 |
|
|
 Reports of Our Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated |
|
| Posted Friday, March 24, 2023 by SW Chris |
When in the course of human events it becomes necessary to "eat crow" as they say, we here at SW City do so with great pleasure. Because SW City is back, baby!
I was able to work with Chris, the developer of Active Worlds, to restore the textures and audio that were hosted on our own webspace. He opened up a way for people to upload their own content to the Alphaworld object path and then offered us his services to do some database magic to make it all work without us having to modify every object one at a time. So, thank you Chris!
We can also still build, but it now costs 5 AW Credits for 24 hours of standard building, and 10 AW Credits for 24 hours of building with particles, movers, cameras, and cloth; all the v4 stuff. Currently, the exchange rate is about 64 cents (USA) for every 5 credits you buy if you purchase the cheapest package of credits for $6.40, so kinda cheap if you think it's reasonable to pay in the first place. But that's a controversy we won't get into. ;D
The point is, we're back in Active Worlds, and everything should work as it did back in January. Enjoy! |
| End of an Era |
|
| Posted Monday, February 27, 2023 by SW Chris |
Active Worlds, the metaverse app SW City is located in, has shut down public building in preparation for a new, modern design system they're creating.
SW City will still be viewable when the new system comes online, but we can never build in the original SW City again. 
It was a great run, and we knew this day would eventually come, so it's not just bittersweet that I'm writing this. There may also be a bit of a bright side. Change, as they say, can be good.
If you want more info about the changes coming to Active Worlds, head over to the Unofficial ActiveWorlds Facebook Group for a full breakdown I wrote of what's coming and what it means for AW's community. You shouldn't have to log in to see the post.
|
 SWI Functionality Restored |
|
| Posted Monday, October 2 2017 by Commie |
| As I'm sure thousands of users no doubt experienced, SWI has been broken for a few weeks now. This was due to our host upgrading the servers and making some other unexpected changes. SWI required some across-the-board updates to get it compatible with the new changes, but, it should be all set now! Post here if you find any problems.... or, just contact me directly since I never look here anymore! [think] |
| SW City can now legally drink alcohol in Canada |
|
| Posted Saturday, April 1 2017 by Syntax |
| Happy 18th Birthday, SW City! |
| SW City Turns 17 |
|
| Posted Saturday, April 9 2016 by Syntax |
About a week late, but happy birthday to SW City which turned 17 on March 28th. To celebrate, here's a picture of a Nimbusian spinning an umbrella.
 |
| Discord Server |
|
| Posted Saturday, January 16 2016 by Syntax |
SW City has set up their own Discord server with many familiar faces from around the city (currently counting 15+!). Anyone can come join the server, which is located at in the pict below. Discord can be downloaded from https://discordapp.com/ on to your computer or phone. Come join the chat and say hello.
 |
 SW City Forum Registration Closed |
|
| Posted Tuesday, December 16 2014 by Syntax |
Forum registration has been temporarily closed due to a massive Russian spammer attack. Please contact anyone from SW City via telegram in AW if you need to register.
UPDATE 4/1/2015: Registration re-enabled with new anti-spam methods. |
| SW City Times Twin Issues! |
|
| Posted Friday, September 12 2014 by Syntax |
| I decided to make a new SW City Times today... and ended up making two. The second one that was issued is actually double the size since the old JPG was 400x400 pixels which used to be ample on the old 1024x768 resolution we all used to run on our 15" CRT's. The new 800x800 pixel format is much easier to read in a web browser and allows for higher resolution pictures. ;) You can find the new issues in the Times archive (see sidebar) or the latest issue at any SW City Times news stand in-world. Enjoy! |
| Nice Weather |
|
| Posted Wednesday, September 10 2014 by Syntax |
Just another beautiful day in SW City!
 |
| Re: SWI - 2014/06/21 Changelog |
|
| Posted Sunday, June 22 2014 by Syntax |
| Funbox world? :O :O |
| Re: April 2014 Changelog |
|
| Posted Wednesday, April 23 2014 by Syntax |
| O__________________________O |
| Minecraft is Leaking |
|
| Posted Thursday, June 27 2013 by Syntax |
Since citizenships are now free and SW City people can come and go as they want between any of their favourite games, why not bring some Minecraft into AW? ;D
 |
| Change to AW Universe Cit and World Pricing Model |
|
| Posted Monday, June 3 2013 by Hyper Anthony |
Pulled from the AW Facebook Group: http://pastebin.com/tmn2EhMa
TL;DR Cits will be free, world license fee is going away, world pricing is becoming cheaper, with much more capacity for users at a much lower price. CAV Clothing/micro-transactions appears to be the new business model, on a "credits" system for micro-transactions and world purchases. Expected changes within a few weeks.
|
| ...And we're back! |
|
| Posted Friday, April 19 2013 by Commie |
I wonder what happened?
