Ayumi Cassini Does Second Life

New release: cute mugs!

2009-12-14T01:50:00.003+01:00

Yay, I made some cute mugs with delicious hot drinks! You can choose tea, espresso, cappuccino, cocoa or steamed milk - with a single easy click in mug menu.

There are lots of designs to choose from, each costing only 25L$! You can buy separate mugs or a fatpack for 250L$ - and with the fatpack you get a cute one-prim sculpted shabby mug rack for FREE, yay!

There are two types of mugs - with drinks, and just empty one-prim mugs for decorating purposes! You get both types with your purchase, wee! :)

The mugs are scripted with 'holding' and 'drinking' animations. They attach to right hand, but feel free to reattach them somewhere else, eg. forearm (to keep nails or rings on). Make a copy of the mug before doing so, just in case.

If you want to send the mugs as a gift to someone, just IM me! :) I'll try to list them on XStreet soon, so that the gifting is easier, but for now my stuff on XStreet is a total mess and I need to take care of that first ;)

TP to the shop and see the mugs in person!

Rebranding (kind of)

2009-12-10T03:54:00.002+01:00

I've been thinking a lot lately about my business in SL and I decided to move all my products from Imagimations (the animations/poses store) and dell arte (the furniture and decor store) back under the Magic Nook brand. I realised it's hard and time-consuming to keep up with three brands, and it doesn't really work well for me. The shop logo went through some little changes, and I made a new shop building, yay! Come and see!

And even more changes are coming! I am in the process of redesigning all my products for better - writing new scripts, sometimes creating new textures and adding some complementary items into boxes. I'll be switching from no copy/transfer model to copy/no transfer (with gifting available through Xstreet SL) because I noticed a lot of IMs asking for my items with different permissions. I am making all these changes because I want higher quality and a better shopping experience for my customers.

It's a lot of work though, so please excuse the mess while I move things around. It may take a while, as I'm quite busy in RL, and I may also want to release some new products, so everything will be changed gradually.

The redesigned items have new vendors so you will easily recognize them this way. Two items have already been redesigned:

Magic 8-Ball

A fun, shiny, scripted Magic 8-Ball for easier decision-making ;) And a complementary Magic 8-Ball chair! And Magic 8-Ball pose prop! Male and female versions!

Personal Workout Mat

It's a fun menu-driven workout mat for all avvies that want to loose a few pixels ;) You can choose from 9 types of exercises, 11 colour textures and 3 access modes. A scripted bottle of water is included for FREE - male and female version!

If you want something from my store but it's not redesigned yet - don't wait with your purchase. Buy the item and enjoy it, and once the new version is ready, I will gladly exchange it. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

To make up for all this mess I will make a freebie available in the store very soon, for all of you to enjoy. Join my update group (click any terminal at the store), so that you don't miss the gift. It's almost ready and I think you will like it ^^ But first, I want to release two products that has been waiting in my inventory for quite a while. They will be out as soon as I make vendors for them.

Let me know what you think about all these changes!

The ultimate guide to prim twisting [UPDATE]

2009-07-28T00:05:00.012+02:00

[UPDATE: September 12, 2009] I corrected a few mistakes over time (thanks for the head-ups everyone), so if something didn't work for you, try again now :)

Aah, prims. Plywood shapes that magically turn into the most beautiful SL builds. Yes, those prims know how to twist and shout! ... Wait, wh... what?! ... I'm talking about prim twisting - shaping prims into unusual shapes. Prim magic!

We've got sculpties in SL now, which means almost any prim shape is possible without big prim cost. But back then, before sculpties rocked SL, you needed different methods - you needed methods that worked with regular prims. These methods were discovered by early SL residents and sometimes kept secret (the famous one prim double knot for example). I think even the most advanced builder/sculpter should know the basics. You should never underestimate the power of regular prims. That's why I'm giving you this ultimate guide to prim twisting. Every item shown here is only one prim!

