Review: The Scientific Revolution Gasmask

For many in Second Life, a gasmask may not be the first thing you would think of as a bdsm toy. However, Scientific Revolution's gasmask has many qualities that make it a top-notch tool for beginners using the Restrained Life Viewer. It is very easy to get a glimpse into the power of RLV for enhancing your Second Life experience by using this device.


How Does It Work?

The Scientific Revolution Gasmask comes in two parts. One is the wearable gasmask itself that attaches to the nose. The other part is a blindfold HUD. It is possible to use the gasmask without the HUD, but using the HUD makes it feel like you are indeed wearing a gasmask in Second Life.

Once you are wearing the gasmask, you can simply click on it or anyone else can click on it to begin using it. You may lock the mask on yourself or another person can take ownership of the gasmask by locking it on to you. Owners then have access to a wide range of functions. These include setting a timer for how long the mask stays locked, limiting vision with the blindfold HUD, garbling speech and a whole range of RLV specific functions like controlling emotes, IM, tp's, and blocking the inventory. The person wearing the gasmask can be easily exposed so anyone can have access to the mask's functions.

The blindfold HUD is something very specific to the Scientific Revolution Gasmask. When you are wearing it, your field of vision is limited to two round circles approximating what you would see looking through an actual gasmask. The owner of the mask may also reduce the clarity of vision or shut it off completely leaving the person wearing the gasmask with a black screen.

Pros

• An inexpensive device - 250L.
  
• Easy to begin using - simply wear and click.
  
• Click access to the menus.
  
• The blindfold with the "goggles" field of vision is a unique feature.
  
• Good introduction to RLV features.
  
• The garble feature makes sense for a gasmask
  

Cons

• The RLV functions are missing a forced mouselook.
• It would be good to be able to alter the length of non-idle time before a punishment is delivered.
  

Overall

(Ratings from 1 to 5 with 5 the most positive)

Ease of Installation - 5
Ease of Use - 4
Value for the Cost - 4
Overall Quality of Product - 4.5

Get It Here

Note: The gasmask comes in two versions - with filter and without. See both in the photo. Also, the current version is 1.4. If you have a previous version of the gasmask, upgrades are free.

Restrained Life Viewer Version 1.16.1 - Get It Now

You should always keep up to date with the latest release of the Restrained Life Viewer. Then you know you always have the full capabilities of living a restrained Second Life available. Head on over to erestraint for the free download. If you need instructions of how to install it, check detailed instructions here.

Review: The Mars Ring of Compliance

The Mars Ring of Compliance is a basic control device created by Mars Tamale that will allow you to make use of a wide range of capabilities of the Restrained Life Viewer. The restrictions available range from relatively mild to an experience of extreme restraint for the wearer of the ring. Overall, it is a high quality, inexpensive, relatively easy to use device that is perfect for beginning or expert explorers of the restrained life experience.

How Does It Work?

The submissive simply wears the Mars Ring. It defaults to a right hand attachment, but it can easily be edited to wear on the other hand or even as an earring or somewhere else on the body. The dominant clicks on the active area cast by the ring to ask for submission. Once the agreement to submit has been made, full control of the ring goes to the dominant.

The Mars ring operates from a menu system that is activated when the dominant touches the ring or uses a text command on channel 77. Five basic sub-menus contain most of the functionality of the ring. These are labeled Detail, Wear, Timer, Own, and Move. Perhaps the biggest drawback is that these names are far from intuitive. A quick guide to what they do:

• Detail - This is the menu that contains restrictions you may place on your submissive. These include blocking IM's and chat, hiding maps and locations, restricting access to tp and inventory, etc.
• Wear - This menu gives access to stripping clothing items from the submissive and controlling all of the clothing and attachments contained in RLV folders. The submissive can be given a notice that appears in open chat allowing anyone to strip them. There is also an exhibit option that should be used with great care as it will strip all clothing and attachments, including hair, from the submissive and put them on a display stand frozen. You have the option of using an RLV folder to change the skin (marble or stone could be fun) or dress the sub anyway you want. (A post will be coming soon to explain more about the use of RLV folders)
  
• Timer - Menu control of the timer which can be used to expire restrictions after a set period of time.
• Own - This menu gives access to basic functions of ownership including the ability to add secondary owners. The dominant also may allow anyone to have access to the submissive while maintaining the capability to override when necessary.
  
