Viewer 2’s Basic Mode gains a new feature today – that of Voice.
While I don’t use Voice myself – I have nothing against it, I just move largely in the world of role -play in SL, and Voice can be illusion-shattering in that regard – I think it’s a pretty good option to have within Second Life, and adding it to the Basic Mode makes sense. To a point.
The problem is, a lot of things are “coming” to the Basic Mode (or have been indicated at coming) – currency, for example. To be fair, I’ve suggested some additions myself, although they appear to be fewer than those LL are contemplating. Which leads to a problem I’ve touched on before.
If LL keep adding to the Basic Mode, how long until it ceases being the “Basic Mode” and becomes “The Viewer”? The function of a Basic Mode, I thought, was to ease new users into the Second Life / Viewer experience. Ergo, it makes sense to keep the Basic Mode relatively simple and clean. While things like Voice are very useful to have, the fact remains that if things keep getting added to the Basic Mode, then it won’t be long before any advantages gained in introducing it are going to be washed away.
In discussing this with Rodvik a while ago, I pointed out the need to provide a better transitional experience between the Basic and Advanced modes of the Viewer. It’s something he apparently generally agreed with, although he also appeared to imply that Basic might be more to do with making Viewer development more iterative, and that at some point in the future, Basic may merge with Advanced – presumably because the code base has been overhauled and made somewhat more modular, making future Viewer maintenance a lot easier. If so, this throws the purpose of the Basic Mode into a whole different category than “simply” being a tool to help new users – and it’s future becomes somewhat more intriguing.
Personally, while I’m all in favour of making the Viewer a lot more modular (something I understand Bagman Linden (Jeff Petersen) is quite keen on) to the point of potentially making elements of the Viewer “optional” / “installable as required” where users are concerned, I still think that the Basic Mode holds a lot of potential where new users are concerned, providing LL address its current shortfalls without overloading it with features and providing they add the means to bridge the gap between it and the Advance Mode smoothly.
It’ll be interesting to see which direction they do opt to take.
As Tateru Nino points out, Oz Linden issued a stark warning yesterday when commenting on third-party Viewers (TPVs): “[A]ny Viewer that isn’t being actively maintained is going to start having fairly serious problems over the next months. We’re making a lot of changes… if viewers don’t keep up, things will break.”
Now, Oz isn’t the most diplomatic of individuals, it has to be said; but a lot of people seem to be getting unnecessarily bent out of shape in response to his comments, apparently reading them as “You must swap to Viewer 2!” – which is certainly not what is being said.
Rather, he is pointing to the fact that with all that is coming down the line, there is a risk that some Viewer devs (particularly those working with the Viewer 1 / Snowglobe code who have to backport everything) may find their Viewers becoming obsolete. And his comment may well have merit.
While it is true that much of what has been developed for Viewer 2 has been backported to Viewer 1 TPVs (Display Names, multiple clothing layers, Avatar Physics, etc.), it is by no means certain that this will be possible going forward. for example, LL have already stated that Mesh objects will not render in Viewer 1, so it’s by no means clear if the code required to enable meshes to be visible can be integrated into the older Viewers. Similarly, they’ve also stated that the “Search 1” used by Viewer 1 is to be turned off at some point this year – leaving TPVs based on the code either without a search engine or needing to try to integrate with the Search used by Viewer 2. Therefore, there is a risk associated in staying with the Viewer 1 code base.
The Popularity Stakes
In the same meeting, Oz went on to say, “[T]that being said, we’re looking hard at what motivates people to stay on a 1.x viewer so that we can try to address those issues too,” a comment that was also met with a certain amount of derision, with people pointing to things like “usability”, performance and features as the major reasons why Viewer 2 “isn’t working”.
Much has been made of the Viewer 2 UI being “unusable”. At the risk of offending some, I think it fair to say this view is more reflective of people’s unwillingness to accept Viewer 2’s UI than it is of the usability of the interface.
Yes, there are quirks, annoyances, and things within the UI that could be a better than currently implemented – but none of them render the UI “unusable”. The fact is that *if* the Viewer 2 UI had been the de facto UI for the last 4 or 5 years, and was now being replaced by the Viewer 1.x UI, many of those decrying the Viewer 2 UI to be “unusable” would be making the very same claim against the “new” V1 interface. I’m not being snide in saying this: I’m simply pointing to a reality of human nature; Viewer 1 is in our comfort zone, and it is naturally more attractive.
Performance has been an issue with Viewer 2. Many report tremendous downturns in performance when swapping to it; I’ve experienced it myself in the past. However, today I carried out a couple of (admittedly simple) tests*, measuring FPS rates and rezzing times for the four Viewers I routinely use together with the “official” Viewer 2 and the Kokua development viewer (more out of curiosity with the latter than an attempt to measure its actual performance). The results were surprising, as this table on average frame rates on sims occupied by 2 avatars and 12 avatars respectively demonstrates:
Viewer frame rates on sims occupied by 2 and 12 avatars respectively
In terms of rezzing (using a mall as my baseline), Viewer 2 again performed well. The fastest Viewer for rezzing was, unsurprisingly, Kirstenlee’s S21 (The KLee Viewers have always preformed pretty well on my PC), with Viewer 2 running it a close second. Again, given the use of the JPG2000 library with the official Viewer, this might not be so surprising, but it does perhaps point to Viewer 2 not being as slouchy as its reputation suggests.
