Elf Clan

The following information is for archival purpose only, as part of Elf Clan's history.

Inworldz enjoyed its first CHOICE AWARDS yesterday, January 26 2014.  The theme line is "Residents Honoring Residents", a public vote of people's favorite people.

The results of the awards are here.  You'll notice several names of Elf Clan members and good friends, of whom I'm not going to even try to list here lest I miss someone.  But you can check through the list yourself and see if you recognize any of your friends:

http://inworldzchoiceawards.webs.com/winners

Congratulations winners.   But win or not, we know both Elf Clan and Inworldz are filled with incredibly talented and creative people.  Congrats not only to the winners but the nominees and those who just go about making Inworldz a bit more enjoyable for others!  : )

 InWorldz Choice Awards 2013 Winners

• Favorite Avatar Accessories Creator  is Eye Candi of Eye Candi
• Favorite Kids Apparel Creator  is Veronika Garzo of Kidoo
• Favorite Merfolk AV Creator  is EllieZalt Resident of YokiFish Mermaids
• Favorite Writer/Blogger is Summer Rose
• Favorite Dance Animations Creator is Abramelin Wolfe of Abranimations
• Favorite Men's  Apparel Creator is Swaffette Firefly of SF Designs
• Favorite Shoe Creator is F4 Forzane of Tiptoe Designs
• Favorite Avatar Adult Attachments Creator are Craig Altman & Natasia Saintlouis of Bits and Bobs Animations
• Favorite Female AO Creator is Vista Barnes of Vista Animations
• Favorite Male AO Creator is Vista Barnes of Vista Animations
• Favorite Magazine/Newspaper Creator is Jake Hunter of Grid
• Favorite Model is Dazzeray Snowpaw
• Favorite Artist is Teal Freenote of Gallery Freenote
• Favorite Land Company is Anyraya Braveheart of Calia Estates
• Favorite Static Pose Creator is Siennah Elcar of .:Antsie Avie:. Poses & Animations with Attitude!
• Favorite Public EventCreator is EventsCoordinator Inworldz of FrightFest
• Favorite Fashion Accessories Creator is Cute Avi of I Love Cute Things
• Favorite Jewellery Creator is Jojo Lowe of Timeless Designs
• Favorite Hair Creator is Mirja Mills of EMO-tions
• Favorite Tiny AV Creator is Wynx Whiplash of WynxWorks
• Favorite Adult Animations Creator is Craig Altman & Natasia Saintlouis of Bits and Bobs Animations
• Favorite Shopping Region Creator is Emilie Seda of Victorian Market Place
• Favorite Male Entertainer is Ganjo Mokeev
• Favorite Host/ Hostess is Rowland Larkham
• Favorite Garden & Landscape  Creator is Julia Hathor of Creative Fantasy
• Favorite Role Play Sim Creator Bim Rasmuson of The Grand Duchy of Chanwood
• Favorite Texture Creator is Xzavia Yifu of Timeless Textures
• Favorite Photographer/ Photography Studio is Midnight Rain of Glas Photography
• Favorite Skins/Make Up Creator is Lorac Farella of Pulse Skins Eyes and Shapes
• Favorite Female Entertainer is Ceci Dover
• Favorite Vehicles Creator is TenBears Running of Scrimshaw Marine
• Favorite Public Group Creator is Snoots Dwagon of DragonForge
• Favorite DJ is Cataplexia Numbers
• Favorite Art Gallery Creator isTeal Freenote of Gallery Freenote
• Favorite Scripter is Balpien Hammerer of InMotion
• Favorite Furniture Creator is Teal Freenote of Wind River Homes and Furniture
• Favorite Anything Else Creator is Gregg Legendary of Legendary Creations
• Favorite NightClub Creator is Zoey Newlon of Brick House Blues
• Favorite Buildings Creator is Teal Freenote of Wind River Homes
• Favorite Sim Build To Explore Creator is Zayn Till of Raglan Shire
• Favorite Women's Apparel Creator is Swaffette Firefly for SF Designs

A couple of members have understandably mentioned a recently announced event regarding "Druid Rituals"... and questioned if such conflicted with the Elf Clan Charter regarding "no religious activities".

I discussed this personally with the leaders of Chanwood and they were most informative and cooperative.  I think to begin this discussion a quote directly from them would be helpful.  Regarding their Druid roleplay and ceremonies, Chanwood states:

"They are no more intended to represent "true" druidism than wearing a sword is intended to express a desire to actually kill someone or promote real-life violence."

The distinction made here is to be noted... for there is an established but not-well-known difference between historical Druids and Druid fantasy mythos.  As everyone is aware, Elf Clan is a fantasy group which allows some crossover into areas such as science fiction, steampunk, post apocalyptic and other fantasy themes. Druid mythos would fall into that theme.

While it is entirely possible for Druid mythos to include religious elements, Chanwood assures me they are most aware of the Elf Clan Charter requirements and are careful to not cross that line.   I have come to trust their word and honor in such matters so see no need to examine the matter further.

DRUID MYTHOS

Very little is known about real life Druids.  The history is extremely scant and even authorities will admit that our "knowledge" of these ancient people are as much from legend and story as real-life archaeological evidence-- perhaps much more. 

