Tutorial Topic Requests

Tutorial Topic Requests

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https://forum.reallusion.com/Topic174332.aspx

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By KaiD - 11 Years Ago

Hi all,

For those of you who don’t know, I’m Kai, the guy who produces the Reallusion tutorials for iClone and CrazyTalk Animator. Although I’m not really a forum junkie, I’m starting this thread to get feedback on exactly what sort of tutorials are in demand from our users. I try to make the most relevant and easy-to-follow tutorials that are suitable for most levels of users, but sometimes certain users or topics are missed.

That’s why this thread is here! Feel free to give your two cents on topics you think should be covered in the future. At least once a month a requested topic from this forum will be selected. I can't promise every topic will be covered, but we'll try our best. Your suggestions are encouraged and welcomed! :)

By alemar - 11 Years Ago

Hi
I'd like a tutor " how use the .fla template..." I can't make those thing work... It work if I just tweak a bit in the file... I can't change parts or deep edit the file , because the imported swf don't work.

By DELETED2 - 11 Years Ago

Just exactly how far can we push collect clip? In a nutshell.

By rampart - 11 Years Ago

That is cool

What you should do is keep a thread open all the time for feedback from Crazytalk and iclone. Let iclone users help you to create information you can use to develop better tools. Believe me, this is a good community and they will gladly share with you.

The same questions are asked many times on the forums, and frequently members cannot answer questions that are too time consuming to explain or they don't have easy access to links to share.

All the help I give to other users helps me when they know something I don't and they explain to me.

I am not talking about you giving support. I believe I understand exactly what you said.
It is sure that many of our users will share with you for our own mutual benefit.

Best regards...

By niceblinkluck - 11 Years Ago

I agree about the tutorial on how to use the pipeline flash template...there are always some vectors that don't appear when I open it up later in cta2 ....Its killing me!!!!!!! lol. but seriously I hope you get around to this one soon. JJ

By prabhatM - 11 Years Ago

I want a volumetric light effect from a car headlight in ICLONE TOON SHADE MODE.

By KaiD - 11 Years Ago

Cool, thanks for the feedback guys! I'm currently working on a tutorial for using the Flash template for character creation, however it might be a week or two until we finalize it. In the meantime, you may notice that we just published the tutorial on basic body creation using sprite replacement, and we'll be publishing one for the face later this week.

A minor caveat regarding the current character creation tutorials is that we will be updating the workflow slightly in future patches to make it easier to replace multiple sprites without unnecessary clicking, among a few other tweaks. Other than making the process faster, it won't affect the general workflow though.

By KaiD - 11 Years Ago

As for the Collect Clip function, we'll get to that eventually. Hopefully we'll be able to make it as powerful as the same feature in iClone, although that's not my department so I can't comment too much on it.

By AverageJoe - 11 Years Ago

I imagine any tutorial featuring how to make, edit, and customize a wide variety of characters will be first and foremost. However, one of the things I'd like to see a tutorial on beyond the character creation/customization, is how to use CrazyTalk with CrazyTalk Animator. I see that we can now import CrazyTalk scripts into CTA2, and I'd like to know more about both sides of this. The CrazyTalk side of things in creating these scripts, then in CTA2 how to apply and use these scripts, as well as edit them (if needed).

By rampart - 11 Years Ago

One important thing to remember with any tutor. Do not assume about your viewers knowledge. If you are creating an advanced tutor, qualify what you are saying to readers or viewers.

I have seen so many videos from RL and third parties. They go through the teaching steps, but ignore the keystrokes and click ons. They assume too much. The use of abbreviations is a huge NO NO. Abbreviations are only for the most advance students. Clear explanations of UV is a good example. When many people start with iclone the GUI is a nightmare to work with, because it is just one big blob of the same color and there is no distinction or ability to change the distinction of anything.

Yes, I know the pros know and care less about the interface. I can tell you for a fact it is always important to use color. Color is the most beneficial tool for usage the whole world knows it, but not the software industry. They just go with the same uninteresting and difficult GUI arrangements.

Go tutors must do a complete and thorough action flow. It is important to explain simple things during the training. Often it is good to even spend some time on details about why you are doing a certain thing. Best to review some of the better tutorials and think about why they are good tutorials.

Not everyone can create good tutorials.
The most competent users may not be the best tutors, because they have developed instincts and have a feel for the interactivity of the application.

After you are more knowledgeable about iclone you can follow the flow pretty well, but newbs don't have a chance.

By Bernieo - 11 Years Ago

Hi Kai,

Glad to meet you.

