loading everything required into milkshape its good. i started to play around and try out at first (not changing anything in the programm, just rotating joints in different positions to get the hang of it) but i encountered a problem: At some point when rotating joint parts (preferable the forearm and legs) the rotated part goes completly wrong in size and form. it cannot be turned back (without using strg Z) and no matter what I do with it, it keeps... well, almost like exploding. it grows to an enormous size and the more i move it the bigger and wierder it gets. sometimes it goes faster sometimes slower. I tried reopening and reinstalling and stuff, i also tried how to trigger it or not trigger it, but once i opened up the completly unedited file and spinned the leg around a douzen times just to put it to its original place again and compare the legs and as i thought: the leg that had been spinned was now larger than the other one.
am I doing something really wrong or does the programm not like me?? i followed all the steps the online tutorials want me to do exactly and everything is fine until i start rotating stuff :/
please help before milkshape expires?? D:

[orangemittens]

i was looking for a bunch of child poses but the ones i want to have are not up anywhere. i thought I'd give my posemaking skills a try and got the milkshape trial. up to loading everything required into milkshape its good. i started to play around and try out at first (not changing anything in the programm, just rotating joints in different positions to get the hang of it) but i encountered a problem: At some point when rotating joint parts (preferable the forearm and legs) the rotated part goes completly wrong in size and form. it cannot be turned back (without using strg Z) and no matter what I do with it, it keeps... well, almost like exploding. it grows to an enormous size and the more i move it the bigger and wierder it gets. sometimes it goes faster sometimes slower. I tried reopening and reinstalling and stuff, i also tried how to trigger it or not trigger it, but once i opened up the completly unedited file and spinned the leg around a douzen times just to put it to its original place again and compare the legs and as i thought: the leg that had been spinned was now larger than the other one.
am I doing something really wrong or does the programm not like me?? i followed all the steps the online tutorials want me to do exactly and everything is fine until i start rotating stuff :/
please help before milkshape expires?? D:If you're just starting out with making S3 poses I highly recommend not using MS at all. The issues you're running into have to do with settings but no matter how you set MS settings it is an inferior tool for poses or animations. Blender is free, easy to make poses with, and has an addon for S3 that is easier to use than the MS one. I wrote a tutorial for Blender poses with links to what you need here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=916.0

If you really want to continue using MS I posted info about MS settings at the bottom of the first post of this thread. :)

[Minigini]

If you're just starting out with making S3 poses I highly recommend not using MS at all. The issues you're running into have to do with settings but no matter how you set MS settings it is an inferior tool for poses or animations. Blender is free, easy to make poses with, and has an addon for S3 that is easier to use than the MS one. I wrote a tutorial for Blender poses with links to what you need here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=916.0

If you really want to continue using MS I posted info about MS settings at the bottom of the first post of this thread. :)

Wow! Thanks a lot for answering this quick!! Since I ran into that deforming problem again and again I thought I might try Blender but when I want to load the 2nd file into blender (the skelly part) i do not have the option of importing it. there are a bunch of files i can import but the one mentioned (and shown via screenshot) in the tutorial I read was missing, that's why I tried to find a solution to the MS problem. I'm gonna give Blender a second try, your tutorial looks good, I hope I can get it right :>
thanks again for answering ~

[orangemittens]

Wow! Thanks a lot for answering this quick!! Since I ran into that deforming problem again and again I thought I might try Blender but when I want to load the 2nd file into blender (the skelly part) i do not have the option of importing it. there are a bunch of files i can import but the one mentioned (and shown via screenshot) in the tutorial I read was missing, that's why I tried to find a solution to the MS problem. I'm gonna give Blender a second try, your tutorial looks good, I hope I can get it right :>
thanks again for answering ~The Blender tutorial I linked to will require a different tool than AnimTool and the tool has its own set of rigs. You'll need to be sure to get the correct rigs or otherwise you'll run into problems. Other than that you'll find it's much easier to make poses using the new tool and Blender I think :)

[deltic9016]

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=948.0

It takes all the difficulty out of creating a pose .package with a pose list and is very easy to use. :)[/QUOTE]

I have tried it, one pose has appeared in the list out of 3, and the pose appears different. How do I get the 3 to appear as they where in blender?

[orangemittens]

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=948.0

It takes all the difficulty out of creating a pose .package with a pose list and is very easy to use. :)

I have tried it, one pose has appeared in the list out of 3, and the pose appears different. How do I get the 3 to appear as they where in blender?Sorry for delay in answer...I was outta town. If you have questions about my Blender tutorial I'm more than happy to answer them in that tutorial thread :)

[Nixygal]

hi!

I'm new to posing and I followed a few tutorials and they helped me to get my first pose working!! I had some troubles with the eyes, but now it's fixed with the help of the eye texture by Shady :D

Anyway, I wanted to know, since there is a eye texture, is it maybe possible that someone created something to help with other facial features, like the eyebrows? I'm really struggling with that :blink:

Sorry if this question sounds a little stupid :giggler: :faceslap:

[Eternal Rose]

Hi, I started the tutorial but have a problem already at step #2! o_O When I went to open the fullbuild0.package it's not there! :(

C> Program Files> (x86)> Electronic Arts> Sims 3> "And then it is empty!" o_O So now what do I do?

My op system is Windows 7 & I have the EA download version of both the base game & WA. Does anybody know where to open the file, hoping the tutorial just needs to be updated.

I have all the latest updates for games & needed software.

Edit: I found it, the tutorial needs to be updated. EA changed folders (not sure if this is because I have a direct download from Origin, the site that EA now does updates for the launcher) :p

Files can now be found here: Local Disk (C) > Program Files "Program Files (x86) if you have a 64 bit computer" > Origin Games> The Sims 3 > Game Data> Shared > Packages

[Eternal Rose]

It always like this. I dont know what to do!

You need to change the joint size from 1.000000 to 0.01 and click OK.