Druid Mythos on the other hand is as rich and varied as Elven mythos.   While based on the lore of Druids, that's about as far as mythos goes.  That mythos can range all the way from "early scientists" to "human sacrificing monsters"... as is the case with Elves themselves (as Lord of the Rings fans will testify).  Just as we do not engage in "Elven Gods" or "Evil Elf" concepts... Chanwood's Druid roleplay stays away from the religious and evil side of Druid mythos.

ROLEPLAY IN ELF CLAN

I am not personally acquainted with the Chanwood Druid roleplay... but they are well acquainted with our Charter.  I have found few other roleplay groups as cooperative, friendly and harmonious as Chanwood, so I trust them to conduct such roleplay within the concepts of Elf Clan guidelines.   We recognize of course that in roleplay environments things may take place that are not precisely "Elf Clan" in concept. 

For example, during the Ork Wars many a lives were lost and lands ravaged... which of course has nothing to do with the actual harmony that exists in Elf Clan outside of such roleplay scenarios.  Most of us are well aware that in reality the Orks (when they are present) are our oldest and most loyal allies.   Such did not prevent us from having three rather hilarious and highly entertaining "Ork Wars".  Such is the method of RolePlay.

Thus, things which occur within Chanwood roleplay may not be 100% friendly, harmonious and respectful... nor should such be expected.  It is roleplay.   So long as blood does not gush, language is tempered and other major issues (such as occult, nationalistic, vampiric, modesty, religious etc) are adhered to, battles, ceremonies, plotting, backstabbing and downright unfriendly behavior are all part of the "game"... as roleplay is indeed a game. 

So my findings are there is no need for alarm or concern in this matter.   Chanwood is a trusted sub-group within our realm, they are very pro-Elf Clan and have been most cooperative in all of my communications with their group.   I have found I can discuss just about anything with them without offense either given or taken.  As one of the Eldar I find that most refreshing.

Chanwood assures us that any rituals, ceremonies, celebrations or otherwise will be kept within the terms of the Charter.   As their honor is established in our group and their word given in that, I have no reason to doubt or believe otherwise.  All members may rest assured that such has been examined and found to be standard roleplay concepts.  Their druid roleplay is of the fantasy/mythos nature and as such, is part of the fantasy theme that Elf Clan embraces.

THE COMPETITIVE EDGE OF SOCIAL VR

At this time virtual reality is based on the following concepts:

* Creators love building and displaying their creations.  To do so, they need land.

* Land costs money.

* In order to afford land on Second Life, creators become merchants.

* Merchants require customers who buy their wares.

* Thus we have an economic system which drives land sales.

* Other land sales are fueled by real-life businesses and organizations who want exposure in a 3D virtual environment.

* To get such exposure, they need a lot of visitors.

* Those visitors come from the same source in which merchants make their sales.

* Those visitors can become residents, purchasing their own lands not for creative but rather for social gathering purposes, ie "permanent visitors".

* Another source of land sales is groups, which rely on regular visitors to form their populations.

* Grid primary profit source is land sales, which sales depend merchants, businesses, organizations and groups-- which all depend on visitors and residents.

The bottom line is that the primary source of income for virtual worlds as we know it isn't creators... but rather visitors and residents who fuel the economy and drive creative / business / organizational force.  This brings about land sales which are the core profit of virtual reality worlds.  Thus, the primary profit driver of VR is socially-based users.

ZERO LEARNING CURVE, ZERO WORK, ALL FUN

That is where the problem comes in.  What if the majority of socially-based users are attracted not to a high-learning-curve creative VR platform, but instead an easy-to-use, zero-learning-curve VR social environment in which any and all creations are available at a price... but requiring almost no work or effort on their part.   The only "creativity" required would be shopping and rezzing goods bought, which pretty much everyone loves to do.

That is most likely the environment SL2 will be offering-- a social environment focusing on groups and individual profiles (aka Facebook)-- one in which the users/customers will not need to create or build anything (in fact, such likely won't be possible).  Their entire focus will be on exploring a ready-made world, enjoying social groups, chatting, "dancing", attending parties, listening to live music, and basically doing all the things that are already the most popular activities on virtual worlds.  The difference is it will all be easy. As a bonus, griefers (now removed of their toys on which they so heavily depend) will largely be a thing of the past.*

THEREIN LIES THE COMPETITIVE DANGER

If such a social world draws the vast majority of potential visitors and residents to their grid, what will be left for current high-learning-curve VR such as Inworldz, Second Life and OpenSim?  It is predictable that while older grids may continue on at a minimal level, catering to those who love creativity for its own sake... the economy of such worlds could well collapse, forcing creators to switch from a market-based to reputation-based format (ie, instead of focusing on sales, they would focus on reputation gained from their creations... and goods would largely be just given away for the fun of it). Why?  Because there wouldn't be enough general population interested in buying wares on an "old fashioned, difficult-to-use grid" to fuel the economy and drive a sales-based merchant force.

That's just a possibility.   Whether that would actually happen or not is anyone's guess.

