CasperUpdate

CasperUpdate is a system which allows creators to make self-updating products. Once a product is sold to the customer, the product will check for an update every time it is rezzed (or at specific intervals). If an update is found, the customer is asked if they wish to proceed with the update.

CasperUpdate is scheduled to be released in July, 2015 and is currently in public BETA.

Despite being tightly integrated with CasperVend, CasperUpdate is a standalone product and does not require CasperVend to function.

Features

• Completely networked and automated.
• No notecards to edit
• Unintrusive - unlike competing systems, CasperUpdate allows customers to suppress further update notifications.
• No-copy support - CasperUpdate can securely distribute updates for your no-copy products.
• Efficient - Just a single script powers our DropBox (Compared to HippoUpdate's 28 script server).
• Fast - Updates are delivered in a flash.
• Unlimited number of products supported - Not "almost" limitless, *actually* limitless.
• Any version format supported, including minor releases, code names and sub-versions.
• Full statistics and reporting of updates delivered, including CSV export.
• CasperVend integration - keep track of which products have been rezzed by the customer
• Communications fully encrypted with SSL
• A fully redundant, reliable network, proven by the success of CasperVend
• Free updates for life

Instructions

CasperUpdate tightly integrates with CasperVend, and uses the CasperVend website.

If you have already set up your products in CasperVend, please skip to "Drop the CasperUpdate script into your object".

Set up your account

1. Before you begin, rez the CasperUpdate crate and touch it to unpack.

DO NOT open the crate manually, or your purchase may not be registered. If touching the crate does nothing, check that scripts are enabled on the parcel you are on.

2. Choose a suitable location to rez your DropBox. Your DropBox must stay rezzed at all times, so choose somewhere that it can stay.
3. Rez the DropBox in your chosen location. The DropBox will be named something like "CasperTech DropBox vX.XX".
4. Touch the DropBox, which will bring up a blue dialog.

If you don't get a blue pop-up dialog when you touch your dropbox, make sure your chosen location has scripts enabled.

5. From the blue menu, choose "Admin". This will then show you a dialog menu asking you to visit a URL. Click "Go to URL".

If you don't get a "Go to URL" dialog, you may have yourself muted (it sounds silly, but this is a very common problem). Please check your viewer's block list.

6. Once you have loaded the website, you may be asked to choose a password. Do this now. If you have previously created an account, you will be asked to enter your password.
7. Once successfully logged in, you should be presented with a page titled "Vendors", and you will see a few details about your DropBox.

Add items to your DropBox

1. Switch back to Second Life, and right-click the dropbox that you rezzed in the previous section. Choose "Edit".
2. Switch to the "contents" tab in the edit window. You should see just a single script, called something like "CasperTech DropBox"
3. Drag items from your inventory to the dropbox contents window. These items will be the ones which will be delivered to your customers when they claim an update.

Be careful not to drag any items over which show (no transfer) next to them. These will not work, as the items cannot be sent to your customers.

4. After a few seconds, your DropBox will upload its contents to our servers. Wait until the dropbox shows "Box is live".

Be careful not to delete the DropBox script when manipulating the inventory.

Add products

1. If you have closed the website, touch the DropBox again and choose "Admin", and follow the link it gives you.
2. Once the site is open and you've logged in (if necessary), choose "Products" from the menu on the left.
Repeat the following steps for each product that you wish to use with CasperUpdate.
3. Click "List new product" at the top of the page.
4. Fill out the information about your product.

Most of the settings available to you here are only useful if you use CasperVend, or you plan to. The options you definitely need, though, are: Item - This allows you to select an item from your dropbox to deliver to the customer when they update this product. Name - This is the name of the product. Price - This isn't used by CasperUpdate, but it's required so that CasperVend merchants don't accidentally give their products away for free! Permissions - The "Copy" tickbox is important. This changes the behaviour of CasperUpdate based on whether your item is copy or no-copy. Version

Click "Save" at the bottom of the page.

Drop the CasperUpdate script into your object

Repeat the following steps for each product that you wish to use with CasperUpdate.

• Rez the product on the ground.
• Right click the product, go to "Edit", then switch to the "Contents" tab.
• After reading the warning below, drag the "CasperUpdate vX.X" script into your object.

Make sure you use the correct script! DO NOT drag the "CasperUpdate No-Copy Protector" script into your object yet! This may destroy your object!

• Leave the object rezzed and continue with the following steps

Set Permissions

Make certain that you set the correct permissions for both your object and the script inside. Not doing so may result in people being able to obtain your products without paying.

For objects with COPY permissions

For objects with COPY permissions, you MUST set:

• The "CasperUpdate vX.XX" script permissions to "No Modify". If your object is "No Transfer", you MUST also set this on the script.

The object permissions don't matter for Copy products.

For objects with NO COPY permissions

For objects with NO COPY permissions, you MUST set:

• The "CasperUpdate vX.XX" script permissions to "No Modify" and "No Copy".
• The OBJECT permissions to "No Modify".

Once you have finished editing the script (as described below), and you have confirmed that the script has saved successfully, and is running.. and only then.. you should drop the "CasperUpdate No-Copy Protector" script into your object. LEAVE THE PERMISSIONS FOR THIS SCRIPT AS THEY ARE.

For no-copy objects, it is absolutely crucial that you set the object to "no-modify", and that the "CasperUpdate No-Copy Protector" script is set to "COPY". If you don't do this, people will be able to effectively make copies of your no-copy item.