Kuro Neko – Marsha’s Second Life Interviews

OK, here’s the thing…

As she is constantly bugging me and threatening to ruin my good name, here is Polly Pavlova from Skin Deep exposed!

Polly Pavlova: Ok so what do I do now? I have my martini and a hat, I’m good to go.
Kuro Neko: Would you like to sit on a kitty?
Polly Pavlova: is this a trick question?
Kuro Neko: No.
Polly Pavlova: Wheeee! And I’m not even spilling my martini, it’s fantastic!

OK, Polly let’s stop messing about.

Kuro Neko: Ok, so when did you decide to start making eyes?
Polly Pavlova: Actually eyes were the first thing I made, so umm, about 2 years ago.
Kuro Neko: What was your first design and how long did you spend on it?
Marsha Ling waits for her freebie
Polly Pavlova: Heh, my very first design was a hand drawn eye, it wasn’t very realistic. So, I started using real eyes, Maximillion Grant (Polly’s partner and business associate) was teaching me Photoshop at the time and that’s what I learned on adding details to real eyes for use in SL.
Kuro Neko: I see. So, you scanned your own face and then cut out the eyes?
Polly Pavlova: Well no, first I cut out my eyes and tried to put them in the scanner but it was hard to find blind, so I went back to surfing the web.
Kuro Neko: ok, I just had lunch, thanks for making me feel sick.
Polly Pavlova:
Kuro Neko: So far, what has been your most popular eye?
Kuro Neko: Don’t say, “my left one”.
Polly Pavlova: *laughs*
Polly Pavlova: Well my most popular eye is brown, and the twinkle eye, which isnt really an eye but an eye accessory.
Kuro Neko: Yes my next question was about that. I heard that you are the founder and creator of the twinkle eye. how popular did that make you?
Polly Pavlova: Hehe, the twinkle eye is pretty popular, in fact it’s the most popular thing I sell. It was a little idea I came up with, to be honest I never thought it would take off like it did, but at the time there was nothing like it.
Polly Pavlova: Ok, looking back asaying brown is most popular is pretty boring.
Kuro Neko: You can change your mind. Like, say the red alien eye.
Polly Pavlova: Well no sadly it is the brown. I use a program called SL sales tracker that tells me these things.
Kuro Neko: Do you?
Polly Pavlova: Yeah.
Kuro Neko: What are your favourite eyes?
Polly Pavlova: I have over 80 eyes! I love the anime eyes
Kuro Neko: Yes, they are the only anime eyes I have seen in SL, you must be very proud.
Polly Pavlova: I want to do more like them.
Polly Pavlova: I thought about doing prim eyes, but I think its hard for everyone to fit. Sometimes I see them and they poke out the bottom of people eyes.
Kuro Neko: Well, I have seen many people with one blue and one green eye.
Polly Pavlova: Yes, I only ever did one prim eye set, it was for someone who wanted one eye to have a scar.
Kuro Neko: How often do you change your own eyes?
Polly Pavlova: Hmm pretty often, depending on what I am wearing.
Polly Pavlova: I have heart shaped ones I put out for valentines, and clovers for St. Paddy’s Day.
Kuro Neko: You could make season eyes. Daisy pupil for spring. Sunshine pupil for summer.
Polly Pavlova: That’s the new ones I am working on.
Kuro Neko: Leaf for fall and snowflake for winter.
Polly Pavlova: Hehe snowflake is a good idea.
