So, I finished reading A WIND IN THE DOOR today.

So, I finished reading A WIND IN THE DOOR today. It's a sequel of sorts to A WRINKLE IN TIME, which I read the other month. A rather odd book in some respects as the town it's set in resembles more an English village than somewhere in the USA. Meg gets to learn lessons and fight for creation with the help of a Cherubim. I must look for the next book in the series, A SWIFTLY TILTING WORLD.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18130.A_Wind_in_the_Door

Play THE GAME.

Play THE GAME.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1g84m0sXpnNCv84GpN2PLZG/the-game-30th-anniversary-edition

Bwa ha ha!

Bwa ha ha!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMHSLNBFIBw&feature=share

Ditto.

Ditto.
#TripleJ #SMFY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjeE1bYiVoY&feature=share

As heard on Triple J recently. I love the sound.

As heard on Triple J recently. I love the sound.
#MoaningLisa #TripleJ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMmPWbnU5lg&feature=share

Remembering Harlan Ellison, 1934-2018

Originally shared by K.B. Burnfield

Remembering Harlan Ellison, 1934-2018

The great writer Harlan Ellison has passed away.

Ellison was one of the all time greats not only as a writer but as an all-around character.

Ellison wrote several of the greatest episodes of OUTER LIMITS and is the creator of the story that would become the best episode of STAR TREK : City On The Edge Of Tomorrow.

Sad news.

Pass on, brother.

http://www.startrek.com/article/remembering-harlan-ellison-1934-2018

This is NOT the week to do anything in. :(

This is NOT the week to do anything in. :(

A couple of weeks ago the DNS version of Seconds just stopped working. I had not changed any settings and initialised it the same way I had over two dozen times before. The result was that I could run the stand-alone, but was unable to login at all. So, I was able to export the region.ini and *.db files to a plain 0.9.0 install and that worked - I could log my avatars in!

But everything ran a lot slower than in the DNS version, which was lightning fast in comparison to a a local install, especially if it was run on the NUC. I have been able to run it on other PCs on the home network because I made \\LAS-WIN-LOUNGE\GRIDS\ into network drive o:\ (yes, I had to change the network name to be able to run some applications which had a license on LAS-WIN-LOUNGE). But that was only as fast as the PC I was running that from, which was always slower than the NUC.

So, I tried to export to a version that ran MySQL instead of SLite, which could have easily been imported into Dreamworld, but that didn't go anywhere. Last night I backed up all regions as OARs (and also the terrain) and backed up all avatars inventory as IARs. Today I thought I'd try importing this to a DREAMWORLD install manually, region by region, avatar by avatar. That would get me WiFi (so faster access on other PCs) and access to the Hypergrid. Nope. DW crashed on start, even though it'd run fine 2 or 3 times before. I'm sure there's a simple explanation and it can be fixed, but it's just par for the course this week

Maybe I should do nothing on Seconds until I get a leak fixed in my house, caught and killed the rat infestation, and had the sewerage line unblocked. In fact, having backed up, I can't make changes or do building until I know if I can proceed with the DW imports or not, because any changes would then need to be backed up again.

Definitely a frustrating week.

D'OH!

D'OH!
https://edition.cnn.com/style/article/spanish-church-restorer-st-george-intl-trnd/index.html

I've been backing up Seconds today.

I've been backing up Seconds today. Every region has been backed up to an OAR, and terrains exported as well. Am just finishing saving Master Builder's (and the other AV's) inventory as well. Slow process,

Or not, perhaps.

Or not, perhaps.
https://www.wired.com/2018/06/geeks-guide-the-terror/

While I'm waiting on some information, I'm making some "council flats", like teh sort you see in London and...

While I'm waiting on some information, I'm making some "council flats", like teh sort you see in London and elsewhere. Originally I was going to mod a prefab but that would have been LOTS of trouble. Once I have a level constructed properly, I can just copy it for as many floors as I want. The grand floor is different however, with a laundry, caretaker, and maybe a shop.

When finished it should have a footprint of about 54 x 54 m.

I know this voice so well!