If you are new to meshing with Milkshape 3D there is a awesome set of walk through ones by Tiggerypum & Hysterical Paroxysm. I learnt with them & they are the best ones I have found hands down, they teach meshing for Sims 2 though.

Beginning Clothing/Body Meshing Tutorial - Using Unimesh/Milkshape
http://http://www.modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=142305 (http://www.modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=142305)

Unimesh/Milkshape Tutorial: Level 2, Editing and UV Maps
http://www.modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=175147

Unimesh/Milkshape Tutorial: Level 3, Combining Mesh Parts
http://www.modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=179177

[BaddieC]

I go to save my SMD file from Milkshape and it says "Group Material not found!! Model on exported!". What do I do? :alarm: :cry:

[LadyAwesome]

Ok I am testing out tutorials again, but with the blend files why is there only male + female and not Male+male and Female+female? Or does it not matter so much? I figured that out..

[orangemittens]

I go to save my SMD file from Milkshape and it says "Group Material not found!! Model on exported!". What do I do? :alarm: :cry:I'm not familiar with this error and I've been unable to duplicate it. Someone else posted the same issue earlier but never posted whether they got it straightened out or not. Could you list the steps you're taking that lead up to the error?

Ok I am testing out tutorials again, but with the blend files why is there only male + female and not Male+male and Female+female? Or does it not matter so much? I figured that out..It doesn't matter which adult rig you use to make poses with in terms of them functioning for either gender in game. If you want to use a male rig and a female rig together I wrote a mini-tutorial that shows how to create poses with multiple rigs of your choice. This tutorial allows you to pick the rigs you want and add more than two rigs to Blender at a time:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=931.0

[LadyAwesome]

Yes I did find that after I typed that, Just didn't make it clear enough I guess. Thank you!

[BaddieC]

[QUOTE=orangemittens]I'm not familiar with this error and I've been unable to duplicate it. Someone else posted the same issue earlier but never posted whether they got it straightened out or not. Could you list the steps you're taking that lead up to the error?

I set the keyframe and went to the file to a half-life SMD and then a window popped up and said no group material found.

[Beautycoo]

Okay, i still do things old fashioned... But see my problem: lately, whenever i go to make a couple pose, whichever one i turn around to face the other goes wrong. In blender the pose looks fine, but in game the pose is literally upside down. Like, 180 degrees upside down. I really don't get it at all! D: I tried getting the pose from its package and going through the motions all over, and then turning it upside down in blender, but it just ends up upside down in game too! It makes me really sad cos i've made 6 different poses that i've really liked and its always happened to the second one of each pair.

Looks like this:

http://i1083.photobucket.com/albums/j381/EmpressEnilsa/Screenshot-1742.jpg

And thats after i've moved it up twice using the debug enabler. Before that, it was underground because like i said, entirely upside down. I know i should probably upgrade and get with the times, but i dunno, i tried and it just doesn't work for me. :( I'm probably just doing it wrong though.

[orangemittens]

[QUOTE=orangemittens]I'm not familiar with this error and I've been unable to duplicate it. Someone else posted the same issue earlier but never posted whether they got it straightened out or not. Could you list the steps you're taking that lead up to the error?

I set the keyframe and went to the file to a half-life SMD and then a window popped up and said no group material found.Could you give the steps you're taking from beginning to end? That isn't enough for me to try to duplicate the error you're getting.

Okay, i still do things old fashioned... But see my problem: lately, whenever i go to make a couple pose, whichever one i turn around to face the other goes wrong. In blender the pose looks fine, but in game the pose is literally upside down. Like, 180 degrees upside down. I really don't get it at all! D: I tried getting the pose from its package and going through the motions all over, and then turning it upside down in blender, but it just ends up upside down in game too! It makes me really sad cos i've made 6 different poses that i've really liked and its always happened to the second one of each pair.Using AnimTool and smd conversion with Blender isn't the optimal way to make poses using Blender. I don't do it that way anymore and I don't recommend it. Instead use the newer and better CLIPTool. You will need to download the rigs that go with it in order for it to work...the old rig is not compatible with it. You can get links to both tool and rigs here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=862.0

I wrote several tutorials showing how to use it. If you try em and have questions I'm happy to answer them in those tutorial threads :) They're here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?board=48.0

[SuicidalSpiders]

Is there a body file for teens? I know adults and teens share a rig file, but I'm talking about the actual mesh... I'd like to make some poses between adults and teens I don't want to have to continually open my game to tweak it because if I do it too much, the file corrupts and no longer changes. Any help is appreciated...

[BaddieC]

[QUOTE=orangemittens] [QUOTE=BaddieC]Could you give the steps you're taking from beginning to end? That isn't enough for me to try to duplicate the error you're getting.

I go to "File->Import->Half-Life SMD", then I click "No". Click the "Anim" button in the bottom right corner, I pose the model in the way I want it, The I go to "Animate->Set Keyframe", then I go to "File->Export->Half-Life SMD", and then II clicked save and a window popped up saying not group material found.

[reinmag]

[QUOTE=orangemittens] [QUOTE=BaddieC]Could you give the steps you're taking from beginning to end? That isn't enough for me to try to duplicate the error you're getting.

I go to "File->Import->Half-Life SMD", then I click "No". Click the "Anim" button in the bottom right corner, I pose the model in the way I want it, The I go to "Animate->Set Keyframe", then I go to "File->Export->Half-Life SMD", and then II clicked save and a window popped up saying not group material found.

If I may..

seems a bit off here (note, this is assuming you have created an smd by exporting file from full build clips, changing with anim tool, including the rig:
So in Milkshape...
Should be:
1. file, open, rig (af or am rig, or child)
2. click ANIM button
3. click rotate, choose proper global/local, etc buttons
4. click on joints to select joints
5. start with face (not sure why, just always have been told to pose face first)
6. pose
7. set keyframe (while still in anim)
8. click 'select', click off anim
9. click anim again to test if pose snaps back into place
10. click anim off again then save as ms3d file
11. EXport as SMD, writing over your previous file
12. change to clip from ANIM tool (Wes's).
12. open file with s3pe
13. save as package.

