Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
My app got rejected. Why can't you tell me what I did wrong so I can fix it?
We can, actually! The mods have chosen not to leave explanations on rejected applications, because we have no way of knowing which (if any) applicants would be comfortable with that information being left in a public space. Applicants are always free to contact the mods directly and request the reasoning behind their rejection.
My character's lonely. :( How do they make friends?
When you first join DDD or intro a new character, there are a few simple steps you can take to get your character out there and help them interact with more people. First and most importantly, you'll want to intro them at dramadramaduck. Pick a time when you'll be available to tag so you've got a lot of time to keep the threads going; the more characters interact, the more they'll learn about each other. If possible, don't intro your character during the first few days of a virus. The more popular viruses can result in a flood of posts on journals and the main community, and your character's intro may get lost in the shuffle. General questions to the community can also be a great way for your character to make new friends and attract a wider range of commenters. Broad subjects that everyone has had experience with will be easier for people to respond to and can help ensure that your character gets input from more than just their canonmates. Commenting to other character's posts is also a great way to develop relationships. With some anti-social characters this can be more difficult; try to find characters talking about subjects that interest them or asking those general questions that lots of people have opinions on.
Interactions between players can also be crucial to developing strong character relationships. Don't be afraid to pop into our AIM chatroom 'dramadramaduck' and talk to your fellow players, or to IM members whose characters are interacting with yours. For many, talking about the game is half the fun, and a lot of players are delighted to talk to the people they're playing with. All players' contact information is up at our Taken Characters List.
I want my character to make a post. Should it go in his journal or on the community?
This is a subject that seems to breed some confusion. As players are expected to keep up with the Friend Add List, posts made in characters' journals should be seen by the majority of players, so the main difference in community posts and personal posts ends up being the post's actual content. When making a post, look at it as if it was something you were about to post. If it's the kind of thing you'd direct to your friends or a diary-style entry that's recounting the events of your day you'd put it on your personal journal, right? If it was a more general subject where you were asking for a wide variety of opinions or something that wasn't specific to just your friends and your environment, then you may put it on a community that's geared toward open socialization.
Posts your character makes can be treated the same way. An open invitation to attend a fighting tournament, or a question like 'What does love mean to you?' might go in the community, whereas a post 'locked' to only two characters, or a question that only canonmates would need to answer could go in a character's personal journal. Basically, if you ask yourself 'Who cares?' and the only answer you can give is 'My character's friends,' their personal journal is probably the best place for it. :D
How do I locked thread?
The 'locking' system of DDD (in which posts and comments are filtered and viewable only by certain people) is a very versatile tool. Many characters are more likely to talk about some subjects when they don't have an audience (or at least aren't aware of one). Locks can allow them to speak to only specific characters or to keep things private. If you're locking an entire post to a very small group, meaning only a couple of characters will be able to see it, please keep that entry on your character's personal journal; a more general entry with only a portion locked to specific members can still be posted on dramadramaduck.
There are a few types of locks a character can use: a locked post, in which the entire contents are intended to be seen only by the character himself or by specific characters, or a semi-locked post, in which only a portion of the entry is locked. In all of the examples note that the subject line specifies the type of lock. 'Locked,' 'Filtered,' and 'Private' can all be used to indicate a locked post, and the same formats can be used to lock comments as well.
You may also have noticed the word 'hackable' in some of the examples. On DDD there are many gods, god-like characters, and computer wizards with the ability to hack into locked entries. If you want to allow them access to your character's entry you can include 'hackable' by the lock, and if you want it to remain fully locked just label it 'unhackable.' Players of those types of characters must ask for permission before hacking unless a lock is specifically labeled as hackable. If your character has such abilities but the post isn't labeled one or the other, don't assume it's hackable. Always ask the other player for permission before hacking an unlabeled or unhackable entry or comment. That being said, players of non-net savvy characters should keep in mind their character's lack of computer skills when deciding whether a lock should be hackable. A character with no computer experience shouldn't realistically be able to lock a post from a highly skilled hacker. For this reason, some players choose to implement a more accurate label such as 'locked; hackable by gods and skilled hackers.'
The community of DramaDramaDuck has provided its members with a useful method of filtering communication...but this is still dramadramaduck, and the community doesn't always abide by its own rules. Characters should keep in mind that these locks have a tendency to fail at their player's discretion the worst possible time, and the occasional 'failed lock' label can open the way to some very interesting conversations.
