Thoughts and Tips on Packaging DAZ Products
188Thread Activity
DoroThee237Sun, Jan 18
BobbSat, Jan 17
Luxe MuseFri, Jan 16
IB2024Fri, Jan 16
G3 RenderworksFri, Jan 16
RenderHub Admin 1Fri, Jan 16
First off, this post isn't meant to come down on anyone because I've made some of the mistakes I'm about to describe. There have also been plenty of them in official Daz products. This comes as I'm in the process of generating metadata and going through a ton of product files from multiple stores. Most of it will probably be my opinion as both a vendor and consumer of Daz content since to my knowledge, there isn't some super official documentation to refer to. This may seem like I'm nitpicking but it's very easy for Daz libraries to become cluttered and disorganized.
That's all I have for now but I'll add more if I come across anything. If you have any other tips then I'd love to hear them.
- Documents, readme's, instructions etc should be placed in a folder called "Documents". Not Document, Docs, Readme, etc. The files themselves should also be uniquely named. If everyone just uses "Readme" as the file name, then it will be overwritten by the last product installed.
- Spelling matters. Most of the high level Daz folders seem to be plural (ie props, poses, materials). The "s" matters because if you leave it out, you create an unnecessary extra folder that just clutters things.
- Use the common folders and don't try to reinvent the wheel. Unless there is a really good reason for your product to have it's very own top level folder, I would just put it in one of the usual suspects.
- When packing your product for distribution, you don't need a "Content" folder unless you're creating a DIM compatible product with the appropriate manifest and supplement files. I also wouldn't bother putting everything in a "My Library" folder. Just leave it all as the top level stuff like data, runtime, people, etc. so it's easier to install manually.
- For non-unified figures like G8, you have the following folders: Genesis 8 Female, Genesis 8 Male, and Genesis 8. If your product applies to both figures, then I would put it in the Genesis 8 folder. Otherwise, use the respective male/female folders. I also wouldn't bother with the 8.1 folders unless the product only works with 8.1 like certain materials.
- Try not to use special characters in your product names or folders. The ampersand (&) in particular tends to throw errors when it comes to metadata and DIM.
- This one is definitely personal preference but if your product is a set of morphs that make up a character, then you should include a character preset.
- Label your files well. If you have two files with the same name and image but one is for G8 and the other G9, smart content won't show the difference even if you put them in separate folders.
That's all I have for now but I'll add more if I come across anything. If you have any other tips then I'd love to hear them.
! REPORT
Ego folders.....there's something that gets people wound up. I manually install everything and any references to the creator gets changed or deleted.
REPLY
! REPORT
G3 Renderworks
Karma: 2,847
Thu, Jan 15That's interesting. I thought having the same author's stuff together was helpful and it's something I do with my products. I wonder how many people dislike it and if I should change it.
IB2024
Karma: 1,622
Thu, Jan 15It's a funny thing, some folks get really worked up about it, others dont care in the slightest...
Personally when manually installing I'll put most assets into general folders (clothing, accessories etc.) and ditch the creator folders. Others like characters I'll sort by creator as I don't want them all muddled up.... Either way I don't lose any sleep over the presence of (or lack of) creator folders...
There's really no right answer in this one!
Personally when manually installing I'll put most assets into general folders (clothing, accessories etc.) and ditch the creator folders. Others like characters I'll sort by creator as I don't want them all muddled up.... Either way I don't lose any sleep over the presence of (or lack of) creator folders...
There's really no right answer in this one!
Luxe Muse
Karma: 6,140
Thu, Jan 15This is something I have always wanted to do, but I bet you have more time or patience, or both, Bob. I do try to keep genre folders, though: sci-fi, fantasy, contemporary, and so on. I would love to have it more granular, like yours.
Bobb
Karma: 1,152
Thu, Jan 15The problem I have with 'ego' folders is that I rarely remember who made what but I ALWAYS remember the item. Even long time and prolific artists get their named folders removed.
Luxe Muse
Karma: 6,140
Thu, Jan 15It makes sense. The definition also fits. Besides, we do not do that with things we own. None of my kitchen items are grouped by vendor. Spoons and forks simply go where they belong.
