Idiots Guide No 1 - How to use PuTTY for CrawlSS
archib...@yahoo.co.uk
Hello all,
As stated in a previous thread and suggested on the Dungeon Crawl
Sourceforge Request Features page, here is my first 'Idiots Guide'.
This, the second version has been re-written to correct some small
errors & typos that I missed when I had posted the first version.
More importantly it now includes more information which was submitted
on the Google Groups post as feedback to the initial draft. Many
thanks for all the helpful responses - I hope this version will be
recognised as a more comprehensive guide for both novices and more
experienced users alike. I have changed the steps to make an SSH
connection rather than a Telnet connection - Telnet can still be used
however...
As pointed out by Rachel Elizabeth Dillon: "Using SSH means that the
data is compressed in transit, reducing bandwidth usage and hopefully
making the experience a teensy bit faster as well."
These step by step instructions will hopefully enable anyone of any
techinical ability to successfully learn how to connect to and play
Crawl Stone Soup on the akrasiac server, otherwise known as 'CAO',
short for crawl.akrasiac.org .
Note: These instructions are primarily for Windows users - I'm sure
anyone who understands enough about other systems will be savvy enough
to work out what to do for their respective machines.
Anyway, without further ado here goes...
So you've downloaded the latest version of Crawl Stone Soup and have
been playing offline (or 'local') and you thoroughly enjoy it. You
have noticed though from the CrawlSS homepage (http://
crawl.akrasiac.org/) and posts in these forums that there is a way to
enhance your gaming experience by playing 'online' using something
called 'SSH'.
So you go to the CrawlSS homepage in the hopes of finding out from
there how to go about doing so. At the top of the page you read - 'To
play Crawl on this server, just SSH to crawl.akrasiac.org'
"It can't be that difficult" You murmur to yourself, as you wonder
what the hell this SSH thing means, what it does and how do you get
it?
After trying various things out, you get nowhere fast. Baffled, you
resign yourself to remaining a 'local' player, realising you are
probably missing out on lots of fun. Every time you play these
solitary games, there is a niggling feeling, beckoning you - nay,
urging you to try again to play on the server...
If only you could figure out how. Well, if like me (to begin with)
you really are at a loss as to where on earth to start with all this
stuff, what you need is some assistance. Wouldn't it be nice if
someone could take the time to write an 'Idiots Guide' - a step by
step list in easy to understand language, telling you from the very
beginning exactly what to do...
Oh look! somebody has - done just that! Great, then let's get
started:
********************************************************************
01. Firstly you will need a means of accessing the server. The
easiest and most common method is by using an SSH (Secure SHell)
connection, we are going to learn here how to use the 'PuTTY' terminal
to do this. In laymans terms PuTTY is simply a small programme that
acts as your interface between you (the player) and the server (the
host).
Before we go any further here's what playing on the akrasiac server
allows you to do:
a) play the latest version of crawl stone soup online
b) watch other players' games
c) have the ability to chat and comment in-game
d) have your game stats uploaded/recorded on the homepage
e) encounter and kill/be killed by other players' ghosts
02. The next step then is to get yourself PuTTY. Simply click on the
following link:
http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/
As you can see, this is the homepage for 'PuTTY: A Free Telnet/SSH
Client'
03. Got that? Okay, now go to the downloads section. Scroll down to
the Windows downloads section and look for the first option down - you
will see that it is called 'PuTTY'.
04. That's the one you want, so click on the 'putty.exe' download
link and choose to save it to your desktop (well, that's how I did it
anyway). This should place an icon on your desktop that resembles two
blue screens with a yellow connection/electricity bolt joining them -
it should be named 'putty'.
05. So far, so good? Good. Okay, now double click on the puttytel
icon to open the interface which is called 'PuTTY Configuration'.
Here you will be presented with an interface in a small window. On
the left-hand side you will see a 'Category' tree and on the right-
hand side a series of boxes and radio buttons under the heading 'Basic
options for your PuTTY session'.
06. Don't be daunted here by all the technical looking jargon, we're
only concerned with a couple of easy to do actions and then we're
almost there!
You will see the cursor flashing in the following box: 'Host Name (or
IP address)'. Here you need to type in (or copy and paste from the
homepage: http://crawl.akrasiac.org/) the following:
Done that? Notice to the right of that field under 'Port' the number
field, we need to ensure that this number reads as 22. In order to do
this, if you observe directly underneath the 'Host Name (or IP
address)' fields the heading 'Connection type:', you will see 5 radio
buttons, all you need to do is ensure the SSH button is the opted
choice - it should be highlighted green. If it's not already, simply
click on it so that it is green. When SSH is selected, the Port field
will automatically change to 22.