I'd like to use another character from my character's canon for a post/RL/whatever. What do I need to do?
Sometimes a plot or aspect of character development can require the participation of other characters from your character's canon. When that particular character you need isn't a part of DramaDramaDuck, that can be a problem. But all is not lost! If the character's participation is absolutely necessary, temporary use of a canon character might be allowed, but the use of a canon character that isn't applied for is subject to mod approval. If you want to use a canon character on a temporary basis (including simple 'hijacking my friend's laptop for the lulz' posts), you must ask the mods for permission first (which can be done here), as any actions the temporary character makes might affect the way someone plays that character in the future.
What if my character lives in a time before Al Gore invented the internets?
A lot of the characters on DramaDramaDuck come from pre-internet days or worlds where the internet may never exist. Players have come up with a variety of means for their characters to access the nexus of dramadramaduck, from a 'magic book' that writes back at the character who uses it to a scrying pool. One character even had a laptop conveniently dropped on her ship by a passing member.
Time-lines? What time-lines?
On DramaDramaDuck there are very few limits to the way you can play the game. Time lines here can be extremely fluid, and 'What time-lines?' has reached the status of a running gag. Posts and subsequent comments are generally considered to occur on the same day, but backdating posts and comments by putting 'Back-dated to so-and-so date' in the subject line is a common practice, allowing people to work conversations around viruses and events or get things done that they weren't able to post earlier because of time constraints/RL issues. Posts can also be future-dated in the same manner. All comments in RL logs are obviously assumed to be occurring in the same period of time.
Regarding time-lines for characters who share a world, all canonmates are generally considered to be in the same time-line, so it's a good idea to check with any existing canonmates to verify what point in the canon they're playing from. On occasion players have chosen to pull their characters from points in canon that are separate from their canonmates, but this situation can easily become complicated and is best avoided if possible.
How does my character get a world-hop?
Considering the number of uber-long-distance relationships and swinging events going on at DDD, it probably won't be long before you'll need one. Thankfully, there are plenty of hoppers who'll be willing to oblige--including some who're so willing, we may as well paint them yellow and call them a cab. Obtaining a hop is usually fairly painless. All a character has to do in most cases is post in the main community asking for a ride; for those who have world-hopping friends even a personal journal entry may suffice. There's always a chance the service may come at a price, of course, but for a trip across the multi-verse it should be worth it...right? In some situations, like events where hoppers are standing by, world-hops can also be assumed without any requests actually being made.
How does my character give a world-hop?
World-hoppers can come in two ways: characters with canon basis for inter-dimensional travel, and characters who are granted the ability by another member of DDD. If your character has some means of teleporting or traveling through dimensions they can probably world-hop. (This also applies to characters with access to devices that can perform such travel, i.e. the TARDIS from Doctor Who or the Gummi ships from Kingdom Hearts.) If your character doesn't have any canon basis for the ability, there's still a possibility that they'll be able to obtain it during the course of their time on DDD. Occasionally someone who's able to grant the ability (like Dark from DNAngel, whose feathers confer many abilities, including teleportation) may do so for a friend...or for a price. If your character is about to give or be given a world-hopping device, you must get mod approval first. Anyone who is plotting to obtain world-hopping abilities for their character without any canon basis must run it by the mods here beforehand.
Mommy, where do viruses come from?
Viruses on dramadramaduck don't always have a source. Sometimes one of the resident gods will claim responsibility. Other times, SHODAN, the sentient computer that inhabits the community, will receive the blame. A lot of the times the viruses are accepted as simply the result of whatever strange, unnamed force has brought the community into existence.
Many members have dared to ask this same question; there have even been a few, brave souls who endeavoured to cut the viruses off at the source! ...Bad things happened when they tried, of course, but their foolishness bravery will always live on in the epic legends of DramaDramaDuck.
I have a supah mondo awesome idea for a virus/event! ...What do I do with it?
Suggest it, of course! The Event and Virus Suggestions Post is here. Comment to it with a description of your event idea or your virus' guidelines (i.e. 'This virus will turn affected characters into Pokemon'). Be sure to specify which category it falls under--an event, like a tournament or party, or a virus. If you'd like an event set at a particular time, let our Events Mod, Norry, know that in your comment and she'll do her best to accommodate you. It would also be a good idea to mention who will be running the event or virus. If there's no god to take responsibility for a virus they're often blamed on SHODAN or the community itself, but some events will need to be hosted or run by a character. If you've got an idea for an event but your character's not the sort to be involved, go ahead and suggest it anyway. Often when a ringleader is needed, a more suitable character will be offered.
