Friday, December 16, 2016

Felina Fermi's House


By Deaflegacy

Felina Fermi's house is as beautiful as Felina is as I was shown to her house in Sunweaver Space.  Bixyl Shuftan joined us on the tour.  He was welcomed.  Bixyl wrote about her place several years ago. Since then, she had moved her house to the Sunweavers community, where she had continued to make changes to it.

Felina showed us Panth's memorial before continuing on the tour.  It is a beautiful memorial. Felina and Panth met in MMO before they came to Second Life.  It is the memorial Felina made for Panth a few months after Panth passed away.  Before I continued on the tour, I looked at the memorial.  I don't think I'd ever forget it.

Felina pointed out that there are cats everywhere at her place.  As I checked her house out, there were cats walking by, cats running around, cats sitting down, and cats sleeping.  They are beautiful animals.  I am rather fond of cats as I used to have a few while I was growing up.  The cats, I believe, add to the beauty of Felina's house.  The house didn't even lag me out as I went on the tour.

Felina showed us the living room.  It has a big screen TV that takes up most of the wall.

"The place was really built to reflect US.... we loved cuddling and we were gamers so..."  said Felina.  She does not need to say any more.  However, she said that Panth loved to cook so she made the Kitchen in view of their computer room. In the living room, there is a beautiful Christmas tree 

"I try to cover all the bases; Living Room, Dining Room, Kitchen, Game Room, Bedroom and Bathroom." said Felina.

Felina's bathroom has a working shower.  This is remarkable.  There is something else to the room as well, which would be the washer and the dryer. I can see what Felina meant by warm and rustic.

Felina didn't change the house much after she lost Panth.  I sent her my condolences.  Felina went on to say that she built the house when Panth was still alive. 

"I valued his opinions." said Felina  "Something he didn't like, I would change it."

Felina recommended getting the furniture from Pamelas Store.  She's good friends with Pamela.

She went on to explain that the choice of textures is the real big part in building a house.  Felina is right as I was building a house myself.

Felina did create a really good house with a memorial in it.  I don't think I'd ever forget the house nor the memorial.  It is to be remembered always.


Deaflegacy

Friday, December 9, 2016

Adressing Concerns About Lindo Virtual Flowers


By Majikvixen,

“How Does Your Garden of Life Grow?”

I thought I would take some time to share with you all, about a follow up meeting I had with the Creator of Lindo, Sofistik.  It all started when my editor, Bixyl Shuftan, passed me a SL Newser fan's NoteCard, containing some inquiries and feedback of the article I did, on the Virtual Flower game called Lindo, back in July

Pretty much unedited (except for anonymity and format), this NoteCard states: 

"Good day/good afternoon/good evening Mr. Shuftan,

"I love your blog and the subjects in it are interesting and wonderful.

"I just have a few comments about the Lindo article that you posted in July of this year.

"Did you mention that Sofistik only wants live residents? And how does he define live residents? Does he think that an alt=bot? He has been banning residents from the game, residents that he believes to be bots based on their avi's appearance or based on their profile. Unless he tracks IP addresses, he has no way of really knowing who they are.

"Or how else would he know if someone is a bot? What is his definition of a bot? And does a game developer have the right to ban people because he feels like it? Are the banned residents griefers?

"No, they are not all griefers. I am one of the banned residents who was banned because I do not have a "proper avatar." Sure I wear a demo skin and a SL default outfit, but that does not mean that I am a bot. I am not a store bot or a traffic bot. Other people who have been banned have been in their only avatars and some are Spanish speakers. One has said that their avatar was criticized for being "sencillos" - simple. Not everyone wants to spend many lindens making their avatar look all fancy with mesh or using a furry avatar or tiny avatar.

"I realize that Sofistik is from Turkey. So maybe that has something to do with his management style?

"His reply to me was that I should contact LL and they would contact him to sort it out. But when does LL have the time or inclination to sort out these kind of misunderstandings? LL is preoccupied with Project Bento and Project Sansar. At most Sofistik has banned a few dozen avatars, LL probably isn't concerned about it. And I think Sofistik knows this.

"Or maybe he is just arbitrarily banning avatars because he has a cash flow problem. Lindo does not have a very large following like the SL fishing games. It only has 90 likes on Facebook. I don't know how many in group.