[noug] [noug] [noug] [noug] [noug] [noug] [noug] |
| "Sim City: Fail" Video Series Tops Reddit SimCity "Hot" List |
|
| Posted Saturday, March 16 2013 by SW Chris |
A video on the SW City Youtube channel has topped the Reddit SimCity "Hot" list, taking the #1 position overnight, and has hit #32 on that page's Top list. The video details a game-breaking "bug" with the game's simulation engine that makes it nearly impossible for an unskilled individual playing the game normally to create a failed city.
Proof! http://www.swcity.net/users/chris/redditfrontpage.jpg
___
Says SW Comit:
| Quote: | One big difference between Simcity and the previous games is that sims will move into, and develop plots before factoring in how they feel about the city.
In simcity 4, zones would remain as barren, empty fields if the city did not provide adequate jobs, or just in general was a terrible place to live. And this threshold of expectations would grow as the city grew, driving the player to make their city better and more well designed.
Now, all zones are developed, regardless of conditions. The sims will then later make their decision on if they'd like to stay or not, but not before forking over a few months worth of tax income! A mayor would only need to keep bulldozing abandoned buildings to exploit this behavior for as long as he'd like. |
___
This behavior on the part of the game's graphic engine essentially renders the mechanic of balancing the RCI (Residential/Commercial/Industrial) demand obsolete, and implies that much of what one does in their gameplay currently has little to no effect on the total number of inhabitants that reside within their city.
Check out the video for more information:
SimCity Fail - 100% Residential Town Test in Normal Mode - Time Lapse
And check out the SW City Youtube Channel for more great content and "Let's Play" series:
http://www.youtube.com/swcitynet |
 Academy Toolbox Updated |
|
| Posted Wednesday, February 27 2013 by Hyper Anthony |
| The toolbox has been updated to display some recently and not-so-recently added AWG packs. I have also added the (SWI) suffix to AWGs that feature SWI content, such as shops, characters, games, and utilities. |
| Academy & Swiki |
|
| Posted Tuesday, January 29 2013 by Syntax |
| Yes we know, the Academy and Swiki wiki software is broken. We are working to fix it... or are we? O_O |
| Merry SWChrismas! |
|
| Posted Tuesday, December 25 2012 by Syntax |
| Merry SWChrismas to all! |
| LucasFilm Bought by Disney. Star Wars Episodes 7, 8, and 9 to be Made, ZOMG |
|
| Posted Wednesday, October 31 2012 by SW Chris |
HOLY CRAP. :D
Video of Lucas explaining the decision here: http://www.youtube.com/embed/YyqlTi7lkhY
Press release and a whole lot more at Starwars.com! |
| O_O |
|
| Posted Sunday, September 9 2012 by Syntax |
 |
| O_o |
|
| Posted Friday, June 22 2012 by Syntax |
| O_O |
| SW City turns 13 Years Old |
|
| Posted Sunday, March 25 2012 by Syntax |
| SW City is quietly celebrating turning thirteen years old this weekend. Yes, our little city is now a teenager. Normally, this would warrant a birthday bash but I honestly don't know who even has an active citizenship anymore. Regardless, the city has been around for a long time and hopefully there is some activity to report in the city before it turns another year older. I can speak for most of us in saying it's been a great thirteen year history and I am looking forward to it continuing on in the future, in some capacity, for another thirteen. Happy Birthday SW City! |
| !More Breaking News! |
|
| Posted Friday, March 16 2012 by Commie |
| AbMo loses in pokemon, suffering a devastating defeat! Parents ashamed. [think] |
| SW City Times - Issue 7/7 |
|
| Posted Saturday, March 10 2012 by Syntax |
The SW City Times printing presses have been repaired (again) and as a result, the first issue since August 2011 has been released to newsstands everywhere. In celebration of the printing presses being back online, the entire back catalogue of the SW City Times has been released on Facebook in part with the revamping of the SW City Facebook page.
