[MUD-Dev] Usability and interface and who the hell is supposed to be playing, anyway? (Was: PK Again)

[Marian Griffith]

On Wed 24 Sep, Caliban Tiresias Darklock wrote:

> On Wednesday, September 24, 1997 4:29 AM, clawrenc at cup.hp.com 
> [SMTP:clawrenc at cup.hp.com] wrote:

> > Reese reports that being a fisherman, and thus spending ones play time
> > sittting about fishing and telling stories is popular with a certain
> > set of players.  One could easily imagine a similar scenario for
> > musicians sitting about strumming and swapping songs.

> Note that you would not actually need a fishing skill or musical instrument 
> skill for either of the above. I agree, musicians are a nice thing, they 
> contribute vastly to the enjoyment of the world; but why do we actually 
> need game mechanics to handle it?

My original reply to this was snipped. I still maintain that there are
many ways in which an instrument skill could be usefull in a game, and
not just to solve a particular quest.  It does require a game  that is
elevated above the typical mud where the sole purpose is to kill.

> > >> All of us are PROGRAMMERS.

> > Most of the active list participants are programmers, of which Marian
> > (nod) is the most obvious non-programmer.  She's not alone.

> She's very programmer-like in her approach to things, however, and I would 
> hazard a guess that if she decided she *wanted* to be a programmer it 
> wouldn't be too difficult. Part of this is just a basic logical intellect 
> and problem-solving ability, as well as the associated knack for seeing the 
> way things should probably work. I wouldn't say she's *obviously* a 
> non-programmer. ;)

Believe me I'm not a programmer. I have a real ability to make computers
not work ;) I do on the other hand have plenty experience talking to the
coders of a assortion of muds  to try to explain what I thought would be
a great idea.

> I'm very concerned with such issues, myself, because I tend to do a lot of 
> things at once.

My guess would be that the game should supply the obvious action  without
bothering the user with it.  If you want to get something from your back-
pack  and you have your hands full  the game should simply put away/sheat
whatever you have in your hands and get it. And if you're wearing a cloak
it should remove that first as well.
When you are attacked  you should automatically  try to draw your weapon,
but at other times you should not run around wielding it. And so on. I am
not certain if such messages should appear or not.
] Get bread from your backpack.
You put your sword away and drop your shield before you remove your back-
pack. It's dark in the cavern so you have to feel your way around inside.
After a little searching you think you find a stale bread and you take it
out.

or

] Get bread backpack
Ok. You now have a bread in your right hand.

Personally I prefer the first, but I guess that the majority of power
gamers would hate it for being too spammy.  It does however tell that
to find the bread you had to remove sword shield and backpack. If you
suddenly have to run  you probably would forget  one or more of them.
If on the other hand you simply move on  the game should pick them up
for you again.

Marian
--
Yes - at last - You. I Choose you. Out of all the world,
out of all the seeking, I have found you, young sister of
my heart! You are mine and I am yours - and never again
will there be loneliness ...

Rolan Choosing Talia,
Arrows of the Queen, by Mercedes Lackey