Thursday, October 16, 2014

The New Raawr Fox Avatar


By Grease Coakes

In today's world of Second Life people like you and me always want to try a new look whether a new furry avatar or set of clothes. For the humans maybe a new human skin or shopping trip.

One of the things I do when I log on is look through my notices. I scan through them fast but I did happen to notice was that Furnication at 
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Furnication/115/222/2001did have a new fox avatar release party recently. So I figured it couldn't hurt I had some Linden to blow to try out a new look. I check out the Raawr site I found on search. The LM is http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Free%20Spirit/137/81/22.


I let the store rez which didn't take that long before going about. I looked through the fox vendor and decided on a black color. The price is 900L which wasn't so bad. I went to the ark sandbox to try it out and the first thing I see when I put on the shape is that I look very skinny with the male shape. Remember when the Aventity foxes came out years ago and it seemed every fox fan was wearing them? They were really skinny, so male wearers of that avatar had to add a lot of body mass to look not feminine. This avatar from Rawrr has a much skinnier male shape. Even when I added more muscle I still looked unhealthily skinny. Skinny is fine Aventity foxes looked good and were the fad years ago when they first came out for a fair price. But they also came with a read me to let you know how to use your avatar. When I look through the recent section of my inventory I see no such read me for the Rawwr avatar. 

When I load up the HUD for the avatar I see a jumble that's not exactly clear. Granted I like the PG-13 artwork that you see on the hud however I would prefer a read me and a HUD that's easier to understand over nice artwork. To be fair clickies are already installed on the ears and tail so that saves time of having to look through my inventory for me to install. But the HUD isn't clear when I see numbers and symbols? What do the numbers 1 through 4 mean? I had to spin the hud around to find eye color. When I clicked the symbols, turns out it changes the iris of your eyes. Neat effect, but when I look at ears and hands I'm not sure what they do.

Granted the avatar does look good, although the ears don't show up when I put on my fave hat I bought from a Native American vendor. Heartspeaker Lorefield himself said I look good with it on. 900 Linden is a fair price. Toshuki avatars are the same price. However for a majority of avatars that I purchased there was always a "read me" notecard so if I got lost on what this does or how do I change the eye color.

And the HUD is a jumble. It seemed rushed as if the creator wanted to rush it out without beta testing to make it user friendly. I clicked things on the hud and it took a few times to get it to click. I did look through the box again and there were adult add ons for your avatar. That's a nice touch. I'd have to say like Aventity foxes it might have been geared to the ladies crowd, and this avatar seems that way too. I don't like the "Straving Marvin" look, so I find a sturdier fox shape. I think the creator had a femboy look in mind when she made it. I looked on my tail and saw the creator was Flower Leleu.

I think if the HUD was easier to use and there was a read me explaining what everything does I'd have a better feel for this avatar. I didn't like the male shape either. But graphically it does look good. And looking at my screen I do see my tail wagging by itself and it came with clickies. I think if the creator took more time with the HUD and took the time write a "read me," I could have a much easier time working this out.

Flower you did do a good job creating your avatar. However I think the male shape is way too skinny and I wish the HUD was easier to understand. Other than that, if you like tinkering with a hud and heart eyes this might be the avatar for you.

Also now that I think of it, this might be a good avatar for the fairer sex. When I saw a box for the adult add ons, I did see lot of them for vixens. Since I'm male I didn't try that stuff out.

I have mixed feelings about the Raawr fox. I'd give it a B-. I wish I understood the inner workings, but it does come with nice features. And I would recommend using a different male shape.

Bottom image credit: http://raawr-avs.tumblr.com/ 

Grease Coakes

Monday, October 6, 2014

Bryn Oh And More at the LEA

 
 By Gemma Cleanslate


I have been a fan of Bryn Oh for many years in Second Life. Her art is always a delight to visit  and often become part of it by interaction. Bryn is a real life artist living in Toronto Canada, whose landscapes are known over many countries and exhibited in many museums and galleries.  She has been doing various forms in exhibits that are extensive filling a sim from top to bottom and border to border and very interactive for the visitors. Some of my favorite exhibits include the "Rabbbicorn" story and "Anna’s Many Murders." 
 
Right now she has an installation titled  Retrospective in LEA 9.This goes back to here original art done in 2007and shows work to 2014.It is a wonderful perspective of how her art has progressed over the years.It is almost overwhelming in its scope. As you move through the site you will click on posters that lead you to  her machinima . Her artistry is in many media. The entire region is full of exhibit examples from each year. Just follow the signs. It will be open through December.  http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/LEA9/196/216/21
 
Another lovely exhibit not to be missed has opened in LEA6. It is art of real-life and Second Life photographs, and a poetry exhibit. Again the artist is a real life artist, Eliza Cabassoun, who says of her pieces, “Everyone has a place where they found their soul. This is where I found mine.  I found mine in a cabin by a lake where the fog rises in the morning into the mountains like a warm blanket.This lake is where I followed my soul to realize I have two gifts--writing and photography--and a part of my soul will always be here.” 
 
There is a convenient TP to get you to the gallery and Poetry Garden.  Walk around her lake to view some art  and some of her sculpture .
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/LEA6/104/30/29
 
Gemma Cleanslate