Year: 2015

Team Diabetes Winter Art Show and Showcase in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey

Winter ShowTeam Diabetes of Second Life have announced their first Windlight Winter Art Show and Winter Showcase event for Second Life.

Starting on Monday, December 7th and running through until Sunday, December 13th, the Art Show and Showcase will feature a week of entertainment from Tribute bands and DJ sets, and there will be ice skating, ice fishing, a Santa hunt, a gingerbread house building contest, raffles, a winter photo contest and a special Christmas Masquerade Ball.

The Art show, sponsored and produced by Windlight Magazine and Windlight Art Gallery, will feature the work of Honey Bender, WrenNoir Cerise, Ilyra Chardin, Warm Clarity, Sparkie Cyberstar, Dawnbeam Dreamscape, Cica Ghost, Kayly Iali, JudiLynn India, Layachi Inhen, Wicca Merlin, Richie Narstrom, Bryn Oh, Inara Pey, Skip Staheli, Bluesrocker Resident, Eeraftr Resident, Johannes1977 Resident, Roffellos Resident, Saoiriseheart Resident, and Tripleplaynitely Resident.

The Winter Showcase, sponsored by Tayren’s Fantasy Fashions, will feature the brands: The House of Avro,  Kittycat’s Creations, Tayren’s Fantasy Fashions, Moonstar, Feyline Fashions, Wiccas Wardrobe, Zuri Rayna Jewelry, Spyralle, An Lema, Park Place Home Décor, Pink Ice Boutique, A Little Bit of Everything by Neck, Jamie Wolf Photography, Potomac Signature Homes, Lyrical B!zarre Templates, [JOH], Hearthaven Photography, Kaerri, and Meshopotomia.

In addition, the modelling house Solaris will be producing a winter queen themed fashion show featuring jewellery by Chop Zuey.

Bloggers wishing to cover the event can do so by completing the blogging application form to gain access to the Press Day for the event, and early access.

About Team Diabetes of Second Life

TD-logoSome 387 million people globally live with diabetes, and the World Health Organisation estimates that diabetes could be the 7th leading cause of death by 2030.

Founded by Jessi2009 Warrhol and Johannes1977 Resident, Team Diabetes is the official and authorised team of the American Diabetes Association in Second Life. Functioning as an advisory board, Team Diabetes of Second Life comprises members Jessii2009 Warrhol, Johannes1977 Resident, Emma Portilo, Veruca Tammas, Sandie Loxingly, Rob Fenwitch and Earth Nirvana, with Saiyge Lotus serving as special advisor to the board.

Team Diabetes of Second Life’s mission is to raise awareness of diabetes, promote greater understanding of the issues those suffering from diabetes face, and to raise funds to further research into cures for diabetes.

Related Links

Lab Chat #1: Ebbe Altberg – transcript and audio

Posted on by Inara Pey

Lab Chat LogoThursday, November 19th saw the launch of what is hoped will become a new series of monthly discussions. Lab Chat is billed as “an opportunity for you to ask Lindens your questions during a live taping that will be recorded and archived for everyone to view.”

The first show featured the Lab’s CEO, Ebbe Altberg in his alter ego of Ebbe Linden. In preparation for the recording, Second Life users were invited to ask questions about the Lab, Second Life, “Project Sansar”, etc on a forum thread.

Over 40 questions were asked, and members of the production crew selected seven questions they thought would be of most interest to the attending audience, to be asked during the show, whist also leaving time for further questions from the audience itself.  Discussions are under way with the Lab to try to ensure those questions from the forum thread which weren’t asked as a part of the recording do get addressed in some manner.

The following pages present a transcript of Ebbe Altberg’s replies to both the seven core questions selected by the Lab Chat team, together with any additional follow-ups or observations from show hosts Saffia Widdershins (SW) and Jo Yardley (JY), and the answers given to those questions raised during the open Q&A session.

