Kuro Neko meets…Mystical Cookie, creator of Mystitool.
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!
