Second Life: Lab provides statement after Sansar lay-offs

Posted on by Inara Pey

Update, February 21st: please also see Lab seeking a “plan B” to secure Sansar’s future.

As I noted earlier this week (and following Ryan Schultz’s lead on the matter – see the link in the referenced article) – there have been some significant changes at the Lab in respect of Sansar; notably multiple lay-offs.

The news of the lay-offs spurred a lot of speculation concerning Sansar, the Lab and Second Life – and given the last, on Thursday, February 13th, 2020, the Lab issued a statement specifically about Second Life and its future, indirectly touching on the matter of lay-offs in the process.

The statement reads in full:

There’ve been quite a few rumours about changes at the Lab and their possible effects on Second Life and Tilia. The truth is that we have made a few operational and personnel changes to ensure that we continue to stay strong for the next decade and beyond. This means that we had to say goodbye to a few employees, but at the same time we also strengthened our team by bringing back some heavy hitters who will help make Second Life better than ever.

So, Second Life is still here and still strong. We’re continuing to invest in its future and you’ll see the results of our commitment this year as we roll out a new mobile companion app, new Linden Home themes, performance and usability improvements, and a number of other new features and enhancements. The ability to change names will be available in the next few weeks, too.

These changes reflect our commitment to making SL strong for many years to come. To infinity and beyond!

The statement has resulted in further forum speculation on whether the changes mean Linden Lab will have “more time, more money and effort to spend on Second Life”. This prompted a response from Soft Linden on the increased effort now available:

100% what this was about! Second Life has THREE rock star graphics devs now, an engineer with a proven track record for asset optimization to make texture delivery and management fast and reliable, and so much more. The various teams will have more to say in coming months, or just watch the viewer and server release notes. Right now, some of them are literally re-learning to get dressed. They missed the era between Bento bodies and Bakes on Mesh. :)

It was a painful adjustment. But a lot of the old timers and hardcore off-hours SL users here believe these changes are important. It’s part of the strategy for breathing many extra years of life into our favourite world.

As Whirly Fizzle notes in the same forum thread (she and I have been poking to see what may have been happening in terms of staff moves), the “heavy hitters” mentioned in the official statement (and referenced in Soft’s forum post) may be Runitai Linden and Monty Linden (Monty actually popped-up in the SL forums in December 2019 to respond to a comment there, so he may have been back with SL for a while, or possibly bouncing between Sansar and SL), Kurt Linden (QA) may also of transitioned back it late 2019, while Maestro Linden (from the engineering team) appears to have most recently moved back to SL.

Certainly, nothing that has occurred with Sansar  / at the Lab doesn’t appear to have had any negative direct impact on Second Life, again as the official statement indicates.

Tansee’s Pearls of Wisdom in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
ArtCare Gallery: Pearls of Wisdom

Pearls of Wisdom is the title of an art exhibition currently available in its own space at ArtCare Gallery, curated by Carelyna, and which opened on February 7th.

Produced by Tansee, it is perhaps best described as an examination of some of the viewer’s advanced rendering capabilities, notably Advanced Lighting and lighting projectors, together with surface environment and shine effects available through the Build menu, through the medium of art. It utilises both 2D and 3D elements and allows for audience interaction.

ArtCare Gallery: Pearls of Wisdom

Given the above, it is necessary to have Advanced Lighting Model enabled in your viewer (Preferences→Graphics and check Advanced Lighting Model); failure to do so means that most of the exhibition will not work for you. Note that enabling ALM does not require enabling Shadows, which tend to have the most severe impact on viewer performance; however if you can run with shadows enabled, they do give additional depth to the 3D element of the exhibition.

This comprises a large hall with animated spheres – the pearls of the exhibit’s title, illuminated by projected lights and with shine applied together with animated textures. These are set against walls illuminated by projectors and a landscape of pearl-topped plants to create a soothing, alien-like setting in which visitors are invited to relax and spend time, either on the lidos on the floor or the floating cushions within an airborne sphere.

ArtCare Gallery: Pearls of Wisdom

The L-shaped hall leading to the 3D element of the installation offers a range of 2D art, some of it using layering techniques and transparency settings, lighting projections to great effect, with some mixing digital images and techniques with images taken in the physical world. These again offer a sense of alien environments and ideas. It also includes the introduction to Pearls of Wisdom which should be read not only for the instructions on how to best view it, but also things to look for whilst spending time visiting the installation.

These pointers include hints at some of the element hidden within the images, and one notes the glittering pearls scattered throughout the exhibition. Touching these will offer pearls of wisdom in local chat. Further large silver pearls are scattered around the floor that use projected lights and can be pushed around by avatars when visiting, so “personal” lighting effects can be created as a part of the exhibition.

ArtCare Gallery: Pearls of Wisdom

An eye-catching exercise in digital art, lighting and viewer capabilities, Pearls of Wisdom is an engaging installation to visit and witness.