What I would like is a how to start-to-finish tutorial on Crazy Talk Animator 2 Standand version. I have watched your posted tutorials for CTA2 but they all seem to feature the Pro version. In "Getting Started with CrazyTalk Animator 2" the demonstrator explains the 3-D feature in great depth, but I do not have that particuliar feature so I'm sort of fumbling around here just trying to get started.

Also, although the gentleman is extremely knowledgeable on CTA2, I feel he is rushing through it and could slow down some. I got the feeling that he thinks the viewer is already firmiliar with all the toolbars and icons, but it's very hard to keep up. I did learn a good deal however so he cannot be faulted for content delivery.

I also clicked through to the embedded demo folder but these were of little value as they all appeared to be just static slides. I understand producing a video takes time and money, and CTA2 Standard is an entry level product. But the sooner I come up to speed on it, I will upgrade.

Late last year I purchase CT7 and I love it! I congratulate you on that set of tutorials as I was up and running in no time. In fact that's why I brought CTA2 because CT7 was so easy to learn. I still hit a wall or two now and then but here, the Forum comes to the rescue. And ususally it's Peter the Tutor leading the charge.

Now please, if I overlooked such a video on your site, I apologize, and if you could point me to the right link bring it on. I am watching all the presently posted videos and am picking up bits and pieces as I go along.

Thank you for your time now.

All the best-
Bernieo

By AverageJoe - 11 Years Ago

I'd also like to see additional tutorials on keyframing animations within CTA2, advanced tweaking and fine tuning of animations. Reason being, every time I attempt to modify or fine tune the animation, it eventually gets all mucked up, probably because of the hybrid nature of 2D & 3D motions, and where keyframes get added (which channels) that affect other keyframes. And also covering adding in subtle idel movements in between motion sequences or clips.

By KaiD - 11 Years Ago

Thanks for the feedback on pacing rampart, that's probably one of the most common issues we try to address. Each tutorial with a specialized topic normally assumes that users are familiar with the UI, and have watched the 'Getting Started' tutorial. I think what I try to do with the first CTA 2 tutorials is cover a practical workflow that most users will come across (i.e. 3D motion editing, character creation). As a result, a single tutorial might include instructions on how to use a number of different tools and features in combination that could very well have their own tutorial, and therefore some of the basics may be brushed over a bit. We are aware that many of our CTA users are complete newbies, and are currently working on providing some more basic tutorials, similar to our Quick Fix tutorials for iClone.

I think Bernieo's sentiment is quite a common one, and we're definitely working on producing some more slow-paced and basic tutorials. In addition to that, we have tons of users whose first language isn't English, and they may have a hard time following my babbling. If there are any users out there with specialized language skills, feel free to contact me about potential 3rd party tutorials in another language.

For wizaerd, I totally understand where you're coming from that sometimes the keyframes can get all confusing after detailed editing. For now, all I can suggest is to generally follow the workflow outlines in the 'Intro to Character Animation' tutorial (i.e. starting with 3D motion editing, then moving on to 2D). Probably my best advice is that the reset/refresh key button is your best friend when doing any type of keyframe editing with layers/sprites/transform. :)

By arlen.craddock - 11 Years Ago

Hi, I'm a beginner and still getting familiar with setting up sprites in Pipeline. I've hand-drawn multiple views of my characters using Copic markers and scanned them. Then I cut out the features in Photoshop and saved each body part as separate png files. I've been using an existing character to replace the sprites. However, my character has glasses but there isn't an existing prop or other that I can use to import them. Should I use the "front hair" body part? Thanks for any help you can provide.

By KaiD - 11 Years Ago

Sorry for the late reply! Since there are no body parts that are defined for glasses sprites by default, you'll probably want to add them in as an accessory in the Character Composer. I do something similar with a wine bottle in this tutorial here: Advanced Timeline Editing

Hope that helps!

By desb - 11 Years Ago

Hi there Kal....I have recently bought the CTA for Mac....I also bought the training DVD, which I have downloaded, but have not been able to "see" it. Where and how do I see the DVD on my Mac?...I know the 3 Gig file is on my mac (.dmg) but I can't seem to open it. It does not even ask for my serial number!!!
Am I missing something basic?
I have written to Reallusion, and their responses have been poor. Its been more than two weeks now and still no resolution to my issue.

I would really appreciate your assistance
Thanks

Des Bramwell

By Garf - 11 Years Ago

G' day

Ive just started using CrazyTalk 2 and I'm working through the getting started tutorial. I have reached the facial expression part and I'm struggling to record as per the example given in the tutorial. I can follow up to where you record, however there is a step or more I'm not following to achieve that.