Obviously, the test is entirely subjective; what works for me, may not work for you. But its interesting that the overall performance of the Viewer 2 is not so much an issue as it may have been just a few releases ago (when things like frame rates did have me grinding my teeth in frustration).
Giving People What They Want
Truth be told, if Oz wants to understand why people stick with Viewer 1.23.5-based Viewers (or for that matter prefer the likes of Firestorm over Viewer 2), then he only need to really consider one thing: features.
Firestorm in-world Profile display: fast, easy, fun
simply put: TPV developers give users the tools they want: client-side AOs, radar, massive improvements to the Windlight engine and sharable presets, and so on. All these have served to keep Viewer 1-based Viewers at the forefront of popularity.
In the Viewer 2 department, TPV developers are being as equally accommodating, providing features and options users are requesting while LL turn a deaf ear: in-world Profile viewing that avoids the use of the Web Profiles, inclusion of the Media Filter, options to replace the context menus with pie menus, and so on.
As TPVs based on the Viewer 2 / Snowstorm code base mature and inherit features from Viewer 1 TPVs, people will migrate to them and overcome their bias towards the UI.
When that happens, perhaps the only question that will be asked within Linden Lab will be, “Why is Viewer 2 still the minority Viewer?” In reply to which, I can only say “check back here guys, and read that last few paragraphs…”
Nalates Urriah reports that Linden Lab have confirmed there is a security exploit involving a flaw in the Ogg Vorbis library could lead to Viewer crash issues. It’s not thought that the exploit can either perform privilege-escalation or arbitrary code-execution on users’ systems.
The flaw has been known about since 2009, but the exploit is fairly recent. Ogg files are in widespread use, so this is not an issue specific to the Viewer code. Linden lab has responded to the situation by issuing a patch and an advisory for all TPVs to recompile their binaries for all TPV viewers.
At the time from writing, updating executables for Kirstenlee’s Viewer (S21 7a) and the Firestorm Previews have been released. Links for the Firestorm downloads (which do not appear to be available on the Phoenix website) are available as follows:
Note that all of the above three releases of Firestorm should be clean installations, not installed over any previous release (which should be removed first).
Other TPVs will doubtless follow, and users are advised to keep an eye on the various Viewer-related blogs and update as required.
Addendum May 16th
Phoenix have released an update that fixes this issue (and others). Find it here.
Well, Enhanced Avatar Physics are finally formally released – and blogged about by Samuel Linden, aided by Amanda Linden (honestly, the bouncy bits are that big they require a double team effort?!).
The news isn’t exactly new; people have been blogging and filming the new undulating body parts and having mild fits of hysterics playing with the sliders for a while now.
And truth be told, the enhanced physics are fun and add another level of realism to SL (and without the angst associated with the way bewbs bounce in viewers like Phoenix).
However, we’ve come through nigh-on a month of almost deafening silence from Linden Lab while a myriad of things bork, bomb and basically bugger-up (OK, not quite so alliterative, but you get the point). So you can understand it when people take a tongue-in-cheek line of reportage on the subject, or indeed, mix a little acidity into their view on the news, as Marx Dudek did (sorry; hard to avoid that particular alliterative bit) on Twitter:
What I like best about SL jiggly bits: My breasts bounce with just the right amount of realism while I hover after another failed teleport.
Yes, bouncy bits are fun – but unless this announcement marks a renewal of the Lab actively communicating with the community, people are going to remain pretty unimpressed, even if those of us blessed with them can have bits that wiggle and jiggle and bounce and flounce.
Figures collated by Tateru Nino (see below) show that the new Basic Mode of the Viewer have had a positive impact on user sign-ups, with a dramatic upward trend since its introduction at the end of March. The new sign-up pages, reported on yesterday, have had an even bigger impact, it would seem – and despite teething problems. The latter point was hinted at by Rodvik yesterday when he commented in a Tweet to myself:
Thanks, yeah should be fixed quickly. Even with those the results have been amazing.
This is a positive thing, and shouldn’t be dismissed as it demonstrates that without additional marketing and promotion, SL can generate user interest.
What remains unclear at present is how well the new Basic mode does at retaining users – and as Rodvik rightly points out, it’s going to be a few weeks before the figures on user retention become clear. Certainly, I’d still be somewhat concerned, as the “new user experience” leaves a lot to be desired, as Theia Magic and others have commented upon.
Rodvik has also indicated that the Basic Mode is to be enhanced over time; as I’ve previously mentioned, while some additional functionality would benefit the Basic mode, there is a risk that add too much, and the line between Basic and Advanced becomes so blurred as to be non-existent. Given this, I still hold to my position that it is the Viewer HELP functions that need to be overhauled, rather than simply dropping more and more into Basic (unless said “more” is modular in format and can be activated at a time of the user’s own choosing).
