[13:57:40] QKR Sapphire: So the purpose is a Beacon Meeting is more towards getting news on upcoming stuff?
[13:57:48] SXD rhet0rica: Ahem. Yes.
[13:57:51] NS s1x: and my left is is fuckin gone
[13:57:52] S3X900 3etty: Hi everyone
[13:58:42] SXD P3ggy3000: hey there
[13:58:48] NS s1x: o/
[13:59:12] SXD rhet0rica: The goals of today's meeting, as outlined in the copious group notices that were sent out, are to discuss the timeline for ARES, how development is progressing so far, and the outstanding 'large' projects that will occur later in development, each of which involves a fair bit of change from how things currently work.
[13:59:57] KH a7heria takes out her notebook and studiously collects all the data she can
[14:00:05] NS s1x: xD
[14:00:18] Opulent starts recording
[14:01:29] SXD rhet0rica: As explained at the ARES information page and explained in more detail on the to-do page, we expect to have the ARES first alpha version available in about four weeks' time.
[14:01:46] KH a7heria claps softly
[14:02:00] SXD rhet0rica: A bit under a month.
[14:03:01] QKR Sapphire: What is involved in becoming an Alpha tester?
[14:03:24] SXD rhet0rica: The majority of remaining work for the alpha consists of work on the menu system, security, and some backend work.
[14:04:10] SXD rhet0rica: The alpha will be exclusively available to customers who buy a special controller, which will only be available while ARES is in alpha.
[14:04:33] SXD rhet0rica: The controller is still being designed but will retail for typical controller prices.
[14:04:50] KH a7heria: good to know as i already set funds aside for it
[14:05:11] Opulent: excellent..
[14:05:34] SXD rhet0rica: This is necessary both to support development effort and because ARES controllers require a new screen device, which could still change slightly, although the chances of that are fairly slim.
[14:06:03] KH a7heria: hello tam
[14:06:32] Serena: Hello, robots and non-robots who got lost in the lobby.
[14:07:10] Pipette Wrangler (icon): Dizzy Harlequin: Yes
[14:07:10] Pipette Wrangler (icon): Dizzy Harlequin: Yes
[14:07:10] Pipette Wrangler (icon): Dizzy Harlequin: Yes
[14:07:20] QKR Sapphire: so around a thousandish lidens for the new ARES?
[14:07:46] QKR Sapphire: and distinct controller model from the one meant for the "proper" relase?
[14:07:48] SXD rhet0rica: Yes. Once ARES is out of alpha and into beta, we will update existing controllers at no charge.
[14:08:18] SXD rhet0rica: This was explained in great detail during the last meeting, which you can read the transcript of here.
[14:08:49] Serena: Time spent on the system must be recouped, unfortunately.
[14:08:51] SXD rhet0rica: We also covered attendant subjects like conversion kits for non-standard controllers.
[14:10:12] SXD rhet0rica: That said, exactly when we conclude the alpha phase and begin the beta phase is difficult to anticipate at this time, since it is too early to guess how much time will have to be spent chasing bugs.
[14:10:51] KH a7heria: well i will chase bugs in alpha as i have always been want to do and push the new OS to it's limits
[14:11:15] azsh4ra: same
[14:11:30] SXD rhet0rica: But since we have the benefit of hindsight with Companion, the estimates currently are only a few days, with most of the beta cycle going toward adding less essential features like domain support.
[14:11:30] SXD P3ggy3000: I'm talented to make things explode, even myself
[14:12:01] DAX/3m Main Controller: Will there still be support for older things like the Qubit and CSU?
[14:13:40] SXD rhet0rica: Most devices do not need any updating. The Qubit will require a few minor tweaks. The CSU will require a bit more work and will not be ready until late in the beta period.
[14:14:35] NS r1n: Is testing and bug reports to kept with official products or can include third party chargers/etc if they don't interact well with the new OS?
[14:14:47] SXD rhet0rica: As explained here, only a very small number of features are being removed.
[14:15:50] SXD P3ggy3000: with the new Warrior system and update of area dmg this will work for better grenades, EMP and stuff like that? what about melee? I'm a fan of punching things
[14:16:10] SXD rhet0rica: During alpha 1 we will post a list of devices that we are willing to accept bug reports for, so we can prioritize things that need urgent attention. Later on the list will be opened up.
