Palace User Software Guide For Macintosh

Palace User SoftwareGuide for MacintoshVersion 3.5

Copyright 1999 Communities.com, All rights reserved.The Palace User Software Guide for Macintosh, version 3.5December, 1999This document and the software described in it are furnished under license and may be used or copied onlyin accordance with such license. Except as permitted by such license, the contents of this document may notbe disclosed to third parties, copied, or duplicated in any form, in whole or in part, without the prior writtenpermission of Communities.com.The contents of this document are for informational use only, and the contents are subject to change withoutnotice. Communities.com assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors or inaccuracies that may appearin this book.Restricted Rights Legend. For defense agencies: Use, reproduction, or disclosure is subject to restrictions setforth in subparagraph (c) (1) (ii) of the Rights in Technical Data and Computer Software clause at DFARS52.227-7013, and or similar successor clauses in the FAR, or the DOD or NASA FAR Supplement.Unpublished right reserved under the Copyright Laws of the United States.The Palace, PalacePresents, Palace Authoring Wizard, PalaceEvents, PalaceServer, The Palace Viewer, ThePalace Authoring Tool, The Palace Viewer logo and The Palace logo are either trademarks or registeredtrademarks of Communities.com. All rights reserved. All other trademarks are the property of their respectiveowners.Printed in the USA.

ContentsChapter 1Introduction .9Chapter 2Getting Started . 11Requirements . 11Software . 11Accessing Palace sites from behind a firewall . 12Installing The Palace client software . 13Updating your software . 13Setting up InternetConfig . 14Adding The Palace. 14Adding MIDI support . 15Logging on for the first time . 19Logging on as a registered member of The Palace . 19Logging on as a guest. 20Activating your membership. 20The Welcome Palace . 20Learning on your own with the Welcome Palace Gate . 21Avatar Dispenser . 21Palace Web Page. 21The Practice Palace . 22Entry to the Welcome Palace . 22Talking, moving around, and other actions . 22Logging off. 22Chapter 3Connecting to Palace Sites . 25If you already have a Palace client running. 25From your web browser. 26Returning to a recently-visited Palace . 27Using AppleTalk . 27Using other online services . 27Chapter 4How to Use The Palace . 29Avatars . 29Changing your name. 30Changing your face color and expression. 30The Palace User Software Guide for Macintoshiii

Customizing your roundhead avatar.31Profile pages.31Creating a new avatar.32Single-prop avatars .33Multiple-prop avatars.33Saving and wearing your new avatar.35Animating your avatar.36Talking to people.37Special balloons.37Whispering and ESP (private messages) .38Keeping track of conversations with the log window .39Paging an operator.39Playing sounds.39Moving around .40Spots and doors.40Jumping to a specific room .41Joining a specific user .41Going backwards .41Props. 41Your Prop Picker window.41General prop actions .42Creating and editing props with the Prop Editor .43Editing an existing prop .43Creating a new prop .43Changing the position of your prop .44Chapter 5The Palace Client Interface . 45Elements of the main window .45The View Screen .46The Input Box .47The Status Bar.47The Icons .47The Menus .48The File Menu.48The Edit Menu .49The Options Menu .52The Avatars Menu .54The Operator Menu .54The Props Menu .55The PropEdit Menu.56The Bookmarks Menu.57The Help Menu .57ivThe Palace User Software Guide for Macintosh

Keyboard shortcuts. 57Using the Drawing Tools . 58The Prop Editor . 60Prop Edit menu options. 62Chapter 6The PalacePresents Viewer . 63What is PalacePresents? . 63What you need . 64Starting the PalacePresents Viewer . 64Plugin options . 65Preferences. 65Joining an event . 66Attending an event. 67Talking to the stage. 68The Viewer Toolbox. 69Chapter 7Advanced Features . 71Special commands . 71Creating and using member rooms . 71Automating yourself with Iptscrae. 73Your cyborg.ipt file . 74The INCHAT handler . 74The OUTCHAT handler . 75SIGNON handler . 77Chapter 8Quick Reference . 79Appendix A Community Standards . 81Appendix B Palace Command Summary . 83Guest commands . 83Member commands. 84Operator commands. 85Owner commands . 87The Palace User Software Guide for Macintoshv

Appendix C The Palace Client Plugin API . 91Index. 93viThe Palace User Software Guide for Macintosh

