Telnet Talkers Basic Commands

This document is intended to guide the new user through the basics of telnet talker commands through screen-shots, minimal text, and reprinted help that is available when on line. The concepts will be easy and familiar to some, while others who have never tried this may benefit from a little initial guidance. A key thing to remember is that all commands begin with a “.” character. You will see this in the examples on the following pages. When logged in to the talker, your typing becomes a “say” that everyone sees. Your commands are differentiated by the “.” preceding what you type. Initial login screen: Post-login down the rabbit hole: The “.who” command showing who is logged in at the moment:

Online help [.h command name] is available for commands:

.h who Command : who Usage : who Aliases : @ This shows a full list of people currently logged on to the talker, including descriptions, areas, etc. Level : JAILED and above

[Never mind that "JAILED" business. That is for more 'advanced' users.] Notice that Kesey and Guedo are in the main (entrance) room, while Alice (remember Alice? It’s a song about Alice…) is in her personal room. All users have their own rooms available if desired. [see .myroom]

The “.read” command – read notes on the message board:

.h read Command : read Usage : read [<room>] [<message>] This displays the message board of the given room, providing you have access to that room (i.e., it is not fixed to private). If no room is given it defaults to your current room. If you use the <message> option, then you will read only that specific message number for the room given, or the room you are in if no room name is supplied. Level : NEW and above

The “.ex” (examine) command. Alice examines herself, revealing her profile and some information:

Command : examine Usage : examine <user> This commands shows you the users profile and various useful statistics relating to the users current or most recent login. Level : USER and above

The “.map” command shows the room layout. Some rooms do not appear on this map so it is less cluttered. There actually are over 60 rooms:

.h map Command : map Usage : map This will show you a map of the current area of the talker you are in. Level : USER and above

To say something to the entire room, simply type and hit enter. To say something privately to another user, use the ".tell" command:

.h tell Command : tell Usage : tell <user> <text> Aliases : > This allows you to speak privately to another user without having to find a private room. Level : NEW and above

The ".shout" command:

.h shout Command : shout Usage : shout <message> Aliases : [ This allows you to "shout" to the whole talker. Level : SUPER and above

The ".desc" command - enter a short description of yourself that appears next to your name:

.h desc Command : desc Usage : desc [<text>] This sets the message for your description, i.e., that which follows your name when other people view the room or use the "who" command,tt etc. If you omit the description it displays your current one. Level : NEW and above

Use ".entpro" to write a profile for yourself:

.h ent Command : entpro Usage : entpro [<text>] This command allows you to enter a lengthy description (profile) of yourself that people will see when they use the "examine" command. Since you can write anything you like here people tend to use it for all sorts of things. Level : USER and above

You can use text or ASCII graphics and ANSI colors [see .colour command] in your profile and elsewhere. Some users get pretty fancy with this. Here is the classic graphic profile for user "Crazychick" aka "BadKitty":

The ".cbuff" command is good to know. This clears the chat buffer so any user logging in later can't see what was said. Sometimes, that can be an important thing:

.h cbuf Command : cbuff Usage : cbuff Aliases : * Clears the conversation buffer of the room you are currently in. Level : USER and above

Aside from talking, emoting is the most popular command. Sometimes, it's more popular than talking:

.h emote Command : emote Usage : emote <text> Aliases : ; or : (apostrophe: :' or ;') Emotes allow you to express emotions. A example would be "Realm feels sad". If you were logged in as Andy you would enter ".emote smirks" and your user name will be prefixed to the front. The result is seen in the room you are currently in. You may also use a leading apostrophe to produce results such as: "Realm's face breaks into a grin". Level : NEW and above

Move from one virtual place to another with the ".go" command:

.h go Command : go Usage : go [room] This command moves you to another room, providing that room is adjoined and is not set to private (unless you have been invited into that room). If you omit the room name you will be moved straight to the main room (i.e., that room which you start in). Level : NEW and above

Have a ".look" at your surroundings:

.h look Command : look Usage : look Shows the description of the current room, who is in it, how many messages are on the board and the rooms access. Level : NEW and above

Those are perhaps the most important basics to smooth your transition into the virtual world of telnet talkers. I hope these pages have been of some help. Please advise me of any errors and feel free to make suggestions.