SLurl Details

Fantasy Faire 2020: dates announced and merchant applications open

Posted on by Inara Pey
via Fantasy Faire

Fantasy Faire, the largest fantasy-related event to take place in Second Life, will take place in 2020 from Thursday, April 23rd, through Sunday May 10th, 2020 inclusive, with the scheduled activities programme running between April 23rd and Monday, May 4th.

The theme for this year’s event has yet to be formally announced, although at the time of writing, the banner still displays the 2019 theme – but this may change. In the meantime, merchant applications for this year’s Faire opened on Wednesday, February 12th with the following announcement:

Have you been reloading this page for months, waiting for this moment? Have you been having nightmares of waking up in May and realizing you forgot about the Faire? Did you become a Fairelander last year and now cannot wait to become a bigger part of the annual enchantment?

For all of you struggling with the Faire-withdrawal, the moment of that first step of the spring is here.

As with previous years, Fantasy Faire 2019 will comprise multiple shopping regions offering space to Second Life’s top Fantasy Creators, offering the most comprehensive opportunity for fantasy shopping. In addition, there will be further regions focusing on entertainment, the Fairelands Quest, art and more.

The Shrine Tree, Fantasy Faire 2019

The merchant opportunities run from L$2,500 for a Themed Store with a 300 Land Impact allowance through to L$60,000 to sponsor an entire shopping region with (among other things) a store with 1,600 LI, plus merchant name in the region’s title and landmark, and region crossing recognition.

Merchants interested in participating in this year’s Fantasy Faire should visit the guidelines and applications page for full details on the available opportunities.

As always, I’ll be doing my best to provide updates and relay news on Fantasy Faire through the pages of this blog – but to keep right up-to-date on things, be sure to visit the Fantasy Faire website, and follow the event via the social media links below.

Additional Links

Finding The Muse in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
The Muse – The Library, February 2020 – click any image for full size

The Muse is a new Homestead region design that has recently opened to the public to offer “a place to find your own muse”. It is a group build by the wonderfully named United Nerds of Building, led by FenrisJohnson, and offers a series of interlinked settings available for exploration, photography, romance, dancing and relaxation.

In all there are six core areas within the region to be explored, with the landing point – which is not enforced – routed to the region’s sky platform; the remaining five being at ground level within a contiguous landscape. These five locations are: the Library, the Elven Ballroom, Gypsy Lane, Nemo’s Rest and The Pond, and all of them are connected to one another and the sky platform via teleport boards – but exploration on foot is the best way to appreciate those on the ground.

The Muse – Elven Ballroom, February 2020

The Library sits close to the centre of the region, adjoining a mesa that rises above the otherwise flat terrain. It is reached via a curving stairway that rises from a point just around the corner from the teleport board serving it, the path to it running between the sheer face of the mesa and a fast-flowing stream that runs outward from it and to the sea. The building is one suggestive of great age and with a fantasy lean. And while the Library may not have a plethora of books for avid readers, it does present a cosy retreat with views out over the landscape to the surrounding off-shore (off-sim) islets.

A walk along a narrow viaduct to one side of the Library and then between tall trees, will bring you to the Pond, a broad body of water occupying the top of the plateau that feeds four falls that drop into narrow streams to cut the landscape into four unequal quarters, each stream crossed by an identical humpbacked bridge, a mix of footpath and rutted track connecting them.

The Muse – Nemo’s Rest, February 2020

Two of these bridges are reached from the steps leading up to the The Library. Go north along the west side of the path, and crossing the bridge in that direction will deliver you to the arches and circle of the Elven Ballroom, the arches forming a pair of walks leading to and from the circular stone dance floor that is ghost an ethereal light by spheres hanging within the boughs of the surrounding trees.

Eastwards from the Library’s steps, the path passes over another bridge and to low grasslands bordering Nemo’s Rest, the home to the grounded wreck of a submarine, its hollowed-out shell of its hull forming a cosy hideaway.

The Muse – Gypsy Row, February 2020

Beyond both Nemo’s Rest and the Elven Ballroom sits Gypsy Lane, a row of three large Romany caravans sitting under the lee of the plateau and between it and a coastal woodland running along the north-east side of the island. Each of the caravans offers another cosy place to spend time, each one far enough from its neighbour(s) to invoke a sense of privacy.

The skyborne part of the region offers a large dance floor encircled by floating islands set against a backdrop of deep space. The dance floor has an animated wave-like finish to it and coral garden at its centre, while the islands surrounding it are connected one to the next by rope bridges and steps leading down to the first from the dance area. Each of the islands has its own small attraction – places to sit, Tai Chi, etc., – whilst floating a short distance away is a little space station that presents a further private space, while the local blue whale offers rides around the platform for those so inclined.

The Muse – Space, February 2020

A setting that is ideal for easy exploration and offers much for avatar-related photography, The Muse is a nicely designed and serene in setting. Our thanks to Liss Beattie for pointing us to it!

