Alternative SL viewers

does anyone have any links to some alternative SL viewers (prefurably that don't need compiling)

Not sure about the compiling thing...but Nicholaz Viewer is the best bet...right guys?

Agreed Michael - here's the link:

http://nicholaz-beresford.blogspot.com/

I haven't heard of any others, but then again I'm not oozing edge on these things.

What exactly is the advantage to using something like that? Inquiring minds and all that..

Funnily enough, I started using the new Nicholaz viewer yesterday, and while it is more stable, I found myself really missing the Communications window. Fewer clicks to get to more places (group info, offer teleport, etc.) I didn't realize how much I actually USED the functionality of the Communications window. I'm thinking of going back to the LL Release Candidate viewer.

Aww - so it's essentially a way to be in-world but thru a different interface?

Does one replace the other? Or could you try it then decide to go back?

Nicholaz also has a link on his page to Able's viewer, the one that can eliminate ads....tho I haven't tried that one yet.

Nic has put several fixes and patches in his viewer(s) that, for me anyway, have made the whole world run a lot smoother, with very few if any crashes. Just MHO of course, but his stuff is way more stable than any of the LL ones I've ever tried.

And yes you can go back to LL version. I've never wanted to mind you.

Oh and to the OP: Nic's doesn't require compiling, just download and copy a couple of files to the SL directory and away you fly Make sure you grab the right one, he does have detailed instructions on his log.

Excellent - thanks for the info - I will give it a try. Now - copy stuff into the SL folder - no prob - but if for some reason I decide the other option, the LL one, works better for me...would I just then delete something to get back to it or how would that work?

I'm guessing it would be as simple as deleting the four items from the SL folder, but like I said, I've never felt the urge

Pretty sure that info will be on his blog somewhere though.

The nicholaz viewer requires you to download and install an SL released version and then within the folder that SL installs to, you copy some files --- the main nicholaz executable and then a few others. To use the nicholaz version, you either execute it directly or create a desktop shortcut to it. Therefore, to go back to the SL version, you simply run the SL executable or the installed shortcut to it (edit -- no delete of anything actually required to get back to the SL version -- end edit). The nicholaz stuff does not in any way overlay any of the SL stuff - it is just a more stable (IMO) front-end.

Not sure of all of the differences, but the biggest ones appear to be that nicholaz has corrected some memory leaks and other annoying bugs that can cause performance and/or crash issues.

Are there any alternative viewers for Mac OS X? I tried searching but couldn't find any. I'm hoping there might be one out there that I overlooked. (I'm sure the answer is probably no but it can't hurt to ask.)

I'm with you on this Oryx. I switched to the Nicholaz viewer but wound up switching back. As much bitching and moaning as I did at first, I found once I got use to it the new communications window is far superior IMO. Easier functionality and actually more, not less control.

Another good advantage to using an alternate client is that it was made by someone other than LL. Read: Someone that actually knows how SL is ~supposed~ to work. *grins*

One of the best things I like about the Nicolaz Viewer is that the horrendous Communicate UI was customised BACK into a workable UI with Friend's List and IM's sperate again. I still give the LL coder that created the Communicate UI the "Bonehead of the Year" award.

~Jessy

Well Jessica and I disagree on the Communicate Window. What's really NICE about having alternate viewers is that we have a choice in which features to run. Hooray for Open-Source!

The communicate window really didn't do it for me. Sometimes I just wanted to see who was online on the friends list - not to IM them. I had no problem tearing off Near Me and am glad that was persistent. But it was a PITA toggling between friends and groups in the contacts tab. I feel like I get where I need to, faster, with the old style because I can more casually see friends when I want to, and pull up profiles, etc than I can by juggling the contacts tab.

Definitely, I prefer the Old Window, even though the new one isn't as bad as made out to be. It's always good to have a choice.

Aye, and to be honest, Oryx, I LIKE having all the buttons in one place, but I tend to have 5-8 (or more) IMs at any one time, and I use my Friend List for my client contacts (Well over 200). Stretching the FL down long enough to read the names makes the IM window too long to have up all the time. *Grins*

Nothing is perfect, and I would love to make my own viewer, but I ahve about as much chance of doing that as I do of flying outside of SL

I'd personally like to see a fully customisable Viewer, where we can pick and choose what UI's we want, and from what sources (LL or Open-Source). I think we may eventually, but that's a bit of a trek down the road.

Oh, and I would ADORE customisable keymapping. I'd love to make shortcuts for things I always use and take off the ones I never use, but always hit by accident LOL

~Jessy

No. All the alernative clients so far are Windows-only. No such option for Linux or Mac users.

I don't use the Friends list for clients but I usually have 5 or more IM's going at once and I find the new viewer much easier to use. I think for most people it's a matter of change being hard. I believe if most tried it for a bit they'd find it fine or better as I did.

I guess it is good that there are options and probably will be more in the future. The controlling side of me, though, says that everyone should do it my way.

For Linux users:

http://emak.free.fr/src/sl-nicholaz-linux/

Works very smoothly.

http://www.spinmass.com/ ... Bailywick .. ( RAW file editor .import/export) not a viewer..
Grid Chart SL Map app.
Cartiflex 3dmax Terrain render app.

http://spinmass.blogspot.com/2007/08/terrain-sculptor-maps-sims-and-creates.html ..

also from Mr Cadroe ..

A 3rd party login tool to scan the terrain and save a gray hightmap .. ( great for maya and 3dmax polygon dissplacement maps )
and "sculpt" map for upload to SL to make sculpt land map figures.( also saves the map decal to use as a surface texture map in SL)

...........................................................................................................................................................

SLEEK a chat/IM edit inventory cut down SL login client.
http://delta.slinked.net/second-life/sleek/
..note you need the .net2 frame work .. http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=0856EACB-4362-4B0D-8EDD-AAB15C5E04F5&displaylang=en
............................................................................................................................................................

Ajax Life ..

http://blog.katharineberry.co.uk/2007/07/02/ajaxlife/

A cut down and sleek SL client.

....

Never to forget the ..

http://nicholaz-beresford.blogspot.com/2007/05/leftovers-leaks-and-leak.html

Nichaolaz viewer ..


I have tried and used all these and ( as would be expected from people who are awesome programmers and submit code to LL for implement in the viewer release ) I would recomend . Each for their individual merit.


weather your into memory leak fixes .. logging on with no graphics ( to just chat/IM freinds or sculpt terrain mapping for SL or 3dmax/Maya )


As always use your own common sense and caution.

Apparently there's already a Linux version out (check his blog) and Nic's asking people to work on a Mac version of his viewer. I'd say keep checking


edit : n/m the queen of res-non-mod-mod has beaten me to that

My big gripe about the communicate window is the minimum size issue. Offhand I cannot think of any other programs I use that have a minimum size window. Most programs let you shrink a window down to the titlebar. But it's only XML code and can be easily changed. Search the forums here and you will find information on how to do it.

The other size issue is that chat and IM need to be horizontally orientated, but contacts and groups are vertically orientated. Displaying two such different data sources in the same window is just bad programming.