===================================

   The Palace (R)
   UNIX Palace Server
   Version 4.5.1
   July, 2000

   Copyright 2000 Communities.com.
   All rights reserved.

===================================




CONTENTS
========================

- System Requirements
- If you are upgrading from a previous release
- Installing the UNIX Palace Server
- Undocumented Preferences
- What's New in this release
- Known Issues
- Contact Information
- Technical Support



SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
===========================================

You need the following to run the Palace UNIX server:

Platforms: The UNIX Palace Server runs on the following
UNIX platforms:

 - Alpha processor running Digital Unix v4.0A or later. 
 - Intel processor running Linux kernel 2.0.36 or later
 - SPARC processor running Solaris 2.5.1 or later
 - Intel processor running BSDI 3.0 or later

RAM and Disk Space: We recommend a minimum of 64 megs of RAM on your UNIX server 
and 2 gigs or more of drive space total.  The server itself can run in as few as 
12 megs of free RAM and 20 megs of drive space.  The server doesn't take up that 
much drive space, but some additional space will be required for prop file growth, 
server logs, operating system, swap space, and other necessities.


IF YOU ARE UPGRADING FROM A PREVIOUS RELEASE
============================================

If you are familiar with upgrading PalaceServers over the last several 
releases, nothing important has changed in this regard.


Upgrading from 4.4.1 (the previous release) is easy.

1. Back up your current server installation.

2. Run the installer.

3. Install the new server in a different directory from the last server.

4. Answer all the questions asked during the installation. There is no
   need to enter the serial number/registration code.

5. Once the installation is finished, cd to installdir/bin/

6. cp pserver /path/to/old/version/bin/

7. cp psfront /path/to/old/version/bin/

8. Start the server.

If you are upgrading from 4.3 or earlier.

1. Make a copy of your current UNIX installation first, to ensure
   you have a backup. Rename your current Palace directory, and install
   the new server into a directory with your old Palace directory name.
   See below for the basic installation process and related notes.

2. Do *not* start the UNIX Palace server yet.

3. Move the new UNIX Palace server's pserver.prefs and pserver.pat files
   out of the new Palace server's <installdirectory>/palace/psdata
   directory. Copy your old pserver.dat and pserver.prp files to
   that location (<installdirectory>/palace/psdata).

4. Review your pserver.conf file for accuracy if you don't use all of
   the default settings. Replacing the new pserver.conf file with your old
   one is not recommended since some upgrades do add new fields that
   would not be in your old pserver.conf.

5. Copy your old media into <installdirectory>/palace/media.

6. Start your new Palace server. Your new pserver.prefs and pserver.pat
   files are created automatically from your current settings.  Your old
   pserver.dat file will no longer be used, as the server converted it to
   the new pserver.prefs and pserver.pat files that it will read and write.
   You should move the file to another location for backup purposes after
   starting the server.




INSTALLING THE UNIX PALACE SERVER
========================================
The Palace server and its associated files come in a single easy-to-use
package. Use the following directions to set up your Palace server.

  NOTE: You should be a non-root user to install the Palace server
        software.


To download The Palace, go to the Downloads page of The Palace website
(www.thepalace.com) and select The Palace Server for UNIX. You can
choose among several options for downloading:

 - You can download the server executable plus a Palace "template".
   A template is a look and feel for a Palace, including all sounds,
   artwork, scripts, and layout. The standard Palace templates include
   such things as an office and beach resort. Your registration code will
   be emailed to you.

 - You can also download as many Palace templates to your machine as you
   like. Then, you can pick and choose among them whenever you want to change
   the look of your Palace. Use the `roomsfile command to do this.


After you download your files to install, do the following:

1. Decompress the Palace Source Files. The Palace files are distributed in
   tar.gz format. The first step therefore is to decompress the tar image
   file by running gunzip:

	% gunzip <filename>

   <filename> differs from platform to platform. The general format
   of <filename> is: server-version-cpu-vendor-OS.tar.gz. For example,

        pserver-4.5.1-i686-unknown-linux.tar.gz

   Gzip/gunzip is the standard compression software used for distributing UNIX
   software on the Internet. If you don't already have it, you can download
   source code from ftp://prep.ai.mit.edu/pub/gnu/ or any of the GNU
   mirror sites. Precompiled versions are available from a number of places,
   including:    ftp://ftp.netscape.com/pub/unsupported/gnu/.