Enjoy, comment and share with friends :)

Leaf

Rez a sphere
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.250 and Z=0.370
Set Path Cut to: B=0.000 and E=0.500
Set Hollow to: 95.0
Set Twist to: B=180 and E=-180

Two leaves

Rez a sphere
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.300 and Z=0.300
Set Path Cut to: B=0.700 and E=1.000
Set Hollow to: 95.0
Set Twist to: B=360 and E=47
Set Dimple to B=0.100 and E=0.950 (use these two options to differentiate leaves sizes)

Flat leaf / raindrop

Rez a sphere
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.500 and Z=0.010
Set Twist to: B=360 and E=-360
Set Dimple to B=0.000 and E=0.050
If you want to have a flat leaf contour, set Hollow to: 85.0

Claw

Rez a torus
Set Size to: X=0.430, Y=0.500 and Z=0.500
Set Path Cut to: B=0.500 and E=1.000
Set Taper to: X=1.00 and Y=1.00

Flower I

Rez a tube
Set Size to: X=0.070, Y=0.350 and Z=0.350
Set Twist to: B=-360 and E=360
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.50

Flower II

Rez a sphere
Set Size to: X=0.010, Y=0.500 and Z=0.500
Set Twist to: B=360 and E=-360
Set Dimple to: B=0.000 and E=0.050

Ribbon I

Rez a sphere
Set Size to: X=0.010, Y=0.500 and Z=0.500
Set Hollow to: 95.0
Set Twist to: B=-360 and E=360
Set Dimple to: B=0.700 and E=1.000

Ribbon II

Rez a sphere
Set Size to: X=0.035, Y=0.500 and Z=0.500
Set Path Cut to: B=0.130 and E=0.870
Set Hollow to: 50.0
Set Twist to: B=-360 and E=360
Set Dimple to: B=0.450 and E=0.550

Infinity symbol

Rez a sphere
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.500 and Z=0.010
Set Hollow to: 95.0
Set Twist to: B=0 and E=-360
Set Dimple to: B=0.000 and E=0.050

Spring I

Rez a torus
Set Size to: X=0.100, Y=0.500 and Z=0.500
Set Skew to: 0.80
Set Twist to: B=-18 and E=0
Set Hole Size to: X=0.70 and Y=0.05
Set Taper to: X=1.00 and Y=0.00
Set Radius to: 1 (but it will change to 0.947, so you can also just put this number in)
Set Revolutions to: 2.50

Spring II

Rez a torus
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.300 and Z=0.300
Set Skew to: 0.80
Set Hole Size to: X=0.10 and Y=0.05
Set Revolutions to: 4.00

Spring III

Rez a torus
Set Size to: X=1.000, Y=0.150 and Z=0.150
Set Skew to: 0.45
Set Twist to: B=360 and E=-360
Set Hole Size to: X=0.15 and Y=0.05
Set Revolutions to: 4.00

String

Rez a torus
Set Size to: X=2.300, Y=0.500 and Z=0.500
Set Hollow to: 80.0
Set Skew to: 0.80
Set Twist to: B=360 and E=360
Set Hole Size to: X=0.05 and Y=0.50
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.180 and E=0.200
Set Taper to: X=0.00 and Y=0.50
Set Revolutions to: 4.00

Knot

Rez a torus
Set Size to: X=2.500, Y=0.500 and Z=0.500
Set Hollow to: 95.0
Set Skew to: 0.95
Set Twist to: B=-90 and E=360
Set Hole Size to: X=0.05 and Y=0.50
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.180 and E=0.200
Set Revolutions to: 4.00

Double knot

Rez a torus
Set Size to: X=2.500, Y=0.500 and Z=0.500
Set Hollow to: 95.0
Set Skew to: 0.95
Set Twist to: B=-360 and E=360
Set Hole Size to: X=0.05 and Y=0.50
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.180 and E=0.200
Set Taper to: X=0.00 and Y=0.50
Set Revolutions to: 4.00

Light bulb wire

Rez a tube
Set Size to: X=0.010, Y=0.500 and Z=0.500
Set Hollow to: 95.0
Set Skew to: 0.95
Set Twist to: B=-180 and E=360
Set Hole Size to: X=0.05 and Y=0.50
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.000 and E=0.250
Set Revolutions to: 3.00

