Getting SLim: Think Skype With A Second Life Hub

Here's a rough-and-ready Flipcam video of SLim, the new Instant Messaging/VOIP client from Vivox, featured at the Lindens' massive booth at VWC-LA last week and recorded by Schlink Lardner.  I compare it to Skype, because SLim gives you the option of sending IMs or making a person-to-person call to people on your SL friend's list.  In this way, the Second Life world almost becomes a central hub and reference point hub for several kinds of communication.  Some highlights to look for in this demo:

- It's not a web applet, but a separate client that must be installed-- a significant drawback for people who want to use it on third party PCs in Internet cafes, etc. that disallow downloads.

- SLim will eventually enable voice communication into the world itself.  (Right now it's just person-to-person.)  As I say, that feature has powerful potential, since it'll enable you to call into the world as a disembodied voice. 

What do you think, is there enough here to encourage broad adoption?  Anecdotally, it seems like a lot of SL Residents already use Skype as their Internet-to-SL communication bridge, so what's here that'll encourage them to switch?

Comments

[Rez Gray]

If they'll just get IM and Voice out the door, they'll be doing more than enough.

Of course, later they could tack on... I'm channeling the dozens of request threads sure to pop up... Inventory control. Money transfers. Low-fi SL viewer, self-contained object editor, animator tool, remote land manager, region rebooter, permissions exploiter, orbiter, ponies, furries, hippies..... and eventually pie.

Actually. Just skip to Pie. Uncle Vivox's Old-Fashioned Pie.

Damnit, I need to get my psyche-tuner fixed.

[Barefoot Ballinger]

I for one will welcome this. I currently use Skype, MSN and Gtalk to communicate vocally to SL friends... when running the SL client or not.

Which brings up a great point, it has to be more stable than the current voice system.... a very frustrating means of communicating at times.

Get the basics running, add the frills later. Fantastic potential!

[yawn]

Too little, too late, not an open standard, nobody wants to run a separate application, should just be a standard Jabber thing so we can use it from gmail/gtalk/trillian/pidgin/whatever.

[Veeyawn Spoonhammer]

I second the Jabber/Open Standards comment. I'm guessing the Linux client will be farrrrrrrrrr behind.

[Sean McDunnough]

You say: "a significant drawback for people who want to use it on third party PCs in Internet cafes, etc. that disallow downloads."

I wonder if it runs on a USB stick, like the SL client can (or used to last time I checked).

[Ignatius Onomatopoeia]

SLim has real potential, but I cannot resist one ha-ha moment:

"it'll enable you to call into the world as a disembodied voice."

PAY NO ATTENTION TO the man behind the curtain!

I have visions of my voice echoing over our university island...more Zardoz and Oz.

[Pavig Lok]

Good move...
Where's jabber? :P

[Nexii Malthus]

I was actually contemplating the available skype extension to bridge the gap of the SL client and Skype client to create a secondary friends list from your own Skype account.

[Dedric Mauriac]

Let's see a Java or flash version that runs in the web browser. Internet Cafe compatibility solved!

[Carter Liveoak]

Based on a conversation I had with a Vivox person in the booth at VWExpo, there is no plan for a Linux release of the SLim client. :(

[Serendipity Seraph]

No plan for a linux release? Closed source BS? Forget about it. In is bad enough that there is almost no ongoing love to linux SL clients.