[PENNMUSH] PennMUSH 1.8.0p0 release

[Alan Schwartz]

The PennMUSH development team announces the release of PennMUSH 1.8.0p0

This even-numbered release is a "stable" release, and will be maintained
for bugfixes only. The initial release of PennMUSH 1.8.1 (the development
branch) will come soon after this one, and will initially be the same,
but will be actively developed for new features as well as bugfixes.

The former releases, PennMUSH 1.7.6 and 1.7.7, are now deprecated, and
only limited support will be available for them from the developers. Users
of both versions are strongly encouraged to upgrade to PennMUSH
1.8.0/1.8.1.

You can retrieve this version, or patch files to this version from
1.7.6p16 or 1.7.7p40 from http://download.pennmush.org/Source.
1.7.6 users are strongly encouraged to start with the tarball,
rather than using the patch.

Happy New Year! - Javelin, for the Penndevs

Major Changes (since 1.7.6):
  * SQL support (MySQL server).
  * SSL support.
  * Attribute trees.
  * Object ids uniquely identify an object across recycling dbrefs.
  * Anonymous attributes via #lambda.
  * Ancestor objects for each object type.
  * Interactions (something like "realms" in mux2) control conditions
    under which objects can see, hear, match, or establish the presence
    of each other. See local.c.
  * New flag/power internals, no more limits on number of flags, 
    flags can be added/removed at runtime.
  * New game/chat db formats, more readable, extensible, and 
    better at detecting problems.
  * New framework for performing lock failure activities in hardcode.
  * Customized mush.cnf configuration parameters can be easily added.
  * New chunk memory allocator does our own paging to disk,
    so the resident memory footprint is much lower.
  * Lock system rewrite. #true and #false atoms for locks.
  * minimal.db is no more. If you start up the server and there's no
    db to be found, it creates a new minimal database in memory.
  * New commands: @command/alias, buy, @boot/silent, @assert, huh_command,
    @decomp/prefix, @edit/first, ex/parent, empty, @nscemit, @function, 
    @nsemit, @nsoemit, @nslemit, @nsremit, @nszemit, ], @command/add,
    @command/del, warn_on_missing, @switch/regexp, @*emit/spoof,
    @tel/inside, @hook/ignore, @hook/override, @chan/recall, with/room,
    IDLE, @sitelock/check, SCREENWIDTH, SCREENHEIGHT, ex/all
  * New functions: zwho, zmwho, l/lv/n/nv/x/xvthings, malias, locks, llocks,
    lset, lockflags, llockflags, lattrp, nattr/p, xattr/p, mailsend,
    x/xv/n/nv/exits/players/things, nsemit/cemit/remit/lemit/oemit/zemit,
    andlflags, andlpowers, orlflags, orlpower, andpowers, orpowers,
    align, sent, recv, scan, valid, allof, firstof, tr, vcross, hostname,
    ipaddr, cmds, reswitch*, digest, cowner, baseconv, randword,
    trimtiny, trimpenn, terminfo, lports, strreplace, fraction, root,
    children, accname, lpos, width, height
  * New behaviors: @adisconnect, No_Pay, @name, @lock/speech, examine,
    @cemit, give, @cost, SUSPECT, @startup, escape(), time(), merge(),
    @set, move, @name, etimefmt(), insert(), PUPPET, help, rand, DEBUG,
    TERSE, powers(), @config/set, @function/restrict, %~, @lock/leave,
    tel(), @descformat, @idescformat, @aconnect
  * @lock/interact can prevent other players from transmitting any
    normal sound to you (that is, you won't hear them speak, pose, 
    emit, etc., like gagging them in a client). 
  * New flags: HEAVY, ORPHAN, MISTRUST
  * New powers: Debit, Can_NSPemit
  * New attribute flags: NO_NAME, NO_SPACE, DEBUG, NEARBY, PUBLIC, VEILED
  * New channel flags: Notitles, Nonames, Nocemit
  * You can log setting/resetting of flags/powers, as well as individual
    commands or function calls.
  * Rolling activity log dumped on panic dumps or visible with @uptime.
  * A new test harness for developing regression test suites in perl
    for PennMUSH is now included; few test suites are. If you can figure
    out how to use this, write some tests for us!
  * More and better telnet negotiation.
  * Many internal improvements. Many old compile-time options removed
    or replaced by run-time options. Source code commenting using
    doxygen. Improved internationalization.
  * New config directives: unconnected_idle_timeout, max_guests,
    max_global_fns, read_remote_desc, default_home
Minor Changes (since last 1.7.7):
  * The LFAIL/OLFAIL/ALFAIL messages are activated whenever a @lock/leave
    is checked and failed, not just when a 'leave' command fails.
    (So they work for failed attempts to leave rooms by exits/@tel).
    Suggested by Zith at Lovarii.
Fixes (since last 1.7.7):
  * Help for grab() now references graball(). Report by Sketch at M*U*S*H.
  * Reference to 'ducats' in code replaced by appropriate plural
    currency unit. Report by Kinumi at ShoujoAi.

-- 
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Javelin at M*U*S*H, once Paul at DuneMUSH | Alan Schwartz <dunemush at pennmush.org>
   (mush.pennmush.org 4201)         |      PennMUSH Server Maintainer
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   PennMUSH God's Guide: http://www.pennmush.org/~alansz/guide.html
        PennMUSH Source: http://ftp.pennmush.org/Source
     PennMUSH Community: http://community.pennmush.org
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