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The Archives
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01.02.10OpenSim Has What Second Life Needs: Estate-Level WindlightBryn Oh's Immersiva - photo using only custom Windlight settings and no post In the old days, the Lab would roll out new features and then, well, kind of leave them half-finished. In the new days, the Lab rolls out new features and then pretends it's looking for community feedback...but what that means is they have their finger on the roll-back button and they can press it or not. (Roll-backs are a whole other topic of course). Windlight is a good example: it brought the visually rich graphics to Second Life that are usually reserved for games, but with an even wider ...
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09.30.09Open Source Web-based Viewer Launched: 3Di Puts OpenSim in the Browser3Di's Web-based viewer used for on-line commerce 3Di of Japan has released the source code for its browser-based viewer, accelerating the possibility that the ability to access openSim virtual worlds through the browser will become increasingly stable and effective. According to the company press release: 3Di, Inc., which develops and offers 3D Internet solutions (Head office: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; CEO: Satoshi Koike; hereinafter referred to as 3Di) has today launched an open source project, named 3Di Viewer "Rei", for viewing and interacting with OpenSim-based(*1) 3D virtual worlds in web browsers. With this public release of open source technology, 3Di hopes to assist industry adoption ...
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06.11.09OpenSim Servers Hacked, Metanomics FailHyperGrid reported a few days ago about an attack on servers that brought down hundreds of web sites and openSim regions. The attack took down simulators hosted on Linux shared virtual servers, leaving grids like Reaction Grid, which runs on Windows servers immune. I don't know enough about this stuff, but it sounds to me like OpenSim itself wasn't the target, but was swept up in the server take-downs. Regardless, the event left hundreds of regions in melt-down, and owners scrambling to pull back-ups out of inventory to restore the work. As OpenSim gains traction, the measure of its success will increasingly ...
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04.10.09OpenSim and Rezzing Textures: 200% Increase in Load SpeedsA code patch to OpenSim by one of our developers, Tom Grimshaw, has contributed to a 200-300% increase in texture loading efficiency and speed. The patch was developed in an attempt to address the issue of 'grey textures', textures that get 'stuck' and never seem to appear, and textures in the distance appearing before those closest to your avatar. As Tom notes, the result in initial tests includes: - Increased packet efficiency greatly, less wasted bandwidth - Shaken the texture clog issue where textures stopped being delivered - Implemented texture priorities properly, nearer objects load first - Reduced memory usage per connected client VERY ...
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03.21.09Second Life and OpenSim Connections: Browser-Based and iPhone AppsTwo quick videos demonstrate new ways to connect with OpenSim and Second Life. The first, called Sparkle, allows you to send IMs from you iPhone and is available on the Apple App store: According to the release note, "Sparkle IM supports Second Life, SL Beta Grid, OSGrid, and any other custom server connection compatible with OpenSim/SL". 3Di, in the meantime, continues work on a browser-based client for openSim (and perhaps Second Life, although when they demo'd this last year there was no mention of its use outside of OpenSim enviornments), using ActiveX controls. The avatar is being moved by clicking the left ...
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02.02.09Change Comes to Washington, and I’m a Week Late: Virtual Worlds inside the BeltwaySomehow Washington and innovation seem like strange bed fellows to me, but there I was last week talking about mirror worlds at a conference hosted by In-Q-Tel for a mix of civil servants and spies or whatever, and found that they asked the kinds of questions that I've been asking and never quite answering: stuff like "what will it take to make the metaverse ubiquitous" or "what does it all mean to human identity". And what felt even stranger to me was that inside the Beltway they actually seemed to "get" virtual worlds, or this little self-selected crew did, and there ...
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01.21.09XStreet and OnRez Buy-Out by Linden Lab, OpenSim and Trust, and Elevating ContentProkofy Neva reported that both the Electric Sheep's OnRez and XStreet are both being bought out by Linden Lab, now confirmed. The Lab reports that in addition to bringing both systems under their banner, it opens the door to other improvements: "There is also potential to evolve the shopping experience with new tools (sharable wish lists, anyone? Gifting to non-Residents? Scheduled deliveries?) and capabilities. But like Amazon or Ebay, the core of the experience will always be about efficiency. Kitting out your avatar, buying a house/castle/skybox, or getting your inworld business off of the ground can be done in minutes. The ...
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01.07.09RealXtend Goes BottyA bit of an oldie, but with all the bot talk these days thought it was worth posting.
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01.01.09OpenSim: The Places We Could GoGwyneth Llewelyn slipped a New Years present under the door last night with a post on OpenSim that may well stand as one of the definitive "must-reads" for the year to come. Not being terrible technical (OK, not at ALL technical), I may be missing other summaries with more geeky goodness. What Gwyn has managed to accomplish is to take all the threads, posts, technical summaries, and her deep insight to create a readable, compelling and articulate summary of OpenSim. In addition to explaining what OpenSim IS, Gwyn has provided a readable technical summary that can serve as a master document ...
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12.03.08The Virtual, ReallyDigital Urban is a must-stop blog for me these days, reminding me of the blurring between the real and the virtual, and that the virtual can and will incorporate more real, while the real can "look" more virtual. Um, does that make sense? Whatever, it's a reminder that the metaverse includes virtual worlds, augmented reality, mirror worlds, and life-logging. They recently posted about a 3D fly-through of Trondheim, and what struck me about it was that the 3D city was generated procedurally. All of the buildings and their textures generated purely from imagery. I took a fly-through (try it, it's worth it)...and ...
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