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Lobby Operating Instructions

Posted: Mon Aug 24, 2009 6:08 pm
by CanEh
No matter what type of lobby you go into (cdrom/card/board/etc) there are many common features to all.

The most obvious one is the Customize area (thats the button located at the bottom right side of the Client), which has a HUGE range of configurations available. Fonts, colors, sounds, PM events, Pings (for those in the CDROM side) and lots more. You can even have custom graphics displayed in various areas, again based on what lobby you are in. You are encouraged to open this area and make the settings you want.

What is not so obvious... are hidden functions. The most powerful is the actual players list in the main lobby. There are "mouse over" items that will appear as you hover over the people in the players list (make sure that the lobby form has the focus), and there are both LEFT CLICK and RIGHT CLICK options when you click on one of the players names.

Left clicking on ANY nic will open your user interface, where you can manage your friends and ignores lists. And if you happen to be in a game type that supports "ratings" of any kind (currently only the new backgammon lobby has this) then you will also see a "Ratings" tab where there is a list of the players in the lobby. The ratings side has complete sorting options available so you can tell at a glance who has what. Currently this displays ratings, wins, loses and incompletes.

Right clicking on a nic will always show some common functions (such as setting your status to here, afk, busy) plus there will be a varied amount of other commands available. What these are will depend on WHO you right clicked on, where THEY are and where YOU are. For example, if they are at a table and you are in the lobby, there will be an option to join the room they are in. This is also the area where PM's (private messages) can be sent.

The main lobby will also allow you to view the tables either in "grid view" or in "table view". That setting is under the "Lobby" menu at the top left of the lobby form. When in grid view, you can click on the various column headings which sorts the columns. When in table view, you have the option to display a background image (see the Customize area) of your choice. There are many other options within the system menus at the top left side of the lobby form. The majority of these options carry over between logins and lobby types, however some are specific to certain lobbies as well.

Game tables are where the action of the game takes place. One thing that is common to all lobbies is that there is always a table HOST. The person who is the host has control over the settings in the table (some call them rooms as well) and in all cases... a game name, game description, and passwords can be set. In the CDROM based lobbies, there is also the ability to set the number of people allowed in your room (up to the limits of what the game being played allows, of course) where as the card and board lobbies are hard-wired for the player limits.

Game tables also have a "users list" where player names are displayed. In the CDROM side, the list is almost identical to the one in the main lobby. In card and board lobbies, these "lists" will vary. However once again, there ARE more "hidden commands" available from left clicking or right clicking on these players names. And yes, the options available will vary based on the game, and if you are the host of the room. Room hosts also have a "host settings button" for configuring the various options allowed by the lobby type.