Reflex forum is now closed

[Paden]

I'm totally a non-mesher, but even to me those look too similar to be anything original from the second person.

[calalily]

Have you checked the mapping?

Doh! Didn't even occur to me. 

Here's heidi's map:
 

Here's reflex map:


They're mapped completely differently, except marcela's makes no logical sense.  Heidi's is how I would map it. Reflex map looks like she didn't realise she could use Heidi's mapped object as well - or perhaps she's a really crap mesher.

[Paden]

This IS the woman that sells stuff that bleeds so badly that it's unusable in the game, unless you enjoy your beds, bathtubs, sinks, etc sitting in the center of the room where they can't sink through the walls when they're up.

[Darqstar]

Oh yeah, Reflex stole that, no doubt in my mind.  I'm not a mesher, but the Doc did a lot of meshing and I watched him and saw enough that I know duplication to that extent is impossible.  And I'm betting Reflex deliberately remapped in order to throw people off the track.

I understand that she doesn't want to cause a fuss, but it doesn't seem right that someone who can whine about stealing and go on the side of TSR because OMG, they iz loozin teh monezz! and then steal from a fellow creator is about as low as you can get.

I'd be tempted to put up a mini website where you could put the pictures up and the explanations and then put the URL in my sig file on ever forum I could find, including the official BBS.  Don't say, "HEY I'M SLAMMING REFLEX!" just leave it and let folks judge for themselves. 

[calalily]

I'll go with a really poor mesher AND a really poor mapper, lol.

Marcela...YOU SUCK! How could you cheat like that? I am ashamed of you for doing that. How could you have the audacity and steal someone elses work and credit it as your own? Maybe it's time we checked all your other meshes too. Well spotted calalily. This is where it would be good to use programs that implant a digital code into a mesh. It's makes them easily traceable, even if modified. It's not sheap but it can be worth doing to prevent stuff from being stolen like this. I'm an experienced mesher too and I can absolutely see that the meshes started off as the same. It's so obvious. Agreed as to why it needed to be so high poly in the first place, don't they know not to use sub-divide for Sims stuff? You can create just as good a shapes by being clever with the vertices. Even by making am extensive topography map you can drastically cut down the numbers. That's the secret of doing a good job with texturing Marcela. And you reckon you're a good artist? We can all make highly detailed meshes using lots of polys, but you don't need to! I am really pleased that you showed us that calalily, thank you.

A really poor mapper because she didn't make it.

Well, I think our problem is going to be finding the original - she waited until this had been offline for a year or two and thought it safe.  I agree with all your points. If only heidi wasn't a good mesher, we could look for similar faults in her mesh - but she's too good. In all fairness, Heidi made this when the community was just modding - so she wasn't to know the problems she was creating - when she did, she pulled it.  But, Marcela sees it as an opportunity to SELL SELL SELL!

And looking at the map - she's obviously stolen it - the only other detailed flowers she has are in the pearl apartment set (as far as I could see) and it looks like they weren't mapped by an idiotic monkey.

I understand that she doesn't want to cause a fuss, but it doesn't seem right that someone who can whine about stealing and go on the side of TSR because OMG, they iz loozin teh monezz! and then steal from a fellow creator is about as low as you can get.

Well, she doesn't want it sold - and she's hesitant because of previous dramas.  She's angry about this - ironically she found it because of the reflexsims forum drama! Marcela and Thomass shot themselves in the foot it seems. Idiots.

[Darqstar]

Well, maybe we need a Hall of Shame thread, like TSR had on the pirates, but we'll be legal and only use Net identities.  And then anyone who finds something like this, can put it up, let other people judge too.  Or, was this already done?

[eternal_darkness]

That's beyond pathetic   If you're going to charge for something, the least you could bother to do is create your OWN stuff.

[calalily]

Well, I think our problem is going to be finding the original - she waited until this had been offline for a year or two and thought it safe.  I agree with all your points. If only heidi wasn't a good mesher, we could look for similar faults in her mesh - but she's too good. In all fairness, Heidi made this when the community was just modding - so she wasn't to know the problems she was creating - when she did, she pulled it.

