Tag: TPVD meetings 2016

Mineral Ridge – blog post

The notes in this update are taken from the abbreviated TPV Developer meeting held on Friday, December 16th. The video of that meeting is embedded at the end of this update. My thanks as always to North for recording and providing it.

SL Viewer

Current Pipeline

Expect no further viewer promotions to release or RC status until 2017, as the No Change window is now in effect through until January 2nd, 2017. although this doesn’t necessarily prevent project viewers from appearing (see below).

64-bit Builds

[00:07] The Lab is progressing with the 64-bit builds (Project Alex Ivy – which I assume is a reference to 64 in Roman numerals: LXIV = aLeX IVy). Oz reports they are not quite there with the Mac builds as yet, with more work needed on the library builds. However, Whirly Fizzle has already uncovered  some issues with the Windows build, although she reports it as being largely stable through her own testing. Oz indicates there is still “some chance” a project viewer may appear before the holiday break takes full hold.

360-Snapshot Viewer

[05:59] The 360 snapshot viewer remains on hold while development is focused is on the 64-bit viewer builds. As soon as working versions of the latter are available for all the OS platforms, efforts will be switched back to 360-snapshots.

Viewer-side Voice Updates

[01:54] A new Voice update viewer should be available early in the New Year. This should fix a number of bugs and add improved diagnostics. There is currently no time line on when older versions of the Voice package will be blocked from connecting to the service, as “other things” are now seen as having a higher priority.

New Strategy for Rendering Fixes

[16:45] Up until now, fixing for rendering issues have been handled as a part of the Lab’s “standard” methodology for viewer updates: develop a fix for an issue and release it in a Maintenance release candidate viewer. This hasn’t always worked, with some fixes introducing problems of their own (the solid grey / black rendering of invisiprims perhaps being the most visible in recent times), which then prevent other fixes in the same Maintenance RC from progressing while the Lab works on the rendering fixes.

To try to avoid this, the Lab is going to experiment with separating out rendering fixes and moving them to their own release branch of the viewer. This should both prevent other Maintenance fixes and updates from being bottlenecked, but also allow for better QA testing of rendering system fixes / changes.

Sounds and Animations: HTTP and CDN Delivery

[02:22] In 2013 / 2014, the Lab made a huge change to how avatar appearance information and texture and mesh assets are delivered to users, shifting them away from UDP (User Datagram Protocol) delivery through the simulators, to HTTP via Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) – see my past reports on the HTTP updates. and CDN work.

For 2017, the Lab plan to move sound and animation assets (which may or may not include gestures) to delivery via HTTP and thence to CDN distribution and delivery. There is no precise time frame for this work, but once fully implemented (including by TPVs) the UDP  / simulator messaging and routing for these assets will be removed.

While some have experienced CDN related issues with textures and meshes, the hope is that the move will make the delivery of sounds and animations more robust and faster (sounds are reported as being “amazingly slow” to delivery over UDP via the simulator – 10K/second), and remove more of the heavy lifting of assets from the simulators.

Other Items

First TPV Developer Meeting for 2017

[24:26] The December 16th meeting marked the last TPV Developer meeting for 2016. The next meeting will not by until Friday, January 13th, 2017.  This is largely due to the fact that not a lot will have changed between now and the second week of January to make a meeting worthwhile.

Second Life and Oculus Rift

[33:28] In July 2016, Linden Lab suspended development on Oculus Rift support in the viewer, but left the door open a crack for the potential for the work to be picked-up at some point in the future. However, as things stand with the current generation of headsets, this is not going to happen in the foreseeable future.

The belief is that the rendering requirements – particular frame rates sit well above those which can be reasonably achieved in Second Life through the viewer (Oculus VR quotes a minimum of 60 fps and a preferred rate of 90 fps, which the Lab sees as being doubled to 120 and 180 fps when rendering an SL scene in stereo).

Firestorm 5.0.1 Download Issues

[20:16] Jessica Lyon gave further insight into the recent issues with people trying to obtain the Firestorm 5.0.1 Bento release (see my review here, and subsequent updates on the download situation here and here).

While there were some indications demand would be high – the Firestorm Preview group had expanded to over 8,000 people – it nevertheless outstripped all expectations, and the Firestorm download server almost came to a standstill. To try to correct this, the server was restarted, driving traffic back to the web server in the process, which then overloaded and crashed.

Firestorm hope that with Bento out the door, the viewer can resume a more “normal” QA / release cycle through the Preview and Beta groups. However, a mirror site for new release downloads will be maintained going forward. Options for hosting the Firestorm JIRA service, considered a major resource hog on the FS servers, are also being considered, although there are pro and cons involved in making changes.

Jess also took the opportunity to again thank Linden Lab for stepping up and providing a mirror for downloads.