Note that this is not a full transcript of the entire recording, the focus is very much on the answers given to questions and any relevant comments. For ease of reference, the transcript is split into three parts, each with its own navigation and links, and links to all of the questions:

  • Those questions and answers those related to Second Life
  • Those focused more on Project Sansar
  • The general Q&A session.

Each question / answer includes an audio extract of that question and answer for those who wish to listen rather than read, or in addition to reading, the transcript text.

The Quick Links section below will take you directly to each of these three sections, or to any of the individual discussion points within them.

Those wishing to watch the official video, can see the three parts here, here, and here.

Quick Links

Right-to-left: Saffia Widdershin, Ebbe Linden and Jo Yardley during the first Lab Chat recording
Right-to-left: Saffia Widdershins, Ebbe Linden and Jo Yardley during the first Lab Chat recording

Santalarity: calling builders and performers in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey

santa-1Like a fable borne upon a mist of time, a magical, mysterious transformation is wrought upon the ancient dry lake bed we know as the playa. When the mist clears you see an alpine wonderland of mountains, hills and valleys.

Oh, but that is not all! As you draw in for a closer look, you notice something incredible: everything is small in size. You are surrounded by miniature villages and diminutive trains, with Lilliputian creatures and beings populating the scene. But don’t let their small sizes fool you – things are rarely as they appear.

So reads the opening of the Press Release for the BURN2 seasonal event, Santalarity, which this year has the theme of Great Thing come In Small Packages. The event will open its doors on Saturday, December 12th and run through until Sunday, December 13th.

Right now, there is an open invitation to builders and performers to be a part of the festive event, with a very special invitation for tinies, petites and other small avatars to be a part of proceedings and perform or build or DJ.

Those wishing to obtain one of the limited number of FREE builders plots which are available for the event should sign-up now. DJs and performers who wish to join in with the fun of the event can book their preferred spots through the DJ/Performer Sign-up. If you fancy helping out as a greeter, drop a line in-world to Freia Guillaume, and she’ll get your sorted and signed-up.

Further information on Santalarity 2015 will be available through the BURN 2 website, and I’ll hopefully also include updates in these pages, as they are announced.

SL project updates: week #48/1: server, viewer

Posted on by Inara Pey

Voile; Inara Pey, November 2015, on Flickr Voile (Flickr) – blog post

Server Deployments Week #48

As always, please refer to the server deployment thread for the latest updates.

  • On Tuesday, November 24th, the Main (SLS) channel was updated with the server maintenance package previously deployed to the three RC channels. This comprises the updates code for server-side attachment and upload validations (see below). The release also includes new code for a new upcoming SL feature to be revealed soon.
  • There is no RC channel deployment planned for the week, due the the US Thanksgiving weekend no change window.

Server-side Validation Enforcement

A new server maintenance package had been due for deployment on Wednesday, November 11th. This packed includes simulator-side enforcement checks against attachment point IDs (attachments using invalid attachment point ID will be moved to the chest attach point), and validation checks against animation and mesh to prevent the upload of animations and meshes weighted to invalid attachment points.

Baking Service Update

Speaking at the Simulator User Group meeting on Tuesday, November 24th, Oz Linden indicated an update to the avatar baking service (server-side appearance) has been made. This is aimed at dealing with a number of issues with the service (unfortunately Oz didn’t have a list of issues to hand).

SL Viewer Updates

After mysteriously vanishing from the viewer release channel, the HTTP project viewer (Project Azumarill) reappeared on Tuesday, November 17th, still with the same version number (3.8.7.306796, dated November 2nd) as previously. This may have been a error, and the viewer has once again been removed from the viewer release channel.

Friday, November 20th saw the current Maintenance viewer updated to version 3.8.7.308081. This viewer brings with it some 38 fixes and improvements, including updates for some regressions introduced into the viewer with the current release viewer (version 3.8.6.305981).