I know this voice so well!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lr1ZaiqIpuU&feature=share

I've heard his voice in so many old films and animations!

I've heard his voice in so many old films and animations!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Frees#Jay_Ward_Productions

The Archer universe is a unique universe that takes place during an undetermined time period.

The Archer universe is a unique universe that takes place during an undetermined time period. Many aspects are heavily influenced by the 60s and 70s—the height of the spy movie genre—while many contemporary references and aspects suggest it takes place in a more recent or current time period.

Still mostly funny.
http://archer.wikia.com/wiki/Archer_Universe

So I saw the finale for THE CITY & THE CITY, and overall it reminded me of this series from 1981, especially the...

So I saw the finale for THE CITY & THE CITY, and overall it reminded me of this series from 1981, especially the scenes starting at 1:43:00, which - for no particular reason - take place in a generic Eastern Europe city, where none of the non-English dialogue is translated or subtitled, and which is suffering from an epidemic. Very surreal, and totally effective at giving the viewer a sense of disconnection. The IMDB trivia for this describes that as

Gideon Harlax suddenly finds himself in an unidentified militarized city, where the citizens seem to be all sick, who seem to understand his questions but who do not speak English. A public address system streams out monocordic announcements in Estonian spoken backwards.

Oh, you can try watching the whole thing but it goes on and on and on and one and is more of a "tone poem" than a drama that actually makes sense!
#TheCityandtheCity #Artemis81
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQ8DiE1KQC0

A classic in its time.

A classic in its time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtvJWKaDI9s&feature=share

Only 25?

Only 25?
https://screenrant.com/batman-v-superman-make-no-sense/

Well as usual I've hit a brick wall because of my lack of knowledge, and to a lesser degree outdated or incomplete...

Well as usual I've hit a brick wall because of my lack of knowledge, and to a lesser degree outdated or incomplete instructions.

I thought I'd try installing DIVA D2 because that has WiFi. I requires My SQL however, rather than SQLite. When I tried installing the current version of MySQL (8.0.11) the screens didn't match the tutorial slideshow I'd found, and the installation FROZE. I've found THIS tutorial which uses something called XAMPP (sounds like a 2000s audio player!) to install it for you. It seems though that you also have to install PHP, which seems to complicate things.

The latest version of WiFi, is also missing a whole directory of html pages, even though it mentions them in the documentation! The assumption must be that you've done it before. A bit confusing..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aXlTlqeJfc

Melbourne Ska Orchestra - Pink Panther Theme

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEbmgj3_c4U&feature=share

Ooh, this looks very helpful!

Ooh, this looks very helpful! The non slide version at https://github.com/diva/d2/wiki/Installation is bare in comparison.
https://www.slideshare.net/fleep513/oln-2010-novemberopensimstep0opensimfullinstructions

The ultimate missing the point comic.

The ultimate missing the point comic.
http://www.chick.com/

As it transpired, the keyboard issues were that my wireless keyboard was in the process of dying, and the...

As it transpired, the keyboard issues were that my wireless keyboard was in the process of dying, and the teleporting issue was because the regions in Scum Island hadn't been converted back to ExternalHostName = SYSTEMIP yet. D'OH! A different keyboard and search and replace has fixed both now.

I might first backup everything, and second see if I can get the DIVA distro working.

OK, soooooooooooooooo I gt he l srted

OK, soooooooooooooooo I gt he l srted

SO I GOT THE LOGINS WORKING AGAIN.

I had to transfer to a different PC after doing it, because earlier today it had a windows update, and I think it needs a cold boot to sort the NUC's keyboard out!

Logins had stopped working and I was planning to to export the database and region files to a fresh install, but what I did was this - I edited the include section back to this so that it went back to the standalone config. Then I had to search and replace to put 127.0.0.1 back instead of the local address I had, and put back LOCALIP in the regions files. I could log in, because it's now just a standard stand-alone grid.

However, there were issues with teleports, so I'll look at that tomorrow after a cold boot. I'll get things back to normal and maybe try adding DIVA's WiFi functionality with it.