That's a bit of a rough tut. Seems you were missing several steps. hth

[Beautycoo]

Thank you so SO much, you're brilliant and argh, i feel so incompetant! >_<

[joeygoyo]

Hello, this might seems a but odd, but I already finished doing everything, and it all went smooth (referring to the exporting a_xevt_701 file and the whole simswiki tutorial) and I've got my own pose, but when I tried to the command "SMD > CLIP" it says unable to open and error...? So I was wondering, where did I do wrong? I have even made a backup file of the original CLIP file from EA's Fullbuild0.package file.

TL;DR : Why won't Animtool export my SMD file to CLIP animation? I've done everything according to the tutorial. I'm using Milkshape 1.8.4 AND 1.8.5

And now, in the 3D view my mesher rig wouldn't appear, but it appear perfectly in the skeleton view.

thanks in advance.

[orangemittens]

Hello, this might seems a but odd, but I already finished doing everything, and it all went smooth (referring to the exporting a_xevt_701 file and the whole simswiki tutorial) and I've got my own pose, but when I tried to the command "SMD > CLIP" it says unable to open and error...? So I was wondering, where did I do wrong? I have even made a backup file of the original CLIP file from EA's Fullbuild0.package file.

TL;DR : Why won't Animtool export my SMD file to CLIP animation? I've done everything according to the tutorial. I'm using Milkshape 1.8.4 AND 1.8.5

And now, in the 3D view my mesher rig wouldn't appear, but it appear perfectly in the skeleton view.

thanks in advance.Sorry to take so long to reply. What kind of error are you receiving from AnimTool?

[natsuko641]

hi, it's me again. i made a couple pose in milkshape but when i load the poses on my sims in the game, the pose shows for about half a second before they snap to the default ms position. ??

[hazeylove]

Orange,sorry to bother you again. I was wondering if it's possible to import objects like camera,glass,teacup in Milkshape and use them together with poses? I've no problem with furniture and vehicle,all of them working fine in my poses. But if I want to create a pose where the sim holding a glass,how do I start?

Thank you

[Woe Hawthorne]

I've got some serious issues going on while I'm creating custom poses. I use Milkshape3D. I followed each step completely, from this main tutorial:

http://simswiki.info/wiki.php?title=Tutorial:Sims_3_Pose_Creation

I'm more than certain I did it correctly.

Now, I recently noticed my joints are not working correctly, at all, mainly the arms and I'm certain the neck as well. They are all absolutely buggy, everything from the right clavicle and down that I know of.


When I move the right clavicle to the left/down, this happens: (pic 1)
When I move it to the right/up, this happens: (pic 2)
The 3rd image is my SMD file when I import from the Half-Life SMD to start
And the fourth image is my skeleton when I show it. It's a total mess!

I am really trying to work some pose packs for not only myself, but MTS. It's the least I could do for everyone else's hard word to return the favor, plus, I'd love to be just as good at creating. I really hope you can help me.

-Woe

[orangemittens]

hi, it's me again. i made a couple pose in milkshape but when i load the poses on my sims in the game, the pose shows for about half a second before they snap to the default ms position. ??Could you post the .package for the pose that isn't working correctly?

Orange,sorry to bother you again. I was wondering if it's possible to import objects like camera,glass,teacup in Milkshape and use them together with poses? I've no problem with furniture and vehicle,all of them working fine in my poses. But if I want to create a pose where the sim holding a glass,how do I start?The easiest way to do this is to create the glass you want the Sim to hold as a buyable decorative item and then use that to make your pose with. In the game you would buy the glass, pose the Sim, and then use a cheat to move the Sim and glass into the correct position. There are more complicated ways but they are beyond the scope of this tutorial. If you're interested in the method I described and need more help with it please post again.

I've got some serious issues going on while I'm creating custom poses. I use Milkshape3D. I followed each step completely, from this main tutorial:

http://simswiki.info/wiki.php?title...3_Pose_Creation

I'm more than certain I did it correctly.

Now, I recently noticed my joints are not working correctly, at all, mainly the arms and I'm certain the neck as well. They are all absolutely buggy, everything from the right clavicle and down that I know of.


When I move the right clavicle to the left/down, this happens: (pic 1)
When I move it to the right/up, this happens: (pic 2)
The 3rd image is my SMD file when I import from the Half-Life SMD to start
And the fourth image is my skeleton when I show it. It's a total mess!

I am really trying to work some pose packs for not only myself, but MTS. It's the least I could do for everyone else's hard word to return the favor, plus, I'd love to be just as good at creating. I really hope you can help me.To start with you should update your Milkshape to version 1.8.5 if you're dealing with Sim rigs. Secondly it looks like you're using the Move function instead of the Rotate function. Third, you can set the size of the bones by going to File/Preferences/Misc and setting the Joint Size to 0.008000...that will get rid of the blue snarl you're seeing. If this doesn't help enough please post again :)

[Woe Hawthorne]

Could you post the .package for the pose that isn't working correctly?

The easiest way to do this is to create the glass you want the Sim to hold as a buyable decorative item and then use that to make your pose with. In the game you would buy the glass, pose the Sim, and then use a cheat to move the Sim and glass into the correct position. There are more complicated ways but they are beyond the scope of this tutorial. If you're interested in the method I described and need more help with it please post again.

