Intro
[ Author : Declan McMullen (skyhawk) : 2003 ]
[ Updated : Una Kehoe (Keloe) : October 2003 ]
[ Updated : Diarmuid Bourke (drag0n) : August 2006 ]
Welcome to RedBrick
This tutorial is a brief introduction to some of the more common services available to you now that you have a RedBrick account. For a more detailed tutorials on the services mentioned, simply follow the links provided.
Chat
To begin using chat type 'chat' into your terminal. You will then be connected to RedBricks IRC server. The default channel is #lobby. In chat, what you type appears on a line at the bottom of your screen and what is said by other people in chat appears on the rest of the screen above that.
Email is a feature of redbrick that is used by practically everybody. The default mail reader on RedBrick is called Mutt. To start it simply type 'email' into your terminal. You can use this program to send and receive your RedBrick email.
Redbrick now has two Web-based Email clients, SquirrelMail and RoundCube. These can be accessed by pointing your browser at [1].
Newsgroups
Newsgroups (the boards) are a place for our members to exchange views,seek help or generally rant about anything they want. The default news reader on RedBrick is called Slrn. To start is simply type 'news' or 'slrn' into your terminal. With slrn you can read and post to all of the RedBrick NewsGroups plus some intersocs Newsgroups.
Mud
Mud is a multiplayer console game. It enables you to explore an environment with other users and gain points for various achievements. The player advances through multiple levels of achievement. Be warned it is very addictive :) To run mud simply type mud into your terminal and follow the instructions.
Web Browsing
RedBrick has some text based Internet browsers installed, named 'lynx' and 'links'. To run either of these browsers simply type either lynx or links into your terminal. To view a perticular website straight away type the name of the browser followed by the url e.g lynx www.dcu.ie.
RedBrick Software
RedBrick has a vast array of software installed on the system that was written by our members. As you gain more experience using your account you will come across the various programs out there.The most used of these is rbusers. If you type rbusers into your terminal you will see a list of users currently logged onto the system. Hey is also one of these programs. Hey is RedBricks version of instant messenger software (although we are implementing jabber now in addition hey). It enables users logged onto the system to send messages to each other. See the hey tutorial for more information. Another useful program is huh. If you type huh into your terminal you will see a list of the last few users who heyed you. The list of user written software is endless and you will come across loads of them on your travels.
UNIX
RedBricks operating system of choice is UNIX. Our primary server (murphy) is running the Ubuntu Linux operating system and our secondary server runs Debian (carbon and deathray). In the Windows point and click world, dont let a command line usage put you off. Once you get comfortable you'll be amazed how much you can accomplish in a command line UNIX environment. A standard user only need a very basic knowledge to gain usage from their RedBrick account. For a starting point see the Intro To Unix tutorial.
And More
For a list of main features at anytime type 'help' into your terminal. Once you are comfortable with the general setup of your account and the system take a look at the other tutorials to learn a little more and improve your use of Redbrick.
Good luck, and enjoy your redbrick experience.