Scripting Features

Scripters have long bemoaned the limitations of llStartAnimation and llStartObjectAnimation , and proposed a number of enhancements. It could be a lot better with only minimal changes to the simulator and the simulator-viewer protocol. Here are examples of great enhancements that could be made by just sending a little bit more data to the viewer along with the llStartAnimation message. To illustrate, I will name the new functions: llStartAnimationWithParams llStartObjectAnimationWithParams 1. Queuing When I ask others how the animation system is lacking, the most common complaint is Queuing one animation to play after another. Now, a script can send the viewer the message: llStartAnimationWithParams(anim, [ANIM_QUEUING]); When the viewer receives this message, it will do one of the following: If the avatar has no other active animation marked ANIM_QUEUING , it will play the animation normally Otherwise, the viewer will delay the animation start until all earlier ANIM_QUEUING animations on that avatar have stopped, either from ending, or by calling llStopAnimation . Caveat: This will currently not work well on Animesh, because animesh animations never automatically stop. I find this caveat acceptable. This is similar to the existing sound function llStartSoundQueuing . 2. Syncing This one is near to my heart. A script is animating two or more avatars. It designates one of those avatars as the leader: llRequestPermissions(leader, PERMISSION_TRIGGER_ANIMATIONS); llStartAnimationWithParams(leader_anim, [ANIM_SYNC_LEADING]); It designates the other avatars as followers: llRequestPermissions(follower, PERMISSION_TRIGGER_ANIMATIONS); llStartAnimationWithParams(follower_anim, [ANIM_SYNC_FOLLOWING, leader]); When the viewer is asked to start an animation marked ANIM_SYNC_FOLLOWING , it: Downloads the animation Waits until any leader animation marked ANIM_SYNC_LEADER encounters a loop point (including waiting until an ANIM_SYNC_LEADER animation is started at all) Starts the animation normally This is very similar to these existing sound functions: llLoopSoundMaster llLoopSoundSlave llPlaySoundSlave It would be up to the animator to create animations suitable for syncing. Synced animations should usually: Have identical loop durations Have no loop-in period The most flexible leading animation will be 0 priority and an animate zero bones; providing nothing but a looping beat. This is also true of llLoopSoundMaster ; The best master sounds are silent. 3. Property overrides Animation assets have a number of parameters you can set at upload time, but can't be changed afterward. It would sometimes be nice if you could change them, and, llStartAnimationWithParams provides a convenient place to override them. The most useful ones to override would be: ANIM_PRIORITY ANIM_DURATION ANIM_EASE_IN ANIM_EASE_OUT 4. Speedup Similar to ANIM_DURATION above, but, speed up the animation by a constant factor, regardless of the asset's native duration: llStartAnimationWithParams(anim, [ANIM_SPEED, 2.0]); // Double speed = half duration llStartAnimationWithParams(anim, [ANIM_SPEED, 0.5]); // Half speed = double duration 5. Blending Allow an animation to not fully replace any channels in animations in overrides, but, linearly blend the bones between this animation, and the next-lowest one in the animation stack: llStartAnimationWithParams("breathing", [ANIM_BLENDING, 0.1]); This one would require the most changes to the viewer, but would open up new ways to animate characters, and would often allow multiple animations to be consolidated together more flexibly Summary I hope you can consider this proposal. I considered it carefully so that it can be implemented with minimal changes to either simulator or viewer. I heavily limited the scope, so it has a clear end point, unlike Puppetry: It does not require changing the animation asset format It does not require any new viewer -> simulator communication, beyond the existing message "hey this animation ended". It does not require the simulator to download or understand animation assets. It does not require new simulator -> viewer communication. It only adds a few new fields to the existing "animation started" message llStopAnimation and llStopObjectAnimation require no changes

I'm posting this here since my original post as a bug was closed with an "expected behavior"-type reply. As referred to by the discussion mentioned in the LSL portal documentation for llGetLinkPrimitiveParams() ( https://community.secondlife.com/forums/topic/486118-only-set-ambiance-on-prim_projector/?_gl=11wd89ez_ga_T7G7P6DCEC*MTcwNjU2MzkwNS4xLjEuMTcwNjU2MzkwNy41OC4wLjA.#comment-2446570 ) the call with PRIM_PROJECTOR currently triggers shouting on the DEBUG_CHANNEL about an unsupported parameter. I understand that PRIM_PROJECTOR is considered, for now, as write only, but I see no valid reason why it could not be readable at all. The current situation is inconsistent in my opinion. While I understand the potential problem with texture rights, I believe the behavior of this parameter should be consistent with that of PRIM_TEXTURE: if the texture is in the prim's inventory, return its name, else if the owner has full permissions over the object return its UUID. Otherwise return NULL_KEY. This is important to be able to "copy" a user-set parameter from one object to another for example, I want to read the parameters and send them to another object. Please make PRIM_PROJECTOR behave just like PRIM_TEXTURE in this regard, as described in the discussion. Thanks!

The llTextbox function is frequently used to enter parameters as values or text. It could be useful to prefill the text field with the previous parameter especially if it's a long text. Example, this previous sentence was entered: "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy cat." and need to be fixed. Currently, for edit it, I need to put the sentence as message in llTextbox. Then, copy it from the box label and paste it in the field. With the llFilledTextbox, the field would be prefilled with the sentence. Also, a text size extended to 512 characters would be welcome. To finish, the field needs to take the focus when the box is showed.