[14:16:48] SXD rhet0rica: Most device compatibility problems will be the result of missing features, not bugs, so it would be pointless to collect reports about things we know cannot work yet.
[14:17:13] SXD rhet0rica: Alright. Now, talking about the Big Projects.
[14:18:13] SXD rhet0rica: There are five: Warrior (the combat add-on), Sexuality (the TESI replacement), Dive (direct remote control), Uplink (web-based control) and the new Navigate system.
[14:18:35] NS PHASE-03: Dive sounds SO cool.
[14:19:15] KH a7heria: will drive function similar to how the remote console hud does?
[14:19:16] SXD rhet0rica: Warrior is not going to change how combat works. Its purpose is to add more detail to how combat already works. It is not possible to make area damage work without making griefing very easy.
[14:20:20] SXD rhet0rica: Around six years ago someone invented a device that could send negative repair amounts to all the robots in the entire sim. It was immediately used to kill everyone and prevent them from turning back on.
[14:20:38] SXD rhet0rica: If we add AoE damage, that same problem would happen again.
[14:21:18] QKR Sapphire: So "Warrior" replaces the current "Sentinel" ?
[14:21:20] SXD rhet0rica: It is completely possible to make melee weapons just by using collisions. A smart weapon will rez a bullet for each target in range, basically.
[14:21:34] SXD rhet0rica: No. Almost all of Sentinel's features are free with ARES.
[14:22:07] SXD rhet0rica: Warrior is a paid add-on that provides area-based damage, inspired by MechWarrior.
[14:22:18] S3X900 3etty whispers: Notice: battery level at 50%.
[14:22:21] QKR Sapphire: hit locations, then
[14:22:34] PetSaskia en>en: @file check
[14:23:29] SXD P3ggy3000: area based dmg like standing on lava?
[14:23:49] SXD rhet0rica: No, like getting shot in the head.
[14:23:50] QKR Sapphire: or more like headshots, leg-shots, so forth?
[14:24:02] SXD P3ggy3000: oooh bonus dmg
[14:24:05] SXD P3ggy3000: now I get it
[14:24:29] QKR Sapphire: So if I, hypothetically, had a "Giant Enemy Crab" Mech, will Warrior's hit locations be able to handle all the claws and five pairs of legs distinctly?
[14:24:54] SXDjr inc3ndia: Shooting out the cockpit is always the best option >.>...
[14:25:17] SXD rhet0rica: The design is for up to six parts, with some reconfigurability.
[14:25:36] SXD rhet0rica: Arms, legs, body, head.
[14:25:56] QKR Sapphire: So we'd have to decide what the important six sections are, and how to arrange them for non-humanoid body plans
[14:26:24] SXD rhet0rica: For a crab, that would basically just be body and legs.
[14:26:27] QKR Sapphire: so angel wings get lumped in with arms or quadrulpeds repurpose the front limbs
[14:28:03] SXD rhet0rica: Hitting body parts in SL is not an exact science. The avatar is actually a cylinder, remember.
[14:28:38] SXD rhet0rica: If the avatar's hitbox does not match some unusual anatomical configuration, there is nothing ARES can do to correct for that, as bullets will still hit where your head should be.
[14:28:59] SXD rhet0rica: But we will try to make it customizable as much as possible, within that constraint.
[14:29:19] xvendor:0: Sent NS DAX/3 Main Controller to kai
[14:29:36] QKR Sapphire: maybe some sort of particle indicator mode for where the hitboxes actually are then
[14:29:54] PipPup: Should I assume that you will use the height on where the 'bullet' hits vs the height of the avatar sorta thing?
[14:30:21] QKR Sapphire: drider-bots which happen to be low to the ground will likely put some interesting quirks on that
[14:31:11] SXD rhet0rica: Basically, any bullet that hits the top 20% of the avatar's hitbox is a headshot, any bullet that hits the bottom 30% is a leg shot, and the rest depend on direction: sides for arms (if not yet destroyed), otherwise torso.
[14:31:35] PipPup: Sounds like what I was thinking, thanks!
[14:33:12] QKR Sapphire: could probably make some sort of circular diagram for that
[14:34:23] SXD rhet0rica: The other major features of Warrior will be be an integrated weapon-switcher that will show a blueprint of the weapon you are equipping.
[14:34:37] SXD rhet0rica: So long as the RLV folders are properly configured, anyway.