If you have a few minutes to burn this weekend, check out the new album and relive some of the goofy moments from SW City's history. |
| SW City's Facebook Page Updated |
|
| Posted Thursday, March 1 2012 by Syntax |
| SW City's Official Facebook page (www.facebook.com/swcity) has converted over to the new "timeline" style look that Facebook is rolling out for everyone. Go on over to check out some goofy crap that was uploaded. Hopefully more crazy stuff from the past and future will be posted more often as the page looks much nicer. |
| Happy New Year |
|
| Posted Sunday, January 1 2012 by Commie |
| Happy New Year you jerks :@ |
| Merry Christmas |
|
| Posted Saturday, December 24 2011 by Commie |
| Merry Christmas you jerks :@ |
| AW 5.2 Released |
|
| Posted Wednesday, December 14 2011 by Syntax |
| If you haven't heard already, AW 5.2 was released last week with the major changes being a slight-rework to the GUI and a faster rendering engine. If you want to check out the changes that were made, view the wiki or head on over to the forums to take part in the update "discussion". Here's to looking ahead to AW 5.3! |
| 'Tis the Season to be Gaming |
|
| Posted Thursday, December 1 2011 by Hyper Anthony |
While we continue to wait for ActiveWorlds 5.2 with bated breath... several popular games will be updating/releasing this month, and the Software & Hardware forum has been abuzz with SW'ians coordinating to play together!
Terraria seems to be the big hit, with over 15 people expressing interest so far. You can view all of the current discussions below:
Terraria (Version 1.1 Live - December 1)
* Terraria 1.1 Discussion Thread
* Pricing:
* December 1st STEAM Daily Deal - Terraria for $2.50! (75% off!)
* Standard Price: $10.00
* Advice: Wait for a Steam Sale to purchase... Terraria is on sale often.
* Media: (Patch Notes) (Trailer)
Star Wars: The Old Republic (Preorders Live: December 16, General Release: December 20)
* SW:TOR Discussion Thread
* Preorder Online
* Pricing:
* 30 days game-time included for each edition below
* $59.99 Standard Edition
* $79.99 Deluxe
* $149.99 Collectors Edition
Minecraft (Live)
* Minecraft Discussion - CMM's Server
* After Hours Minecraft - Sevs & other AW veterans
* Pricing:
* $26.95 on the Minecraft Store |
 SWI November Content Update |
|
| Posted Sunday, November 27 2011 by Hyper Anthony |
Hey everyone!
The next leg of work involving the Fort Masen Archaeology Questline has been completed. We still haven't reached the end of the dungeon, but there is a lot of new content to keep diggers occupied for quite a good while! Here's what we've got:
November Changelog
QUESTS: (4)
'Coaxing Spirits'
* Descritpion: A large Hotep idol is blocking your path to progress deeper into the Keep, and have been tasked to find out what happened.
* Prereq: Completed 'Opening the Gate'
* Find the spirit within the Masen Keep Commons to begin!
'Unearthing Statuettes'
'Unearthing the Bronze Statue'
'Unearthing Cannons'
* Description: An unlikely friend within the Historical Society is working with the Hyokos to protect their culture, while simultaneously recovering Imperial artifacts to appease the society's patrons.
* Prereq: Completed 'Opening the Gate'
* These 3 quests are repeatable
* Speak with the Gray in the Fort Masen Historical Society to begin!
DIGSITES: (2)
Masen Keep Commons
* Just beyond the foreboding doors of Masen Keep lies the Commons, an open space that was once used for trade and commerce. After the siege, the space was converted into a hall of reverence and worship... focused on a massive idol that was placed in front of an old passageway. Many artifacts and personal items of the inhabitants still remain.
* 20 digging nodes
* Two collectible sets, and a handful of other valuable items
* ~20 new items to collect and trade with other players!
Masen Keep Cannons
* The interior cannons were once Fort Masen's last line of defense, which ultimately proved futile during the Siege. The damaged remains were left as a testament to the Imperial Army's might, and have been long forgotten on the ledges and rafters that loom over the Commons.