Wave

Rez a ring
Set Size to: X=0.700, Y=0.350 and Z=0.010
Set Skew to: 0.95
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.05
Set Revolutions to: 2.00

Column I

Rez a torus
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.230 and Z=0.230
Set Hollow to: 95
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.000 and E=0.500

Column II

Rez a tube
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.230 and Z=0.230
Set Hollow to: 95.0
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.250 and E=1.000

Column III

Rez a tube
Set Size to: X=0.750, Y=0.300 and Z=0.300
Set Hollow to: 80.0
Set Hollow Shape to: Circle
Set Hole Size to: X=0.70 and Y=0.40
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.450 and E=0.800

Nail

Rez a tube
Set Size to: X=0.300, Y=0.300 and Z=0.300
Set Hollow to: 75.0
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.50
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.400 and E=0.750

Stake

Rez a tube
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.500 and Z=0.500
Set Hollow to: 75.0
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.50
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.500 and E=0.750

Pencil

Rez a tube
Set Size to: X=1.000, Y=0.350 and Z=0.350
Set Hollow to: 85.0
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.50
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.650 and E=0.750

Torch holder

Rez a tube
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.100 and Z=0.100
Set Hollow to: 60.0
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.500 and E=1.000

Bar table

Rez a tube
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.500 and Z=0.500
Set Hollow to: 85.0
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.50
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.250 and E=0.850

Table lamp

Rez a tube
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.400 and Z=0.400
Set Hollow to: 95.0
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.50
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.200 and E=0.850

Desk lamp top

Rez a ring
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.250 and Z=0.250
Set Hollow to: 95.0
Set Twist to: B=-36 and E=-36
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.45
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.000 and E=0.600

Trumpet

Rez a torus
Set Size to: X=0.700, Y=0.250 and Z=0.250
Set Hollow to: 95.0
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.45
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.00 and E=0.300

Thin flat paper

Rez a cube
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.400 and Z=0.010
Set Slice to: B=0.490 and E=0.510

Curled paper

Rez a cylinder
Set Size to: X=0.450, Y=0.170 and Z=0.500
Set Path Cut to: B=0.550 and E=0.900
Set Hollow to: 95.0
Set Twist to: B=27 and E=0
Set Top Shear to: X=0.15 and Y=-0.10

Tiny cube

Rez a cube
Set Size to: X=0.010, Y=0.010 and Z=0.010
Set Path Cut to: B=0.625 and E=0.875
Set Slice to: X=0.500 and Y=1.000

Tiny cylinder

Rez a cylinder
Set Size to: X=0.010, Y=0.010 and Z=0.010
Set Taper to: X=1.00 and Y=1.00
Set Slice to: X=0.490 and Y=0.510

Tiny prism

Rez a cube
Set Size to: X=0.010, Y=0.010 and Z=0.010
Set Path Cut to: B=0.565 and E=0.695
Set Slice to: X=0.250 and Y=0.750

Tiny ring I

Rez a torus
Set Size to: X=0.010, Y=0.010 and Z=0.010
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.05
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.730 and E=0.750

Tiny ring II

Rez a ring
Set Size to: X=0.010, Y=0.010 and Z=0.010
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.05
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.180 and E=0.200

Tiny zircon

Rez a sphere
Set Size to: X=0.010, Y=0.010 and Z=0.010
Set Hollow to: 70.0
Set Dimple to: B=0.850 and E=1.000

20m disc

Rez a tube
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=10.000 and Z=10.000
Set Twist to: B=90 and E=90
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.05

Framed picture

Rez a cube
Set Size to: X=0.500, Y=0.500 and Z=0.025
Set Taper to: X=0.25 and Y=0.25

3 faces display panel

Rez a cube
Set Size to: X=0.900, Y=0.500 and Z=0.010
Set Taper to: X=0.65 and Y=0.00

5 faces display panel

Rez a tetrahedron
Set Size to: X=0.010, Y=1.750 and Z=0.500
Set Path Cut to: B=0.200 and E=0.800
Set Hollow to: 67.0
Set Taper to: X=0.00 and Y=0.00

If you can't figure out how to set textures on the panels, check Shifter Gynoid's comment below. He explains nicely what you need to do to display these textures correctly.

