On Friday, March 14th, 2025, Linden Lab held a Community Round Table event entitled Enhancing Project Zero and the 2025 Roadmap. Attending the event and providing both updates and answering questions (most submitted in advance of the event) were:
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Table of Contents
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The event was livestreamed, and that video is embedded below. However, this article is not intended to be a full transcript, but a summary of comments / responses. In addition:
- Notes are not necessarily in chronological order; where it has appeared logical to do so, I have attempted to group comments under common headings.
- So that the context of questions and answers might be fully understood, links are provided to the specific point in the video where they are made and the question can be heard.
Event Introduction – Philip Rosedale
So, what we’re going to do today, as Grumpity said, is we’re going to present a rough roadmap for the software development work we’re doing in 2025 … and after we give that overview, we’re going to respond to both pre-submitted and live questions and discuss it. And, of course, we’re going to change that which we’re about to say based on what we’re going to hear. We will continue to have roadmap session like this on at least a quarterly basis, so you can expect a second one in the second quarter.
Project Zero Updates and Discussion
Firestorm Zero
- Firestorm Zero (FS0) is the name given to a collaboration between Linden Lab and the Firestorm team to provision the current release version of Firestorm (7.1.11) as a part of – but separate to – the Project Zero viewer-in-you-browser project.
- Firestorm Zero is specifically aimed towards existing SL users (and those who have used SL in the past), particularly those on lower specification hardware, allowing them to have richer, ore graphically intense experience without the need for a costly CPU / GPU combination.
- There is a nominal fee for this – L$250 for a 5-hour pass to access the service.
- The number of available passes is limited – but the service should scale to meet the demand of passes purchased, with (hopefully) no waiting time beyond the initial log-in and streaming load times.
- Issues with with service can be reported via the Firestorm Zero category in the Feedback Portal.
- Related blog posts:
- Project Zero Update: Firestorm in your browser as well – Linden Lab.
- Using Firestorm in your browser for Second Life – this blog.
Project Zero Discussion
[Video: 10:06-14:22 + as noted in the bullet points]
Project Approach and Hopes
- Making Second Life accessible through people’s web browser is a major initiative at Linden Lab.
- It is recognised that there are many more people wanting to use SL (and see it at its fullest potential) than have the kind of high-end gaming PC set-up required to see SL at its best.
- There is also the growth of portable devices – tablets etc., by which people prefer to access the web, and which may be seen as a preferable alternative for day-to-day use when updating from lower-specification PCs (unless there is a specific gaming interest, obviously).
- As already noted, Project Zero now has a two-prolonged approach Zero itself, providing the Second Life Viewer (SLV), which is aimed toward incoming new users (who have an initial 4 hours on the service) and Firestorm Zero, providing streaming access to SL to existing users.
- As a part of the work for Project Zero is being used to experiment with a number of new ideas around the UI and UI elements [using, I believe, HTML and React] to help make SL more accessible to new users, whilst keeping the existing UI available.
- [Video 59:04-1:00:48] The idea here is to offer new users the ability to interact with the viewer UI in new, easier ways, without limiting existing users / forcing them down the same path, as it is recognised that changing the UI and forcing users to re-learn how to use it can be as damaging as making new users learn a complex UI.
- One such new way is that new users coming into SL via Project Zero current have [a to be expanded] Go menu, recommending around a dozen places for them to possibly visit as the browser is loading – and LL are able to monitor how well this is responded to.
- [Video: 58:00-58:36] LL have already seen the willingness of new users to complete the sign-up workflow and then access SL through Project Zero is “many times higher” than those signing-up and then being directed to download and install the viewer – which had been expected as Project Zero was being developed.
- Given the above, expect to see project Zero iterate and grow.
- Overall, Zero – both the SLV and Firestorm – is aimed towards getting “more and more people” to access SL through their browser, and hopefully expanded the platform’s reach in acquiring new users.
- Obviously, those already using high-end computers / gaming rigs at home will still be able to run SL locally and obtain all the performance benefits Zero offers to those on lower-specification machines.
- [Video: 35:45-36:07] Currently there are options in Project Zero / Firestorm Zero which are not available (e.g. uploading textures, etc., saving snapshots to your local disk), hopefully some of these capabilities will become available within the streaming versions of the viewer as the projects are enhanced.
- [Video: 36:21-37:32] Sntax Linden:
- Project Zero remains in progress, and can be regarded as a separate project wo Firestorm Zero.
- Project Zero remains free-to-use, but with limited slots to existing users and sessions limited to 1 hour.
- The UI work is still in progress.
