Chic at Ebbe's Place

I can comment although my opinion may change as I get smarter. I have made and uploaded about a dozen things. Some jewelry (that vanity thing) and a home and decor set (new out today at a gacha :D) that will be my first "experience". 

This is what I am working on now. I am as far out in the default template as I can get. You can see everything that I have placed clearly including a small path light with lantern (you obviously can't see the lantern clearly as it is too far away).

Someone else (SL- Sansar - Cloud Party) mentioned LOD issues but I don't have any. I am guessing (mind you day 5 here) that the issue arises when someone uploads some heavy mesh (unfortunately that seems to plague Sansar too -- even at this early date). The uploader will try and optimize the mesh -- presumably so that a 4000 triangle stool doesn't upload at that obscene number .

THAT could certainly cause issues. 

I spotted that feature the first time I uploaded so I turned it off and it stays off unless you turn it on again. MIND YOU (that Universal you) I am FOR that feature. I make pretty low poly mesh, certainly lower than much of that produced in SL or likely Sansar from the screenshots I am seeing) -- not as low a ChinRey's of course, but still very low. 

So, if youf topology is good and your mesh low density it doesn't seem like there is an issue. It uploads well. 

On thing The Lab did in Sansar was to limit the texture loads. The largest png you can upload is 4096 which sounds huge and it is. But you can only upload ONE texture per mesh object (linksets can have more but they have their own issue of no physics (collision there) mesh.  

In fact while it IS a good idea to upload a single texture (fewer calls) you CAN use different textures for your items. THAT I figured out on day six and am fixing this post.  So in reality that 4096 "could" be a good thing (one giant texture for an auditorium say with just one call) but it can also be used for CLARITY (OMG) causing framerates to plummet.  

That's a GOOD thing I think but I am having to remap and sometimes rebake my mesh to get it there. If it is a simple object there would be no issues, but I didn't start out simply, I went for the challenging stuff first LOL.

I am not sure what happens to things on lower graphics settings (just of late (like the last update) you can lower you graphics settings to medium or low) but this seems to be a long time issue from comments that I hear so I am thinking that wouldn't change. 

So YES, you do not declare your LODs on upload or make custom LOD models (I am well-known for avoid that anyway). Again, it all comes down to how well your topology was made for the object you are uploading.  

You still need to upload physics models (optional but I do it on everything as I LIKE furniture you bump into and with no physics model - no bumping AND harder on the system).   I am not sure if you need to align your physics model exactly to your mesh and apply location, rotation and scale but I have been doing it that way and successfully. You can SEE your physics easily in the editing choices by simply turning that on. Very handy.

So I really don't think it is any EASIER to make mesh in Sansar than SL. The rules are slightly different, but the basic rules of game asset mesh still apply --- as they would in any platform.

Hope that was useful info! 

PS. That house and shed (one build) weighs in at 15 in SL so you know it is low poly. The landform which COULD be up to 5000 tris (I think it was tris) is 326 ^^. It uploaded super easily with no changes. I just attached a tiling texture (no tiling though) to it on upload. I may play around with that a bit later as there isn't a normal map (those work MUCH BETTER in SANSAR) and I could try a larger texture for finer detail. But still I was happy with it.  Perfect physics and your feet turn at an angle to the slope (oh my). 

PS2 (so much to say): According to the knowledge base LOD (I don't think it actually mentions LODs in the article) are made automatically dependent on SIZE AND COMPLEXITY (if I am remembering that correctly).  Not exactly sure how that works at this point. My earrings in the photo are very very low poly mesh -- especially for earrings -- from Cloud Party (new textures) and I haven't noted them disappearing at any distance.