Subject: Re: MOO + gaming system[s]

From: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 24 Sep 1993 10:16:12 -0700

> Pfui.  Saying MOO stands for "MUD Object-Oriented" and therefore all
> MOOs are MUDS misses the point.  They seem to be attracting different
> cultures.  It's like saying "a Hopi is just a Londoner who doesn't
> speak English."

I never said that most MUDs were in the same league with most MOOs.  Just
 that MOO is a MUD environment.  MOO's environment has made more advanced
 development possible in MOO than in most other MUDs.  I guess it depends
 on if you think MUD is a dirty word or not.

--- Dov Sherman
    [email-masked]

---

From: Greg Hudson <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 24 Sep 1993 10:47:53 -0700

ab3588:
> I never said that most MUDs were in the same league with most MOOs.
> Just that MOO is a MUD environment.  MOO's environment has made more
> advanced development possible in MOO than in most other MUDs.  I
> guess it depends on if you think MUD is a dirty word or not.

Sigh.  I really hate to add to this thread, but I'm getting tired of
the informed people failing to get through to the uninformed people.

MUD is a very broad term.  It encompasses LP-MUD and DikuMUD
(generally used as straightforward games, although LPmud does have a
C-like, object-oriented language, not terribly unlike MOO), as well as
TinyMUD (not used much any more), TinyMUCK, TinyMUSH, TinyMUSE
(popularly in use for chatting, just like most of what goes on on
LambdaMOO), UberMUD and UnterMUD (programmable servers taking a
functional approach, although not terribly different from MOO sans
inheritance; not much in use), COOLMUD, and Coldmud.

There is no attribute which distinguishes MOOs from other types of
muds.  MOOs are not the only socially-oriented muds, by a long shot;
they are vastly outnumbered in that regard by mushes and by mucks.
MOOs are not the only programmable servers; again, they are
outnumbered by LP-MUDs and by mucks.  MOOs are not the only
object-oriented servers; LP-MUD, COOLMUD, and Coldmud provide
object-oriented languages.

To address bhayes specificially: no, MOOs are *not* attracting
different cultures than other kinds of muds, unless you count media
researchers as a separate culture.  A significant number of other
types of servers are populated by people who have absolutely no
interest in killing orcs, or even in role-playing Star Trek
characters.

I suggest that people who still maintain that MOOs do not belong in
the category of 'mud' actually spend some time on a significant
variety of other brands of muds before they try to speak
authoritatively.

--GBH
Oh, and thank you, Schlake.

---

From: [email-masked] (Billy Chambless)
Date: Fri, 24 Sep 1993 10:52:30 -0700

> > cultures.  It's like saying "a Hopi is just a Londoner who doesn't
The communication problem here is that, while MOOs are tech nically a type
of MUD, the word MUD has a negative connotation to many people.
>  on if you think MUD is a dirty word or not.

MUD != battle-oriented LPMUD hack-n-slash.

And no, I'm not critcizing combat muds, just saying that MOOs
usually are more socially oriented.
-- 
* In Real Life: Billy Chambless		    University of Southern Mississippi 
* "Blast it, Jim, I'm a programmer, not an electrician!!"
* =============================================================================