Category: virtual worlds

Has Project Interesting Impacted Your Second Life?

Has Project Interesting Impacted Your Second Life?

by Lisa Millar ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

In a less than positive way? The reason I ask is since Friday I’ve had unbelievable problems getting into Second Life, and when I finally manage to get in, I am surrounded by grey goo, the kind of which I haven’t experienced since 2007.

It was also around the time that Project Interesting started to get a lot of publicity and cause a buzz on the grid. If you aren’t familiar with this term, here’s a video narrated by the ever-amazing Torley Linden about it:

Now I do not know for certain that this is what is causing my problems, but it’s very coincidental. I know a few other Plurk friends and at least one other blogger who are experiencing issues as well.  Linden Lab, what the chuff have you done?!

It’s all kinds of frustrating, and if I’m being honest, upsetting too. I adore my Second Life, and I adore writing about it, but this issue has had such an impact upon me at the moment that I’m finding it hard to take photographs successfully let alone blog! (Hence my lack of updates this week.)

So what happens?  Well, when logging in I get stuck at the ‘Requesting Region Capabilities’ bar; it attempts three times before it tells me that ‘we’re having trouble connecting, there may be a problem with your internet connection or the Second Life Grid’.  Well, my internet connection is absolutely fine; I work from home so it’s imperative that my connection is viable. Nothing has changed for me; if anything I’ve been enjoying rude health in SL since I got my new graphics card. I’d fallen head over heels in love with my virtual world again, and now this issue has reared its incredibly ugly head.

If I do manage to get in-world successfully then I see grey goo.  Items in my immediate environment take an age to load, and then when they do often they blur (usually when I am trying to take pictures, grr!) I’m also experiencing issues rezzing items.

In the grand scheme of things this isn’t the end of the world, of course it’s not, but when the virtual world is such an important part of your life, as it is mine, then it’s paramount you can access it successfully. If I could turn back time I’d turn back to a week ago, when my Second Life was running smoothly and happily..now alas, it’s breaking me. Project Interesting? Project pain-in-the-arse more like.

Are you having issues in Second Life? What kind of issues are you experiencing, or have you found a solution? If you have any ideas, please help and post a comment below! 

Less Than Three Hours Until Shoetopia Opens Its Doors!!

Less Than Three Hours Until Shoetopia Opens Its Doors!!

by Lisa Millar ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

So I’ve just woken up after finishing my last RL night shift for this cycle. I’m off until Tuesday..so plenty of time to get into Shoetopia, right?Let’s be honest, it’s not going to happen.  The event is going to be packed to the rafters for the majority of the fortnight run, and judging by the quality on display I’d say that’s rightly so.  Elysium Hynes has pinned practically ALL THE THINGS again, so you can use her Pinterest board as a reference guide to what treats lie in store. All bases are covered, with many different styles of shoes; Courtney Stoddenesque towering heels, classic pumps, wedge heels and a fabulous selection of mens styles are all on display.  This is what her pinboard looks like, you can see it by clicking HERE.

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Looking at Ely’s pins I’m just blown away by the imaginative designs and fabulous finishing.  SHOETOPIA is the kind of event that makes you PROUD to be in Second Life, and we have had a LOT of those this year. But don’t despair when you bounce along the sim borders, desperate to find your way inside. You can sort of get your shoe fix by joining the Shoetopia Demo Group.

What I am doing at the moment is trying on all the shoes to determine which ones I am interested in buying. Doing this in the comfort of your own home, before the event, makes perfect sense. There is nothing worse after all than buying some gorgeous shoes only to find that actually, they don’t fit and don’t look as good as you’d hoped.

Using Ely’s Pinterest as a cross reference, I’ve been looking to see if the demos of the shoes that I’m interested in are in the demo group.  If they are, I’m trying them on for size..

