Category: Reviews

So, the SL10B Community Celebration has come and gone. The regions will remain open until the 29th June, but in terms of the festivities, the music and the dancing, it’s all over and done with.

Doubtless, we’re all coming away from the event with mixed emotions and a lot of varied memories. For my part, I have very mixed feelings about the event – or at least, the exhibition part of the event and what I got to see of it. PC issues and other annoyances during the week meant I actually missed getting a decent look at three regions.

This being the case, I’m going to let matters percolate for a while before I blog any form out retrospective or commentary on things. Not only do I want to get around the bits I failed to reach last week, I also want to revisit a number of places I did get to take a look at (not the least of which is – no surprises here – the A’stra stage area!).

It’s the need to reflect and to think which drew me to Kusanagi.  Located on the mainland, it is the home of the  FTL main store and of the Kusanagi Jinja Shrine, both the work of Framboise Werribee.

The store is located high up in the sky, while the ground level features the shrine and a number of other buildings, including a 5-storey pagoda, all set-up amidst a wooded environment  and garden through which paths wind and a slow-moving river flows.

There is a notecard giver for the place – although you might not immediately find it (check the sign near the steps leading up to the shrine) – which provides a lovely description and explanation of the build:

The original Kusanagi Jinja was established as a small shrine in our store garden near the West Coast Road in Kusanagi, in 2007. After several years we built a more larger shrine and moved it to the present location. Kusanagi Jinja is dedicated to the deities of creation in Second Life. The kami enshrined are Philip Rosedale-Linden, Purimunushi (the master of prim) and Tekusuchiyahime the goddess of texture). Tradition says ancient people prayed to them for great skill, prosperous business, better luck and warding off evil.

The honden, main hall, is built in the style of Shinmei-zukuri. A default cube created by Philip Linden is kept as a sacred object inside the honden, and a sacred waterfall is hidden behind the honden. The honden is not open to the public, but if you’d like to worship in front of the honden, you are free to open the gates of the shinmon and enter to the area surrounded by a fence.

The red torii path leads to the small auxiliary shrine Smap Jinja which enshrines the five genius men as the tutelary kami of our clan.

The buildings here may not be new; as the card states, some of them date from around 2007, and so may appear a little dated in comparison to builds elsewhere  (although the paths are all mesh). But to dwell on points like this is to risk missing the simple charm of this place, which has a certain Zen feel to it.

The garden offers a walk around the pagoda and the lily covered lake beside it, and over the stream flowing from it (via a charming little bridge).

Follow the stone path up the hill and you’ll eventually come to the steps leading up to the shrine, with a small shop-like building off to one side offering a teleport up to the FTL store (an LM to the store is also included in the notecard, if you get that from the main sign).

This is a simple, charming build with no pretensions at being anything more than what you see as you explore. Despite being a mainland environment, Kusanagi offers more than enough trees to effectively screen most of the surrounding builds (providing you don’t have your draw distance ridiculously high). If you use a TPV, those which aren’t screened (there are a few low-level skyboxes and one very noticeable “sky” prim running along the edge of one of the nearby regions) can be easily taken care of with a suitable derendering option.

There is perhaps a tendency among many to avoid the mainland unless absolutely necessary because so much of it can be hard on the eyes for those used to private island living. This is a shame because in doing so, people can easily miss out on places like Kusanagi and the Beguiled Art Gallery and Studio, both of which are more than worth a visit, albeit for very different reasons.

I like Kusanagi because it is so restful, almost an oasis of peace in what can otherwise be the hustle of mainland living. It is a place which welcomes visitors and where one can recharge one’s avatarian batteries.

And after a week of bumping, jiving, jumping and wandering at SL10BCC, who can say fairer than that?

Related Links

• Kusanagi SLurl (Rated: General)
• SL Destinations in this blog

I dropped-in at Sands of Time at the weekend, a marvellous region which offers a heaven of peace and tranquility – as well as a host of beautiful vistas – for the footsore and weary seeking shelter from the rush and excitement of SL10BCC.

