Virt-a-Mate alternative?

[johara45]

Hello All,
I hope I don't get flamed to badly, but is there an alternative to this Virt-a-mate software? Something very similar in terms of features? I've spent about a week with this software and it seems pretty obvious that many others have issues with this programs learning curve. I've purchased the VAM with VAMX thinking it would make things atleast a little simpler but VAMX seems to cut out some character customization settings. It seems obvious that the creaters have little to no experience on creating more user friendly interfaces. Its difficult for others to help with information because none of the operations is straight forward and seemingly everything is just scattered around.

 

[atani]

If you find a alternative to VaM that has half the things that VaM can do then do share. I've yet to see anything out there come close to it.
Yes, it has a substantial learning curve to become a power user of the software's capabilities, but for basic gameplay seeing scenes that people made you only need to see the video tutorials to quickly learn the basics. Have you tried watching those already?

If you bought VaM+VAMX but find that VAMX cuts down on options, don't worry, you still have VaM underneath and all its options.

 

[FluffyBunny]

If you think of VaM as a user-accessible game engine, because it is, then of course it will take time to learn what it can do.

But if you think of scenes as games made using the game engine, download some from the Hub (make sure you get ALL the dependencies or many scenes won't work) and try them. Personally, I think Vamx is clunky and not very enjoyable, but many of the mini scenes - the "games" are amazing.

Again, speaking personally, I had a similar experience to you, but then I watched KittyMocap's "Striptease on a table" (free on Hub, I have no affiliation) and my mind was blown. There are lots of great creators, covering every genre, and the names will become familiar. Also, if you don't know how to use a scene, most creators will be more than happy to tell you if you ask on the scene's Hub page.

Quality will vary because much of the content is "home-made" but as a general rule (not always) scenes will be built either for desktop or VR because VR is so pc heavy. VR scenes are likely (not always) to have simple environments but focus on the characters and the animations. Also, if the lighting is good, the environment doesn't matter as much as you think it might once in VR, because when most pc resources are put into the characters, they look AMAZING.

 

[FluffyBunny]

Also, just as today, you'll usually a get a quite quick reply to any question

 

[VAMIC]

Hello All,
I hope I don't get flamed to badly, but is there an alternative to this Virt-a-mate software? Something very similar in terms of features? I've spent about a week with this software and it seems pretty obvious that many others have issues with this programs learning curve. I've purchased the VAM with VAMX thinking it would make things atleast a little simpler but VAMX seems to cut out some character customization settings. It seems obvious that the creaters have little to no experience on creating more user friendly interfaces. Its difficult for others to help with information because none of the operations is straight forward and seemingly everything is just scattered around.

The price for an unlimited playground of anything you can imagine is steep. Here's a little help, but it's understandable if you want other kinds of experiences. The usability and slowness of VAM (as it gets bigger) are the two greatest barriers to this app, but in a way that's a good thing otherwise its rewards would likely spread out of control. I worry a little every day what a cheap, user friendly VAM could do to humanity, but there would also be a number of benefits.

 

[johara45]

Thanks everyone for your replies, after cooling off a bit I decided to take another stab at it I was contemplating on just tossing the program. Unfortunately I’ve spent the last two hours trying to figure out how to add a downloaded person atom to a down loaded empty scene. Just the same getting frustrated thinking this should be quite a simple task to do but really? 2 hours of searching, and still at a standstill. If someone responds on how to do this, I’m sure I’ll still be yanking hair out of my head knowing this isn’t a straight forward task. I was able to figure out how to load a scene and empty it so that just the person atom was in it, then tried adding the environment, and then everything just went all wonky where the person was just broken up and all over the place. So I’m trying to figure out how to do it backwards start with the environment, then add the person but at this point I still can’t figure it out. Not sure my pc might be having issues running the program.
So just in case it might be that, my computer specs is custom with an i9 cpu, rtx 3090ti, 32g gskill trident, in a Waterloop. Maybe I need to upgrade something?

