Firestorm 5.07 Released – Should you update? Why?

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Tuesday the 19th, a new Firestorm Viewer version was released, 5.0.7.52912.

You can download and install this new version. There is no need to remove the previous version you are using. Some of us (yes, me) have noticed it crashes shortly after its first launch. On the second and subsequent launches, it seems fine.

The Girl with the Sun in Her Hair VIII
The Girl with the Sun in Her Hair VIII

I suggest you restart your computer before installing. Inara in her review of this release (here), recommends backing up your viewer settings before starting the install. I didn’t have to restore any settings. BUT… if you are changing from 32 to 64-bit version, a settings backup is a good idea.

The Firestorm team has a goal to release an update every 3 months. It has been 6 months since the last release. So, there is a lot of work in this new release. Plus, they say it is very well tested.

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Second Life – News 2017 w25

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Servers

Tuesday version #17.06.12.327066 of the server software rolled to the main channel. This is primarily a fix to keep regions from losing their connection to the backend servers.

Blue Steel and Le Tigre get the same new package #17.06.19.327206. Changes are listed as ‘Internal Changes’. I suppose that is more changes to data collection. Maybe updates to the server OS.

Bond - Austin Bond
Bond – Austin Bond

Magnum gets version #17.06.19.327192. There is also an explicitly stated update of the OS for this channel. Plus, a couple of fixes.

  • BUG-100830 HTTP_CUSTOM_HEADER no longer works on RC 17.06.13.327111
  • BUG-100831 Lelutka Simone bento head spits a script error when attached on 17.06.13.327111 regions (Magnum & Cake)

Bug-100830 is the Song Board fix. If you didn’t read the previous article, be warned your song boards are not going to start working. 

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Second Life – Shoutcast – Why did Song Boards die?

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Clubs and various places in Second Life™ use scripts to pull the name of the song playing on their media channel. Recently, the LL function call to request HTTP GET/PUT process changed. In doing so it broke most of the scripts used to get song names.

I must warn you ...My Thoughts are dangerous and impure
I must warn you …My Thoughts are dangerous and impure

The thread about the problem, DJ Board Display Not Working Properly, started in late May. BUG-100737 – Shoutcast receivers unable to relay on RC Magnum 17.05.23.326524 was filed soon after. By the end of the month, the Lindens had figured out the problem and were looking at a fix. BUT… the fix will require the scripts change.

If you can’t hear the screams of agony and frustration… get your hearing checked.

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Reddit & Sansar

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Seems Linden Lab® is ramping up marketing of Sansar™. Linden Lab’s Peter Gray is active on Reddit/r/sansar/. He announced that more people will be invited into Sansar this summer. Summer starts June 21… When that opens you won’t need and invite (really?) nor have to fill out a form. Just open an account.

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Yodai points out that we haven’t been hearing much about Sansar. Also, that some have purchased VR headsets just for Sansar. I know I got my Gear VR in part to be able to check out Sansar. Mostly to experience VR for me.

Peter in response agreed to answer questions. Some of his answers are interesting. For details read the Reddit. For a summary, read on.

The summer Sansar will work on Vive, Oculus, and PC’s. No word on Macs. Unofficially some are saying Sansar works in Bootcamp. There is no minimum system requirement yet. Informally they are saying basic Windows VR requirements. Since they say Oculus, I think/hope that includes Gear VR.

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How to Play PC Games on Gear VR 2017… Right…

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This is for NVIDIA owners… sorry AMD peeps. It’s a software limitation.

Stream Theater Start Screen – Post Setup

So, you want to see Second Life™ or any OpenGL game on your Gear VR. Well… you are going to have to learn a lot. You’ll also find few are telling you what the result of their tutorials or apps actually provides. Advertising hype is everywhere. If  O N E  PC or OpenGL game will run or even sort of run, then PC and OpenGL compatibility is the headline. Expect disappointment. I’ll explain what worked for me below.

Visual quality is the next point of disappointment. My S8 has a 4k screen. I normally run it at 2k to save battery. In everyday use, 2k is pretty much retina resolution, way sharp and crisp, beautiful. 4k is overkill. If I didn’t tell you which mode the phone was in, you probably couldn’t guess.

The Gear VR turns the phone up to 4k when connected. Most VR headsets are NOT 4k and thus most media is made for 2k and that media is fuzzy on my 4k screen. Looking at my 1k 24” Samsung monitor is way nicer.

Then there is ‘screen door’… This is a term from the VR-world. The headsets magnify the small screens to fill the field of view. In doing so the individual pixels start to be visually apparent. This creates an effect that looks a bit like looking through a window/door screen. With the S8 it is a very fine screen, but a visible screen. 

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Second Life – How to Lower ACI – A Script

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One of the complications in 3D rendering is working out how to blend the objects with transparent parts. Think of windows and SL hair. Designers can reduce the complication by how they use alpha layers and blending. I’m not going to try to explain how to set stuff up because I have yet to get it figured out. But, I came across a handy workaround for things we already have.

I buy hair, dresses, and other things that use blending modes. Most are no-mod. But, the script below can be used to modify them.

In the beginning of the video, I am wearing Magika’s Dreamy as purchased. This is hair that in the Linden viewer has an ACI of 4,699. Using the script reduces the ACI by 702. That is a saving of 15±%. This is my first try, so I have no idea if this is typical, minimal, or a max. You may find that high ACI items benefit more.

There is some degradation in the appearance. When zoomed out, it is barely noticeable. Only when zoomed in can you see the difference. Personally, the 702 ACI saving is not worth the loss of appearance.

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