Winter Trace – blog post

The majority of the notes in this update are taken from the abbreviated TPV Developer meeting held on Friday, November 18th. The video of that meeting is embedded at the end of this update. My thanks as always to North for recording and providing it.

Server Deployments – Recap

As always, please refer to the server deployment thread for any updates.

• On Tuesday, November 15th, the Main (SLS) channel received the same server maintenance package as previously deployed to the three RC channels in week #45. This includes:
  •  llGetEnv() will support “region_max_prims” (feature request BUG-40825).
  • llGetObjectDetails() will have a new OBJECT_GROUP_TAG function  (feature request BUG-20064) – when pointed at avatars it returns the group tag you see floating above them; and also OBJECT_TEMP_ATTACHED – to tell you if something is a temp attachment (feature request BUG-5195).
• There is was planned RC deployment for Wednesday, November 16th.

No Change Window

A No Change window is in force in week #47 (week commencing Monday 21st November) in the run-up to Thanksgiving in the United States. This means that all four server channels should now remain on the same release through until November 30th, when a new RC deployment is anticipated.

SL Viewer

[00:05] As noted in part 1 of this week’s report, the Maintenance RC viewer version 4.1.2.321518 was promoted to de facto release status on Tuesday, November 15th. Also, and as reported in my Bento update #34, the Bento RC viewer was updated to version 5.0.0.321598. This contains three significant bug fixes, but there will be a further RC release to correct the so-called “Viagra Bug” which causes an “ever-growing groin bone”.

[02:14] Further updates are anticipated on the 360 Snapshot project viewer. The Lab is still trying to work around conflicts with the Interest List, but at the moment it still appears the best solution is to slowly pan around the area you want to photography before attempting a capture to ZIP file, although this doesn’t always take care of things.

64-bit Viewers

[02:58] The 64-bit viewer builds, when they appear, will at some point include revisions to how the viewer goes about checking for updates and how the update process is managed. The aim is to make the update process more robust, and separate out the update checks from the rest of the code. There will be further discussions on this in December, which might be taken to indicate when the first 64-bit versions of the viewer might be appearing.

New Maintenance RC

[03:46] The next Maintenance viewer, containing further fixes and improvements is with QA, but should be appearing soon.

Intel HD2000 – HD4000 Graphics Issue

[58:57] As noted in my week #42 TPVD update, the Lab is going to resolve the Windows version detection issue with Intel HD2000 – HD4000 graphics on 32-bit systems by having the 32-bit version of their Windows viewer not opting into the Win 10 features, allowing 32-bit systems remain compatible with the chipsets; however, the 64-bit version will still opt-in. In addition, as the new viewer update process comes into force, the Lab is going to try to automatically  update users into the correct channels, so they are no longer impacted by these issues.

Grid Status Page and Feed Changes

[04:22] The Lab is making further changes to how grid status information is displayed / delivered. This involves a move to a new status page provider, in part to provide more information over what was previously possible and to improve updates and management of grid status reports and  updates.

The new grid status pages will be delivered via https://secondlife-status.statuspage.io/. Note that this isn’t actually live as yet, and any information displayed on the page is currently for testing purposes only.

The cut-over date for the new service is currently planned for Monday, November 28th, at which point a redirect will be put in place to steering people to the new status page when following dashboard links, etc. There may also be a redirect on the RSS feed URL as well. However, those wishing to use the new RSS feeds may need to manually update to one of the following URLs:

• https://secondlife-status.statuspage.io/history.atom
• https://secondlife-status.statuspage.io/history.rss

The changes are intended to allow Lab Operations to update grid status information directly from their internal chat system, rather than go through multiple steps to get the status pages updated, which is hoped will make the status information reflect updates and situations in a more timely manner, as well as the page itself having far more information available to users through the drop-down sections. There may also be a SMS feature so that those wishing to can subscribe to the service and receive grid status updates on the smartphone.

llTakeControl Issue

[10:18-36:22] Recent changes to the llTakeControl function, which among other things, manages interactions when in Mouselook have resulted in some users running TPVs being unable to complete Quest 3 of the new Horizons Experience as the guns for that section of the game will not function.

I’ve provided a separate report on the issue as it relates to TPVs and the Horizons Experience. However, the problem is symptomatic of wider issues with llTakeControl which also for a part of this discussion, and I refer readers the video to hear the entire conversation.

Voice Updates

[43:58]  The current voice updates are progressing through LL’s QA, but has been delayed due  voice attenuation with distance and direction issues occurring on Mac systems such that anyone on the left of a listening person attenuate rapidly with distance so that at a distance of less than 10 metres, they can no longer be heard. This requires further work from Vivox to correct. Once received – which shouldn’t be too long – then the updates will be released in a project or RC viewer.

Meanwhile, the server-side Voice updates have been held pending the completion of other server-side work which is deemed to have a higher priority.