Have been watching this on GEM. A classic 1950s Ealing Studio comedy, about saving a branch line service.

Have been watching this on GEM. A classic 1950s Ealing Studio comedy, about saving a branch line service.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YpTIJ9atiI&feature=share

This is why Jon needs Garfield.

This is why Jon needs Garfield.
http://garfieldminusgarfield.net/post/175121871977/worthwhile

The difference between how drunks see themselves, and how they are (needs CC on)!

The difference between how drunks see themselves, and how they are (needs CC on)!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cy_0EQmsuP0&feature=share

Ylvis - You're Fucked | Stories from Norway | TVNorge

You are as they say in Japanese,
fucked from the head down to the knees!

The ultimate effing song! Definitely needs needs CC on!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2c6lf4P0Vtw&feature=share

I'm not bloody surprised. I just watched episode 3 and um, hmmmm....

I'm not bloody surprised. I just watched episode 3 and um, hmmmm....
#TheCityandtheCity
https://www.radiotimes.com/news/tv/2018-06-20/viewers-confused-by-the-city-and-the-city-opening-episode/

Using ConEmu to run OpenSim

Using ConEmu to run OpenSim
I run Windows applications (on Windows 10 nowadays) and I prefer to use ConEmu (see https://conemu.github.io/) to run OpenSim. Generally, I have a shortcut on the desktop for ConEmu, and a shortcutsfor each standalone Opensim install I have, pointing the relevant /bin/Opensim.exe. I simply pull the stand-alone's shortcut into ConEmu's shortcut and it runs the stand-alone in the ConEmu console.

Now I could just run the stand-alone shortcut without dragging it, and that would run the stand-alone in the default Windows DOS console, and that would work, but using ConEmu instead has certain advantages:

* It is easily configurable in appearance, performance, and integration;
* Set up a log and read that when something goes wrong;
* Set up the affinity/priority of the process you're running in ConEmu (for example, if that's the only thing you're running on that device, set it to HIGH);
* You can have multiple, tabbed windows; and
* You can prevent accidentally ending the process by setting up confirmations for termination or exiting a tab.

You get none of that with the bog standard Windows console, or if you do, it's obscure and tricky to set up. There may be other consoles out there, or Windows add-ons that add some of these features, but this does it all in one! I have to thank Fred Beckhusen for putting me on to this. I find ConEmu extremely helpful.
#Windows #ConEmu #Consoles

Just what did you just smoke?

Just what did you just smoke?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaFxaAcbr1c&feature=share

However, te WHO has also included this as a disorder.

However, te WHO has also included this as a disorder.
https://au.news.yahoo.com/gaming-disorder-diagnosed-mental-health-condition-212931076.html

So, I finally got to see Solo: A Star Wars Story, and it was everything I'd hoped for.

So, I finally got to see Solo: A Star Wars Story, and it was everything I'd hoped for.

So good to see Han and Chewie together in action. Did the Kessel Run in 12 parsecs - now I know what it means!

Am working on Octobriana and Mr Berkley now.

Am working on Octobriana and Mr Berkley now. Octobriana is a version of the AV I constructed in Sl, and Mr Berkley is version of a free Bothan AV I had, which is no longer in the Marketplace (I can't find it, otherwise I'd give a link). Took a while to reconstruct. Berkley is short, he only comes up to Octobriana's shoulder height, but he makes up for that in being broad.

Octobriana appeared in RETURN TO SECOND LIFE, and is a public domain character. For more details, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octobriana and http://pdsh.wikia.com/wiki/Octobriana. Her half-sister Amazonia (who has a Czech rather that a Russian background) will also be appearing. This is meant to reflect Octobriana's murky publishing history.

I suspect that I might have have unwittingly pre-empted Chewbacca's backstory - Berkley is the head of Buggle security and fiercely loyal to Jeff Buggle (who hasn't been seen in the story yet but landed a Bellyfop at the Buggle base in the last story), brother of Dr Buggle. Jeff saved him from being experimented on at Gone City.

Lots of work to be done.
#Octobriana #MrBerkley

Used in a certain SF comedy show.