 

[atani]

I'll ask again, did you see the tutorials?

Guides - YouTube Tutorials

I have started making VaM tutorials for YouTube. As we all know there are some great tutorials out there but sadly they are quite outdated. This is my attempt to update the information and have it easily accessible to everyone. I've just gotten...

hub.virtamate.com

Your person probably exploded because there was some collision in the environment, like you put it inside a wall or something. Anyway, watch the tutorials, play some existing scenes, get the basics, then you don't have to spend hours being lost and confused.

 

[johara45]

Thank you for the link, I've been watching those videos, but what makes everything so difficult is that when you have to look through all the resources I can't figure out where to locate them as the directories are seperated all over the place and subfolders are just scattered all over the place. It kind of reminds me of the days of DOS where you have to know where to look for files everywhere, to what it is now today. Today PC's have far more features, but it also improved on usability to the end user. I guess I shoudn't get so irritated knowing that the developers are probably people that do this on the side rather than a corporate company that have staff that covers the development of their software and taking everything in consideration.

 

[MacGruber]

how to add a downloaded person atom to a down loaded empty scene

You probably downloaded either a scene on its own or an appearance preset. If you have the former, you can create an appearance preset out of it. How to deal with those (also called "Looks" sometimes for legacy reasons) should be covered by the tutorials linked by atani.

It seems obvious that the creaters have little to no experience on creating more user friendly interfaces.

While there is obviously room for improvement, you can't have all the complexity and possibilities with a simple user interface. VaM 2.0 will hopefully improve this a bit, as it will be designed with a better understanding what users actually want/need.

 

[atani]

Thank you for the link, I've been watching those videos, but what makes everything so difficult is that when you have to look through all the resources I can't figure out where to locate them as the directories are seperated all over the place and subfolders are just scattered all over the place. It kind of reminds me of the days of DOS where you have to know where to look for files everywhere, to what it is now today. Today PC's have far more features, but it also improved on usability to the end user. I guess I shoudn't get so irritated knowing that the developers are probably people that do this on the side rather than a corporate company that have staff that covers the development of their software and taking everything in consideration.

3rd video "Vam Hub" shows how to use the built-in Hub to download content. There's no need to go to any folder, you click a button and it's all done. If you decide instead to download from the Hub in your browser, the VAR file goes in the folder AddonPackages, that's it, you don't need to bother with any other folders.

While there's things in the software that are not easy to understand or as optimal as they could have been it's not the clusterfuck you make it to be. Your multiple comments are set on treating the people making this software as if they know nothing and are incompetent, and that's not acceptable. You and we all can critique and comment on how things are, to try give ideas on how it could be improved, but the direction you're going because you're frustrated that you don't know everything in 5 minutes is pushing on abusive and plain insulting. If you want to be able to use VaM in a very capable way you need to spend time learning, trying things, seeing examples, reading guides, and so on. If you're not interested you're free to move on to another sandbox like this one, if you can find any that comes close to the scope of what this can do.

 

[johara45]

Yes this software I know will take time, and I’m not trying to offend anyone. If I offended any one then I truly apologize. I’m glad that there seems to so many people that is willing to assist other users on getting around this program. Maybe I’m missing a work around or feature that I don’t understand. I’ve been downloading content from the hub while in the software and am aware that by doing so they are being installed where they extend to go. There are so many addons that go all over the place that I don’t know how to navigate. Most of the files I’m trying to locate are downloaded content, and as of now I have to keep going back and forth between the hub and the scene being worked on to see who the creator was and what files were downloaded to try and locate the files that I need to add to a scene. There are just so many subfolders in the directory and there are only a very few that I can find the sources. Many of the videos are indeed very helpful. I maybe wrong but I can’t seem to be able to find what I need as the situations I run into are a bit different from the videos.