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These are actually the first pair I tried on.  They’re the ADJUNCT  ‘As Above, So Below’ boots and as any Witch will know, that phrase has particular significance, so I simply HAD to try them on first!  They’re pretty swish.  I zoomed in and out, took my time while sizing them and adjusting to find my perfect fit and yup, these are definitely on my ‘MUST BUY’  list, although I’ll be opting for black rather than purple.  That said, the purple color really shows the great texture and pattern on these boots doesn’t it? To get even more of a shoe fix, keep your eye on the official Shoetopia Flickr.

A final note; it goes without saying, and it’s certainly something that I’ve spoken about before, but please be considerate to fellow visitors at this event.  By that I mean dress down, remove scripts and generally be an all-round good egg. I fear that the popularity of this occasion is going to inevitably cause problems by way of sim restarts and lag, so anything that we can do to help is a bonus.

Last but not least, this is an event contributing to an amazing charity, so be generous, but most of all, enjoy yourselves! This is going to be FUN!

Shoetopia 2013 opens its doors at Noon SLT (20:00 UK TIME!) and runs until November 30th. 

 

Kitty’s Getting Ready For Shoetopia-ARE YOU?

Kitty’s Getting Ready For Shoetopia-ARE YOU?

by Lisa Millar ♥ 3 Comments

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You know, I was never really a shoe-girl.

In real life you’ll find me trudging around in a pair of Crocs (yes, I know I’ve committed a supposed fashion-crime by wearing them, let alone loving them, but I do so there!) or my battered red Converse.  I have some fabulous  Catwoman Converse, too, and some Hello Kitty Vans.  Oh, and I have a pair of flat pumps in a burgundy leopard-print for work/going out, and a nice pair of clumpy faux-fur boots that I adore. But that’s it;  hardly a collection, let alone a fashion statement!

To be honest in real-life I’ve never understood how women could go all ‘Hello Lover’ at a pair of heels so cripplingly high that they would give you a nose bleed and bunions as soon as you dared to put your toe into them.   As if that wasn’t enough, the price of the ruddy things is completely beyond me. I don’t care if Manolo Blahnik himself made them, if you can’t guarantee that by wearing those shoes I’ll win an arse-kicking contest with a porcupine then I am just not interested.  In my eyes if you see nothing wrong with spending the equivalent of a mortgage repayment on a pair of heels then there’s something very wrong with you.

To begin with in Second Life I wasn’t much of a shoe fetishist. For a long time my go-to heels for my posher virtual outfits were an old pair (well I guess you’d call them vintage now) of TESLA heels. They were a gift many years ago from the ever-amazing Codebastard Redgrave, and I still wear them.  Tesla Miles made brilliant shoes; I do miss that brand!

But this year I’ve started to get wise to the wicked ways of the (virtual) shoe.

It’s the GOS BOUTIQUE shoes that started my transformation from footwear luddite to convert; Gospel Voom’s  fantastic brand of heels and boots that are nothing short of pornographic.  I swear to god, the Angelina peep-toe heels in ‘Black Python’ are the virtual equivalent of making  mad, passionate love to Ms. Jolie herself. They are ASTONISHING.

ILO’s workboot collection for THE ARCADE spoke to me in a way no other boots ever  have in-world, and I became obsessed by them.  As a result, I’ve barely taken them off, and most of the time you’ll find me trudging around the grid in a pair of my gacha-won treasures. They were created and textured so perfectly  how could I not love them? Oh, and don’t even get me started on Siddean Munro and her amazing SLink feet and footwear..GAHHH!

As you can see, my conversion once it started came on suddenly , and I would now consider myself well on the way to becoming a Second Life Shoe Addict. 

And there isn’t a cure, in fact, my addiction is going to fully reveal itself come November 15th (Friday folks, FRIDAY!!) when SHOETOPIA 2013 opens to the public.

Now, I did a VERY SILLY thing by not entering the photo contest to be an official blogger (Damn you real life!!!)but no matter because some of the very best bloggers that Second Life have to offer will be covering the event for you. And what an event it promises to be!   Readers, there are OVER FIFTY (gulp) footwear designers contributing to the show.

