NWE Help: MOO: Digging: Objects and Parents

In the MOO, everything is an object -- a small bit of computer code with special properties. In the MOO, players are objects with properties and programs (called verbs and commands) which enable them to move and carry things. Rooms are objects which can contain other objects such as players or things. Even the exits which connect rooms are objects.

Most objects in the MOO have a parent object, called a generic, from which they are created. That parent is often expressed as a "$" followed by the object class. For example, the parent room is called $room.

This system allows you to make very complex objects without having to know a whole lot about MOO programming. You just make a child of the generic object, and it behaves just like the generic. So you can use containers, robots, or other objects without having to figure it out yourself--you use the verbs, properties, and other features developed by MOO experts.

We will use MOO commands (also called verbs) to create and describe our objects. MOO commands are defined on objects. They allow players and other objects to act and display the results of those actions in the MOO. If you've already read the introduction, you're familar with commands like walk, say, and page.