Updates 9/30/11

* fixed movement room announces
* fixed npc wandering

Updates 9/28/11

* one or two bug fixes
* implemented ranged combat on the simplest level
* implemented graves

Updates 9/27/11

* added garage buildings, for constructing vehicles and tinkering with them
* implemented a new combat system based on dice pools (similar to tabletop game monsterocalypse)

Updates 9/21/11: Blueprints and crafting

* implemented blueprints for spawning pre configured areas as well as building and vehicle interiors
* several bug fixes
* added more recipes for the first upgraded harvesting tool as well as the noble 12T-LL transport truck:

* and a utility or two to try to make the text entry less mind numbing:

Updates 9/14/11 - 9/20/11

* A* star pathing implemented
* random treasure hunt events each real day, spawned in random sectors. These are broadcast to the sector channels and players have a limited amount of time to find the event - and then resolve it.
* Auto-travel system with random encounters added - in the future you might receive mission objectives here:

Updates 9/13/11

* added survey tools, which equip to the special weapon slot. When exploring the tool can record data, which the player can then sell to the central complex.
* fixed up the FOLLOW command, so players can follow each other arround
* implemented the link-up terminal, allowing players to join another player's colony instead of founding their own

Updates 9/9/11

* bug hunting and fixing, including a very persistent matching bug. welcome back, sweet ass parser
* implemented TELL and REPLY, and a global chatnet
* upgraded the wildlife back end to increase the complexity and interesting... ness of wildlife spawns.
* wrote biome utilities to speed up biome customization:

Guide: Configuring Hellcore to route email through Gmail's SMTP servers -- TAKE TWO

After some testing I found out the Gmail configuration I had previously posted only worked to deliver email to gmail.com addresses. Kind of a major flaw. This took me quite some time to fix and should be useful for other applications, like using gmail to send email from a PHP script or C# program.

The problem with Gmail: Gmail expects you to use one of two methods to relay mail through it (for very good reasons). The first is a TLS session, navigated by your average mail program such as postfix or qmail. The second is an SSL session.

The problem with Hellcore: LambdaMOO doesn't navigate SSL connections, much less set one up mid stream for TLS.

The solution (Hellcore Section):

We will setup a tunnel in the Server Section - for now make sure you don't have any smtp servers running. If you do, you will need to use a different port.

H1 @set $network.maildrop to "localhost"
H2 @set $network.maildrop_port to 25

H3 Run this command in your shell:
perl -MMIME::Base64 -e 'print encode_base64("\000yourusername\@yourdomain.com\000not.my.real.password")'

Replace the fake values with your own information, then save the string you receive after doing this.

H4 @prop $network.smtp_auth_plain "the string you received from the step above goes here"
H5 @edit $network:raw_sendmail
Around line 26, after this line:
data = {"HELO " + this.site, ("MAIL FROM:<" + this.postmaster) + ">", ("RCPT TO:<" + address) + ">", "DATA"};
Add this line:
data = {"HELO " + this.site, "AUTH PLAIN "+this.smtp_auth_plain, ("MAIL
FROM:<" + this.postmaster) + ">", ("RCPT TO:<" + address) + ">", "DATA"};

You keep the old line around in case you need to go back to sending via a local smtp server.
Around line 47, after this line:
expects = {"220", "250", "250", "250%|251", "354", "250", "221"};
Add this line:
expects = {"220", "250", "235", "250", "250%|251", "354", "250", "221"};

This tells the moocode to expect a sequence of replies that includes authentication.

More Solution (Server Section)

There are two ways to meet gmail's requirements for security. The first is to connect via an SSL encrypted connection. The second is to negotiate an SSL connection after connecting via an unsecure session. These instructions accomplish the first.

S1 Download, compile, and install stunnel manually or with your favorite package manager.

vi /etc/stunnel/stunnel.conf

Add the following lines to stunnel.conf:

cert = /etc/stunnel/stunnel.pem
socket = l:TCP_NODELAY=1
socket = r:TCP_NODELAY=1
client = yes

[ssmtp]
accept = 25
connect = smtp.gmail.com:465

If you changed the port in step H2, change the accept setting above to match.

As root, execute stunnel, or read this to start it as a service. It will now accept all connections to port 25, encrypt them, and then send them to gmail's SMTP server.

Almost Too Much Solution (Gmail)

The last, or first thing to do is set everything up with Gmail.

G1 Get signed up with Google Apps. Follow their directions to set up the appropriate MX records.

G2 Add an SPF record as follows:
@ IN TXT "v=spf1 ip4:AAA.BBB.CCC.DDD include:_spf.google.com ~all"

Replace AAA.BBB.CCC.DDD with the IP address of your moo server. This tells google to allow SMTP connections directly from the moo.

G3 (optional)
Follow this guide to installing ssmtp and configuring it for gmail. ssmtp is a lightweight relay that will allow you to send mail through gmail from your server. This step is optional.

The overall effect is that all your connections to smtp.gmail.com will be encrypted, removing the need to use the SMTP command STARTTLS. You will receive your email at your google apps page for your domain and send it through google's smtp servers in a secure way.

There's no joy like nerd joy, eg the joy I experienced when I finally saw this output after a couple hours of fiddling:

Updates 9/6/11

* implemented jetpacks:

Updates 9/1/11

Changes:
* exploration has been upgraded. As a player explores, he can find supply caches, downed vehicles, and randomly generated sub sectors (dungeons). Eventually some of these items will be generated by player actions, such as an exploded player vehicle turning into a future discovery for another player.
* very very basic loot tables for wildlife implemented (wild hides and meat)
* upgraded the crafting interface to look better:

0 kicked off his devblog here: http://infernomoo.blogspot.com/. This guy is brilliant theory and game mechanic wise. I recommend scoping out his updates, his MOO set in actual Hell is sure to be intense.

On a non MOO related note, I picked up the two books below and enjoyed both of them immensely. Antiphon is a fantasy/sci fi hybrid, and The January Dancer is a compelling sci fi story told in a bardic style.