Sometimes I am amazed at how difficult it is to communicate in this world. I don’t mean technologically. I don’t mean language barriers. I don’t even mean that we give words different connotations. Sometimes – we can’t communicate because the event the one person describes is not in the reality of the listener.
I have a demo in 45 minutes (less, by the time I finish posting this). I have a bug in my script. I’m saying something two times instead of once. It’s a list of names. I spent nearly 4 hours this morning talking to some really, REALLY smart people about my bug. They kept asking me questions that just seemed crazy to me. I thought I’d explained the process I was scripting. I thought it was incredibly obvious. I didn’t understand WHAT was so difficult. The more I tried to say I am trying to do these steps, the farther apart we seemed to grow. So. Here we go…..
1. Avatar walks up to the signin desk.
2. Avatar touches the poseball.
3. Animation takes over, avatar is signing name.
4. Script is sensing all other avatars around the avatar signing in. Because the one avatar is signing in ALL the other avatars (co-workers) standing about. Don’t argue yet. That’s what my manager requested. Keep reading.
5. Script shouts the list of names (avatar signing in AND all other around) to a Welcome Board in another room.
6. Welcome Board displays list of names.
7. Animation ends.
8. Avatar that was signing in is teleported to the other room with the Welcome Board.
9. Avatars that are left in first room must each click the teleporter device to tp to 2nd room.
Yes – there are holes here. I KNOW that. This is just a little tiny demo. It’s not meant to be a finished product. The only goal was to mimic a real-life scenario and put up the names of the avatars. But that is exactly the catch. “real-life scenario”
My scripting friends could not envision a scenario where one person would sign-in another person. I am totally blown away. I do this all the time. Two of us walk up to a sign-in desk. If I pick up the pen, I’m going to sign your name, too. If you pick up the pen – I expect you to sign me in. Sure – if we’re talking badges and security – we each sign ourselves. But talking a casual kind of demo/meeting, where the point is simply to see who came in??? For heaven’s sake – you’re standing there – sign my name! No. I had TWO people look at me/ IM me and say “personal integrity”. You have got to be kidding me. I asked more people. Nope, they’d NEVER sign in someone else. So I guess that makes my manager and I and one co-worker and one SL friend the only people in the universe who would sign-in someone else so that they didn’t have to be bothered.
Tell me. Honestly. Would you sign me in?
Ahuva's Blog 