I’m really hoping that ears at LL are receptive to the idea of a more integrated HELP for Basic / Advanced modes; it would get a lot of people “over the wall” in terms of transitioning from one to the other a lot quicker.
Beyond this, the issue of orienting users once they are in SL does remain a problem. Some have called for a reinstatement of the mentors; others have called for a revamp of the welcome islands, etc., in line with some of the privately run welcome areas. From Theia’s reports, it would seem a degree of policing of the LL-run welcome points needs attention. It is a little ironic that the Lab is paranoid about adult language getting into the forums and the like – but anyone with Voice enabled can be immediately verbally abused on arriving in-world for the first time.
Personally, I’m confident that Rodvik is more than aware of what needs to be done – as does Bagman Linden. That the Basic mode has had such a positive impact is good news, and I cannot see anything other than it being capitalised upon in the coming weeks and months as more of the initial user experience is brought into focus and revised / improved.
(with thanks to Tateru Nino by way of Rodvik Linden)
Opinions relating to the Basic mode available in Viewer 2 are mixed. While finding it usable in my original review, several aspects left me concerned as to how well it might fill the role for which it appears to have been designed. I specifically questioned the fact that beyond things like basic movement, the view controls and communicating, it has very little in common with the Advanced mode – and there is no obvious continuity in the assistance available for those who opt to start with Basic and come to the point where they want to transition.
One Small Step for a Viewer; One Giant Leap for the User
In fairness, getting to grips with the Viewer at the best of times isn’t easy; while Torley has produced some outstanding videos, these aren’t always easy to locate. Worse, the So-called Quick Start Guide suffers from a combination of having the wrong emphasis in part and missing important and basic information (like actually modifying your avatar’s appearance, rather than simply changing clothes). Also, it’s fair to say the Quick Start Guide hasn’t been updated to reflect the arrival of additional and attractive functionality, thus putting it further out-of-synch with the Viewer.
Put all of this together – the more intense UI of the Advanced mode, a less-than-helpful Quick Start Guide, only the broadest elements of commonality between the Basic and Advanced modes of the Viewer, etc. – and it becomes clear that moving up from the Basic mode to the Advanced mode is not so much a matter of taking the next logical step as it is about taking a leap of faith that the effort is going to be worth it. This considerably undermines the usefulness of the Basic mode.
If the Basic mode is to prove worthwhile, work needs to be put into providing some level of continuity between the two modes of the Viewer to help those making the transition. Indeed, with a little forethought, re-working where and how people get help in the Advanced mode may well assist those leaping straight into it, opting to avoid the Basic mode altogether.
Such continuity / general assistance could be achieved first and foremost by incorporating the HOW TO button with an expanded number of pop-ups (providing overviews of, say, the Sidebar, the revised Toolbar, the menus and the Favourites bar). Doing this would immediately achieve two things:
It would provide needed continuity of approach to seeking help for those moving up to Advanced from Basic.
It offers an obvious place to find basic help and information for those leaping into the Advanced mode of the Viewer and bypassing the Basic mode altogether.
All the pop-ups associated with HOW TO (both Basic and Advanced) should additionally contain links to the Viewer Quick Start Guide, where more in-depth information would still reside. These links should display a pop-up informing the user the QSG will be opened in their external browser (although the Advanced mode should still retain QSG access from the Sidebar as an option).
To further increase the relevancy of the QSG, it should be re-formatted into two sections: BASIC and ADVANCED:
BASIC should provide additional information relevant to the Basic mode and which is not included in the HOW TO pop-ups (such as the more familiar WASD keys being available for movement, information on the various icons that appear on the right of the toolbar, etc.)
ADVANCED should provide more in-depth information available to Advanced mode users
Where any overlap occurs between the two modes, simple visual indicators should be used to indicate options those options only available to the Advanced mode.
Help, Don’t Hinder
It is fair to say that the current QSG is encumbered by several problems:
It is out-of-date
It lacks key information users will want to know – such as instructions on physically altering an avatar, as mentioned earlier
It contains a lot of what might be regarded as extraneous information. For example, while one understands LL’s desire to promote Premium Accounts, is it really necessary to have the latter third of the QSG read like a brochure for Linden Homes – especially as there is already an entire section of the Sidebar given over to this very topic?
It would therefore seem preferable that any re-vamp of the QSG should also focus on ensuring it is updated to reflect more recent version of the Viewer and on assisting the user more effectively, rather than engaging them in a sales pitch for Premium Accounts.
Obviously, a better alignment of the two modes of the Viewer and overhauling the QSG will not solve all the problems inherent in joining Second Life – there are many other aspects of getting into SL that also need to be addressed over an above the Viewer itself.
However, changes like these should help to ease people into using the viewer and encourage a greater tolerance towards it by presenting a more easy-to-follow route into getting help and understanding the UI. In short, it will do more to help users in gaining familiarity with either mode of the Viewer, rather than possibly hindering them.
As stands, as long as the disconnect between both modes of the Viewer remains, it is hard to see how the Basic mode can achieve any lasting positive impact on new users.
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 