Bento Shapes Or Shapes For Bento Pandora Drezelan Reporting

I had always said that I would never mesh up my two alts that I created a few years ago however all of that changed when I was having a bored moment or is it a blond moment?

BJayy and Sindy were hardly ever logged on. They are only friended to me and each other. I guess they are my "me" time. As classic avatars I always made sure that they looked good with detailed skin and makeup. I hit the demos hard again and in the space of one day they went from being classics to Mesh with Maitreya bodies and LAQ heads like Pandora.

BJayy wore the Leia head and Sindy wore the Cherry head. I felt more than happy with the results. I logged them on one at a time every other day to tweak their looks and update their inventory. BJayy is a bit of a bimbo and is so easy to shop for. She wears a lot of pink or white as well as pastel colors. She never wears black. Sindy, on the other hand, has a very dominant look and is always wearing black so she is not so easy to shop for.

But people do get lucky, and I got lucky one day, when I had Sindy logged on and I decided to look in search for bento shapes which is something I don’t normally do.  I ended up at the LAQ commerce section of the LAQ Store where the LAQ compatible products are sold. It is a set up of stalls by creators such as Pink Fuel and Shiny Stuffs.

This was nothing new as I’d been to every level of the store before; except this time I came across something that I had missed amongst all of the other stalls. There was one that stood out from a bento shape creator by the name of WrenNoir Cerise.

For 399 Linden you get a folder with three shapes. Tall and slender as well as proportional and slightly curvy complete with style cards.  They are modifiable and copy. Each set of shapes has been specifically made for a certain LAQ head and there are demos available to try.
I went for the Cherry head shape demo straight away and tried it with Sindy. She looked great so I bought it. I then went on to buy shapes for Pandora and BJayy as well
.

Pandora wears the tall and slender shape for the Poppy head and I modified this shape. I kept my own head numbers and made the shoulders slightly bigger. The outcome was awesome.

Sindy wears the proportional shape for the Cherry head and I didn’t change her at all, she’s perfect just the way she is. BJayy wears the slightly curvy shape for the Leia head. I made BJayy’s nose and mouth a bit smaller but that’s it.

I haven’t bought shapes in a long time and these are the best shapes that I have seen lately in comparison to some scary ones that look nothing like their display photo.

This is going to be my ongoing learning experience as I have been experimenting with making shapes for personal use and trying different looks. Wren’s shapes are beautifully crafted and reasonably priced. Great for SL newbies and even SL oldies like me.

Wren’s Quote: "There is no such thing as a 'bento' shape. It is just a shape it’s the same as you would use with a classic avatar; however it has been fashioned for wearing with bento heads. This is because bento heads are "rigged" to the skeleton in their own way. So a shape is really made for a specific bento head rather than being a bento shape."

Very well said Wren and Thank you for all of your hard work.
None of the avatar photos have been altered they are as you see them. They’ve been given a soft glow and framed in GIMP both static poses and bento AO poses were used.

Wren’s main store: [wren’s nest]  
https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Torver/186/214/22

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What Makes Bento Mesh Heads Different? – Camury Reporting...

As a result of Second Life viewers being updated for Bento, it seems that the Second Life community is in a tail spin over Bento mesh heads.

For those who still do not know about it, Bento is the newest and greatest improvement from Linden Lab for Second Life.  It allows more realism for avatars by adding ‘bones’ and attachment points to the avatar skeleton.

As the Bento Project makes changes to the Second Life avatar skeleton, avatars (specifically those who use the new joints, bones and animations allowed by the Bento Project) have the opportunity to have a much wider range of avatar body types, facial expressions and animations. New mesh avatars and mesh attachments make full benefit of new joints and attachment points.

A summary of the new bones and attachment points:

·         New limb bones: for extra wings, arms, or legs.

·         Tail bones: Include your tail in the avatar animations.

·         New hand bones: for finer control over hand animations.