HOW TO OVERCOME

So how can a company like Inworldz overcome this situation?   How can they prevent a small steamroller like Linden Lab from taking (and possibly ruining) what remains of the VR market?  It's actually not all that difficult in concept or execution:

* Become a social VR system itself.  There's nothing wrong with the idea.  It makes sense.  Just don't cut the creators, merchants and landlords out of the deal.

* Totally re-design the viewer user-interface.  It needs two modes:  Beginner and Advanced.  Common concept.  Change the entire menu system so that it's divided into two systems-- items essential to navigating and using the grid-- and items necessary to create.  With an easy-to-use viewer, more people will be attracted to the grid.

* Completely re-create the IDI new user intake area. 

   1) First, change the name to something else.  "Inworldz Desert Island" is not the most welcoming name for a first-impression intake area... and the name isn't intuitive in purpose. 

   2) Make the intake area more automated so the Mentors don't get swamped during busy times, make it easy for people to find areas pertaining to their interests, make use of notecards, portals, information signs, volunteer "tour guides" and tutorial systems.  

   3) Put your best foot forward and make a good first impression.  Every business knows that.  The claim that "Everything has to be neutral!  No favoritism!" is unrealistic and self-defeating. 

    Consider:  When a city puts out a tourist guide, it doesn't include every strip mall, bar and pawn shop in town as attractions.  Inworldz needs to feature its best regions and attractions.   If someone wants to be so featured, they need to work to make their area top notch.  One can't build a strip mall and expect the same level of company-sponsored promotion as an incredibly-designed wondersim.  Shouting "favoritism" or "we must remain neutral!" will simply make Inworldz unimpressive and boring to newcomers, and thus restrict profitable growth. 

    How do we know this?  Look at the last three years.  "Neutrality" hasn't worked thus far and it won't work in the future.  It's not how business operates.  The best products in a store are featured.  The nuts and bolts hang on pegboards on the side-aisles.  That's just how business works.

If the grid grows, the merchant systems will prosper.  People can cry neutrality! all they want... but if the grid doesn't grow such becomes a moot point from the outset.  Newbies can only take in so much in their first visit.  It makes sense to present to them our very best on that first visit, so they are encouraged to make Inworldz their home.  Then they can see the rest on additional visits.

If anyone disagrees with these concepts, it may be good to realize that IDI as it exists now has not been effective in promoting Inworldz land growth for going on three years.  Continue to do what you are doing, and you can expect to remain where you've been.

There is more that can be done to beat Linden Lab at their own game.  All this post is intended for is to sound the warning of potential heavy competition and point to the reality there are things that can be done about such.  Beyond that, the future of Inworldz is fully in the hands of the Founders. 

--o--

The following information is for archival purpose only, as part of Elf Clan's history.

WHAT HAS GONE BEFORE

Elf Clan left Second Life due to significant policy issues with host company Linden Lab. There's no need to rehash those things in detail here; Second Life members are widely aware of the problems Linden Lab caused their customers over the years. 

MAKING THE CHANGE

What we'd like to discuss are the advantages of Inworldz, and why we chose that grid for our new home.  At the same time we encourage our members to join us there, for many reasons.

$40 Elf Clan Regions!

Second Life on the average charges $295 or more per region.  Inworldz charges $75 per region... or $60 if you own 4 or more regions.   Elf Clan owns dozens of regions, at a special grandfathered price of $40 per region.  That means if you have ever wanted to own your own sim... you can do so for $40 a month!

(Note: we are limited to 50 regions, so over that prices are at standard grid fees.)

NO SETUP FEES

When you purchase a region on Inworldz there are no setup fees.  Compared to SL setup fees of $1,200 per region, that can save you a tremendous amount of money right from the start.

TRIPLE THE PRIMS

Second Life allows 15,000 prims.  Inworldz allows 45,000... three times the count.   What does this mean for you?  It means you can forget about worrying about prim count.  You wouldn't believe the difference 45k prims makes when designing a sim.

Let us give you an example:  On our home region of ElvenSong we have a fully-populated ground area complete with main castle, a huge fantasy garden, public sandbox, the Elf Clan Museum, Dwagon's Keep (a large castle-home for our dwagons), Cinnamon's Glen, a dancing grotto and the BattleMace / Archery Sports arena.

In an upper level (about 1,500m) we have a 1/4 sim Holodeck, and above that a second one.  At about 2,000m we have an entire Grunge City.  At 3,500 meters we have the impressive Replicant City, an entire science fiction city / museum / exposition that is one of the main attractions of Inworldz.

And with all that... we still have 10,000 prims left available.   45,000 prims just rocks.

ENHANCED BUILDING TOOLS-- NO LINK LIMITS

On Inworldz you can build using prims up to 128m in size (or larger with some viewers).  Further, there are no link limits.   It is literally possible (for we have done so) to build a space ship 100m+ long and consisting of 1,000+ prims... link it as one object and fly it effortlessly around the sim.   It is wondrous what the removal of link limits means for builders.

