Frequently Asked Questions about Running CircleMUD, with Answers
================================================================
jelson@jhu.edu
Last updated May 26 1995.
1. Getting started
1.1. I've never played a MUD before. What should I do?
1.2. I have questions about CircleMUD. Where should I go?
2. Compiling
2.1 Why do I get many syntax errors with Sun's 'cc' compiler?
2.2 Why do I get all sorts of errors with 'crypt' functions and
header files?
2.3 When I try to compile, why do I get a lot of "undefined symbols"
referenced in comm.o for functions like socket, accept, and bind?
3. Running
3.1 I typed 'autorun' but then my terminal just froze.
3.2 I typed 'bin/circle' and got lots of boot messages, but then it said
'Entering game loop' and froze.
3.3 Okay, I think the MUD is running but why don't I get a login prompt?
3.4 When I run Circle under Linux, it tells me 'connection refused' when
the MUD boots, and then dies. Why?
4. Playing
4.1 How do I access Online Creation?
4.1a When will the production release of Circle 3.0 be????
4.2 If someone logs in and just sits at the password prompt, the
MUD hangs.
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[1.1] I've never played a MUD before. What should I do?
A. Don't try to use your own copy of CircleMUD! There are two levels of MUD
users: players and administrators. Administrators do what you're trying
to do now -- get a copy of a MUD's source code, compile it, and run it.
Players use MUDs that are being administred by someone else. If you try
to actually run a MUD before you've ever played one, you'll get very
confused indeed! Your best bet for now is to play someone else's MUD
first. There are a large number of excellent MUDs out there already,
some of which are based on CircleMUD code. A good place to start looking
is Axl's DikuMUD list, which you can find via Mosaic or another WWW
browser at http://oz.plymouth.edu/~j_herlih/mudlist. There's a list of
CircleMUD sites at http://www.cs.jhu.edu/~jelson/circle/sites.html.
[1.2] I have questions about CircleMUD. Where should I go?
A. If you have general questions about the MUD such as how to get it running,
how to add new spells, how to add new skills, etc., the first place you
should look is the documentation. coding.doc has information about how
to add new spells, skills, commands, etc. building.doc has information
about how to create new worlds, how to read the database files, etc.
There are many other documents in the doc directory with useful
information.
If you still have questions *after* reading the doucmentation, you can try
asking on the CircleMUD mailing list. The mailing list is located at
circle@pvv.unit.no (write to majordomo@pvv.unit.no to subscribe).
If you want to contact the author, Jeremy Elson, his email address is
jelson@jhu.edu.
[2.1] Why do I get many syntax errors when I compile with Sun's 'cc' compiler?
A. Because Circle is written in ANSI C, and Sun's standard 'cc' compiler
isn't capable of compiling ANSI C code. You can try 'acc', Sun's ANSI
C compiler, but it costs extra money to get it from Sun so your sysadmin
may not have installed it. Most don't. The best solution is to get the
GCC compiler from ftp.gnu.ai.mit.edu and install it, if you have enough
time and space.
[2.2] Why do I get all sorts of errors with 'crypt' functions and header
files?
A. Because of export restrictions imposed by the U.S., some systems do not
have the capability of encrypting data using the normal UNIX crypt()
functions. You can defeat the problem by adding the line:
#define NOCRYPT
as the first line of your utils.h file. Be warned, however, that doing
this causes the MUD to store players' passwords in plaintext rather than
as encrypted strings. Also, if you move from a system which has crypt
to one that doesn't, players won't be able to log in until you manually
set their passwords under the new, unencrypted system.
[2.3] When I try to compile, why do I get a lot of "undefined symbols"
referenced in comm.o for functions like socket, accept, and bind?
A. Because you are using a System V Release 4 (SVR4) variant of UNIX such
as Solaris. Go to the Makefile in the src directory, search for SVR4,
and follow the instructions you'll find there.
[3.1] I typed 'autorun' but then my terminal just froze.
A. autorun is a script which automatically runs, logs, and reboots the
game for long-term runs. You should run 'autorun' in the background
by typing 'autorun &'. The game will then run unattended until you
explicitly shut it down.
[3.2] I typed 'bin/circle' and got lots of boot messages, but then it said
'Entering game loop' or 'Going to sleep' and froze.
A. It is not frozen, it is just waiting for people to connect. You have
to run the MUD in the background by typing 'bin/circle &' and then use
telnet to connect to the game.
[3.3] Okay, I think the MUD is running but why don't I get a login prompt?
A. In order to play the MUD, you must connect to it using the telnet
command, i.e. 'telnet localhost 4000'.
[3.4] When I run Circle under Linux, it tells me 'connection refused' when
the MUD boots, and then dies. Why?
A. Because you must install the Linux networking package before running
Circle, even if you plan to only play on the local machine. If you're
using Slackware, the networking package is on the 'N' series of disks.
[4.1] How do I access Online Creation?
A. Online Creation is not yet part of the Circle beta release. When it
does become part of the release, it'll be accessed through a command
called 'olc'.
[4.1a] When will the production release of Circle 3.0 be????
A. I don't know. Don't ask again.
[4.2] If someone logs in and just sits at the password prompt, the MUD hangs
(i.e., no one else can connect or do anything) until the person enters
their password.
A. Your system's POSIX non-blocking I/O is broken. To compensate, add the
following line at the very beginning of comm.c:
#define POSIX_NONBLOCK_BROKEN
Then recompile the MUD and try again. Also, write mail to jelson@jhu.edu
telling me _exactly_ what type of machine and operating system you
experienced this problem on.