Day: November 20, 2012

“-[L4L]- Gestures & Walkers (Freebies) <3" griefing object

Posted on by Inara Pey

During August / September a griefing object in the form of a “freebie gift” started circulating in-world. Called ”..::ExDepart::.. Gift Package 2012”, it is essentially a spoofing/griefing item which, when rezzed will create more items citing you as the owner, and attempt to pass them out.

Since it first appeared, the item has appeared in a number of variants, of which “-[L4L]- Gestures & Walkers (Freebies) <3” is one.

If you receive either item – do not rez it. Instead, file an abuse report, citing Governor Linden as the abuser, list any pertinent information on the object – and remember the person you received it from most likely did not create it, then delete it.

Similarly, if you receive any other item with a similar format of name, or which gives rise to suspicions on your part – particularly if the receipt of the item is unexpected – contact the person who sent it to you first and verify with them that they have legitimately sent you something before attempting to rez the item.

If you receive such an item and rez it, you will need to locate it and delete it – and you may find it has spawned several copies of itself. Typically, one rezzed, the item will move itself to around 4000m above ground, and will continue to spam you with items. To locate and delete the object(s):

  • Check the incoming dialogue pop-ups associated with the incoming items. These should provide the co-ordinates where the item is located. Alternatively, decline the object’s offer, and the co-ordinates should be recorded in local chat.
  • Position yourself on the ground using the X and Y coordinates for the object, then:
    • Either fly up to the Z coordinate for the object, or
    • Rez and cube, sit on it and use EDIT to elevate the cube to the Z coordinate, or
    • If you have a viewer which supports command line instructions, use gtp x y z  – replacing X, Y and Z with the object’s coordinates
  • Once in the location, enable Beacons for Scripted Objects (CTRL-ALT-SHIFT-N). You should see a small box with crosshairs on the offending object
  • Go to Edit and drag a selection box around the object to select it.
  • Press Delete to remove the object.

Note there may be more than one copy of the object nearby, so you may have to repeat the steps above to remove all of them.

The use of the object is known to the Lab, with Simon Linden commenting at the Simulator User Group meeting on Tuesday 20th November that, “It’s pretty much an ugly social-engineering griefer ploy.”

Miro Collas, of the Phoenix / Firestorm team has put together detailed advice on the object and removing it on the Firestorm wiki, from which the instructions in this post have been drawn.

With thanks to Miro Collas and Whirly Fizzle.

When words…

Posted on by Inara Pey

I don’t generally post photos here for the sake of photos, as I’m painfully aware of my photographic limitations. However, I have to admit to being rather pleased with this one, so I’m letting my ego out for a bit of a run around. Please don’t bruise it :).

When words are not enough, let thought take flight

Creatorverse: Android arrival and playing on my S2

Posted on by Inara Pey

As Daniel Voyager reports, Creatorverse today makes its debut on Android, and is available via Google Play at a (UK) cost of  £3.14 (US: $4.99, approx), and requires Android 2.3.3+. There is yet more to come, with Creatorverse due to debut on the iPhone shortly, and possibly go elsewhere as well.

Creatorverse on my Galaxy S2

Given I have a Samsung Galaxy S2 and time on my hands today, I opted to download Creatorverse and have an initial look. Doubtless there are some out there who would like the short form of my thoughts on the app, so here they are:

Creatorverse is baffling, frustrating, teeth-grinding, innovative, engrossing, and potentially highly addictive.

