MUD Administration

Hephos · 12-20-2003, 12:55 PM

Here is a MRTG graph over our playerbase at Sharûne. It displays daily average online players. It does not show player peaks (we usually have around 30-50 players online each time at some time during the day), only average for a whole day.

It would be fun to know how well our pbase development is proceeding.

Anyone have any idea how well other newly started muds are doing? How much the pbase increases/year?

Anyone have graphs of their own playerbases?

Best regards,

Hephos · 12-20-2003, 01:32 PM

If anyone is interested in a snippet thing for enabling mrtg graphs for your mud, let me know. Also which codebase it should be for, or if it should be in "pseudo" code thing. Only thing you would need to do is basically a loop that counts your online players (and enabling some things for mrtg).

To see how the graphs work live check out this link -> MRTG graphs

Hephos · 01-05-2004, 01:57 PM

Created a "snippet" like thing for how to install the mrtg graphing into a typical mud server.

First snippet i'v made so bare with it

mrtg_update.zip

If you have any ideas where to upload the snippet so other people can use it, feel free to post some good links. (Already uploaded to kyndig.com and ftp.circlemud.org).

It should work for all mud codebases.

Hephos · 01-06-2004, 07:37 AM

Please post a link here to your graphs if you get it working, would be fun to watch

Rhuarc · 01-07-2004, 09:24 PM

Heh, the first 'snippet' i've used in years. Good work.

Any mud that is serious about the long term, needs to be aware of their player base history and growth, this is an excellent tool to aid in visualizing that.

The link to the graph on my mud is here.

Of course, their is no long term data, so this is somewhat skewed, but it shows it off nicely.

--
Rhuarc
Tarmon Gaidon
www.tarmongaidon.org

Traithe · 01-07-2004, 09:28 PM

Yeah, I thought Hephos did a bang-up job with that.

I added it to our MUD, and tweaked it a bit to display various other graphs as well. Can take a peek at it here.

Pharazon · 02-06-2004, 06:08 AM

Thanks to Hephos for the inspiration for this. I've implemented a graphing system based on his idea, but completely custom written using our mySQL database backend, and php/GD.

The first experimental implementation is here, and I'll be adding more graphs over the coming weeks. Bear in mind this is extremely new, so the database is still populating with data as we speak.

Thanks again Hephos - great idea!

Traithe · 02-06-2004, 02:35 PM

Wow, that's a very nice-looking setup, Pharazon.

Great work.

02-06-2004, 02:40 PM

Thanks for the not-so-subtly cloaked advertisement... cant get too many advertisements in our daily lives, now can we?

But on a more serious note, this brings up a good point: when the goal is a large playerbase, one ought to use empirical methods to try and measure the effects that a change has on the playerbase. Use the scientific method. Do one change at a time, and observe how that influences the playerbase. Do a bunch all at once, and valuable info will be hopelessly obfuscated by the interacting effects of each change.

As an example, you will agree that there are a certain number of players who log on, make a new char, and immediately quit. You desire to reduce this phenomena. You experiment, in a very scientific and controlled way, with cosmetic changes to the creation process, changes to the MOTDs, changes to the area they start in... all the while carefully measuring what happens to the above phenomena.

Then maybe with the edge you gain thus *legitimately*, you can stop posting disguised advertisements for your foul-reeking landfill of a MUD (heck, maybe your mud will even become a mud worth visiting!)

Traithe · 02-06-2004, 03:03 PM

Uh, excuse me?

If you'll notice, I've been involved in discussing this particular subject since very early on, when I used Hephos' guidelines to create usage graphs for my own project.

I was simply congratulating Pharazon, a fellow coder, on what I thought was a job very well done. I don't really see any particular reason to merit the rather nasty tone of your post.

I guess it just goes to show that no good deed ever goes unpunished around here, eh?

Wik · 02-06-2004, 03:25 PM

I believe he was talking to Hephos, though I may be mistaken.

Pharazon · 02-06-2004, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by (erdos @ Feb. 06 2004,19:40)

Thanks for the not-so-subtly cloaked advertisement... cant get too many advertisements in our daily lives, now can we?

Quote:

Originally Posted by (erdos @ Feb. 06 2004,19:40)

Then maybe with the edge you gain thus *legitimately*, you can stop posting disguised advertisements for your foul-reeking landfill of a MUD (heck, maybe your mud will even become a mud worth visiting!

Thanks for the constructive criticism. Perhaps one day I'll be bothered by remarks like this that are generated by retarded individuals like yourself that simply jump on a topic in order to start a flame war.

I was responding to Hephos' original post, where he was requesting a link to muds that have implemented his patch. Although I did a complete "black box" rewrite of the idea, I thought it relevant and fair to respond as the inspiration for the idea was generated by him.

Unfortunately, this just goes to show the general level of input that is now generated on the TMS boards. No doubt this thread will now degenerate into a slanging match as usual, greatly reducing the SNR of the board, and driving more posters away.

Anyway - I thank Hephos again for a great idea that we've now implemented, and thanks to Traithe for the response.

Traithe · 02-06-2004, 04:51 PM

Heh, I think you're probably right, Wik. I am apparently on hair-trigger mode today.

