Network and Terminal FAQ

[animusmods]

How do I access the network?
To access the network, you have to access a terminal. These are stationary devices rarely located around the Tower. They cannot be taken from their locations, being attached to the Tower itself. When your character approaches a terminal that is not currently in use it will automatically turn on and log them into the network. The process is based on proximity; if two people approach a terminal the closer one will be logged in.

What does a terminal look like and where can I find them?
The exact look of the terminal varies depending on its location, but it consists of a monitor embedded into the wall and a keyboard embedded into a desk next to a large, similarly embedded touchpad that can also function as a tablet. The keyboard and touchpad/tablet can be shifted around into a few different positions for the comfort of the user. These terminals can be found in alcoves in the dormitory hallways or as stand-alone devices and clusters in the library levels. There are twenty to thirty terminals in the Tower.

Can I use other devices to connect to the network?
No. No other devices, unless provided by the administrators and explicitly said to function in this manner, can connect to the network. Cell phones, laptops, and similar items have had all their wireless functions completely removed and this cannot be fixed.

How close do I have to be to the network to be logged in?
You must be either sitting in the chair or standing in the general area of the chair. Once logged in you must remain at least three feet from the terminal or it may begin to idle.

Is there an IC network manual, guide, or help menu?
There is no provided guide, manual, or help menu unless another character makes one.

What options do I have for communicating on the network?
Network posts can be made via text, voice, and video.

How does the text option work?
The text option works similarly to a standard Dreamwidth post or comment window. Characters will be able to choose between HTML and Rich Text modes (the latter being the default). Standard HTML is allowed. Rich Text allows characters to change text size, color, bold/italicize/underline/strikethrough/superscript/subscript, link, embed images/voice/video, and change fonts.

There is also a speech-to-text option for characters who cannot for whatever reason use the keyboard.

How does the voice option work?
Characters have two options: they can record their voice posts and comments ahead of time and post them when they're happy with them or they can have a real-time voice conversation. A real-time voice conversation works exactly like a real life telephone conversation would, while recording beforehand is more like exchanging embedded mp3s. Real-time recording is the default voice option.

How does the video option work?
The video option works similarly to the voice option: characters can pre-record their video or record in real-time. Real-time video recording is the default video option.

Does the network have private messages?
The network does not have private messages, and while filtering to one character is possible that character will not be in any way notified that they have had a post filtered to them; the recipient will have to check the network themselves and find the post.

In general the network is not a good method for communicating with one individual character; it is more oriented toward group communication. It would be much more efficient to talk one-on-one in person.

Does my character receive notifications for replies to their comments and posts?
Yes; this works similarly to the Dreamwidth inbox notification system.

Can my character schedule a post in advance?
No.

My character can't see/read/type!
There are voice controls that will automatically be activated for characters who cannot use the network through another method. Voice controls can also be activated manually for characters who can use the network through other methods but just want to use voice controls. Characters who need voice texts read to them will have an automatic text-to-speech translator that will read the posts and comments for them; this can also be manually activated.

Can my character accidentally post to the network?
Generally no; the character must press the "post" button in order to post text, and voice and video must be initialized by a user. It would be possible for someone else to initialize a voice or video post for someone else without their knowledge if the person were to step away from the terminal, but that's not exactly accidental.

Is there a time limit for voice or video posts?
No, although the terminal will cut off the post itself if the character logged in is idle for more than ten minutes due to leaving the terminal/dying at the terminal.

Can I log out of my account?
There is a logout button on the top righthand corner of the terminal's screen. If not pressed, the terminal will automatically disconnect when the character last using the terminal has been away from the terminal for ten minutes.

What does the terminal do when I log out?
It displays a login screen and eventually goes into idle mode, which would turn off the screen. It is from this logged out login screen that technically proficient characters can do some altering of the way their account works (generally limited to strengthening filters/building especially complicated filters/building ways to break other filters), but this is quite difficult.

Can I log into someone else's account?
Generally no, as the other character needs to approach the terminal for it to log on. It would be possible to drag an unconscious person to a terminal and have it log on; this also works with recently killed bodies.