[14:35:21] SXD rhet0rica: And we also decided to segregate malfunctions into Warrior, because they are a major source of bugs and headaches for new users.
[14:35:28] KH a7heria: does this mean that the currently offered ATOS weaponry will be receiving updates?
[14:36:01] SXD rhet0rica: Actually, aside from a few quirks with shield devices, the weapons already work just fine.
[14:36:38] SXD rhet0rica: Setting up the weapon switcher to show preview images will involve building a few folders in #RLV that use special names.
[14:36:54] KH a7heria: good to know, was curious since you mentioned blueprints where those were sourced from, ah i see
[14:36:55] SXD rhet0rica: ARES will scan the list of folders and decide what gun pictures you have based on those names.
[14:37:21] SXD rhet0rica: Blueprint as in a wireframe picture of the product.
[14:37:32] SXD rhet0rica: Because that is necessary in cyberpunk.
[14:37:39] KH a7heria: indeed it is
[14:37:42] NS Sc3n4ra: Agreed
[14:38:00] QKR Sapphire: but in theory the image could be anything
[14:38:10] QKR Sapphire: like the manufacturer logo
[14:38:37] KH a7heria makes plans for a ridiculous image for the BFG
[14:39:21] SXD rhet0rica: Yes. ARES has lots of room for storing lists of image UUIDs, so adding more will be pretty painless for the user.
[14:39:26] Opulent: make sure the BFG is in 8-bit
[14:39:36] KH a7heria: oh i will as it should be
[14:40:22] dax/3 av3ry: Or find something for the Ace of Spades
[14:40:23] azsh4ra: BFG will be a picture of the NS-24 Stalion
[14:40:37] KH a7heria: you would avery
[14:41:19] SXD rhet0rica: Alright. Next topic.
[14:42:12] SXD rhet0rica: Last meeting we discussed a fair bit about where TESI's strengths and weaknesses lie. TESI is going to be re-written for ARES, so this is the ideal time to get it right.
[14:43:02] SXD rhet0rica: After getting some feedback and suggestions both during the meeting and since then, we came up with the following changes to how the new system will work.
[14:43:19] KH a7heria listens intently
[14:44:15] SXD rhet0rica: And to clarify, the official name of the script will be 'Sexuality', just like Companion had 'Emotion'. The overall package will still be called TESI, since that name is fairly recognizable now. If you see references to 'TESII' or 'Daggerfall', that is a joke. Also, Skyrim is a bad game, so do not make that joke.
[14:44:43] dax/3 av3ry: >.>
[14:44:50] KH a7heria: <.<
[14:44:56] dax/3 av3ry: t0ri don't look at my first life tab in my profile
[14:44:59] KH a7heria: same
[14:45:04] Opulent: -.-
[14:45:20] NS r1n: So the new ARES controller should be named daggerfall then~
[14:46:08] SXD P3ggy3000: "skyrim a bad game" *dies*
[14:46:13] SXD rhet0rica: The first key difference is that Sexuality will have 'narrative' and 'interactive' modes. 'Interactive' mode basically just causes orgasms to occur automatically when arousal is high enough, with some randomness. 'Narrative' mode is what we have currently, but with slower decay and longer plateaus.
[14:47:00] xvendor:0: Sent NS-112 Aide Main Controller to ToxicCalu
[14:48:59] SXD rhet0rica: The second is the addition of 'masochism' mode. Apparently a lot of people use Project Arousal as a sort of combat system, where they go around shooting each other and get horny rather than hurt. When masochism mode is enabled, getting injured causes arousal. Moreover the system has a feature to block getting hurt, so they can be combined to give the same result.
[14:50:03] SXD P3ggy3000: will "interactive mode" arousal, orgasms and stuff like that have animations or masochism mode open you to some RLV interations like grooming, etc?
[14:51:21] SXD rhet0rica: If we can find the animations, sure. We do not have an in-house animator, though, so if we cannot find the animations, it will just be left as a 'fill in your own' feature. TESI already has that.
[14:51:57] SXD rhet0rica: You will need to explain what 'RLV interactions like grooming' means, though.
[14:53:02] SXD rhet0rica: That sounds like something a certain creepy, repeatedly-banned-from-SL-for-ageplay dude with 'starr883' in his name would ask about in group chat.
[14:53:17] KH a7heria: lol
[14:53:23] NS PHASE-03: oh god not that guy.