·         New facial bones: for complex facial expressions, ears and animated antennas.

·         New attachment points - Associated with the new bones.

Bento does not affect any content in Second Life. What has changed, for the average user, is that older graphics cards and controllers may be finding it hard to process the increase in the number of joins. This has forced Second Life users to upgrade their operating systems or drivers to the latest version to be able to get on board with the Bento era. And now, after a long wait, we are starting to see a variety of avatars with additional Bento options.

The curiosity for Bento has been increasing exponentially.  What people want to know is what the main advantages of the additional options are.

Let’s compare the standard mesh head versus the Bento head. Basically, the advantage of the Bento head is the uncountable customization options for which it allows and the facial expressions tend to be much more realistic. This means that Bento heads allow adjustments and modifications to suit our characteristics. We can make use of the facial sliders to create our own face shapes.

Here are some Bento Mesh head options available inworld:

CREATOR	HEAD	PRICE
Absolut Creation	Male Female	850L 825L
Altamura	Female	3.499L
Catwa	Male Female	5.000L 5.000L
Genesis Lab	Female	4.000L
Lelutka	Female	5.000L
Niramyth	Male	2.766L

Although the delightful additional options of Bento heads are appealing, the cost is somewhat restrictive.  But don’t worry, you can keep the mesh head you are currently using, if you use one that is, for some time to come. Mesh bodies won’t be changing for the foreseeable future.  Although Bento hands and feet are now being released to add to the already complicated mix.

The "classic" avatar of Second Life will continue to function as planned and will not have to be updated. You do not have to change anything if you do not want to.

The adoption of the Bento head as de rigueur will initially be slow.   In my opinion many people will keep the mesh heads that they are currently wearing and will keep their mesh bodies as they are for now as well.  Obviously there are always those are early adopters who will want to use the characteristics of the Bento head, wings ears and tails, to make Second Life more realistic that it already is.

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Are the changes in SL so drastic after all? Why is change important for growth? – Camury Reporting...

Since the first pixels emerged, so much has changed in Second Life. The changes, positive or negative, inevitably bring something new.  This creates the need for adaptation and causes a great impact on us because, in most cases, we cannot interfere with them.

Many people resist change for several reasons. These reasons may be related to a lack of confidence in the ability of adaptation that we can have.

Breaking into the unknown can force us out of our comfort zone and while it may seem uncertain and even uncomfortable, it opens up the opportunity to learn new things and for us to grow. However, it is precisely because of the uncertainty of the unknown that many end up resisting the changes.

There was a huge hullabaloo when the powers that be introduced mesh into Second Life, but now it is de rigueur.  Mesh bodies have arrived and soon a multitude of mesh heads and applicators will also be available. Many residents found themselves struggling to adapt to the new HUD systems.  Granted they can be confusing for many of us.   As a result a number of people still resist change and continue to look as if they were back in 2007.   However, this is a trend that is here to stay and most of us have adapted very well to it.

Are the changes in SL really that drastic?

 Mesh definitely revolutionized the way we present our avatars Inworld.  It offers more options to residents for custom creations.

As Second Life defiantly approaches its second decade, we have seen many projects emerge from Linden Lab and there will be more to come.   The big push for this year is Project Bento.  For those who are not aware of Project Bento, it’s to add ‘bones’ to our Second Life Avatar skeleton.  It will allow greater customization of our avatars. We will more than likely see other new projects emerge in the second half of 2016. The nature of innovations  is such that they pop up on a continuous basis.  If you want to know more about this subject, SL Enquirer published an article about Project Bento:

http://www.slenquirer.com/2016/02/the-project-bento-promises-better.html

Linden Lab, also announced the Sansar Project, which is in beta testing. This is a new platform, created from the experiences gained in Second Life but that promises to make it easier for people to create and share their creations. The SL Enquirer also published an article on this subject:

http://www.slenquirer.com/2015/12/second-life-will-live-on-after-project.html

The ability to accept, adapt and transform change into opportunity is what enables us to succeed not only in Second Life but also in various aspects of our actual lives. So let's look forward to seeing the best of the changes to come.

