Set Shininess to Low and the color to Black.
- Set Transparency to 0 and Glow to 0.00.
- Set Shininess to Low. If you set it to Moderate or High the glass will look more reflective, but also will become appear more gray than black. This is a personal preference, you may like the grayer but shinier look.
- Click on the white square with “Color” written below it. The Color Picker window will open.
- Click on the black color swatch to select true black as the color.
- Close the Color Picker and Pick Texture windows by clicking “OK” for each.
Tip: I use black because it makes the window look like a very dark tint. Change the color to any other color you wish. The color you pick will be the color of the window when seen from outside.
Click on the "Select Face" button. Click on the inside face of your panel to select it for editing.
- Select the “Select Face” button.
- Click on the side of the panel facing the inside of the room. Selecting a face allows you to make changes only to the side of the panel you selected. This will allow you to change the inside of the panel to be transparent so that you can see out, while the opposite side of the panel will remain opaque black, so nobody can see in.
Set the transparency to 50%, or any degree of tint you like.
- Change the transparency to 50%. You can adjust the transparency value up or down for the amount of tint you want, darker or lighter. You can change the color if you like also, this will be the tint color as seen from the inside.
Optional: If you want the view out of the window to be completely transparent, not tinted, you will need to change the texture on the inside of the panel. A special transparency texture is included in your inventory. Click on texture to open the Pick Texture window again. From the inventory menu select Library > Textures > *Default Transparent Texture . Warning- once applied your panel will become completely transparent, hard to see, and very difficult to click on! Press Ctrl+Alt+T to toggle transparency on/off so that you can see it and select it for editing.
Rotate your camera to the side. Move the panel up against the window and stretch the sides so that it covers the entire window.
- Select the Move button.
- Move the panel over into the window frame or up against the window.
- Select the Stretch button.
- Stretch the edges of the panel so that they extend into the wall and the panel covers the entire window area.
From inside the home it now looks like a tinted window. The tint gives a feeling of more privacy.
Finished!
From outside it is black & appears reflective, you can't see in.
It’s not perfect, but so far nobody who has looked at the house has realized the upstairs windows are blacked out.
Of course, someone can still maneuver their camera inside the house for a look. But at least it feels like it is more private, and I think it looks classier than those wood privacy shutters that come with the Linden Home!
Want to brick up your window?!! Probably not but it illustrates what is possible. Yes, on the inside it looks like a normal window and you can see out through it. One of the fun things about Second Life is you don’t have to always obey the rules of physics!
This bricked in window looks like a normal transparent window from the inside. Not pretty, but it makes the point. You can use any texture you want on the outside, and it is still transparent from inside!
Troubleshooting:
If you have trouble selecting the one-way glass panel after making it transparent, press Ctrl+Alt+T to highlight the transparent objects making them visible and easier to select. The transparent window will be highlighted red, along with anything else in the vicinity that has transparent parts (like most avatar’s hair!) Press Ctrl+Alt+T again to remove the highlighting.
Once the one-way glass panel is moved up against an existing window it can be very hard to select for editing. The editor will try to grab the largest item in the vicinity, which is typically the house wall, floor, or existing window. Try these tricks:
- The one-way glass panel may actually be on the outside of the existing window. Try panning your camera outside and see if you can select it from there.
- Try getting in as close as you can to the window. Place your avatar at a right angle to the window, so your shoulder is touching it. Now move the camera sideways into the window space. (Using Alt+left arrow or Alt+right arrow works best to move the camera with more control.) Try to get the camera between the window and the panel if you can. It is easier to select the one-way glass pane if you can get your camera right up against it.
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