Month: November 2016

llTakeControl and Horizons Experience – update

Posted on by Inara Pey
Horizons Experience may have robots on the loose, but stopping them is proving a bit harder for some than was intended
A fix for the Horizons gun issue some users may have been experiencing while using TPVs with the Horizons Experience (Quest 3) should be on its way.

Update, November 28th: Dee Linden pinged me in-world to let me know the forest quest guns have now been updated with the revised script, and should work with all viewers.

Horizons Gun

On November 19th, I wrote about how recent changes in behaviour to llTakeControl meant that some users on TPVs such as Firestorm and Alchemy have found the guns used in the third of the Horizons Experience quests (Quest 3, the forest shoot-out with robots) may not work with their viewer.

At the time, the problem appeared to be due to behaviour changes made to llTakeControl as a result of SVC-7532. As these changes with this fix could “break” existing weapons in Second Life, it was not adopted by some TPVs, and so the Horizons Gun would not work with them.

However, following my article, Sue W left a comment indicating that Firestorm 4.7.9 allowed the gun to work (but not Firestorm 4.7.7 or 4.7.10). This, together with the problem as a whole, prompted further investigation on the issue by members of the Firestorm team, several of the LDPW Moles and staff from the Lab, using the Horizons staging regions.

These investigations revealed that the Horizons gun works with Firestorm 4.7.9 due to a partial fix for llTakeControl issues (quite separate to SVC-7532)  which had been implemented with that release. However, as the fix had problems of its own, it was backed out for Firestorm 4.7.10 – hence why the horizons gun would not work with either 4.7.7 or 4.7.10 (except under very specific circumstances, as detailed in my previous article).

Further and extensive tests set-up by Quartz Mole, using both the Horizons Experience gun and the gun scripts used with Winter Wonderland (soon to officially reopen) revealed changes made to llTakeControl as a result of BUG-8265 were in fact responsible for the issues being experienced by some TPV users when trying to operate the Horizons gun. As a result, Quartz has re-worked the Horizons gun script, and testing shows it should now work with all viewers, and it will be deployed to the public gaming regions in the very near future.

Once the updated script is on the public horizons Experience Qeust 3, the guns should work with all viewers
Once the updated script is on the public horizons Experience Qeust 3, the guns should work with all viewers

SVC-7532

This still leaves the issue of SVC-7532, which can still break the behaviour of older gun systems. To avoid this, Firestorm have indicated that with their upcoming release, they will introduce a toggle option, as Alchemy is doing. This will take the form of an option in Preferences which will allow users to switch between “old” and “new” llTakeControl behaviours in accordance with the weapons they are using.

With thanks to Whirly Fizzle for the update information, and Quartz Mole for extensively banging on things or the Horizons gun fix.

 

Wintertime at The Mill in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey

The Mill, Pale Moonlight; Inara Pey, November 2016, on FlickrThe Mill, Pale Moonlight – click any image for full size

Friends Maxie Daviau and Shakespeare (SkinnyNilla) recently gave their Homestead region of The Mill a makeover and invited Caitlyn and I over to take a look as it opened to the public once more.

The last time we visited, spring was very much in the air; now with the northern hemisphere settling into the winter months, The Mill has taken on a snowy look to match. Several of the familiar elements which have marked the region are still there: the sailing boat off the coast; the windmill; the shed, cars and motorbikes; the little tram track and tram. But there is also much to see that is new.

The Mill, Pale Moonlight; Inara Pey, November 2016, on Flickr The Mill, Pale Moonlight

With snow lying heavy on the ground, and in places drizzling down from the sky, the time of year is immediately apparent. The trees stand frosted, some with boughs naked under the sky, others with leaves frozen and golden under the pale sunlight. Here and there the passage of vehicles and feet have churned the snow and brought forth the ground beneath, giving rise to sandy tracks across parts of the landscape.

The lighthouse still stands up on a hill, but the keen-eyed may note it now sports a new stripped paint finish, and the keeper’s house has gone from its base. Perhaps the keeper now lives in the little stone cottage further down the slope from the lighthouse. If he does, the zip line down from the side of the hill might offer a quick route to the tram-car!