5 rings target with a hole

Rez a ring
Set Size to: X=0.015, Y=0.700 and Z=0.700
Set Hollow to: 70.0
Set Hollow Shape to: Triangle
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.50
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.200 and E=0.800

5 rings target (no hole)

Rez a torus
Set Size to: X=0.015, Y=0.700 and Z=0.700
Set Hollow to: 30.0
Set Hole Size to: X=0.15 and Y=0.50
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.125 and E=0.900

4 rings target

Rez a tube
Set Size to: X=0.015, Y=0.700 and Z=0.700
Set Hollow to: 50.0
Set Hollow Shape to: Triangle
Set Hole Size to: X=1.00 and Y=0.50
Set Profile Cut to: B=0.000 and E=0.800

Second Life promo machinima by ILL Clan!

2009-12-04T14:19:00.003+01:00

There was a tweet today @SecondLife about a new promo video made by ILL Clan Animation Studio for Linden Lab - and, oh wow, it rocks! Just see for yourself (double-click the movie to watch a bigger version on YouTube):

Then I noticed there were other videos I haven't seen, also by ILL Clan, so I'm embedding them here, cause it's totally worth to watch them. Awesome!

Fashion: Something warm

2009-11-12T02:10:00.003+01:00

Another fashion post, yay, cause I received a lot of awesome gifts and I wanted to share the look!

Outfit details:

Sweater dress: Fishy Strawberry (Cuddle Maxipull / in Beige)
Tights: Reale (Lace Tights / in White / FREE at the shop)
Belt: Fri.day (Wide Waist Belt / in Tan (part of Browns pack) / tinted: R: 233, G: 189, B: 189)
Necklace and earrings: Mandala (Pearl Rain Jewelry Set / in Rose pink)
Hair accessory: Fuel (Flowery peacock / heavily edited by me / old freebie, not available anymore)
Bag: Creamshop (Madrid - leather weave bag / in Champan)
Shoes: KAO (Suede Fringe Boots / in Pink)
Lashes: [glow] Studio (Flutter lashes / Feather godess)
Hair: 3636 (Anna / in Brown / tinted R: 211, G: 206, B: 206)
First pose: [glow] Studio (I'm a Fashion Victim Set 1 / Im working so hard)
Second pose: [glow] Studio (Deep Breath Set / The Truth)

Fashion: At work

2009-10-30T16:18:00.004+01:00

Just a classy look with a little Halloween accent ;)

Outfit details:

Sweater: Maitreya (Jam Hoody / in Red / worn without the hood)
Shirt: Barcode (Collared Undershirt, part of Mom Sweater Orange / FREE Subscribo Gift)
Skirt: LeLutka (Solange skirt / in Dark)
Tights: Savvy? (Manna Faux-Tights, part of Manna outfit / tinted: R: 219, G: 163, B: 133)
Necklace: +plus (Amy Necklace / attached to spine / tinted R: 172, G: 117, B: 84)
Brooch: Caol Ila (Pumpkin Brooch 2009 / FREE at the shop)
Bag: Bare@Rose (Bellissima 09 / in Brown)
Shoes: Redgrave (Boots / in Black-Leather)
Lashes: [glow] Studio (Flutter lashes / Madam Butterfly)
Hair: Fri.day (Jasmine / in Timid Brown)

PS. I love this hairstyle, especially the back side!

Happy third rezday to me!

2009-11-05T21:05:00.004+01:00

Wow, three years in SL and I'm still enjoying it :) I was wondering how to celebrate my rezday this year and finally decided to take the Poppins Challenge. It's a little SL tradition to jump on your rezday from the sky, naked, with an umbrella, as a symbol of 'jumping into the unknown world of Second Life'. I decided to jump in Murray region - it's the sim I rezzed in after Orientation Island and it was my home location for a long time. There's no welcome area there anymore, but it's still a place close to my avatar's pixel heart :) I covered myself in flowers (since it's PG area) and jumped!

