User:WhiteWizard/ZoneChat

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Revision as of 11:06, 15 April 2007 (view source) WhiteWizard (Talk | contribs) (→The Problem) ← Older edit		Latest revision as of 12:37, 15 April 2007 (view source) GreyWizard (Talk | contribs) (→ZoneChat as a Solution: reformat)
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-	This is not meant as documentation for the Zone Chat program, rather, this is meant as an explanation for what it is, and why it is being implemented.	+	{|align=right
		+	|__TOC__
		+	|}This is meant as an explanation for what the ZoneChat program is, and why it exists.  It is not meant as documentation on how to use it.
-	First and most importantly: this system is ''experimental.'' If it fails in it's goals the wizards set out for, it may be changed dramatically or removed entirely.	+	==ZoneChat==
		+	'''Zone Chat''' (zchat) is a program for zone-wide chat.  Its purpose is to allow OOC chat and other socialization within an establishment while freeing you to participate in roleplays in other rooms.
-	==The Problem==	+	Zone chat can be turned on/off by users for themselves, and on/off by the admins of public zones.
-	Chatter. There is a lot of chatter, mostly OOC, that goes on in most zones.	+
-	* To chat everyone must go to the same room in a zone. This overcrowds single rooms. See [[Fox Plaza]].	+	==Experimental==
-	* Said overcrowded room becomes almost useless for non-chatter related purposes because of how spammy it gets.	+	'''Zone Chat''''s deployment is to be considered ''experimental.'' If it fails in it's goals it may be changed dramatically, removed or replaced with something else.
-	* This makes using the rooms for their intended purpose (see [[Policy Mission Statement]]) hard if not impossible in many situations.	+
-	* Some people really are here just to chatter, or are here to chatter when somewhere not allowing them the time to really play.	+	==The Problem==
		+	To chat, everyone must go to the same room in a zone. This overcrowds single rooms. See [[Fox Plaza]] compared to the rest of the Muck core, or the way that only a single room in any given establishment will draw a large crowd. This makes using the rooms for their intended purpose (See [[Policy Mission Statement]]) hard or impossible in many situations:
		+	* Using the room for roleplay is difficult due to how spammy it gets.
		+	* People are unwilling to explore other rooms because empty rooms are lonely.
		+	* People are unwilling to start a scene in the middle of other people's conversation.
-	==Zone Chat==	+	==ZoneChat as a Solution==
-	Zone chat creates a chatter chat channel that is zone wide with out being muck wide. It can be turned on/off either entirely by each user, as well as zone by zone for zones you just don't want to listen to when your in them. It allows for user-defined output formats to aid in highlighting and blocking. It can also be disabled in part or whole by zone admins that feel it detracts from their area.	+	ZoneChat's purpose is to separate chatter from roleplay.
-	Advantages:	+	It is designed so that:
-	* Allows the solution of having an OOC area within a zone for all zones.	+	* Instead of being forced to a central room, people can participate in, watch, or wait for scenes in different rooms without missing out on socialization.
-	* People can stay in parts of the zone that they wish to, rather than being forced into a central room.	+	* If the chatter becomes disruptive to a scene, it can be turned off.
-	* Helps separate general chatter (light-IC and OOC) from scening and roleplay.	+	* Zone owners can disable zchat if they think it's not right for their area.
-	* Opt-out allows people RPing to focus on play. Or just ignore chatter if they wish.	+	* People still need to get out of their homes to chat.
-	* Zone by Zone enabling/disabling allows zone owners to decide if it's right for their area or not.	+	* All zones can have an OOC/chatter area without disrupting the Muck's mission.
-	* Still makes people get out of their homes to chat.	+
	Disadvantages:		Disadvantages:
-	* Makes people get out of their homes to chat.	+	* People still need to get out of their homes to chat.
	==Other Considered Solutions==		==Other Considered Solutions==
-	Other solutions we looked at.	+	Other solutions we considered.
	===IRC/Shout like system===		===IRC/Shout like system===
-	This allows people to chatter with out ever leaving their homes, thus failing to encourage people to be out in public on the Muck. It is thus not an optimal solution.	+	This allows people to chatter without ever leaving their homes, thus failing to encourage people to be out in public on the Muck. It is thus not an optimal solution.
	===OOC Room off the Plaza===		===OOC Room off the Plaza===

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Latest revision as of 12:37, 15 April 2007

Contents 1 ZoneChat 2 Experimental 3 The Problem 4 ZoneChat as a Solution 5 Other Considered Solutions 5.1 IRC/Shout like system 5.2 OOC Room off the Plaza 5.3 OOC Areas in Zones 5.4 Subscription based IRC 5.5 Other

This is meant as an explanation for what the ZoneChat program is, and why it exists. It is not meant as documentation on how to use it.

ZoneChat

Zone Chat (zchat) is a program for zone-wide chat. Its purpose is to allow OOC chat and other socialization within an establishment while freeing you to participate in roleplays in other rooms.

Zone chat can be turned on/off by users for themselves, and on/off by the admins of public zones.

Experimental

Zone Chat's deployment is to be considered experimental. If it fails in it's goals it may be changed dramatically, removed or replaced with something else.

The Problem

To chat, everyone must go to the same room in a zone. This overcrowds single rooms. See Fox Plaza compared to the rest of the Muck core, or the way that only a single room in any given establishment will draw a large crowd. This makes using the rooms for their intended purpose (See Policy Mission Statement) hard or impossible in many situations:

• Using the room for roleplay is difficult due to how spammy it gets.
• People are unwilling to explore other rooms because empty rooms are lonely.
• People are unwilling to start a scene in the middle of other people's conversation.

ZoneChat as a Solution

ZoneChat's purpose is to separate chatter from roleplay.

It is designed so that:

• Instead of being forced to a central room, people can participate in, watch, or wait for scenes in different rooms without missing out on socialization.
• If the chatter becomes disruptive to a scene, it can be turned off.
• Zone owners can disable zchat if they think it's not right for their area.
• People still need to get out of their homes to chat.
• All zones can have an OOC/chatter area without disrupting the Muck's mission.

Disadvantages:

• People still need to get out of their homes to chat.

Other Considered Solutions

Other solutions we considered.

IRC/Shout like system

This allows people to chatter without ever leaving their homes, thus failing to encourage people to be out in public on the Muck. It is thus not an optimal solution.

OOC Room off the Plaza

At least it gets people out, but it creates an area on the Muck which can't be used for the core mission of the muck. This just seems to concentrate the problem rather than solve it.

OOC Areas in Zones

Same as above, just more broken up into interest areas. Seems like a poor implementation of IRC.

Subscription based IRC

Force users to go out to public places to subscribe to channels they wish to listen to each time they connect to force them to interact with the rest of the muck and still giving channel-based chatter. Considered so contrived that people would just resent the system. (It IS that contrived.)

Other

Lots of other things were considered too which I forget at this time. :)