The Mill, Pale Moonlight; Inara Pey, November 2016, on Flickr The Mill, Pale Moonlight

A farm with a chalet-style house sits towards the middle of the region. It’s a place where Christmas preparations are clearly in hand, although the cats are more content to spend time outdoors despite the snow, keeping watch on the horses. Nestled in the hills to the east of the lighthouse sits a villa which, despite looking like it might prefer the sun-kissed summers of the Mediterranean, offers visitors another seasonal greeting. Down the eastern slope from it, a frozen bay offers the chance for ice skating – don’t worry about the polar bears; they seem more curious than threatening!

For those who prefer a memory of summer, the beach to the north-east of the region remains sandy and free from snow. Gulls wheel, kites fly – but I think the wind keeping them aloft may well carry the same chill from the surrounding mountains as is felt by the rest of the land, so a beach walk may still require sweaters and coats!

The Mill, Pale Moonlight; Inara Pey, November 2016, on Flickr The Mill, Pale Moonlight

Just over the dunes from the beach, the local pier is open for business, offering hot drinks to warm hands and insides, a selection of nibbles for the hungry, and places to sit down and watch the world go by. While overhead nearby, a hot air balloon offers a perch where watchers can observe the comings and goings below them.

The Mill has always been beautifully photogenic, and this winter makeover is no exception. With trams, zip lines and sleds to ride, places to sit and cuddle or contemplate, spots indoors and out, it offers something for everyone looking for a little wintertime wandering.

The Mill, Pale Moonlight; Inara Pey, November 2016, on Flickr The Mill, Pale Moonlight

SLurl Details

  • The Mill (Pale Moonlight, rated: Moderate)

Fingers and Maloe at DixMix Gallery in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Finger Scintilla - DixMix Gallery
Finger Scintilla – DiXmiX Gallery

The latest exhibition at DiXmiX Gallery, which opened on Wednesday, November 23rd 2016, features the art of Fingers (Fingers Scintilla) and Maloe Vansant, together with a new display of work by gallery owner and curator, DixMix Source.

Maloe and Fingers are ideally suited to be exhibited together: there is something of a similarity in style and vision in their work, and the pieces displayed at DiXmiX underline this perfectly, presenting a combined, yet highly individual pairing of studies.

Maloe Vansant - DixMix Gallery
Maloe Vansant – DiXmiX Gallery

Maloe’s pieces, drawn from DiXmiX’s personal collection of her work, are on display in the foyer gallery space, on both the lower and mezzanine levels. In all, ten images are displayed, two of them in a very large format, with a focus on the female face. All are striking, using light and shadow, colour and tone to extraordinary effect, to produce pieces with incredible emotive depth.

What particularly struck me about several of the pieces is the way they might be seen not only as studies of the human face, but also as the face as a landscape. A place where colour and shadow mix with the rise of cheek, arch of eyebrow, pout of lips, sweep of nose and covering of flowers, to impart a feeling that the eye is travelling over a new country; a place steeped in emotion, memory and feeling. Look again, and the emphasis shifts, as we are drawn to a particular feature: lips and eyes particularly; and with that shift comes new interpretations.

Maloe Vansant - DixMix Gallery
Maloe Vansant – DiXmiX Gallery

Walk through the gallery from the foyer, and you’ll pass through the Black and Grey Galleries, featuring images by Gaus (Cicciuzzo Gausman) and DiXmiX Source respectively. Again, these present images on a similar theme: the female form; both artists offering a series of sensual and in some instances, erotic studies.

Finger Scintilla’s work occupies the White Gallery. Here are twelve images which again offer facial studies and employ a vibrant, living use of colour, tone and light  to quite remarkable – might I say startling – effect.  Several of the pieces have a feeling of abstraction about them, others a suggestion of collage. All are powerful in content.

Take Electric Fervour and The Future Is Mine Only, both seen at the top of this article. Each is incredible in its presentation and depth. Each reaches out us and hold us in a way which is not just down to their sheer size; there is life within them; a life most clearly expressed through their eyes. Nor are these two images alone. There is an expression of life which permeates all of Finger’s images displayed here. Each of them leaves one with the unshakeable feeling that if the eyes are – as the old saying goes – the window of the soul, then Fingers is giving us a glimpse into the souls of his subjects.