Is there anything available that provides a step be step account to mimic what the instructor is demonstrating please

Thank you
Garf

By Peter (RL) - 11 Years Ago

des.bramwell (5/13/2014)

Hi Des,

Once you have the CrazyTalk_Animator_2_Training_DVD.dmg, double click it. This will open a file called CrazyTalk_Animator_2_Training_DVD.mpkg. Double click this to begin the installation procedure.

Note: At this point you may be warned that it can't install because the Developer is not known. If you receive this message, just go into System Preferences > Security & Privacy and then put a check in the box to Allow apps downloaded from > Anywhere.

Now double click the mpkg file again to install. Once complete you can find the Training DVD by selecting Launchpad.

After installation is complete, remember to set your security settings back to the original setting.

By Peter (RL) - 11 Years Ago

Garf (5/19/2014)

Recording should be just a case of selecting a "Profile" and then hitting the "Record" button followed by the "Space Key" to begin recording your puppeteering. Once recording starts you can control facial feature movement by moving the mouse, and use the left mouse button to make the character blink.

Please try this and then let us know if you still have problems. But please try to supply as much detail as possible about what isn't working. Thanks.

By coolhewitt24 - 11 Years Ago

I would like to see a couple tutorials specifically about converting a character in Adobe illustrator to Crazy Talk Animator 2 pro. Flash is a complicated software because I'm not sure how to start using flash. Do I use action script or Animation key frames. How to do you convert an illustrator file to a useable file in Crazy Talk Animator 2 pro.

Can anybody help me.

thanks
daniel

By KaiD - 11 Years Ago

We have a couple of tutorials similar to this that take an Adobe Illustrator file and import it into DrawPlus, which is an excellent vector graphic editing program. You can find it in this playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNV5zSFadPdkhJ3cIUOnawZeNaXfcHuWH.

By lesdodds - 11 Years Ago

Hi Kai,
I would like to see a tutorial on Infographic Palettes (Color Palettes) that comes with the Symbol package.

http://www.reallusion.com/ContentStore/CTA/Pack/Infographic_Palette/default.aspx

By Dave_20090922171550359 - 11 Years Ago

Hi,
Recently purchased CTA2 and obviously want to be able to create my own characters.
The flash tutorial you have seems straight forward enough so long as I pay careful attention to layer names.
However, the examples are almost too simple. What is the best way to design characters with skirts or dresses on? Do they need to be part of the leg design, torso or added afterwards as a prop?

Many thanks.

By jay_20140830185431888 - 10 Years Ago

I'd like a tutorial on the creation of the CrazyTalk Animator part of creating an infographic.

By Dopey - 10 Years Ago

Im a Mac user and pretty bummed that I can't import video into my scene.
When I bought the pro version the website and the manual say you can import video, support says you can't. I have tried ever format.
Long story short I need a work around.
Can you help?

By Dopey - 10 Years Ago

Im a Mac user and i need a work around for video import into scene.

By Dopey - 10 Years Ago

Im a Mac user. I need a work around for video import. for cta2 pro

By Dopey - 10 Years Ago

Im a Mac user cta2. I need a work around for video import.

By microtogo - 10 Years Ago

There really needs to be an easy or at least straight forward way to make your own G2 characters for CTA2.
I know it's somehow possible using Flash or drawplus, but have yet to be able to do it or find a video on exactly how it's done.

Is there a simple replace option for a default character?

By Sven71 - 10 Years Ago

Is CTA2 Mac prepared to run morph heads as multi angle versions or does morph head mean one angle only?

By lpatter - 10 Years Ago

The Substance sale ends tomorrow so respond with anything to make me see iclone substance work as is.
Link to a series of maps. Tell me where to apply them and how to set the sliders.
I am shocked that after 2 months there are no tutorials on these new features.
I am a reasonably intelligent human being. Have written software tutorial myself.
I cannot get the default projects to do what the videos do.
So as far as I am concerned Iclone is still broken for these features and buying a new collection of materials is not going to fix that.
I cannot get ANY of the new-fangled tools to work as advertised or demonstrated in videos. Substance, tessellation, skytool, speed tree.
I use every diffuse channel and crank up the sliders and I have yet to see a tessellation tessellate or a substance change. Opacity, hue, glow and all the old stuff changes.
I can't find a "dirtiness" slider.
The new Substance plugin seems to show both tessellation and animated flower growth.
I frankly don't want to spend another $100+ to buy a product that "fixes" or "turns on" a feature that I think should work. I will buy it to save the work of collecting all those materials but I am not sure of Iclone WILL work with those

By K.M. - 10 Years Ago

To the Reallusion tutors,

Thanks for all the tutorials on YouTube. They help me a lot. But I still have one major request.