* 6 digging nodes -- each node takes a large amount of time credits and stamina
* One collectible set
BUGFIXES:
* Players who completed 'Opening the Gate' before November will need to speak with the Gatekeeper at his location in the Commons. Their version of the digging permit was bugged and he will swap them.
* A profile icon is available in the digsite -- it was previously in the digging loot table, but that proved to be problematic so it is now a stand-alone, hidden item in the area.
* Several new NPCs were missing an NPC image, and this has been corrected since they went live.
* (Thanks to Comit for helping with many of the bugs, some of which weren't so much bugs as they were me being dum )
There's not really a ton left to do in order to get this done... so I may work on this again over Christmas. Until then, this should be plenty to occupy anyone who happens to come across it. |
| 2011 City Audit Reports Gross Negligence |
|
| Posted Monday, November 14 2011 by Commie |
The SW City Government Auditing Board has finished it's per-decade audit on the city spending budgets, and has revealed some rather alarming trends. Records indicate tens of billions of Flint being spent to implement multiple forms of mass transit infrastructure that is ten fold more than called for with the current population base.
"This monorail line loops all the around the Faldon Desert. Why would anybody go out that way? Ticket sales indicate it is it never even used, which, led to the much alarming fact that there aren't even any trains for the entire monorail network!" states Jerald D. of the accounting firm.
The report goes on to point out eminent domain payouts to citizens to demolish their buildings in order to replace it with rocks and landscaping. In some instances, entire neighborhoods were plowed over with man-made mountains.
"I used to visit my grandpa in the neighborhood just north of Town Square. But now there's a bunch of steppes there. It's like it happened overnight! I don't even know where my grandpa is! Does he just live underground now?" asks just one of many upset and confused citizens.
In recent years, the report dug up that many of the government workers have not even showed up to work for years at a time, the greatest offender being a Mr. Flint Prestonous whom, due to his seniority perks within the government, alarmingly has the greatest salary.
"He always goes on about needing to 'feed his birde wife and birde kids', but I'm pretty sure he has neither, and could probably buy my house out from under me if he felt like it!" says a riled Nimbusian who, up until recently, was a regular tipper of the city greeter. |
| AW 5.2 Preview Videos |
|
| Posted Friday, September 23 2011 by Commie |
AWI released a few new preview videos of AW 5.2, of which Syntax uploaded over to youtube for your convenience. Check them out!
I predict cataclysmic flooding in poor Alphaworld >:D |
| Seiya, Builder Extraordinaire, has passed away |
|
| Posted Thursday, September 15 2011 by SW Chris |
Today the Universe Immigration Officer was updated by AWI to include the following message:
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Seiya ActiveWorlds user since 2005. Our condolences go out to her family.
Seiya was actually an AW user since 2001 and became close to several of our family in the SW'ian tribe and even more of our friends over the years, and it really comes as a shock to all of us that this has happened. We don't have any more details, but will share them in the comments if they become available.
Until then, you can leave any messages at the following locations, and I think you'll agree that not only have her building techniques become an indispensible part of our world, but that these sites show beyond a doubt that she's become loved by many, and will be missed by us all.
http://forums.activeworlds.com/showthread.php?t=16056
Memorial Site in Active Worlds: AW 9801.06N 18783.71E 0.13a 90
On a personal note, I helped her out in those early years since 2001 to deal with some issues she struggled with as well as her rejection at the time by the AW community. We've grown distant since then, but I'm already missing her as if we remained close friends. Seiya, I know you're at peace now, and that is what warms my heart in the midst of our loss. God bless.