Finger Scintilla - DixMix Gallery
Finger Scintilla – DiXmiX Gallery

Together, these are two fabulous exhibitions of work by two remarkable artists. Neither should be missed while on display at DiXmiX Gallery. Fingers’ work will remain on display through until the beginning of January, and Maloe will be at the Gallery through until the end of February.

SLurl Details

Lost in Space in Second Life – Wednesday Nov 23rd

Posted on by Inara Pey
Caitinara Bar
Caitinara Bar

We all love space and science-fiction to one degree or another. That’s why, from 16:00 through 18:00 SLT on Wednesday, November 23rd at Caitinara Bar, we’re presenting another of our themed Music with Anthony evenings for your enjoyment!

Lost In Space is an evening for celebrating sci-fi and space music down through the decades, from classics like Fly Me to the Moon all the way to Rihanna’s Sledgehammer (from Star Trek Beyond), there is a wealth of music to be enjoyed.

Time travellers from all eras, whether travelling via armchair or blue police box or via portal or accelerator - all are welcome at Caitinara Bar!
Time travellers from all eras, whether travelling via armchair or blue police box or via portal or accelerator – all are welcome at Caitinara Bar!

So, we’re Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft to join us as we set out Star Trekkin’. Dig out your favourite spacey, fantasy or sci-fi theme outfit (or avatar!), and come down to the beach and Caitinara Bar, where everything has been given a suitable makeover for the evening.

It doesn’t matter if you’re from Kirk’s time or Picard’s, whether you a Little Grey Man (or woman!) from the planet Xeraxthurb or a green Martian; we’ll here to welcome everyone from all corners of the universe – human, Narn, Centauri, Gorn, Cylon, whomever!

You may not lose your heart to a starship trooper, but you can at least shift into Interstellar Overdrive, Flash your funky costume  or ask if there is really Life on Mars – and all from the beach-side deck of Caitinara Bar!

We’ll be ready to beam you aboard from 4:00pm on Wednesday, November 23rd!

SLurl Details

2016 SL project updates 47: No Change windows and misc items

Posted on by Inara Pey

WeeVille, Oyster Bay; Inara Pey, November 2016, on Flickr WeeVille, Oyster Bay – blog post

Server Deployment No  Change Window

As this is Thanksgiving week in the United States, there are no deployments for week #47. The next deployment should be on Wednesday, November 30th, with a new server maintenance package to be deployed to the RC channels. While the full details of what it will comprise aren’t available, it will apparently include a fix for a data server crash which, although rare, can affect multiple regions when it happens.

SL Viewer

There have been no changes to the current viewer pipeline this week.Viewer release updates are generally a part of the no change window, however, in recent times a couple of RC / project viewers have slipped out unexpectedly. Currently, there are updates anticipated to the Bento RC viewer, but whether or not this might slip through and appear before the Lab closes for an extended Thanksgiving weekend is debatable. A new Maintenance RC is also anticipated in the near future as well.

At the moment, the pipeline is as follows:

  • Current Release version: 4.1.2.321518, dated November 10th, promoted November 15th – formerly the Maintenance RC viewer
  • Project Bento  RC (avatar skeleton extensions), version 5.0.0.321598, dated November 15th – bug fixes
  • 360-degree snapshot viewer, version 4.1.2.321431, dated November 9th – ability to take 360-degree panoramic images – hands-on review
  • Obsolete platform viewer, version 3.7.28.300847, dated May 8, 2015 – provided for users on Windows XP and OS X versions below 10.7.

Other Items

Duplicated No Copy Items

Concern is growing about people who are using region crash exploits to duplicate No copy objects (particularly those from Gatchas) and then putting them up for sale on the Marketplace. The problem isn’t necessarily new, but is spreading. Various ideas have been put forward on how the situation might be dealt with, while the Lab is also aware of the problem and investigating what might be done. However, the caution at this point is that there is unlikely to be a simple fix for the issue.