NO UPLOAD COSTS

If you've ever built on SL, you know that the L$10 upload cost for textures, sounds and animations can quickly rise to significant levels.  It can literally amount to hundreds of dollars $US for a builder/merchant. 

Inworldz has no upload fees and have announced they never plan to have any.   That fact alone can save you a significant amount of cash.

SCENIC REGIONS COST FAR LESS

Inworldz offers 5,000-prim owner/partner build-permit "scenic" regions for $20 a month if connected to a full size region.  That is far less expensive than the 3,500-prim, $250 setup fee, $125-a-month "Homestead" regions on SL.

THAT'S WHERE ELF CLAN IS HOMED

Elf Clan has dozens of regions on Inworldz, owned by both Eldar and individual members. (That was never possible on Second Life.) Our region owners are very happy and very supportive of our group.   Regular events are held, the Elf Clan Charter is still in full effect, and our family friendly lands are more beautiful, peaceful and harmonious than they have ever been.

So please, come to Inworldz and check out Elf Clan's new home!

Popular Elf Clan regions on Inworldz:

ElvenSong - home region

Replicant City - High-sky science fiction region at ElvenSong

ElvenMyst - Our gathering and activity lands with a huge sandbox

ElvenGlen -- the original Elf Clan region restored to all its beauty

Chanwood -- Solid role playing

The Land of Lar -- Fantasy at its best

... and many more.   Pick up the free Elf Clan Region HUD at ElvenSong

P.S.  If you're an Elf Clan sim owner and would like to have your sim mentioned here, please send Snoots Dwagon on Inworldz an IM giving your sim's name and theme, as well as special attractions.

The following article was initially published Sept 8, 2013 and is re-published here as an important reference pertaining to another article.

A change to Second Life TOS has been published without notice to users.  We were made aware of this by a third-party source, it has been verified, and are thus notifying our members:

2.3 You grant Linden Lab certain licenses to your User Content.

[..]you agree to grant to Linden Lab, the non-exclusive, unrestricted, unconditional, unlimited, worldwide, irrevocable, perpetual, and cost-free right and license to use, copy, record, distribute, reproduce, disclose, sell, re-sell, sublicense (through multiple levels), modify, display, publicly perform, transmit, publish, broadcast, translate, make derivative works of, and otherwise exploit in any manner whatsoever, all or any portion of your User Content (and derivative works thereof), for any purpose whatsoever in all formats, on or through any media, software, formula, or medium now known or hereafter developed, and with any technology or devices now known or hereafter developed, and to advertise, market, and promote the same. You agree that the license includes the right to copy, analyze and use any of your Content as Linden Lab may deem necessary or desirable for purposes of debugging, testing, or providing support or development services in connection with the Service and future improvements to the Service.[..]

In other words, if you use or create something on Second Life, you grant full and irrevocable rights to do with it whatever they want, including "re-sell" the item.

This potentially-exploitative stipulation does not exist on most other grids.

To be totally fair, an Elf Clan member points out:

I can understand the concept, but surely there are wiser and less potentially-explosive ways to word their TOS and still protect the company. 

In response to this policy, a website that provides textures free of charge and which has been used extensively by VR creators, has recently announced that their textures may no longer be used on Second Life specifically (according to their FAQ and licensing, this does not apply to Inworldz).  That license decision was prompted directly by the LL TOS change:

"On the 15th of August 2013, Linden Lab changed their Terms of Use without any announcement or warning... As you can see from the highlighted portions, as soon as you upload any content to Second Life you give Linden Lab unlimited and irrevocable rights to do whatever they want with your work."   Reference here.

If anyone is a creator on SL-- just thought you should be aware of this policy change.  It took place August 15, 2013, in case you missed the Linden Lab non-announcement.

NOTEABLE VIRTUAL REALITY QUOTES

"What are Linden Bears for... so that we have something to hug when things go horribly wrong?"
-- Koni Lanzius, commenting on Linden-Resembling virtual teddybears Linden Lab gave out to customers.
 

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 "Happy coexistence and learning should always be at the forefront of any virtual world, with profit margins only appearing as a result of creating something that enhances people's lives."
-Tranquility Dexler of Inworldz

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"I have trepidations regarding Viewer 2.0. While there is no argument a major viewer restructure is essential, to be frank, Linden Lab has a long history of seriously borking such projects. If I had to make a prediction at this time, I would predict Viewer 2.0 will contain numerous conceptual and design flaws that will largely result in severe disapproval from the users it's meant to serve (flaws and designs that likely, we could have warned them about long in advance if they'd given us the chance)."
-Wayfinder: An Open Letter to Mark Kingdon, word-for-word, unedited from February 20, 2010... several days prior to the release of disastrous Viewer 2.0.   

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"It would be crazy to lose valuable customers because they want to but cant give us money : ( "
-- Rod Humble, CEO of Linden Lab, Tweeting in response to Elf Clan (almost) leaving SL because they didn't process our payments and sidelined an Eldar.

Elf Clan left 6 months later when price-gouging Linden Lab policy shifts made it impossible to finance  increasing-cost $350-a-month regions.
 