RenderHub Admin 1
Admin: 15,204
Fri, Jan 16This has nothing to do with "ego". This is an important step vendors must take to prevent a situation where their product conflicts with another vendor's product.
Please see my full post below.
Please see my full post below.
Luxe Muse
Karma: 6,140
Fri, Jan 16Yes, absolutely. From a vendor standpoint, this is a must. The same goes for naming our morphs and making sure they are truly unique. As a user, however, I see why one would like to do it differently, given that you have control over how to install the content.
Your article was one of the very first I read on Renderhub, and it served as a guide. Thank you for that.
Your article was one of the very first I read on Renderhub, and it served as a guide. Thank you for that.
Whe it comes to clothes or characters, ego don't matter,
but when it comes to environments, I don't mind all of Stonemason's stuff in one folder, or Predatron's , or a host of others. Easier to find stuff, then to wade through the long list of individual scene items. And since those PAs have been around longer than most executives at Daz, and certainly longer than this site and most users, they get special privileges.
but when it comes to environments, I don't mind all of Stonemason's stuff in one folder, or Predatron's , or a host of others. Easier to find stuff, then to wade through the long list of individual scene items. And since those PAs have been around longer than most executives at Daz, and certainly longer than this site and most users, they get special privileges.
REPLY
! REPORT
In fact, nothing prevents a user from organizing the duf file structure in a way that's convenient for them. It's true that the creator's username isn't necessarily the most logical way to quickly find the file you need to create an image.
REPLY
! REPORT
G3 Renderworks
Karma: 2,847
Thu, Jan 15True, I just think it's a good idea to have an agreed upon default so everyone knows what to expect.
Very nice advice, @G3Renderworks. Thank you.
I personally deviate a little on one small thing. I don't place my characters under a characters folder; I keep them only within the branded folder. The metadata will still group them in the right category, but if you're like me and already know the author's name, I simply navigate directly to their folder.
Do any of you do anything differently because you think it makes others' lives easier?
I personally deviate a little on one small thing. I don't place my characters under a characters folder; I keep them only within the branded folder. The metadata will still group them in the right category, but if you're like me and already know the author's name, I simply navigate directly to their folder.
Do any of you do anything differently because you think it makes others' lives easier?
REPLY
! REPORT
Luxe Muse
Karma: 6,140
Thu, Jan 15My branded folder is within the Characters folder, I meant just my actor file, I don't drop it with the others.
G3 Renderworks
Karma: 2,847
Thu, Jan 15I don't use the content browser as much anymore but when I did, I always liked having all my characters appear in the characters folder. When I sell my own characters, I put one in the characters folder and another in the branded folder.
Luxe Muse
Karma: 6,140
Thu, Jan 15I see. The reason I chose to do it this way is that it annoys me when I am in the Smart Content tab and I right-click, hoping to go straight to the place in the content folder where everything about the character is kept, but I always end up landing in the Characters folder instead.
G3 Renderworks
Karma: 2,847
Thu, Jan 15I didn't realize that. I just tested with one of my products and if you place them in both characters and the product folders then they will take you to their respective folders so at least that's something.
Regarding the "ego folders" discussion above, it has nothing to do with "ego". This is an important step vendors must take to prevent a situation where their product conflicts with another vendor's product.
Here is the language from our Proper Folder Structure for Daz Content Best Practices article in the Learning Hub:
It is crucial for you to place all your content in a folder with your vendor name to ensure that you don't overwrite other vendors' products.
For example: If your character named "Jane" was simply placed under the Characters subfolder, it would cause problems if another vendor's character named "Jane" was also under the Characters subfolder.
In this scenario, your character folder would merge with the existing folder, and your files would overwrite the other vendor's files if they have the same name. The reverse would be true if your character were installed first. Your files could be overwritten by the other vendor's files.
-----
VENDORS: It is important that you follow these guidelines.
CUSTOMERS: Please do not encourage vendors to do otherwise.
Here is the language from our Proper Folder Structure for Daz Content Best Practices article in the Learning Hub:
It is crucial for you to place all your content in a folder with your vendor name to ensure that you don't overwrite other vendors' products.
For example: If your character named "Jane" was simply placed under the Characters subfolder, it would cause problems if another vendor's character named "Jane" was also under the Characters subfolder.
