Just an ordinary day. Out testing one of those new boats; Never mind which one. It was smooth sailing until it crashed on me, and I was left in the middle of nowhere. That's perfect for a bit of exploring, so I decided to swim ashore and have a look at the locals and their habits.
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| The view |
Right north of my crash "site", there was a fabulous villa with a magnificient view over the ocean. It looked very nice, - kinda "Provencal" to me, but I won't show pics of the house, since it was private. At the edge of the terrace, stairs led me down to a small pier, where I found a couple of boats and a chair.
That pier was one of those places where one could sit for hours and just gaze. However, the really interesting stuff was - of course - the boats. Look what I found: Yes, it looks kinda familiar yet it is a little different.
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| Hey look! |
I don't think I ever saw one of these boats actually sailing; I am told it was different, and at the time of its appearance it was supposedly a revolution in SL virtual sailing. Sure would be fun to try one. Does any one know what it is, and if it is available anywhere?
Update: As Orcs commented - this is a Fizz 1, the first edition of the now well known
Flying Fizz 3;
That's a Fizz. So what's the small difference you found?
ReplyDeleteOh, you're fast Orcs. Yes, it is a Fizz, but it is a Fizz 1; It has lotsa little differences from the current version. Different sails, less trimlines, little green and red windicators on the shrouds, different sailing characteristics and possibly more, of which I have no knowledge as I never sailed a Fizz 1.
DeleteThe fizz 1 was actually not all that great, at least not compared to the fizz 2 and 3... the actual sailing engine was already pretty advanced and much fun, but the somewhat jerky camera and animations made it pretty evil for people who are prone to motion sickness from computer games. that being said i shall drag my old fizz 1 out for a spin today.
ReplyDeleteThanx Lance. If I don't find a second hand Fizz 1 for myself, I hope you'll let me try yours some day.
DeleteA few words about Fizz 1, and Fizz 2 ...
ReplyDeleteThe Fizz 1 was a revolution, the first boat in SL which introduced the use of the apparent wind (finally!). This was at a time when the Tako predominated. This Fizz 1 had realistic performance already and realistic behavior compared to Tako: different POS (due to App Wind), and by far slower than Tako rocket. You may watch the first attempt for a mixed regatta (Tako/Fizz) here: http://treet.tv/shows/sailon/episodes/ep015
Accustomed to Tako, many people complained and asked for a change in the performance for the two boats to be comparable. It was a mistake I think, but Mothgirl agreed under pressure, against her will, to silence some critics and get a better acceptance of her boat.
The Fizz2 was born, with many enhancements and improvements, but hopefully keeping her main characteristics. Mothgirl added a speed multiplier, and Tako and Fizz were able to sail a given course in a similar time using the same wind.
You may watch the second attempt of a mixed fleet here, with Fizz 2: http://treet.tv/shows/sailon/episodes/ep023
It was also one of the last attempts: the two boats had too different polars (App Wind for the Fizz), and windshadowing were not compatible. The mixed regattas were just ridiculous. Fizz 2 will be the boat used for the first Fizz Cup.
Mothgirl finally did the boat of her dreams with Fizz 3 several months later.
PS: Watching these videos, You can note how the progress has been substantial in sailing skills. With Tako, we took bad habits of bumper cars, the Fizz Cup will be starting point for a huge training effort and sailing in compliance with rules. The evolution began.
Nice article and discussion. :-)
ReplyDeleteI dug through my inventory and came up with a "Flying Fizz 0.9" from early December 2007! I'm thinking of having it bronzed. -)
http://metaversesailing.net/2012/10/02/in-re-noodles-fizz/
One comment for Bea:
I think the first SL boat with Apparent Wind and Wind Shadow was Owen Oyen’s ACC. The ACC launched in Spring 2007. It convinced Kanker Greenacre to add his own version of those features to the Tako. Tako Wind Shadow came out in the Summer of 2007, but Kanker left SL before releasing the Apparent Wind upgrade.
I think Flying Fizz 1.0 officially launched in January 2008 (although maybe it was out December 2007).
I admit the issue of "First Apparent Wind" is a little messy though, since Owen and Moth shared a lot of ideas back then.
Jane is right regarding App Wind implemented in the ACC. The ACC was an advanced boat, innovative, maybe a little overlooked by sl sailors.
ReplyDeleteJane just IMed me with a heads up on this matter. Here are my thoughts:
ReplyDelete1) Mothgirl and I learned to build in SL in the water near the Adriatic startline back in early 2007. We did not know each other prior and simply were working next to each other at the same time. Pure coincidence. I think she is/was a more experienced RL sailor than I and I had more physics in my Air Force officer background than she. The Fizz is the product 99% of her hard work and vision and at most 1% of my occasional input during our conversations. I disclaim any significant credit for her great Fizz.
2) My original ACC apparent wind in rev 1.0 was not pure. I wanted a simulation to be not so much perfect, as clear to visuals and I don't think rev 1.0 was all that good at either. Mothgirl's was outright superior, and we both knew it. ACC 1.0's lasting contribution to SL sailing was clearly the wind shadow and I don't think anyone argues the "first" on that feature. At that time, shadowing was a feature generally thought to be impossible in SL, per the .org discussion archives of the time. The Lindens apparently had misunderstood a question and said it was outright beyond the technology. It was not.
3. The ACC 1.0 also introduced wave motion to boats in SL. I am pretty sure none had that before the ACC. This was far and away less important than wind shadow simulation, but I recall seeing waves in Verkin Rankin boat after the ACC introduced them so they caught on at least somewhat. Also, Mothgirl and I had a talk about them and I recall she told me "these are too extreme, I'll have better ones on the Fizz", and she eventually did. She was also right. Way too extreme. haha
Anyway, wow, 5 years. The lesson? It's an artistic medium. It's not a simulation accuracy medium. You just have to be a little bit accurate while looking really good.
You guys... thanx for the stories. It is great fun to hear it from someone who was actually there to see it all happen.
ReplyDelete