Development history • additions • fixes • improvements
Version Changes
TX Builder Viewer has grown one useful improvement at a time. This page tracks the major features, restorations, reliability work, and quality-of-life improvements that make up the current viewer.
AUG 27
2026
Project direction established
- TX Builder Viewer formally scoped as a builder-focused, PBR-ready Second Life viewer.
- Builder + daily-driver use established as the core design goal.
- Planned connected tray operation, low-resource background use, automatic login, reconnect support, and Windows startup behavior.
- Core editing, rendering, scripting, inventory, communication, land, mesh, and materials workflows prioritized from day one.
AUG 28
2026
TX identity and builder-first foundation
- TX Builder Viewer branding integrated throughout the application.
- Firestorm attribution retained while establishing TX Builder Viewer as its own focused project.
- Second Life-focused startup and interface direction established.
- TX Builder Search and project-specific preferences, links, and presentation normalized.
- English interface pass begun to keep the distribution compact and consistent.
AUG 29
2026
Connected system-tray mode arrives
- Added Windows system-tray integration with Open and Exit controls.
- Closing the logged-in viewer can keep the Second Life session connected in the tray.
- Added low-resource hidden operation to sharply reduce unnecessary rendering load.
- Added hidden-viewer Windows notifications for direct IM activity.
- Added transaction and payment notification support while the viewer is in the background.
AUG 30
2026
Startup and notification controls
- Added Start with Windows support.
- Added persistent automatic-login behavior.
- Added the option to log in and proceed directly to hidden tray operation.
- Added a master Windows-notification control plus a separate local-chat notification option.
- Local-chat tray notices refined to focus on avatar chat rather than background object chatter.
- Voice operation verified alongside the new background behavior.
AUG 31
2026
Background efficiency and packaging
- Refined hidden/minimized scheduling so the viewer yields substantially more CPU time when it is not on screen.
- Verified very low GPU use while the viewer remains connected in tray mode.
- Integrated payment and message notifications more tightly with the background system.
- Added user-facing controls so tray/background notification features can be individually disabled.
- Stabilized the Windows installer packaging workflow.
SEP 1
2026
Automatic reconnect and viewer news
- Added a bounded automatic reconnect watchdog for simulator or network disconnects.
- Reconnect attempts use increasing delays rather than hammering the login service.
- Added user notification of reconnect activity and results.
- Corrected a false-positive last-location/avatar-moved condition around reconnect and login state.
- Added the TX Builder Viewer news/MOTD service with retry handling for temporary connection failures.
SEP 2
2026
Creator tools and performance validation
- Firestorm Poser functionality restored for creator and animation workflows.
- Required Poser menus, UI, and source hooks restored and verified.
- Voice functionality re-verified after the broader viewer work.
- Investigated a severe frame-rate problem and isolated it to the NVIDIA OpenGL/presentation driver path rather than TX rendering changes.
- Driver correction restored normal viewer performance without unnecessary rendering-code changes.
SEP 3
2026
Area Search restored and completed
- Restored the complete Area Search floater, commands, textures, menu integration, and persistent filters.
- Restored backend object-property and object-cost hooks required for real search results.
- Verified searching by object name, owner, last owner, group, creator, and broader filter combinations.
- Added and published plain-English TX Builder Viewer privacy information.
- Viewer and redesigned project website moved into public use.
SEP 4
2026
Quick Reply and independent tray interaction
- Added Quick Reply for direct IM notifications without reopening the full 3D viewer.
- Quick replies use the viewer's existing IM session, so sent messages remain visible in the normal in-viewer conversation.
- Added lightweight local-chat interaction when local notifications are enabled.
- Added explicit Windows notification identity for TX Builder Viewer.
- Made the Quick Reply window draggable and resizable without using a bulky standard Windows title bar.
- Added minimum-size protection and responsive control layout.
- Added persistent reply-window position and size across full viewer restarts.
- Added monitor-aware restore/clamping for multi-monitor and resolution changes.
- Added incoming-message context above the reply field.
SEP 5
2026
COMPLETED
Quick Reply readability improvements
- Expanded the incoming-message area to show roughly six lines of conversation context.
- Changed incoming-message display to a read-only multiline field with overflow scrolling.
- Kept the message area clean without a permanently visible scrollbar.
- Rebalanced the layout so resizing the window does not turn the reply field into a giant empty box.
- Shortened the Open Viewer button to Open for a cleaner layout.
- Prepared the design direction for future per-conversation reply windows and detachable conversation tools.
SEP 14
2026
Communications window integrated
- Added the dedicated Communications window for Contacts, Friends, Groups, direct IMs, and Nearby Chat.
- Added local Friends and Groups filtering so lists can be narrowed instantly without a server search.
- Added in-conversation text search with next/previous match controls.
- Added clickable web links directly inside conversation history.
- Added native group-chat launching so double-clicking a group opens or focuses its conversation just like a friend.
- Integrated Communications access into the Windows tray controls alongside the main viewer.
SEP 15
2026
CURRENT RELEASE
Communications ordering, history, resizing, and persistence
- Changed Communications to append new IM and group messages incrementally in the same order they arrive instead of rebuilding the entire transcript.
- Opening or switching conversations loads existing history once, then new incoming and outgoing messages continue at the bottom.
- Scroll position is preserved when reading older messages; the window only follows new messages when already at the bottom.
- Firestorm's real history state is now respected: messages from a previous login appear gray while messages from the current login remain white, even after switching conversations.
- Fixed mixed text formatting during resize and made header/title text repaint immediately with the new window size.
- Window size, position, and font scale persist between uses so Communications returns the way the user left it.
- Finalized the Communications workflow as a built-in TX Builder Viewer feature rather than a separate development-stage component.
Ready to build with it?
The current Windows 64-bit installer includes the TX Builder Viewer features and fixes listed above, including background operation, Quick Reply, Windows notifications, and Communications.