- [Video: 38:06-39:09] Can Project Zero / Firestorm Zero be used on mobile devices / tablets? – Roxie Linden:
- Yes, both will stream to mobile devices, however, given the small screen form, accessing the UI on things like smartphones is not user-friendly.
- Both will stream to tablets [I’ve accessed Project Zero via an Android Tablet utilising a keyboard and mouse], however, there are some keyboard input issues which may limit this.
- If there is interest in pursuing such access (allowing for SL Mobile), then then could be looked into.
- [Video: 39:27-40:46] Requirements for streaming the viewer to a browser – Roxie Linden:
- A connection suitable for streaming Netflix, Zoom, Google Meet, etc. (e.g. around 3Mbps down).
- Any system with at least a dual-core CPU and 2Gb RAM, and with the likes of Chrome, Firefox, Safari or Edge installed.
- Should even work using tethering to a smartphone [data costs allowing!].
- [Video: 40:50-41:20] Voice support – Roxie Linden:
- Vivox Voice is supported.
- There are known issues with using WebRTC Voice, and these are being addressed, and should be fixed ahead of any switch-over to WebRTC.
- Voice quality and interactions should be the same quality as on a desktop viewer.
- [Video: 48:33-49:42] Streaming SL (both Project Zero and Firestorm Zero) is currently running out of the West Coast of the United States. However, plans are in-hand to start using other Amazon end-points, most likely staring with Éire (the Republic of Ireland).
- [Video: 1:17:59-1:18:31] It should be possible to provide support for game controller through Project Zero / Firestorm Zero; support for the likes of the 3D Space Navigator will have to be investigated.
Cost and Fees
- Currently, use of the official viewer through Project Zero remains free, but is focused on incoming new users over supporting existing users.
- As I noted in Project Zero Update: Firestorm in your browser as well] Streaming the viewer from Amazon services is currently costing Linden Lab around US $1.75 per user per hour, which is still well above the L$250 for 5 hours initially being charged for Firestorm Zero.
- This means that the Lab is running both aspects of the streaming service at a loss, and this may come to affect pricing down the road.
- However, there is confidence that the costs involved in streaming in general can be reduced in a number of ways such that streaming can be an affordable option for those users who wish to use it in preference to their own hardware in order to gain that better experience.
- [Video 34:45-35:26] One of the reasons streaming SL is so expensive (to LL) right now is because it is being provisioned through Amazon’s high-end GameLift service. Philip noted that other service are available, and this will help reduce pricing.
Data and Content Security
- Neither Firestorm Zero nor Project Zero place user or other data on the browser which might be accessed by third parties. Both are streamed services, just like Netflix, et al, which means they are essentially a video stream with no useful data to be scraped.
- The connection between the browser and the server supplying the viewer data is also somewhat more secure that connecting view a desktop viewer, as the connection is more akin to a VPN (e.g. the IP address associated with the viewer instance will be that of a server in Amazon’s cloud).
- Using the viewer through a browser in this way also means that it is not possible to copybot / rip content through the streaming viewers, as no object data is actually being downloaded and stored locally, as is the case with the desktop viewer.
SL Mobile
Notes:
- The Mobile User Group meeting is generally held on last Thursday of every month at 12:00 noon SLT (Voice and text) at Campwich Forest.
- I provide meeting summaries in this blog.
- The interest in SL Mobile from existing users has been high. However, thee has been an organic increase in interest with SL Mobile from new users.
- The interest from new users has been something of a surprise, as SL Mobile hasn’t been developed with new users primarily in mind – those who have followed the project know that it has been developed along the lines of being more of a companion app for existing users / returning users to use alongside the viewer as a means to access SL when away from the latter.
- The focus remains on trying to provide existing users with as much access to Second Life as possible through the Mobile app, but at the same time, there has been a swing towards helping new news to engage with SL through the app as well [hence why the early addition of the new user workflow in January 2025?].
- Bug fixing and feature building are being processed as quickly as possible.
- Mention of the current (at the time of writing) Mobile Millions challenges and log-in Streaks rewards.
Server and Viewer Updates
Notes:
- Simulator User Group meetings are generally held very Tuesday at 12:00 noon SLT (text only), and at this location. I offer summaries of these meetings (together with videos by Pantera Północy).
- Viewer development is discussed at the Third Party Developer (TPVD) meetings (Voice + text), the Open Source Developer meetings (text only) and at the Content Creation User Group (CCUG) meetings (Voice and text).
- I provide summaries of the TPVD meetings and CCUG meetings together with videos by Pantera Północy.
- Dates and times for meetings are available through the SL calendar.