You can view her collection of works at her Starbuilds teleport center at AW 2530s 4960w. |
| AlphaMapper Milestone |
|
| Posted Wednesday, August 31 2011 by Syntax |
| Byte has been busy at work on AlphaMapper. Be sure to head on over to the AlphaMapper Blog to see the exciting updates and the first map renders! |
| Shear & Skew enabled for Alphaworld Builders |
|
| Posted Saturday, August 6 2011 by Hyper Anthony |
| Shear and Skew have been enabled in Alphaworld for eager builders. :) Before support by the v4 bot was abruptly dropped earlier this year, builders had become very fond of shear for its unique properties that assisted with landscaping and mathematically-precise building. Hopefully now we'll see some more of that cropping up again! |
| V4's for all in Alphaworld |
|
| Posted Wednesday, July 6 2011 by Syntax |
| After how many countless years V4 objects (particles, zones etc) have been enabled in Alphaworld for everyone. Even tourists! Now, about all those other new restricted commands. |
| City Deficit Explodes to Record High |
|
| Posted Wednesday, June 29 2011 by Commie |
SW City's economic deficit has hit record highs as the city's productivity levels plummets combined with all of the government taking long term luxurious vacations. The economic slowdown has surpassed the great recession of 2003 in which real estate prices collapsed due to a massive nougat hive being uncovered underneath the city.
One Nimbusian citizen exclaims: "I'm still recovering from the 2003 crash, we don't need this right now! When I drive down main street, all I see are Grey hobos and nougat filth! Where is everyone? Get back to work!"
[img]http://www.chartgo.com/link.do?id=b680b149aa[/img]
Analysts predict the city will need to begin borrowing from IIC faction cities such as Zelena to bring it out of this debt. |
| Mauz's Passing |
|
| Posted Friday, May 6 2011 by Syntax |
It was with great sadness that the news of Mauz's passing on March 16th, 2011 was released to the Activeworlds community this week. If you had spent any time within in the universe at all in the last 15 years you would have undoubtedly heard her name through any one of her number of involvements in the community which included Mauz's Activeworlds Pages and her famous worlds Hole and Cubed. Mauz also received a Lifetime Achievement CY Award in 2007 for her contributions.
SW City would like to extend their condolences to Mauz's real life family and friends as well as the rest of the AW community who will undoubtedly miss her inworld presence.
[img]http://www.swcity.net/pics/news/mauz.jpg[/img] |
| SW City Interactive sponsors CitBingo |
|
| Posted Sunday, May 1 2011 by Hyper Anthony |
CitBingo has requested some help from the community and we've decided to pitch in and help by donating prizes. Every week, tourists and citizens will be eligible to win a Blank SWiki Card as a bingo prize. Players of both games interested in learning more about this can visit the announcement in full detail at the SW City Interactive Forum.
CitBingo is held every Friday night at 7pm VRT in CitBingo world. :) |
| New Website |
|
| Posted Saturday, January 29 2011 by Commie |
| In case you haven't already noticed, check out the new Activeworlds website. It's about time eh? :D |
| New Cloth Textures |
|
| Posted Friday, January 14 2011 by Commie |
Some new textures and masks have been submitted to AWI intended for use by the new cloth objects. Similar to particle emitters, cloth objects needed some suitable art to go with it.
[img]http://www.swcity.net/temp/cloth_tex.jpg[/img]
Masks: These are masks only and may be used with existing textures within AW. To use on a cloth, for example, you'd write: flat23:cloth1m
cloth1m
cloth2m
cloth3m
cloth4m
PNGs: These are the same as the above but are simple white textures with the mask built in. They are white because you can use the color feature to change its color. Be sure to include the .png extension in the texture field.
cloth1.png
cloth2.png
cloth3.png
cloth4.png
It also comes in a slightly textured variant:
cloth1a.png
cloth2a.png
cloth3a.png
cloth4a.png |
| Build 1196 |
|
| Posted Monday, January 3 2011 by Commie |
Starting with AW build 1196, you no longer need to include mip=on for your pictures, as this is now the default. It's about time eh?! :D
Now we just need a way to mass remove all those "mip=on" to reclaim cell space ;) |
| One-day sale ends soon! |
|
| Posted Friday, December 31 2010 by Commie |
| As of this post you only have about 2 more hours before the promo ends. Hurry! |
| One Day Sale & Twitter Contest |
|
| Posted Wednesday, December 29 2010 by Hyper Anthony |
Tom announced a one day sale for December 31st -- existing citizens (everyone, because everyone is renewed right now!) can buy a 1 year citizenship for $29.99 that also comes with a small world. Following that purchase, you can buy a 1 year citizenship for $39.99, which also comes with a small world. World server license fees will be waived during this period.
Follow Tom on Twitter http://twitter.com/#!/Virtual_Flagg and retweet this tweet for some phat loot in the form of cit extensions or bot limit increases.
