Starting with the next version of Microsoft® SLeek, you will be required to activate Microsoft® SLeek using the new SLeek Product Activation feature. This is being done in order to combat rampant piracy, a huge problem with Microsoft® SLeek. Activation can only be done once per computer, per household.

Additionally, future updates to Microsoft® SLeek will only be provided for the version available on this site. This is a result of the new SLeek Genuine Advantage feature. By using Genuine SLeek Software, you can enjoy extra benefits and ensure you receive future updates.

Microsoft® SLeek will also take advantage of features in Windows Vista, such as sidebar integration. As such, Microsoft® SLeek will only run on Vista. I think this is a great decision, as Vista is definitely the OS of the future, offering a great user experience over previous versions of Windows.

Microsoft® SLeek will be available for $49.95, in Home, Home Premium, Server, and Camping editions. I think that splitting Microsoft® SLeek into these different editions will further enhance their value, and giving you, the consumer, much more choice!

Overall I believe that this is the direction things should’ve gone in the first place! So let’s celebreate to a better future with Microsoft! :D

P.S. Happy April 1st! :)

Changes since last development update:

• Updated to libsecondlife 0.3.2.1
• New SLeek icon, thanks to Peter Stindberg.
• Added optional timestamps to Chat.
• Minor fixes in the Objects window.
• Inventory is broken for now. Please refrain from using it.
• SLeek’s taskbar button should flash if a new IM comes in while the window is unfocused.
• Removed the Debug–>Script stuff. To be replaced in a future release.
• Fixed (hopefully) the people count in region search.

An important note for those messing with the source code: SLeek’s project files now use Visual Studio 2008 (or C# 2008 Express). Despite this, SLeek will continue to use .NET 2.0.

You know the drill. :)

And a friendly reminder that the Donate button still works. ;)

And a side note: I am not selling SLeek. If there are any places in-world that sell copies of SLeek for L$, they are not mine. SLeek always has been, and always will be free-of-charge, and downloadable from this website. If anyone claims to have my permission to sell it, they are lying.

At the very least I can say that SLeek development will recontinue some time in 2008. ;) Hopefully in the first half of 2008.

I apologize if this causes any inconveniences. But unfortunately, Real Life Syndrome is biting at me, and I have to pay attention to it. :)

Main reason for the speedy upgrade is the tagging support. I’ve retroactively updated quite a few posts to use both categories and tags, in addition to updating the theme I use.

Categories will be used for commonly recurring post topics, while tags will act as a sort of “fine-grained” category. For example, if there’s only one post on the entire site that deals with one topic, I’m not going to add a category just for that. Instead, I’ll file it under a more general category then add a few tags that more accurately describes that one post.

And along with all that, you’ll see a new tag cloud thing on the left. The most-used tags will appear in a larger font.

Hopefully the upgrade was 100% successful. Let me know if anything broke!

So with all that said, let’s get to the point of this post: Trillian Astra!

A few days ago, a nice email made its way to my inbox; an email from a certain software development studio down in Connecticut. They are most well-known for their multi-protocol instant messaging product, used by tons of people everyday. This product is currently in alpha-testing for its forth major revision.

And this product, of course, is Trillian! After months and months (since January) of waiting, they’ve finally decided to let me in on their next dive into instant messaging.

First, some background info. Right now, Trillian sits at version 3.1. The forth version is on its way with a smallish group of people alpha-testing it. For all intents and purposes, Trillian Astra can be considered “Trillian 4″, which is the actual version number, but Astra is essentially the official name for it.

With Astra, Cerulean is not only rolling out a new version of their IM product, but also rolling out a new set of web services and even their own new IM protocol. I would guess that this is one of the reasons Astra has been taking so long.

I’ll be talking about the desktop software first. This is where the most visible change is occurring, and I have to say, the new default skin/interface is looking quite sexy. There are nice improvements over the 3.x default.

Right away you can see a much sleeker design, with subtle gradients and a sort of shiny or glass effect going on. And you can’t see it in this screenshot, but the border around the bottom is semitransparent; a nice touch.

Of course, with Astra being in alpha, bugs have happened to me as well. Occasionally, when working with my Contacts, Astra will simply freeze for a few seconds or so, before just continuing on normally. So far I haven’t been able to find anyone else that’s having the same problem, so perhaps it’s just me. It’s still a little annoying. However, everything does seem stable. I’ve yet to have Astra crash on me.

And also, this new skin isn’t just about looks. Included is a bit of slick functionality as well. For example, see the green plus button on the bottom? Click it, and you have a nice and quick way of adding contacts.

Very convenient. Certainly not revolutionary, but it’s just something simple and nice that wasn’t there in the previous version.