Akin to llRequestPermissions, but allows for revoking of permissions. Can be coupled with either the existing run_time_permissions event or with a new event.

key llGetRegionWorldMapTile(string region_name) A LSL function to return the UUID of the current world map tile for a named region, so that it might be placed on a face using PRIM_TEXTURE. This could also be added to llRequestSimulatorData Currently the only ways I know to accomplish this depend on MOAP and voodoo to get an image from slurl.com , or pulling the CDN UUID from gridsurvey.com via a HTTPRequest. Which all seems pretty hacky and unfun.

Currently the function rotates the avatar and camera, I think it would be useful if we had a flag to enable or disable the camera being rotated with the function. llSetAgentRot(rotation rot, ROTATE_CAMERA); I Believe this would add useful functionality

Per https://community.secondlife.com/forums/topic/516319-combat-21-teams-respawn/ This is putting the respawns part of what Rider had drafted up as a proposal into a feedback. The Teams portion of the draft is available at: https://feedback.secondlife.com/scripting-features/p/combat-21-teams Respawns builds upon Teams. Adding additional mechanisms to support reliable server-side respawns. That means that Teams can be built as a feature first and Respawns can be considered and built in after. Respawns have a current viable workaround with Experience but Teams are a more fundamental issue that all of SL can benefit from beyond SLMC but also Games and RP sims. --- Currently respawns can only be done through Experiences. Setting the DEATH_ACTION to disable server-side checks and teleportation. Instead upon avatar death, an experience manages via scripts the teleportation to a respawn. But as shown in the Teams proposal, there are many difficulties around identification, checks and logistics. For reference the current implementations either work via Combat Log, observing DEATH events to then teleport an individual to respawn. Or via temp attachment HUDs that rely on on_death to then trigger a teleport to respawn. --- So I would like to see Rider's implementation of Respawns. Which builds upon Teams to enhance it further. See the thread for more details: https://community.secondlife.com/forums/topic/516319-combat-21-teams-respawn/

Particle system sorely need an overhaul and additional settings to make the best use of it. I've broken up a list of features to make tracking for each one easier for the devs. Texture Animation for ParticleSystem Easing Interpolation for ParticleSystem Alpha blend mask mode for ParticleSystem Color Noise for ParticleSystem Reverse Target for ParticleSystem Emissive Interpolation for ParticleSystem Select Sprite for ParticleSystem Offset Position for ParticleSystem PBR for ParticleSystem "MID_" Flags for ParticleSystem Follow a chosen attachment point

Add a new function LSL function named llRenderText or similar, which allows users to dynamically render text, with limited but flexible formatting, onto the face of their choosing. Concept: // Signature llRenderText(integer face, string text, list params); // Basic example llRenderText(ALL_FACES, "Lorem ipsum...", [ FONT_ALIGN, "right", FONT_WEIGHT, "bold", FONT_FAMILY, "sans serif" ]); Rationale Text is ubiquitous, yet Second Life has no way for users to display text other than uploading a texture, setting floating text using llSetText , or using relatively resource intensive solution such as XyText/Furware/et al. This absence precludes interesting features, such as being able to create a responsive interactive terminal in Second Life, HUDs with dynamic text, etc. A scripted and efficient text solution that displays on the face of a prim/mesh would give Second Life the biggest bang for the buck: Limited in scope (easier to implement than grand UI-creation ideas) Easy to kitbash into existing and new creations For inspiration, you can look to how the Text Display widget is implemented in the Playstation game Dreams. It has limited options: a finite number of fonts and formatting options, but the fact that it can be combined with other content makes it rather powerful. Other details Font color, opacity, glow, etc are controlled by prim properties (Example: setting face color to red sets font color to red) Questions Should the background always be transparent? Creators could put another prim behind the text display face to give it a background, or it could be a property of the render params. Possible Parameters FONT_WEIGHT FONT_STYLE FONT_FAMILY FONT_VERTICAL_ALIGN FONT_HORIZONTAL_ALIGN FONT_TEXT_WRAP FONT_LINE_HEIGHT FONT_SIZE Possible Features Markdown / rich text

Second Life should implement Scripted UI as a modern replacement for prim-based HUDs. Prim HUDs have been a workaround for years, but they are outdated, inconsistent, and often visually clunky. A native Scripted UI system would remove the need for so many prim HUDs from circulation, reduce design fragmentation, and give creators a unified way to build interfaces that look and behave consistently across experiences. It would also improve the overall dialog box and UI presentation, making interactions cleaner, more readable, and more intuitive for residents. This is a much-needed request because Second Life has evolved, but its UI ecosystem still feels fragmented. Right now, HUDs vary wildly in quality, layout, and usability, which creates confusion and visual inconsistency. A proper Scripted UI would help standardize controls, improve accessibility, and make content feel more polished and professional. It would also give creators more flexibility without forcing them to rely on awkward prim-heavy builds that are harder to manage, more cumbersome to maintain, and less visually cohesive. It would also help retain new users. HUDs are one of the biggest things that new residents struggle to understand, and many end up needing someone to heavily guide them just to figure out basic interaction. A cleaner, built-in Scripted UI would make Second Life far more approachable, reduce that learning curve, and help new users feel less overwhelmed. That matters because first impressions are everything, and confusing HUD-based systems can make the platform feel harder to use than it needs to be. Second Life already has a strong creative community, and a modern UI framework would empower that community instead of limiting it. If Linden Lab wants to improve user experience, reduce clutter, and keep the platform competitive and usable, Scripted UI is not just a nice feature, it is a necessary step forward. Thanks to @hacker.Resident for this article. https://kathar.in/post/149846332570/lsl-ui