Animation Upload Priority

Most animations should be uploaded at priority 2. A few must be higher priority to override the corresponding default animation. Remember that when two or more animations have the same maximum priority for the same joints, the one that plays last is the one that takes effect. Almost all animations should define chest and abdomen movement.

There are good reasons for those recommendations. Animations of priority 1 or less, or that do not define abdomen movement, will have random abdomen movement added, which is never desirable. If you don't define chest movement, breathing will be added for you, which might be a problem if you want to control the breathing rate, or don't want breathing (e.g. for a robot avatar). Using the lowest priority that works, while still avoiding problems like the ones just mentioned, is best, because it allows animations to be mixed.

If you engage in the common malpractice of uploading all animations at priority 4 people using your animations will have to turn their animation overriders on and off, constantly, unnecessarily, and that will make your animations less popular than those that follow these guidelines.

Animation Type	Default Priority	Upload Priority
stand	0	2
walk	3	3
run	0	2
prejump	0	2
jump	0	2
sit	4	Not Applicable[1]
ground sit	3	3
crouch	0	2
crouch walk	0	2
fall	3	3
hover	0	2
fly	0	2
slow fly	0	2
upward fly	0	2
downward fly	0	2
land	0	2
stand up	3	3
turn left	1	2
turn right	1	2
typing	2	4
floating	Not Applicable[2]	2
swimming forward	Not Applicable[3]	2
swimming up	Not Applicable[4]	2
swimming down	Not Applicable[5]	2
furniture	Not Applicable[6]	4
pose stand	Not Applicable[6]	4
dance	Not Applicable[6]	4
gesture	Not Applicable[6]	4
drink/eat	Not Applicable[6]	4

Overriding Animations

Consider leaving the head and neck joints undefined in standing and sitting (ground and furniture included) animations. This will allow the head to follow the camera and pointer.

When making sitting (ground and furniture included) animations that you expect to be used where people build or teach consider defining the movement of the lShldr, lForeArm, and lHand joints in a separate animation of priority 2. Most animation overriders will allow you to play multiple animations at once. This will allow the left arm to aim at what is being pointed to. By keeping your standing animations at priority 2 they should allow this behavior with one animation.

You may not want to define Foot movement for animations where your feet touch the ground (standing, walking, running, prejumping, crouching, crouch walking, landing, and turning animations). If you don't, the angle of the feet will be matched to the terrain. You may not want to define hip motion for animations where your feet touch the ground and you are upright with your hips not moving (standing and turning animations) for the same reason.

Flying and swimming animations of priority 2, or that do not define hip motion, will roll to follow the angle of flight. This is usually desired.

Typing animations should only effect the arms so they can be used with other animations (like furniture animations).

Animated Attachments

Attachments for drinking and eating should only effect the head, neck, and arms so they can be used with other animations (like furniture animations).

You're best off using the Linden Lab provided animations (hold_r_bazooka/aim_r_bazooka, hold_l_bow/aim_l_bow/shoot_l_bow, hold_r_handgun/aim_r_handgun, hold_r_rifle/aim_r_rifle) for projectile weapons. They have their joints adjusted to increase realism when in mouselook mode.

Footnotes

1. ^ Overriding the normal sit in a animation overrider is pointless since it will almost always be overridden by pose balls. Doing so often prevents pose balls from working. It is, however, good to know the priority of the default animation so you can override it for pose balls. Overriding ground sit in a animation overrider is useful.
2. ^ underwater "hover"
3. ^ underwater "fly"
4. ^ underwater "upward fly"
5. ^ underwater "downward fly"
6. ^ no default animation