Authoring and Programming Tools

The web client includes built-in tools for building and editing in-MOO content that mimic the capabilities of a modern IDE.

These tools use moor-web-host endpoints to read and write objects, verbs, and properties. Availability can be restricted based on permissions and server configuration.

Access and Permissions

The web client uses the programmer flag from the login/session payload to decide whether to show authoring features in the UI. If the current player does not have the programmer flag, the object browser and eval panel controls are hidden and server-driven object browser presentations are dismissed.

All requests still pass through moor-web-host, and the daemon enforces permissions on the underlying operations, so clients cannot bypass server-side access checks.

Object Browser

The object browser lets programmers inspect objects, browse properties and verbs, and navigate object hierarchies. It is shown when the logged-in player has the programmer flag.

Opening the Object Browser

• Click the object browser button in the top navigation bar
• Use present() from MOO code to target object-browser
• On mobile devices, the browser uses a tabbed layout; on desktop, it shows a three-pane split view

Features

• Object List: Browse accessible objects
• Object Details: View name, parent, owner, location, flags (player, programmer, wizard, readable, writable, fertile)
• Property List: Browse all properties with owner, permissions, and values
• Verb List: Browse all verbs with owner, permissions, and argument specifications
• Navigation: Click on object references to navigate (parent, owner, location)
• Create/Delete: Create child objects, add properties, add verbs (permissions permitting)

Object Flags Display

The browser shows object flags as compact letter codes:

Verb Editor

The verb editor is powered by Monaco (the same editor engine as VS Code) and provides a full-featured MOO code editing experience.

Features

• Syntax Highlighting: MOO-specific highlighting for keywords, builtins, strings, comments
• Autocompletion: Suggestions for builtin functions, keywords, and—when the target can be statically determined (e.g., this or #123)—property and verb names
• Error Display: Compile errors shown inline with line/column markers
• Save and Compile: Click the Save button to compile and save
• Word Wrap: Toggle word wrapping for long lines
• Minimap: Optional code minimap for navigation (hidden on mobile)
• Font Size: Adjustable font size (10-24px)
• Split Mode: Dock the editor below the narrative or float as a window

Verb Metadata

The verb editor also supports editing verb metadata:

Navigation

When multiple verbs are open for editing, use the navigation arrows in the title bar to switch between them.

Property Editor

The property editor provides a Monaco-based editor for editing property values as text. It supports multiple content types for different editing experiences.

Content Types

Features

• Same font size controls as the verb editor
• Split mode support (dock or float)
• Save via REST API or WebSocket command

Property Value Editor

For structured property values (lists, maps, objects), the property value editor provides a form-based interface instead of raw text editing.

Supported Value Types

• Strings: Text input
• Numbers: Numeric input with type detection (integer vs float)
• Objects: Object reference input with validation
• Lists: Add/remove list elements, reorder items
• Maps: Key-value pair editing

Text Editor

For long-form text content like descriptions, help text, or notes, the text editor provides a dedicated editing surface with support for plain text and Djot markup.

The text editor can be opened:

• From the object browser by clicking on a text property
• Via present() targeting text-editor

Eval Panel

The eval panel lets programmers evaluate MOO expressions or statements in-place and see the result immediately. It runs through the server eval endpoint (the same underlying capability as the eval() builtin).

Usage

1. Open the eval panel by clicking the "λ" button in the top navigation bar
2. Enter MOO code. To return a value, use an explicit return statement (e.g., return 1 + 1;)
3. Press Ctrl+Enter (Cmd+Enter on Mac) or click the Evaluate button
4. See the result displayed below

The eval panel is only shown when the player has the programmer flag.

Opening Editors from MOO Code

All editors can be triggered from MOO code using present():

// Open verb editor
present(player, "edit-look", "text/plain", "verb-editor", "",
        {{"object", "#123"}, {"verb", "look"}, {"title", "Edit look"}});

// Open property editor
present(player, "edit-desc", "text/plain", "property-editor", "",
        {{"object", "#123"}, {"property", "description"}});

// Open object browser focused on an object
present(player, "browse-obj", "text/plain", "object-browser", "",
        {{"object", "#123"}});

// Dismiss a presentation
present(player, "edit-look");

See Presentations for more details on presentation targets and attributes.

Related Docs

• Server Builtins
• Object Properties
• Object Verbs
• Presentations