Well, I’m staying with things of an middle-eastern flavour, because in playing catch-up with my explorations, I’ve opted to cover Jordan First, the home of Kingdom of Jordan, another stunning and very photogenic build; this one with a foot planted firmly in history (and one Ziki Questi visited about the same time I did, but beat me to the post, so I opted to hang back a while before Pressing an article of my own). A homestead region owned by Farah Loordes is described as a “hangout” area – which grossly undersells it.

The default arrival point kind-of gives away the secret of the build from the moment you arrive, so I’ve opted to give a SLurl that will bring you to a little wooden pier over the sea next to a sand-kissed beach. A long stone stairway leads up the cliffs to the top of the island which, if you’ve visited Hazardous, will immediately appear very familiar – not that Jordan First is in any way a copy of the latter.

Climb the steps, and you’ll find places to sit, chat and pass the time in a landscape which is again reflective of Hazardous (and which includes elements by Wendy Xeno and Mandingo Quan). On the far side of the island is another set of stone steps leading down to a further beach and more places to sit, relax and share. There is even a mix of table-top games to sometimes be found as well.

It’s another of those beautifully minimalist landscapes that speaks volumes, especially when there are just two or three of you there, and it is  – as ever – a place I think is utterly suited to the eye of the camera, and which really invites time and effort spent playing with the viewer’s windlight settings & fiddling around with things in post-process.

But that’s not all. Follow the beach (from either set of steps) and you will eventually come to a deep gorge cutting into the island, with stepping-stones leading you into it over the water. Follow them and you’ll find a reproduction of Al Khazneh (“The Treasury”), rightly regarded as one of the most elaborate temples in the ancient Jordanian city of Petra, and famed throughout the world thanks to numerous films and documentaries.

Catching a glimpse of The Treasury through the narrow ravine is a genuine “Oooo!” moment, and doubtless one which has / is / will be the subject of many SL snapshots…

The inclusion of Al Khazneh in the build wonderfully straddles the RL / SL divide; bring a genuine piece of historical culture into Second Life and presenting it in a manner which is visually appealing in an environment which is a pleasure to visit and enjoy.

Recommended.

Related Links

• Jordan First SLurl  (Rated: Moderate)
• SL Destinations in this blog

[gigya src=”http://www.flickr.com/apps/slideshow/show.swf?v=71649″ width=”625″ flashvars=”offsite=true&lang=en-us&page_show_url=/photos/inara-pey/sets/72157634193475191/show/&page_show_back_url=/photos/inara-pey/sets/72157634193475191/show/show/&set_id=72157634193475191&jump_to=” allowFullScreen=”true” ]

(view slideshow full-screen)

An island of worn ancient cliffs sheltering a garden of wonders; Lost for countless ages in the midst of a vast ocean, home to Jinn, Elves and gentle spirits.

So reads the description for The Sands of Time / Majilis Al Jinn. This is a stunning region created by Calein Flux which is well suited to both the SL photographer and the intrepid explorer. Given that we’re in the midst of many celebrations to mark SL’s 10th anniversary which are going on across the grid, as well as about to see the start of a biggest gathering of exhibitions and entertainment to mark this momentous occasion, The Sands of Time might also be a worthy retreat from the hustle and bustle of partying and fun.

For my part, I wanted to explore The Sands of Time for two reasons: it immediately captured my sense of “OoO” on seeing it, plus my graphics card is becoming increasingly poorly and I wanted to see if issues which started to really make themselves felt while trying to snap exhibits at the SL10BCC regions would occur anywhere else.

Sadly, my GPu problems do. I’ve no idea if my woes are related to the nVidia 320.18 driver snafu (I was experiencing issues before the driver came out, although things got noticeably worse after updating the driver), but I do know that I’m now reduced once more to taking snapshots in JPG and at something just a little above my monitor resolution if I want to avoid either the snapshots failing to save to my hard drive or the viewer simply falling over with a graphics-related memory issue.