Please do a tutorial strictly for CTA2 standard version only. I want to learn the standard version to create basic animations for businesses. Ex. presentations, speeches, charts, graphs etc. I don't need Michael Jackson dance moves.

Now I am a beginner when it comes to animation. So I want to master the standard version. Most of your tutorials are designed for advance users. So let's get down to the basics. If I can view a tutorial and create some fancy animations not only with characters but with props, then that'd be great.

What specifically do I want to see?
1. A person giving presentations in a conference room.
2. People applauding after a meeting
3. People talking to each other (even if it's just two people)
4. Turning heads to see the guy sitting next to you
5. Eating food
6. Driving car
7. Man kissing a woman

Again, I want to see the limits and basics in standard version before jumping to pro. Can you do a special turorial for standard version users only? Thanks.

By Blessdaily - 10 Years Ago

Kai
If you're still around and making tutorials..
it would be awesome if you could make some tutorials on whether or not diffuse textures are animate-able and how to do that if possible
for example.. if i want to start an object with one texture then switch its appearance with a whole new texture.
I tried this but its not animating the changes..
also..i want to put in text for story telling and have it transition with new text as smoothly as possible.

also is there a way to do trail like effects on objects?
would be cool to make text do this, even with just a 2d image object in iclone.

I hope you are still around, you are the best at tutorials !!! id like a link to your youtube channel if possible thanks

By jlittle - 10 Years Ago

... whether or not diffuse textures are animate-able and how to do that if possible
for example.. if i want to start an object with one texture then switch its appearance with a whole new texture.

CrazyTalk Animator does not use diffuse textures. That would be more an iClone feature.
If you are talking about CTA then you really only have the ability to fade from one image to the next using the opacity settings.
Not sure how that would look fading from one "texture" to another.
You can also switch sprites but that is an instant change, not done over time.

...i want to put in text for story telling and have it transition with new text as smoothly as possible.

Again, you would have to use the Opacity setting to fade from one text object to the next.

also is there a way to do trail like effects on objects?

CTA does not have any particle effects, like trails. Those are typically done in post processing (AfterEffects, ParticlIllusion, etc.) or possibly by using an animated prop.

Jeff

By solarte10 - 10 Years Ago

Good Morning.

I am a new user and I am trying to understand how Crazytalk2 pipeline works. I searched for training video on youtube and I found a video that says you can take a picture of a person or any item and it can be added as a prop or new character. The problem is it oddest tell you how it can be done. Can you please walked me thru? Thank you

By jlittle - 10 Years Ago

solarte10 (11/22/2015)

Good Morning.
I am a new user and I am trying to understand how Crazytalk2 pipeline works. I searched for training video on youtube and I found a video that says you can take a picture of a person or any item and it can be added as a prop or new character. The problem is it oddest tell you how it can be done. Can you please walked me thru? Thank you

Any picture can be made into a prop by dragging and dropping it onto the stage and selecting "Prop".
Here are some tuts on creating props:
DrawPlus to CrazyTalk Animator Pt.1: Creating CTA Props from DrawPlus Graphics
DrawPlus to CrazyTalk Animator Pt. 2: Creating Animated CTA Props in DrawPlus
DrawPlus to CrazyTalk Animator Pt. 3: Drawing Your Own CTA Props in DrawPlus

You must have the Pro or Pipeline version to create a character.
CTA 1 had body photo fitting but that was dropped in CTA 2.
Here are several tuts on creating a character from a photo:
Create Talking Characters from Photos
Creating a Character from a 2D Image (Part 1)
Creating a Character from a 2D Image (Part 2)
Basic Character Body Creation

Jeff

By phoegh - 9 Years Ago

KaiD (1/13/2014)

Hello Kai,

I just purchased the Pipeline version as well as vol.1-3 G2 content packs. I just finished watching all the demos that came with pipeline and I was blown away with the Render style video.

Could you PLEASE do a tutorial on how you created this demo!!!? I need to know how to switch scenes like that.

Thanks in advance

By Alien Maniac - 9 Years Ago

I agree with Rampart.
Watching the tuts and webinars is about learning from step 1 for many people and following someone that knows all the tricks and clicks is not easy because some step details are left out.

I think you need Basic intro, Advanced and Intermediate tuts.

As many users are completely new or just getting to that topic to learn they need details to follow. It is like learning to do anything...step 1, 2, 3 and so on for beginners and those that are advanced above that level do not need that.

1 detail missing for a newbie is like being Lost in Space with only a compass. LoL
Make them all User Level for everyone's sake.

Also, the Webinars are great but not enough Q&A time......people have Qs and watch them to get answers and sometimes need further input...That is what they come for.

Kai, thanks for being here for us. We need you. No complaints just ideas to make things better for all users.