SL Viewer for XP computers

[KarraSue]

Where can I find a version of the SL viewer that would work on an old Windows XP computer ,has an older Nvidia graphics card. I am having to use it till my other machine is fixed.

[KarraSue]

The card this temporary machine has is a Nvidia Riva TNT2. Also,is there a way to message residents here on SL, without be online?

 

[Alwin Alcott]

you won't be able to run SL in a even bareble way on that graphics...

benchmark  at passmark website = 3

compared with a 1070 = 11202

a average card like the 960 = 5891

think that comparision tells a lot.

 

using XP is not very wise, there's no support or updates, its defenseless against several issues.

[Cerise Sorbet]

TNTand TNT2 cards are explicitly NOT supported. It was like that back in the viewer 1.x days too, so a graphical client probably isn't going to happen for you.

You might be able to run Radegast, a mostly text client. Note on that download page that you will also need .Net 3.5 installed, which can take a while on an old machine but it was XP compatible.

[Qie Niangao]

Or... if you have a reasonably powerful Android device, you might try using it to run Lumiya, while you wait for a replacement desktop. It's not a full-featured viewer, but it has 3D graphics and the performance isn't that bad on high-end Android devices on WiFi.

[Inara Pey]

You might try the Obsolete Platforms Viewer from Linden Lab:

http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Release_Notes/Second_Life_Release/3.7.28.300847

 

As the release notes state, this is specifically for users on XP - but keep in mind that given its age, it has none of the more recent features common to maintained viewers, and thus your experience with it is liable to be less than optimal in many cases.

Also, as Qie suggests, if you have a suitable Android device, Lumiya might be a good alternative (check the Third Party Viewer list for details). This is an extraordinarily powerful client, given it is Android (check here for more), although it is without some capabilities you might need.

If you can install a suitable Android emulator (assuming there is one for XP), you might be able to run Lumiya on your PC through that.

[Jez2k Republic]

Don't listen to all of the scaremongering regarding security on XP. Just install AVG. I've never had any so-called security issues (I also use the free version of Advanced SystemCare). I'm still using XP and running a viewer called CtrlAltStudio. Its based on Firestorm, but its been abandoned. Why is this a good thing? Because an update would result in XP compatibility being dropped. Furthermore, abandoned viewers are less likely to be blocked by the authors. CtrlAltStudio is the most recent of the abandoned viewers. The only downside is that it won't render bento. Its not a show stopper however. Very few people are wearing bento items. You'll recognise them by the super long pole sticking out of their non-existent faces. I have a GTS 450 which can quite happily handle LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

[bigmoe Whitfield]

Sure the author will not block it, but once it becomes so far out of date it starts throwing problems for LL's back end,  say goodbye to it and also avg is owned by avast now,  so avg should be getting better and also, xp support ended by LL and MS and most other people, there is scaremongering because things are being exploited,  unless you have sysadmin qualities and know how to neuter xp, then you risk infection or another avenue of take over.

 

Also it's time to upgrade, LL will at some point again, push their detection code to enforce people will have to maintain a certain version of windows to even run their viewers, Dropbox has done this, so has a few other companies.   do what I did, save up a couple grand, take a year to do it, then do a build out of a system that will late another 10 years. 

[Jez2k Republic]

Surely the most-used current OS, be it 7, 8 or 10, is more at risk than XP, which fewer people use because the target for hackers is far greater. In any case, I've yet to see any evidence that XP is at risk. I've tried visiting the dodgiest of websites and apart from nuisance websites that refuse to close (which would happen on other OS's anyway), I've never had any problem, and I always report phising scams that appear in my inbox. As for the newer versions of Windows, 7 is approaching its end of support, 8 is the most atrocious OS ever devised by MS, and 10 is absolutely plagued with problems.