Used in a certain SF comedy show.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rOMGIbY-9s&feature=share

So I finished watching FALLING SKIES this morning.

So I finished watching FALLING SKIES this morning. I worked my way through the DVD sets bit by bit. most days. Because of that I saw the story unfold episode by episode, season by season, with all the story and character arcs. In general I really enjoyed the series, probably because it was an ensemble cast of characters that developed over time. And, despite being set in the USA, it was a very Canadian SF production.

Like other Canadian SF productions like ANDROMEDA and SANCTUARY, it was also focused on a main character who organises the others, and whose actor is also a producer of the show. We all knew that "Tom Mason" would make it through to the last episode, but every other character was way less certain. The last season seemed to cheaply done, in that we saw far less of the Skitters and Overlords, and more on Human issues. (needing less special effects). I thought the "John Pope" character was a bit shortchanged i the last season, like perhaps the actor hadn't been available towards the end of the season so they cut out scenes.

But otherwise it was worth waiting until I had the whole series to watch. On to watching all of the old X-Files now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MP7vrlvu9qk&feature=share

And, I think we have a definitive Neeta!

And, I think we have a definitive Neeta! I've fiddled around with her face, and made her body and limbs thinner, but it looks a lot more like the source now. The only thing I can't do is add such a long winding tail, so I've left it off the snapshots, but it IS part of her body set.

cool cover

cool cover
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIt3NDZoSnU&feature=share

I had heard about this, but never seen it before.

I had heard about this, but never seen it before.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOw44VFNk8Y&feature=share

I've been converting old half pages of SECONDS from Fireworks (modified PNG) to Photoshop (PSD).

I've been converting old half pages of SECONDS from Fireworks (modified PNG) to Photoshop (PSD). Fireworks worked well when it was still being supported, but it hasn't been since 2014 at least. Conversion's a long tedious process because it requires my to do a SAVE AS for each Fireworks file, and it can't be automated. So far I'm up to chapter 10 of Return to Second Life (RTSL).

I needed to do this, as some images will be changed before the next story. Octobriana's flat is now a bit different, for example. It's weird because most of the virtual worlds I used in RTSL, like Proterra, are now gone.

I remember reading this in the late 60s.

I remember reading this in the late 60s. Despite converting a paramilitary team into a superhero team, it failed to save the come.
http://majorspoilers.com/2011/05/08/hero-history-the-junk-heap-heroes/

Mental Health Day

Mental Health Day

To be fair, the Transmetropolitan character deserved this.
http://slaymonstrobot.blogspot.com/

Gosh and golly!

Gosh and golly!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrhv4jUvPq4&feature=share

Reloaded mesh in Firestorm. Much better. Earphones attached to the right ear, and any hats to the left one.

Reloaded mesh in Firestorm. Much better. Earphones attached to the right ear, and any hats to the left one.

Something not quite working for the Upper alpha, which should hide Neeta's actual hands when wearing glovers. Not sure what.

Good news.

Good news.

Originally shared by Dave Hill

The Devil, you say!

Netflix has picked up "Lucifer," after its cancellation on Fox. Just what I desired.

(h/t James Hill )
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/lucifer-revived-at-netflix-fox-cancellation-1120632

So nice to see these again.

So nice to see these again.

ha ha ha

ha ha ha
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6vehLf0aIs&feature=share

Just watching the recording I made of thisback in May.

Just watching the recording I made of thisback in May. A rather odd film that seems to have little or no budget. I hadn't realised it was New Zealand made until a saw a KIWIRAIL train in one scene.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pvJtt9wJho&feature=share

Some good news today - the hard drive with my graphic novel is recoverable! I will start this process tomorrow.

More mesh weirdness between viewers.

More mesh weirdness between viewers.

Neeta's hair is a lot of prims exported as mesh from SL. Her gloves was a freebie mesh I found on the net, and specs based on a pair I found in SL. And yet Firestorm has problems with each, whereas Kokua, Singularity, and CoolVL don't. This is the same scene in each viewer (more or less) and each of these is attached to Neeta as an attachment.