[42:36] While a fix for SL Voice crashing when plugging / unplugging a USB device was broadly fixed some time again, there are some USB devices which can still result in a Voice crash when plugged in / unplugged from a computer. These seem to be devices which aren’t correctly recognised at the time they are connected (e.g. a headset being identified as a keyboard or camera, a camera as a headset, etc.). Vivox apparently now has a fix for this issue as well which will be coming shortly.

The majority of the notes in this update are taken from the abbreviated TPV Developer meeting held on Friday, November 4th. The video of that meeting is embedded at the end of this update. My thanks as always to North for recording and providing it.

Server Deployments

As always, please refer to the deployment thread for the latest news and updates.

• On Tuesday, November 1st, the Main (SLS) channel received the same server maintenance package as deployed to the three RC channels in week #43. This comprises: a fix for the bug introduced in week #42 – see BUG-40735 “Paying an object with [slgaming] in the object name (most skill game machines) fails on the RC 16.10.14.320687”; two fixes for issues with the new llSit function for Experiences, and additional internal updates.
• There was no RC channel deployment on Wednesday, November 2nd. However all three channels were restarted.

Both the Main channel deployment and the RC channel restarts saw land capacity / prim allowances for Mainland regions increase.A full Mainland region now has a land capacity / prim allowance of 22,500 as standard. Note that private estate regions will follow in due course.

For the specifics of these changes, please refer to Lab reveals LI / prim allowance changes in Second Life – in full.

SL Viewer

The Project Bento RC viewer updated to version 5.0.0.321250 on Wednesday, November 2nd. offering the following fixes (the reports on the JIRA are non-public, so links aren’t included here to save confusion):

• SL-395 – joint scale locks failing to upload in some cases.
• MAINT-6853 – viewer crash when checking preview skin weights in mesh upload.
• SL-504 – intermittent crash when adding attachment to an avatar (probably during shutdown).

This viewer is expected to go through at least one more iteration to address further bugs.

The Lab hopes that either the Bento RC or the current Maintenance RC (version 4.1.2.321183 at the time of writing) will be promoted to the de facto release viewer prior to US Thanksgiving, with the other being promoted shortly thereafter.

A further Maintenance RC is in development, and is likely to appear once the current RC has been promoted.

64-bit Viewer Progress

The Lab has completed building all of the required libraries for the 64-bit viewer, and are now actually building the first 64-bit project viewers, which it is hoped will see the light of day before the end of the year.

The library updates also mean that the Lab will be able to do large-scale updates to the viewer build environment with significantly greater ease in the future. One of the first of these updates liable to come in the first quarter of 2017, to switch to Xcode 8 (Mac) and Visual Studio 2015 (Windows).

Bento

There was no Bento User Group meeting on November 4th, so there is nothing major to report on that front – except those who have been fascinated and charmed by Medhue Simoni’s magnificent Bento elephant can now obtain it via the Marketplace. There’s also an extensive video on it – and it even flies! How cute is that?

Note, obviously, that you will need a Bento capable viewer to use it, and others will require Bento capable viewers to render it correctly.

The next Bento User Group meeting will be on Thursday, November 10th at 13:00 SLT at the the Hippotropolis Campfire Circle.

Interesting Nugget

During the meeting Sansar is discussed, and Oz Linden indicates that the log-in data the Lab receives suggests than a large number of Second Life users are using systems which are unlikely to be able to run Sansar particularly well, further boosting the Lab’s confidence that Second Life has a longer-term future.

This shouldn’t be taken to mean that Sansar will necessarily have a massively high set of system requirements – although obviously, anyone wishing to use the current generation of HMDs will need to have a system meeting the specifications required by such hardware.

Rather, it would again suggest than many Second Life users continue to access Second Life using systems which might be described as past their prime when compared to even the “modest”  hardware standards set by modern home computers.

Summers Wind – blog post

The majority of the notes in this update are taken from the TPV Developer meeting held on Friday, October 21st. The video of that meeting is embedded at the end of this update, and references to it are indicated through the use of time stamps in the paragraphs below. My thanks as always to North for recording and providing it.

Server Deployment Recap

• On Tuesday, October 18th, the Main (SLS) channel was updated with the server maintenance package previously deployed to the 3 RC channels, comprising the new Experience Key scripted sitting. Details: Google overview; wiki page.
• On Wednesday, October 19th, the three RC channels were all be updated with the same new server maintenance package, comprising internal simulator changes and a fix for (non-public) BUG-37758 “OBJECT_REZZER_KEY returns creator key of root key with all in-world copied objects instead of the agent who copied it.”