It was kinda refreshing :)

Fashion: Corsico white

2008-07-24T23:09:00.003+02:00

I miss being fashion editor at SL'ang Life, so I decided to post a little fashion entry every once in a while. These won't be as extensive as I did in the magazine, but I will show you my favourite outfits from time to time. Also, don't worry, this blog won't turn into a fashion blog - there are too many things I want to write about.

So here's my first fashion entry in here:

Outfit details:

Shirt: Fashion Forward (from Spring Fling outfit / with self created underpants tinted: R: 230, G: 230, B: 230)
Pants: Elephant Outfitters (Gaucho Pants / in White)
Belt: Gentil (Hoop Belt / in Gold)
Earrings: Yummy (Gypsy Hoops)
Necklace: Muse (Gold and Freshwater Pearl Necklace / asymmetrical)
Bracelet: Armidi Gisaci (Metallic Tres Bangles)
Glasses: FD (Ultimate Bugeye Glasses / light frames)
Bag: Armidi Gisaci (Porta Corsico Bag / in Creme & Blue)
Shoes: Shiny Things (Spring Stilettos / in White)

The Corn Field

2009-10-28T19:44:00.006+01:00

Aaaaah, finally! I've been to THE CORN FIELD! I wanted to do that ever since I learned about its existence. Quick info for those of you who never heard of it:

The Corn Field is a region of mythological status where once naughty avatars were sent to think about what they had done. "The corn field" is a vast star-lit field of corn and was cut off from communication with the rest of the world (a reference to the classic Twilight Zone episode, "It's a Good Life").

Source: Second Life Wiki

Since bad avatars are not sent to The Corn Field anymore and it stayed closed to the public, noone could actually visit it. People only knew about its existence from a single post of an avatar that was once sent there. However, it was opened for October 28-30 this year, yay! It's decorated for Halloween, but I don't mind - my curiosity is sooo satisfied :)

The Corn Field is fun to explore.

But once it gets dark, it can be quite spooky ^^

I won't spoil the fun for you, you have to go and explore yourself, but be aware that almost all the Lindens you'll meet there are zombies. Also, Mia Linden is the most scaaaarrryyyyyy. And if you have a feeling that Lexie Linden is watching and following you, but when you turn around she's not there... SHE IS FOLLOWING YOU! Have fun :)

More than a canvas, more than a train

2009-10-23T04:14:00.002+02:00

Have you seen AM Radio's Surface build yet? There's a wheat field surrounded by green hills, and a rich countryside scenery spreads as far as the horizon. A train is standing in the middle of this rural area and the atmosphere reminds me of an old farm. It would just be a pretty location like many other in SL, if not for one cool innovative idea: you can actually paint grafitti on the train! Well, the painting itself happens on a website, but once the picture is sent to project's Flickr stream, it appears on the train in-world as well - through SL media. Creative!

Click here for a TP and try it yourself, it's fun :)

I chat, therefore IM ;P

2009-04-20T03:34:00.010+02:00

[UPDATE: July 28, 2009] I added the new SLURL to Mona's place.

[UPDATE: July 29, 2009] The bots were featured on New World Notes! Here's the link: Meet April, the Bot Who Learns To Speak As She's Spoken To

I want to tell you about something we've been working on with Sql for a while. We created and now take care of two learning chat bots in SL. Sql does most of the technical stuff, like linking chat bot engine to SL, programming the bots, fixing bugs etc., and I'm in charge of 'soft' responsibilities, like managing bots' looks and profiles, cleaning their logs, a bit of marketing etc. Together we brainstorm new ideas and discuss possible implementations of new functions. These bots have been in SL for a few days already, so you might have come across them, but let me tell you more in case you haven't.