These guidelines only apply to community-wide events and viruses. Players are allowed to do whatever personal events (affecting less than five people) that they want in character journals, though events involving sensitive subjects may be subject to mod approval. (See 'Section 3: Sensitive Topics' in the Player Guide, or click here for more clarification.) All viruses, including viruses affecting only a small number of people, must be approved by a moderator.
Where do I go to tell someone what I think of them?
Constructive criticism can be one of the greatest gifts a player can get. Suggestions on characterization can be extremely important for a player's development, and most of us can't reach our full potential without treading those stepping stones to improvement. If you've got some concrit to offer, you can either post it to the player during the bi-monthly How's My Driving post (see Section 6 of the Player Guide), or you can post it to the concrit post that most players have on their characters' journals. (These are listed in the Concrit Directory. If you haven't added your concrit post yet, be sure to comment there with your link!) For more information on giving concrit, see 'concrit' under the 'Glossary and Helpful Terms' section of the Player Guide.
How do I make the perfect DDD secret?
DDD secrets (see Section 5 of the Player Guide) should be no bigger than 600x600 pixels; a little bit of leeway may be allowed, but try to keep it within the size limit. Your secrets can be text only, have a picture as a background, whatever you want. Pretty much anything goes. You can take a look at our past secrets posts or check out any of the many secrets communities on Livejournal for some ideas.
These secrets are supposed to be from the viewpoint of your character, but even if your character's not a fantastic graphic designer you can still make them as ~pretty~ as you want to. As for their contents, the secrets post can be a great place to vent some hidden guilt, confess a forbidden love, or vilify an enemy.
Gag secrets are also allowed. Have something you want to say but your character wouldn't say it in a million, jillion years? Submit it anyway! The more flail-inducing, the better.
Is there a question you'd like answered, but you don't see it here? Feel free to ask in a comment!
My app got rejected. Why can't you tell me what I did wrong so I can fix it?
We can, actually! The mods have chosen not to leave explanations on rejected applications, because we have no way of knowing which (if any) applicants would be comfortable with that information being left in a public space. Applicants are always free to contact the mods directly and request the reasoning behind their rejection.
My character's lonely. :( How do they make friends?
When you first join DDD or intro a new character, there are a few simple steps you can take to get your character out there and help them interact with more people. First and most importantly, you'll want to intro them at dramadramaduck. Pick a time when you'll be available to tag so you've got a lot of time to keep the threads going; the more characters interact, the more they'll learn about each other. If possible, don't intro your character during the first few days of a virus. The more popular viruses can result in a flood of posts on journals and the main community, and your character's intro may get lost in the shuffle. General questions to the community can also be a great way for your character to make new friends and attract a wider range of commenters. Broad subjects that everyone has had experience with will be easier for people to respond to and can help ensure that your character gets input from more than just their canonmates. Commenting to other character's posts is also a great way to develop relationships. With some anti-social characters this can be more difficult; try to find characters talking about subjects that interest them or asking those general questions that lots of people have opinions on.
Interactions between players can also be crucial to developing strong character relationships. Don't be afraid to pop into our AIM chatroom 'dramadramaduck' and talk to your fellow players, or to IM members whose characters are interacting with yours. For many, talking about the game is half the fun, and a lot of players are delighted to talk to the people they're playing with. All players' contact information is up at our Taken Characters List.
I want my character to make a post. Should it go in his journal or on the community?
This is a subject that seems to breed some confusion. As players are expected to keep up with the Friend Add List, posts made in characters' journals should be seen by the majority of players, so the main difference in community posts and personal posts ends up being the post's actual content. When making a post, look at it as if it was something you were about to post. If it's the kind of thing you'd direct to your friends or a diary-style entry that's recounting the events of your day you'd put it on your personal journal, right? If it was a more general subject where you were asking for a wide variety of opinions or something that wasn't specific to just your friends and your environment, then you may put it on a community that's geared toward open socialization.