There are Gachas too (because we’re all addicted to those, right?) and all of this will take place across two sims that have a ‘Shoe Heaven’ theme. (Check out the fabulous photo on Moka’s Way-isn’t it breathtaking?!)

The event will last from November 15- November 30 2013, a total of 14 days, which is good because I imagine it will packed solid when it opens and will prove very difficult to get into.

But the very best thing, apart from all those beautiful, fabulous shoes, is that the event supports the charity SOLES 4 SOULS.  The fact that it’s supporting such an amazing charity is reason enough to go and splurge all your Lindens, but  Soles4Souls have committed at least 200,000 new pairs of shoes to the rescue, recovery, and rebuilding lives effort in the Philippines following this weekend’s dreadful typhoon disaster. 

You can see a few of the treats in store by visiting the official Flickr group, and of course I’ll be showing you my lovely purchases once I’ve managed to get in!

This is one event that you really won’t want to miss; I’m considering camping on the sim border for the opening.  Sell a virtual kidney, pawn all your virtual jewellery!

Fabulous shoes + Money for charity = WIN!!! 

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Kitty Loves: The Keira Shirt From ERRATIC

Kitty Loves: The Keira Shirt From ERRATIC

by Lisa Millar ♥ 7 Comments

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Today was threatening to be a very stinky day in Second Life for me because I’ve tried a number of times to get into C88 without any success. It’s been a nightmare, made worse by the fact that when I do manage to get in my Linden balance suddenly disappears.  Yes, the old L$1- bug has returned with a vengeance.

So instead I’ve decided to tell you about this rather fabulous shirt that I’m wearing. This is the ‘Keira’ shirt from ERRATIC, and I’m completely in love with it.  It fits perfectly and looks absolutely outstanding, as I hope my picture adequately displays.  The shirt is casually styled; tucked in at the front and hanging loose at the back with the most authentic looking creasing I’ve seen in a while. The shading (best seen on the lighter shirts) nails it.  I know I harp on about the importance of textures in practically every post that I write,  but the shape is of course  just as important, and this shirt is probably the best of its type that I’ve encountered in-world.  It’s available in a selection of plains and prints and offers tons of potential for mixing with your favourite separates and  accessories. It’s an essential purchase in my book.

Alas, quality does NOT come cheap, and at L$375 a shirt you may think twice before buying, but I assure you that once you’ve demoed this beauty you will have to own one! Never have I been more tempted by a ‘Buy Everything’ button, but alas, my avatar needs to eat, and I do plan on getting into C88 at some point this month..<shakes fist at screen>

I must also very quickly mention this fabulous hairstyle that I am wearing too.   I must’ve missed the memo that said that MAGIKA had released new hair; so it’s a ruddy good job I was perusing blogs earlier, and I happened across this gorgeous style featured upon Heidi Volare’s ‘The Fashionable Heart’ blog (looking absolutely amazing too I might add!).  This long bob is called ‘Sudden’ and is practically perfect in every way. In fact it’s almost as good as ‘Plenty’, another Sabina Gully style that has totally rocked my world in 2013.  I love the strands of hair at the front of ‘Sudden’ that frame the face perfectly. It’s an incredibly simple style but can be dressed up or down with ease, and I think I’ll be getting a lot of wear out of it.

Right, time to try my luck at C88 again.  Have a lovely Sunday!

Kitty Wears:

  • Shape: Kitty’s Own.
  • Skin: GLAM AFFAIR ‘Vera’ (Jamaica, 10H)
  • Make-Up: MONS – Black Eyeliner, series 3
  • Lashes: MC ‘Falsies’
  • Eyes: IKON ‘Destiny – Maya’ (ML)
  • Necklace: ANE ‘Sexy’ Necklace
  • Hair : Magika ‘Sudden’