[14:53:35] Opulent: I am thinking she means like cat grooming etc
[14:53:36] QKR Sapphire: showering and bath related fun?
[14:53:41] QKR Sapphire: hot tubbing
[14:53:49] SXD P3ggy3000: when ppl start touching your upper and lower devices, but if you get too aroused you get locked and can't run away, like on project arousal
[14:54:09] SXD P3ggy3000: GROOPING!
[14:54:15] SXD P3ggy3000: the word is GROOPING!
[14:54:19] Opulent: groping?
[14:54:20] SXD rhet0rica: That is not a word.
[14:54:22] SXD rhet0rica: Groping.
[14:54:42] SXD P3ggy3000: sorry english is not my main XD
[14:54:48] NS Sc3n4ra: sounds like groping but more goopy
[14:55:02] Opulent: Slime groping
[14:55:03] QKR Sapphire: gooping also of interest to some bots
[14:55:07] KH a7heria: thanks for that mental image that i never needed scen
[14:55:24] QKR Sapphire: back in a bit
[14:55:31] dax/3 Hanna: Guest access granted permanently.
[14:55:39] SXDjr inc3ndia: Sounds like what happens when the cryolube is left out for too long >.>...
[14:55:52] dax/3 av3ry: It gets fuzzy
[14:55:54] SXD rhet0rica: Anyway. Restricting movement during high arousal and orgasm can be added as an option, certainly.
[14:55:55] dax/3 av3ry: Like mayo
[14:56:12] KH a7heria: AVERY
[14:56:42] NS Sc3n4ra: Would be a decent addition imo. As PA2 does something similar
[14:56:45] SXD rhet0rica: We are going to try to move more code into the touch sensors so they all do unique and interesting things; there will be three sets: head, chest, and hips.
[14:57:11] KH a7heria: oooh that sounds very promising
[14:57:16] NS Sc3n4ra nods
[14:57:17] SXD rhet0rica: The head and hip sensors will be mandatory, but the chest sensors optional for male avatars who do not want to produce milk.
[14:57:20] PipPup: Would be hilarious if you arousal is high enough everytime you try to shoot/use weapon, instead you grope yourself
[14:57:36] dax/3 av3ry: Oh question about ARES in general.
[14:57:52] dax/3 av3ry: Will there be more options for enby folks?
[14:58:00] SXD rhet0rica: The design does not allow for intercepting trigger-pulling.
[14:58:03] dax/3 av3ry: Like voices
[14:58:17] DME Mela: Will this open the possibility for Lovense bridge with Tesi?
[14:58:27] KH a7heria: that..... is a very valid question i had been wondering about gender options for a while now
[14:59:10] S3X900 3etty: Can you add an attachment like a combo including : Head, chest and hips to save attachment slots please.
[14:59:24] SXD rhet0rica: Interoperability features have never needed to be 'opened', but we do not want avatars to wear multiple arousal meters because that is redundant and laggy. So we will mostly target things like INM and genitals.
[14:59:39] SXD rhet0rica: No, Betty. The attachments must be separate because of SL limitations.
[15:00:14] SXD rhet0rica: Rigged mesh cannot be touched without right-clicking, so every fixed part of the avatar that is meant to be touchable needs to have its own sensor set.
[15:02:40] S3X900 3etty: Mmm I have a combo that includes: chest,tummy,back,butt for spanking,rubbing etc so it's possible
[15:03:25] SXD rhet0rica: As for gender and voices. Personas will continue to have 3 speech markers. ARES is going to receive a large set of around 35 new personas because the old file format is not compatible. They are being carefully designed to be interesting and distinctive, and to cover various things like moods, achetypes, role fantasies, and certain special situations like an archived backup of a converted human.
[15:04:25] NS Sc3n4ra: already sounds amazing
[15:04:29] KH a7heria hopes that the hitachi personas will be revived
[15:04:54] SXD rhet0rica: a7theria, you are much too tall to use the Hitachi personas.
[15:05:10] NS Sc3n4ra chuckles
[15:05:52] SXD rhet0rica: Voice schemes, which are now called 'announcer voices' to prevent confusion with chat markers, also use a new format and also have different sounds, like 'repair initiated' and 'you are about to explode because you are space and have no heatsink'.
[15:06:12] KH a7heria: that is fantastic
[15:06:28] Opulent: Do the announcer voices also come with "Finish Her" and "Combo Breaker"?