In this scenario, your character folder would merge with the existing folder, and your files would overwrite the other vendor's files if they have the same name. The reverse would be true if your character were installed first. Your files could be overwritten by the other vendor's files.
-----
VENDORS: It is important that you follow these guidelines.
CUSTOMERS: Please do not encourage vendors to do otherwise.
REPLY
! REPORT
Bobb
Karma: 1,152
Fri, Jan 16I have yet to buy a product that was named exactly the same as someone elses item, and I have items going back to Vicky Three and the early days of Poser.
RenderHub Admin 1
Admin: 15,204
Fri, Jan 16You're very fortunate. Our customer service has had to assist far too many people with troubleshooting problems caused by situations like this. The problem is even worse when vendors don't use a unique name for the files in the data folder.
This is just some of what I could find with a quick Google search for the "Jane" example... Imagine if all vendors just dumped all their products in the main subfolders.
https://www.renderhub.com/sonne/jane-for-genesis-8-and-8-1-female
https://www.renderhub.com/soft3d/jane-for-genesis-8-and-8-1-female
https://www.renderhub.com/i3d-max/jane-for-genesis-8-female
https://www.renderhub.com/heycheese/ar-jane-for-genesis-8-and-8-1-female
https://www.daz3d.com/xf-jane-for-genesis-8-females
https://www.daz3d.com/mbm-jane-for-genesis-3-and-8-female
https://www.renderosity.com/marketplace/products/152660/hid-jane-for-genesis-81-female
https://www.renderhub.com/history-degree-productions/hdp-jane-for-genesis-9
https://www.daz3d.com/hid-jane-for-genesis-9
This is just some of what I could find with a quick Google search for the "Jane" example... Imagine if all vendors just dumped all their products in the main subfolders.
https://www.renderhub.com/sonne/jane-for-genesis-8-and-8-1-female
https://www.renderhub.com/soft3d/jane-for-genesis-8-and-8-1-female
https://www.renderhub.com/i3d-max/jane-for-genesis-8-female
https://www.renderhub.com/heycheese/ar-jane-for-genesis-8-and-8-1-female
https://www.daz3d.com/xf-jane-for-genesis-8-females
https://www.daz3d.com/mbm-jane-for-genesis-3-and-8-female
https://www.renderosity.com/marketplace/products/152660/hid-jane-for-genesis-81-female
https://www.renderhub.com/history-degree-productions/hdp-jane-for-genesis-9
https://www.daz3d.com/hid-jane-for-genesis-9
G3 Renderworks
Karma: 2,847
Fri, Jan 16Good to know. I was already doing it because I thought it was standard practice for organization purposes. Although, I thought the way to differentiate your products was to add your initials to them. I start all my products with "G3R" for example.
Since you guys are here, can you tell me what you think about my other thread before I start putting work into it:
https://www.renderhub.com/forum/14286/selling-of-metadata-for-daz-smart-content
Since you guys are here, can you tell me what you think about my other thread before I start putting work into it:
https://www.renderhub.com/forum/14286/selling-of-metadata-for-daz-smart-content
IB2024
Karma: 1,622
Fri, Jan 16@bobb I'd pretty regularly come across clothing items with simple names like shirt, bra, pants etc...
Bobb
Karma: 1,152
Sat, Jan 17What 'saves' me is that I have developed great restraint when purchasing items. I only have ~20 characters for Vicky Fourpointtwoplusplus and not even a dozen for Gee-ate. I find that so many characters look the same, especially from the same creator. Clothes are the same. I don't buy fantasy or Sci-Fi gear. I have a HUGE lingerie fetish and will rename (if needed) to what it resembles, so I have bras named 'Maidenform Delicates' or Wonderbra 7422. I have a LOT of formal gowns and dresses but they all come (mostly) with historical and/or appropriate names.
Really, we should just accept that this old gent is stuck in his ways with a system that works for him and no one will ever pry it out of my arthritic old hands.
Now where's my bottle of Geritol?
Really, we should just accept that this old gent is stuck in his ways with a system that works for him and no one will ever pry it out of my arthritic old hands.
Now where's my bottle of Geritol?
DoroThee237
Karma: 14,841
Sun, Jan 18It's true that when you completely customize the DUF files and organize them in a custom tree structure, the risk of overwriting an existing product is extremely low!