How can I search through the network?
Generally searching through the network is very time-consuming and involves manually looking back through all of the old posts. Characters skilled with computers can edit their accessibility to allow searches by date and ID number, including searching old administrative posts, including administrative posts that have been deleted.

Do posts have timestamps?
Posts and comments have timestamps unless otherwise noted.

Can my character edit or delete their posts and comments?
Characters cannot edit or delete comments once made. Posts may be edited, but there are is an option to see the original post content available to all characters. Posts cannot be deleted.

Does my character's name show up by their posts and comments?
Not by default. Each character is represented by an ID number that consists of their initial(s) followed by a number. OOCly this number is the ID number of the character's journal: were animusmods a character named Animus Mods their ID would be AM1232890. Someone with one initial, like America (colonial), would be A1138676.

So I have to remember a bunch of ID numbers?
There is a nickname option provided on the network. Once you know someone's name, you can have your account display that character's ID as any name you choose instead--so you can also have your character ICly make ridiculous nicknames for them to know everyone by if they so choose.

What about the administrators? Do they have ID numbers?
The administrators are a bit of a special case: they display as ADMIN followed by an initial. Dax is ADMIND, Riki is ADMINR, Jason is ADMINJ, and Zo is ADMINZ. Ruana has no ID or name at all displayed by her posts--the space where they would be is completely blank. Administrators cannot be nicknamed.

What about anonymous posts?
Anonymous posts have Anonymous displayed in place of the ID number.

Can my character lock their posts and comments?
The network does have a filtering system. Characters select from a drop-down menu who they want to filter a post or comment to or from. The basic, provided filters are not foolproof and are prone to glitching; even a properly made filter can fail just by a failure of the network. Mixing up "from" and "to" is also pretty easy from a user error standpoint.

After making a filter, a character will have the option to save that filter so they can use it repeatedly without having to build it again. They can edit this filter to add or remove people from it as well.

How do filtered posts display on the network?
If your character is not included in the filter/the post is filtered away from them, they will not see a post at all--it will be as if it doesn't exist. For characters included in the filter, the post will show up with a lock next to the ID, but they will not be able to see who else is included in the filter. The character who made the filter will be able to click on the lock and see who the post is filtered to.

Can my character filter posts or comments to or from the administrators?
The administrators are not available on the filter list. A character with an extremely high level of computer skill might be able to go in and force it to filter in this manner, but there's no telling if it really works or if it just appears to.

Can filters be broken?
A skilled character can break a standard filter. If they are attempting to break the filter of someone who has strengthened their filters it would depend on the respective skills of those characters. Unless otherwise noted, filters made by administrators cannot be broken.

Can my character link to other posts or comments on the network?
Yes; this is done similarly to linking to a Dreamwidth post or comment.

Does the terminal do anything besides connect to the network?
By default characters also have access to a simple paint program, notepad program, calculator, and a game similar to Slender. All of these programs are prone to strange glitches: characters may find strange or disturbing things have been drawn or written all on their own, the game may suddenly become hyper realistic, and the calculator may calculate in some form of math that doesn't seem like it should exist.

Can my character delete these programs?
No. They can try, but the program will always come back, and generally it will respond to deletion with glitches as if it were angry.

What language is the network in?
The network follows similar language rules to the rest of the Tower: generally everything typed will appear to be in the native language of the character looking at it unless whoever typed it intends for what they're typing to be in a certain language, in which case it would appear in that language.

What language is the keyboard in?
Characters will see the keyboard in their own language. Two characters who are standing next to each other looking at the same keyboard will each see it in their own language, even if their language would require a larger or smaller keyboard than the other character's would.

Can my character take the terminal apart?
They can take the keyboard and monitor apart, if they can pry the monitor from the wall. Neither of these contain the motherboard, etc. of the computer itself, and anything scavenged from the keyboard or monitor may or may not work properly.

Comments

[warriorscribe]

Can the terminals' camera take pictures and store them, or can the camera only record video?

[animusmods]

Pictures can be taken and stored, yes.

[warriorscribe]

Thanks!