---
Personally I think these prices are great and its good to see that they're starting to consider lowering them in events like this. :) I particularly like the throwing in of a P-5/5 world... kinda sweetens the deal a bit.
Anyone else gonna take advantage of this? |
| Ini Guide Posted |
|
| Posted Saturday, December 4 2010 by Commie |
| A new article on the academy has been posted reviewing some ini tweaks you can apply to the browser. |
| Small OP Update |
|
| Posted Friday, December 3 2010 by Commie |
The Alphaworld t_awhedge##.rwx objects have been optimized for better performance now accept pictures.
UPDATE: Also just found out that a new variant for the prism prims have been provided by Tsukasa, designed to be used by Shear and Skew: p1pri####s.rwx and p1pri####t.rwx. |
| Everybody renewed! And a big sale! |
|
| Posted Thursday, December 2 2010 by Commie |
| It's Christmas time for AWI - everybody has once again been renewed until January 4th. There is also going to be a big sale special on December 31st. You can see Flagg's post about it here. |
| AWG Enhancement |
|
| Posted Wednesday, November 24 2010 by Commie |
AW Build 1183 brings a much wanted feature to AW:
| Quote: | Build 1183
23rd Nov 2010 beta
Objects loaded through a group file from local disk, will be selected as soon loading has finished.
Loading objects from disk has improved by 6 times in speed, and the loading progress is displayed in the chat log. |
In summary, not only do AWGs load faster, but they built in a selected state. No more needing to build directional variants of all your AWGs! :D
This sounds like a good excuse to finally update the AWGs on the academy ;) |
| CY Awards Voting |
|
| Posted Sunday, November 7 2010 by Commie |
Just a reminder that voting for the CY Awards ends on the 8th. Still time to cast your votes ;)
http://vote.cyawards.com/
You can pick up your login temporary password in Cyawards world if you need it. |
| Town Square Optimizations |
|
| Posted Friday, November 5 2010 by Commie |
SW City Town Square is about 11 years old and has undergone changes all throughout this time, retrofitted with the latest n' greatest AW had to offer.
I can't overstate how much effort has gone into making this area run at peek performance over the years, applying any new performance trick that came around. Throughout the last couple weeks, thanks to some performance related Q&A with chrispeg, the latest series of performance sweeps has been completed.
What's changed:
- Reducing object count by replacing clusters of objects with scaled objects while maintaining the exact same appearance as before. This has been going on since scale first came out, and the object count has been reduced [I]several thousand[/I] in the area.
- Many objects built before prims came out have been upgraded into their prim equivalent, which shaves off many unwanted polygons.
- Only showing particle emitters when you can see them (applies to PEs that were indoors or underground).
- Some underground areas are invisible until you go down there.
- Removing over-zealous use of the 'visible no radius=#' commands. This does more harm than good when used on low poly objects, whoops!
- Replacing all the tbtree###.rwx tree objects with the newer t_awtree##.rwx objects (2162 vs 191 polygons!) Approx 20k polygons removed by doing this alone.
- Replacing masked based windows with opacity commands
- Thanks to Absolute Monarch's texture counter app, I was able to track down textures that were only used a few times in the scene and replace them with more commonly used textures. A texture uses the same amount of memory whether it's used 1 time or a 1000 times, so too much texture variety is bad!
- Replaced the ad rotators with php rotators, removing the need to store all the ads in the rotation in memory.
- Replaced all the signs that were spelled out letter by letter (using the letter masks) with single object signs. Less objects, less texture variety.
- Upgraded all the astart/astop/animation sequences around town with the new timer commands.
- Countless more one-off tweaks specific to buildings in the area
You still won't get butter smooth performance in the 150m-200m vis range, though I can at least get into the teens frame rate @ 200m vis which is not too bad considering the density and complexity of the area.
Are you familiar with how laggy town square is? I'm curious to hear if you notice an improvement now :D |
| Happy Halloween! |
|
| Posted Saturday, October 30 2010 by Commie |
Happy Halloween everyone ;D
SW City town square has been spruced up for the event, including a special visit from a certain NPC who may be giving out goodies ;) |
| Forum Upgrade |
|
| Posted Friday, October 22 2010 by Commie |
| A patch install blew up the forum custom template. We're working on it ;) |
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