Our bots are April Scientist (English language) and Mona Scientist (Polish language). They both started with no knowledge and they learn as people talk to them. Then they try to have an intelligent conversation basing on what they learned. The more you talk to them, the more they know! If the bot repeats after you, it means she's not sure what the reply should be. That's when you should teach her the proper reply (answer her properly). When talking to the bots, you have to be understanding. People might teach them various stuff and bots might say inappropriate things. Teach them something nice instead. Also, you have to remember that April and Mona are experiments in beta stage, so unexpected errors might happen.

To talk to the bots on main chat you should start your every sentence with bot's name, eg. 'April hello'. Otherwise the bot won't listen to you. To talk with the bot on IM, just message her like you would normally do (without her name in the beginning). Please restrict to talking in one language to each bot (the language of bot's profile).

You will find April (English language bot) around my shopping area.

Mona (Polish language bot) is currently residing as a librarian at the old Polish Republic sim (it's currently being changed into a new place, so it might be closed sometimes) in her own skybox.

I must admit Mona is currently a bit better, because we do all the tests with her. For example she 'does' some librarian chores now (walks from place to place and jumps on poseballs to get animated), and soon she's going to have her own 24-hours routine. We hope to do the same with April one day.

Enjoy talking to the bots and feel free to paste some fun conversations in the comments here (there's going to be lots of them, trust me) :)

Fresh logo for Snowglobe

2009-09-17T15:39:00.002+02:00

About a month ago Linden Lab launched a contest on 99designs with the intention of finding a fresh new logo for the Snowglobe viewer. I must say I was very curious about the winning design. Reaching to the community for a product logo instead of hiring a professional may bring unexpected results - either in a positive or a negative way. 99designs is a group focused around design, but it's still risky to use online service like this, since a logo is not merely a graphic element but a part of company and product identity. It does give you an idea on how much Linden Lab appreciate the power behind a community nonetheless.

The winner was chosen and I definitely want the new logo on my desktop :) Just look at the old logo and the new one.

I like how the new one refers to Linden Lab logo, the Snowglobe itself and the primitive cube. I'm not very fond of the bold contour but I still like this design and definitely prefer the new colours. It's fresh, vivid and 'juicy', it's simple, and what's more important - it's memorable and versatile.

You can see the rest of the entries on the contest page. There were some interesting designs worth seeing. Also, take a look at the cute ones with hippos: here, here and here :) Awww... ^^ They're too complex to become logos, but they're so adorable.

So what do you think about the new logo? Which entry would you call your personal favourite?

New shoes

2009-09-13T03:27:00.002+02:00

I came across this fun machinima by Tommylee Nightfire and I just had to share it. Colorful, hilarious and cute. Also, nice and creative idea for the ending part of the clip :)

Ayumi's necklace

2009-08-18T14:11:00.003+02:00

My friend Agnieszka has made some jewellery that is named after me! Whee! :) I really like it when designers do that ^^

Ayumi's necklace is a lovely neck adornment featuring a flower with delicate strings, and polished pendants.

It comes in four colour versions, and you get a matching bracelet with your purchase. The sets are available on Xstreet SL:

When you're there, check out other jewellery sets by Agnieszka :)

In case you are interested in the sunglasses I'm wearing, these are Hepburn sunglasses from [glow] Studio.

Two years ;)

2009-08-13T18:37:00.003+02:00

It feels like I just posted the One year blog anniversary post, and today it's already two years. I'm really glad that after so much blogging I still have a lot of ideas to write about, and what's more important, that people find it interesting to read and comment. I love coments, so keep them coming! :)

One year ago I wrote that it would be cool to have 1000 visitors monthly - I achieved that about two weeks ago, when I published The ultimate guide to prim twisting. It was posted on the official Second Life blog (thank you, Torley!), on Massively (thank you, Tateru!) and on many personal blogs of SL residents (thank you, thank you, thank you!). It quickly brought more than 6000 unique visitors to my blog in just 14 days! That's fantastic!

Unique vistors: previous twelve months

Let me now share some statistics.

Readers
I've got about 100 regular followers that I know about (there might be more, I only know of those who read my blog through Google Reader and the 'follow thingie' on Blogger). As to daily visits on the blog, after the wave of 6000 new readers that I mentioned earlier in this post, the visits stabilized at 200 unique visitors daily.

