Scylla Rhiadra

To Boldly Go Where No Scylla Picture Has Gone Before.

Well, yes. No. It may say more about how people choose to "use" this platform than anything else. And, while it's certainly true that the audience for schlock, sex, and garbage entertainment has always been, and always will be larger than that for *cough* more "refined" and "cerebral" things, it's also true that an enjoyment of both elements of human culture are not necessarily mutually exclusive? I think you're setting up a false dichotomy. I know lots of people who pursue sex and romance and shopping and are also interested in the other, more thoughtful things. I don't do sex here, but I certainly do shopping. It's not my main thing here, but I enjoy it, and I'm not really very embarrassed by that -- in part, because I'm self aware enough to acknowledge that it's shallow and consumerist and narcissistic, etc. But it's pretty harmlessly so. And doing those things doesn't prevent me from doing other things that you would likely see as more legitimate. Also, with regards to sex -- well, it's not exactly trivial or peripheral to the human experience or culture. Yes, someone who spends all of their time in pursuit of sex is probably pretty dull, but there are lots of people here who use sexuality as a means of exploring their sense of selfhood and identity. And that's not mindless at all. There is no shortage of intellectually challenging things to do in SL: art, literature, dance, music, conversation, history, and learning. It might be nice if these were somewhat more popular than they are, but they are still pretty integral to the place.

Yeah, I see you.

So. Fricken. HAWT.

It hadn't occurred to me to look for the sacks in silk, rather than burlap.

Thanks Eva! The potato sack . . . and indeed, the entire shoot . . . was Liv's idea. We'd been intending to take a "family photo" at some point (and we will take a more serious one, eventually), and this idea just kind of sprung up out of nowhere. I kind of love these impromptu get-togethers! They're fruitful! I hope the new photo group leads to more of them!

Liv and I gone to the family reeeee-union today. It were a mess, like usual. Ma and Pa arguin', Aunt Sadie forcin' everyone to watch her home movies, and Cousin Jeb would NOT wear his potato sack, no matter how much coaxin' he got. The two of us is fixin' to get out of here as soon as the next train cun take us.

If he's worried about losing count or forgetting how many, I'd be super happy to help him notch his belt for each. ("OOPS! Slipped! Sorry about that, but this is why you should always carry duct tape.")

Unless, of course, you target 20 different women on the forum at the same time.

Well, let's just pretend that I was quietly and subtly celebrating your femme side, shall we? 😀 Sorry about the mistake, Solar!

Um, sure? Um, sure? They did once offer me fresh baked cookies, after all.

If you are referring to Solar's response, she's not a "hater." She's just kind of rude. She's that way with pretty much everyone, so don't take it personally. Unfortunately, she's also correct: your only real option is to ask the merchant very nicely for a refund -- and if, as Matty says, it's an item that can be copied, it's very unlikely they'll comply, because you'd still be able to keep a copy of the item even after receiving your refund. Please remember that the items that you purchase here are produced by real people -- other residents, just like you -- who have invested real time, effort, and money into producing the goods that they sell. Many will try to rectify this kind of mistake where they can, but if the merchants here just handed money back to purchasers every time someone demanded it, they'd be out of business very quickly. Just like in real life, actually. I might also add that the people here, on this forum, who have answered this question are also residents, just like you: they are real people, and not service representatives of LL, or of the merchants, and they have taken time out of their day to respond out of a desire to be helpful. It might be nice if your responses were a bit less peremptory and demanding, and displayed some recognition of that fact? Basic courtesy goes a long way.

What a cool idea, using your hand to cast a shadow that way!! I especially like the second one! I'm not sure what look you want from your skin, but these look great!

The rendering and detail on this looks pretty darn good to me: nice distinct shadows, but not to hard-edged, and the water came out nicely too! (I actually don't have a lot of experience playing with the settings for water, and I'm not very good at discerning the different levels of rendering.) Nice detail, and a good composition too! How are you zooming in? Are you using Ctrl+0 and/or FoV on the Phototools? I'd be pretty happy with quality like this!

Sorry. My fault . . . ETA: What the hell IS that thing . . . ? 😮

Well, I presume they did. Of course, while mine looked HUGE in this pic, you'll be relieved to know that they didn't look wooly.

You're the second SL acquaintance who has commented that I sound like a professor in less that 24 hours. Ugh. Don't! There's a consensus here that it is the creator's right to choose the perms for the items that they make and sell. And I entirely get that someone might be so pleased with and proud of what they produced that they don't want it messed with. A consumer might feel otherwise though. I might value the integrity of your artistic vision more if it were something I was framing and hanging on my wall. But for objects of personal adornment, my house, my furniture . . . well, not so much. These things I choose because they are supposed to say something about me, about my taste, not yours. And so I'm much more likely to buy something that will serve as a canvas for me to express myself. Most often that is quite simple: mixing and matching clothing, for instance. Sometimes it's more involved. As a creator you can object to that and limit it with perms. And that's fine: your choice. But you're less likely to win me as a customer if you do. Really, it's as simple as that.

From a logical perspective, this makes little sense, Luna. How does using no mod perms to ensure that something is replicated across the grid in (potentially) hundreds or thousands of completely identical copies make that item "unique"? It's a bit like saying that your Big Mac is "unique" because it tastes, looks, and smells exactly the same anywhere you can purchase it.

Can we all just take a moment to reflect and be thankful that Eva's picture didn't have a unicorn in it? We'd all be having nightmares for months.

Wine-induced wardrobe malfunctions are a rite of passage! I have a separate folder on my hard drive of examples! It's a lovely shot otherwise. Can you repair it in PS or Gimp?

In case the window cleaner is getting bored of your lingerie?

On the bright side, I found the perfect camera angle to make it look as though I have absolutely mammoth boobs. (Which I've mostly cropped out.)

Yes, icky. To me, that kind of NPC always looks a bit like a cloning experiment gone just slightly wrong.

You're quite right, and I don't know why I should be surprised. Most pornography is designed as a solitary experience, and relies, if not exclusively then very heavily upon visuals. Done sufficiently well, there's no reason, I suppose, why this kind of activity could not be extremely, as you put it, steamy. Again, not my thing . . . but you've contextualized it well, I think. Wow, this is really ambitious, and very sophisticated sounding. I can't imagine the work that must have gone into producing something with so many moving parts. Do you think that this kind of approach would work well in other applications? You mention "a game of some kind." I wonder if this might not be one way to make gaming more integral to the appeal of SL?

You're probably right: I should do that! But the forums here are about discussing subjects such as this, are they not? I don't see how this is an illegitimate use of the forum.