<!-- MHonArc v2.4.4 --> <!--X-Subject: Re: [MUD-Dev] Usability and interface and who the hell is supposed to be playing, anyway? (Was: PK Again) --> <!--X-From-R13: pynjerapNphc.uc.pbz --> <!--X-Date: Wed, 01 Oct 1997 19:07:32 +0000 --> <!--X-Message-Id: 199710011827.LAA08806#xsvr3,cup.hp.com --> <!--X-Content-Type: text/plain --> <!--X-Reference: E0xEaQP-0001XX-00#crucigera,fysh.org --> <!--X-Head-End--> <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 3.2//EN"> <html> <head> <title>MUD-Dev message, Re: [MUD-Dev] Usability and interface and who the hell is sup</title> <!-- meta name="robots" content="noindex,nofollow" --> <link rev="made" href="mailto:clawrenc#cup,hp.com"> </head> <body background="/backgrounds/paperback.gif" bgcolor="#ffffff" text="#000000" link="#0000FF" alink="#FF0000" vlink="#006000"> <font size="+4" color="#804040"> <strong><em>MUD-Dev<br>mailing list archive</em></strong> </font> <br> [ <a href="../">Other Periods</a> | <a href="../../">Other mailing lists</a> | <a href="/search.php3">Search</a> ] <br clear=all><hr> <!--X-Body-Begin--> <!--X-User-Header--> <!--X-User-Header-End--> <!--X-TopPNI--> Date: [ <a href="msg00008.html">Previous</a> | <a href="msg00010.html">Next</a> ] Thread: [ <a href="msg00111.html">Previous</a> | <a href="msg00023.html">Next</a> ] Index: [ <A HREF="author.html#00009">Author</A> | <A HREF="#00009">Date</A> | <A HREF="thread.html#00009">Thread</A> ] <!--X-TopPNI-End--> <!--X-MsgBody--> <!--X-Subject-Header-Begin--> <H1>Re: [MUD-Dev] Usability and interface and who the hell is supposed to be playing, anyway? (Was: PK Again)</H1> <HR> <!--X-Subject-Header-End--> <!--X-Head-of-Message--> <UL> <LI><em>To</em>: <A HREF="mailto:mud-dev#null,net">mud-dev#null,net</A></LI> <LI><em>Subject</em>: Re: [MUD-Dev] Usability and interface and who the hell is supposed to be playing, anyway? (Was: PK Again)</LI> <LI><em>From</em>: <A HREF="mailto:clawrenc#cup,hp.com">clawrenc#cup,hp.com</A></LI> <LI><em>Date</em>: Wed, 01 Oct 97 10:31:59 -0700</LI> <LI><em>Reply-to</em>: <A HREF="mailto:clawrenc#cup,hp.com">clawrenc#cup,hp.com</A></LI> </UL> <!--X-Head-of-Message-End--> <!--X-Head-Body-Sep-Begin--> <HR> <!--X-Head-Body-Sep-End--> <!--X-Body-of-Message--> <PRE> In <E0xEaQP-0001XX-00#crucigera,fysh.org>, on 09/26/97 at 09:44 AM, Maddy <maddy#fysh,org> said: >Previously, Adam Wiggins wrote.... >> >> [Maddy:] >> > Previously, Caliban Tiresias Darklock wrote.... >The problem with (especially races) info in character creation is you >don't want to give too much away. Listing all of race X's weaknesses >means that anyone can find them out. I of course side step the entire area. New characters are assigned a non-descript humanoid body. Its basically good at nothing in particular, and not teribly bad at anything either. The physical appearance is much along the line of a gray humaoin with no features, scars, clothing, sex, varition in size, or other distinguishing marks. Characters can then steal other bodies (and thus races) they like more. If this were put into a more classical MUD scenario, this would essentially be the ability for a guest character to mutate into a "real" character (ie real body/race type etc), who so requested. Aside: Guest characters are extremely valuable things for a MUD. >I'd like to refer to everyone consistantly all the time, although I >do see merits in providing a longer description when looking. >Maybe.... > A one-armed elf is here. He has a beard and is dressed in a > long flowing robe. > The one-armed elf says, 'Hello.' This is essentially a Level Of Detail question (LOD). The simplest model is that of a graphical world. When the object is far distant, and only represented by a couple pixels, who cares how well rendered it is? Conversely when he is 6" away, that rendering quality can be important. The same things really applies to textual descriptions of characters in text MUDs with a couple extra caveats thrown in: -- Familiarity breeds contempt. If you've seen Bubba all day every day for the last 50 MUD years, you don't want to read his full desc every time he enters a room. Wiggins(?) has written several bits on his approach to this point. The most key of which appears to be having the server recall how you last saw the other character, and how you are most familiar with seeing him, and on that basis adjudicating whether or not you actually recognise him as the character you know. The key example given was something on the order of: > l Bubba is here. > l at bubba Bubba has long hair, a beard that reaches his knees, etc and is wearing very tattered and filthy clothes. > enter inn Bubba goes upstairs. ... A youg clean shaven man comes down stairs. The man claps your shoulder and says, "Boffo! Don't recognise me all cleaned up eh? Its me, Bubba!" One thing that I don't think Wiggins ever touched on is how to detect and manage the transition from unknown to to known. Above, you knew Bubba as the hairy woodsman. Now he's spiffed up. How does the server detect and re-bind your familiarity with Bubba to his new clean-shaven self? -- Comparitive significance. You know Bubba well, and can recognise him on sight. As such you want the minimal desciption as above. However, now Bubba is in a crowd of 500 others milling about a room. Glancing in the room you are should not see "A large crowd of people and Bubba are here". Bubba's familiarity should be drowned out in the mass of other data represented by the crowd. Nathan has written some interesting pieces on this area specifically, mot especially in the handling of crowds and loss off detail due to data overload. Similarly, you are standing in town when a dragon flies by and start munching on any and all. You run, the dragon breathing down your neck. Bubba comes out of a side road and passes you (perhaps he's on a horse). you should not see, "The dragon is right behind you! Bubba runs past." It is a question of applicable detail. You don't have free attention to spend on recognising people. -- J C Lawrence Internet: claw#null,net (Contractor) Internet: coder#ibm,net ---------------(*) Internet: clawrenc#cup,hp.com ...Honorary Member Clan McFUD -- Teamer's Avenging Monolith... </PRE> <!