PrefaceThis manual describes how to use The Palace User Software for the Macintosh and bea member of The Palace community. Is is designed to get the new users up andrunning, guide advanced users thought the more advanced Palace features, and serveas a reference for the client graphical interface.Sections of this manualThis manual has the following sections.If you need to find a specific subject, use theindex at the end of the book. IntroductionThis section introduces the community and client software for The Palace. Getting StartedThis section guides you through installing your software, and describes allelements of interface. Connecting to Palace SitesThis section explains how to connect to different Palace sites so you can startexploring community for The Palace application. How to Use The PalaceThis section explains features and how to use them: your avatar, talking to andfinding other people, props, and moving around. The Palace Client InterfaceThis section is a reference for graphical interface, describing its menus, tools, icons,and keyboard shortcuts. The PalacePresents ViewerThis section describes the PalacePresents viewer. This plugin allows you to takepart in large-scale networked events, such as conferences, guided web tours,slideshows, live interviews, lectures and other one-to-many interactions. Advanced FeaturesThis section describes advanced features that you will want to try when you getmore acquainted with The Palace: special commands, Iptscrae, and creatingmember rooms.In addition, a number of appendices are included: Appendix A: Community StandardsThe Palace User Software Guide for Macintoshvii

Appendix B: User Command Summary Appendix C: The Palace Client Plugin APIManual conventionsThis manual has the following conventions: Code samples and text you enter are set in Courier, whether standing alone orembedded in the text. Technical terms appear in boldface italic in the text in their first appearance,usually accompanied by a definition. Graphical User Interface (GUI) elements, such as menu items and buttons, appearin boldface. References to other books, chapters, or sections are in italics.NOTE – Notes to the user look like this.Other sources of informationBesides this User's Guide, you can use many other related manuals for administeringyour personal server, becoming an operator, and mastering Iptscrae. These manuals areall available from The Palace website section. Server Guides. These manuals tell you how to obtain, install, setup, and run yourown Palace server. Macintosh, Unix, and Windows 95/98/NT versions areavailable. Operator Guide. Describes the responsibilities of an operator, and details the client'soperator interface and commands. Iptscrae Language Guide. This manual is a programming and language referenceguide for the Iptscrae language used in The Palace.In addition to online manuals, check out The Palace website for support, information,and online documentation at www.thepalace.com.viiiThe Palace User Software Guide for Macintosh

1IntroductionWelcome to The Palace - a vast online community of graphical interactive sites. WithThe Palace User Software client as your gateway, the variety of Palace destinations youcan explore is limitless. You can visit a diverse range of communities such as business,training, and learning resources; entertainment and gaming centers; gathering pointsfor special interest groups; and personal sites where you can go to chat and socializewith friends and family. If you download The Palace Server, you can even build andcustomize your own personal Palace site to host other people. An eight-user version isavailable for free on the Palace website: www.thepalace.com.One of the best things about The Palace is that it is an open system, letting you createand control much of your site’s content. The Palace User Software client not onlyfunctions as a front-end to browse the Palace community, but also does double-duty asa full-fledged authoring tool. By using the built-in "operator powers", available Palacetools, and the Iptscrae scripting language, you can create your own virtual world andshare it with others. The system also ensures that all Palace sites can be interlinked.This means that you can build new rooms and sites, then connect them to other Palacesites using various networking options. You can even create links between Palace sitesand web pages, making it all that much easier for people to find you!The Palace community is a client/server system, with Palace sites running onindividual computers, local area networks, and the Internet. You enter a Palace sitethrough your Palace client, which is designed to communicate with any Palace serverrunning on another (or even the same) computer. This is similar to the way your webbrowser interfaces with "webservers" while surfing the Internet.The Palace allows users to communicate effortlessly over various types of networks.You can run your Palace software on a TCP/IP-based LAN, using AppleTalk, or onthe Internet via a SLIP or PPP connection. Palace sites running on Local Area Networkshooked to the Internet will allow interaction between people on the LAN and folkscoming in via the Internet.The Palace User Software Guide for Macintosh9

110IntroductionThe Palace User Software Guide for Macintosh

2Getting StartedThis section describes how to get started using your Palace client: Requirements on page 11 Installing The Palace client software on page 13 Logging on for the first time on page 19 The Welcome Palace on page 20 Logging off on page 22RequirementsThis section details the requirement for running The Palace User Software client onyour Macintosh.SoftwareThe Palace client software has the following requirements:Computer: Color Macintosh with System 7.1 or higher. To run the PalacePresentsviewer, you need Macintosh System 7.6 or better.NOTE – You will need Appearance Manager in order to use The Palace User Software.Appearance Manager is included in System 8 and higher. If you are currently using anearlier system, Appearance Manager will be installed automatically along with theclient.Monitor: High color, supporting at least 800x600 pixels.The Palace User Software Guide for Macintosh11

2Getting StartedRAM: At least 16 megabytes.Disk space: The Palace requires about 3 megabytes of free hard disk space for storingits required programs, datafiles, pictures and sounds. If you plan on traveling to otherPalace sites, you should know that many of these servers make use of original artworkand sounds. As you enter new rooms in these servers, you will need additional harddisk spa

The Palace User Software Guide for Macintosh vii Preface This manual describes how to use The Palace User Software for the Macintosh and be a member of The Palace community. Is is designed to get the new users up and running, guide advanced users thought the more advanced Palace features, and serve as a reference for the client graphical interface.