Sl Api

May we please have a client API? I've been playing with iTunes by way of Python, and it's very exciting. I'm able to extend the control of my media collection across my network by way of this little web server. A Second Life API that allowed me to reach into Second Life from across my home LAN, that allowed my SL client to control iTunes, etc. would be remarkable.

Just a suggestion.

Errrk.

I thought you were saying an API to control your avatar .. that'd be cool

Well, I would like for it to ultimately be able to control my avatar. Philip talks about plugging an AI into Second Life, which would mean you'd need some kind of AI-to-SL client API for an avatar.

However, I'd be pleased if I could get my SL client to talk to small XML-RPC servers running on my computer. To export data into an Access database. To allow me to create 3D controls for things like iTunes(1) in SL.

(1. I think someone once said they were able to get their WinAmp current song to appear in SL; I wrote a crude MP3 "player" control system with LSL, Perl, and HTML once; but I'm trying to speak of things that would push SL forward in the same way XUL, Tcl/Tk, and VBScript are used.)

I would like to create a bot with an SL avatar, via an API, I won't lie; however, the ability to integrate SL into my desktop better would be great as well. I could use SL to navigate files, use it to lauch files, etc. To do that with any effeciency and standardization, there has to be an API(2).

(2. I loathe to point out that, yes, a hard core hacker could kludge an API together with a hex editor and some C programming. However, as often as LL changes the client, as often as LSL breaks, I would only dabble with using SL for desktop interfacing/integration if there was an official API.)

So, whattya say, LL? I know the new investors aren't eBay, but take a lesson from them; give us a way to write our own software to interface with your service.

LL is moving in that direction; it's just slower going than we would like. I want to build more stuff into the XML-RPC service (and implement outbound, too), but it comes down to a matter of time and priorities, and currently we're focused on bug fixing and scaling problems. All the cool interfaces in the world won't matter if SL doesn't stay up and grow.

But we totally want to let people build software that interfaces with Second Life in interesting ways.

Work on staying up, but give us users/developers an API. We'll concentrate on the grow part.

The problem currently isn't growing, but on being able to handle the growth itself (ie, not having asset server failures, database failures, etc).

As I understand it, the biggest problem for XML-RPC is making sure people don't abuse it to spam. Imagine if instead of just opening up the XML-RPC floodgates, you gave us a desktop client for that. It would connect to the SL servers, running in the background of a users PC, and do XML-RPC communications. Each person's computer would be your firewall from spam attacks. Plus, if someone tried to spam through SL, you would have direct control by being able to shut down their account.

It's true, there's a lot of infrastructure work to do before we can get an API. However, the more of that you can off-load onto the users computer (XML-RPC specifically), the less your servers have to handle and the faster we get an API.

*bump*

hehehehe. Ok .. why?

Or have you decided you're just going to bump this for fun?

What I would like would be a way to communicate with my in-world friends/groups without having to go in-world myself. Like a thin client for IM only, or maybe just a way to send email into SL (there may be one of those - if so, sorry, I'm new).

On the other hand, a real API would be fantastic.

You can use email to send an IM to someone in SL, by emailing the user's UID followed by @im.secondlife.com. Also, if someone IMs you and you're offline, the IM is sent to you via email -- you can reply to that email and they will receive it in the form of an IM.

Heh. I know someone who made some creative use of XML-RPC. He created a cardboard cutout of his av (floating text and all), then scripted it so that he could use a web form to make it say things and relay whatever it heard to the webpage. Extremely amusing. It would have been even funnier if he could make it move somehow.