Newcomers Guide to the Chatroom
By MC



Author's note:

This guide is designed primarily for newcomers; that is to say, people who
have just begun to chat or those who are wondering if they really belong here.
I felt that way at first because I don't know much about the world of female
bodybuilding and had never even met a female bodybuilder until last summer.
Despite these shortcomings, I entered the chatroom and, after the usual period
of adjusting to the new surroundings, soon found myself immersed here. I've
therefore decided to jot down the following hints and tidbits that people not
familiar with chatting might find useful. I hope it helps.

Introduction

Hello and welcome to Diana's chatroom. Diana suggested I write out a simple
introduction to what goes on in here. You may have visited other chatrooms and
'know the ropes', I haven't. This was the first chatroom I ever ventured into
and, with only brief visits elsewhere, the only one I choose to spend my time.
As I mentioned above, I'd never met a woman bodybuilder in person. until
recently. Living off the beaten track (Israel) my only contact with them is in
this room. But the chatroom is much more than a forum for women bodybuilders
(FBB's) and their fans; it's a place where like minded people can come in and
enjoy each other's company, discussing whatever topics come to mind. If you're
really fortunate, you might also meet that special person in here - as Gaily
and Len did awhile back. But for me, this is a place where I can kick back and
communicate with people from all over the world; the novelty of which - even
after three years - hasn't worn off.

1) Before logging on

Before you enter the chatroom there are several options available to you. The
first is the nickname you wish to use. The second is your color. Then there is
the private message (PM) box. Pressing that will enable you to send and
receive PM's from other chatters in the room. You can activate it from within
the room also - by typing " /PMson" - but it's easier to do it before you
enter by clicking on the PM box. If you click on the Cockney box by mistake,
well, don't be surprised if people give you strange looks when you speak. Once
inside, you can change you nickname "/nick" + the name you want to change it
to, or your color, "/colour" # + the name of the color. In addition to the
colors available when logging in, there is a long list of others you can chose
from at:

http://fathom.org/helpdesk/morecolors.html

If you use the list - I printed out a copy - then type in the code of the
color. Not all of he colors work well in the chatroom; sometimes they appear
too weak or too bright. It's best to experiment with them until you find those
special colors that you feel accurately reflect your personality or mood at
the moment.

Regarding nicknames: you can choose any you like so long as it doesn't belong
to someone else. The reason for this is obvious - if someone were to log on
using my chatroom nickname (M.C.) and begin to abuse people, well it wouldn't
be very nice. In fact, using another person's nickname is one of the three
violations for which a person can be banned from the chatroom; the other two
will be discussed later. There's also the option of posting your email if you
choose.

Anyway, you've chosen your nickname, you have a color, it's time to log in and
start chatting.

2) Entering

When you enter the chatroom your presence will be announced by Clepsydra
(Clepsy). Clepsy is an electronic clock. If you try to hold a conversation
with her you're likely to be disappointed; more than a few have tried. She'll
respond to certain words such as ' time ', after which she'll announce the
time in England (she is - after all - an English clock); you'll have to
determine the appropriate time in your place of residence. If you say " joke"
she'll tell one...well, sort of. Whether it's funny or not is up to you. There
are other code words that will elicit a response from her but I'll let you
discover those for yourself.

The chatters present will probably greet you with a "hello" or something
equivalent. If someone doesn't, don't take it personally. They may be
multi-tasking, preoccupied with something else or simply not paying attention.
Most of the chatters are here for the same reason, to have a good time. If you
don't feel comfortable talking at first, then just lie back and watch the
goings on for awhile; or you can just jump right in. As a newcomer, other
people may be interested in who you are, where you're from, your interest in
this site, etc - in most cases they're not being nosey, just curious.

3) Topics of discussion

The topics of discussion are as diverse as the interests of the people in the
chatroom. Woman's bodybuilding, sports, politics, computers, photography,
current events, movies, music, to name just a few; feel free to discuss
whatever you like. It might be a good idea to 'feel' your way into the
conversation at first until you're comfortable in the discussion; but that's
entirely up to you. If it's photography - especially photos of women
bodybuilders - you're interested in, then you can almost always find someone
willing to talk about that subject; ditto with computers. If, on the other
hand, the main topic being discussed is the Yankees, then I'd leave the
political situation in Iraq for another time. If you use your own judgment,
you'll usually be O.K.

