What It Is and Why Region Say is Better – an exploration of Say, Shout, and Region Say

When we type in local chat in SL, we have several different options. When we talk, we can:

whisper….heard by everyone within 10 meters by using Shift-Enter on Firestorm.

Say….. heard by everyone within 20 meters by simply pressing enter.

or SHOUT….heard by everyone withing 100 meters by using Ctrl-Enter.

When we are triggering effects such as particles, fades, or changing costumes using the costume assistant, we say or shout a specific command on a specific channel. Example:

SHOUT hide on channel 77 to hide balloons on your set which are using the Spot On glow fader script.

Scripts can listen to local chat (channel 0) or a specific channel number. We can’t “hear” anything other than channel 0, but scripts can! Why is this important? Because it adds another option!

REGION SAY … heard by everything in the region. Can’t be used for local chat (channel 0).

I can hear you asking: “So, how does this effect me and my dance?”

There are many effects and tools that can be activated by a chat command, aka a trigger command. By saying a certain phrase on a certain channel, you can activate an effect. You could manually type this in local chat, but most often you will be using a tool or HUD to do this for you.

Benefits of using Region Say: This is the most reliable method of giving a trigger command and activates faster. Because SL servers don’t have to determine what objects/avatars are within range, like whisper/say/shout – the SL servers broadcast the command to the region immediately.

Instead of using say or shout, use Region Say instead!

Spot on commands:

s – say
S – shout
RS – region say
PM – private message (directed to a specific person or group)

Region Say Spot On Example:

@button1=RS:77:hide

24|RS:77:hide

Using your own scripted trigger HUD:

If you are using your own trigger HUD with a simple script within the buttons, update your script to use region say – like this:

llRegionSay(77,”hide”);

Using a different dance HUD/tools:

If you are using a different dance HUD, please refer to your HUD documentation for the commands you can use.

Frequently Asked Questions:

How do I know what channel my effect uses?

Check the documentation for your tool/effect. Scripts control the activation of an effect, such as a particle. The writer of the script puts in the code how the effect can be triggered: by touch, on wear, hearing a chat command, etc.

The documentation for the item will include the channel and command, or instructions for using a configuration notecard in the object. Note: Most particles are activated when worn. If you don’t find anything in the documentation for a chat channel and command, you may not be able to trigger it through a trigger command without using another tool (such as Costume Assistant).