Pillars of fragmented color next to each avatar

I keep seeing these crazy pillars of fragmented colors next to each avatar that seems to be out of my chat range. If I move closer to the avatar (even just with my camera, doesn't have to be physical), they go away. What the heck are these?? They started showing up about a week ago (had never seen them before in my 18+ months on SL) and are making me positively crazy. Help! LOL....

Seriously, thank you in advance for any assistance... =D

I see them as well. I guess its some form of graphic artefact.

I have no idea how to get rid of them. But at least you know its not just you.

This is a known issue.... the release notes for RC9 say, "As with RC8, in this viewer a rectangular block of “pixel static” is sometimes rendered nearby avatar impostors. We are testing this issue and expect to fix it in an upcoming version of the Release Candidate." So, no, it's not just you.

Hmmm..... So I wonder if turning off avatar impostors will help with this? Has anyone tried this as a solution until the bug is fixed? (I'm going to try it *right now* - LOL)

And THANK YOU so much for the responses.. I am always fiddling with my debug settings, consoles, etc., and thought for sure I'd screwed something up. HAHA!! Thank goodness it wasn't user error this time!!

It's a good thing some people actualy read the blog entries to help out those that don't read them, sometimes I get the feeling some people think the RC viewer is a mainstream viewer instead of a bughunting version. Its not an attack, just something I notice and therefor can deal with when confronted with questions inworld when I'm mentoring.

Thanks for the unproductive response, Abigail.

And for anyone interested: yes, turning off Avatar Impostors in the Preferences option seemed to fix this issue for me. Hope it works for others who have this same problem.

actually I think abigail's response was very productive

it lets folks know to read the blog, especially when they download a release client (which is not the mainstream client)

so yeah

(and yep ok maybe this might be another unproductive post, but I just wanted to say to anyone looking to see what is causing some weird issue, read the blog, read the notes when you download a new client, etc)

That's actually why I looked in the blog in the first place, a few days ago-- I was seeing the same bug, and I was afraid maybe it was a problem with my graphics card. I was relieved to see it was a common problem.

for "some people", like those on Linux, the RC *is* required. Which is really friggin annoying. After downloading the 50MB "official" client, it immediately tells you on first startup you must go get the RC. 100MB downloaded to be *forced* into alpha software.

Apologies to the OP for keeping in off-topic, but since Abigail seems to be a mentor I wanted to point out a possible explanation for something she seems to be unaware of.

For me those things dissappear when I maximise the window.

just because someone is forced to use a specific client, doesn't mean they should not read the blog, or the release notes with that client (in which this exact issue was mentioned)

No one knows everything and people have different styles of finding information. While it's reasonable to say, "Read the blog," it's also reasonable to ask here on the forum. Besides, it gives those who answer an opportunity to help someone. Be kind to each other.

between downloading multiple RCs, having to manually configure the startup script each time...then reading the release notes? ...the blog? ...keep tabs on the forums? ...the wiki? ...the JIRA??? there's no time left to PLAY! The problem is you never know where the answer you seek could be hiding. Information is scattered across too many mediums. And is often inconclusive if not outright contradictory. I asked what seemed to me a simple question not that long ago here, because I tried all this. Luckily some kind soul pointed out the answer by giving me the exact line number in the SOURCE CODE! Apparently it's not published anywhere and I wasted a great deal of time hunting for it. Asking *people* just makes sense to me.

"Pillars of fragmented color" is a phrase I'm going to try to use more often.

as much as SL is down, there is plenty of time to check the blog, release notes, wiki, jira, and forums, AND download the multiple RC's

only problem is we do not get to use them often enough, due to SL being down so much



yes I understand there is a lot to keep up with, but heck if I can do it, I am sure others can do (a simple skimming the blog will do wonders for informing one's self)

*shrug*

not being mean, just being helpful with a kind reminder to anyone reading, to always check the blog each day, before they log into SL

I didn't take anything as mean. I'm actually curious. When SL is down I have plenty of RL to attend to, so I admit I only go looking if I'm having a problem, not as preventative. MAybe I should change that. But I've seen lots of others complain that the blog seems to be the *last* place updated on relevant events. So am I to understand that in your opinion the blog is kept current?