Initially, you'll probably have to walk around a bit to see if you can bump into anyone else on VUW. Type "who" to check who's currently logged in and where they are.

WARNING: In some areas there will be an enormous amount of activity. Typically there can be up to ten users in one room all chatting. While this is exhilarating, it can also be overwhelming. Stay calm. That is about as no isy as you’ll ever see a MUD get.

Talking to another user in the same room

Once you find other people, you'll probably want to get involved in some form of communication. To say something to others, type “say” then leave a space, then type your message. Your message will be sent to everyone in the room. For instance you mi ght type: say Hi, I hope I learn a lot from English 210e. And everyone else in the room would see: Joe_Student says, “Hi, I hope I learn a lot from English 210e.” The “say” command is your main communication device. Note that only those in the room in which you are standing will hear you. If you go to another room, only those in that room will hear you.

TIP: Now that you’ve learned how to talk to other users in VUW, you should know the most useful command you’ll ever learn: say I’m new...could someone please help me learn to use this MOO? People on MUDs are nearly always he lpful and will spend their time answering your questions and teaching you the ropes. If you have a specific question, just say it, and watch carefully for the reply. Of course, on VUW most students will have had little experience with MOOs, so many will be trying to figure things out just like you. Sharing information and skills is one of the primary goals of the MOO. Groups of people will learn fastest by exchanging information and techniques.

IMPORTANT TELNET INFORMATION:

One of the confusing aspects of the TELNET interface is that everything you type gets mixed in with everything else. You will have to get used to this. Don’t worry if your typing is dispersed through messages that are coming up on your screen. Your com mand will still work when you press . A display like the following is common. In this case, Guest is typing the command “say can someone help me learn how to use this MOO?” Guest’s typing is printed in capitals here so can see it, but when you’r e really connected, it will all be in lower case.

SAY CAN SOMEONE Bill [to Sally]: the weather is sporadic and crappy, humid
sumHmers and mild winters.
ELP ME LEARN TO USE THIS MOO?
Sally [to Bill]: yep, you said it.
R_Donner [to K_Smith]: i'm gonna have to get going here in a second
M_Johnson [to Mr.jones]: I've just been introduced two days ago. I get completely lost in rooms and yards.
Mr.jones [to M_Johnson]: so I've heard...
You say, "can someone help me learn to use this MOO?"

Notice how the MOO sends you confirmation of your command all on one line with the sentence: You say, “can someone help me learn to use this MOO?” That’s how you know your command registered, and it lets you see what you typed if you can’t decipher it through the other users’ conversation. Remember if you’re typing and something interrupts you, just keep right on typing. The MOO remembers what you typed, even if you don’t!

Talking to a specific person while with a group all in one room

Addressing a particular person in a group is possible through the "directed speech" function. It looks to others in the room as it does above in "Mr.jones [to M_Johnson]: so I've heard...". While targets of directed speech (in this case M_Johnson) would see "Mr.jones says to you: "so I've heard..." To talk to a single person you type "`" (left-facing apostrophe) followed by the person's name. Mr.jones in the example above would have originally typed "`M_Johnson so I've heard..." You may also use the dash "-" instead of the left-facing apostrophe. "-M_Johnson so I've heard..." would also direct Mr.jone's speech to M_Johnson.

Talking to another user at a distance

Eventually you might want to talk to a user that is in a different room than you are, and say won’t work, and you don’t want to go all the way to that user’s location. To send a private message to one individual in the room, type “page” followed by th e user’s name, followed by your message. For instance, you might type: page Bill Nice to see you again! Bill, and Bill only, would see: You sense that Jill_Student is looking for you. She pages, “Nice to see you again!”

Non-verbal Communication

VUW MOO also has built-in actions. They are easy to use and enhance the experience greatly. Try typing the following, one at a time: “smile” “bow” “wave” “laugh”. Others will see the action you do in text. You can direct your action to a specific individual: type "bow Joe" to bow to Joe. To get a list of the actions you can do, type "social".

Sending mail to another user

It is possible to use a form of electronic mail within VUW itself. Type "help mail" or "help editors" while on the MOO to learn more about it, or read the tutorial here on the Web page.

There is a great deal more to learn about the nuances of communication, but this will get you started. Type "help communication" while on VUW to learn much more about interaction. For quick reference without extravegant details, there is a command summary.