The land has been sold, finally. I hope the new owner enjoys it. And we have reached the final end of an era. It is a relief, and life feels pretty good now.
14
Jul
Done.
10
Jun
The Last Fire Sale
Cristalle Architecture is closing and the land is up for sale. Everything is 75% off. Get it while you can!
I hadn’t intended to have another fire sale for a few months, but the straw just broke the camel’s back.
Why? It is a vote of no confidence in Linden Lab’s management that they will take Second Life in a direction that I feel comfortable with. SL is not dead, but its character is changing in a way that is fundamentally disconcerting.
It’s all over the news that Linden Lab is laying off 30% of its staff. A third of the Lindens, many of which have been important to customer service and development, have received pink slips. I am very sorry to hear of so many people losing their jobs. But this is scary, since customer service is spotty at best, and abysmal at worst!
But even more disturbingly, the official press release stated that Linden Lab plans to make Second Life accessible via a web browser, that doesn’t require a software download.
A lite viewer, in tandem with the normal viewer, is a good idea so that people could connect to SL at work. But considering who they are trying to appeal to – Facebook users – the browser would be their ONLY means of accessing Second Life. SL’s graphics are already starting to look dated as is; putting it in a browser is only going to make that worse. Further, it will not stop copybotting if they continue to use OpenGL. The world will be uglier and even more dated than it is now. It will not be compelling, at least not as compelling as it is now with an immersive experience.
Without compelling content, there is no incentive for people to do the thing that keeps Linden Lab afloat: BUY LAND.
People may buy clothing, and keep certain popular content creators afloat, but why buy houses and furniture? The people that play Facebook games are largely people who want to play completely for free. Sure, some people may support the developers and actually buy premium items. But there are a lot of freeloaders with massive feelings of entitlement that want a perfectly running game, and for free. Even 2d flash games like Farmville eat up video memory and people with old, or cheap computers with integrated graphics will still suffer when trying to play. It will be just as difficult, if not more so, when trying to render dynamic 3d content. With that kind of difficulty, SL will not retain users. And by firing so many people who provided customer service to players, the experience is going to get even worse.
No, I have no confidence that SL is heading in the right direction. As Qie Niangao noted in the official forums, he’s pleased that they finally recognized that SL’s core competency is entertainment and that they are focusing on social users who see it as a game. On that I would agree, but making this a browser-only experience is a kiss of death to SL as an immersive virtual world.
I feel that my energies are better spent doing other things.
Get it while it’s hot! When the day is over, so is the sale! Get your next home at an amazing price – 60% off the original!
It is worth taking a look. Quality low prim prefabs from Cristalle Architecture! Getting tired of your Linden Home? Or maybe you are just feeling like getting new digs! Check out this incredible sale. Today only!
Visit us: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Excellens/176/64
01
May
The End of an Era.
I am sad to report that after all the work I have done, I am selling Cristalle Island and downsizing. Cristalle Properties in SL will soon come to a halt. Maybe another time, when my real life isn’t so crazy. I don’t think I will destroy the group, I may keep it in the event that I do become a landlady again. It is something that is in the blood, after doing it for over three years.
I cannot say enough about how wonderful my tenants are. I can count on one hand (okay, maybe two) how many problems I’ve had with tenants. I’ve had the honor of meeting a lot of really great and lovely people who have gone on to do fantastic things in SL. I sincerely wish them the best. The buyer is taking the island intact with the current tenants, but business is business and that could change. I hope that it will stay intact for as long as possible.
I am not getting rid of the prefab business, however. It is changing. I have had a few epiphanies lately about design, most especially beginning with Tyler. And so the business is changing too. It’s gotten a face lift and a new name: Cristalle Architecture. The store is located here in Excellens – what a great sim name, eh? It’s going to take a little time to rebuild and get myself out there again, but I feel that this is a really positive step forward. My creative juices are really starting to flow and it’s going to be great!
31
Mar
New Release: Tyler
The RFL release is here! Just in time for the RFL Home Expo! 