4) Private messages (PMs)

If you'd like to send a message that only a specific person can read then you
can send them a PM. To do that you click on the lower left hand corner where
it says "send to". Then find the person you want to send your message to and
click on his/her name ( make sure it's the person you want to PM as it can be
rather embarrassing if you make a mistake for obvious reasons ). Then just
write your message and click send. In order to read a PM someone has sent to
you, click on the upper left side where it says " Read PMs".

5) The ignore feature

If, for whatever reason, you want to ignore a certain chatter, you can use
this feature. To activate it, click on " With ignore" on the left side. Then
type " /ignore " and add the person(s) username or nickname (either way it
will work) that you wish to ignore. That chatter's posts will then not appear
on your computer screen for as long as you wish. It will even carry over to
subsequent chats should you so desire. To remove a chatter from the ignore
list, simply type "/unignore" and the persons username.

6) The Valksignal

Should you require Diana's assistance or feel you have something important to
discuss with her - and she's not in the chatroom at the time - you can
'invite' her in by using the Valksignal. To use it, type "/Valksignal on" and,
if she's anywhere near her computer, she'll usually respond. "/Valksignal off"
will deactivate it. I would recommend using it only when there's a bona fied
reason for doing so; so it's not abused.

7) Other items on the left side of your screen

Under the part dealing with the PMs are several other items. I never used the
" Tattler " or the " No Frames" so I can't comment on those. If you want to
see what was said a few hours ago - or even two years ago - click on the
"Archives" and select the date you're interested in. Sometimes it's used to
settle arguments ( yes, we do have those ), sometimes it's used to start them.
Sometimes people just want to read what went on in the chatroom for their own
entertainment. Example: what transpired in the chatroom on September 11th,
2001; after the WTO disaster; or what happened over the previous 24 hours.
It's all there. Just bear in mind that anything you say in the chatroom will
be preserved...for eternity.

You can go straight to the message boards without leaving the chatroom by
clicking on "Boards". Occasionally someone will mention in the chatroom about
a discussion that's taking place on one of the boards or a humorous post. If
you're interested, you can just pop over there and read it. You may also want
to browse around the website if the chat becomes slow. Once on the boards you
can go to the magic carpet and from there, anywhere. If you want to return to
the chatroom, just click on "New at Top (or bottom)" and PRESTO, you're back.

Upload is for posting files from your personal computer (usually pictures)
into the chatroom if you so desire. It's so simple to do that I even I can do
it. If you want to post a link, then you need to open another window and "cut
and paste" the URL to where the messages go.

The last item on the list (excluding the guide, of course) is the Lurkers. It
shows who is looking into the chatroom but hasn't entered. Not all the people
whose names appear are still lurking however, they may have moved on without
logging off so don't take it personally and think they don't want to chat with
you.

8) Emoticons

At present there are eleven of those little faces plus a few other things.
They're made the following way: :-) :-( ;-) grr, razz, sing, lol, eek, bg,
huh, worship, - plus the larger ones; beer, kiss, wink, nose, bicep, aw,
coffee, and (for reasons I never really understood) absinthe. If you have
trouble remembering how to make them at first then don't be afraid to ask
someone. Everybody started out as a newcomer at one time or another. Why use
the emoticons ? You may want to add a :-) after someone's joke or witty
comment to indicate that you thought it was clever; or to one of yours so it
won't be misinterpreted ( bare in mind that there are many different
nationalities in the chatroom with various levels of English proficiency. It's
been my experience that statements can sometimes be taken the wrong way. A
smiley can help avoid that misunderstanding ). A "grr" after a typo, a :-(
after a bad pun, a "wink" after a not-so-subtle comment; have fun with them,
that's what they're there for.