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"Yeah, Inworldz isn't doing well for sure, and I'm afraid the blame rests solidly on the Founders.  They don't listen to anyone... not to those older and with more experience.  We've tried to give them warning but they ignore common-sense counsel.   Because of this, I have managed to duplicate all of Replicant City on my own hard drive.   I will not have years of work go down the drain because Inworldz Founders mismanage their grid.  I've seen such happen too often in the past."

-- Wayfinder Wishgringer in an email to another member, dated 2016-06-03... a little over 2 years prior to the predicted eventual Inworldz collapse.

=========================

"Question: How many Lindens does it take to change a light bulb? Answer: It's customer content. We can't replicate the bulb being burned out. You're using too many bulbs. Bulbs being burned out is not against TOS. That's a technical issue, please file a JIRA report. Thank you for being patient. We hate this too! We will turn it over to Workingonit Linden ASAP!"

(6 years later, bulb still not working.)
-- Eren Padar

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"The Dumbest People on Earth"

-- The title of a Readers Digest article refering to (among others) Second Life users who pay as much per month for virtual land as the price of a new car. 

=========================

“All things considered, I believe Linden Labs actually has the right idea. If you make your money on high prices and fewer customers - BAM! - less work required to accommodate all remaining 17 !”

-Zekeen Phoenix

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"I fully expect before the year is out, that LL will drop yet another bomb on the SL populace. Just call it a nasty hunch."
-- Wayfinder, April 13, 2010  
 

The bombs that dropped:  Viewer 2 (which everyone hated), removal of Educational discounts, institution of Display.Names despite widespread customer protest, breaking the Search Engine, breaking the Events listings, breaking SL Marketplace... and much, much more-- all in one year.

=========================

"This lament by residents was novel and revolutionary as a concept in 2004; it was a hallmark of persistence and determination by 2006; by 2008 it was a sign of masochism; by 2010 it is a diagnosis of a unstable and co-dependent personality disorder."
--Prokofy Neva regarding people continuing with Second Life despite the love-hate relationship

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"Well to be honest, i dont pay to see movies to be forced to use my own "fantasy" to make up for its shortcomings. Almost sounds like a LL tactic.

-- Mean Golem

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"Welcome to Second Life... the Iron Curtain of virtual worlds."

-Wayfinder, regarding Linden Lab usurping customer copyrights and Intellectual Property and claiming the right to ban anyone at any time for any reason, allegedly stealing millions of dollars in customer assets.

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Giving the appearance of a thing doesn't necessarily make a thing the thing that it looks like-- which is a particularly sticky point when it comes to virtual environments, where the appearance-of-thinginess and actual-thinginess are often superficially confused.
-Tateru Nino, Dwelling On It

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It's not that we're opposed to change.  It's that we're opposed to "OMG WT?????" change.
-- Wayfinder

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"In late 2008 Linden Lab made an out-of-nowhere, customer-blindsiding corporate decision that resulted in the destruction of 20% of the user-owned sims on Second Life. We have all invested in Second Life in one way or another. This isn't a game; it is a society. Currently it is a society governed by a body that is proving totalitarian and abusive. Customers have little or no say in decisions that can change the entire scope of the grid and destroy our investments. That is unacceptable. We are paying the bills."
--Wayfinder: The End of the Dream

Regarding blatant management abuse by Linden Lab which killed the growth of Second Life and caused a massive customer exodus-- a blow from which that grid never recovered and which ushered in the age of OpenSim, Second Life's biggest competitor.

=========================

"We're in a business relationship with LL.  We're paying them for stuff they should do but they are graciously allowing us to do ourselves."

-Orca Flotta, in a comment on Dwell On It

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"A business truth Linden Lab would do well to understand:  High price does not guarantee the highest profit."
--Wayfinder: Altering the Course of Microsoft

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"Never underestimate the power of human stupidity."

Robert Heinlien's fictional character Lazuras Long in Time Enough For Love

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"I think you Lindens (with notable exceptions) are outrageously arrogant... in fact, thinking about it - nearly every blunder the lab has committed over the years can be seen as a direct result of arrogance,  dismissiveness, and general disrespect for your customers."  
-Qarl (ex)-Linden (the inventor of sculpties)
References:
http://www.qarl.com/qLab/?p=79
http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2010/08/requiem-for-qarl-linden.html

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"As far as catching up... we're not in "do anything we can to get customers" mode. We never have... we're growing at a manageable rate that ensures we don't need investment capital. This isn't a game or a competition to us. It is a business with real people that are counting on us to keep improving. Maybe not as quickly as they would like. But every day and every week. We're here to take care of our customers, not try to attract a ton of new ones to claim "we're the biggest".   We have real and filled up regions with real content. I have absolutely no question in my mind why we're where we are. I don't have to wonder. We're in controlled growth for a reason. When the time is right... we will advertise. Our target audience is pretty special."

--Tranquility Dexler, Inworldz

A good and wise sentiment.  Unfortunately by the end of 2018 Inworldz had failed to advertise, failed to grow, and crashed nose-first into the dirt.  For a while Inworldz was special, but they forgot and ignored their greatest asset:  the collective knowledge and wisdom of very-experienced customers.