"Whatever his reasons, I think that he is wrong to treat players this way. He has the right to do what he likes because he owns Lindo but it is unfair to treat people so roughly based on avatar appearance or profile appearance and I'm sure you understand since some sims disapprove of furries and have banned them.

"I thought I would bring this up, feel free to look into it.

"Thank you for all that you do.

"Sincerely,
"Anonymous"


Sofistik, Bec Tasty, and I met to discuss the matter.  Key points that were brought up, are as follows...

In many traffic games, a Player may have to buy expensive equipment to invest in making L$, whereas the Lindo HUD is currently free.

As per the nature of any traffic game, and in the interest of "Fair Gaming For All" (Land Owners and Players), Lindo does have not only a right, but a responsibility to ban bots and not allow alts (this is also stated in the Lindo TOS).  For example, Bec and I are Land Owners, and we'd like to share our point of view, "It's great that you get all these Players to come to your land, generating traffic and business.  ...But when some of them don't move from the landing point, even after being kindly IMed, and half an hour goes by, you have no choice but to want to resolve this issue.  It just seems like sometimes those 'bad seed' Players come to take money and not participate.  Those are the avatars we're not too excited about coming to our land."

Sofistik has taken many steps to help cut down on this negative bot/alt behavior.  He states, "Alright, I think I can make this clear.  Since there is no proper way to detect bots when we see suspicious activity, we just suspend the account.  However, none of the accounts are terminated or banned permanently.  We will try to solve the problem if the decision is wrong.  This [problem with bots/alts] happens everywhere... especially in the games that offer payouts, outside of Second Life as well.  One of my friends told me he started to play an EA game outside of SL and got banned after a while, with no reason."  One of the tips to being an active and participating Lindo player, is to have payment info. on file, this increases the likelihood that a Player is real.  Bot/alt activity may also be cut down by some Players waiting to reach a certain age before being able to even play.  Additionally, when an avatar goes into "Away" mode, the growth of their Lindo flower is halted.  There are however, ways of proving that one is not a bot/alt, and should a Player have an issue like this arise, if the Lindo team is contacted, Sofistik says it will be addressed.  He also notes that for every thousand bots/alts he boots, there are maybe five real players accidentally lumped in there.

To recap, a Lindo ban is based on activity and participation level to protect everyone's investment in the game.  The anonymous who wrote the concerned NoteCard seemed like they were basing their opinion on how they look (not to mention perhaps some unfair cultural assumptions), not their actual actions.  The Lindo team was pleased with the opportunity to address inaccurate information and set the record straight.  If the Lindo team didn't care about "Fair Gaming For All," Land Owners would pull their Terminals up from the roots, and then nobody would be having any fun.  Sofistik cares about weeding out the bots and alts that suck the Land Owners' resources dry, for everyone.  Lindo is meant to flourish and nurture the beauty of SL.

Personally, I have seen the Lindo gaming community be more than lenient and fair when it comes to suspending accounts, compared to some other gaming groups I have unfortunately witnessed -that ban just because they feel like it!  But hey, this is what happens when you Create something, a Creator (of a group, game, land, etc.) has the freedom and right to exercise certain controls.  If someone is abusing the original intended purpose of something, wouldn't you want to stop that negative behavior ASAP?  I suggest that if one cannot follow the rules or proper etiquette, they should make their own creation.  ...It's always easy to judge until you walk a mile in the other gardener's shoes.  ;)

Additional Information:
SLURL: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Bonita%20Beach/22/51/23
URL: http://www.thevirtualflowers.com/
ADDITIONAL URL: https://www.facebook.com/lindovirtualflowers/
Group: Lindo (Group Key: b2df0fad-546e-cb31-5282-2bd26ceda83e)
Preferred contact: Sofistik, Xaria2016, Bec Tasty (bmw71), and many other helpers can be found at their HQ's SLURL too

Majikvixen

Wednesday, December 7, 2016

Reader Submitted: "Cheap Thrills" by La Performance


By Isabel (Alysabelle Resident)


La Performance started in 2007 by Jie Loon . She is by far the creative inspiration and their mentor. "La Performance" the show is two to three times a year depending. The following people were instrumental to me in writing this article and a special thank you to Jie Loon , Aspen Wrigglesworth , Alazi Sautereau,  without them it wouldn't have been possible.   .