But Firestorm doesn't show any of these, or show the the attachment points are being used. Also, just out of sight is a copy of Neeta's hair sitting on the ground for an edit. Can't see or select that in Singularity, but I can with the others. What weirdness is this?
#Firestorm #Mesh #Issues

Rabbits Episode 1 (2002) Directed by David Lynch

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjNQxYESm4o&feature=share

I worked on Neeta's Utility belt.

I worked on Neeta's Utility belt. These are all prims, based on one I used in Second Life (it was no copy but mod, so I could see how it was constructed), and coloured properly to match Neeta's original design. The idea is that the composition of the belt's going to change depending on what Neeta needs for the job. The belt is the attachment point, and copies of each get linked for a job. The big spanner hangs separately.
#Neeta

Been working on Neeta.

Been working on Neeta. The shirt and pants I consider to be Neeta's "dress clothes". Compare with the original drawing. Needs some work still, but better than before.
#Neeta #Opensource #Opensourcecharacter

Melbourne Ska Orchestra - The Best Things In Life Are Free

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUVvBF9BWdg&feature=share

Melbourne Ska Orchestra - Monty Python Theme (Liberty Bell March)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHYXrSCR-yc&feature=share

There a chance due to teh age of my house that one of the circuits (the one the NUC is on) might short out during...

There a chance due to teh age of my house that one of the circuits (the one the NUC is on) might short out during heavy rain (which happened already twice yesterday. So, today I'm only using teh PC in the Recroom. I can still do stuff for Seconds, as I'm using a stand-alone grid on that to rebuild characters with.

No doubt inspired by the success of GAME OF THRONES.

No doubt inspired by the success of GAME OF THRONES.
http://www.nme.com/blogs/tv-blogs/lord-of-the-rings-tv-series-release-date-plot-cast-2170413

I had problems with my left eye today, so all I'm doing is fine tuning reegion terrains.

I had problems with my left eye today, so all I'm doing is fine tuning reegion terrains. I made a map of heights for each corner, so that it would be easier to see how things lie. Better than what I had there.

So I reinvented the wheel again.

So I reinvented the wheel again.

The balcony of what was once a copy of Linda Kellie's Grand Hotel used a "cheat"for the balusters (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baluster) by having a texture on a a thin prim - thus avoiding mesh and multiple copies them or prims. I'd been trying to do the same thing on the Buggle-Praxis base with a tapered box.

The trouble with that is that adjusting the tapering at each end is a bit hit and miss and too often the prim would under and over reach. Working on the pub, I realised that it'd be better to have a couple of prisms on each end. You can then extend the main balustrade as long as you want, and (using LOCAL, not WORLD) move the prisms to the end of that, and extend them out so that it aligns just right. The only catch is that you need to make the adjoining faces on the inside transparent, otherwise you see something that shouldn't be there. On the wooden stairs you a need a prim above and below the insert, so that the balusters don't appear to end in thin air, but a solid balustrade doesn't need either. On a 21 step set of stairs, I eliminated 36 prims!

Like I said, reinvented the wheel again, and maybe some mesh stairs could be used instead, but the prim sets are easy to edit (especially the stone set) and adjust. I'm happy with this because it was a niggling problem I hadn't figured out until now.

Today I added a bunch of stone/concrete stairs around the island.

Today I added a bunch of stone/concrete stairs around the island. Everything's on a terraced basis so you need better access for pedestrians. Each 21 step set of stairs is based on the wooden ones ones I made for the B&B area. They have 26 prims in them, and it was very easy to mix and match bits of sets so that they'd arrive at the right height.

I'm thinking of having a scenic walk around the end of Down Town, which would make sense if at the end of that walk there was another slight of steps up to a park above.

So yesterday I started building stairs to make access easier to the B&B section from Up Town.

So yesterday I started building stairs to make access easier to the B&B section from Up Town. All prim stuff. By a happy coincidence the pedestrian pathways were the same height as the upper level of Boozer's Pub (the new name for the "Piss Pot Pub"). I thought that the stairs around this part would all be made of wood. Not safe but cheap.