Posts your character makes can be treated the same way. An open invitation to attend a fighting tournament, or a question like 'What does love mean to you?' might go in the community, whereas a post 'locked' to only two characters, or a question that only canonmates would need to answer could go in a character's personal journal. Basically, if you ask yourself 'Who cares?' and the only answer you can give is 'My character's friends,' their personal journal is probably the best place for it. :D
How do I locked thread?
The 'locking' system of DDD (in which posts and comments are filtered and viewable only by certain people) is a very versatile tool. Many characters are more likely to talk about some subjects when they don't have an audience (or at least aren't aware of one). Locks can allow them to speak to only specific characters or to keep things private. If you're locking an entire post to a very small group, meaning only a couple of characters will be able to see it, please keep that entry on your character's personal journal; a more general entry with only a portion locked to specific members can still be posted on dramadramaduck.
There are a few types of locks a character can use: a locked post, in which the entire contents are intended to be seen only by the character himself or by specific characters, or a semi-locked post, in which only a portion of the entry is locked. In all of the examples note that the subject line specifies the type of lock. 'Locked,' 'Filtered,' and 'Private' can all be used to indicate a locked post, and the same formats can be used to lock comments as well.
You may also have noticed the word 'hackable' in some of the examples. On DDD there are many gods, god-like characters, and computer wizards with the ability to hack into locked entries. If you want to allow them access to your character's entry you can include 'hackable' by the lock, and if you want it to remain fully locked just label it 'unhackable.' Players of those types of characters must ask for permission before hacking unless a lock is specifically labeled as hackable. If your character has such abilities but the post isn't labeled one or the other, don't assume it's hackable. Always ask the other player for permission before hacking an unlabeled or unhackable entry or comment. That being said, players of non-net savvy characters should keep in mind their character's lack of computer skills when deciding whether a lock should be hackable. A character with no computer experience shouldn't realistically be able to lock a post from a highly skilled hacker. For this reason, some players choose to implement a more accurate label such as 'locked; hackable by gods and skilled hackers.'
The community of DramaDramaDuck has provided its members with a useful method of filtering communication...but this is still dramadramaduck, and the community doesn't always abide by its own rules. Characters should keep in mind that these locks have a tendency to fail at their player's discretion the worst possible time, and the occasional 'failed lock' label can open the way to some very interesting conversations.
I'd like to use another character from my character's canon for a post/RL/whatever. What do I need to do?
Sometimes a plot or aspect of character development can require the participation of other characters from your character's canon. When that particular character you need isn't a part of DramaDramaDuck, that can be a problem. But all is not lost! If the character's participation is absolutely necessary, temporary use of a canon character might be allowed, but the use of a canon character that isn't applied for is subject to mod approval. If you want to use a canon character on a temporary basis (including simple 'hijacking my friend's laptop for the lulz' posts), you must ask the mods for permission first (which can be done here), as any actions the temporary character makes might affect the way someone plays that character in the future.
What if my character lives in a time before Al Gore invented the internets?
A lot of the characters on DramaDramaDuck come from pre-internet days or worlds where the internet may never exist. Players have come up with a variety of means for their characters to access the nexus of dramadramaduck, from a 'magic book' that writes back at the character who uses it to a scrying pool. One character even had a laptop conveniently dropped on her ship by a passing member.
Time-lines? What time-lines?
On DramaDramaDuck there are very few limits to the way you can play the game. Time lines here can be extremely fluid, and 'What time-lines?' has reached the status of a running gag. Posts and subsequent comments are generally considered to occur on the same day, but backdating posts and comments by putting 'Back-dated to so-and-so date' in the subject line is a common practice, allowing people to work conversations around viruses and events or get things done that they weren't able to post earlier because of time constraints/RL issues. Posts can also be future-dated in the same manner. All comments in RL logs are obviously assumed to be occurring in the same period of time.
Regarding time-lines for characters who share a world, all canonmates are generally considered to be in the same time-line, so it's a good idea to check with any existing canonmates to verify what point in the canon they're playing from. On occasion players have chosen to pull their characters from points in canon that are separate from their canonmates, but this situation can easily become complicated and is best avoided if possible.
How does my character get a world-hop?