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"With no users inhabiting them, a virtual world will dry up and eventually be shut down.  With no admins fixing or developing things, a virtual world will stagnate and fall apart.  Users need admins as much as admins need users.  And it’s only by them working together that the successful future of virtual worlds will unfold."

--John Lester, aka Pathfinder Linden

full article: http://becunningandfulloftricks.com/2011/05/05/railing-against-the-gods-the-unfortunate-metaphor-of-virtual-world-administrators/

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"I've stopped building for SL for about 2 years now.....not because I couldn't sell new items there... I stopped because of a company and a TOS that was becoming increasingly antagonistic to content creators with each passing day.... Sometimes I wonder if the residents / content creators / customers of LL are the frogs in the pot of water that slowly increases in heat. They won't try to jump until it is too late."

-- Sept 2013, Julia Hathor in response to a recent SL policy change granting LL full right to user creations.  See Cautionary article.

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"Holy cwap!  I fergot Spud!"

-- Bellini Cazalet (dwagon), who went lake diving and then remembered the pet mouse on her shoulder.  Don't worry, tiny CPR and cupcakes saved the day.

 =========================

HOW TO SAVE YOUR TEXTURES QUICKLY

(Quickly meaning about 300-500 per hour... not really all that quick, but...)

How do you back up textures so that you have an emergency copy? Here is the fastest and cheapest way I have found. It's labor-intensive, but the semi-automated process makes it much faster and easier.

First set up your avatar in a place to do this quickly and easily.
1. Find a fast sim, with good performance
2. Set your Draw Distance to as low as possible (Edit / Preferences / Graphics / Custom / Draw Distance)

Prepare your computer:
1. Create a folder on your hard drive to identify the texture content (Textures-Wood... Textures-Glass... etc).
2. Open the desired texture folder in inventory.
3. Double click the first texture
4. FILE / SAVE TEXTURE AS (find the folder location on your hard drive)
5. Click SAVE

Now you're ready to use the semi-automated part. You've located the folder. It's smooth sailing here on out.

1. Double click the next texture
2. FILE / SAVE TEXTURE AS / SAVE (name is automatically saved)
3. Repeat these three steps over and over until finished with that folder.

When done, press SHIFT-W to close all the texture windows at once.

That's all there is to it! Using this method, once you get on a roll where this becomes automatic, you should be able to back up your textures on an average of 3 to 5 seconds each. On a fast sim you should be able to burn right through texture saving. Even at 5 seconds each, you can save 12 textures per minute, 500 or more per hour. : )

--o--

From time to time we have a member or visitor to our lands ask us why we are G-rated and "family friendly" on a grid that requires users to be 18 years of age or older.

The answer begins with a definition. What does family-friendly mean?

At its most basic level of course, family-friendly means suitable for children.  But it goes beyond that.  Look around at Elf Clan lands.  Notice the beauty, diversity and harmony of these lands.  Look at how the people here behave in contrast to elsewhere in virtual reality.  Look at the popularity of Elf Clan, and ask yourself, Why are people attracted to this group?

 
The reason is simple:  family-friendly isn't just for children.  There are many adults who appreciate family-friendly values.   Some of my favorite movies are family-friendly.  In truth, family-friendly is society-friendly. It has been stated by wise men that the core of society is the family.  Historically as the family degraded morally and ethically, so did the society.  This was a principle that was recognized when we first founded Elf Clan and wrote its charter.  If you want a socially healthy group, instill family-friendly values.

Something I find humorous (well, not really, it's more tragic than humorous), is the use of the terms Mature and Adult in regard to behavior that is decidedly immature and not adult.  In my view mature means having gained a bit of wisdom during one's life, and adult means the exercise of that wisdom.  What it does not mean is "doing whatever we want, no matter how questionable or dangerous, because we're grown-ups".  That is not the course of maturity.  Many Elf Clan members understand and agree; I've heard others make the same comment.

True maturity means making decisions that are not just for our own good, because we want to, but for the good of our neighbors and society as a whole, because it is beneficial and right.   It means being unselfish enough and flexible enough to bend to the greater good rather than insisting on our own opinions.  That is where "family-friendly" comes in.  No, Inworldz is not a PG or G rated grid.  It is widely known that Elf Clan is fairly unique in its openly-stated G-rating.  However do not believe we are alone.   Other region-owners have contacted me and stated their regions are basically G-rated too.  One person requested a copy of our "G-Rated" sign so she could put it up at her non-Elf Clan sim.   Several of our member lands joined Elf Clan because they were already "g-rated" and wanted to make that stance official by joining our family-friendly cluster.

G-Rated, Family-Friendly means that we have decided to make our society stronger through exercise of sensible values.  Rather than being a "childish" stance, it is a stance that is truly mature.  It is recognition that the attitude and activities of our members will affect our group as a whole.  It is a statement of the kind of people and lands we want to be.  The result of that decision is visible in our lands, in the conduct of our people, in the harmony and friendliness of our residents.  Visitors regularly remark at how friendly and hospitable we are, and how much they enjoy exploring our creations.  We are conscious of our relationship with our neighbors, so we build in a manner to compliment theirs.  We are aware of our responsibility to our society as a whole, so we conduct ourselves with honor, respect and friendship.  And while there may not be children/minors among us due to the 18+ requirement of Inworldz, it is good to know that our lands nevertheless present a family-friendly environment for the benefit of all our members.

