Still tinkerin', still learning! Along the left you'll see my regular schedule, but watch this space for special events; I DO get contracted for special appearances fairly regularly besides my regularly scheduled shows. I'll eventually get SLURLS added to those (as soon as I get those addresses, hehehe) so you can teleport directly into world to check those awesome clubs (I'm kinda picky about where I play--these are all GREAT places to check out). Note: in the (admittedly, kinda unlikely) event a non-SL'er has stumbled across this blog, teleporting in requires an SL account, but it's easy to create and absolutely free. The SLurl will prompt you to do so if you don't have one and walk you through it.
Additionally, I've made a LINKS section w/ several sites of interest, including the main Second Life website where you can get more info on my favorite metaverse (also including generation of your very own account & persona).
Debated putting in a "Hot Rotations" section to feature tracks that I'm playing pretty heavily via requests and/or just cuz I like 'em and they go over well, but that changes pretty much daily and per the venue and/or event I'm playing at that moment. Besides, while I DO have favorites, I try (with varying degrees of success) to resist the temptation to overplay them.
Monday, March 24, 2008
Friday, March 21, 2008
Upcoming Schedule
Hey, all! Been a rough week in RL, but fortunately, I have a GREAT virtual getaway. LJ and I've been terraforming our parcel into a nice slice of Jimmy Buffet-esque paradise this past week. If you're gonna get away from reality, ya might as well do it right!
Figured I'd set up a quick note on my current engagements as a professional DJ. Here's my upcoming DJ events for the weekend...
03/22/08 Saturday
12-2 PM SLT Feature DJ for Jocelyn's Hangout (DJ group's weekly showcase)
4-6 PM SLT GlamShack--Spinning classic & contemporary rock (requests always welcome)
6:30-8: 30 Blue Noise--Dance, techno, contemporary rock (plus wherever the requests go)
03/23/08 Sunday
1-3 PM SLT REDS--Classic thru contemporary rock, AC rock, alternative, etc. (requests, too)
6-8 PM SLT Nocturne--Hard rock, industrial, goth, darkwave w/ themed event & requests.
I"m gonna figure out how to link SLURLS into this blog in the near future. Shouldn't be all that hard; I just have to take the time to figure it out.
Inventory Management 1301
OK, we've all got 'em. You know what I mean...the random clothing/gadget/hair/skin items sitting in your inventory rarely (if ever) used, but it sure seemed like a cool idea at the time of purchase...
I've probably got more of those than most folks. At last count, even after purges and storage prim packing, I'm still standing at around 10.5 k in my inventory, and I don't even have the "But it's mostly textures I need for building" excuse. Thing is, I'm a DJ who works several different clubs which each have different styles, and they mostly all do themed events. I like to support the themes when I'm working a club, but that means in any given week, I may be called to appear as an angel/devil, pirate, cyborg, neko, etc. I kinda have to be prepared for all sorts of stuff. At least, that's what I tell myself. :D
Inventory management becomes, therefore, a vital skill. Even if you're a new resident, you would be well-served by starting early, before you ever hit the 2k level. It may be easy to scan your inventory quickly for that Wet T-Shirt now, but wait till you get a few thousand items you gotta sift through... The search bar IS helpful for looking for something immediately (IF you remember the name), but it gets really slow as your inventory grows, and good luck accessing ANYTHING for a while via the search bar if you've had to clear cache. Fortunately, you have a few weapons at your disposal in your battles against the Asset Server Monster.
Subfolders are your friend! When you buy a new set of clothes (for example), you'll usually have a brand new folder dumped randomly into your inventory's "Clothing" section (for example). Make it easier on yourself, your PC, and the asset server to track stuff down. I've made a pile of folders for different types of clothes--Formalwear, Elvenwear, Goth/Victorian, Footwear, Jeans, etc. In some cases, I have folders just for a particular designer--DE, Bare Rose, etc, just b/c they have their own style that's hard to categorize neatly. Organize it by however you'll remember that item when you're looking for it. Doesn't matter. The only wrong way is not to do it at all.
NIFTY TRICK: Make a 2nd inventory window. The inventory seems to scroll unpredictably when trying to move folders around, so it's kinda like trying to run an obstacle course while riding a drunk elephant. Go to File/New Window on your Inventory menu to pop up a duplicate window of your inventory. Will make file transfers much easier, I promise. Also tends to make inventory juggling, cleanup, etc in general a LOT easier. You can make as many inventory windows as ya like. Two usually does it for me, although I HAVE had more when doing some serious inventory shuffling.
