Microsoft’s Spark

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Microsoft® has just put a new game development platform out in Beta version: SPARK®. This is a game developer’s free form design tool and game engine. The results can be played on Xbox One, Win 8 and soon other platforms.

[youtube 8jDY-6aZSjM]

You can read more at TechCrunch: Microsoft’s Project Spark DIY Game Creation Software Beta Begins Today.

Unfortunately this is a Windows 8 app only. As yet it does not even run on RT. It also is more of a novice game maker’s tool. While free form it is still within a set world, a pre-made world that one can modify.

I think The Verge’s article better describes SPARK: Microsoft’s ‘Project Spark’ beta arrives on Windows 8.1, lets you create an Xbox One game.

Fitted Mesh Update 2013-49

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Machinimatrix has released a new test version of AVASTAR: avastar-1-1-910_blender-2-64. You can get it from your personal Avastar download link.

[youtube rKcyUSfUFk8]

(Forum discussion of video – 2012)

This update adds 7 Collision Bones:

  • RIGHT_HANDLE
  • LEFT_HANDLE
  • BUTT
  • LOWER_BACK
  • UPPER_BACK
  • LEFT_PECK
  • RIGHT_PEC

Along with the bones a tool for copying weights from ‘deformation’ bones to ‘collision’ bones has been added. Instructions for using the tool can be found here: Avastar new testversion for “Fitted Mesh”. Gaia says this tool does not so much copy the information as rename the weight groups. This is something you can do with just Blender and something I was experimenting with. 

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Second Life News 2013-49

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There will be a roll out Tuesday morning. The package running on Blue Steel and Le Tigre will get promoted to the main change. This is the one that includes the vehicle region crossing fix.

RC Update

Wednesday there will a single package rolling out to all three RC channels. This package contains a fix for: llGetAgentInfo() so that it now detects AGENT_CROUCHING correctly for avatars who have custom ‘Crouching’ or ‘CrouchWalking’ animations (BUG-4431). There is also a crash mode that has been fixed.

Since they aren’t saying much about the crash mode, I assume it is some exploit or other security fix.

Viewers

There is one RC viewer and one project viewer on the RC Viewers page. As of late Monday those haven’t changed from last week. The Interesting and Fitted viewers are it.

In the Third Party Viewers class Firestorm has moved back into first place for the most stable viewer. I say first because I don’t count Radegast as a viewer because it is not a graphical viewer in the sense that other TPViewers are. I just don’t see it in the same class.

High Fidelity – Touch?

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A new article is out on how the HD Team is experimenting with touch…or virtual touch. In general I am under whelmed. But, I can see where including what current technology can provide will increase immersion; I don’t see this as what people will associate with touch.

[youtube y-xlIAITgK8]

Check out the article yourself: Avatar Interaction: Ryan the stylist, Emily the client.

The article and video seem to be miles apart to me.

Second Life Continents and Geography

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There is a list of the continents that make up Second Life™. The list lives in the SL Wiki. I noticed the list was being updated. Check it out here: List Of Microcontinents And Sim Clusters.

It appears most of the changes are being made by Ana Imfinity (AnaImfinity.Resident).

You’ll find other parts of the wiki that deal with SL’s geometry have been getting attention too.  Scroll to the bottom of the wiki page I linked to above to find; Oceans and Second Life Geography.