| LambdaMOO | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Pavel Curtis, project community |
| Engine | MOO |
| Platform(s) | Platform independent |
| Release | 1990 |
| Genre(s) | Social MUD |
| Mode(s) | Multiplayer |
LambdaMOO is an online community[1] of the variety called a MOO. It is the oldest MOO today.[2]
LambdaMOO was founded in 1990 by Pavel Curtis at Xerox PARC.[3][4][5][6] Now hosted in the state of Washington, it is operated and administered entirely on a volunteer basis. Guests are allowed, and membership is free to anyone with an e-mail address.
LambdaMOO gained some notoriety when Julian Dibbell wrote a book called My Tiny Life describing his experiences there.[7] Over its history, LambdaMOO has been highly influential in the examination of virtual-world social issues.[3]
- ^ Quittner, Josh (March 1994). "Johnny Manhattan Meets the Furry Muckers". Wired. Vol. 2, no. 3. Retrieved 2008-09-21.
In come into LambdaMOO through the closet. The closet is the port of entry, the Ellis Island for all immigrants to this virtual world. It's a dark, cramped space and I keep bumping into coats, boots, and the bodies of sleeping, huddled masses. [...] That's what's happening at LambdaMOO, a 3-year-old MOO set up by Pavel Curtis at Xerox's Palo Alto Research Center (see WIRED 2.02, page 90). Curtis, a programming language designer and implementer, put the MOO together as an experiment; it has turned into a real community.
- ^ Maragkou, Eleni. "Escape From the Internet". The Couch. Het HEM. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
- ^ a b Mulligan, Jessica; Patrovsky, Bridgette (2003). Developing Online Games: An Insider's Guide. New Riders. p. 452. ISBN 1-59273-000-0.
1990 [...] Pavel Curtis does substantial modifications to White's MOO code, creating LambdaMOO. LambdaMOO opens, hosted at Xerox PARC, where it promptly becomes a major influence in the development of social issues in virtual spaces.
- ^ Bartle, Richard (2003). Designing Virtual Worlds. New Riders. p. 11. ISBN 0-13-101816-7.
MOO had two important offspring: Pavel Curtis' LambdaMOO (which was to become a favorite of journalists, academics, and social misfits) [...]
- ^ Rheingold, Howard (April 1994). "PARC Is Back!". Wired. Vol. 2, no. 2. Retrieved 2010-04-07.
One PARC researcher, Pavel Curtis, is looking closely at MUDs [...] Curtis built on the work of Steven White, a student at the University of Waterloo (Canada). In January 1991, he opened LambdaMOO. Hundreds of players flocked to it.
- ^ Stivale, Charles J. (1997). "Spam: Heteroglossia and Harassment in Cyberspace". In Porter, David (ed.). Internet Culture (pbk. ed.). Routledge. pp. 94–95. ISBN 0-415-91684-4.
I will examine this spectrum of practices with reference to a specific chat and role-playing site on the Internet, one of the numerous MUDs (multi-user dungeons or dimensions) known as LambdaMOO (MOO referring to MUD-Object-Oriented programming language), located at Xeroc PARC (Palo Alto Research Center) and installed and run there since 1990 by Pavel Curtis.6 This site is structured like a large house with nearby grounds and community. It forms a paradigm within which participants can log on via telnet from different locations around the globe, adopt character names ranging from "real" to, more commonly, some form of fantasy, and converse directly with one another in real time.7 In this house, one may move from room to room by indicating directions to "walk" or by "teleporting" directly, create one's own personalized abode, and entertain discussion with the vast population—over 8000—of inhabitants. [...] interactions within the LambdaMOO commons, the Living Room, acclimate one quickly [...]
- ^ Dibbell, Julian (1999). My Tiny Life. London: Fourth Estate Limited. ISBN 1-84115-058-4.