To start with you should update your Milkshape to version 1.8.5 if you're dealing with Sim rigs. Secondly it looks like you're using the Move function instead of the Rotate function. Third, you can set the size of the bones by going to File/Preferences/Misc and setting the Joint Size to 0.008000...that will get rid of the blue snarl you're seeing. If this doesn't help enough please post again :)



No, I was using Rotate when I had attempted, I'm positive, however, I found my issue vanished when I redid the steps with the updated version of Milkshape. Thank you VERY much for your answer, you helped me out and it seems like my limbs are finally working properly! So, thank you very much! Now I can finally get to work! :D

-Woe

[orangemittens]

No, I was using Rotate when I had attempted, I'm positive, however, I found my issue vanished when I redid the steps with the updated version of Milkshape. Thank you VERY much for your answer, you helped me out and it seems like my limbs are finally working properly! So, thank you very much! Now I can finally get to work! :D

-WoeNP...glad that helped and things are working for you now :)

[Woe Hawthorne]

Just when I thought things were going great. I'm sorry to bother you again. When I go to transfer my SMD into a Clip with the AnimTool, I receive an error. It says:

Unable to open file: S3_6B20C4F3_00000000_616F73A4DD04B9FE_a_woehawt_micsing1%%+CLIP.animation
Error 2

I've no idea where to go from here and I would hate to have lost my pose after working with it tediously just after getting the hang of it.
Some little side notes:

-I followed the tutorial on converting the SMD to Clip
-My programs are updated fully

I hope I can get some help and won't have to start all over again, I worked really hard on this and hope to share. Hope you can help me!

-Woe

[orangemittens]

Just when I thought things were going great. I'm sorry to bother you again. When I go to transfer my SMD into a Clip with the AnimTool, I receive an error. It says:

Unable to open file: S3_6B20C4F3_00000000_616F73A4DD04B9FE_a_woehawt_micsing1%%+CLIP.animation
Error 2

I've no idea where to go from here and I would hate to have lost my pose after working with it tediously just after getting the hang of it.
Some little side notes:

-I followed the tutorial on converting the SMD to Clip
-My programs are updated fully

I hope I can get some help and won't have to start all over again, I worked really hard on this and hope to share. Hope you can help me!

-WoeError 2 occurs when you try convert the wrong smd to the clip or if the clip and smd are not in the same folder. The smd you want to convert back to a CLIP has to have been converted from that CLIP and they both need to be in the same folder.

[Woe Hawthorne]

Error 2 occurs when you try convert the wrong smd to the clip or if the clip and smd are not in the same folder. The smd you want to convert back to a CLIP has to have been converted from that CLIP and they both need to be in the same folder.


I am such newbie at this, thank you for your patience! now I understand what I'm doing. I had them in different folders to try and better organize myself, didn't know they had to stay in the same, so thank you SO much! Expect my pose pack soon. :D

-Woe

[orangemittens]

I am such newbie at this, thank you for your patience! now I understand what I'm doing. I had them in different folders to try and better organize myself, didn't know they had to stay in the same, so thank you SO much! Expect my pose pack soon. :D

-WoeYw very much...I look forward to seeing your work. :)

[hazeylove]

Thank you for your reply Orange.I still few have questions here.

1. When we clone objects to import them to Milkshape,how to rename them? I mean after I regroup and renamed them into something like EA car/EA chair,I chose Export/Wavefront OBJ. But when I import them back into milkshape,it showed up as Regroup00,not EA car. I followed this tutorial http://dino.drealm.info/den/denforum/index.php?topic=614.0
2. How to import eyebrows,hair and lip colour to use on rig in Milkshape? So far I can only import eyes(contact lens) that you showed on several posts here. If I want to create facial expressions on the pose,should I use Rotate or Move for best results?

[orangemittens]

Thank you for your reply Orange.I still few have questions here.

1. When we clone objects to import them to Milkshape,how to rename them? I mean after I regroup and renamed them into something like EA car/EA chair,I chose Export/Wavefront OBJ. But when I import them back into milkshape,it showed up as Regroup00,not EA car. I followed this tutorial http://dino.drealm.info/den/denforum/index.php?topic=614.0
2. How to import eyebrows,hair and lip colour to use on rig in Milkshape? So far I can only import eyes(contact lens) that you showed on several posts here. If I want to create facial expressions on the pose,should I use Rotate or Move for best results?When you're renaming the Group to a name of your choice are you clicking the rename button that is next to the field where you enter the name you chose?

Importing eyebrows, hair, and lip color onto the rig in Milkshape requires some knowledge of how to apply GEOMs and textures to the rig. It's beyond the scope of this tutorial. The best place to ask how to do something like this would be the CAS Parts forum.

You can use both Move and Rotate to create facial expressions in MS.

[hazeylove]

When you're renaming the Group to a name of your choice are you clicking the rename button that is next to the field where you enter the name you chose?


Thank you for answers. and yes I clicked Rename button then typed EA car in the white box next to it,but when I imported it back into MS it still showed up as Regroup00. I'm not sure what I have done wrong.

[orangemittens]

Thank you for answers. and yes I clicked Rename button then typed EA car in the white box next to it,but when I imported it back into MS it still showed up as Regroup00. I'm not sure what I have done wrong.You need to click the Rename button after you type in the new name you want. When you do this the name Regroup00 that is showing in the white box above will change to your new name and that will stay there following export and reimport :)

[hazeylove]

You need to click the Rename button after you type in the new name you want. When you do this the name Regroup00 that is showing in the white box above will change to your new name and that will stay there following export and reimport :)

Aaah..now I understand I need to click rename button AFTER I type the object name.I got it and it works! hehehe...thank you so much! :p

[orangemittens]

Aaah..now I understand I need to click rename button AFTER I type the object name.I got it and it works! hehehe...thank you so much! :pYW...glad you got it working now :)

[SuicidalSpiders]

Is there a body file for teens? I know adults and teens share a rig file, but I'm talking about the actual mesh... I'd like to make some poses between adults and teens I don't want to have to continually open my game to tweak it because if I do it too much, the file corrupts and no longer changes. Any help is appreciated...

I think my post was buried by all the others, so I'm quoting it in the hopes that someone might have an answer. On top of this question...would it be easier to just make the male model taller via the pose? Any help is appreciated. :)

[Hygs]

Hey just got a little question, like always xD
Ok so I've heard there's a way to delete certain keyframes and not from the whole body, I recently saw an animation where The talking animations work just like in game but the sim isn't standing but sitting. So my question is, How do you delete only like face keyframes or body keyframes and exchange them with a pose?? I've tried but I can't figure it out. NEED HELP PLEASE

[orangemittens]

I think my post was buried by all the others, so I'm quoting it in the hopes that someone might have an answer. On top of this question...would it be easier to just make the male model taller via the pose? Any help is appreciated. :)Sorry to take so long to answer. As far as I know there is no teen mesh made for Milkshape. Could you describe the process you're using that is causing the file to become corrupt? You should be able to just edit the .smd you used and re-convert it to CLIP without it becoming corrupt. I'm not sure I'm understanding your meaning when you ask if it would be easier to make the male model taller via the pose.