 

[VAMIC]

Yes this software I know will take time, and I’m not trying to offend anyone. If I offended any one then I truly apologize. I’m glad that there seems to so many people that is willing to assist other users on getting around this program. Maybe I’m missing a work around or feature that I don’t understand. I’ve been downloading content from the hub while in the software and am aware that by doing so they are being installed where they extend to go. There are so many addons that go all over the place that I don’t know how to navigate. Most of the files I’m trying to locate are downloaded content, and as of now I have to keep going back and forth between the hub and the scene being worked on to see who the creator was and what files were downloaded to try and locate the files that I need to add to a scene. There are just so many subfolders in the directory and there are only a very few that I can find the sources. Many of the videos are indeed very helpful. I maybe wrong but I can’t seem to be able to find what I need as the situations I run into are a bit different from the videos.

Here's a simple explanation because I know exactly the frustration you feel from my early days on here. Not sure if this is your issue, but it took surprisingly long for me to figure this out when I first started VAM.

When you download scenes, open the scene and if you like the look of the character, immediately save an Appearance Preset. If you delete a bunch of stuff (people, objects, lights, animations, etc) you don't want in a scene because you want to make a custom environment, save that as a Scene. Now you can find that environment in your Scenes menu. When you go to make a new scene with this environment, be conscious of where the center of the scene is. Sometimes an object in a scene can be higher or lower than the spawn point (where the person appears when you add a person atom). To adjust this, you can either take control of the Person atom or the Custom Unity Asset (CUA) by clicking on the little box underneath them in Edit mode. Once you have control, open the Move tab in the menu to adjust either the Person or CUA so they don't collide and explode all over the place. Y means up and Down, X means side to side and Z means backwards and forwards. After you have the generic Person atom in the position you want them, go to your Saved Appearance presets and choose the look you want to apply.

Sorry if that explanation is more basic than your problem or conversely if it uses too much VAM vocab, but the way you're describing it sounded familiar from back in the day.

 

[dio]

There is nothing else out there. Vr or not VAM is the best possible without competition and its light years ahead. I want a lot of things to improve in VAM and i do have complains, but in the end it is the only option. Only hope is VAM 2 someday.

 

[johara45]

Thank you everyone, especially Vamic, this information sounds to be a much simpler way to find and load things. I will do this as it makes so much sense. Yes I been getting red in the face and banging my head against the wall trying to do things the hard way. Unfortunately for many years I've mostly if not only used software from big name companies who has the staff and teams to constantly update and simplify various tasks. Examples would be "oh you want to add a person to a particular scene? Ok click, click insert. Pose? click, click apply. I guess I can see why for programs such as these would be almost impossible to simplify due to all the various features it has. I'm just worried that because I don't know most of the terminalogy or functions I may do something irreversible to the point where I need to redownload and reinstall it. This would be the fourth time I needed to do just that. A dialog opens or a menu opens and I select yes when I should have said no, or no when I should have said yes. Thats where most of my frustrations came from. From not knowing what all the terminologies are.

Are there any guides that fully cover what the terminologies mean? I guess what I mean is that everything is termed differently like say a boat. Stern, starboard etc. I guess stupidly I can only refer to the locations of front, back, left side, right side, etc.

Also I'd like to thank Atani also for linking me to the videos and suggestions.

 

[atani]

Yes this software I know will take time, and I’m not trying to offend anyone. If I offended any one then I truly apologize. I’m glad that there seems to so many people that is willing to assist other users on getting around this program. Maybe I’m missing a work around or feature that I don’t understand. I’ve been downloading content from the hub while in the software and am aware that by doing so they are being installed where they extend to go. There are so many addons that go all over the place that I don’t know how to navigate. Most of the files I’m trying to locate are downloaded content, and as of now I have to keep going back and forth between the hub and the scene being worked on to see who the creator was and what files were downloaded to try and locate the files that I need to add to a scene. There are just so many subfolders in the directory and there are only a very few that I can find the sources. Many of the videos are indeed very helpful. I maybe wrong but I can’t seem to be able to find what I need as the situations I run into are a bit different from the videos.

