[MUD-Dev] Collecting ideas for a MUD server... (fwd)

[J C Lawrence]

On Wed, 22 Dec 1999 22:14:44 -0500 (EST) 
Rahul Sinha <rsinha at glue.umd.edu> wrote:

> Most muds have one monolithic code base. this is bad, the LPC
> driver-mudlib split makes more sense.  Why are they that way? 

There is a third model: Both the driver and the MUDlib being written
in the same language, or at least atop of the same VM.  Probably the
best examples enclude Java based MUDs, usually using Java for the
base server, and then Java, JPython, or any of the many other
languages written atop the standard JVM for the world definition.

> the Diku heritage. (this is an example of history being wrong)

While arguably DIKU did many thing "wrong" it rendered at least one
great service: DIKU introduced the basic concepts of template based
programming and object definition to MUDs and from that base spawned
a whole set of derivative concepts around OLC.

> I split this off into a seperate binary, no need for npcs to be
> treated differnetly than pcs, they can operate in the same
> thread. the ncp-specific work being done in the other binary, as
> the main mud does not need to include this code (not to mention,
> this allows for different development cycles for the two,
> unrelated, projects

If you dig back in the archives you can find a rather well thought
out area-based thread model that Nathan Yospe was going to (or did)
use.  IIRC there are some interesting corner cases he discusses in
area boundaries and the like that you may wish to consider.

>> I implemented this because people can create their own worlds
>> offline and when they start each becomes a shard.  And two
>> players with mutual agreeance can create links between their
>> worlds and thus users can navigate over player created terrains.

> so distribute the server binaries, and code in a easy way to link
> servers.

While I don't know the mechanics of how he does it, Dr Cat does
something not entirely unrelated to this with Furcadia.  I recall
that he's discussed the high level features of these "dreams"
(corret term?) on the list, but not the implementation.

--
J C Lawrence                                 Home: claw at kanga.nu
----------(*)                              Other: coder at kanga.nu
--=| A man is as sane as he is dangerous to his environment |=--


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