• Move - This is the menu to directly control movement related functions of the submissive. You can freeze, force a follow, force sit, and force tp. This is the menu for forcing the submissive into mouselook. However, unlike an implemented Mars Zone, the forced mouselook here only spits out orders to go to mouselook instead of actually putting the submissive into mouselook.

Pros

• The Mars ring is inexpensive - 300L.
  
• It's relatively easy to use and a breeze to upgrade
  
• Click access to the menus.
  
• Mars Tamale provides top-notch support for her product.
• The allow all button will quickly get the submissive out of any combination of restrictions that have been placed.
• Announcing the ability of anyone to strip the submissive in open chat is a unique feature.
  

Cons

• It would be great for the menu system to be more intuitive.

Overall

(Ratings from 1 to 5 with 5 the most positive)

Ease of Installation - 5
Ease of Use - 3.5
Value for the Cost - 5
Overall Quality of Product - 4.5

Get It Here

Additional Notes

Mars Tamale has additional plug-ins available that expand the capabilities of the Mars Ring even further. They will be reviewed soon in this blog.

Installing the Restrained Life Viewer

Perhaps the most daunting challenge for someone new to using Restrained Life and all of its enhanced capabilities for Second Life dominance and submission is the download and installation process for the viewer. Although it may initially look complicated, the entire process is quite simple. Below is a step by step guide for Windows users.

1. Download the Restrained Life Viewer. Head on over to erestraint. Find the Restrained Life for Microsoft Windows link. The current version is 1.15.2. Right click and select "save as" to save the viewer folder.

2. Download the appropriate Second Life version if you do not already have it. Check the version number of the current Second Life viewer you use. If it matches the compatible number listed for your version of the Restrained Life viewer, currently 1.21.6, you are in business. If not, head over to the Second Life website to download the appropriate Second Life viewer.

3. Install the Restrained Life Viewer. Navigate to the Second Life program folder on your computer. Usually the easiest way to do this is to open your local hard drive, go to the program files folder, and then find and open the Second Life folder. Now, open the Restrained Life Viewer folder that you downloaded. Drag the RestrainedLife icon to your Second Life folder.

4. Install the settings.xml file. Open the app_settings folder in your Second Life folder on your hard drive. Open the app_settings folder in the Restrained Life Viewer folder that you downloaded. Now drag the settings.xml file from the Restrained Life Viewer folder to your Second Life folder. Do not change any other files.

5. Create shortcuts. Find the RestrainedLife icon in your Second Life folder on the hard drive. Right click on it and select "create shortcut." Then drag that shortcut to your desktop. Then find the SecondLife icon and create a shortcut with it as well and drag that to the desktop. You will now have a SecondLife shortcut and a RestrainedLife shortcut on your desktop. The SecondLife shortcut is to enable logging into Second Life outside of the Restrained Life Viewer.

6. Log on. You may now click the RestrainedLife shortcut and log in to Second Life in the Restrained Life Viewer. Very few changes will be immediately obvious. A primary one is that you will now have to select attachment points for attachments in world. Some of the selection may be trial and error, but if you are very confused you may always log in to Second Life with the normal Second Life viewer and investigate where the attachments automatically choose to go.

You are set! Now you are ready to enjoy the many objects, attachments, and devices that can truly bring you a Restrained Life.

NOTE: Macintosh and Linux versions of the Restrained Life Viewer are also available. Please consult the documentation contained in the folder downloads from erestraint for more details on these versions.

What Is Restrained Life Anyway?

The Restrained Life Viewer is a different way of experiencing Second Life. For those interested in exploring dominance and submission it provides opportunities to make those Second Life experiences more real and the control and power exchange deeper and more involving.

The Restrained Life Viewer is an alternative to the standard Second Life Viewer. It was created by Marine Kelley. She also created an outstanding set of restraints that use the capabilities the viewer provides to make a true restraint experience in Second Life. Among the experiences you can have with the Restrained Life Viewer that are not possible with standard Second Life:

• Limits to communication - Blocked chat, IM's or notecards, hidden names and locations
• Forced stripping and wearing of clothes and attachments
  
• Inescapable cages and other bondage devices
• Forced tp anywhere your dom may want to send you
• Loss of privacy due to monitoring of your Second Life experience and communication
  
• Sensory deprivation limiting vision, sound, and touch
• Limits to your mobility in Second Life

Why would anyone want to have these experiences in Second Life? It's because control and power exchange lies at the heart of the dominance and submission experience. The Restrained Life Viewer makes it all more possible and real in the world of Second Life.

The Restrained Life Viewer may be downloaded here.