SL Viewer Status

[02:35] On Thursday October 20th, the current RC viewers were both updated for parity with the release viewer:

• Project Bento  RC (avatar skeleton extensions), updated to version 5.0.0.320815
• Maintenance RC viewer updated to version 4.1.2.320804

As per my Bento update #31, there are still issues being addressed within that viewer, which some affecting existing content on the grid, which the Lab is gradually addressing.

There is no “release date” for Bento, as with all of the RC viewers, it will remain in the viewer release channel until such time as the Lab feel confident in promoting to release, something dependent on a number of factors (crash rates, remaining issues, other viewers in the release channel, etc). However, the hope is it could reach release status be US Thanksgiving.

So, if you are a mesh avatar / accessories content maker, and you haven’t tested for issues with your content on the Bento viewer (e.g. possible deformations of avatars) – now is the time to install the viewer and test your products and JIRA issues; this is especially true of rigged mesh. If issues aren’t reported, the Lab cannot investigate them.

64-Bit Viewer

[04:46] Work on the 64-bit versions of the viewer is progressing, and they should be appearing “soon”. [11:15] More than half of the required libraries are now built ready for the new build process, out of a total of around 50. When available, the plan remains to offer the viewer on Windows as 32-bit and 64-bit, and on Mac OSX and Linux as 64-bit only.

Snapshot Viewer

[06:50] As I’ve previously reported, the Lab is working on a 360-degree photosphere capability built into the viewer. The initial test version of this viewer is progressing and may be appearing in the next week.

It works by capturing 6 images (zenith+ 4×90-degree wide images around the horizon + nadir), which are saved to your hard drive as a .ZIP file, together with a JSON file. [23:46] When issued, the viewer will be an extremely “first cut” version which will have flaws in it, but the idea is to get it in front of the community and work with the community to make the capability something useful to everyone.

I’ll have more on this, hopefully in week #43, once I’ve been able to play with it.

The viewer also includes some contributed capabilities, some of which appear to break snapshots under certain conditions – see BUG-40745.

Linux

[13:12-22:00] For some time now, the Lab has backed away from active support of Linux, and has sought third-party support for Linux maintenance.

During the TPVD meeting, Oz floated the idea that in order to make Linux support somewhat easier, would be to stop providing an integrated binary, distributed as a TAR file with links to all the required Linux libraries maintained by the Lab directly (some of which are broken or have odd requirements). Instead, the Lab would focus on providing the means to build the viewer specific to one version of Debian Linux, then distribute that package, but not distribute or build all the various dependencies required for the viewer, and instead leave these to TPVs to provide as a part of their Linux platform.

This is seen as beneficial, as it would remove many of the idiosyncrasies involved in building the Linux viewer, and eliminate the overhead of having to build and maintain multiple libraries associated with the viewer, transitioning the build process back towards a more “Debian like” means of providing a basic viewer package.

The downside is, the work would initially require a lot of input and upstream contributions from open-source developers. However, Oz indicated that if sufficient interest is show, the Lab would – other priorities allowing – be willing to work with the viewer community to put such a mechanism for Linux builds in place, providing it doesn’t result in changes with break the Windows or Mac viewer build process or result in a functionally different viewer.

Other Items

Voice Updates

[05:03] The voice updates are awaiting an issue resolution following testing between the Lab and Vivox. These updates will include support for a new codec, includes better error handling and addresses some of the more serious Voice exploits to make it “much, much” harder for Voice to be abused. The latter is seen as a “step on the path” to a larger solution for Voice exploit issues.

Inventory UI

[08:00] The Lab is interested in receiving recommendations on how to improve the inventory UI in the viewer. However, such recommendations should be “well-considered and carefully described”, and which should preferably include implementations of the ideas stated in the recommendation, or at least screen shots (captured using the official viewer) and clear descriptions of the recommendation.

Such ideas may then be included in the upcoming round of work the Lab is planning with regards to eliminating more of the common inventory problems people can experience, and make inventory handling more robust. As such, ideas that are simply cosmetic in nature (e.g. ideas for different inventory icons, etc.), are unlikely to be seen as high priority.

Viewer Code Clean-Up

[25:02] An under-the-hood project with the viewer is to clean-up a lot of the code. Some of this work in the current Maintenance viewer, with further work still being carried out. Among other things, it is hoped that these changes will reduce things like shut-down crashes and other issues, as the are released into the viewer.

General Chit-Chat

[29:58-end] There is a general discussion session covering assorted topics, including:

• The fix so that people banned from a group are booted from an active group chat, although ejecting them from the group will not kick them from any active group chat; so ejecting then banning can fail, although the Lab will likely examine this
• The windows version detection issue and  Intel HD2000 and HD3000 graphics, which can cause severe issues for users. This is apparently an Intel OpenGL implementation failing to recognise Win 10, but one solution the Lab is considering is have the 32-bit version of their Windows viewer won’t opt-in to the Win 10 features, and thus avoid the issue for 32-bit users.