Whoops! Sorry, Marcela had gotten me so wound up that I temporarily had a brain freeze and forgot that Heidi made the original mesh. My apologies to both heidi and to yourself calalily. Marcela...YOU STILL SUCKETH FOR MAKING ME ANGRIETH! *goes and hides in corner with rum in hand and calms down*

Meh - confusion happens. I did it myself yesterday, and was forced to macro myself back to the stone age. Have a macro and feel better:

[Anouk]

Really you shouldn't be surprised. Theft in their dictionary is when THEIR pockets aren't being lined sufficiently. They have no other meaning for the word theft.

[Heidi]

Calalily thank you very much for posting this here.

In Marcela's FAQ she says:
 
·         -What happen to the Forum?

Unfortunatly the moderators have not accepted reflexsims`policies concearning piracy, and file-sharing. For Reflexsims it is important to respect the intellectual property of all designers, and to share file with other members is only allowed with permission of the designer. Also Reflexsims does not agree with the piracy-mentality of some communities, and the Forum sadly became one of them with the time. It is really sad for me, but I had no other choice.

I was just livid that she caused an innocent forum and thousands of members to be displaced for "piracy" when she herself is selling something she didn't even make. I am used to paysites using premade meshes and selling them to unsuspecting customers, but I never in a milion years would have imagined them using something of mine. Especially something so old and so...bad! It is pretty clearly stated in my policy that you can't use anything of mine on any paysite.

I think the reason she used that very odd texture map is that she figured it would give her away to use mine. Unfortunately for her, all the pieces had been merged together, so her only option, barring using my map which would be risky, was to remap it the only way she could.

If you look at her site, she has my oriingal vase and flowers all over the pictures of some of her "free" sets. Several years ago she put it on her site without my permission when she recolored it. At the time, it was actually fine she did that because my site was down and I told her so after it had been up for download for a while. My point is that she has had access to that thing almost from the time I made it.


 

[rum nate]

Really you shouldn't be surprised. Theft in their dictionary is when THEIR pockets aren't being lined sufficiently. They have no other meaning for the word theft.

Your right nouk. Theft is when they don't get their money or someone takes an item from their site and re posts is. But when they take an item from another site and re post it, its being an open and sharing community.

[calalily]

Calalily thank you very much for posting this here.

You are most welcome. 

I think the reason she used that very odd texture map is that she figured it would give her away to use mine. Unfortunately for her, all the pieces had been merged together, so her only option, barring using my map which would be risky, was to remap it the only way she could.

Yeah - if she remapped it grouped, when she didn't with the other one - that shows she's trying to hide it.  I could have hidden it in the map - but I'm better than her. Bet she thought you'd never see it, and had forgotten about it.  Lousy bitch - after what she did to the Black Pearlers.

[oolongteadrinker]

Your right nouk. Theft is when they don't get their money or someone takes an item from their site and re posts is. But when they take an item from another site and re post it, its being an open and sharing community.

*snerk* Perhaps its been kind of a glum day. But this has provided my first real chuckle thus far.
Thanks for that.

[Solander]

Here's reflex map:


They're mapped completely differently, except marcela's makes no logical sense.  Heidi's is how I would map it. Reflex map looks like she didn't realise she could use Heidi's mapped object as well - or perhaps she's a really crap mesher.

Oh, it makes sense. Looks like a map you get if you use BodyPaint, which is available with Cinema4D. And as far as i know, she uses it to create her meshes. The reason for those extremly weird maps is, that you paint the mesh in the program like using photoshop in 3D and the program creates the UV map and applies the colors to it automaticaly. This way, you can get almost perfectly textured surfaces (no distortion effects, smooth transition between different parts of the mesh etc. etc.) but the UV map is almost unusable for anyone not working with BodyPaint and Cinema.

Don't nail me down on this, but i am pretty sure this is the explanation for this somewhat strange mapping

[Anouk]

That, or you simply use 'remap' and select from wich side you want to remap in Milkshape. Has the same inefficient result.