Kuro Neko: So your ao is similar to mine.
Polly Pavlova: This is a lostdog AO. I’ve had the same one since I started.
Kuro Neko: Yes I got a couple from there, I made my own, put it together.
Polly Pavlova: i’m pretty boring
Kuro Neko: No , you are very cute looking If I was a lesbian I’d be so hitting on you.
Polly Pavlova: *Blushes* well if I was a lesbian I’d be into it.
Kuro Neko: Cool. You can put that in your quotes.
Polly Pavlova: Hehe I just might.
Polly Pavlova: I had a funny quote for a long time, from a customer who wanted a shape but no money. He said he would trade me a tiny squirrel, and more.
Kuro Neko: Wow, lucky you.
Polly Pavlova: Yeah I wanted to know what “and more” was. I mean, how can you beat a tiny squirrel?
Kuro Neko: With a baseball bat.
Polly Pavlova: *Laughs her ass off*
Polly Pavlova: So anything else exciting I can tell you about eyes?
Kuro Neko: Well yes.
Polly Pavlova: *strikes a pose* I hate this pose, it looks like I am sniffing my pits.
Kuro Neko: Quite.
Polly Pavlova: Hmm bloody eyes and pit smelling, this is a great interview.
Kuro Neko: Have you ever had a pavlova in your face?
Polly Pavlova: Umm……I’m not sure how to answer that.
Kuro Neko: Yes or no. Simple enough.
Polly Pavlova: I dont think so?
Kuro Neko: Oh you’re lucky.
Polly Pavlova: Isnt pavlova the last name of a russian ballet dancer?
Kuro Neko: No, its a dessert.
Polly Pavlova: Well let me tell you my lame name story. See, when I joined SL, didnt know you couldn’t have any last name you wanted. Originally I was going to be Polly Prissypants, the name of Cartman’s doll in a South Park episode.
Kuro Neko: OK, go on.
Polly Pavlova: Anyway needless to say they didnt have it.
Kuro Neko: And…?
Polly Pavlova: Well, that’s it. I said it was a story, not a good story.
Kuro Neko: Mine is funnier.
Polly Pavlova: Brady Bunch?
Kuro Neko: No you are thinking of Marcia.
Polly Pavlova: Hehe.
Kuro Neko: I’m named after my next door neighbour who is a thai prostitute.
Polly Pavlova: Ahhh.
Kuro Neko: My real name is like the worst name in the world
Polly Pavlova: OK….
Kuro Neko: I’m named after a popular american sweet treat.
Polly Pavlova: Uhhhh…..
Polly Pavlova: Pudding?
Kuro Neko: no, you are thinking of Pudding Fong from Tokyo Mew Mew.
Kuro Neko: my name is *censored for the purpose of this blog*
Polly Pavlova: No it isn’t.
Kuro Neko: Yes it is.
Kuro Neko: Well its not my *real* name. My real name is *bleep*.
Kuro Neko: What do you do for work in real life?
Polly Pavlova: I used to work for a veterinarian.
Kuro Neko: As a test subject?
Polly Pavlova: No.
Kuro Neko: Is Polly your real name?
Polly Pavlova: No, my real name is *illegible*.
Polly Pavlova: Though sometimes even Max slips up and calls me Polly in RL.
Kuro Neko: I need a photo with you Polly Prissypits.
Polly Pavlova: OK. Can I hold my martini?
Kuro Neko: No, I would advise against it.
Polly Pavlova: Bah.
Kuro Neko: ‘Cause it’s not scripted, and it might look weird.
Polly Pavlova: OK where do you want me?
Kuro Neko: In my bed baby.
Polly Pavlova: OK…wait…we aren’t gay.
Kuro Neko: I am bi.
Polly Pavlova: I almost slipped and had a gay moment there
Kuro Neko: Polly Pissypants.
Polly Pavlova: Hehe.
Kuro Neko: OK, lets find a cool place to take the photo…