Now, in one, do Create/New Folder; you should see your spiffy new folder appear, waiting to be named. I name mine starting w/ a couple of slashes to keep them even easier to locate (b/c they stay at or near the top of that category folder--"//Jeans" will be right near the top of the "Clothing" folder instead of buried further down among miscellanea I've not categorized yet. Yeah, I know; if you subfile EVERYTHING immediately, those subfolders would be the only things immediately under "Clothing," but I'm not always that virtuous. Name it whatever you like. Name it Ethel if you want. Ya just don't see that name anymore...**Arc debates new blog topic--Does the world need more Ethels? Why? Why not? Discuss..."**
Now, go to your inventory window and search for the new folder. This will keep our inebriated pachyderm of an inventory system targeting that folder instead of scrolling gleefully away when you try to drop something into it. Hate that. Nail the sucker down, I say.
Find the new item you want to drop into its new home in your other inventory window (probably under the Recent Items tab if you're wise enough to file it immediately after obtaining it) and drag it over to your waiting subfolder in the other window. Ta-daaaaa!
If you do a few minutes of it every day (or at least, after every shopping trip), you'll avoid my fate--I've had to blow HOURS on cleaning up my inventory when I've neglected it for a while. You'd think I'd know better by now *shrugs*.
I also highly recommend storage prims for stuff you don't use much. Personally, I like the Bright Inventory Box organizers, but you can load stuff into any old prim you can make.
Anyway, hope this little discourse helps!
I've probably got more of those than most folks. At last count, even after purges and storage prim packing, I'm still standing at around 10.5 k in my inventory, and I don't even have the "But it's mostly textures I need for building" excuse. Thing is, I'm a DJ who works several different clubs which each have different styles, and they mostly all do themed events. I like to support the themes when I'm working a club, but that means in any given week, I may be called to appear as an angel/devil, pirate, cyborg, neko, etc. I kinda have to be prepared for all sorts of stuff. At least, that's what I tell myself. :D
Inventory management becomes, therefore, a vital skill. Even if you're a new resident, you would be well-served by starting early, before you ever hit the 2k level. It may be easy to scan your inventory quickly for that Wet T-Shirt now, but wait till you get a few thousand items you gotta sift through... The search bar IS helpful for looking for something immediately (IF you remember the name), but it gets really slow as your inventory grows, and good luck accessing ANYTHING for a while via the search bar if you've had to clear cache. Fortunately, you have a few weapons at your disposal in your battles against the Asset Server Monster.
Subfolders are your friend! When you buy a new set of clothes (for example), you'll usually have a brand new folder dumped randomly into your inventory's "Clothing" section (for example). Make it easier on yourself, your PC, and the asset server to track stuff down. I've made a pile of folders for different types of clothes--Formalwear, Elvenwear, Goth/Victorian, Footwear, Jeans, etc. In some cases, I have folders just for a particular designer--DE, Bare Rose, etc, just b/c they have their own style that's hard to categorize neatly. Organize it by however you'll remember that item when you're looking for it. Doesn't matter. The only wrong way is not to do it at all.
NIFTY TRICK: Make a 2nd inventory window. The inventory seems to scroll unpredictably when trying to move folders around, so it's kinda like trying to run an obstacle course while riding a drunk elephant. Go to File/New Window on your Inventory menu to pop up a duplicate window of your inventory. Will make file transfers much easier, I promise. Also tends to make inventory juggling, cleanup, etc in general a LOT easier. You can make as many inventory windows as ya like. Two usually does it for me, although I HAVE had more when doing some serious inventory shuffling.
Now, in one, do Create/New Folder; you should see your spiffy new folder appear, waiting to be named. I name mine starting w/ a couple of slashes to keep them even easier to locate (b/c they stay at or near the top of that category folder--"//Jeans" will be right near the top of the "Clothing" folder instead of buried further down among miscellanea I've not categorized yet. Yeah, I know; if you subfile EVERYTHING immediately, those subfolders would be the only things immediately under "Clothing," but I'm not always that virtuous. Name it whatever you like. Name it Ethel if you want. Ya just don't see that name anymore...**Arc debates new blog topic--Does the world need more Ethels? Why? Why not? Discuss..."**
Now, go to your inventory window and search for the new folder. This will keep our inebriated pachyderm of an inventory system targeting that folder instead of scrolling gleefully away when you try to drop something into it. Hate that. Nail the sucker down, I say.