Considering the number of uber-long-distance relationships and swinging events going on at DDD, it probably won't be long before you'll need one. Thankfully, there are plenty of hoppers who'll be willing to oblige--including some who're so willing, we may as well paint them yellow and call them a cab. Obtaining a hop is usually fairly painless. All a character has to do in most cases is post in the main community asking for a ride; for those who have world-hopping friends even a personal journal entry may suffice. There's always a chance the service may come at a price, of course, but for a trip across the multi-verse it should be worth it...right? In some situations, like events where hoppers are standing by, world-hops can also be assumed without any requests actually being made.
How does my character give a world-hop?
World-hoppers can come in two ways: characters with canon basis for inter-dimensional travel, and characters who are granted the ability by another member of DDD. If your character has some means of teleporting or traveling through dimensions they can probably world-hop. (This also applies to characters with access to devices that can perform such travel, i.e. the TARDIS from Doctor Who or the Gummi ships from Kingdom Hearts.) If your character doesn't have any canon basis for the ability, there's still a possibility that they'll be able to obtain it during the course of their time on DDD. Occasionally someone who's able to grant the ability (like Dark from DNAngel, whose feathers confer many abilities, including teleportation) may do so for a friend...or for a price. If your character is about to give or be given a world-hopping device, you must get mod approval first. Anyone who is plotting to obtain world-hopping abilities for their character without any canon basis must run it by the mods here beforehand.
Mommy, where do viruses come from?
Viruses on dramadramaduck don't always have a source. Sometimes one of the resident gods will claim responsibility. Other times, SHODAN, the sentient computer that inhabits the community, will receive the blame. A lot of the times the viruses are accepted as simply the result of whatever strange, unnamed force has brought the community into existence.
Many members have dared to ask this same question; there have even been a few, brave souls who endeavoured to cut the viruses off at the source! ...Bad things happened when they tried, of course, but their foolishness bravery will always live on in the epic legends of DramaDramaDuck.
I have a supah mondo awesome idea for a virus/event! ...What do I do with it?
Suggest it, of course! The Event and Virus Suggestions Post is here. Comment to it with a description of your event idea or your virus' guidelines (i.e. 'This virus will turn affected characters into Pokemon'). Be sure to specify which category it falls under--an event, like a tournament or party, or a virus. If you'd like an event set at a particular time, let our Events Mod, Norry, know that in your comment and she'll do her best to accommodate you. It would also be a good idea to mention who will be running the event or virus. If there's no god to take responsibility for a virus they're often blamed on SHODAN or the community itself, but some events will need to be hosted or run by a character. If you've got an idea for an event but your character's not the sort to be involved, go ahead and suggest it anyway. Often when a ringleader is needed, a more suitable character will be offered.
These guidelines only apply to community-wide events and viruses. Players are allowed to do whatever personal events (affecting less than five people) that they want in character journals, though events involving sensitive subjects may be subject to mod approval. (See 'Section 3: Sensitive Topics' in the Player Guide, or click here for more clarification.) All viruses, including viruses affecting only a small number of people, must be approved by a moderator.
Where do I go to tell someone what I think of them?
Constructive criticism can be one of the greatest gifts a player can get. Suggestions on characterization can be extremely important for a player's development, and most of us can't reach our full potential without treading those stepping stones to improvement. If you've got some concrit to offer, you can either post it to the player during the bi-monthly How's My Driving post (see Section 6 of the Player Guide), or you can post it to the concrit post that most players have on their characters' journals. (These are listed in the Concrit Directory. If you haven't added your concrit post yet, be sure to comment there with your link!) For more information on giving concrit, see 'concrit' under the 'Glossary and Helpful Terms' section of the Player Guide.
How do I make the perfect DDD secret?
DDD secrets (see Section 5 of the Player Guide) should be no bigger than 600x600 pixels; a little bit of leeway may be allowed, but try to keep it within the size limit. Your secrets can be text only, have a picture as a background, whatever you want. Pretty much anything goes. You can take a look at our past secrets posts or check out any of the many secrets communities on Livejournal for some ideas.
These secrets are supposed to be from the viewpoint of your character, but even if your character's not a fantastic graphic designer you can still make them as ~pretty~ as you want to. As for their contents, the secrets post can be a great place to vent some hidden guilt, confess a forbidden love, or vilify an enemy.
Gag secrets are also allowed. Have something you want to say but your character wouldn't say it in a million, jillion years? Submit it anyway! The more flail-inducing, the better.
Is there a question you'd like answered, but you don't see it here? Feel free to ask in a comment!