TRUTH: Revolutionizing Hair In Second Life

Every so often a product comes out that changes the way everyone thinks about that commodity. Take Vista’s bento hands for example. They were the first bento hands publicly available and nearly everyone was fascinated, if not addicted, to the new and future possibilities. This week TRUTH released a hair product that is doing the very same thing, this time with no extra Linden Labs technology needed.

A Brief History

If you’ve ever purchased hair in Second Life, and even if you haven’t, you’ve likely heard of TRUTH. Named for the founder and designer, Truth Hawks, TRUTH is perhaps the most popular and successful hair brand in Second Life. While he specializes in women’s hair Truth has also developed some clothing and accessories. His products are found at his in world store, the Marketplace, and various events across the grid. He even created Uber, a sales event that both customers and designers look forward to every round.

VIP Group

The TRUTH VIP group was the first group I ever paid to join. Membership is a one time L$350 fee which gets you a VIP exclusive hair whenever he releases them for no additional charge. The hair is always a fatpack including all available colors. TRUTH fatpacks generally cost over L$1000 each, so paying a fraction of that for a steady stream of high quality hair was a no brainer for me.  In addition to free hair VIP members also get exclusive perks and a heads up about events TRUTH is participating in. T

Kare – Breaking The Mold

Kare is May’s VIP group gift. It comes fresh with entirely new Color HUDS, textures, and a brand new Stylist HUD! All future hair from TRUTH will use this system. Like what you see? Remember, Kare comes free with your VIP group membership. Not a member? Consider Kare a L$350 fatpack that gives you access to free hair every month.

What’s Familiar

Note: As of the July 2020 update this is actually old info! If you’re purchasing newer hairs you’ll have a newer HUD that combines the colors and the styles in one. You’ll also have a different selection of color groups and more realistic textures.

You’ll recognize a lot of colors in the new HUDs. Many are revamped versions of old HUDs that have been combined for a simpler purchase.

I love that I can just get all Redheads in one HUD now instead of having to grab both Reds and Gingers.

Not sure where to find your favorite TRUTH color? Don’t worry, I made this simple table to help you out.

Some have had slight alterations; for example Jewel appears to offer a few more vibrant options. Some of the roots along with the ombre style colors give the hair a tri-tone look.

Perks Of A New Color HUD

The new HUD has far more than just some combined colors. The HUD will originally open minimized, saving space if you aren’t quite ready to select your color. Just click on the logo (seen here) that appears on the top left of your HUD to expand to the full version.

The full version also has some handy little navigational buttons built in. At the bottom right of the HUD you’ll see four small circles. The first will open the VIP group, making it really easy for you to join if you’re not yet a member. The second is the store’s LM, the third will take you to the TRUTH Flickr page, and the last opens up TRUTH on Facebook.

Presenting Multitones!

This big texture update is turning heads. Previously dual tones would be an ombre type style. While that’s still an option we now have dual tone highlights! The Multitone HUDS have the color mixed all through, in both subtle and dramatic combinations. Multitone 1 offers mostly natural colors as bases while Multitone 2 shows off more of the specialty colors. I highly encourage playing with both. The subtle highlights work perfectly when a formal look is required but those vivid highlights can really draw the eye.

I’ve been wearing Kare in black with red highlights from the Multitone 2 HUD since I got the hair last night. I’ve already received dozens of compliments from strangers. You can’t beat that! These new textures are noticed by the average player and TRUTH addicts alike.

Now Materials Enabled!

Luna, Moderator of the TRUTH VIP group, pointed out that Truth updated the textures to be Materials enabled. Materials are a texture property that controls how light is handled when it hits the mesh. This allows hair to have a softer, more natural look under light. You can see this by comparing Kare to other TRUTH hair, such as Irenka in this image.

Both pics were taken in exactly the same environment with exactly the same camera angle. There is a solid color background to show how the spotlight is illuminating the avatar from the right.  On Kare you can see how the light hits the hair softly and how it reacts with the curls. Looking at Irenka the light patterns are noticeably more harsh.

In addition to the Materials texture change you can also see the more realistic fade in TRUTH’s new ombre colors. Both of the hairs are shown in the same color combination.

 

The All New Stylist HUD

When I said TRUTH was revolutionizing Second Life hair I was not exaggerating. I firmly believe the Stylist HUD will be ushering in a new era of expectations for all hair consumers, no matter their preferred brand.  The Stylist HUD allows you to change your hair’s style without having to wear or purchase a different hair. Have you ever been out dancing and gently tucked your hair behind your shoulder? With Kare’s Stylist HUD you can do exactly that.

You can see Kare’s Stylist HUD above. The two pictures on the left side will alter the left side of the avatar’s hair. The ones on the right will alter the right side. For each side you can select to have the hair to the front of or behind the shoulder. Note that this is the left and right while facing the avatar, not the avatar’s left and right.

The only critique I have for the Stylist HUD is that at first glance it’s not obvious what each selection does. The images are all very similar so if you’re not sure what you’re looking for it may be a little confusing before you start clicking. This can very easily be remedied in future HUDs and I do not consider it a huge con.

UPDATE:

Amber, TRUTH’s Customer Service Representative, has let me know that TRUTH will be implementing a label system on future Stylist HUDs so it’s immediately apparent which selection does what. Just another example of how wonderfully on top of things the TRUTH team is. Thanks guys!

As Kare is the only hair out in the new system it’s hard to say if future hairs will have the tuck option like this or something entirely different. They may have options such as moving hair behind the ears or perhaps styling up vs styling down. I look forward to see what new and exciting products Truth brings us next!

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Pics & Credits

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Updated 5/9/17 – Added Materials section. Thanks Luna for reminding me of the Materials change!
Updated 5/9/17 – Added updated information about future Stylist HUDs. Thanks Amber!
Updated 5/10/17 – Revised the 10th anniversary list with up to date info sent to the VIP group today.