Showing Shared Media at the right aspect ratio

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Shared Media is setup to show square media. However, you can change this to fit any aspect ratio. Doing so isn't instant and could probably be easier in the future. There are three key things you need to know and do:

1. The media's exact dimensions in pixels.
2. The offset alignment of the media — calculated with an Align button.
3. The aspect ratio of the media — easily calculated using a tool, as we'll see.

This example presumes you already know how to add Shared Media to an object and have the URL ready. This kind of content works (this isn't a complete list, just examples):

• Direct links to a supported image type like an animated GIF, JPG, or PNG.
  • By the way, we used to need special converters to show animated GIFs in Second Life, and they'd appear at reduced quality. Now, you can show it as-intended.
• Rich interactive media like Flash that's isolated on a page.
  • This technique doesn't directly work if there's a page with a Flash media embedded in the middle of whole bunch of other stuff, but usually works if the Flash media is the only thing on the page.
• data: URIs that fall under the above.

Watch this video tutorial to see how it works in action, then as-needed, follow the text steps below:

Finding and applying the media's dimensions

View the media in an external web browser.

• If it's an image, most browsers show the size in pixels (like 500x374) in the title bar.
• If it's Flash media or something else, try viewing the page source (usually available as a context menu option if you right-click the page). Try this example and look for where it says height="433" width="720".

Once you have those dimensions, in the Second Life Viewer:

1. Right-click the prim and choose Edit.
2. In the build tools that open, click the Texture tab.
3. Click Select face.
4. Near the bottom-right corner, click the gear icon.
5. Under the MEDIA SETTINGS' General tab, uncheck Auto Scale Media on Face of Object.
6. Enter the exact size in the Size fields.
7. Click OK.

Aligning the media

This is easy. Back in the Texture tab of the build tools, click Align. You should see the media wrap and "hug" the full face of the prim.

Entering the aspect ratio

In your web browser, do a pixels-to-meters conversion:

1. Open a calculator like the cleverly-named Aspect Ratio Calculator or the Continuum Javascript Ratio Calculator.
2. In one set of boxes, enter the pixel dimensions of the media you used earlier.
3. In the other set of boxes, enter one of the desired dimensions of the prim (up to 10x10m for non-megaprims). The calculator gives you the other number.

Back in the Viewer:

1. Still in the Object tab of the build tools, enter that second set of metric numbers. The prim resizes and the media should appear at the right aspect ratio without undesired squashing/stretching.

You're done!