Find the new item you want to drop into its new home in your other inventory window (probably under the Recent Items tab if you're wise enough to file it immediately after obtaining it) and drag it over to your waiting subfolder in the other window. Ta-daaaaa!
If you do a few minutes of it every day (or at least, after every shopping trip), you'll avoid my fate--I've had to blow HOURS on cleaning up my inventory when I've neglected it for a while. You'd think I'd know better by now *shrugs*.
I also highly recommend storage prims for stuff you don't use much. Personally, I like the Bright Inventory Box organizers, but you can load stuff into any old prim you can make.
Anyway, hope this little discourse helps!
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
First post!
OK, this is my first foray into that glorious exercise in self-importance--the blog. I'll tell ya right up front that I have no clue what I'm doing, but that's never stopped me before, so what the heck? I've seen some really great blogs w/ advice on building in SL. I've seen great blogs loaded w/ scripting tutorials. This will be none of those.
I can barely manage a plywood cube (and if you know SL, you know what I'm talkin' about). I run in terror at the first mention of scripting (even bought the book, and I came out of the scripting section with significant neurological trauma, I think). I AM, however, a veteran power-shopper. I find that knowing all the answers is optional as long as you know where to FIND them, and I take a similar attitude to SL; I resort to building only when I absolutely can't find anything that works for a particular use. Fortunately, I can find a LOTTA stuff :D
I'll probably hold forth on various other topics from time to time. Don't expect a massive amount of politics; I have a strong and equal distrust for ALL the political parties and I still think the best person for the job would probably be some schmuck somewhere with too much sense and integrity to get involved in American politics. My player DOES have an embarrassing stack of letters after his name and a big mouth, so he probably WILL get his 2 cents' worth in on some stuff like social phenomena, etc, but I'll try to keep him in check.
I also have the good fortune of knowing much cooler and more interesting folks than myself. I'm hoping my much more talented builder/scripter SL sis Olivia Cascabel, my much wittier buddy Entropy Pau, more fashion-conscious fae friend Bobo Rosselsprung, and my chief Idea Girl, the uber-sexy LauraJill Silverstar will guest column from time to time, just to keep the place from getting too incoherent.
So, strap yourself in and join us on our journey into the further misadventures of Arcadian Vanalten, goofball emertus! I may not agree with every opinion in here, but I agree wholeheartedly that folks should have and defend them, even if they disagree with me. I DO ask that we keep any debates civil, and I reserve the right to remove any posts that even my loose standards find offensive.
I can barely manage a plywood cube (and if you know SL, you know what I'm talkin' about). I run in terror at the first mention of scripting (even bought the book, and I came out of the scripting section with significant neurological trauma, I think). I AM, however, a veteran power-shopper. I find that knowing all the answers is optional as long as you know where to FIND them, and I take a similar attitude to SL; I resort to building only when I absolutely can't find anything that works for a particular use. Fortunately, I can find a LOTTA stuff :D
I'll probably hold forth on various other topics from time to time. Don't expect a massive amount of politics; I have a strong and equal distrust for ALL the political parties and I still think the best person for the job would probably be some schmuck somewhere with too much sense and integrity to get involved in American politics. My player DOES have an embarrassing stack of letters after his name and a big mouth, so he probably WILL get his 2 cents' worth in on some stuff like social phenomena, etc, but I'll try to keep him in check.
I also have the good fortune of knowing much cooler and more interesting folks than myself. I'm hoping my much more talented builder/scripter SL sis Olivia Cascabel, my much wittier buddy Entropy Pau, more fashion-conscious fae friend Bobo Rosselsprung, and my chief Idea Girl, the uber-sexy LauraJill Silverstar will guest column from time to time, just to keep the place from getting too incoherent.
So, strap yourself in and join us on our journey into the further misadventures of Arcadian Vanalten, goofball emertus! I may not agree with every opinion in here, but I agree wholeheartedly that folks should have and defend them, even if they disagree with me. I DO ask that we keep any debates civil, and I reserve the right to remove any posts that even my loose standards find offensive.
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