Unique visitors: previous thirty days

I know it might not stay this way forever, but why not make things a bit challenging? ;) I'm setting a goal for this blogging year to keep (or increase) the 200 visitors daily. It won't be easy but I hope you guys will help me with this goal by coming here often and commenting my posts a lot :)

Readers location

A snapshot from today's visits: country share

A snapshot from today's visits: continent share

A bit more diversified than last year, which is great!

My most popular posts

The ultimate guide to prim twisting (the most popular blog post of the year!)
Developer's Manual: the full collection (residents like tutorials, don't they? ;))
A trip to another world(s) (but there's no alternative to SL)
I chat, therefore IM :P (these chat bots made it to New World Notes, yay!)
Linden Lab, Xstreet SL and OnRez: designing the future economy (my personal favourite, cause it seems I was right ^^)

Finally, I'd like to thank everyone who contributed to this blog through commenting and sending me IMs, items and other fun stuff in-world. You, my dear readers, make all this writing worthwhile :)

Time for some cake! Cheers!

Quick tip: how to easily find repeating landmarks

2009-07-27T01:50:00.002+02:00

Recently I decided to sort my landmarks. I never did that ever since I joined SL in 2006, so you can imagine how huge and messy my Landmarks folder was! Now it's all pretty and arranged in folders but still there are landmarks in various clothes or furniture folders, and it's hard to notice the repeating ones. I could have of course checked folder by folder, or have randomly typed names of stores or places, but I wanted something easier and faster. And I found the way! When you open the map, you can use the drop-down Landmarks list to spot groups of similar landmarks. These are all landmarks from your inventory sorted alphabetically, so it's really easy to find the ones you can delete. You still have to go to your inventory to sort them out, but at least you know what you're looking for.

Oh hai, I has shadows!

2008-06-19T00:02:00.006+02:00

[UPDATE: July 27, 2009] Please note the dynamic shadows are now included in the official Release Candidate viewer. To enable them, make sure you have atmospheric shaders on, then go to Advanced menu Debug Settings, make sure RenderDeferred is set to False, set RenderUseFBO to True, and then set RenderDeferred to True.

Dynamic shadows in Second Life! Woohoo! :) When Torley posted his movies showing the experimental shadows feature, I instantly wanted to test them out as well. The feature is for NVIDIA GeForce 8 series graphics card (or better) and is not yet available as an official viewer, but it's not too hard to find the patch - either one to compile yourself, or compiled by one of Second Life residents.

I absolutely love this feature. It adds to the atmosphere so much! I decided to go on a little vacation on Bahia island and recorded some footage to share with you:

Isn't it sweet?

Xstreet SL - quick tip to stay logged in

2009-03-18T20:08:00.006+01:00

I've noticed a lot of people complain that Xstreet SL won't keep them logged in, even when they use the 'Remember me' option. The solution is quite simple: just enter the site using the HTTPS protocol (each time), like this: https://www.xstreetsl.com.

Then you should stay logged in, plus, it's safer for your account :) Happy shopping!

By the way, have you noticed the new cool option added to the default edit item template on Xstreet? I'm talking about the SLURL option. I'm happy both as a designer and as a shopper. I don't have to add SLURL by hand anymore in products' descriptions (I'm still planning to do that though, until people catch up with the new feature), and as a shopper, I don't need to skim through the whole description to find the SLURL to the item I want to see in-world. Yay!

New release: modeling poses for men at Imagimations

2009-06-09T20:51:00.004+02:00

I just released a set of modeling poses for male friends (a male equivalent of the girls' Friends set):

Come to the shop and check them out! ^^ They're also available on Xstreet SL if you prefer.

