Companion includes a number of special particle effects that are difficult or impossible to reliably disable but are not safe for operators and units with photosensitive cortices. To help address this, we have issued an optional system update called "Soothe" which disables some of these effects.
The following effects are disabled by Soothe:
Teleport flash particles from the main controller.
Teleport bubble ("warp system") spawned by the main controller.
Spark particles from the main controller.
The following effects are NOT disabled by Soothe:
Repair particles.
Gamma adjustments caused by temperature changes in ATOS/E.
Spark particles generated by accessories (such as the Opaque Computing Alkaline Battery)
In-eye glitch effects generated by robot optics (NeoVISION, Lightpoint, ORAMA iKON, Sigma Ocu-Klaar, Fateweaver Clairvoyance, and others)
Anything not attached to your avatar.
For optimal safety, units are encouraged to avoid combat where bright flashes from explosions, projectiles passing by the camera, and so on may be unavoidable.
You must be in the Eisa region to perform this installation.
First, type the following preparatory steps into local chat:
/1capture
@reset xanadu-client
@reset songbird
These actions ensure that your controller can see your chat, that your package manager (_xanadu-client) is ready to receive instructions, and that your disk manager (_songbird) has provided an up-to-date cryptographic key.
Then, connect to the package server:
@xanadu connect xbeta:0
And finally install the patch:
@xanadu install Soothe
Installation takes about twenty seconds.
Soothe must be reinstalled after an OS update.
If you see the message:
[Stage 0] Removing old memory card firmware...
It should be followed within 5 seconds by:
NS Memory Card Firmware Eraser 1.35
If you do not see the latter message, then _xanadu-client did not have the correct PIN for user memory. Repeat the command @reset songbird and then try the last step of the installation again.
When the installation is complete, you will see the message:
[Stage 2] Done. Installed 1 files total in 3 steps.
And you will be given a copy of the readme notecard, which more or less repeats the contents of this page.
Soothe replaces the _ambiance script with a version that disables the particle effects specifically. The exact build upon which it is based can be determined from the package version number (e.g. 8.6.1.210500 = version 8.6.1, May, 2021). Since _ambiance has changed very little during 8.6, it does not need to be updated often, and the same version of Soothe will likely be relevant for years to come.
Soothe must be reinstalled after an OS update.
Soothe can be removed by reinstalling the OS, or by surgically replacing _ambiance in a controller that has been dropped on the ground.
Features
The following effects are disabled by Soothe:
The following effects are NOT disabled by Soothe:
For optimal safety, units are encouraged to avoid combat where bright flashes from explosions, projectiles passing by the camera, and so on may be unavoidable.
Installation Instructions
You must be in the Eisa region to perform this installation.
First, type the following preparatory steps into local chat:
/1capture
@reset xanadu-client
@reset songbird
These actions ensure that your controller can see your chat, that your package manager (_xanadu-client) is ready to receive instructions, and that your disk manager (_songbird) has provided an up-to-date cryptographic key.
Then, connect to the package server:
@xanadu connect xbeta:0
And finally install the patch:
@xanadu install Soothe
Installation takes about twenty seconds.
Soothe must be reinstalled after an OS update.
Troubleshooting
If you see the message:
[Stage 0] Removing old memory card firmware...
It should be followed within 5 seconds by:
NS Memory Card Firmware Eraser 1.35
If you do not see the latter message, then _xanadu-client did not have the correct PIN for user memory. Repeat the command @reset songbird and then try the last step of the installation again.
When the installation is complete, you will see the message:
[Stage 2] Done. Installed 1 files total in 3 steps.
And you will be given a copy of the readme notecard, which more or less repeats the contents of this page.
Compatibility
Soothe replaces the _ambiance script with a version that disables the particle effects specifically. The exact build upon which it is based can be determined from the package version number (e.g. 8.6.1.210500 = version 8.6.1, May, 2021). Since _ambiance has changed very little during 8.6, it does not need to be updated often, and the same version of Soothe will likely be relevant for years to come.
Soothe must be reinstalled after an OS update.
Soothe can be removed by reinstalling the OS, or by surgically replacing _ambiance in a controller that has been dropped on the ground.