'The opening of dance-show 'CHEAP THRILLS' was held on Sunday ... December 4th 2016 Started at 2.30 pm PST at the Tai Location. Once you arrived at 'La Performance'  you notice a few petal baths  for petite and as well regular avatar size.There is also a bee lounger and also a balcony swing slightly in midair and the countless sofa and sofa chairs .I was privileged to attend a couple of dress rehearsals and the final one Friday before the show on Sunday  . As an audience member the last three years I clearly had no idea how much work was involved behind the scene in preparation of La Performance . The backdrop scenes are extremely creative and visually appealing.  Aspen Wrigglesworth is the producer of "Cheap  thrills" and choreographed at least two dances with the collaboration and input by all the dancers for this particular show. The dancers don't use pose balls they learn how to move and memorize their specific placement, each dancer has their own choreography. It truly takes skills and the dancers rehearse three months before each show approximately three nights a week for two hours.
The music this time is by Demi Lovato, Barei, The Weekend, Saint Motel, ZZ Ward, Sergio Mendez, Sia, Toni Bennett/Lady Gaga, Giacinto Scelsi . Each dancer as their own choreography to learn individually.
These are dancers this year Alazi Sautereau, Aminata Potez, Aspen Wrigglesworth, Bia Nikitin, EchoDancer, Eva Bohemian, Falkon Wickentower, Feli Ibanez,  Janie Broome, JenniferMay Carlucci,  Kenny McDee, Lausard Wildcat, Lulee Babenco, Marili, Randy Thor, Sue Trallis,  and Zimp Rexie) . .
At the start of the show  Alazi Sautereau who is the MC narrates in local  welcoming everyone and mentions as well that its the 18th show by la performance . For that particular show 'Cheap Thrills" is directed by Aspen Wrigglesworth choreographed by her and the teams of dancers. Then she explains camera maneuver for best viewing:) and other technical issues and of course she thanks everyone for showing up and to enjoy the show. . I personally would as well recommend arriving twenty minutes before the show begins for a choice of seating .There is a 30 second delay to regroup between performances to change outfits and the scenery .The show itself " La Performance last approximately one hour."
 There is no tip jar they don't ask for any Lindens they dance for the passion of dancing and for the ' Thrill ' of those who are watching in the audience.
At the end of the show it's important to note that once again the wonderful  Alazi Sautereau thanks everyone for supporting ' La performance' and ask to remain in their seat for a special performance dedicating the last dance to dancer Line Rayna who touched the hearts of many and the dancers dance to Ave Maria by Scelsi. It was one of her favorite dances.  And a very beautiful dance it was indeed. At the very end of the season they have ask the audience if they would like to join the dancers to dance a sort of after party event:) It last approximately an hour . I did so personally the last few years and its fun , one of the dancers will send you a dance hud for you to accept . I think it runs about an hour the after party  . Next year 2017 is their 10th anniversary as well. .I personally can't wait to see what the next ' La Performance' will offer.
Bravo!  Aspen Wrigglesworth and all the dancers and the MC a job well done:). I have attended 'La Performance' for approximately three years now. I personally love dancing and it takes everything out of me not to jump out of the chair and dance on stage with the dancers each time I attend and there is no exception this time around.  And once again I have been transported to a time that I knew someone that use to dance modern and classical ballet passionately as you all do . And each time I am there I can't help but smile of pure joy ,  Its extremely creative and fun to watch ' La Performance' It doesn't matter what age you are , its worth seeing . On a personal note : Jie Loon I will never forget three years ago you invited me on stage alone as we danced you explain the details that go into a show for “ La Performance” . It was  a moment in time I will never forget . Thank you:)Pick up a Playbill at the show. 

The following dates 12/4/16 till the 12/11/16  at the same timeline , 2:30 Pm PST  will be held as well at the Tai Location  http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Tai/228/126/3547
 The second location will be from the 12/18/16  1/15/17  and  1/22/17  at 2:30 PST -- at the  Mediterraneo Location . http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Mediterraneo%20OC/209/150/3652
 And the last show on the 1/29/17 at 2:30 PST  will be back to the Tai Location.
Below is the“ La Performance ' website



 ÎsaЪeĻ (Alysabelle Resident)

Tuesday, December 6, 2016

Reader Submitted: My Psychotic Little Friend


By Kain Scalia (Maus Merryjest)

Coming back to your hold hunting grounds after a prolonged absence  always brings with a certain feeling of nostalgia.  There are inevitable changes, places and people gone. If you've been absent long enough, the landscape that greets you might convince you that you've arrived at your haunting grounds, instead.