2. Extract the Palace Files. The preceding step produces a single tar file
   roughly three megabytes in size. To extract the Palace files from this
   file, use the tar -xf command. For example:

	% tar -xf pserver-4.5.1-i686-unknown-linux.tar

3. Run the Installation Script. The files obtained from the previous step will
   include a script called install. This script, which varies
   slightly from UNIX to UNIX, installs the Palace binaries, scripts and
   multimedia assets on your computer:

	% ./install



UNDOCUMENTED PREFERENCES
==============================================

The Palace server preferences file (pserver.prefs) contain preference
keywords that you can set with commands. It also contains preferences
that you should not edit. The latter keywords are undocumented, and
are not meant to be changed.



WHAT'S NEW IN THIS RELEASE
==============================================

The UNIX 4.5.1 Palace Server has many new features. These include:


Additional start up script
Changes to Existing Commands
New Commands
New Room Flag
New Spot Types
Type 1 Avatars Allowed


ADDITIONAL STARTUP SCRIPT
==============================================

Typically, a user will use bin/start-palace to start up the pserver.

We have provided an additional script for users to make startup of
a pserver using plugins much simpler.  This script is start-plugin.
It is identical to start-palace with the addition of a call to load
the plugin.conf file located in palace/psdata/plugin.conf.  We have
provided an empty file with comments on how to add the calls to the
plugins you wish to run in that location.



CHANGES TO EXISTING COMMANDS
==============================================
Several existing commands now have new functionality:

- `kill
- `track
- `help
- `autoannounce
- All commands with on/off capabilities

The `kill function now kills only for the default time.  If you wish to
kill for a length of time different from the default, you must now
use `killfor (see below for details).

The `track function now tracks only for the default time.  If you wish to
track for a length of time different from the default, you must now
use `trackfor (see below for details).

The `help function remains the same for non-operators.  For owners and 
operators, however, `help now displays a "menu" of categories.  For
example, `help admin shows the administrative commands and `help commandname
shows information on a given command.  For a full list of all commands
in alphabetical order, use `help all.

The `autoannounce function still sets the server greeting to "message".
However, `autoannounce with no "message" now displays the current message.
To clear the server greeting, type `autoannounce "".

Any commands with on/off capability which used different commands 
to enable or disable the feature have been modified for 
consistent behavior. `command shows the status for these types of
commands; `command on turns the command on; `command off turns the command
off.


NEW COMMANDS
==============================================

Several new commands have been added:

Type 1 avatar commands:
- `avatardirectory
- `avatardiskcachelimit
- `avatarformats
- `avatarmaxdimensions
- `avatarmaxsize
- `avatarmemorycachelimit
- `flushavatarcache

Other commands:
- `forward 
- `killfor
- `tock
- `trackfor


TYPE 1 AVATAR COMMANDS
==============================================
Type 1 avatars are a single piece avatar, unlike the current prop based
(or Type 0) system used on Palace Servers.  These avatars can be easily
imported, worn or shared by TPV users.  The new commands listed below allow
server operators to control parameters related to Type 1 avatar use.


New `avatardirectory command
----------------------------
There is a new owner command `avatardirectory which allows owners
to create a directory in which to store new custom avatars.  The
syntax is
             	`avatardirectory pathname
The path name here cannot be a full path name, but a path name relative 
to the server root, usually installdir/palace/.  For example, 
`avatardirectory type1 would use a directory in location: 
installdir/palace/type1.  Note that the directroy must exist.


New `avatardiskcachelimit command
---------------------------------
There is a new owner command `avatardiskcachelimit which allows owners
to specify the maximum disk cache memory (in megabytes) allotted to 
avatars. The syntax is
           	`avatardiskcachelimit disklimit


New `avatarformats command
----------------------------
There is a new owner command `avatarformats which allows owners to
state which formats they will allow avatars to be created in. The
syntax is
           	 `avatarformats formats separated by space
				e.g. `avatarformats gif jpeg


New `avatarmaxdimensions command
--------------------------------
There is a new owner command `avatarmaxdimensions which allows owners
to set the maximum dimensions (in pixels) for a single avatar. 
The syntax is
           	`avatarmaxdimensions width height


New `avatarmaxsize command
----------------------------
There is a new owner command `avatarmaxsize which allows owners to 
specify the maximum size for a single avatar.  The default and maximum
size is 14K. The syntax is
		`avatarmaxsize size


