GETTING HELP

While many MOOs have their own website which may offer support to the user, it is also possible to obtain help from within the MOO itself.  This section provides some general information about how to get help when using a MOO.

Although different MOOs may have other help features such as the page help function, there are essentially three main ways in which you can obtain help in a MOO:

ONLINE HELP

Each MOO has an inbuilt help system.  To access it, simply type <help> to see the list of topics for which it is possible to obtain help.  If you already know what topic you require help with, type <help <topic name>>.

Some rooms in certain MOOs have their own help information.  You can usually find out how to access this by reading the room description very carefully.  This type of help is usually easy to understand.

NB: Most online help information has been written for programmers by programmers and may not be transparent to the non-technically aware MOO user.  If in doubt, ask another player or a wizard for help.

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ASK ANOTHER PLAYER

MOOs are collaborative environments.  Most MOO users learn about using MOOs by 'talking' to each other and asking questions.  If the online help is incomprehensible, the quickest way to find the answer to a problem is to ask someone else.  Most users are happy to help, and, for language learners, the need to ask for explanations provides an authentic reason for communication.

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ASK A WIZARD

Sometimes, you may have a question about MOO which cannot be answered by an ordinary player.  In this case, ask a MOO administrator or wizard for help.

You can find out whether there are any wizards online at the same time as you by typing <@wizards>.  If a wizard is connected, you can page a help request to him/her.  If no wizard is connected, the quickest way to find out who the administrators are is to ask another player.  You can then use MOOmail to ask your question.

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PAGE HELP

Within a MOO, certain players may be designated to answer questions about using the MOO.  Different MOOs have different ways of indicating who these players are, but it is usually possible to ask them for help by paging a help request by typing either:

<page help>

or

<page <character name> help>

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Last updated 30th January 1999
Authors: Lesley Shield and Markus J.Weininger