Changes

#SL The Great AO Debate

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From a couple of sources we have bits and pieces that suggest the Lab is looking to provide a built in viewer feature for handling avatar animation. Currently we use animation overriders (AO) to override the built-in avatar animations. Most of those are a HUD of some type.

Animation Overriders

Discussion is in progress to determine what AO feature set is needed for the Lab’s viewer. Since AO’s are basically free (only the animations cost) the user’s choice of which one to use is entirely based on features and personal preferences. Free market principals allow the best to become the most popular.

Concern is voiced by some that a built-in replacement for AO’s by the Lab may limit our freedom of choice. However such limiting would break a considerable amount of existing content. Breaking all the existing AO’s, or any content, is something the Lab is loath to do. So, I can’t image the Lab will take that path. Whatever they do, will allow users to still use their AO’s.

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Oz Linden Interview Summary

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Wednesday Jessica Lyon, of Firestorm/Phoenix project Manager, conducted an interview with Oz Linden, the director of open source for Linden Lab. After a previous crash prone four region Phoenix Hour the week before, Jessica conducted the Interview on a private region with no audience.

The Interview Arrived

Treet.tv made the heroic effort to stream the interview. With something like 350 or so people connecting, there were problems. But, Treet.tv  was able to make a recording of the interview and it is now available on Treet.tv. See: Specials -> Episodes to find it. LINK

I’ve written a review of the audio tape. I paraphrase wording. Transcribing is tooooooooo tedious for me. May be I can find a masochist in the SL community that will do that… Whatever, be warned that I listen, decide what they said and then write what I heard. I try to be objective and accurate. But, I have my biases and prejudices. So, I include the time marks so you can listen to the parts important to you.

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#SL Video of Linden Realms Tools

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Lots of us are interested in the tools used by the Lab to build Linden Realms. Some of us have called them the Linden realms Tools or LR Tools. At practically every Linden UG meeting someone asks about them.

[youtube mGPiywc6Hh0]

Yesterday near the end of the workday the Lab posted a log article about the new tools. They have named them the Advanced Experience Tools. We now have a preview of which tools are being released. The only timeline we have is over the next few months. (Reference)

Professional Creators Program

Within the post is information about a new Professional Creators Program. The Lab says, “This program will provide members with helpful resources, such as tutorials and exclusive closed betas.”

Many of the features in the Advanced Experience Tools (AET) would be a griefer’s dream. The Lab has to come up with some means of restricting the tools and avoiding having them used for griefing. Remember Rod saying they had plans for griefers?

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Linden Layoffs?

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I see on Tateru’s and Inara’s blogs and in loads of Plurks that Esbee and Charlar are leaving the Lab. I’m bummed.

As of yesterday Charlar was proceeding with Advanced Creator Tools. I got my join notice to the new group.

Welcome

Thursday,01 Mar 2012 16:05:28 GMT

This group’s purpose is to provide a channel for some communications related to the Advanced Creator tools. You are the first members because you are also part of the closed beta for the tools themselves, especially the Experience Permission system. This beta will take part initially on Aditi with a private group meeting and forum. Currently I see no reason to require an NDA. What we’re doing isn’t necessarily sekrit, it’s more that we want to work out any kinks with you all in a calm, professional group.

That group is for beta testers helping with the Linden Realms Tools. New permissions systems are needed to go with the tools. So, there is lots to work out. I have no idea what the status of this project is now.

Charlar’s departure will likely put a kink in the Content-Mesh Creation group too.

I’ll miss Charlar.

UPDATE: I do have it from a reliable source that Charlar neither left nor was fired… but, he is not here any more. Figure that one out…

I haven’t heard much about what Esbee was doing. I knew her from when she ran the Viewer Evolution group. I missed her when she left the first time. Recently I haven’t been able to tell she was back. So, I’m neutral on her departure.

#SL Viewer Policy Follow Up

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A part of the Server/Sim/Scripting User Group meeting was taken up with discussion of the viewer policy changes. It seems some of the changes have been in the works for some time. Now that they are on the verge of being implemented the Lab made the public announcement.

Viewer Identification Tags

Tankmaster Finesmith said, “So, as one of the [Firestorm] TPV devs, we’ve know for a few months now that LL has wanted to brake the viewer tags. Today [Friday] we got word that LL will be braking them next week.”

So, Jessica is right, the viewer type ID tags will be turned off next Tuesday and Wednesday. Presumably the code to do that has already made it through QA process.

Simon Linden was the meeting chairperson or facilitor and I’ll quote him several times so I think this statement is important as a framework. He said, “…I’d like to preemptively explain that I’m a coder working on the server, so I’ve mostly been out of this loop. I’m not a lawyer, from marketing or product, etc. etc.” I suppose that means we need to keep what he says in some sort of perspective.

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Second Life’s Simplified Inventory Project

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Now there is an idea… Inventory likely becomes a headache for every user of Second Life. I know I have an ongoing battle with inventory. Now the Lab has come up with a new idea. I suppose it is a spinoff from the SLCC announcement of making SL easier to use.

New Folder View Inventory

ProductTeam Linden posted an announcement in the Second Life Forum about the new project to test the idea of a simplified inventory. See: Simple Inventory Project Viewer. They want feedback on the new inventory. They ask you to give them information on how you think it will affect new users. I guess we can put on our newbie avayar and see how it goes.

The project has a Project Viewer, JIRA Section SINV, and a Simplified Inventory wiki page.

Download and Install

This is the standard download (28mb) and install. The viewer installs in its own folder, so there should be little conflict. It also uses its own settings file (settings_projectviewer-simpleinventory.xml). It does share the cache. While I am a great fan of separate caches for each viewer, I have been allowing all the viewers from the Lab to share the same cache. I don’t recommend allowing the Lab’s 1.23 to share a cache with the new 3.x.x viewers.

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