How to Use the Palace
This section describes various features of the Palace and how to use them: * Avatars * Talking to people * Finding people * Playing sounds * Moving around * Props
NOTE: In your Palace client, you might see different menu items for member versus guest features. Ignore these; if you have registered, you are a member. Also, the terms wizard and god are now referred to as operator and owner, respectively.
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Avatars
Your onscreen representation is referred to as your avatar. You first come into the Palace wearing the default avatar, which is a spherical yellow happy face sometimes known as a roundhead or a yellowhead. You can change expression and face color on your roundhead avatar. Later, you might want to edit the look of this face, or get a new avatar completely.
Right-clicking on an avatar displays the avatar's pop-up menu. The options on this menu vary according to avatar: your own, somebody else's, and if you have operator/owner capability.
If you click on somebody else's avatar, you get the following menu:
Use this menu to enter whisper mode with the selected party, mute and unmute them (muting another user prevents their messages from displaying on your screen), or see their user profile page on The Palace website. You can also toggle user names in the View Screen between their visible and their invisible states with the Show/Hide Names option. The avatar pop-up menu is sensitive to your current membership status; operators and owners have more options available when they click on somebody's avatar to bring up that avatar pop-up menu. See The Palace Operator's Guide for information on these options. Right-clicking on your own avatar displays the following avatar pop-up menu:
The options on your own menu let you quickly save or change avatars, wear props, select a new facial expression, edit your personal profile page on the Palace website, or change your user name. You can also change your name in the User Name field of your Preferences window (select Preferences from the Edit menu.) From this window, click the expression you want and your roundhead avatar wears this new expression. You can keep this window while moving around in the Palace, so you can change your appearance almost instantly. You can also type these expressions directly into your Input box at the bottom of your client window (if it's not activated, press the Tab key first or click in it) and then pressing Enter. If you have an extended keyboard (with a separate numeric keypad on one side), you can use the plus and minus keys on the keypad to change your face color as well. Face colors can be used to great effect in signifying emotional states, especially when used in conjunction with appropriate expressions (for example: red plus the "angry" face or blue plus the "sad" face.) Simply click on your roundhead avatar, and then press the side keyboard plus or minus key to step through the different colors. You can animate your avatar (for example, have a blinking eye). You do this through your prop edit window (to open your prop edit window, open your prop window using the instructions in Your prop window, select a prop, and click Edit). > Palace avatars have a fixed animation rate, and checking the Anim field of an individual piece will make the piece animate in rotation with any other of the pieces in the avatar that also have the Anim box checked. Since each avatar has a total of up to 9 pieces, 9 is the maximum number of "frames" that can be animated in one avatar. Note that you must have two or more props marked Anim to do this.
Most people just animate a "section" of an avatar. For example, they will take a six-piece avatar, and decide to animate something specific, such as an earring or winking eye. Use the following steps to do this: Your Profile Page is a web page providing information such as your name, email address, favorite Palaces, and interests to other users. Every registered Palace user has a profile page. These are listed online at The Palace website's Profile directory.
The Palace lets you completely replace your roundhead with a new image for your avatar. You import your new avatar image as a graphic file, which you then save as a prop. Depending on how big this avatar prop is, you either save it in your prop window and wear it like any other prop, or save it as a grouped collection of props in your Choose an Avatar window (see Changing expression and color). > An avatar is really just a collection of props, including at least one head prop (a prop that replaces the default roundhead image). This head prop serves as a "centerpiece" for the rest of the avatar. A prop measures 44 by 44 pixels; an avatar can contain up to 9 props (132 by 132 pixels). You can create your own avatars by importing bitmap graphic files that meet these size criteria. There are two ways to create your avatar, depending upon the size of the original image you've selected.
If your avatar image is no larger than 44 by 44 pixels, it can be made into a single prop: Your total avatar image can contain up to 9 props; that is, it can be up to 132 x 132 pixels in size. The following diagram illustrates the total available area in which props may be worn: a square made up of nine single-prop-sized squares.
The Edit Menu contains a command called Paste Multiple Props. Use this option to create an oversized prop by pasting a single image: An avatar is a specific "costume," including face color, expression and any props worn. If you have a "look" you like (for example, you are wearing special props, or have a new avatar image altogether), you can store this look for quick access when you want to change your appearance.
You do this through the Avatars window. To display this window, select Members from the Avatars menu, or Save/Wear avatars from your avatar pop-up menu. This window lets you store up to 22 avatars and instantly recall them, either by clicking in the listbox provided, or by using a corresponding hotkey combination (either Control-0 through Control-9 or F1 through F12). The Avatar window is divided into three parts, as shown in the following window. The scrolling list in the center of the window contains a slot for each Shortcut Key (these function as hotkey combinations for ultra-speedy changes). In addition, the list indicates which avatar slots are currently in use and which are available.
