So you want to install your files manually? Or maybe you don't want to, but you have got to anyway. Open up the Zip and have a look at what you've got. This is one of Steve Shanks' files from Poser World.

If there's a .obj file in there, as there is in the example above, it MUST go in the right place, i.e. in the same place as it was on the author's computer. If not, it won't work. There should be a readme file which will tell you where it goes, which will probably be in a sub-folder off the Geometries folder. If there is no readme file, you can dig for the information. We'll cover that later.

Highlight the .obj file or files, and click on the "Extract" button.

Enter the path that was given for the .obj file, which may involve you in creating a new folder. BEWARE! The folder names are cAsE SenSitIvE when Poser uses them, even though they aren't in Windows. Ensure you get the capitalization right on your new folder name. Make sure that the "Use folder names" box is not ticked. Click the "Extract" button.

If there are texture files (.jpg, .bmp or .tif), it's a good idea to put them where the author suggests. If no suggestions are made, the Runtime\textures folder and sub-folders from it are a good bet. Poser 4 will look for textures automatically in these folders; Poser 3 won't but it's a good idea to put things here so it will be ready if you upgrade.

Poser 3 users will have to convert .jpg files to .bmp or .tif before they can be used. You can save disk space by also reducing the colour depth to 256 colours (or even less). Don't worry that this will affect your images, because Poser will extrapolate the colours as it renders. You won't end up with a 256 colour result!

Bump maps (.bum extension, nice sense of humour somebody!) are a special Poser format, and are usually distributed as .jpg. Poser will convert them for you the first time they're used. Poser 4 will search for them if they're applied to the item you've installed, so it's a good idea to have them ready converted before you use your new download. Open up Poser, call up a prop such as the square, and apply the bump map to it using the materials dialogue. Poser will convert the map the first time, thereafter it will be ready for use. Pro Pack users can use .jpg bump maps directly.

Now for the library files themselves. That's anything with one of the "magic" file extensions .cm2, .cr2, .fc2, .hr2, .hd2, .lt2, .pz2 and .pp2, along with their associated .rsr files if they are provided. The .rsr file always has exactly the same file name root as its "mother", and must stay with it. Don't worry if there isn't a .rsr, or if you have a .png instead; non Pro Pack users can ignore the .png, and the missing .rsr can be regenerated if you want to. All that will happen is that you won't get a thumbnail in the library, just the shrugging man.

The files with the "magic" extensions must go in a sub-folder of their associated library folder, but this can be called anything you like and can be changed later if you want. For example, I'm going to put Steve's suit in

c:\Program Files\MetaCreations\Poser3\libraries\character\Clothing- Female.

Just like that. Make sure that the "Use folder names" box is not ticked. It doesn't actually matter in this case, because there was no path information anyway, but it's a good habit to get into. If you want to manually place some files from a Zip which does contain path information, this box MUST be unchecked; otherwise your files will go in the wrong place.

And there you go. It should work now. The only thing to be aware of, if you had Poser open at the time with that particular library visible, is that the new item won't show up straight away. Just go and look at some other library for a bit, come back again and it should be there.

What to do if you don't know where the .obj file should go

Highlight the .cr2 file in WinZip, then click on "View". Choose the internal text viewer option, because Notepad won't handle it.

Look for the line somewhere near the top which starts "figureResFile" - that's your path. Just remember to replace the colons with backslashes, and add on the full Poser path. For example, on my PC the Tshirt.obj file would go here:
c:\Program Files\MetaCreations\Poser3\Runtime\Geometries\Poser4Clothes\Shirts\Tshirt.obj

Remember that the bits in front of Runtime may vary for you.

Index • Introduction • Self Installing Files • What Type is it?