Hey just got a little question, like always xD
Ok so I've heard there's a way to delete certain keyframes and not from the whole body, I recently saw an animation where The talking animations work just like in game but the sim isn't standing but sitting. So my question is, How do you delete only like face keyframes or body keyframes and exchange them with a pose?? I've tried but I can't figure it out. NEED HELP PLEASEThere are sit and talk animations in Fullbuild and it's likely that this is what you saw.

What you're describing that you would like to create sounds like an overlay animation and, to the best of my knowledge, there is no easy way to make/play such a thing in Sims 3 since the players play only one CLIP at a time.

Milkshape has somewhat limited animation capabilities but it does have a drop down menu when you click Animate. On the menu you can choose Delete Keyframe, Copy Keyframe, Paste Keyframe, and Operate on Selected Joints Only.

[SuicidalSpiders]

Thank you for replying. :)
Whenever I edit a pose too many times, it just stops changing after awhile when I re-package it and try it in game. It's rather annoying. And what I meant by making the male model taller....I mean in the pose itself, extend the skeleton, so that whoever uses the pose, the model will become taller...like in some of the horror poses that people have done....hope this makes sense...

[dwt_kevin]

Hi guys!!

Im new on this forum. I have try milkshape it was amazing but when it come to save it say that i have to buy a license and i don' have money to spend on this so i've downloaded Blender and downloaded rigs for Blender and i get a disfigured model. Anyone can help me to fix this?

tkx :)

[Iomai]

For the Blender links, all of them say 404 not found. I'm a super noob at Blender so I was hoping someone has the working links for this so I can get started on a pose pack I need.

[SchitzophrenicPsycho]

It's just one @#$% obstacle after another I'm running into.

I hope someone can help me. I have downloaded Blender. I figured out how to install the add ons for .smd files, because it wasn't allowing install til I worked around it. Only now, when I follow the tutorial for how to export files for poses (http://simswiki.info/wiki.php?title=Tutorial:Sims_3_Pose_Creation), the file that is supposed to be there under the export menu (it says S3_6B20C4F3_00000000_.smd in the image) ISN'T THERE! Apparently I can only create the CLIP file to make the pose work if this .smd file is there, cause I have to select it, then it says to close blender and rename the file to S3_6B20C4F3_00000000_.smd, then copy the new file over the old?
Can someone help please?

[orangemittens]

Hi guys!!

Im new on this forum. I have try milkshape it was amazing but when it come to save it say that i have to buy a license and i don' have money to spend on this so i've downloaded Blender and downloaded rigs for Blender and i get a disfigured model. Anyone can help me to fix this?

tkx :)For making poses and animations you're better off using Blender anyway so don't mourn Milkshape ;) If you're getting a disfigured rig make sure you're using the rigs A provided for his CLIP Tool and that you have the right version of Blender for the version of the tools you're using. The link to his tool thread is posted below.

For the Blender links, all of them say 404 not found. I'm a super noob at Blender so I was hoping someone has the working links for this so I can get started on a pose pack I need. Thank you for pointing this out...Inge rearranged her servers a little and outdated all my Simlogical links :P I've fixed them in the first post and also pointed to A's Clip Tool download thread below.

It's just one @#$% obstacle after another I'm running into.

I hope someone can help me. I have downloaded Blender. I figured out how to install the add ons for .smd files, because it wasn't allowing install til I worked around it. Only now, when I follow the tutorial for how to export files for poses (http://simswiki.info/wiki.php?title..._Pose_Creation), the file that is supposed to be there under the export menu (it says S3_6B20C4F3_00000000_.smd in the image) ISN'T THERE! Apparently I can only create the CLIP file to make the pose work if this .smd file is there, cause I have to select it, then it says to close blender and rename the file to S3_6B20C4F3_00000000_.smd, then copy the new file over the old?
Can someone help please?There is a more recent tool to use with Blender for making S3 poses with and it is posted at Simlogical. The link is below. This tool is much easier to use than AnimTool if you're using Blender and I no longer support the use of AnimTool with Blender for that reason. I've written a few tutorials for using this tool and the links to those are in my first post of this thread. One of the nice benefits of the new Blender tool is that you no longer have to use the .smd format to make poses with :)

The link to A's Clip Tool for Blender is here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=862.0

[EileenJ]

Hey there …Sorry to disturb...Since I can’t make sim clothes or hairs I am trying to make some poses…I have everything downloaded, but I can’t get the rig files to add in to blender. I have downloaded all sorts of rig files, but nothing works. I would be forever grateful if someone could help.

I have Blender 2.65, if that helps?

[orangemittens]

Hey there …Sorry to disturb...Since I can’t make sim clothes or hairs I am trying to make some poses…I have everything downloaded, but I can’t get the rig files to add in to blender. I have downloaded all sorts of rig files, but nothing works. I would be forever grateful if someone could help.

