[MUD-Dev] Re: Issues from the digests and Wout's list

[Shawn Halpenny]

clawrenc at cup.hp.com wrote:

[ explanation of free user-prog'ing and security functions ]

> The other corner of the secutiry triangle rests on the fact that a
> child may only inherit from a parent if the parent allows it.  I do
> not allow free inheritance.  It is up to the parent to rule whether or
> not it will accept tha parent.  Ditto for disinheritance.
> 
> How this impacts free user programming is that all newly created
> objects auto-inherit from $NEW_OBJECT.  Nobody but an admin can remove
> that inheritance ($NEW_OBJECT refuses to release the child).  Objects
> can also inherit from $VALIDATED_OBJECT (again, only admins can do
> this) if its needed to create an object which is still a $NEW_OBJECT
> but needs to be able to do a little more.

Ah, I see.  Mandatory safe inheritance implies that JoeUser can't get
hold
of an admin object and derive something nasty from it.	I hadn't thought
of using inheritance this way but it seems it would work perfectly.

> >Security becomes the biggest
> >issue, methinks, and with my language (at the moment, I intend to use
> >Perl) there are a lot of nasty things users shouldn't do that are
> >perfectly legal if you're an admin.
> 
> I keep looking at using a pre-existant language for my server, with
> PIKE and REXX being the main candidates, but I've yet to find one I
> think I could be happy with both for learning curve for new users, and
> feature set.
> 
> BTW Have you looked at PerlMUD?

Nope.  I'd heard of it, but never taken a look.  Is the entire thing
written in Perl or is Perl just embedded?  If the former, I've no
interest
in it; the latter might prompt some looking.

--
Shawn Halpenny

"People that are really very weird can get into sensitive
 positions and have a tremendous impact on history."
                                    - Dan Quayle