07. That is all we do for the connection part. Next we need to
ensure our keyboard will work properly, once connected. So, to the
left of the interface (the 'Category' tree) you need to click/select
the 'keyboard' option. Doing this will change the options on the
right-hand side to 'Options controlling the effects of keys'. Mid-way
down that section under 'Application keypad settings:', click on the
'Nethack' radio button so it is highlighted.
08. Now, to make life easier for ourselves we are going to save these
as the default settings, so that every time PuTTY is opened you can
dive straight into it. So, if you now click back onto the Category
tree's top heading ('Session'), you will see it has taken you back to
your initial display. Okay? Look to the right-hand side of the
interface under 'Load, save or delete a stored session', in the second
box down, ensure that 'Default Settings' is highlighted and then click
on the 'Save' button to the right. That's it - done!
10. We're ready! Simply click on 'Open' and you will have a black
console screen open up and be asked to 'login as:', here you need to
type in the word 'joshua' - this is the default log-in name set by the
administrator to connect to CAO. Once entered, you will then be asked
to enter 'jos...@crawl.akrasiac.org.'s password:' - again, type in the
word 'joshua' (yes, you guessed it - the default password!).
11. The screen will refresh and you will now be presented with the
following initial display:
________________________________________________________________
## DGL source code available on ftp://ftp.alt.org/pub/dgamelaunch/or
## http://dev.triplehelix.org/?root=dgamelaunch (development
version)
## ** Games on this server are recorded for in-progress viewing and
playback!
##
## This crawl server hosted and maintained by Rachel Elizabeth
Dillon;
## more information available at http://crawl.akrasiac.org/
Not logged in.
l) Login
r) Register new user
w) Watch games in progress
q) Quit
________________________________________________________________
12. Now all you need to do is create an account. Hit the 'r' key and
continue as prompted. When you have chosen your player/user name,
this will be the name of every character you play with on that
account. The rest should be self explanatory and easy to follow.
13. Each time you want to play all you have to do is open PuTTY, log-
in to CAO with (joshua/joshua) and then log-in with your player
details. Dead easy!
14. For in-game instructions hit '?' and you may need to toggle the
Num-Pad in order to use it.
All your deceased characters (...or wins!) & game statistics are
automatically added to the http://crawl.akrasiac.org/ home page (warts
and all - yes all those really embarassing deaths will be there for
all to see!). You can view and compare your results by looking under
the headings: Scoring, Statistics & Server.
...If you weren't hooked before - you will be! Happy Crawling.
This guide will work for you in a similar way for server style Nethack
- just use the Telnet option (Port 23) for 'nethack.alt.org'.
*Note: This is by no means a definitive guide - or perhaps the best.
It is simply me offering an easy way to achieve the aim. As I have
stated elsewhere on these forums I thought that perhaps 'local'
players may need a bit of help as they were either confused or too
afraid to ask - at the risk of sounding stupid (I personally don't
mind asking 'bone' questions - how else do you find out?).
Please feel free to amend, correct and advise on any part of this
guide that is wrong or can be improved. I understand there are
probably some 'tweaks' that I would probably find beneficial that I am
[still] unaware of. :)
Wait out for my next 'Idiots' guide on how to join '##crawl' on
Freenode. That is basically a chat room for all things CrawlSS. I,
like most server players run it in the background whilst playing.
There are some really helpful players there who don't mind sharing
their expertise...
Archibald
P.S. Just to demonstrate how much of an 'idiot' I have been/can be -
ensure you are connected to the internet beforehand 8). Yes I am
that man who once wasted 5 hours scratching my head, wondering why
this 'PuTTY thing' wouldn't work!
archib...@yahoo.co.uk
> Version #2.01 - 23:11.02.2008 [Edit]
> console screen open up and be asked to 'login as:', here you need to
> type in the word 'joshua' - this is the default log-in name set by the
> administrator to connect to CAO. Once entered, you will then be asked
> to enter 'jos...@crawl.akrasiac.org.'s password:' - again, type in the
> word 'joshua' (yes, you guessed it - the default password!).
>
> following initial display:
>
> ________________________________________________________________
>
> ## DGL source code available onftp://ftp.alt.org/pub/dgamelaunch/or
> ## ** Games on this server are recorded for in-progress viewing and playback!
> ##
> ## This crawl server hosted and maintained by Rachel Elizabeth Dillon;
>
> Not logged in.
>
> l) Login
> r) Register new user
> w) Watch games in progress
> q) Quit
>
> ________________________________________________________________
>
> continue as prompted. When you have chosen your player/user name,
> this will be the name of every character you play with on that
> account. The rest should be self explanatory and easy to follow.
>
> in to CAO with (joshua/joshua) and then log-in with your player
> details. Dead easy!
>
> Num-Pad in order to use it.
>
> automatically added to thehttp://crawl.akrasiac.org/home page (warts