--X-Body-of-Message-End--> <!--X-MsgBody-End--> <!--X-Follow-Ups--> <HR> <ul compact><li><strong>Follow-Ups</strong>: <ul> <li><strong><A NAME="00023" HREF="msg00023.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Usability and interface and who the hell is supposed to be playing, anyway? (Was: PK Again)</A></strong> <ul compact><li><em>From:</em> Adam Wiggins <nightfall#user1,inficad.com></li></ul> </UL></LI></UL> <!--X-Follow-Ups-End--> <!--X-References--> <!--X-References-End--> <!--X-BotPNI--> <UL> <LI>Prev by Date: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00008.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] more classes (Usability and interface and who the hell is suppo)</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Next by Date: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00010.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] more classes (Usability and interface and who the</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Prev by thread: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00111.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] more classes (Usability and interface and who the</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Next by thread: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00023.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Usability and interface and who the hell is supposed to be playing, anyway? (Was: PK Again)</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Index(es): <UL> <LI><A HREF="index.html#00009"><STRONG>Date</STRONG></A></LI> <LI><A HREF="thread.html#00009"><STRONG>Thread</STRONG></A></LI> </UL> </LI> </UL> <!--X-BotPNI-End--> <!--X-User-Footer--> <!--X-User-Footer-End--> <ul><li>Thread context: <BLOCKQUOTE><UL> <LI><STRONG>Re: [MUD-Dev] Usability and interface</STRONG>, <EM>(continued)</EM> <ul compact> <ul compact> <ul compact> <ul compact> <LI><strong><A NAME="00112" HREF="msg00112.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Usability and interface</A></strong>, Jon Leonard <a href="mailto:jleonard#divcom,umop-ap.com">jleonard#divcom,umop-ap.com</a>, Tue 14 Oct 1997, 23:35 GMT </LI> </ul> </ul> </ul> </ul> </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00010" HREF="msg00010.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] more classes (Usability and interface and who the</A></strong>, Brian Price <a href="mailto:blprice#bedford,net">blprice#bedford,net</a>, Wed 01 Oct 1997, 19:29 GMT <UL> <LI><strong><A NAME="00012" HREF="msg00012.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] more classes (Usability and interface and who the</A></strong>, Matt Chatterley <a href="mailto:root#mpc,dyn.ml.org">root#mpc,dyn.ml.org</a>, Wed 01 Oct 1997, 19:54 GMT </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00111" HREF="msg00111.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] more classes (Usability and interface and who the</A></strong>, coder <a href="mailto:coder#ibm,net">coder#ibm,net</a>, Tue 14 Oct 1997, 22:34 GMT </LI> </UL> </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00009" HREF="msg00009.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Usability and interface and who the hell is supposed to be playing, anyway? (Was: PK Again)</A></strong>, clawrenc <a href="mailto:clawrenc#cup,hp.com">clawrenc#cup,hp.com</a>, Wed 01 Oct 1997, 19:07 GMT <UL> <LI><strong><A NAME="00023" HREF="msg00023.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Usability and interface and who the hell is supposed to be playing, anyway? (Was: PK Again)</A></strong>, Adam Wiggins <a href="mailto:nightfall#user1,inficad.com">nightfall#user1,inficad.com</a>, Thu 02 Oct 1997, 08:44 GMT </LI> </UL> </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00008" HREF="msg00008.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] more classes (Usability and interface and who the hell is suppo)</A></strong>, clawrenc <a href="mailto:clawrenc#cup,hp.com">clawrenc#cup,hp.com</a>, Wed 01 Oct 1997, 18:52 GMT <UL> <LI><strong><A NAME="00011" HREF="msg00011.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] more classes (Usability and interface and who the hell is suppo)</A></strong>, Matt Chatterley <a href="mailto:root#mpc,dyn.ml.org">root#mpc,dyn.ml.org</a>, Wed 01 Oct 1997, 19:51 GMT </LI> </UL> <UL> <li><Possible follow-up(s)><br> <LI><strong><A NAME="00019" HREF="msg00019.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] more classes (Usability and interface and who the hell is suppo)</A></strong>, Brandon J. Rickman <a href="mailto:ashes#pc4,zennet.com">ashes#pc4,zennet.com</a>, Wed 01 Oct 1997, 22:30 GMT </LI> </UL> </LI> </UL></BLOCKQUOTE> </ul> <hr> <center> [ <a href="../">Other Periods</a> | <a href="../../">Other mailing lists</a> | <a href="/search.php3">Search</a> ] </center> <hr> </body> </html>