Fashion: Not your dolly, sir

2009-05-01T02:02:00.003+02:00

Outfit details:

T-shirt: No Face (I am not your dolly sir tee)
Skirt: UnToneQuilt (Denimskirt / in Black)
Legwarmers: Cubic Effect (Leg warmer / in Black)
Wrist band: AyYaiYai (Gynni's Legwarmers / in Pink / resized and attached to left forearm)
Bracelet: Arai (Hair gom / FREE)
Glasses: FD (Ultimate Bugeye Glasses / black frames / tinted pink)
Bag: sUmi (Homemade bag "matrushka" / FREE Lucky Chair gift)
Shoes: Detour (MixFlip Sneakers / in Multi)
Straw: Imagimations (the straw comes together with Wild Wild West poses set)
Drink: Tree and Ocean SL (Soda Pop! / Raspberry)
Lashes: Magika (Real Prim Eyelashes)
Hair: Maitreya (Apple / in Chestnut)

Happy Easter! [UPDATE]

2009-04-11T16:51:00.010+02:00

[UPDATE: April 14, 2009] I added the correct SLURL to the egg.

[UPDATE: April 19, 2009] Send me an IM in-world, if you want this egg, I'll send it to you for free!

Together with Sql we made an egg for the Egg Decorating Contest (yay!). I just had to show it to you!

It's an Easter Chicken Egg House :) We added some little Second Life finishing touches: the basket is full of prims instead of eggs, and the picture on the wall is the chicken with children/eggs at the trip to Natoma to see 'The Man' statue :P It was really fun to make! Later we went to EggsActly islands to see the other eggs and there are thousands of them, all beautiful! Go there, it's worth it. In case you'll be looking for our egg, it's on the EggsActly Right island EggsActly island (click for SLURL) :)

I wish you all happy Easter! Smile a lot, eat some yummy food and have a wonderful Easter with your loved ones.

Residents' favourite scripter

2009-04-19T13:30:00.005+02:00

Today I have some great news to share :) I'm very happy and proud to announce that Sql Miles won the Resident Choice Award 2009 in the Favourite Scripter category. Yay! If you ever came across his scripts, you know he fully deserves the award. Sql mainly does commission work but he's best known to SL community as the creator of uTV - probably the most user-friendly SL TV ever (#12 rank on XstreetSL!). You might also remember his transportation system made for COP14 conference island in SL, or perhaps, he might have wirtten a script for you - then you know it's first class. There is no script that Sql would have trouble with and the award only proves that - I think the majority of Polish SL community voted for him, and a lot of his customers outside Poland :) Congratulations, Sql, you're the best! :*

Resident Choice Awards 2009 Winner's Circle @ Brampton

I found THE egg :)

2009-04-19T03:15:00.003+02:00

I found the 5000L$ egg in the BunnyJam hunt ^^ We've been flying with Sql all over Second Life, trying to figure out one of the clues, when suddenly I realised something. Mia had been working so hard on this event, so at least one of the eggs have had to be in her SL office. And so it was, lying innocently on a shelf among Linden bears. I didn't expect it would be the 5000L$ one though ;) Funny thing, as Twitter notice appeared, I was flooded with messages from fellow residents, asking about the egg. If you messaged me at that time and I didn't reply, I'm sorry, it was just too many to handle ;) Congratulations to all residents who found the eggs!

Me and Sql awaiting the results at the BunnyJam party

How many prim carrots...

2009-04-02T22:20:00.001+02:00

...do you need to fill a whole sim? 1358, if they're big enough ;)

PS. If you're Polish, you should recognize the carrots (these are very famous carrots indeed, hehe).

Open Grid joke :)

2009-04-01T18:25:00.005+02:00

Yesterday evening I went with Sql and Uzi to Open Grid. No, no worries, I'm not leaving Second Life. I'm just exploring the possibilities ^^ My first impression was that it's how early days of Second Life must have looked like - if you want someting, create it. We were busy chatting, testing stuff and teleporting around when suddenly our avatars turned into stick figures. But these were not really the kind of stick figures you are used to. These were really weird stick figures with all body parts in wrong places. We tried relogging, cache clearing and so on, but we couldn't figure out what caused the problem. Then finally Sql realized it was 4 minutes past midnight and April Fool's Day started :) We took a picture, trying to look our best - well, as much as a stick figure can look ;)

From the left, majestically floating: Ayumi, Uzi and Sql

Happy April Fool's Day! :)