The avatar pop-up menu
NOTE: Always right-click above the avatar's name to get the menu; it won't appear if you click below the name.
Other avatars' menus
Your own avatar menu
Changing your name
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Enter the new name, or use the drop-down list to select a name, and click OK.
Changing expression and color
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Click the Guest Avatars button in the Toolbox.
Or
Or
When you type: You get:
:) or )
Happy
:( or (
Sad
:| or |
Normal
;) or ;
Winking
:[ or [
Angry
Customizing your roundhead avatar
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Changing your avatar appearance
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Animating your avatar
Another setting in the edit window that can affect animation is the Bounce setting. If the animating pieces don't have Bounce checked, they will animate in the order they were put on in rotation, (1,2,3,4,1,2,3,4,1,2,3,4 etc.) If Bounce is checked, the pieces go back and forth(1,2,3,4,3,2,1,2,3,4,3,2,1 etc.) Sometimes this can enhance the animation effect, and sometimes it's better not to use it. Experiment and see what works best for your prop.
NOTE: There's no elegant way to animate two completely different sections of one avatar, since they will alternate and produce a choppy effect.
> Profile pages
* To edit your own profile page
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From your avatar menu (right-click on your avatar to bring up this menu), select Edit Profile Page.
Or
From your Palace client's Edit menu, select Edit Profile Page.
* To see somebody else's profile page
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Or
Creating a new avatar
Single-Prop Avatars
Multiple-Prop Avatars
NOTE: No matter what size your avatar is, the default behavior of cartoon balloons is to appear from a point near the middle of the central cell (the position of the roundhead in the Prop Editor). Depending on where you want these cartoon balloons to appear from when you speak, you might want to place the individual pieces of your avatar manually (unless of course you like talking through your belly!)
> Saving and wearing your new avatar
NOTE: You can store more avatars by using the Shift and Control keys in combination with mouse clicks.
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Talking to people
The primary activity on any Palace site is conversation between people. Therefore it is not surprising that The Palace software provides you with a number of ways to express yourself.
The most commonly used form of speech is called talking. Talking is represented by "normal" text, appearing in a cartoon-balloon near the speaker's head (or center-most prop). To talk, click on the Input Box at the bottom of your screen (you may first have to press the Tab key activate the Input Box), type something, and press Enter. Your text will appear in a cartoon-balloon near your head. You can control the length of time text stays up on your screen by setting the Balloon Delay, which can be found under Preferences on the Edit Menu. From the Preferences window, you can also control the Font and Font Size used in all cartoon-balloons with the Change Font button. The default state of your cartoon-balloons is the normal "talking" balloon, as can be seen by a quick look at the Toolbox, where this button normally appears in a "down" state.
Of course, talking in a normal manner sometimes doesn't get your point across quite the way you mean it. For these situations, the Toolbox provides you with several additional types of cartoon-balloons, including shouting balloons, thinking balloons and rectangular sign balloons. There are two ways to change the type of balloon used to display a typed message. The easy way is to use the Toolbox, which includes a number of buttons dedicated to balloon control. The other way is to use special characters in front of your typed text. The following table explains how to activate the various balloon types, and illustrates their effect on an example message ("my message").
Special balloons
By clicking directly on another person's avatar with your left mouse button, or selecting Whisper from their avatar menu, you enter Whisper Mode. All other avatars on the screen become slightly darker, and the phrase Talking to: name indicates the name of the targeted user). At this point the person you have clicked on has no idea that they have been selected. To whisper to this person, simply type your message into the Input Box as usual. Both you and the other party will see your message appear on the screen in italics, but no one else will see the message. Subsequent messages continue to be private, until you de-select the person by clicking on the Status Bar or by selecting another person. You can also select Stop Whispering from that user's avatar pop-up menu (right-click on their avatar to display this menu).
The Palace software also allows you to whisper to people in distant rooms; this is called ESP. To do it, simply open the User List window (by selecting Find User from the Options menu) and click once on the name of the person you wish to speak to. Regardless of their location, they will see your message in italics (and no one else will). Operators are the authority figures of the Palace community; they tend to be either the owners of the site in question, or individuals who have been granted special powers and capabilities by the owners. In either case, a major concern for most operators is keeping the peace, and they possess an arsenal of commands allowing them to do just that. Operators are able to disconnect unruly users at will, or cause them to be banned from the site indefinitely. They can even ban whole domains if they decide it's necessary. In short, they're very powerful people.