I have Blender 2.65, if that helps?If you're using Blender you are best off using A's ClipTool and the set of rigs he made that goes with it. It was recently updated for Blender 2.64 so you may have to fall back in order to use it...I haven't tried it with 2.65 yet so I cannot say for sure. The link is here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=862.0

A actively supports both tool and rigs and there are multiple tutorials for them here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?board=48.0

If you have more questions feel free to post 'em there :)

[EileenJ]

If you're using Blender you are best off using A's ClipTool and the set of rigs he made that goes with it. It was recently updated for Blender 2.64 so you may have to fall back in order to use it...I haven't tried it with 2.65 yet so I cannot say for sure. The link is here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?topic=862.0

A actively supports both tool and rigs and there are multiple tutorials for them here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?board=48.0

If you have more questions feel free to post 'em there :)

Thank you very much :D

[EileenJ]

Hi there, sorry to bother again. I have made my pose and I pressed "A" to highlight all the bones, then I pressed "I" and LocRot and I exported the SMD. I got a new folder named "anims".

http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u645/Neelie217/Untitled_zps99ca3d2c.png

I selected the file with the extension ".smd" in my pose folder, right clicked, and selected rename. I Pressed Ctrl + C on my keyboard. Then I opened the "anims" folder and clicked rename and paste what I have copied...

http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u645/Neelie217/Untitled2_zps069ab207.png

I opened the AnimTool and selected "SMD - > Clip". I selected the .smd file and clicked open, but it gave an error. So I went and opened the SMD folder in my pose folder and it said No Error...

http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u645/Neelie217/Untitled3_zps84938547.png

I packaged my clip, everything went well until I tried my pose. All I got was a sim standing with arms opened...Like when you start to create your pose...

I'm following a tutorial that I found Here (http://www.cstylessims3forum.com/t1933-creating-custom-poses-in-blender-for-dummies) and I followed all of the instructions over and over again, but I just can't seem to get the pose to show in the game :/

[orangemittens]

Hi there, sorry to bother again. I have made my pose and I pressed "A" to highlight all the bones, then I pressed "I" and LocRot and I exported the SMD. I got a new folder named "anims".

http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u645/Neelie217/Untitled_zps99ca3d2c.png

I selected the file with the extension ".smd" in my pose folder, right clicked, and selected rename. I Pressed Ctrl + C on my keyboard. Then I opened the "anims" folder and clicked rename and paste what I have copied...

http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u645/Neelie217/Untitled2_zps069ab207.png

I opened the AnimTool and selected "SMD - > Clip". I selected the .smd file and clicked open, but it gave an error. So I went and opened the SMD folder in my pose folder and it said No Error...

http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u645/Neelie217/Untitled3_zps84938547.png

I packaged my clip, everything went well until I tried my pose. All I got was a sim standing with arms opened...Like when you start to create your pose...

I'm following a tutorial that I found Here (http://www.cstylessims3forum.com/t1933-creating-custom-poses-in-blender-for-dummies) and I followed all of the instructions over and over again, but I just can't seem to get the pose to show in the game :/I apologize for saying so but I don't have time to support tutorials written by other people...I would have to read their tutorial to decide if it's even correct before starting to figure out where you're running into problems.

Again, I do not suggest the use of AnimTool with Blender because it requires the use of the .smd extension which is an extra step rendered obsolete by the newer ClipTool. I posted a link to that tool above. I've written several tutorials for that tool and it is the only tool I support for Sims 3 posing with Blender. If you download the ClipTool and rig set and follow the tutorial I wrote it will literally take you about 5 minutes to accomplish your first pose successfully...it really is that easy. :)

[EileenJ]

I apologize for saying so but I don't have time to support tutorials written by other people...I would have to read their tutorial to decide if it's even correct before starting to figure out where you're running into problems.

Again, I do not suggest the use of AnimTool with Blender because it requires the use of the .smd extension which is an extra step rendered obsolete by the newer ClipTool. I posted a link to that tool above. I've written several tutorials for that tool and it is the only tool I support for Sims 3 posing with Blender. If you download the ClipTool and rig set and follow the tutorial I wrote it will literally take you about 5 minutes to accomplish your first pose successfully...it really is that easy. :)

I will go and take a look :heyhey: . Thank you so much for helping me, I really appreciate it :)

[EileenJ]

I finally did it :D

http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/u645/Neelie217/Screenshot-3_zpsaf6e3baf.jpg

I just want to say thanks for all of your help : orangemittens
I couldn't have done it without you :D

[orangemittens]

I finally did it :D

I just want to say thanks for all of your help : orangemittens
I couldn't have done it without you :DYou're welcome...I'm glad it worked out for you :)

[AroraPlains]

I have Sims 3, but when I go to go to program files, there is no electronics arts folder...

[AroraPlains]

sorry,don't worry, I found it

[EileenJ]

Me again. I wan't to make a pose with a gun...I have downloaded the gun accessory...How do I get the gun in blender so that I can make the pose with the gun?

P.S. I know how to add CAS objects in Blender I just want to know how to add downloaded stuff in to Blender

[orangemittens]

Me again. I wan't to make a pose with a gun...I have downloaded the gun accessory...How do I get the gun in blender so that I can make the pose with the gun?

P.S. I know how to add CAS objects in Blender I just want to know how to add downloaded stuff in to BlenderIs the gun an object or a CAS part? I wrote tutorials for how to add both into Blender and posted them at Simlogical here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?board=48.0

If you try those tutorials and run into trouble feel free to ask questions in the threads for the tutorials there. :)

kgdhnu I'm not sure exactly what you're talking about but that method is not going to allow someone to extract a mesh from a .package and import it into Blender. ;)

[EileenJ]

Is the gun an object or a CAS part? I wrote tutorials for how to add both into Blender and posted them at Simlogical here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php?board=48.0

If you try those tutorials and run into trouble feel free to ask questions in the threads for the tutorials there. :)

kgdhnu I'm not sure exactly what you're talking about but that method is not going to allow someone to extract a mesh from a .package and import it into Blender. ;)

Thank you very much for all of your help. May you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year :beer:

[littleliar990]

Okay, I think I searched pretty much the entire internet by now and I can't find a tutorial for creating couple poses. :help:
I use milkshape btw

[Taiju]

I used the search option to see whether anyone made mention of a pregnant rig for milkshape but the poster seemed to figure out a way that involved mixing a mesh that wasn't working and one of the old rigs. I don't really understand how he did it to be honest so is there a chance anyone will ever make a pregnant mesh for milkshape...blender is a little long winded for me, I don't really want to stress myself getting used to it and taking hours on a pose when it could take only a half hour to make the same pose in MS.
Or if there is already one somewhere could you point me in the right direction?