No problem, just keep in mind that this is a multicultural community and intent is not often clear.
As you can already see, we're willing to help users a lot. VaM can be quite overwhelming, be it for newcomers and experienced users, and the content shared is diverse in type and quality. There's a world to explore and if you take it steady you'll quickly get through the basics to more advanced things and, in my opinion, when you get to create something on your own is where the enjoyment truly begins.

So, make sure to go through those tutorial videos and try to reproduce what happens in them to make store some mechanical memory in you.
Then you can also check the Guides section in Resources and the Wiki, but more importantly play around and try doing things.
Good luck

 

[T_bob]

There are so many addons that go all over the place that I don’t know how to navigate. Most of the files I’m trying to locate are downloaded content, and as of now I have to keep going back and forth between the hub and the scene being worked on to see who the creator was and what files were downloaded to try and locate the files that I need to add to a scene.

Sorry if I'm wrong, but It seems to me that you are using this website to download your scenes and looks when as a beginner you should use the in game hub browse. Try this...> click on the Hub Browse and find your scene and download all. Also don't get too caught up with the all the errors that show up if the scene looks good then just go with it.

This as an example of the in game Hub Browse.

 

[johara45]

Sorry if I'm wrong, but It seems to me that you are using this website to download your scenes and looks when as a beginner you should use the in game hub browse. Try this...> click on the Hub Browse and find your scene and download all. Also don't get too caught up with the all the errors that show up if the scene looks good then just go with it.
View attachment 325420


This as an example of the in game Hub Browse.



View attachment 325423

 

[johara45]

Yes at first I was using the site to download content and ended deleting it all after learning that the I can access the hub while in game and downloading from there. I guess the problem for me is that I downloaded so much content along with the dependent plugins, it’s difficult for me to navigate so many folders that was created from the download much less remembering the names so I can search for the folder. I guess I’m gonna have to try my best to remember the names as it seems its the only way when trying to add an atom by unity assets

 

[atani]

I still don't get your reference to many folders. You're not supposed to extract the contents of VAR files, you just need to place the VAR files in the AddonPackages folder; that's it. That's what the built-in Hub browser does, it downloads the VARs to that folder and scans them in.
The other folders are not important for you unless you know why you're using them.

 

[johara45]

I still don't get your reference to many folders. You're not supposed to extract the contents of VAR files, you just need to place the VAR files in the AddonPackages folder; that's it. That's what the built-in Hub browser does, it downloads the VARs to that folder and scans them in.
The other folders are not important for you unless you know why you're using them.

Hello Atani, thanks for asking. One of the problems I'm having for example is that I load a default scene with the person in it from the main menu, then I remove the environment with the intension of using one that I downloaded from the ingame hub. Thats when I have trouble looking for that particular content. When I add atom, and choose misc, custom unity assets I end up having so many folders to look through unless I can remember the name of the person who uploaded the content and search for that particular name and browse files from them. I guess I'd have to download one thing at a time as I need to add it in so I don't have so many folders to search for the evironment I want to add. I'm not sure if there is a different way to make that process easier. I'm still learning so not sure if thats the case. I will try and take a screen shot of my directory a little later to show what im having issues with its a bit hard to explain.

 

[johara45]

Here is where I'm getting stuck and been trying for the last 2 hours trying to figure out. How do I get this person atom into this environment? If I choose add person atom, a random person is added (one that I cannot choose). I tried adding it by selecting "misc" then "custom unity assets" but cannot find or navigate to the person to add it. It doesn't seem possible to add it this way as I cannot locate the file. I must be doing something wrong, I would think that this should be something rather simple. (Screen shots below)

 

[johara45]

Als

Here is where I'm getting stuck and been trying for the last 2 hours trying to figure out. How do I get this person atom into this environment? If I choose add person atom, a random person is added (one that I cannot choose). I tried adding it by selecting "misc" then "custom unity assets" but cannot find or navigate to the person to add it. It doesn't seem possible to add it this way as I cannot locate the file. I must be doing something wrong, I would think that this should be something rather simple. (Screen shots below)

Also is there a way to reset Vam if I mess things up some how, I mean without having to reinstall the software? I also have one more question regarding a plugin. I noticed that a context menu plugin is available, would this be of great help?