New `avatarmemorycachelimit command
-----------------------------------
There is a new owner command `avatarmemorycachelimit which allows 
owners to set the maximum amount of memory cache (in magabytes) 
devoted to avatars. The syntax is
		`avatarmemorycachelimit memlimit


New `flushavatarcache command
-----------------------------
There is a new owner command `flushavatarcache which allows owners
to flush the avatar cache memory.  The syntax is
		'flushavatarcache


OTHER COMMANDS
==============================================

New `forward command
-----------------------------
There is a new operator command which allows operators to set the server
to automatically move users from one room to another when the first room
becomes full.  For example, `forward 86 110 will move users to room
110 when room 86 becomes full.  You can set this up as a loop, but be
careful: if all rooms become full, you'll have an endless loop disaster
on your hands.  The syntax is
		`forward from to

If you wish to forward the room you are in to another room, the 'from' is
assumed.  In the previous example, if you were in Room 86, you could just enter
		`forward 110
		
and the equivalent to `forward 86 110 would be used.


New `killfor command
-----------------------------
There is a new operator command `killfor which allows operators
to kill (disconnect) a user for variable lengths of time.  
The syntax is
		'killfor minutes name
		
`kill will only kill a user for the default time period now.  The change was
made to improve the reliability of the kill command when specifying a variable
time.


New `tock command
-----------------------------
There is a new operator command `tock which sends a message to
the client announcing the servertime.  The syntax is
		`tock
		
This chat can be parsed by a roomscript and used as a standard reference
for time as well.


New `trackfor command
-----------------------------
There is a new operator command `trackfor which allows operators
to track a user for a variable length of time.  The syntax is
		'trackfor minutes name
		
`track will only track a user for the default time period now.  The change was
made to improve the reliability of the track command when specifying a variable
time.



NEW ROOM FLAG
==================================================
The client does not yet support authoring this new room flag,
therefore, in order to use it, you must edit it directly
into the pat file.


NOLOOSEPROPS
-----------------------------
Adding NOLOOSEPROPS to the ROOMFLAGS portion of the Room Description
causes any props dropped by users to vanish instantly, thus reducing
clutter in your room.




NEW SPOT TYPES
==================================================
The client does not yet support authoring these new spot types,
therefore, in order to use them, you must edit them directly
into the pat file.


MANDATORY
-----------------------------
This type means users must be in a MANDATORY area.  It is 
very similar to NAVAREA, but, because it is server
enforced, users cannot circumvent the intended behavior.

FORBIDDEN
-----------------------------
This type means that users cannot be in the specified area.  It 
is very similar to DONTMOVEHERE, but, because it is server
enforced, users cannot circumvent the intended behavior.

LANDINGPAD
-----------------------------
This type means that users will enter a room in the specified area.



TYPE 1 AVATARS ALLOWED
==================================================

You can now create and store Type 1 avatars, which can be accessed 
by The Palace Viewer (TPV) users. Type 1 avatars may be
either .gif or .jpeg files and have flexible size and dimension.



KNOWN ISSUES
==================================================

Though the server supports PNG Type 1 avatars, The Palace Viewer does
not support them at this time.


Recent changes were made to the Linux OS kernel networking code which have
caused problems with the Linux PServer. The code to control IP defragmenting
was moved from a compiled-in kernel configuration option to the /proc
filesystem to allow defragmenting to be turned on and off during run-time.

IP defrag is only a necessity for IP masquerading, which allows multiple
computers to share a single "live" IP address.

For users who require this functionality, it is recommended that they use
kernel version 2.2.10 or earlier.  These kernel versions do not have the change
mentioned above and are known to work fine with the Linux PServer.

If users do not require masquerading, it is recommended that they do not
enable ip_always_defrag in their kernel configuration.  This workaround
should permit successful operation of the PServer on post 2.2.10 kernels.




CONTACT INFORMATION
==================================================

   Communities.com
   10101 N. DeAnza Blvd.
   Suite 100
   Cupertino, CA  95014

   Phone: (408) 342-9500
   Fax:   (408) 777-9200
   http://www.thepalace.com/
   
   
   
TECHNICAL SUPPORT
==================================================

If you have technical support questions, or if you want
to browse the FAQs or online manuals, post questions to
Palace discussion groups, or send feedback about the
product, point your web browser to:

    http://www.thepalace.com/help/

==================================================