Have been listening to this all day today. Good stuff to do social media with.

Have been listening to this all day today. Good stuff to do social media with.
#SomaFM
http://somafm.com/live/

I've created my first community.

I've created my first community. The idea of this is show the personal builds you're either working on, finished, or are having problems with. No advertising for commercial stuff. Still filling in the details of this, so I'm the only member so far.

I've also been adding more roads.

I've also been adding more roads. The black surface road is part of a national highway, which ends at the top of the hill. It makes sense to me that there's be an extra ramp road down from the Backpackers and Boozers section. I probably need one more shop down there. The empty section to the west of that is where the substation's going, and I'm very tempted to build a bridge from the pub and/or backpackers to the hill top. There's definitely steps to be added down that cliff.

So, with heavy rain outside I didn't go out and instead added buildings and roads.

So, with heavy rain outside I didn't go out and instead added buildings and roads.

I added copies of Linda Kellie's Grand Hotel and Winter Lodge , which are being modded to be the Piss Pot Pub and Slummer's Backpackers. To make the Grand into a pub, I removed the top floor, added covers on the balconies (I found that there's NO WAY to actually get to the 1st floor balcony!), added a different roof, and converted the wooden walls into brick. This is based on an older style Australian pub that has a bar downstairs and rooms upstairs, much like a Western hotel. The reason is they were more or less built at the same time, in the last half of the of the 19th century.

I've also added a "clean" service station (won't be by the time I'm done with it), a copy of the Large Brick Building with will be made into the resort building , another warehouse, and an extra road out of town.

Oh, and there's also a view of Scum Island from the Welcome Centre. You can just see details!

A very different version of the Star Wars.

A very different version of the Star Wars.

Originally shared by Laura Ess

This graphic novel turned up at my local library. It's based more or less the original draft script of what's now "A New Hope". Vast differences, but lots of similarities. What struck me was that "May the Force be with you" was originally "May the force of others be with you". Lots of people fight with laser swords, not just the Jedi-Bendu, and the Sith aren't the supreme evil in the galaxy! Also, Han Solo was a bit of shock.

I found it interesting, but I'm glad that didn't make THIS version into a film.
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/The_Star_Wars

I've been restoring a character today.

I've been restoring a character today. Making characters can be a LOT harder than simply plonking buildings down on location and modding them to fit.

This is my version of Neeta, an open source character (see http://pdsh.wikia.com/wiki/Neeta). I like her a lot. This is still not quite right however. I need to redo the shirts and pants, colour the specs, I got the colours reversed on the cap, and add headphones. Also, she could be thinner. I do have a tail on her, but it's just out of shot.
#Neeta #Opensource #Opensourcecharacter

An iconic cover.

A "punter" wants things for nothing, whether it's art, work or sex.

A "punter" wants things for nothing, whether it's art, work or sex.
Actually from https://portuguesegeese.com/comics/

This is sad news, but...

This is sad news, but...

If someone wants to take over editing Hypergrid Business, drop me a line — maria@hypergridbusiness.com. Or if you want to do a regular column, or reviews of destinations or events, or a how-to advice.
https://www.hypergridbusiness.com/2018/06/hypergrid-business-is-winding-down/

I thought I'd play around with advertising, and created a bus stop seat sign.

I thought I'd play around with advertising, and created a bus stop seat sign.

I found a fictional brand logo on the net that was about the right size (and one you can't miss)and used that as a starting point. I reasoned that there'd be at least two states for the sign: cleaned and distressed, so I cropped and resized the original to 512x256px and put the clean version at the top and and a distressed version at the bottom, making a 512x512px image. Then I "did stuff" to the bottom version to make it look like it'd been there for a while.

I uploaded this to Seconds, and then applied tit to the backs of seats. The face was set to default with horizontal of1.0 and vertical of .5. The clean had an offset of 0.25 and the distressed of -0.25. And it worked! And then I discovered that the makers of Slum City (the source of the benches) had thought of this years before! Nothing like reinventing the wheel I guess. D'Oh!