All-Town Chat Hits Whyville
Whyville gets animated, and people talk

      Peek-a-boo! I see you! And you see yourself too! Amazing, huh?

      It's Whyville's latest addition to the community -- all-town chat, which means everyone can see each other and chat almost anywhere in town. Hey, let's make it a block party! Everybody bring your bad selves and let's get down!

by Bigfoot Bill Times Staff

      Not only are our own faces visible, you can also see the faces of the people who are in the same place as you. If you want to chat, just type in what you want to say and hit enter.

      While you're typing, your words will appear grey; once you hit enter, they'll turn blue, and other people can read them. After a few seconds your chat bubble will disappear.

      Just like in the chat rooms, you can move your face by clicking anywhere you want to go; unlike the chat rooms, you aren't restricted to one room. Whether you're in Whyville Square, Whyville West, or inside one of the labs, you can go to the next location just by clicking on a signpost or a building.

      When your cursor moves over a signpost or the door of a building, an animation will start, letting you know that if you click there, you'll go to the screen indicated by that signpost or building.

Whyville citizens hanging out at the Square

      For example, when you move your cursor over the Tiki Tours Hut, the palm tree branches wave at you, letting you know that clicking will take you to the Tiki Tours Hut screen. Put your cursor over Dr. Leila's door and the shingles over her front door flow or shimmer; at the Why-House, the front door opens and closes; at the Spin Lab, the handle of the top moves in and out; and at the W. West arrow, the letters light up left to right.

      Not every location has the all-town chat or the animations set up just yet, but expect them to be ready in the next week or two. I can't wait!

      Keep an eye out for your fellow Whyvillians -- there's almost 400 citizens now! We might actually start meeting each other! And don't forget to keep coming to Dr. Leila's pool parties!

      In the future, we'll be able to check to see exactly who's online at Whyville, kind of like AOL's "Buddies List" and that sort of thing. That way it'll be easier to find people and start chatting right away!

      Well, that's it for me. I'm headed off on another safari -- this time, I'll be looking for headhunters in the deepest jungles of Yveelya. Wish me luck!

      From the chatty world of Bigfoot Country, this is Bigfoot Bill, wishing you a disembodied head of a good time!

      Here's a checklist, to make sure you understand the all-town chat system:

1. Your face indicates where you are; ditto for other people's faces.
2. To chat, just type something in and hit enter!
3. To move, click on the part of the screen where `you want your head to go.
4. To travel to another screen, move your cursor over a building or a signpost. When an animation lights up, clicking there will take you to that location.
5. Eventually, you'll be able to find out who's at Whyville and where they are as soon as you login.