Thank you.

[orangemittens]

I used the search option to see whether anyone made mention of a pregnant rig for milkshape but the poster seemed to figure out a way that involved mixing a mesh that wasn't working and one of the old rigs. I don't really understand how he did it to be honest so is there a chance anyone will ever make a pregnant mesh for milkshape...blender is a little long winded for me, I don't really want to stress myself getting used to it and taking hours on a pose when it could take only a half hour to make the same pose in MS.
Or if there is already one somewhere could you point me in the right direction?

Thank you.Cmar made some pregnant meshes and posted them in this thread in post #554. Iirc there was an issue with bone assignments that requires a little working around in order to use them. In post #557 someone who used them successfully describes the method they utilized.

Okay, I think I searched pretty much the entire internet by now and I can't find a tutorial for creating couple poses. :help:
I use milkshape btwI've described how this can be done several times in this thread. Read through the posts and if you have trouble finding where I discussed it post again :)

[reinmag]

Okay, I think I searched pretty much the entire internet by now and I can't find a tutorial for creating couple poses. :help:
I use milkshape btw

http://simprovposes.com/tutorials/

[SugarCoveredEllie]

Am I The Only Person Who Cant Get To Most Of These Links? When I Click On The Link For S3PE It Pops Up With 404 Not Found And For The Rigs A Page This x100!? Rar!ϐs
8tt��6��)R�esS<3 adult_rigfile.txt���(
P��|�������XG��w����,;�3cdRF-ƞ6�L������wd�I��E˝ɚ�
��<�x4K��|Q�I\5�@\��ыnn�Ƀ��6|z(ͪ����?E�2&BN���%xΌ��@u��1�f;�F_�&�|�7��[��s����J���Cw9���ALBDkx���m��10ѿ��ީG����|��Rx̮h�������~9�06��c2��8
����D�f�qs�d��v��s���\�#���� �H`
I Also Have A Mac Is This Going To Affect The Way I Have To Make The Poses?

[ellacharmed]

Welcome to MTS, @SugarCoveredEllie!
May I recommend to read the Site Rules & Guidelines? ;) You can find the link under the Site menu on the navigation bar.

Do you mean the s3pe auto-link (<-- the dotted underlined text) does not bring you to simlogical site, when you click on it?

You need to jump through some hoops to work with s3pe on a Mac; but as for making the poses themselves, if you use Blender, they have an OSX version. See this stickied thread to use Mono and s3pe on a Mac: 366580

[Hunter Jin]

Hi everyone! Feels nice to be back. I just have a question, I found orangemittens tutorials about pose making valuable but I can't just seem to access them :(

I know it was written in WordPress and I was just wondering if there's a new link or if the author really did bring it down?

Here's the link I tried to-revisit: http://s3py.wordpress.com/tutorials/completeposetutorial/

[Sleepy-Genius]

Hi everyone! Feels nice to be back. I just have a question, I found orangemittens tutorials about pose making valuable but I can't just seem to access them :(

I know it was written in WordPress and I was just wondering if there's a new link or if the author really did bring it down?

Here's the link I tried to-revisit: http://s3py.wordpress.com/tutorials/completeposetutorial/

I've been having that same problem. It says that it is not available anymore. :(

[Hunter Jin]

Yeah that's so sad. And I'm already accustomed to Blender and to learn Milkshape will take me maybe an hour to learn. I just hope the new link will be available soon

[omgoReL]

I needed it so much thanks you im glad you posted this tutorial :)

[Hunter Jin]

Waaah! I really need to see the tutorial again T_T Can someone tell me what happened to A (the author of the blog)?

[orangemittens]

Waaah! I really need to see the tutorial again T_T Can someone tell me what happened to A (the author of the blog)?

http://sims3cliptool.wordpress.com/

The blog is back.

[Hunter Jin]

http://sims3cliptool.wordpress.com/ (http://)

The blog is back.

Can I get a halleluja? Thank you so much!!

[MelissaMarie_16]

I'm not quite sure if I'm doing this correctly, but I could use some help. :x

Everything imports into Milkshape fine, including the model and the rigs. The only problem I'm having is when I'm making the actual pose.
What I recall from making poses in the Sims 2 is that when the you would move the joint on the model, the whole model would move and morph into whatever you are doing. But the problem I'm having now that I'm doing it for Sims 3 is that when I go to move the model and the joint lights up green and everything, the model stays still, but the highlighted green skeleton segment is the only part that moves (I attached pictures so it makes more sense than me just trying to explain it).

Is that supposed to happen or did I do something wrong?

Thanks in advance!

http://i42.tinypic.com/dddg2e.png

[orangemittens]

I'm not quite sure if I'm doing this correctly, but I could use some help. :x

Everything imports into Milkshape fine, including the model and the rigs. The only problem I'm having is when I'm making the actual pose.
What I recall from making poses in the Sims 2 is that when the you would move the joint on the model, the whole model would move and morph into whatever you are doing. But the problem I'm having now that I'm doing it for Sims 3 is that when I go to move the model and the joint lights up green and everything, the model stays still, but the highlighted green skeleton segment is the only part that moves (I attached pictures so it makes more sense than me just trying to explain it).

Is that supposed to happen or did I do something wrong?

Thanks in advance!Make sure you click the Anim button that is in the lower right hand corner of Milkshape before you start selecting and rotating joints.

[gemly_teddie]

Ok, this is a fairly stupid question, but I'm a fairly stupid person ;)

I'va scanned through the last couple of pages to check I'm not re-asking questions, but I'm sure you understand I don't feel like reading all 57 pages, so apologies if this has already been asked and answered.

I started making poses yesterday with Blender, I game tested them and there are a few adjustments to be made where the arms clip into clothes etc, but... I can't for the life of me work out how to re-open the poses I've already made to edit them! I'm certain you don't have to start over, but I really can't work this out :|

Also, I've read posing with objects tutorials, I was just wondering if you have to use CC objects or if there's a way to get official objects from the game. I just want to do seated/lying poses on chairs and beds, and don't have any CC chairs and beds. Do I have to download some specifically for creating poses?