Nevertheless, exploring Sands of Time brought a smile to my lips; this is a beautifully composed region, which brings together a mix of eastern and western mythologies (the Djinn or Jinni (genies)) of the east, and the elves of the west) together in an incredibly scenic and restful sim which, Calein informs us through a visitor’s notecard, took a year to visualise.

The notecard itself, available from a vendor at the underground arrival point, is very much worth taking and reading. It not so much sets the scene for any forthcoming explorations, but rather allows us a glimpse inside the creative process and Calein’s thoughts and ideals in bringing the region into being. And it is a fascinating insight at that.

You have a choice of directions when leaving the arrival point – out through a cave to a beach area at the base of the cliffs, or a climb up through underground chambers to the cliff-top. Personally, I preferred going the beach route and working my way around things from there – it left the discovery of what Calein refers to as one of his most interesting creations until later in my visit, giving me a greater sense of anticipation.

This is also a place for romantics. Up on the clifftops are gardens and the palace, with fountains and lots of places where you can sit, watch, talk, and share with a friend or loved one. These very much bring one the sense of walking through the more romanticised tales of the middle east, although hidden in the gardens are also hints of the far east as well.

This is a wonderful, absorbing build, offering chances to explore, to wonder, to sit and share and even to meditate. Make sure you explore up as well as down – even if the “up” is only looking up inside the palace building. There is a lot to see here, and it is all very much worth the time taken to make sure you see it all.

Now, time for me to go source a new GPU card before I’m reduced to bashing the keyboard in frustration…

Related Links

• Sands of Time SLurl  (Rated: Moderate)
• SL Destinations in this blog

[gigya src=”http://www.flickr.com/apps/slideshow/show.swf?v=71649″ width=”625″ flashvars=”offsite=true&lang=en-us&page_show_url=/photos/inara-pey/sets/72157634161835140/show/&page_show_back_url=/photos/inara-pey/sets/72157634161835140/show/show/&set_id=72157634161835140&jump_to=” allowFullScreen=”true” ]

(view slideshow full-screen)

There’s a new entry in the Photogenic Spots category of the Destination Guide (which recently underwent a degree of culling to remove several entries which are, sadly, no more).

Rougham Town is billed as “a small Victorian port developed at the gates of Rougham Proper on the picturesque Britannia Isles.” And “small” really is the word here, the build occupies less than a quarter of the Britannia Isles region, the rest being almost completely water. I’ve no idea whether or not this means the region is still under development, or whether I simply missed a teleport to “Rougham Proper”, which leads to another region (and I admit, I was very pressed for time during my visit so may well have missed something). However, “small” doesn’t mean “not a lot to see”.

Rather the reverse is fact; there is actually a lot which has been packed into the scene, and any photographer looking for a range of backdrops for snapping may well to go take a look. There’s a beach, a dockside area, a couple of streets which present very different views to one another; one being a beachfront walk with a cafe, and the other a more industrial-like backstreet, while the tall facade of the Workhouse (this is a Victorian-era setting!), and the smoke stacks pouring forth black smoke offer opportunities of their own.

Wander around and you’ll find a marketplace, a small park area and places to sit and take-in the view.

For my part, I couldn’t resist snapping carious aspects of the build and then playing with them in GIMP afterwards, as you can no doubt tell from the images presented here :). There is something about Rougham which really encourages post-processing on snaps, the place has an atmosphere which  – for me at least – demands it be captured in ways other than just a simple snap.

This is not a place which will tax the SL explorer; as I said, the build is small and most of the buildings are facades – but this really doesn’t matter; and while a few of the textures used could perhaps do with a bit of an update, this is still a place SL photographers could have a lot of fun with. It’s also a place, I rather suspect, which could easily become a shining example of how the new materials capabilities could be showcased; the rough brick walls, the wooden window frames with peeled paint, the cobbled roads and iron gas lamps and the sand could look pretty amazing with the addition of normal maps.

Even so, I enjoyed my rapid-fire drop-in, maybe you will as well.

Related Links

• Rougham Town SLurl (Rated: Moderate)
• SL Destinations in this blog