What is a MOO?
Every computer runs in response to a basic set of programs and functions. This set of programs and functions are typically called the computer’s operating system. In the PC world, the most common set of programs and functions is DOS (disk operating system). Once the PC is started with DOS, everything else that can be done on the PC relies upon the basic set of programs and functions provided by DOS. The MOO database operates in essentially the same manner as DOS, from the user’s (that’s you) perspective. The MOO database consists of a basic set of programs and functions. All other operations rely upon these programs and functions to operate. A computer which is being run with the MOO operating system is called the MOO server. “MOO” stands for MUD, Object Oriented, and a MUD is a Multi-User Dungeon (or Dimension)–a site that allows users to connect through telnet or other clients. MUDs offer users a text-based virtual reality and the ability to communicate in real time. Most MOO’s have
If you’ve ever played zork, you know the basics of what a MOO is. It’s a virtual space you can interact with and explore, by typing (sometimes cryptic) commands. But a MOO is more than that. It’s multi-user, so you won’t just be interacting with a game environment, but with other people who are also logged into the MOO. It’s dynamic, some users of the MOO can create new objects, and build new areas. This only scratches the surface of what a MOO is, but the best way to find out more is to give it a try. Just beware — MOOs are addictive!
MOO stands for MUD object oriented, and the acronym MUD can be translated as multi-user domain, multi-user dimension or multi-user dungeon. The MOO is a text-based virtual reality system, which was once commonly used as a means of socializing or game playing. The idea for MOOs came from the number of people who played games online together, which were often text-based adventure games. The earliest MOO programming was developed by Stephen White, but the first huge step was the text-based “world” called LambdaMOO, created by Pavel Curtis, who corrected earlier bugs in White’s programs. It first went up in 1990, when most people had only dial up connections to the Internet, and was often accessed through UNIX based servers, through telnet connections. Users could not only talk and chat in various “rooms” together, but could also create their own objects, rooms, characters, and commands using fairly simple programming, called MOO programming language, which then would be added to the total
A MOO is an object-oriented database housed on a (remote) server. Users from around the world can log into a MOO to communicate with other MOO users, or players, either synchronously (in real time) or asynchronously. MOO stands for “Multi-User Domain – Object Oriented”. [Top] A BRIEF HISTORY OF MOO MOO is a type of MUD [Multi User Domain (or Multi User Dungeon)]. MUDs were originally developed in 1979 to allow for role-playing games to be engaged in across computer networks. By the early 1990s, an adaptation of MUD, the MOO, had been created at Xerox PARC and the technology which began as a game was further investigated at MIT Media Lab to see whether it could be used employed for serious purposes by professional communities. Since then, MOOs have increasingly been used for educational purposes. [Top] ESSENTIAL FEATURES OF MOO: • Users communicate with each other solely in text. This is why technologies like MUD are sometimes referred to as “text-based virtual reality” or TBVR. • MOOs