Either way, though, it seems pretty poor form to flame a guy for posting an idea like this to help others - even if he does, gods forbid, include the name of the MUD he develops a couple times in his post.

At any rate, I'm going to shut my trap before I make things any worse. Brain is not functioning very well today at all.

[Edited for a couple typos. Induced by sleep deprivation, I swear.]

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12-20-2003, 12:55 PM	#1
Hephos Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Sweden Home MUD: www.sharune.com Posts: 304	Here is a MRTG graph over our playerbase at Sharûne. It displays daily average online players. It does not show player peaks (we usually have around 30-50 players online each time at some time during the day), only average for a whole day. It would be fun to know how well our pbase development is proceeding. Anyone have any idea how well other newly started muds are doing? How much the pbase increases/year? Anyone have graphs of their own playerbases? Best regards,

12-20-2003, 01:32 PM	#2
Hephos Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Sweden Home MUD: www.sharune.com Posts: 304	If anyone is interested in a snippet thing for enabling mrtg graphs for your mud, let me know. Also which codebase it should be for, or if it should be in "pseudo" code thing. Only thing you would need to do is basically a loop that counts your online players (and enabling some things for mrtg). To see how the graphs work live check out this link -> MRTG graphs

01-05-2004, 01:57 PM	#3
Hephos Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Sweden Home MUD: www.sharune.com Posts: 304	Created a "snippet" like thing for how to install the mrtg graphing into a typical mud server. First snippet i'v made so bare with it mrtg_update.zip If you have any ideas where to upload the snippet so other people can use it, feel free to post some good links. (Already uploaded to kyndig.com and ftp.circlemud.org). It should work for all mud codebases.

01-06-2004, 07:37 AM	#4
Hephos Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Sweden Home MUD: www.sharune.com Posts: 304	Please post a link here to your graphs if you get it working, would be fun to watch

01-07-2004, 09:24 PM	#5
Rhuarc Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Posts: 50	Heh, the first 'snippet' i've used in years. Good work. Any mud that is serious about the long term, needs to be aware of their player base history and growth, this is an excellent tool to aid in visualizing that. The link to the graph on my mud is here. Of course, their is no long term data, so this is somewhat skewed, but it shows it off nicely. -- Rhuarc Tarmon Gaidon www.tarmongaidon.org

01-07-2004, 09:28 PM	#6
Traithe Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Posts: 126	Yeah, I thought Hephos did a bang-up job with that. I added it to our MUD, and tweaked it a bit to display various other graphs as well. Can take a peek at it here.

02-06-2004, 06:08 AM	#7
Pharazon New Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Posts: 8	Thanks to Hephos for the inspiration for this. I've implemented a graphing system based on his idea, but completely custom written using our mySQL database backend, and php/GD. The first experimental implementation is here, and I'll be adding more graphs over the coming weeks. Bear in mind this is extremely new, so the database is still populating with data as we speak. Thanks again Hephos - great idea!

02-06-2004, 02:35 PM	#8
Traithe Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Posts: 126	Wow, that's a very nice-looking setup, Pharazon. Great work.

02-06-2004, 02:40 PM	#9
erdos Posts: n/a	Thanks for the not-so-subtly cloaked advertisement... cant get too many advertisements in our daily lives, now can we? But on a more serious note, this brings up a good point: when the goal is a large playerbase, one ought to use empirical methods to try and measure the effects that a change has on the playerbase. Use the scientific method. Do one change at a time, and observe how that influences the playerbase. Do a bunch all at once, and valuable info will be hopelessly obfuscated by the interacting effects of each change. As an example, you will agree that there are a certain number of players who log on, make a new char, and immediately quit. You desire to reduce this phenomena. You experiment, in a very scientific and controlled way, with cosmetic changes to the creation process, changes to the MOTDs, changes to the area they start in... all the while carefully measuring what happens to the above phenomena. Then maybe with the edge you gain thus legitimately, you can stop posting disguised advertisements for your foul-reeking landfill of a MUD (heck, maybe your mud will even become a mud worth visiting!)

02-06-2004, 03:03 PM	#10
Traithe Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Posts: 126	Uh, excuse me? If you'll notice, I've been involved in discussing this particular subject since very early on, when I used Hephos' guidelines to create usage graphs for my own project. I was simply congratulating Pharazon, a fellow coder, on what I thought was a job very well done. I don't really see any particular reason to merit the rather nasty tone of your post. I guess it just goes to show that no good deed ever goes unpunished around here, eh?

02-06-2004, 03:25 PM	#11
Wik Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Posts: 108	I believe he was talking to Hephos, though I may be mistaken.

02-06-2004, 04:51 PM	#13
Traithe Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Posts: 126	Heh, I think you're probably right, Wik. I am apparently on hair-trigger mode today. Either way, though, it seems pretty poor form to flame a guy for posting an idea like this to help others - even if he does, gods forbid, include the name of the MUD he develops a couple times in his post. At any rate, I'm going to shut my trap before I make things any worse. Brain is not functioning very well today at all. [Edited for a couple typos. Induced by sleep deprivation, I swear.]

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