This related directly to the java security model. Using the default security context for java applets, you cannot connect to a server other than the one you downloaded the applet from. This requires a proxy on the server to handle the actual connection. The other alternative is to request permissions to connect to another server, which results in a dialog asking the user to approve this action.
And I agree, it's more often used to bypass bans, or hide your ip address when doing less than savory things… than it is for legitimate purposes. It's rare to have telnet access restricted, and when it is, perhaps you should be working instead of playing muds.
I wouldn't say that mud admins were biased against AOL users. Rather, people who used AOL got themselves banned… one of the risks of using a large ISP. IP bans however… are notoriously easy to get around.
From my experience, people who use AOL often earn that "bias" for other AOL users. The problem is that if you ban AOL, you block "millions" of potential players who are not the responsible party, so instead one ends up having to simply monitor all AOL users a bit more closely and try to use other forms of "punishment" than banning whenever possible.
Conner, that's the same argument white supremacists(sp?) use in favor of racism. The actions of an individual NEVER warrant a punishment or judgement against the masses. Its immoral.
Conner, that's the same argument white supremacists(sp?) use in favor of racism. The actions of an individual NEVER warrant a punishment or judgement against the masses. Its immoral.
Right, which is why I said that one ends up having to watch all AOL users rather than banning them all over the actions of a few (well, dozens of actually) individuals. Because it'd be wrong to punish them all over something only a few committed, but it's not possible to ban only the offenders without also banning the rest.
If you get the right promo codes you can get 3 and 6 month free trials to AOL. They're only given out with huge purchases like PCs but alot of people get them and give them away. For 2 years I did nothing but use free trials of ISPs because when my dad died, our family's credit cards weren't paid on time and our credit rating got fucked up. So we couldn't get credit cards.
My family used to use AOL, and now is on cable. Since switching, I have been getting AOL-using friends to log on to new MUDs if I think they're worth a chance and dedicating any time to, just in case. With fewer and fewer people on AOL, it's been getting harder and harder for me to weed them out though. I'd hate to waste time on a MUD and then later find out that I can't have 100% of my friends log on without me vouching for them, or create their character from my IP for them, or help them use a proxy, or whatever other ridiculous thing that some moron thinks people should do in order to have the priviledge of playing their game.
Because of my pickiness though, I've pretty much totally avoided the MUDs with the worst admins, and avoid drama that I hear others complain about all the time, except for one MUD. On that one, adminship was handed over to somebody new after I had already established myself on the MUD. One can guess what provider she eventually blocked after deleting all the players, promoting her newbie friends, and closing half the areas.
And I agree, it's more often used to bypass bans, or hide your ip address when doing less than savory things… than it is for legitimate purposes. It's rare to have telnet access restricted, and when it is, perhaps you should be working instead of playing muds.