Family-friendly means acceptable to the parents in our group.  It means acceptable to those who shun the often-questionable activities found elsewhere in VR.   G-rated means have some class and show some consideration for others... in speech, in dress, in conduct.  It means that we exercise modesty among a truly polite society that puts harmony and honor above all.  That principle has served us well for years.  The Eldar have no intent of changing the positive influence of those policies any time soon... nor would our members want us to.   Family-friendly is what makes Elf Clan Elf Clan.

--o--

OVERVIEW
A good graphics card might be considered the most important aspect of VR performance... more important than your computer itself.

Graphics cards regularly increase dramatically in performance.  When I first wrote this article a "good" card was the Nvidia GeForce 250 and 450.   Now the 10xx cards are out (I own a 1050) and the difference in performance is incredible.  Even more incredible is the fact that a new 1050x card is less expensive than the 250s and 450s were in their day.

You can greatly improve your virtual experience by adding a good graphics card.  Such doesn't have to be expensive. 

For your computer, a minimum dual-core is recommended.  Windows 10 requires 8 gigs of RAM to operate well (4 gigs will suffice but performance will suffer). 

 
IDEAL SYSTEM (minimum configuration, at this time, considering overall performance and cost):

Fast duo or quad core PC, 8 gigs RAM, Nvidia GeForce 1050 2-gig graphics card or better.  Lesser graphics cards will work, but not as well.

The graphics card is more important than the CPU. Don't skimp on graphics.  Graphics cards make a major difference on VR worlds. 
 

NOTHING STOPS LAG

In recent times lag has been significantly reduced.  However just so it's said: nothing is going to stop lag entirely. Eventually, you are going to experience lag somewhere, sometime.  No amount of computer is going to change that.  So there's no need to buy a high-level gamer computer to use a virtual world.  A decent basic-level computer with a good graphics card will work wonders.

POWER SUPPLIES

Higher-level graphics cards often require higher-level power supplies.   Usually 500 watts is a minimum.   Get a quality power supply; cheap power supplies can harm your computer.  However the GeForce 1050 cards are designed to require half the power of prior cards.  That is good news for existing computer owners.

Nvidia GeForce vs ATI Radeon

Radeon cards are okay but do not seem to operate as smoothly as GeForce cards. But if you can find a good deal on an ATI Radeon card you can save some $$$.  Avoid the 5770; it is known to have glitches. 

Nvidia and ATI have always been neck-in-neck in the video card race. In general, Nvidia seems to work better on virtual worlds than ATI, but these days even Windows Tablets seem to work acceptably.  My personal recommendation is Nvidia 1050 or better unless your pocketbook requires ATI.  Check the Internet and compare specs between cards.

INSTALLATION 

When you install your new card, be sure you first UNINSTALL your old graphics card drivers and software. Then go to the official website for that card and download the latest drivers supporting your specific operating system. There are different drivers for different Windows versions, Mac and Linux. Be sure you download and install the correct drivers for your OS and your video card. Usually the installation disc in the box will not be up to date. Ignore it, and download the latest releases.

HOW DO THESE CARDS COMPARE?

Following are several benchmark readings as well as ongoing information, some of which has been consolidated into this blog. Take the time to read through all the comments as well. Look at the charts. Remember that raw speed is not the essential ingredient, but the faster your card, usually the better the performance. Balance your finances with what's out there and remember: a few extra dollars spent now will be soon forgotten-- but the quality of your video card will reward you every single day. Buy the best you can afford and if you have to spend an extra $30 or $40 to get a better card,  you'll later likely be glad you spent the extra bucks. Check specs on Nvidia's own website:

http://www.nvidia.com/object/graphics_cards_buy_now.html

COOLING ISSUES

When you install a higher level graphics card, you are likely to get into power and cooling issues.  (This does not apply to the Nvidia GTX 1050, which uses half the power of normal cards.)

Larger power supplies and heavier graphics cards mean the computer will run hotter-- which is not good. Top-vented cases work well (holes in the top with a fan blowing out... hot air rises). Equally beneficial is opening up the side of your computer entirely and blowing a small desk fan right into the side. That airflow trick solves just about all heating problems and is a lot cheaper than other solutions. 

Virtual worlds are resource hogs.  But the same applies to Windows and Apple operating systems.  When upgrading your graphics, take it for granted you are going to spend from $75 to $200 on the graphics card.  If you get a full-size Nvidia card you may require a new power supply.    The performance is worth it.  As of March 2018 the Nvidia 1050 is considered one of the best graphic card purchases on the market.

--o--

Over the past several months we've sent out "Elf Clan Tricks and Tips"... things that can assist in daily enjoyment of Second Life. We're listing the "best of" here. Members can add additional tips in comments.

* TURN ON THE ADVANCED MENU.  Ctrl-Alt-D brings up an essential extra menu in most viewers.