- Note that the Open Source Developer meeting and the TPVD meeting might be merging, and the venue / time / frequency of one or both change as a result.
General Discussion
- The Lab is attempting to move both simulator and viewer updates to a monthly release cadence.
- For the simulator code, this includes moving a release through the Release Candidate channels are required, through the a release on the Main channel.
- For the viewer this includes taking each release through the familiar iterative release candidate process prior to promoting it as the de facto release viewer. However, this will generally be on a per viewer release, rather than having multiple release candidates in flight as has been the case in the past.
- The idea is to have each release focused on a usability improvement and and “major initiative” [feature, etc.].
- Currently the three core areas of usability issues are seen as being:
- Avatar loading (without issues of items failing to load, meshes flapping around in the air prior to being correctly rigged, etc.).
- The viewer start-up and world loading time overall.
- Smoother regions crossings (particularly in vehicles).
- Additionally, releases will also be focused on addressing issues, etc., raised through the Feedback Portal and which receive user upvoting.
WebRTC
Note: officially announced in March 2024, WebRTC (RTC=”real-time communication”), is the replacement for the Vivox Voice component of Second Life.
- Work has been stalled in completing the roll-out for two reasons:
- Getting a critical mass of users onto versions of the viewer supporting WebRTC functionality [essentially getting users to run a PBR-enabled version of the viewer].
- As the lead developer on the project, Roxie Linden has been heavily involved in the Project Zero work over that last couple of months, and so has not been able to focus on WebRTC.
- [Stats from Linden Lab and published by Firestorm, indications are that overall, given that Firestorm has the largest percentage of Second Life viewer users, that critical mass of users on WebRTC supporting viewers is fast being reached.]
- As it is, multiple regions on the Main grid (Agni) are supporting WebRTC, and support tickets can be filed by region holders wishing to have WebRTC enabled on their regions.
- WebRTC should provide a much higher fidelity Voice service compared to Vivox [and will end the viewer’s reliance of a third-party “black box” plug-in to run Voice].
- As it is directly supplied by the Lab, WebRTC will also allow rapid iteration of voice-related capabilities, such as:
- Voice captioning – see what people are saying in Voice as closed captions a-la you tube.
- Improved translation capabilities.
- New voice changing / morphing options.
- Better voice moderation / control at the parcel level.
- There is no set time frame for switching solely to WebRTC support on the back-end. However, in the March 14th, 2025 TPVD meeting, Signal Linden indicated LL hope to get to it sooner rather than later.
Viewer Updates
- Recap on the promotion of the ForeverFPS viewer, with its focus on performance improvements to de facto release status, with the following noted:
- Water Exclusion Surfaces which allow Linden Water to be “hidden”. At the time of writing, WES can only be enabled via scripted means (and support legacy invisiprim scripts insofar as “hiding” Linden Water is concerned), but but new UI elements are coming to the viewer to allow them to be created from there. See my summary on WES functionality.
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- Improvements to managing VRAM use in the viewer (e.g. be fixing the maximum resolution of the in-world view).
- [Video 29:19-31:50] Signal Linden:
- The faster release cadence is seen as important in ensuring Second life receives regular updates and to support code contributions from the open source community, rather than having them languishing for months or years. It does not mean that LL will no longer be taking on large projects, but rather will be developing them more responsively.
- One example of this is the re-focusing of efforts within the glTF project to provide a means to upload glTF mesh model using the existing mesh upload floater in the viewer in order to counter Blender announcing the deprecation of COLLDA mesh support. – see my summary of the Thursday, March 6th, 2025 CCUG meeting for more.
- To further support contributions from the opensource community, there is a proposal for revamping the open source programme to make it more streamlined, accessible and responsive.
- The faster release cadence is seen as important in ensuring Second life receives regular updates and to support code contributions from the open source community, rather than having them languishing for months or years. It does not mean that LL will no longer be taking on large projects, but rather will be developing them more responsively.
- [Video: 53:50-56:31] Further performance improvements – Signal Linden:
- The (at the time of writing) current viewer release – ForeverFPS – has numerous performance improvements.
- The next release [viewer 2025.03, still in development] will have further performance improvements within it .
- There is also an internal (to LL) version of the viewer for native support of Apple Silicon which significantly improves viewer performance on that chipset. This viewer is likely to go to Project Viewer status, but will have limited functionality initially, due to the need to rebuild many of the third-party libraries used to build the viewer, together with issues around the viewer being able to recognise navmesh.
SLua – SL Lua Scripting
- SLua (“slew-ah”) is the project to replace Mono as the server-side compiler for Linden Scripting Language (LSL).
