Firestorm Zero coming to a browser near you
On Wednesday, residents who had previously shown interest in Project Zero—whether by attending the monthly Web User Meetings or as bloggers—were invited to a Zoom call with Philip Linden, Sntax Linden, and Strawberry Linden, along with members of the Firestorm team, including Whirly Fizzle and Pantera Polnocy.
The meeting focused on the upcoming Firestorm Zero, a browser-based option set to launch soon. Firestorm fans will be pleased to know they won’t have to sacrifice their favourite features when logging in.
The atmosphere was incredibly friendly, with many of us having joined these calls before. But what stood out most was the mutual admiration between the Lindens and the Firestorm team as content creators. At one point, it became clear that Philip was a longtime Whirly fan, which I found absolutely adorable—because, honestly, who isn’t a Whirly fan!
This get together meeting, was in advance of the Town Hall/Community Roundtable meetup that will be happening in world on Friday 14th of March which you can actually watch live from Youtube — you can get youtube to notify you by clicking on the notify me option on their channel for that live event. That way if you are unable to get into the regions hosting it, you can still follow along. I did ask at the meeting if Strawberry will be filming it live using the Firestorm Zero or Project Zero in built browser option, but as it is unknown how stable that may be for the hundreds that may be in attendance they were not sure if completely possible at this time, but assured us that they will test and see if it is something they can do. Either way the event being filmed live is excellent and the ability to watch it at any time after makes it very inclusive for all. The link to the Second Life blog post about the upcoming event is Here.
Sntax Linden, the development lead on Project Zero, has been working closely with the Firestorm team to make Firestorm Zero a reality. For diehard Firestorm users, this new option will make things much more convenient going forward. One key topic discussed in the meeting was cost. Currently, time spent using the Project Zero viewer costs Linden Lab approximately $1.75 USD per user, which is roughly L$439. Since they are currently covering this cost—with a significant number of users logging in daily—they do plan to introduce a fee for the Firestorm Zero access. This fee will not cover the full cost, and Linden Lab is willing to absorb part of that expense. They are considering a charge of around L$250 for a set amount of time, in the hopes also that with enough use, the costs will decrease and that saving will be passed on as it drops.
Now, full disclosure: the time frame was mentioned multiple times during the call and it changed a few times from one hour window to five— this leads me to think that they may be considering bundle pricing, as in the more you pay up front perhaps the cheaper it may be, but note that is just me thinking that, and may not even be part of their plans, but you never know. I specifically asked whether the charge would apply per login or be based on total time spent in-world. They assured me that it would be based on actual time logged in, not the number of logins.
For example, if you purchase one hour, you could log in six times for ten minutes each before your time runs out. This means that even if you log in for just a few minutes at a time, your purchased time will last as long as you pace it. This could be incredibly useful for tasks like accessing Second Life from a remote location to open a region, pass a notecard, or topping up your rental box while away from your main PC—all from a single purchase. The purchase ability will only be available via the Second Life dashboard, so that you will know which account you are purchasing for, and so that they have access to your L$ balance.
The original Project Zero will remain for this time 0L$ to access, it will only be the Firestorm version that will have a fee, but with the amount of extra work it takes to work other viewers into the project it does make sense that it comes at a cost and sometimes that cost has to be shared by those using the functionality. It was asked if perhaps time might be added to Plus/Premium/Premium Plus accounts as a perk, but at this time that is not something they have immediate plans for, and again getting the costs down on this system would be the benefit for all.
For those who have accessed Project Zero in the past, it’s an incredible way to experience Second Life. However, access is limited, both in availability and the number of users allowed to log in at any given time—understandably so, given the significant cost to Linden Lab. They simply can’t afford to spend thousands of USD per day for everyone. With Firestorm Zero’s paid option, however, access will be immediate—no waiting, since you’ll be paying for the service. There may be some limitations on purchasing available slots, especially at the start, but given the price point and the flexibility to use it whenever you need, it would be wise to secure a slot as soon as it becomes available—even if you don’t have an immediate use for it. Of course, this depends on how you use Second Life. If you never have “emergency” situations in your SLife, you may not need it.
