Second Life

Things about SL

Second Life Adult Content Week 32-33

by

It is hard to know what to say about the Adult Content group. I think since sex sells and sells other things as well the adult content in Second Life has the biggest possibility for increasing player retention. Understand it is not the escort services or hookers that I think will keep players coming back… I suppose it will draw some. But, it is the excitement and anticipation in meeting new people in an environment with a sexually charged edge that entices people. The adult content I’m thinking of is not the hookers on a street corner. It is adult things like eHarmony, nice night clubs, church-based social functions and all the other fun, safe, meeting places.

Adult Content - Image by: Seth Mazow on Flickr

It seems some level of the Lindens have recognized adult content has possibilities and are attempting to shift perceptions to take advantage of it. But, I’ve never been able to figure out from the Lindens’ discussion and comments what they are trying for. I’ve had to make the above mentioned assumptions and work some ideas out for myself to put a frame around their goals. I have no clue if I’ve gotten it right. But, maybe.

Read more

Another Scandal in Second Life?

by

It is actually hard to say if we actually have a new scandal brewing or not. We have known factions in Second Life that have decided to take IP Protection and Griefing matters into their own hands. Some of us think of such actions as vigilantism. In response to vigilantes other groups have sprung up to rain in the vigilantes. They are sort of anti-vigilante vigilantes. And so it goes. Whether it is a new scandal or maybe just the smoke from artillery shots in an ongoing war is hard to say. So, this article is mostly a reminder of risks in SL.

Image by: US Army Africa - Flickr

Rob Humble at SLCC 2011 in his keynote mentioned doing something with griefers. I don’t have an exact time mark, but it was around 30 minutes in. The Lab is not going to tell us what the Lab is planning. In many ways it is a war between the Lab and griefers. I’ve been in office hour/user group meetings where the Lindens were griefed. When they can’t stop an attack the meeting moves to a new location. So, it is a complex issue even for the Lab. They are NOT going to tip off the enemy.

Read more

Phoenix Viewer Most Stable

by

Oz Linden updates the Thrid Party Viewer (TPV) List every so often. A recent update shows the current Phoenix Viewer at the top of the list. That means it had the fewest crashes during the reporting period. \o/

Phoenix is still a Series 1 viewer and lacks mesh and other Viewer 2 features. But, Phoenix remains a popular viewer. It has many features not found in the SL Viewer 1.23, which while not a TPV is the most stable viewer currently in use.

Congratulations Firestorm-Phoenix Team!

The Future of Commerce in Second Life

by

Those on the SLCC 2011 panel are; Jeff – Sr. Business Dev Strategy and Planning, Brook Linden – Merchant Services and owner of the Market Place, Thor Linden – Economic Overseer & Strategic Operations or SEARCH, Colossus Linden – Payment systems. Forgive me if I misspelled a name. Also, I never did catch Jeff’s avatar name.

Image by: danielbroche @ Flickr

The Commerce Team is hard to find. SL Groups Search from the web page is broken today. The Second Life Commerce Merchants group was apparently created for XStreetSL.  There is an SL Merchants Section in the SL Forum. In general this is a very hard team to find. As to feedback, you’ll have to chase down one of the team and see if you can get their attention. Brooke has the feed on her profile turned off… it looks like the do-not-disturb sign is up.

Read more

Pages: 1 2

#SL Scripting Update Week 33

by

With some luck we’ll see the Scripting Maintenance Project roll to the main grid this week. Since last Wednesday Blue Steel has been running the project’s code. Kelly Linden says it is looking good and will probably be a candidate for roll to the main grid this week.

Image by: Marcin Wichary @ Flickr

Along with new scripting functions come simulator performance improvements. The graph shows some of the improvements. If I understand correctly we should be able see a noticeable improvement.

New Scripting Features in LSL

  • llSetMemoryLimit() – This sets the maximum amount of memory the script can use. With this function the sizing and color scripts for hair and shoes can be set to use less memory. Because there are so many copies of the scripts in hair this should have a large impact.
  • llGetMemoryLimit() – This reports what the memory limit is.
  • llGetObjectDetails() – A new item has been added to the flags: OBJECT_SCRIPT_TIME. This item returns the average script time an object or avatar is using. The value is in seconds and is the same number as one sees in Top Scripts in the Estate Manager’s Tools.

Read more

#SecondLife Display Names Revisited

by
Image by: Randy Son Of Robert @ Flickr

I use a display name, Nal. Simple, easy to spell, and solves the problem of my being called Natalie, which I don’t mind that much unless a Natalie is in the area. So, I don’t care that much about Display Names (DN) either way. I just read Avril Korman’s article, The Name Game: Display Names and the Law Of Unintended Consequences. This is a well written piece on the subject of Display Names. I recommend it.

I am a great believer in the idea that if one is going to complain they complain to someone that can do something about the problem and offer a solution, preferably more than one solution to the complaint.

Avril explains the problems with Display Names. This is not a simple they suck. But, a good analysis of what was intended verses what the results have been. I can’t find any point where I disagree with Avril’s thinking.

Read more