Well, you’re not that boring, Polly dear.

Hi guys and girlies.

Here’s a few interviews that are coming up next month:

June Dion from Bare Rose
Polly Pavlova from Skin Deep/Body Politik
Nyte Caligari from Nyte ‘N’ Day
Kaysha Sion from WRONG
Bellinda Box from Bellinda Gallery
Iris Seale from Punch Drunk

I apologise for those who have been waiting for their interviews to be published – I’ve just been so busy lately…but don’t worry, they will be up soon!

The Mystitool….

Surely the majority of Second Life residents own one? If not, why not? It’s the best hud in Second Life, nya! Well, if you don’t believe me, here is an interview with the creator of the Mystitool, Mystical Cookie.

Kuro Neko: When you first started in SL, what was your intention?
Mystical Cookie: Hmm. I had no intentions really, I was extremely bored and did not expect to continue logging in past a few days. I had become tired of other online games and heard of Second Life in other game forums. Unrestricted building and scripting kept me here, and I have always loved The Sims.

Kuro Neko: How did you come up with the Mystitool idea?
Mystical: This may sound silly, but it just happened? It was around Feb of 2006 and I was learning lsl (Linden Scripting Language) while on my first land and thought it would be fun to have a gadget which would do several things. It seems like such a natural thing to me, like the PDA/phone sitting on my dresser. One device for everything. I did not like having so many large huds which consumed space on my screen and many features did not exist when I wrote them or they were not hud/menu based, easy to use, etc. I wanted something small, unobtrusive, and practical without flashy and laggy effects, so MyToy was born (the original name).

It began as an invisible choker around my neck with a key collector and particle poofer. A few weeks later, I discovered how to attach things to my HUD! At this point I added a hovertext AV scanner and eventually a freebie flight assist script. Everything was still voice commands until I began giving copies to friends who could not remember the commands.

Kuro Neko: How many attempts did you make before you released the final version?
Mystical: I never intended to release any version. For some time, I was even hesitant to give it to friends because I did not think it was “good enough”. But I thought it was silly that friends would not know who was near them, so I gave a few copies. Then a few more, and so on. By this time (about one month later), it was named MystiTool 0.1 with av scanner, animation control, bug scanner, emoter, and non-physical vehicle. I also added menus to make it easier for friends, but I preferred voice commands so both remained.

By around August of 2006 I believe about 20-30 friends had copies. It was still not too painful to send updates to everyone, but I would sometimes miss a few. So I wrote an update system for it. It was fun when friends would IM me with “wow, i just got an update!” hehe.

I planned to release it as a freebie one day, but friends kept pressuring me to sell instead. To avoid being yelled at by friends, I isolated the necessary features for privacy and self-defense (not retaliation) and set that for sale at L$1, while selling the “full featured” version at a higher price.

The first MystiTool was sold 2006 September 1. I am not sure if there will ever be a “final” version. There is always something which can be improved and I always add things when I find a need or if someone suggests something very useful.

Kuro Neko: How much more successful has your Mystitool become over the past few months?
Mystical: Unfortunately, it has affected personal time a bit. Logging in each day is sometimes scary, because I immediately receive several IM windows (excluding group chat) and a few notecards. I have alts, but they are only for testing or working on very complex scripts. There is only one me. After about 15 minutes, I have several more IM windows from friends who saw me log in and I still have not opened any of the notecards. Today, for example, was over one hour continuous of IMs and notecards. It is worst on weekends, that is when my IMs usually cap. But my friends thankfully let me sit quietly while I take care of these.

Kuro Neko: What are you currently working on?
Mystical: Currently I am focusing on bug fixes and memory optimizations for MystiTool. Some of the scripts use a LOT of memory, because splitting them would increase resource usage. I usually have a sign outside of my main shop by the entrance which can be clicked for a preview/testing version of the next update.

I also have several things in inventory which are not released because, again, they are “not good enough”. But I continue to work on them and will most likely release them as freebies at some point.

Kuro Neko: Have you ever collaborated with anyone when making your products?
Mystical: I have worked in group projects, yes. Mostly it has been with friends, but also many of my things are designed with constant user feedback and suggestions. So in this way, my friends and customers are collaborators.

Kuro Neko: What is your favourite cookie flavour?
Mystical: Oatmeal cookies, and they must be soft-baked.

Kuro Neko: In 10 words or more, describe to me how Mystical a cookie can be.
Mystical: How can a cookie be described and remain Mystical? I do love sprinkles.

Click here for a SLurl to the Mystitool shop. There’s also some other cool gadgets to play about with.

Me and Mystical Cookie in my back yard. Yay!