Operators are also interested in making sure their site is viewed as a popular and hospitable place. For this reason many operators are happy to take a little time out of their day to explain the basics to a new user, or to help out with a tricky scripting task. If an unruly user is harassing you, or even if you just want a hand with some aspect of the site you're visiting, the best thing to do is page the local operators. Use the 'page command. For example: 'page Is there a website where I can get all the sounds for this Palace?
Whispering and ESP (private messages)
NOTE: Sounds and Special Balloons do not work in ESP Mode.
Keeping track of conversations with the log window
The Log window records a log of your session, including all conversations and actions by avatars in your room. The Log window displays by default; you can close it just like any other Windows dialog. To open it again, select Log Window from the Options menu, or click the Log button on the Toolbox.
Paging an operator
This statement, typed into the Input Box, will send your question to all operators currently logged on to the local Palace site. NOTE: This command should be used sparingly, and only when you actually do need help of some kind.
Finding people
The Palace makes it easy to find out who else is in your Palace through the User List window.
* To access the User List window
From the Options menu, select Find User. The User List window appears.
The Rooms List window (described in the section Jumping to a specific room) also lists how many users are in each room in your Palace. You can join others in that room through this window. > You can also find out where users are if they have allowed that information to be displayed in their Profile page. Bring up that person's profile page (see To see somebody else's profile page) and click Join me! on their page. >
- To send a private message, double click the user's name and type your message in the Input box.
- To join the user in their room by selecting their avatar name and clicking Goto.
Playing sounds
The Palace has a built-in set of audio files that everyone can use. These files are located in your Sounds folder (which is within the Media folder).
In addition to these standard sounds, many Palace operators add their own sounds to their own Palace sites. By default, these sounds download into Sounds folders beneath the \Media\ folders, although many of them are also available via the world wide web, and must be placed into the appropriate folder "by hand." If you have some sounds you'd like to play no matter what Palace site you are accessing, simply move (or copy) them to your \\Media\Sounds folder; any sound files placed here will always appear in the Sound List window, no matter which Palace site you are logged into. Remember, however, that only users who possess the same sounds themselves will be able to hear them when played.
* To play sounds
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The list of built-in sounds includes amen, applause, belch, boom, crunch, debut, fazein, guffaw, kiss, no, pop, teehee, and yes.
Select Play a Sound from the Options menu.
Or
Either of these display the Sounds window.
Click the Play Sound button in the toolbox.Or
Type a right parenthesis followed by the name of the sound:
)applause
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Moving around
There are several ways to move around in the Palace in a specific room: Although the various ways out of rooms are usually clearly marked, sometimes they are not. In a Palace site, any wall hanging or crystal ball might be a portal to another room. If your cursor changes to a hand while over an area, a door is present. When you click on a door, you are immediately transported through it (if it is open). Note that using the arrow keys to move onto a door does not activate the door. Doors go to rooms inside your current Palace.
Rooms can also have hot spots. You can click on these spots to go to other Palaces, send your web browser to a web site, or start a scripted event.
To move to other rooms or Palaces, use one of the following methods: >
Spots and doors
To show door outlines, click the Show/Hide Door Outlines button in the Toolbox, or press Shift-Control. Jumping to a specific room
Joining another user
Going forward and backwards
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Click the back/forward arrow buttons on the toolbox.
Props
A prop is an object that can be worn near or placed over your face, a small graphic object that you can hold (like a baseball bat or a cup) or attach to yourself (like a hat, a pair of sunglasses or a wig).
Palace members are able to pick up any loose props they find lying around, no matter what Palace site they happen to be in. You can keep these props in your prop window. You can even create and edit your own customized props, so you can create a new look for your avatar.
Your prop window
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Once the prop window is open, you can double-click on any prop to put it on, and double-click on it again to take it off.
Click the suitcase icon at the bottom right corner of your Palace client window.
The Prop Pop-Up Menu
The prop pop-up menu
General prop actions
Creating and editing props with the prop editor
Editing an existing prop
Creating a new prop
>- Open the original image using any quality graphic editor, and copy it.
- In the Palace software, open your prop window and click New to open the Prop Editor.
- Paste the image in the Prop Editor (Paste from the Edit Menu, or Control-V).
- Save your new prop by clicking OK.
You can use the Edit:Paste Multiple Props menu item to handle images larger than 44x 44. See
Multiple-Prop Avatars for more information. >Changing the position of your prop
While the prop editor is open, click on the Selector tool (the dotted square) to select your entire prop. The arrow keys on your keyboard may now be used to move the image around, relative to the central position of the roundhead. The total area allowed is equal to nine prop-sized squares, arranged in one big 3 by 3 square. Any prop may be saved while occupying any position in this large square, and the prop's position will be saved as well.
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