Bento Meeting

A reminder that there is no Bento meeting either this week – Thursday November 24th – due to Thanksgiving or next week – Thursday, December 1st. This means the next Bento User Group meeting will now be on  Thursday, December 8th, at the usual time of 13:00 SLT at the Hippotropolis Camp Fire Circle.

Stories at the Park for November in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Stories at the Park, November 2016
Stories at the Park, November 2016

On Sunday, November 20th we held the final Stories at the Park event for 2016; commitments being what they are in the run-up to Christmas, we’ll be skipping December and re-convening the story telling sessions designed to coincide with our art exhibitions at the park until January 2017.

Stories at the Park also offers a unique way in which the art on display at Holly Kai Park each month can be interpreted – through the words and eyes of others. For me, the stories and poems presented at each session never fail to open a whole new world of perception and narrative around a piece of art. And when there are two or three pieces written on the same piece, then the floodgates of thought and viewpoint are thrown wide.

November’s session made this latter point really apparent: several of the pieces had two or three stories written to accompany them, and each one offered a unique perspective on the piece and – if I’m honest – the thought processes of the writer! I was particularly fascinated at the ways in which The Rains of Kastamere, an image by Shakespeare (Skinnynilla) was interpreted by this month’s contributors.

Those offering stories this month with Caledonia Skytower, R. Crap Mariner, Aoife Lorenfield – a skilled weaver and reader of tales from Seanchai library, who was joining Stories for the first time as both writer and reader, and also Robijn, who submitted four beautiful pieces, all of which were read by Trolley Trollop.

The Rains of Kastamere by Shakespeare (Skinnynilla) had no fewer than three pieces written about it
The Rains of Kastamere by Shakespeare (Skinnynilla) had no fewer than three pieces written about it

I actually didn’t get to hear all the stories until after the fact – RL meant I had to spend a portion of the session away from the keyboard, but it did then give me the opportunity to walk through the current exhibition and listen to the recording of the readings whilst examining the pictures which inspired them, without any distractions of watching recording software, keeping an eye out from new arrivals, etc., which usually occupies my time at these events.

As this was the last of the 2016 Stories event, Cale and I – this being a joint idea between us – spent a little time mulling the sessions held to date, and I think we’re both pleased with how things have gone; submissions for each event has been strong (32 pieces for one session!), and the readings have been well received by our audiences – so much so, that I might have to expand the current cushion seating for future events.

Our artists, as well, seem to be pleased with the events and hearing how other interpret their words through story and verse. Offering your work to be included in something like this can be nerve-racking. It’s one thing to have your images interpreted privately by those viewing them; it’s quite another to entrust them into the hands of others whose words could go on to forever frame your work in the minds of those who see it whilst reading or hearing those words.

So, my very genuine thanks to all of our artists throughout 2016 who have willingly allowed their work to be included in each of our Stories at the Park events. My  equally sincere thanks as well, to all of the writers and readers who have participated this year. Without you, Stories in the Park couldn’t take place.

Our November writers and readers for Stories at the Park: Robijn, Trolley, Cale, Crap and Aoife
Our November writers and readers for Stories at the Park: Robijn, Trolley, Cale, Crap and Aoife

If you’d like to listen to the November stories, written to pieces from our guest artists Sheba Blitz, Maxie Daviau, Shakespeare (Skinnynilla), Sorcha Tyles and Terrygold, I invite you to hop over to the Holly Kai blog, where you’ll find all of the stories, images of the pictures which inspired them, and some audio extracts from the event. Or you can use the links below 😉

If you’d like to try your hand at writing a 100-word short story (a “drabble”) or a poem of up to 100 words for one or more of the pieces of art featured at our next exhibition to include a Stories at the Park event (which will likely be opening around Saturday, January 14th) then please refer to our Stories at the Park guidelines. Remember, if you’re not comfortable reading your own work or using Voice, you don’t have to: one of our readers will happily read your submissions.

In the meantime, the current Art at the Park exhibition will be open through until Sunday, November 27th, so if you haven’t already done so, I hope you’ll pay a visit.

Additional Links