The journal
149 articles on building software and understanding how it works.
Most of DotNetEngine has moved into OpenSim.Region.ScriptEngine.Common, turning it into a general execution framework. DotNetEngine now only converts and compiles — Common does the running, and future engines get loading, threading and maintenance for free.
New detailed config options for DotNetEngine, and more importantly: maintenance, load/unload and execution threads can now be shared across regions instead of 3-4 threads per region — a big deal for large scale OpenSim installations.
ScriptServer is "almost done": everything works except script-to-OpenSim communication. It lets script execution happen on a remote machine entirely outside OpenSim.exe.
I wrote up my opinions on how the future script engine should be implemented as a contribution to the Architecture Working Group wiki.
Notes on the protocol between region and script server: region initiates, a custom binary protocol streams async function calls in both directions, and replies are matched by ID. TCP client/server is already up.
A diagram of where the stand-alone ScriptEngine planning is at. It was very complex; after redrawing it a few times it ended up like this.
Lots of alien squid-like drawings in my notebook later: the plan is to move the ScriptEngine into a separate daemon, independent from the region. Scripts stop moving when objects do, can run on separate servers or clusters, and can even be rented out.
Commercial development forces a program linearly from idea to product. A hobby programmer works differently: programs are rarely finished, often scrapped at 70-80% — and that is exactly where the learning happens. Some thoughts on the difference.
The ScriptEngine now mixes LSL and C# in the same script — and if a script starts with //C#, the LSL preprocessor is skipped entirely for 100% pure C# support. A few naming rules apply for events.
I quit my job and started my own company as an independent consultant. Development slows down while I get it off the ground, but the plan is for the company to fund my OpenSim work going forward.
Linden Labs went public with their plans — and as predicted, they intend to be the virtual bank, plus charge connection fees for simulators joining the grid.
Testing posting from Windows Live Writer.
The OpenSim wiki now has pages on scripting: general info, llFunction implementation status, and the DotNetScriptEngine internals.
114 scripts loaded in-world, one AppDomain each, most of them firing timer events every second or every five — and my 2.8GHz Prescott doesn't break a sweat. Screenshots of the world and the performance graphs.
A summary for those who skip the techie details: LSL script support works, hundreds of scripts run simultaneously across multiple cores, events are queued, and the remaining gaps are clearly listed.