Tyler is the next level of House of Cristalle offerings. It is partially furnished with a kitchen and a bath. It clocks in at 90 prims in total, and is Mod/Copy/NO-Trans. Tyler has two bedrooms, one bath and a great room with the kitchen. It is excellent for family play.
Tyler is a major evolution of my building style. I have added in a kitchen and bath to the house. The kitchen is minimally scripted, in order to save prims and reduce resources. You can wash your hands in the sink, just click on the basin and sit.
The bathroom, however, is fully functional. You can wash your hands at the basin, use the toilet, and take a shower. The toilet is sculpted and has appropriate sounds when you open the lid, sit on it, or flush. The shower has a customizable MLP engine installed, and comes with 3 animations: a couples shower, and solo male/female shower animations. The bathroom is accessible by the hall and the master bedroom in the rear.
All proceeds of sales of Tyler will benefit the American Cancer Society, until after the Expo.
25
Mar
Relay for Life Home Expo
It’s that time of year again. On April 10, the Relay for Life Home Expo will begin. I have a new house that is in the works for the expo that will be unveiled. This house will be a bit more fully featured than my other houses. That means that it will be a little primmier than what I’m used to making, but it will still be efficient for the design. A plain and simple fact of life is that more detail equals more prims.
It will fit a 1024. It will be copy/mod/no transfer. It will be one level, so no fiddling with teleporters, and have 2 bedrooms and one bathroom in addition to a kitchen area and great room.
The Relay for Life benefits the American Cancer Society and all proceeds of sales at the Expo will go to ACS.
More information:
05
Mar
Questions for Readers
I would like to know what features readers like to see in houses.
As a builder whose heart lies with new players, I am extremely conscious of prim usage and try to keep the number of prims to a minimum without sacrificing too much style or detail. As a general matter, I don’t include things like kitchens or bathrooms because they take up prims that most players on small lots cannot afford. But people with larger lots obviously have more leeway for more detail.
So what would you like to see in your prefab house? All comments welcome.
05
Mar
New Release: Jessie
With the coming retirement of the Quaint series, new players will need something affordable and attractive to take its place. Welcome Jessie, a new starter home for 512s. Jessie is much more spacious and easier on the eyes than Quaint. The tapered roof with spanish tile and the front bay window soften the look to make it less boxy.
It’s got a few more prims, but it’s worth it, especially if you roleplay with families or have a roommate. Jessie has a multi-room floorplan in its layout – two enclosed rooms and a front foyer/sitting room with a large bay window. Perfect for family roleplay on a small lot.
Jessie has a 13×26m footprint, leaving a little space for landscaping. It clocks in at 22 prims, 23 if you include the optional front step. Like all recent House of Cristalle builds, Jessie has a deep foundation that will handle hilly grounds, so you don’t have to make your parcel completely flat (and ugly). It also comes in two color schemes, in warm earthy tones and cool blues.
Like all House of Cristalle prefabs, Jessie has locking doors and a privacy tint. Check it out!
01
Mar
Retirement Sale
House of Cristalle is retiring a few old designs. For the month of March, these designs will be marked down and then they’ll be gone. Asian, Domestic, Quaint (in all colors), Cozy and the Entry Level Studios will be history as of April 1. All the houses are marked down to 50L and available in single versions only. Entry Level Studios is only 1000L now, copy only. Get them before they’re gone!
01
Mar
New Release: Corwyn
The Corwyn skybox is a fresh, modern design for the skies for 512 lots. With a small yard platform for enjoying the open air, Corwyn is a spacious beauty with a large rounded window on the second floor. The footprint is 16×32, so it takes up the entire lot. Just center it on your land and raise it to where you want it. 30 prims in total, 32 with teleporter. That still leaves 85 for decorating.
Like all House of Cristalle prefabs, it comes with a privacy tint and door lock. Touch tint for easy control. Check it out!
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Cristalle/121/83/23
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