But then there are also the welcome surprises, new vistas that, although not able to replace the longing for the old, certainly have new and wonderful innovations. New faces and old friends step forth to greet you, and recently the Lindens seem to be plunging their hands into the depths of oblivion itself to pluck echoes of the primmy past and bring them into our midst.

In a way, like the Gardens of Apollo, I am a vestige of the antediluvian days of Second Life, freshly plucked. Though I assure you, gentle reader, that the plucking was done by my own hand- I would hate for any Linden to have to be held accountable for my existence.

Between all of my accounts, I have been Second Life now twelve years, prim and dance-ball, and I have seen a lot. I've seen things you wouldn't believe. Ships on fire off the prow of the SS Galaxy (this was shortly before they reconsidered having those 'ornamental' antique cannons on board. And before they considered not allowing me any matches while on deck.) I watched floating objects in obscene shapes glitter in the studio lights as they interrupted Anshe Chung's press conferences. All those moments will be lost in time, like that latest new outfit you bought for the most recent social shindig and which has now been forgotten in the depths of an inventory so vast that entire sims go offline every time you connect. 

Well, they will be lost in time, unless we talk about them, of course, and I can't think of a better way to introduce myself (anew) than to share one such moment of my Second Life past with you. After all,  I have returned and intend to stay for the duration (knock on wood, right?)

I am sure we all  have one of those stories from our salad days in Second Life, when we were bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, so full of innocence and faith in humanity before that accidental teleport landed you in Midian City. You know what I'm talking about: the first time you accidentally wore a whole house on your heads because you didn’t understand how to rez things in-world, or the time I broke my hair  by fiddling around with it  so that I ended up looking like something right out of a Buggles video, or that time you accidentally ran over a Linden with a flying genital…

This story hearkens back to the days when I was trying to learn how to script the hard way- by tinkering around with the code, and may god have mercy on your soul...

You see, one of the things I wanted, more than anything in the world back in 2006, was a little virtual pet.  Something that would follow me around, like a little drone or an obsessed stalker.

I always made the best of choices.

 So I created this little computer monitor with a goofy smile. A pixelated, green-glowing tiny maniacal grin the likes one is likely to see shining at you from the darkness of an opium den. To this magistral idea, I added a bit of  floating text. This text proclaimed in yellow capital letters, "WILL YOU BE MY FRIEND?" 
 
  I want to remind you, reader, that I found absolutely nothing wrong with this at the time. What's more, I decided that I wanted the damned thing to not just follow me, but to follow anyone that got close. I guess I was going after the impression of  a lost puppy which would follow you if it had lost sight of its owner, lost and alone. 
 
 Being, as I told you, new at all of this, and only having the slightest idea of what I was doing, I ended up miscalculating how fast the screen from Hades would go. 

The moment I released this homunculus of chaos, my screen froze. Once the client got its bearings,  I suddenly found myself halfway across the next sim, without a clue about  what had happened. 

Let me remind you, this was back in the day before Linden Labs added some safeguards against what would happen when an object traveling at high speed would impact you.

On my map, could see this little  light-blue blip on the map moving here, then there, then there, then here. It was moving awfully fast.

You see, there had been a wedding going on not too far away from me. 

Just as the beautiful, veiled  bride was making her way down the aisle, or so was reported to me, my most terrible Frankenstein's monster comes speeding in, psychotic grin on full display. "DO YOU WANT TO BE MY FRIEND?"

And then it twanged the bride into, and through, a tree.

To this day, songs are still being sung of how my makeshift scud stalker bounced off the gathered guests who were unlucky enough to be standing. Several of them made it into the stratosphere. I hastily made my way to the commotion only to find a scene straight out of a George R. R. Martin wedding, if the good people of Westeros had invested more in catapults than in daggers.  

Once the intervention of a Linden had been secured in order to tame the tiny prim Antichrist, the guests and the bride were free to gather anew. The groom, however, had not yet come back online after being propelled across the sim and crashing. I hastily apologized, gathered up my electronic enfant terrible, and performed a retreat worthy of Napoleon attacking Moscow.