9) Miscellaneous Features

If someone logs on with a name of which you're unfamiliar you can try to
discover their identity by typing /whois followed by the nickname of the
person in question. This will give you their 'user name' which may or may not
help. Many people play around with their nicknames, all in good fun. As I
mentioned earlier the only prohibition is intentionally logging on using
another person's nickname. You can also check the 'view source'. This is done
by clicking the right side of the mouse and again on 'view source'. It will
give you the same information as the /whois but nobody else will know you're
checking.

If a word comes up in the chatroom which you don't understand (this is
primarily for non-native English speakers) there is a chatroom dictionary you
can use. To do so, type /whatis followed by the word you want to know.
Example: /whatis hircismus. Sometimes when a person makes an obvious typo - as
we all do from time to time - somebody may type /whatis + the typo, as a way
of pointing it out...all in good fun I might add :-)

When you want to appear to be thinking out loud, type /me followed by your '
thoughts'. It will appear as - example: *M.C. hopes he's not boring you all
with his explanations.

If you want to greet everyone in the chatroom by name but don't want to type
each one out individually, then type hello /everyone, good-bye /everyone, or
whatever else you wish to say.

You can change the font you're using simply by typing /font and then the one
you wish to use - example: /font Century.

10) Chatroom etiquette

This was somewhat difficult to write about because it's not my place to tell
anybody how to conduct themselves in the chatroom; or anywhere else for that
matter. I can only say that most of the people you will meet are just here to
have a good time. I suppose the only guideline I can recommend to you is the
well worn rule, " Do unto others..." I've found that it usually works quite
well in the chatroom; as well as "real life."

O.K. I'll admit it, there are - as in "real life" - chatroom rivalries. There
are people who, by the nature of their personalities, simply don't get along
with one another and that sometimes spills over into the chatroom. I can say,
"you should....." but what's the point ? As I mentioned above, it's not my
place to tell others how to behave and people are going to do what they are
going to do anyway. Just bear this in mind:

This chatroom is what we make of it. If communicating with people from around
the world and discussing the various topics that are of mutual interest is
what you would like to do, then this is a great place to do it. You may find
like-minded people just a few computer clicks away almost anytime of the day
or night. Speaking only for myself now, I find this a very nice place to spend
some of my free time; and - I assume - so do most of the others that drop in
to chat.

Oh yes, I mentioned that there are three ways in which you can receive a ban
in here. One was by *intentionally* impersonating another chatter. Another is
to make abusive statements about someone's race, religion or nationality (I
really don't think it's necessary to go into the difference between 'kidding'
- which is allowed - and 'abuse' which isn't). The third way is by not using
HTML's correctly. Improper use will "break" the chatroom, either by blanking
out the screen or making everyone's post huge. If you don't know what you're
doing, then it's better not to try. You won't receive a complete ban for this
infraction; you'll just be unable to use the HTML feature for awhile.

From time to time some of the women that Diana sponsors will drop in.
Sometimes when they're scheduled - you can find out when in the clubhouse -
other times unannounced. They may not be able to make it every time they're
supposed to as their travel schedules occasionally prevent them from doing so.
The nicer they're treated in the chatroom, the more likely it is that they
will come by. If women bodybuilders find this a friendly place to be, then
word will spread and more might come in...at least that's our hope :-).

11) Diana

Diana claims to be a Valkyrie but I suspect she's just a hardworking woman
from England that works her ass (arse) off to make this a great website. She's
quite frequently found in the chatroom and is more than willing to discuss
almost any topic with the members of her site. The one thing she won't discuss
is her personal life which I believe is fair. While it's natural to want to
know about her, I think it's equally natural to respect her right to keep her
personal life private. Sometimes you'll be in the chatroom with her and she
won't respond to you for long periods of time. Don't be offended; she's
probably engaged in several other tasks (multi-tasking) related to the
workings of this website and was distracted. It's a rather large website -
over 5 terabytes and growing - and requires quite a bit of attention.

12) Conclusion

I guess I've said all I intended to regarding the chatroom - perhaps even a
bit more. There are probably a few odds and ends that I neglected to mention
but basically, this is what I wanted to cover. As you chat, you'll no doubt
find out for yourself what I missed. I do hope this introduction helps though.
Take care and see you in the chatroom.

M.C.