To be fair, the first three of these issues are as much down to trying to use Creatorverse on the S2’s relative small screen as much as anything else. Simply put, the UI is so small, it’s hard to see the various button icons easily. Well, at least for me; I freely admit, I’m getting older and my eyes aren’t what they used to be (and as I write that, Spike Milligan’s immortal addition to the comment echoes through my head: “they used to be my ears!”). Even so, and despite the relative intuitiveness of the drag-and-drop shape creation options, it is as well that Linden Lab have produced a range of tutorial videos to help people get more to grips with Creatorverse; in today’s “satisfaction in 5 minutes or forget it” society, there is a risk that some might otherwise chuck Creatorverse over their shoulders all to easily. This is a Settings option (device MENU button > Settings) for “Restart Tutorials”, but I’ve yet to find out what this actually does…

Which would actually be a shame – because, as with the latter part of my summary above, Creatorverse is engrossing – and potentially addictive. The basic screen display is easy enough to grasp, comprising a white grid workspace area when shapes can be dragged and dropped, and can be drawn freehand. Anchor points are present in both objects and lines, which can be use to drag / stretch corners, sections of a line or shape, and so on.

The Creatorverse basic workspace

The workspace is also somewhat context-sensitive. Add an object to it, for example, and additional buttons will appear to the left of the screen, such as the PLAY button, which allows you to switch to another screen, wherein anything you’ve created, together with any forces applied to it, will play and allow you to interact with it. Touch an object in the workspace, and a further series of buttons appear along the bottom of the screen, allowing you to do various things with objects your created.

Here’s where the first grumble arises: the buttons all use icons, some of which aren’t terribly clear, such as a sphere with a line either above or below it. Tapping a button does bring up a prompt as to what the button will do, but I’d tend to suggest the prompts themselves aren’t overly intuitive. Or maybe that is just me; I was certainly struggling to make sense between what I was seeing on the screen and what the prompts were attempting to explain….

Say whut? On-screen prompts aren’t always clear to the uninitiated

Continue reading “Creatorverse: Android arrival and playing on my S2” →

Go fly a kite

Posted on by Inara Pey

We all need a break now and then. Whether it is from the pressures of real life or Second Life, it makes no difference; we can all at times simply feel overwhelmed by things and need a place where we can go to and simply just *be*, whether on our own, or with a close friend. Somewhere away from the usual surroundings of our in-world homes or regular haunts, somewhere where we don’t actually have to “do” anything, but can simply sit and think or talk or watch the passing clouds.

Black Kite

Black Kite is one such place where we can do this. The work of Black Cloud (Theblackcloud Oh), Black Kite is a region which is breathtaking in its simplicity and deeply calming in its presentation. It is open to the public, although Black Cloud does have her home in the north-east corner of the region, so please respect her privacy when visiting.

Black Kite

The default windlight sky settings for the region, coupled with its watery nature, present a space free from the daily clutter of the world – real or virtual – but which also encompasses plenty which can both reflect one’s mood and also encourage one to relax and unwind and give flight to thought.

Black Kite

The best way to discover Black Kite is to simply wander. The water is only ankle-deep, and there are wooden walkways for those who prefer, all of which lead to / past some thing of interest. Minimalist it may appear to be, but there is a wonderful attention to detail here. There is an audio stream which can help relax the mind and also give it wing, adding to the immersive ambience of the region; but even without it, this is a place to savour.

Black Kite

This is also a place which encourages experimentation with windlight presets – which also makes it a photographer’s delight. My personal favourite settings-wise when visiting is Bryn Oh’s Mayfly (see the first photo in this article); the open nature of Black Kite just lends itself perfectly to the preset. Many other options for both sky and water work here as well, offering those with an artistic bent a huge range photographic opportunities my own efforts barely hint at.

Black Kite

If I were asked to sum-up Black Kite in a word, it would be “Tranquility”. It’s a place I’ve only recently discovered, but it is a place which touches me greatly, as so much of it does reflect feelings and moods I frequently have; whether that gives me something in common with Black Cloud Oh, I’ve no idea; but for me the reasonance is very real.

Black Kite is open to visitors, as mentioned above (and with the caveat concerning Black Cloud’s home) and photographers and machinimatographers are also welcome. However, for me the beauty of Black Kite is the sense of freedom and calmness it invokes whenever I visit; it is a place where I can both escape and find myself.

Perhaps you will as well. Perhaps, should you find the pressures of the virtual and / or real world getting to you, you’ll do as I do, and:

Black Kite

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