[15:06:47] NS Sc3n4ra: "30 seconds til minions spawn"
[15:07:00] NS Sc3n4ra: "Pentakill!"
[15:07:01] SXD rhet0rica: At the moment the only announcer implemented is Rachel, one of the default 11.ai voices. We will try to ship with one voice for each gender, but feel free to suggest TTS voices if you find them.
[15:07:02] Gia: TOASTY!!!
[15:07:03] Opulent: "build more pylons"
[15:07:24] NS Sc3n4ra starts researching tts voices
[15:07:24] dax/3 av3ry: "Job done!"
[15:07:26] SXD rhet0rica: There is a fairly high chance that the male voice will be Dagoth Ur.
[15:07:35] KH a7heria: i have always been partial to gwynno but i am biased
[15:07:38] SXD rhet0rica: Anyway... the final subject is the navigation system.
[15:09:04] SXD P3ggy3000: make it Chris Prat just to see some individuals seething
[15:09:14] SXD P3ggy3000: -*grins*-
[15:09:21] SXD rhet0rica: Around 3% of customers bought the old navigation routing system, but we almost never receive questions or complaints about it. Presumably it does its job as intended, but that job is very niche, essentially an exaggerated version of patrols.
[15:10:19] SXD rhet0rica: It does have teleporters in it, but Telos pads are much more popular and flexible, so using it for that alone is probably not a great idea.
[15:10:56] KH a7heria: as far as i know it works as intended
[15:11:24] DME Mela: I have both but then to use them both for separate systems gets complicated, so I end up using Telos
[15:11:36] SXD rhet0rica: Instead of just making ARES compatible with the navigation system, we are going to replace it with something that will actually affect people. The land owner will set up a server that has a list of landmarks and waypoints programmed into it, rather than wasting land impact on markers, and the sole purpose will be to provide a waypoint system for pathfinding.
[15:12:05] SXD rhet0rica: The end result will be... self-driving robots!
[15:12:24] KH a7heria: so similar to the warp waypoints you are already able to make in controllers?
[15:12:26] SXD rhet0rica: But with walking, not teleporting.
[15:12:31] DME Mela: robot buses
[15:12:31] QKR Sapphire: so instead of physics waypoints, just coordinates in a notecard?
[15:12:49] dax/3 av3ry: Speaking of Telos, will there ever be an option so two people can have Telos pads on the same region (but not the same parcel) that don't interact with each other?
[15:12:54] SXD rhet0rica: Not in a notecard. More like walking around the world pressing a button to create a waypoint.
[15:13:06] SXD rhet0rica: Telos pads can be renamed to change their network.
[15:13:07] QKR Sapphire: script variables then
[15:13:31] SXD rhet0rica: We understand this may not be exactly what everyone wants, and we are very willing to hear feedback on it.
[15:13:46] SXD rhet0rica: But to be honest, the original navigation system was added just to flex on Refactor.
[15:13:52] KH a7heria: lol
[15:14:10] SXD rhet0rica: So if we do not get an idea to make it better, it will probably be dumped completely because it is a waste of scripts.
[15:14:40] SXD rhet0rica: Nav waypoints are very laggy. They communicate on the same channel as controller pings, so anything that pings for a controller causes a ton of pointless script events.
[15:14:56] SXD rhet0rica: When we had a nav path set up in Eisa years ago, it absolutely destroyed sim performance.
[15:15:11] KH a7heria: ah yes that makes sense
[15:16:05] SXD rhet0rica: Anyway. That is all we have time for today. Please, everyone, think about the navigation system and how it could be better. We will collect your thoughts at the next meeting on June 10.
[15:16:27] QKR Sapphire: loading waypoints from notecards comes to mind as a fast option
[15:16:30] KH a7heria: thank you for your time t0ri and tam
[15:16:36] QKR Sapphire: to make them sharable and tunable and so forth
[15:16:38] Serena: Goodnight.
[15:16:44] SXD rhet0rica: A transcript of this conversation will be posted on wiki.nanite-systems.com/texts
[15:17:06] SXD rhet0rica: No need to share them; the sim owners sets them up for everyone to use.
[15:17:22] SXD rhet0rica: But notecard backups, sure.
[15:17:33] QKR Sapphire: unit-relative waltzes
[15:17:54] KH a7heria: i will make one for my own records as well  as always