AltME FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

Here are some frequently asked questions about AltME.

We have a special FAQ for Problems and Solutions.

Do you have a question? Just ask us!

World Questions What is an AltME safeworld? How do I create a new world? How do I start my world the second time, like after I restart my computer? How do I restart a world I created earlier? Can I create a temporary world for a specific purpose? What is a WorldMaster? Can I connect to more than one world? Can I start more than one world? Usage Questions Is AltME free? Can I kick someone out of my world? Can I use it at my school? Do I have to keep my computer on-line? Can I save my messages as a text file? How do I change my password? Can I use AltME on my own private intranet? Admin and Setup Questions Can I use AltME with a firewall? (e.g. ZoneAlarms) I can connect to other worlds, but how do I start a world from my cable modem connection? My school does not let me install programs. Can I still run AltME? How do I give someone a copy? Can I use a proxy server? Help! I forgot my worldmaster password! How do I backup my world? Platform Questions Does AltME work on Linux? Does AltME run on the Macintosh? Does AltME talk to cell phones (SMS)? Techie Questions My school does not let me install programs. Can I still run AltME? How do I change the name of my world? Can AltME send and receive email? How much disk space does AltMe require? What is an AltME safeworld? An AltME safeworld is a private world of instant communication that runs from your computer (rather than from AOL, MSN, or ICQ's computers). In a way, it's like having your own private AOL system. How do I create a new world? Creating a new world is easy... Download and install AltME (takes only a minute). Run AltME and click on "Start World" button. Enter a name for your new world and give it a password. If the world is available, you will be asked for the password again (just to make sure). Then, answer the remaining questions. See the AltME Docs for a full example and troubleshooting. How do I start my world the second time, like after I restart my computer? Just click on the "Start a World" button again and type the same world name and world password. (Nothing will be lost... everything in your world will be there the same as when you left it.) Because the world runs from your computer, not ours, you must restart your world each time you restart your computer. (In the future, we will make this automatic. Also, if you want your world always online, then put it on a server.) How do I restart a world I created earlier? To restart a world: Run AltME and click on the "Start World" button. Enter your world name and world password. If they are correct, your world will start immediately (you will see a small window on your computer). Now, click on "Visit a World" to visit the world you just created. Is AltME free? Yes. AltME is free. You can download and use as many copies as you want. You can give away copies to your friends and family. We plan to provide a commercial version of AltME that is customized for businesses in the near future. That version will not be free. Can I create a temporary world for a specific purpose? Yes. AltME safeworlds can be temporary and permanent. Because worlds are so easy to start, you can quickly create one for a temporary purpose, like organizing a school event. Or, you can make permanent, private worlds for your friends to meet or for other members of your organization, school, family, or club to stay in touch. Can I use AltME with a firewall? (e.g. ZoneAlarms) When connecting to a world, AltME usually works fine with most firewalls. If it's a problem for you, then check your firewall settings to make sure that you allow ports 5400-5409 and 5500 to connect out. Firewalls like ZoneAlarms will pop up (or blink the tray icon) to ask you about allowing AltME to run. Once you approve it, AltME will run fine. When running a world from behind a firewall, you'll need to allow users to connect to your computer on ports 5400-5409, (depending on how many worlds you run). What is a WorldMaster? A WorldMaster is the person who runs an AltME World. The WorldMaster has full control over the world, including creating and deleting users. If you are a worldmaster, you can make other users a worldmaster too (right click on their username to see the option). But, be careful to pick wisely. Any worldmaster can delete any other user, including you! Can I kick someone out of my world? Yes - If it's your world, you can kick anyone out. There are two ways to do so: 1) delete their account or 2) change their password. To delete the account, right click on the user name and click delete. If you think you might let the person back in later, it's better to just change their password to something they cannot guess. This will keep the account, but not let them on the system. Can I connect to more than one world? Yes. You can connect to as many worlds as you want. Just click on the "Visit World" button. To visit multiple worlds at the same time, just run AltME multiple times (click on its icon again). Can I use it at my school? Yes. AltME is excellent for school communication! It's quick and easy to create worlds for students and faculty to share information and coordinate on projects. In fact it's easier than setting up a web site, and it's just as easy to remove the world when you are done. AltME worlds have very low overhead, inherently secure, and are maintenance free. Do I have to keep my computer on-line? If you are running a world, then you must keep your computer connected to the Internet if you want others to be able to access your World. If you disconnect or turn off your computer, then your world cannot be reached by others. Of course, if you are using someone else's world, you do not need to keep your computer on-line. I can connect to other worlds, but how do I start a world from my cable modem connection? It really depends on your Cable service provider. We have found that some service providers block port connections (to prevent you from using peer-to-peer software and games). Tell them that you want ports 5400-5409 opened. Otherwise, your options are to find a friend that will host your world, change your service provider, or host your world on a monthly subscription basis from SafeWorlds.com (coming soon). Can I start more than one world? Yes. You can start as many worlds as you want, but you can only run five worlds at the same time. Also remember that if you don't use a world every 10 days, the world name will be released for others to grab (unless you pay for the world name). Can I save my messages as a text file? Yes. Click on the Import/Export button in the upper right. You can also save your messages as HTML, spreadsheet, and REBOL formatted files. How do I change my password? To change your password, just right click on your name in the user list. Enter your new password, then confirm your password by entering it again in the popup. Your password will be changed. My school does not let me install programs. Can I still run AltME? Yes. If you are not allowed to install new software (e.g. businesses, schools, government, etc.), you can still run AltME. When you start to install, just click on the "Run from current location" option. Note: If you do not install AltME, be sure to run it from the same directory each time, otherwise the program will need to download each world all over again. Can I use AltME on my own private intranet? Yes. Altme can be used on a private network, but only users that are within that network will be able to connect to your world. Note that you still must set your firewall to allow outward connections on port 5500 for users to find your world. Does AltME work on Linux? Yes. We currently support Linux Libc6 (RedHat and others). Does AltME run on the Macintosh? Not yet. But, we think the Mac is a great system, and we plan to release it for the Macintosh soon! How do I change the name of my world? To do so, just start a new world with the new name. How do I give someone a copy? AltME is self-installing. Just copy the altme.exe file onto a floppy disk, CDROM, or send it in an email. Or, you can just as easily send a link to our web site, and have them download it from there. Can AltME send and receive email? Currently, you can send short email messages from AltME. We also plan to provide an email gateway that will let you forward select email messages to an AltME message list. Other email-related features are in the works as well. Can I use a proxy server? Not yet, but we plan to add proxy support soon to allow you to connect to worlds through proxy gateways. How much disk space does AltMe require? The AltME program is only .5 MB, so it is fast to download and takes very little disk space. Each world will also require some disk space, but most worlds rarely use more than 1 MB. Does AltME talk to cell phones (SMS)? We think AltME would be terrific on cell phones, and we hope to add that feature just a soon as possible. How do I backup my world? All you need to do is copy the entire server directory for your world or use ZIP (or other archive programs) to create an archive copy of all its files and subdirectories. Help! I forgot my worldmaster password! If you have access to the system that runs your AltME world (the server), you can fix this problem. See Recovering Worldmaster Account Access . If you do not have access to your AltME world, contact the person who does.