- SLua is based off of the Roblox Luau scripting language, and it is hoped it will bring enhanced capabilities for scripting in SL, including writing scripts directly in SLua.
- [Video: 1:15:40-1:15:59] It will still be possible to write scripts in LSL – it is the compiler / runtime environment that is changing from Mono to SLua.
- The public alpha for SLua scripting is now available on Aditi, the beta grid. See the following blog posts for more:
- Your Next Frontier of Virtual Scripting: SLua Alpha Arrives – Linden Lab
- Lab officially announces Lua Alpha testing – this blog.
- Lua FAQ – SL Wiki
- Second Life Luau Alpha – SL Wiki.
Promoting Second Life to Creators as a Revenue Earning Platform
- SL is one of the most capable platforms for revenue generation among content creators, offering much lower costs to creator in terms of fees etc., when compared to other platforms such a Fortnite and Roblox. will it be promoted as such?
- Yes. Marketing efforts have restarted, and one aspect of this is on the subject of content creation and revenue earning.
- In December 2024, VenturBeat published Linden Lab has spent $1.3B building Second Life and paid $1.1B to creators (which I summarised here), in which it was noted creators have a greater chance of earning more through SL than Roblox, despite the latter’s much larger user base.
- Linden Lab is also attending the 2025 Game Developer Conference (March 17th-21st, 2025) in San Francisco to promote Second Life and the ability for content creators to earn money through the platform.
In Brief
- [Video 4:08-5:19] The meeting was attended by those protesting the use of AI in Second Life, both in terms of AI generated / modified advert (e.g. for products listed on the MP), art, and LL’s introduction of the AI character generations project.
- There is a document outlining objections to AI on the Feedback Portal.
- Philip Rosedale indicated he will look to hold an open forum / debate on the use of artificial intelligence within Second Life, at which the pros and cons – and user concerns – can be discussed. He urged those with concerns to formulate their thoughts – including constructive recommendations on how AI should be handled within SL – and attend that event, when announced.
- [42:22-44:24] Philip additionally noted that there are a range of aspects to the use of AI within second Life – such as the use of AI toolset in support of SL, such as with re-time translation – which are beneficial; but there are broader issues to address (through the proposed “AI Town Hall”) on the use of AI in-world. He also acknowledged there a multiple questions around AI that need to be address more broadly.
- [Video: 24:56-25:40] Second Life Community Discord Server will be opened to all users, most likely during the week commencing Monday, March 17th, 2025. User will be able to use Discord Connect to link their SL accounts to the server and access all of the available channels.
- [Video: 44:48-46:44] After the contraction of the Support and Trust & Safety teams late in 2024, these are again being expanded, with new hires coming-in. As this happens, support hours should again be increased to provide weekend support.
- [Video: 51:23-53:30] Multi-factor authentication (MFA):
- A reminder that MFA has been implemented across all of LL’s web services (Dashboard, Marketplace, Project Zero or Firestorm Zero web pages) for those opting-in to the capability.
- Encouragement was given to make use of MFA as an added layer of account protection for all those currently not using it.
- [Video: 53:53-54:35] What happens to a Second Life Business if it is cleared of DMCA wrongdoing?
- Once the legal team has completed investigations and made a determination they there is no infringement, then the business and the associated account is “cleared”, with the case closed.
- [Video: 1:09:10-1:10:54] Chat and Message Persistence Between Viewer and App:
- Messages received on SL mobile are not carried over to the viewer (and vice versa), which can limit usage of the Mobile app in favour of the viewer providing a single place for message receipt and recall.
- LL are working on better Chat persistence across the various platforms, which should allow for this to happen in a number of ways (Push notification, IMs, chat history).
- One reason for this taking time to implement is due consideration of security, encryption, and protection of chat and messages in the cloud.
- [Video: 1:11:24-1:12:14] Linden Homes:
- The next Linden Home theme – “Alpine” – will be for Premium subscribers and will feature options “never seen before”.
- A reminder that a selection of 512 sq m Linden Home styles are now available to Plus subscribers (see here for more on this).
User Group Meetings
There are numerous User Group meetings held in-world each month by Linden Lab, which focus on a range of subjects – simulator development, viewer development, Marketplace and web services, land, content creation, skill gaming, etc. The meeting are open to anyone to attend, with some held in text, some in Voice and some a mix of both. Questions on the topics they cover are welcome, and further details can be found as follows:
- User Group Meetings list and descriptions – SL Wiki.
- Weekly Schedule – SL calendar.
- Summaries of UG meetings I attend – this blog.
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