Additional Information:

Images taken from the official Linden Lab websites

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Dem Bones - Lacy Muircastle Reporting...

Remember that song we learned at school?

Dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones,
Now shake dem skeleton bones!

The toe bone's connected to the foot bone,
The foot bone's connected to the ankle bone,
The ankle bone's connected to the leg bone,
Now shake dem skeleton bones!

Welcome to your bones… What am I on about?  A skeleton for your avatar that’s what.  Why does your avatar need bones?  To facilitate body language of course.

Body Language is a significant aspect of communications and relationships.  In Second Life the use body language has not been available, until now that is.  Body language, and more technically the study of body language, is also known as kinesics (pronounced 'kineesicks'), which is derived from the Greek word kinesis, meaning motion.  The study of motion in second life translates to Project Bento. 

Since late 2015 Linden Lab have been testing a limited release for Project Bento on the Aditi test grid, working with content creators. On 1^st June they announced the second wave of Bento skeleton improvements.  This release is currently only available on Agni on the main grid. However, this is still a limited release.  Creators, recipients, and anyone wishing to view the new content must be running the latest Bento Project Viewer.

For more on the technical aspects of Project Bento, see the following links:

https://community.secondlife.com/t5/Featured-News/Project-Bento-Testing-Is-Now-Live-on-the-Main-Grid/ba-p/3035460

https://modemworld.me/2016/06/01/project-bento-arrives-on-the-main-grid-in-second-life/

Now shake dem skeleton bones!

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The Project Bento promises better customization of avatars in Second Life - Camury Reporting

Get ready for the biggest changes that have already happened with the avatars in Second Life in years.

The changes will come with Project Bento that adds more than 90 bones to avatars. That will allow interesting and discreet increases in facial expressions, better articulation to the fingers, movements for wings and tails and other improvements impossible or too complex to be made before the arrival of the project.

Many designers have been invited to test the new developments that will soon be available to SL users.

The changes that will occur with the addition of the new bone structure to the Second Life avatar skeleton, will allow more options for customizing avatars.

Find out which bones are about to be added:

•  30 bones to improve the facial expressions;
•  30 bones to allow the movement of fingers (all ten fingers);
•  11 bones to improve the movement of extra members like: wings, extra legs, or additional arms;
•  6 bones to enhance the movement of the tail;
• 13 new attachment points associated with the new bones that will allow improvement of the movements.

The Linden Lab in a note on the Project Bento says that will consider value, personalization and investments that are made by the users of Second Life on their avatars. They promise to balance the improvements and compatibility. The new changes will allow avatars to a new set of expressions and incredible movements which will allow the use of much more creativity to the composition of the avatars.

The changes introduced by Bento avatar skeleton designs are not yet final and are being tested for the opinion of designers and users. You can also participate and discuss the changes brought about by  Project Bento. For these discussions Linden Lab created the Creation Forum that is available at:

URL:

https://community.secondlife.com/t5/Building-and-Texturing-Forum/Project-Bento-Feedback-Thread/td-p/2987290

The designers and users can also experience the changes offered by the Bento Project. For this, you need to download this viewer:

URL: http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Release_Notes/Second_Life_Project_Bento/5.0.0.309171

After the conclusion of SL skeleton extensions, Linden Lab will allow uploads so that the avatars can be used in the main Second Life network. So soon we will see on the virtual universe more sophisticated avatars than ever.

Some designers request resources from Linden Lab, to be able to already upload a  Project Bento skeleton rigged mesh "avatar", and then rez it in-world put it together with a script / animation, and watch how it works. This feature would enable more realistic creatures that are far less taxing on the viewer/land/etc.

So if you see an articulated and very realistic creature walking through Second Life, do not be alarmed, it is the Project  Bento in action.

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