Anti - Anti Windlight Thread

I've run SL with NO PROBLEMS since I came here. Even Windlight with all settings on Ultra.

Some Folks must be doing something wrong.

I keep my computer up to date as much as possible. I may not get THE top-of-the-line, but settle for 2nd or 3rd best or something thats 6 months old, but it works and works well.

I have no complaints about Windlight or any of the other viewers.

Thanks!
*wraps self up in the bubble wrap and waits for the impending doom*

I am running it at Ultra too Tod. When SL is running it works smooth for me too.

I think it sucks for all the people that are having trouble though.

Yes, I do feel bad when people cant get it to work.

I've gone faaaaar out of my way to help folks in-world and elsewhere. Even gave someone a video card (GeForce 6800) to try to help them run SL. They got in for a bit. Hated it and left. I was quite saddened.

Chances are.. if you can't run SL with the lowest settings and get at least 10fps.

You probably can't play ANY game on your computer. I've tried other online games that people suggested such as: Rappelz, SilkRoad, Albratoss18, and Space Cowboy.


If you can't run any of these games well, you definitely can't run SL. Which means... you should upgrade yourself or get a new computer.

*shrugs*

EDIT

I'm sure you can get a brand new computer under $500 that can run SL with little trouble. And if need be buy a GOOD video card for it that be under $75.

The 8600 one I got with my new puter was 120€ or $185.... $75 would have gotten me a 7200 which just barely meets the minimum for WindLight.

When I looked, the cheapest card I could find for my old puter that met the lower "recommended" range was a 7600 for 104€ or $160.

The only reason I justified the expense is because I'll spend less in-world in the next 2-3 months to make up for the extra cost. In my opinion it was a total waste of money just to keep SL from turning into a slideshow... I was quite happy with my pre-WindLight 10-15fps.

There are several factors that affect FPS. One is how good one's graphics card is. But another just as important factor is the speed of one's internet connection. There are many places in the world that cannot get mega fast internet connections.






For $500 here you would be lucky to get a computer that can run Spider Solitaire, let alone SL. And I don't think you can even buy a video card for under $75 here.

Why do so many assume that everyone in SL lives in the US and has super cheap computer prices? For a great percentage of the world computer prices for a computer capable of running SL are closer to $2000 than $500.

The problem with your pricing structure is exchange rates. The dollar is doing crap at the moment so people are going to look at this and think you're talking absolute balderdash.

500 dollars is about 250 quid, you're not getting much of a computer for 250 quid.

Hmmm. Well, one doesn't get all *that* much of a computer for US$500, either, but... unless there are tariffs involved, whatever you can get for US$500 in the US you should be able to get for "about 250 quid" on the other side of the pond, plus shipping. If not, the seller is enjoying an exchange rate windfall, right?

okay ...The 'just being lazy' comments got me off my butt to spend a day really really trying to get WL to look better and I guess I'm 3/4s there, so hey ppls, give it a try?
Part of my problem was my monitor itself, the brightness and contrast and maybe some gamma issues, I'm still looking at that.
A friend said changing your monitor itself doesn't affect? SL
[hey I'm a text person, besides install and practice dying & respawning fps and read only, I've never had to address visuals, whatta I know?!]
But I must have been looking into a solar flare for a while and not noticed it 'coz checking monitor calibration has really helped, it was way off, as how WL looks ...now, it's tolerable.

plus VAT on import.

Yeah. If people can play SL easily on a $500 computer, I'd be very surprised. VERY surprised.

I put together a computer precisely for the purpose of playing and keeping up with SL, tailored to SL needs, and it cost about 2k, I think. (I've purposely blocked the cost from my memory!)

With 2 gig memory and so on, I figure I'm good for a while.

But the demographic of people who are going to put together computers for the purposes of playing SL and keeping up with SL is, I imagine, very, very slim.

It really doesn't do any of us much good if the game gets so specialized that only a relative handful of lunatics like myself can play it.

coco

My fave skins for my adult avi are not photorealistic and not heavily shaded either and I like the look in WL....I think you're on the right track there.



@Brenda: I actually get better performance from the WL viewer than before-the old Nick viewer, unfortunately, now has some issues with my computers-especially regarding performance, which is a pity.

Now see.. telling me "8600" or "7200" Isn't going to help understand what kind of card it is. I know enough techy talk to understand half of the garble that goes around thanks to my brother who just loves to run his mouth about everything.