Oh, and one more (sorry!), is there a way to move the floor? Does that make sense?
Say I made a lying pose, and I wanted it to be used on the floor, if I tilt the whole body to lie it down then it's floating in mid-air in game, how do I move the height it is?

Thanks in advance for answers, and sorry if my questions don't make sense or have already been asked :)

[lenglel]

Gemly: use s3oc to clone (you may have to deep clone) whatever object you want to use.
ISTR the pose is saved in a .clip file. Just reload the clip you saved, or extract it from your
package and reload it.
I think brootbind is the one you need to move (not rotate or scale) to get the sim on the
floor, but I'm not sure since it's been quite a while since I've done anything with this stuff.

[MelissaMarie_16]

Make sure you click the Anim button that is in the lower right hand corner of Milkshape before you start selecting and rotating joints.

Ah, thanks for the reply! (: I actually did just that, and it was still giving me a hassle. Is it maybe cause I saved something wrong on the model or...?

[orangemittens]

Ok, this is a fairly stupid question, but I'm a fairly stupid person ;)

I'va scanned through the last couple of pages to check I'm not re-asking questions, but I'm sure you understand I don't feel like reading all 57 pages, so apologies if this has already been asked and answered.

I started making poses yesterday with Blender, I game tested them and there are a few adjustments to be made where the arms clip into clothes etc, but... I can't for the life of me work out how to re-open the poses I've already made to edit them! I'm certain you don't have to start over, but I really can't work this out :|

Also, I've read posing with objects tutorials, I was just wondering if you have to use CC objects or if there's a way to get official objects from the game. I just want to do seated/lying poses on chairs and beds, and don't have any CC chairs and beds. Do I have to download some specifically for creating poses?

Oh, and one more (sorry!), is there a way to move the floor? Does that make sense?
Say I made a lying pose, and I wanted it to be used on the floor, if I tilt the whole body to lie it down then it's floating in mid-air in game, how do I move the height it is?

Thanks in advance for answers, and sorry if my questions don't make sense or have already been asked :)I don't blame you for not wanting to read all 57 pages so no worries about the questions. I've written several tutorials that go over different aspects of making Sim 3 poses using Blender and they are posted at A's blog here:

http://sims3cliptool.wordpress.com/tutorials/

One of them goes over how to clone an EA object and bring it into Blender to use as a prop. The one showing how to make a toddler pose shows how to move the entire rig. Take a look at those and if you have questions feel free to post 'em there :)

Ah, thanks for the reply! (: I actually did just that, and it was still giving me a hassle. Is it maybe cause I saved something wrong on the model or...?I'm not sure what you mean when you say it's giving you a hassle. You should not be saving anything on the rig (model) itself...you should only be editing the .smd that you import into Milkshape after opening the rig. If you're concerned that you've messed up the rig by accident you can always just reopen the rar containing the rig and use a new instance of it. If this isn't enough help could you describe each step you're taking that leads up to the point where you begin to have a problem?

[Margaret Pendragon]

I'm wondering if there are more detailed meshes for Milkshape. My meshes are flat and gray, but I saw images of someone else's in Milkshape in which the model had clearly textured eyes and lips. That would make facial expressions so much simpler!

Additionally, I've seen there are some tutorials out there for importing objects and accessories when creating poses. Does anyone recommend a specific tutorial for that purpose? I'd like to try that this week.

[Minakia]

First off... hello :)

The reason why I'm posting is to ask about "http://sims3cliptool.wordpress.com/".

You see I'm ecstatic the site is back (I want to go make poses! and everything I read confuses me) so I ventured around and noticed something odd or maybe it's just me?

The pictures aren't working. The only one with pictures is the complete tutorial. Maybe I'm not supposed to post here about it but I'm wondering if it's temporary?

Sorry I'm not really computer savvy or well versed with computers. (As in maybe it's something easily fixed on my end)

[Margaret Pendragon]

So I found the eye texture for Milkshape posted in this thread and got that to work. Is there one for the entire face? Or lips? Or a way to make it myself, a tutorial for that?

[orangemittens]

First off... hello :)

The reason why I'm posting is to ask about "http://sims3cliptool.wordpress.com/".

You see I'm ecstatic the site is back (I want to go make poses! and everything I read confuses me) so I ventured around and noticed something odd or maybe it's just me?

The pictures aren't working. The only one with pictures is the complete tutorial. Maybe I'm not supposed to post here about it but I'm wondering if it's temporary?

Sorry I'm not really computer savvy or well versed with computers. (As in maybe it's something easily fixed on my end)I'm currently working on updating the tutorial pictures...since RL is a little busy for me it's taking awhile but they'll eventually be done.

I'm wondering if there are more detailed meshes for Milkshape. My meshes are flat and gray, but I saw images of someone else's in Milkshape in which the model had clearly textured eyes and lips. That would make facial expressions so much simpler!

Additionally, I've seen there are some tutorials out there for importing objects and accessories when creating poses. Does anyone recommend a specific tutorial for that purpose? I'd like to try that this week.I wrote a brief tutorial for importing objects into MS to be used as pose props and posted that at Simlogical here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php/topic,614.0.html

I noticed you got help with facial textures here: http://www.modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=505156&goto=lastpost so I'm guessing this issue is taken care of :)

[Margaret Pendragon]

I wrote a brief tutorial for importing objects into MS to be used as pose props and posted that at Simlogical here:

http://www.den.simlogical.com/denforum/index.php/topic,614.0.html

I noticed you got help with facial textures here: http://www.modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=505156&goto=lastpost so I'm guessing this issue is taken care of :)Thanks for the tute, I've just bookmarked it. Yes, I was thrilled with the face texture, all good there. Still can't get the eyebrows to work, it keeps overwriting the eye texture, but eh...I've got a lot more to work with than I had before so I'm happy. Thanks for the response.