Besides the desktop software, I’ve mentioned that they are also working on a new set of web services and a new IM protocol (as if there weren’t enough already). In addition to supporting AIM, Live Messenger, Yahoo! IM, ICQ, MySpace, Jabber, and Google Talk, they’re adding in their own new protocol called… wait for it… the Astra protocol!

Already, the protocol supports many features one would expect from a modern IM service; things such as text, text formatting, handwriting, file transfer, etc. In this alpha build, there doesn’t appear to be a way to start a voice or video conference (in any protocol), but I imagine it’ll be coming soon.

In addition to the usual, they’re introducing a few nice concepts with the Astra protocol, one of them being server-side storage for all your contacts, in one place, regardless of protocol. Server-side storage of contacts isn’t anything new, but with Astra, it’s only part of the story.

Many of you may have heard of web-based services such as meebo.com, where anyone can access their IM services from almost any place with an internet connection and a modern web browser. Well, beginning with Astra, Cerulean will be doing their own version of it.

Right now, alpha-testers can go to trillianastra.com, login, and have a web-based replica of the Astra interface running within their web browser, with all their server-stored contacts intact, just as they left it. And if you’ve used the desktop software already, you shouldn’t have to configure anything. All of your login information across all protocols are stored on the server as well, all associated with your Astra account.

Personally, I haven’t done much testing on the web-based interface, but it appears to work fine.

Another major feature they’re introducing is something called “social widgets”. I think most people have heard of widgets by now, but basically, widgets are mini-applications that usually serve one specific purpose.

In the case of Astra, they’re introducing widgets into the IM window. Each person that has an Astra account can go into their Preferences and add or remove widgets; when another person opens up an IM window to talk to you, they’ll see your set of widgets lined across the top of their IM window, and vice versa.

Your widgets can serve to inform the other person of almost anything: the weather, your local time, your mood, and more. Unfortunately I don’t have a screenshot of this, but I can say that it works pretty well, and I didn’t find it obtrusive or annoying at all. I was, at first, skeptical as to the usefulness of this feature, but it proved to be a fun, nice thing to have. The only thing that may slow its adaptation is that they’re from Astra user to Astra user only, I believe. I may be wrong on that, but it makes sense.

There are a few other things I haven’t talked about yet (such as Trillian Mini and the iPhone interface), but being that this review is getting long, I’ll spare the details.

Overall, I believe that Cerulean Studios has a really, really nice thing going with Astra. Beta status will come relatively soon, I’m sure, and I think a lot of people will enjoy some of the new things Astra has to offer. Even with its alpha status, what’s implemented so far seems pretty well-rounded.

Two thumbs up from me. :)

And one last bit of info: Usually, every Friday, they post about Astra alpha builds on their blog. So you can take a look if you want to see how Astra is doing: http://blog.ceruleanstudios.com/

For anyone still reading: How’s my writing style? Do all my words flow together? Is the pace appropriate? This is my first, true, long review of anything, so I don’t know how well I did. Comments/feedback welcome. :)

Changes since the last development update:

• Updated libsecondlife.
• Added Objects window. This will show an alphabetically-sorted, searchable list of nearby objects (that is, root prims). Actions include pointing at objects, sitting on them, and touching/clicking them. Should mostly be working fine, except “unpointing” from an object may not work. There is also no way to respond to object dialogs. Finally, like the official client, sitting on objects can be a difficult process. :)
• Added the ability to save textures and snapshots from Inventory (permissions permitting). Saves to BMP, JPG, or PNG.
• Added payments. There is now a Pay button in the Friends tab and in Profiles. Please keep in mind that since SLeek does not yet have a notification system, you may not get instant feedback that a payment was successful.
• Added offline IMs. IMs received while you were offline will now appear on next login.
• Added parcel section to status bar.
• Added a tooltip to the status bar which displays a few bits of detailed information once logged in.
• Added a message for when non-public (channels other than zero) chat is sent.
• Fixed IM-related crash in the tab system.
• Fixed login location not being saved.
• Fixed avatars not being cleared from avatar list in Chat tab (hopefully; needs testing).
• Fixed checkered pattern on in-world appearance. If it persists, try rebaking or changing outfits with the official client.
• Fixed rezzing objects from Inventory.
• General polish.

Known issues (may or may not be fixed for v0.2.0):

• Region search: map thumbnails and people count don’t work.
• Inventory writing.

And also, thanks to those who have donated and supported me so far! Every little bit helps. :)

Now go get it, and have fun!

I’ll just say that given how long some bugfixes (some in libsl) are remaining unfixed, I decided to forget about the feature freeze for a little while. I really don’t want SLeek to fade into obscurity by remaining stagnant. ;)

Soon.