SLurls

Peaceful Play, the home of The Muse is rated Adult.

  • The Muse Consensual Kinks, rated Adult)

Sansar: lay-offs, rumours, and confusion

Posted on by Inara Pey
Courtesy of Linden Lab

Update, February 21st: please also see Lab seeking a “plan B” to secure Sansar’s future.

Update, February 13th: Linden Lab offered a statement on Second Life that references the lay-offs. I’ve posted separately on that with some additional notes on SL. See: An Update About Second Life (Linden Lab) and Linden Lab provide statement on SL in the wake of Sansar lay-offs.

On Tuesday, February 11th, Ryan Schultz reported a claim that Linden Lab had shut down development of Sansar, their Social VR platform, and that there had been a large number of lay-offs (up to 40 of the remaining staff of approximately 60-75 people).

Unsurprisingly, the news gave rise to a lot of speculation on the platform’s status and future. I have a request for information in with the Lab, but due to time differences, I’ve yet to receive a reply (the major reason I had thus far held off on writing about the matter – assuming I do get a reply. But in the interim, here is what has been stated:

  • The Lab is rumoured to have shut down Sansar development.
  • Some 40 staff are rumoured to have been laid off.
  • Some staff are rumoured to have been transferred back to Second Life.

The only official word in response thus far on the matter is a Sansar Discord post by Lab CEO Ebbe Altberg:

So, I’m only going to say this tonight as it’s late. We can pick up the conversation in the following days. Yes, there were lay-offs today. A truly wonderful group of people. But as you can see Sansar is up and running. We are still in discussion about next steps. Including with the wonderful group of people. More to come. Don’t give up yet. Go create and have fun. Not much point in speculating until we can tell you more.

So it would appear the rumour of lay-offs is accurate, if not necessarily the number. There is always a temptation to dig into potential departures, but I would rather not unduly add to speculation on that front until more is known via official sources.

In terms of Sansar staff transferring back to Second Life, it is worth noting that a number actually did so in late 2019 (or at least, some transferred back while some may have resumed splitting their time between Sansar and SL – Monty Linden, for example resumed posting to the SL forums on topics at the end of 2019, while one of the rendering team moved back to SL from Sansar). So, at this point, it is not clear if there may have been further moves from Sasnsar back to SL, or whether the current rumours on on such moves is the result of people picking up on last year’s shifts.

As it is, Sansar currently remains accessible to users (I’m in Sansar as I write this), and events through until the end of March 2020 remain active in the Sansar events page. However, this should not be taken to mean “business as usual”; until the Lab comments further on the matter, nothing can really be taken for granted either in terms of Sansar’s continuance or otherwise.

On a general note, I would hope some form of clarification / statement of intent regarding Sansar is made sooner rather than later. This is because news of lay-offs + rumours and speculation, particularly coming on top of the lay-offs at the start of November 2019 and the shift in emphasis with the platform that occurred at that time, tend to rock confidence for those actively engaged in Sansar (and there are a fair number of creators very active within the platform), and can also easily result in FUD and rumour spreading well beyond the platform, potentially to its detriment.

As further information becomes available I’ll follow-up on this post with either updates or additional articles.

2020 Simulator User Group week #7 summary

Posted on by Inara Pey
La Clef des Champs, December 2019 – blog post

The following notes were taken at the Simulator User Group meeting held on Tuesday, February 11th.

Simulator Deployments

As always, please refer to the week’s deployment thread for updates.

SL Viewer

On Monday, February 10th, the Love Me Render RC viewer updated to version, 6.3.7.536179.

At the time of writing, all remaining viewer pipelines remain as follows:

  • Current Release version 6.3.6.535003, formerly the Xanté Maintenance RC, dated January 22nd, promoted January 27th – No Change.
  • Release channel cohorts:
    • Yorsh Maintenance RC viewer, version 6.3.7.535996, February 7th.
    • EP RC viewer updated to version 6.4.0.535668, February 4th.
    • Camera Presets RC viewer, version 6.3.6.535138, January 24th.
  • Project viewers:
    • Copy / Paste viewer, version 6.3.5.533365, December 9th, 2019.
    • Project Muscadine (Animesh follow-on) project viewer, version 6.4.0.532999, November 22nd, 2019.
    • Legacy Profiles viewer, version 6.3.2.530836, September 17th, 2019. Covers the re-integration of Viewer Profiles.
    • 360 Snapshot project viewer, version 6.2.4.529111, July 16th, 2019.

Brief Notes

  • Work is continuing to try to clear the last blockers staying in the way on the Name Changes deployment.
  • BUG-228162 “Issue with experience_permissions_denied() and XP_ERROR_NOT_PERMITTED triggered when experience permissions are granted by more than one person” – appears to report an issue in granting permissions if dialogue requests are simultaneously open.