Personally, I know I’ll be grabbing a slot. While I’m at my PC every day, there was a moment last year when I had to leave at the worst possible time. I couldn’t reach my mum, and I panicked. It was an hour before I had to open the Hair Fair regions for content creators to start setup—something only I could do—but I had to go check on her. I drove to her home, didn’t find her there, and then, 15 minutes later, she arrived. I was so relieved, hugged her, ran back to my car, and made it home with just minutes to spare. Now, that might seem dramatic—or even silly—to others, but if I’d had Project Zero or Firestorm Zero back then, I could have just grabbed my tablet, gone to Mum’s, and stayed with her for the evening. All I had to do was open the regions and send notices. Sure, I could have done that before I left, but in the moment, my brain wasn’t thinking that way. Honestly, I’ve only just thought of it now. I also know that no one in the event would have screamed at me about being late, but again I just couldn’t think that clearly at the time. Having a Firestorm Zero time slot in my imaginary pocket will make me calmer — something has to.
I tend to approach Second Life features from a different angle than most. While many focus on how smoother SL will be for slower computers, or how this eliminates the need for high-end hardware to keep up with advancements like PBR, I love that—but my mind works differently. After nearly two decades of working for others, I always view these things through the lens of creators, customers, and support needs.
To me, this is essential for most Second Life content creators and anyone with obligations that have, until now, kept them tethered to their computers—often disrupting their work-life balance. I’ve seen creators go on vacation and say they couldn’t log in for a set amount of time, and I’ve seen real emergencies happen that couldn’t be resolved remotely. I’ve even known people to opt out of events simply because they wouldn’t be at their PC on setup day. With Firestorm Zero, they could have everything prepared in advance, log in for five minutes to rez their items, and be done. They could quickly fix something if needed. That kind of freedom is fantastic.
I also know of a creator who recently planned to send event notices while away on business using Project Zero, ensuring her followers knew she was participating. Beyond convenience, this also offers a sense of security. Over the years, many of us have faced computer issues at the worst times. I always pray nothing happens to my setup during Hair Fair—but when a PC or laptop dies, replacing it takes time. That can lead to missed deadlines, failed setups, or lost opportunities. With Firestorm Zero, creators could log in from a tablet, an older laptop that previously couldn’t handle SL, a friend’s house, or even an internet café. That’s incredibly valuable. And with the paid option guaranteeing access, I’d strongly recommend grabbing a slot as soon as they become available. If you never need it, great—but if you do, you’ll be glad you have it.
Other topics discussed on the call included updates to Project Zero. In the past, nothing was saved—including IM chat logs—which is crucial for anyone handling customer service. That has now changed: IMs can be saved, though local chat still cannot. We also talked about snapshots not saving properly. Currently, screenshots taken through the browser aren’t great quality, but they’re looking into solutions, including saving directly to email, Flickr, or other options.
A key point we’ve discussed before is that Project Zero is highly secure and doesn’t allow copybotting because no data is saved or shared. Philip even mentioned that if you logged in from an internet café, even the café owner wouldn’t be able to access your account. Another improvement is that in the past, settings and preferences wouldn’t save between logins—but that has now been fixed. If you notice anything still not saving, be sure to report it via Canny HERE, as they’re actively gathering feedback on Project Zero and the upcoming Firestorm Zero.
I rambled and talked about how I see it as being useful, you may have another dozen or so things you consider it will be helpful with, and I certainly hope so, I also hope that you check out the Town Hall on Friday as Philip talks more about this Project for Second Life Official Viewer version and the Firestorm version and the 2025 roadmap for Second Life overall…for a breakdown on Wednesdays meeting visit Inara Peys blog HERE