* ZOOM IN ON SIGNS: Every had trouble reading signs? Here is how you zoom in on them:
Windows systems: Cursor on the target, ALT - LEFT CLICK - mousemove. This is often called "alt look". Be sure to hold down both the Alt and leftclick.
Apple systems: On Macs, Option = Alt)


* HOVER TIPS: There is basic information available on all objects. For some reason this is turned off by default. To turn it on, choose VIEW / HOVERTIPS and set tips ON and "Show tips on all objects" to ON.


* MAKING SCULPTIES APPEAR BETTER: Ever noticed sculpties seem to glitch and de-form at a distance? Advanced / Debug Settings / RenderVolumeLODFactor. Set to 4 to stop that problem.


* STOP "FOGGY" AVATARS: Linden Lab created foggy avatars to prevent avatars from being visible before fully rezzed. The problem is that textures load so extremely slowly and even not at all, that avatars remain fog banks indefinitely. ADVANCED / Debug Settings / RenderUnloadedAvatar = TRUE.

* FIXES FOR INVISIBLE MESH & other items in FIRESTORM: These functions may help your viewer experience.   If they don't, change them back:

ADVANCED / DEBUG SETTINGS / FSEnforceStrictObjectCheck  check to FALSE

PREFERENCES / GRAPHICS / RENDERING / ALPHA MASK RENDERING  uncheck both options

* LAND INFORMATION: Click the land name at the top center of your screen.


* MAKE TEXTURES APPEAR FASTER: Advanced menu / Debug / type in: 

ImagepipelineUseHTTP and set to TRUE


* DAYLIGHT-BRIGHT PHOTOS: Ever wanted to take a picture but it was dark outside?

Press ctrl-shift-Y for daylight.


* TAKE BETTER PHOTOS:  Store them to your hard drive instead of in-world. It's a checkbox option on the Photo save box. Also, in the ADVANCE menu, set the SAVE HIGH RESOLUTION SNAPSHOTS option.


* TELEPORTING: Ever had someone try to teleport you, but your teleport button was grayed out? EDIT / PREFERENCES / COMMUNICATION / uncheck "Only my friends and Groups can see when I'm online."


* EXPANDING YOUR VIEW: There are several ways to empower your camera and expand your view...

* EDIT / PREFERENCES / GRAPHICS / (click custom) / DRAW DISTANCE. The higher this is set, the further you can see. 256m is the recommended maximum for most systems. If you have a lower-level graphics card, you may need to set it to 128m or even 64m.


* ADVANCED / LIMIT SELECT DISTANCE. Uncheck this.  This may be in a different area on some viewrs.  This was added to the system to prevent you from accidentally selecting things beyond 64m.  But as a downside... it prevents expert builders from selecting things beyond 64m.


* ADVANCED / DISABLE CAMERA CONSTRAINTS. Check this. Why would someone want their camera constrained? 




* SETTING MUSIC ON A PIECE OF LAND: Only a land owner can set the music stream. If you are not the land owner, you will need a "radio" that will allow you to set streams. Note that not all land owners allow tenants to set their own music streams (especially in themed sims).  If you have a radio, you will need to deed it to group.  If your group doesn't allow member deeding, the land owner will have to provide a radio.

That's it for now!

--o--

The following information is for archival purpose only, as part of Elf Clan's history.

    A quick note about our presence on Inworldz.  What have we accomplished there?  Some things are obvious.  Some things may not be so obvious.

LOTS AND LOTS OF REGIONS

    First of all, consider some 50+ regions.   Our group lands are larger than we ever believed would be possible... and indeed would not have been possible on Second Life (we couldn't even keep 2 sims alive on that grid).  Not only that, but our regions are more beautiful, more interesting and as interactive as anything we've ever built.

LOTS AND LOTS OF SIM OWNERS

    On SL one person owned all our regions.  That's how it had to be because of SL TOS issues.   But here we have the ability to allow individuals to own their own lands... which has been a tremendous boost for our group.  For you region owners-- how do you like owning your own region?  Fantastic, isn't it?  Brings a whole new level of VR to VR. 

WHAT HAVE WE DONE FOR INWORLDZ?

    We've done our best to help get Inworldz on its feet and be a small part of keeping it there.  Most people don't realize it... but since we've been on Inworldz Elf Clan as a group has paid the Inworldz company in excess of US $120,000 for our lands.   That's right, over one hundred twenty thousand dollars over the years.   That is what collective large-group funds can accomplish.  

    What's more, that proves something we tried to tell Linden Lab long ago:  sometimes less is more.  In the seven years we were on Second Life, our group spent somewhere around $50,000 with that company (for 2 full sims and 6 open space sims).   In the approximately-five years we've been on Inworldz we've paid the company more than double that amount.   And as a group we're far more contented and peaceful on Inworldz than we ever were on the old grid.  It's not without its flaws, but the bonuses are considerable.

     So which company would you say is smarter at business policy and value for price?  The answer is obvious.

    So that's just a brief summary of why Elf Clan moved to Inworldz and what we've accomplished there, as well as what we've done for the grid.   It's a symbiotic relationship.

-- Wayfinder Wishbringer