This is the viewer that offers normal, stereoscopic 3D, and Oculus Rift viewer modes. Now it offers an interface for Kinect. Also added is a walking speed adjustment. All of these are neat additions to the basic Firestorm Viewer that turns it into the CtrlAltStudio Viewer.
This is the viewer for those using shutter glasses and Oculus. Features have been added to make use of the Oculus and Kinect more pleasant.
This Tuesday we are getting a rollout to the main channel. This is the package that ran on Blue Steel and Le Tigre last week (46). It is the Experience Tools package. We know very little about what is changed in this release. It is Experience Tools ‘infrastructure.’
Server Beta Meeting 2013-44
RC Channels
Magnum will run the same package as last week, a maintenance release with bug fixes. My article from last Tuesday covers the details.
This release gets merged with the release going to the main channel. Plus the Lindens are tweaking the Grey Goo fence to remove some of the problems inflicted on large item rezzing tools. The new stricter control now will only apply to tools rezzing physical objects.
Jessica Lyon, the project manager for the Firestorm Viewer, posted that they will begin blocking older versions of their viewers. Jessica is anticipating the drama this will bring on. By her writing you can tell she is expecting a chorus for complaints one might hear from a 10-year old trying to manipulate their parents. I suspect she is right.
Firestorm Logo
Jessica points out they have little choice. It is either the Firestorm team blocking or the Lab will take over blocking. I’m not sure that is completely accurate. But, I can see how some will see things that way. In general the Lab does not block viewers. But, if you use the newer viewers you really don’t have a choice about updating your viewer. It automatically updates by default. But, that can be turned off.
There are mandatory updates that the Lab requires from time to time. I expect as some of the current changes being made allow better overall SL performance, which are viewer dependent, more updates are going to be mandatory. So, whether there is a misconception about what is and is not going to be blocked and by who, you are going to be updating your viewer or find yourself unable to login. Otherwise you will be degrading other people’s performance.
The last podcast from Metareality was in April. In this cast Kim/Gianna is saying they plan to be back doing more regular casts, back to the weekly format. You can listen to the cast here: Weak Sauce.
This is an uncensored audio. No bleeping, so there is some profane language… actually a lot.
I remind you, my usual warning is: I paraphrase what I hear and make no attempt to transcribe the audio. Listen to the audio before you react to anything I’ve written.
[youtube 9hUUsqhetX4]
Index
02:00 TOS Discussion starts. Karl describes the change as the Lab becoming a co-owner in all that you create and upload to Second Life™. Karl rants a bit, not much, and I have to agree with his points. Spot on little rant in my view.
LEAP Motion Controller is the mouse free controller for your computer. I figured this would be a good device for use with the Oculus Rift. I went on eBay and picked up a near new one for US$50. I tried it out with the default apps and some free games.
It does not come with any app or adaption for Second Life™. One needs a free or retail app to adapt LEAP to SL. Drax made a video showing his experience with LEAP and Second Life.
[youtube mso4D8sOLmY]
The app Drax is suing is Game Wave (US$4). I tried some free apps. I didn’t find anything that would work well. So, I tried the app he is using in the video.
It has a good introductory manual, a tutorial if you will. The best I have seen explaining hand gestures for the LEAP.
Some big news from this week is the release of the ‘Interesting Viewer’, this is the viewer with improvements from the Interest List project (ILP). The project is about doing a better job of deciding what to render first.
Torley did a good job of illustrating what the project does.
[youtube W7AC1RojXOk]
For months we have been getting the server side changes from the project. For weeks we have been promised the viewer side changes. Now those changes are out in a RC Viewer release: Second Life 3.6.11 (283895) Nov 13 2013.