My computer was built for me by my brother and it costed me below $450 USD. All I had to do was order the parts for him. Here are the specs:

512MB RAM
1.8Ghz processor (single core)
512MB Graphics card PCI expresss x16



That's basically all the specs you need from this computer. Everything else isn't important. I get on average 20+ fps. Depending where I'm at. If I go to a place that has 20 ava.. sure I'll get 10 fps or lower. My system has gone down to 5fps and lower when you have a sim full of avas all around you.

The lindens have yet to fix that problem, but I can tell you that I can walk around SL enjoy the pretty lights and get a solid 20+ fps as long as there is 10 avas or less around me.

Even at 15fps that's still good to me.




Your probably right about connection.. but at the same time I think the rest of the world has fiber optics as thier network? Not sure not. On average I get 80-120 ping with SL, regardless of the sim I'm in. And I'm near New York.





I think I answer that with my specs listed above. The video card I got costed me $90. It was the pricest of all the parts, I remebered that.

I tend to play a lot in combat sims, mostly for the action and RP. I can tell you that in battle 15 fps is rock solid for me, cause I can still make out what's going on in battle. It's not movie picture smooth, but it's still good enough.

Two years ago 500 dollars was worth around 360 quid. If a 500 dollar computer is worth 360 quid, it won't drop to 250 quid because the dollar is weak. Computers are manufactured this side of the pond too you know

Mmm Yeah, I don't have a complaint with performance or stabilty per se. With everything turned down, that was all good. But the visual was a step backward to what I have on the BE-V Viewer. At least those 1998 graphics had color as far as the sky and water goes. In the WL viewer water was a gray semi transparent color, very dull and skys had no clouds were a dull bluish gray, and you could see the seperations in the sky panels. I should have taken screenshots, but I didn't. I'm content with Nick's Viewer.

The problem with this is that more complex meshes would make drawing problems worse for people who are currently not able to run WL very well or are you talking about keeping the mesh at the same complexity and just improving the way it is defined?

I think that more complex meshes would be fantastic but I am just saying if/when that happens there will be people who are left out due to their machines not being able to handle the extra drawing required.

I personally would like WL/Mono and Better Meshes with a side order of fries and garlic mayo, please!

well if they are going to force people to update just because of the sunset, sunlight, sky and water ...

They may as well throw in a new Avatar mesh to make it worth it.

Lol well you convinced me but I think the other peeps who are not too happy about WL may not be onboard with that.

Can we have more attachment points whilst we are at it? Oooo and more prims per sqm too? Give me all that and they can keep the lag - then we are even.

hey im okay with the alternative - keep supporting the non windlight client instead (or some other system to support lower end computers).

Im just saying if they are going to hand us lemons .. we should get them in a drink with a little umbrella on them for the prices were paying.

ROFL, I agree, though I love WL myself, it would have made sense to retain the option to go back to the original way things were for those who want to. I mean if it is client side stuff (which I keep seeing that it is) then it is your computer, why not give you the choice, especially a choice that was there already.

If the idea is to get as many people into SL as possible, all paying tier and/or buying inworld products then the absence of the original, less intensive graphics mode makes no real sense to me. You are
excluding people unnecessarily for the sake of not having to maintain that original feature.

Why can't they let the end users decide? Why make a client that shuts you down from the get go with a "we don't support your video card" error?

Maybe they don't mind crap graphics? Maybe they can't afford to upgrade?

Why make it LL's way or the highway?

I like that idea. Something that lets a user choose how they want it to run before logging in.

I have this weird feeling. From a corporate outlook (a.k.a. Money),
WHO would you prefer to use your product?

A) People who can afford top-of-the-line or at least shell out $$$ for a new system every so often, who most likely would spend $$ on SL for anything, including land.

B) People who can't keep up, let alone come up with the $$ for an island.

Just making myself wonder.

You're assuming that everyone sees the value in throwing their puter out every x months to buy a new one which isn't true.

You're also assuming that those who spend the most on their puter are the ones that spend the most in-world which also isn't necessarily true (the camping threads are one example where some people who have a great/good puter are nothing but a drain rather than someone who injects money into SL).

As far as I know, there's also no statistic that shows a breakdown between the number of sims funded entirely by personal money and sims funded entirely by in-world income. Store owners, land barons, etc aren't "shelling out" their own money to buy a sim, it's paid for with other people's money.

Yep, it works for Active Worlds, they are just barrelling along on their no upgrade anything policy

You are right about that.

But from a CORPORATE perspective, you don't go after the lowest. You go for those with money to burn.

It would be interesting to see a statistic on Sims bought by in-world money and those bought from RL money.