Note: this week is a relatively light week for technical updates from the Lab due to it being Thanksgiving week in the US, which is always marked by a no change window, as noted in the report, to allow Lab staff to enjoy a long weekend at the end of the week.

Glass and Light in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Glass and Light Breakwave
Glass and Light Breakwave

I’m a long-standing admirer of Frankx Lefarve’s art in Second Life; he’s a master of immersive art, using light, colour and particles with intricate designs with the appearance of glass to create extraordinary environments which captivate the eye and gently play with the mind. His latest work, Glass and Light Breakwave, which is open through until at least the end of November 2015, stands as a further demonstration of his art and skill.

I first became aware of Frankx’s work almost two years ago, at the start of 2014, when I entered his realm of glass and light for the first time. since then, we’ve become friends and I’ve been fortunate enough to witness his work at several installations, such as Insidious and Quilia. However, it is with that first  installation I visited back in January 2014 that Glass and Light Breakwave shares the closest relationship; so much so, that is it possible to see echoes of the former in the current piece, as see just how much further Frankx’s expression and creativity have evolved.

Glass and Light Breakwave
Glass and Light Breakwave

To try to describe a piece like this is impossible; as an immersive environment it really has to be experienced first. Those who do remember his earlier glass and light works and Frankx’s alien landscapes will likely recognise certain motifs within this installation, which seems to bring together a number of ideas and melds them into a unified whole, mesh, prims, particles, colour and light blending to create a fully three-dimensional installation best experienced by flying in Mouselook mode or, if you have a Space Navigator or suitable controller, via flycam.

What I will say about Glass and Light Breakwave is that it is an installation that should not be missed, as I hope the short video below demonstrates.

Voile: sheer delight in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey

Voile; Inara Pey, November 2015, on Flickr Voile (Flickr) – click any image for full size

Voile is a relatively new residential region to Second Life, and a place I was recently invited to explore by Maddie (MadisonRaelynn), who is both a resident there and a reader of this blog. I’m glad I took her up on her offer – although she has my apologies for taking a while to actually get a post properly written-up.

Designed by Heloise (Heloise Evanier), Voile presents an exquisite landscape focused on a central craggy plateau of mixed elevations, with low-lying coastal areas below, not quite encircling it. Houses are scattered across both the plateau and the low-lying areas, seemingly at random; however, each has been placed with a careful eye to ensure it enjoys a comfortable degree of privacy from neighbours and a view out over the sea. All of the houses are beautifully blended with public areas awaiting exploration by visitors and open to the enjoyment of residents. As the welcoming notes in About Land state, everyone is invited to spend time in Voile – just so long as the privacy of residents here is respected.

Voile; Inara Pey, November 2015, on Flickr Voile (Flickr)

The houses on the region are an eclectic mix, ranging from rustic cottages through farmhouse and Tuscan villa to large manor style homes, with a converted church and even a tree house mixed in for good measure. Yet all work together to offer a seamless whole to the region.

The properties on the high central plateau are arranged around a central orangery / pavilion. Paths of old stone paving meander through tall grass to link each residence with its neighbours and also offering paths to the ramps and cuttings which lead to the low parts of the plateau or down to the areas just above sea level.

Voile; Inara Pey, November 2015, on Flickr Voile (Flickr)

The public areas within the region are as diverse as the houses; on the main plateau one can find places to sit and paths leading down into sheltered coves,  while wooden board walks run around the feet of the high cliffs to more places to sit. A single knuckle of rock stands aside from the main plateau, the ruins of a castle perched atop, reached by a single bridge. This, and it’s ruined twin, stand sentinel over the grassy lands below, a switch back path etched into the side of the plateau offering a way down to it.

Voile is genuinely a place of beauty, somewhere to be called home by those who reside there, and explored at gentle leisure by those who visit; a place not to be missed. My thanks again to Maddie for dropping me the invitation.

Voile; Inara Pey, November 2015, on Flickr Voile (Flickr)

SLurl Details

  • Voile (Rated: Moderate)