 

[atani]

Ok, so that's what you mean by folders ? . I was worried you were unpacking VARs, some people do that, and it's just a huge mess that they're making and shooting themselves on the foot.

Also is there a way to reset Vam if I mess things up some how, I mean without having to reinstall the software? I also have one more question regarding a plugin. I noticed that a context menu plugin is available, would this be of great help?

No idea about the plugin, never used it, or maybe I did for 5 seconds but ditched it because I was already used to VaM's UI.
Mess things how? Unless you go about removing core files I don't see why you'd need to reinstall the software.

Here is where I'm getting stuck and been trying for the last 2 hours trying to figure out. How do I get this person atom into this environment? If I choose add person atom, a random person is added (one that I cannot choose). I tried adding it by selecting "misc" then "custom unity assets" but cannot find or navigate to the person to add it. It doesn't seem possible to add it this way as I cannot locate the file. I must be doing something wrong, I would think that this should be something rather simple. (Screen shots below)

You add a person atom in a scene and then you change its appearance using appearance presets, that's how you get a specific person in a scene. Appearance presets may exist in, more commonly, VAR of looks/appearances, or you make your own appear. presets like is shown in the tutorials. Often looks creators only make a scene and no app. preset, so you need one time to open the scene, make the app. preset, then you can use that preset in any scene you want.

A person is a atom person, not a atom CUA. You have many other types of atoms like UIbuttons, shapes, built-in environments that are not CUA, etc. See the tutorials, the wiki, the guides in resources, there's a lot of information about.
When you are in that panel to load something the folders and files shown are contextual. If you are adding a CUA atom it only shows on the sidebar folders and files that are related to CUAs, not to say textures or something else. There's a filter box on top that you can write the name of what you're looking for, works really well.

 

[Twerk vr]

Hey johara

Here is where I'm getting stuck and been trying for the last 2 hours trying to figure out. How do I get this person atom into this environment? If I choose add person atom, a random person is added (one that I cannot choose). I tried adding it by selecting "misc" then "custom unity assets" but cannot find or navigate to the person to add it. It doesn't seem possible to add it this way as I cannot locate the file. I must be doing something wrong, I would think that this should be something rather simple. (Screen shots below)

I perfectly understand what you mean when you say I'm lost with all the folder and i should download one at a time. I had the same thoughts at my begining for the same thing. In fact when you want to load an environnement in your Custom Unity Assets, there is one button that show you all your downloaded Assets : just click on "AddonPackages Flattened" and yep! you see all the environnement downloaded !

And to add a Person you downloaded yes you have to start by loading the basic person and find in her options tab "load look" or "apparence preset" and then click also on the magical button "AddonPackages Flattened" to see all the Looks you downloaded. Click on one look you like and that's it!
I hope it will solve your frustration!

 

[johara45]

Ah, ok I get it that makes sense why I was having issues trying to get a person into the environment. I kinda had a feeling that the person needed to go first and trying to do it the other way wouldn't work. Been messing around with it a little more and Atani you were right about my issues in the scene going all crazy on me when I tried adding the environment after the person. I turned of the collision on the person before adding the environment in and was able to move and adjust the scene with out it going all nuts on me, the video on youtube helped me with that issue. I'll have to look at more tutorials and resources to find out many of your terminologies I have no idea what CUA's are or some of the other things you mentioned.

Again thanks everyone for contributing all of your information it all helps.