I didn't log back to Second Life for a week, and it would be a full year before I would try coding again.

But if you, dear reader, think that was the end of my misadventures, then you clearly don't know Second Life. I could tell you, for example, of the time that a most unfortunate sim crash led me to being teleported to another location and, to my great surprise, materializing hovering on top of an altar, completely naked before a congregation that was, at the time, celebrating the sacraments (to THEIR great surprise.) 

But that would be overstaying my welcome in an almost Baron Munchausian way. I look forward to our future and frequent rendez-vous, because surely I will have more stories and items of interest to share with you. Second Life being what it is, hardly a day passes where something out of the ordinary doesn't come to pass. 

-Kain

Friday, December 2, 2016

More Christmas Stores


By Gemma Cleanslate


Here are a few more shopping areas for you and you can check the destination guide for more.
 
Gnomes and Elves greet you on arrival at Christmas Lane near the Gotchas. Just a sprinkle of snow was falling when I visited. Santa and reindeer were parked in front of a shop ready for you to take him home for a good price. This is another great place for shopping for the home decor, inside and out. Dinner tables all set for you . I saw some wonderful fireplaces all set to put in your home decorated with the stockings ready for Santa to fill.There was a sweet little chapel . I passed  Santa walking his dog .Just waking along the roads and looking at all the goodies is a lot of fun even if you don’t buy anything but I bet you will! I could not resist! I bought a Christmas bench for the front of my home. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Christmas%20Lane/48/134/23
 
Christmas at snuggles was also a lot of fun for roaming and shopping. I was taken with some cute Santa and helper avatars and am thinking about that idea.Along the walkway there are wonderful little poinsettias and Bulbs for sale. They have outdoor, indoor , lighting, cards and so much to look at here and the decor in the sim is lovely. I found some more Christmas cards for sharing too. (these articles can get expensive!) That shop had some absolutely lovely snow globes with music for sale to give to loved ones and friends .That store was packed full with wonderful gifts to share. There is another large shop also just jampacked with decorations for the table and more. This merchant is very creative!  I plan to go back!  http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Snuggles/151/225/26
 
One of my favorite shopping places in Second Life  at this season , and has been for 9 years is the Winter Holiday Village. I still have winter outfits from 5 or 6 years ago that I have saved because they are so attractive and comfortable to wear. And I know I will be getting something new.

There is so much going on in the region I will be sending time here for events and for the wonderful skating and visits with Santa. Visiting here is like a vacation in a mountain village and a place to relax and enjoy winter sports and scenery. There will be lots of performers and parties taking place on the ice . Join the group to hear all about it. Pick up a notecard that will help you get around to all the venues.
 
The owners say,”We also have cross country skiing (free ski's provided), fun horse drawn carriage rides and the Magic of Christmas Shop loaded with all your winter holiday needs at reasonable prices. Santa had begun his live appearances Dec. 1st. Come sit on his lap, have your picture taken on Santa's lap while being entertained by the elves of the North Pole and Mrs. Claus! A free gift for each person who comes to visit with Santa.

Loads of wintertime fun to be had with the largest network of ice ponds on the grid. Free skates available. Skate tours for single skaters and couples.
We also have cross country skiing (free ski's provided), fun horse drawn carriage rides and the Magic of Christmas Shop loaded with all your winter holiday needs at reasonable prices.”
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Mazur/133/168/32
 
Another shopping  village I found  the Winter Wonderland and Christmas Bazaar in Andarah. If you are looking for an igloo I saw one there. You are invited to shop, skate , takes some rides as on the reindeer carousel or the miniature train . I went skating with the skating snowmen on the iced over pond. In one shop I found a wonderful selection of gift bags that saves wrappmy favorite thing. It is a good area to go through on your shopping travels. Don’t miss the very attractive snowglobes scattered about the snowy area.
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Andarah%20Island/206/97/22
 
That is enough of shopping! I will be visiting the other lovely regions decorated for the winter season , just for walking, sleigh riding , horse back riding , winter sports that are around the grid until Christmas . There are some places that stay yearlong for your winter pleasure . I will note those too. Enjoy your shopping.
 
Gemma Cleanslate