Wednesday, August 19, 2009

RR Tutorial : Plugins Browser

Hi, this tutorial is meant to explain what the Plugins Browser, which is the portal to every single plugin contained in the RR products, is.

First of all, what is a plugin exactly ? It is a script that is contained into a restraint, provides a user interface (one menu or more) and follows a certain access scheme. It is called a "plugin" because you "plug" (put) it into the restraint and you usually don't have to do anything else, it is usable right away because the Plugins Browser registers it. But in order to access the plugin you want, you must get the appropriate access level.

Remember the "full access", "reduced access" and "no access" concepts ? Let me remind you. "Full access" is what you have if you hold the key to the restraint, or the key is available. "Reduced access" is what you have if you are the wearer of the restraint, and it is locked but you don't have the key (or it is available but a timer is running). "No access" is for everyone else. The Plugin Browser follows the same principle. Some plugins can only be accessed by those with full access, some can be accessed by anyone with full or reduced access, some can only be accessed by the wearer (with full or reduced access), some can be accessed by anyone with full access, but never the wearer.

Oops, sorry for the headache. Let's just say you can generally access most plugins if you have the key, and you can't if you don't. There are only a few exceptions.

To access the Plugins Browser, just click on the restraint, then "Plugins...". The menu you get is the Plugins Browser.


What you see here is the list of plugins available to me (with full access) in my own Restrained Elegance cuffs. I chose those because they have two plugins that the wearer can never access ("Engrave"). You can see them on the menu, only their names are hidden, it is written "(not owner)" instead. Sometimes there are so many plugins that all do not fit on one page, this is why you must press the "<<" and ">>" buttons to navigate through all the available pages in order to find the plugin you want.

You can also see a little text explaining all kinds of things. This text is like a Message Of The Day that is contained into one of my servers, in my house. It is refreshed by the restraint once a week. Yes, sometimes the text is completely silly, because we can't be serious all the time ! Try with a RR Ringgag and you'll see *wink*.

Ok I click on one of the buttons that shows an actual name, and voila it goes to the desired plugin (in this case, "Long Time"). If I click "Main..." on that menu (99% of the plugins have this "Main..." button there) I go back to the main restraint menu directly. There is no way to go back to the Plugins Browser without going through the main menu first, once again for technical reasons.

There is also a "Last Plug" button on the main menu. This one is handy, it goes directly to the last plugin you have visited without having to search for it again. Of course if you lose the required access in the meantime it will default to the Plugins Browser instead.

Let's give you a little demonstration to understand the concept of "access", I'll sacrifice myself for this (yeah, right)... I lock my cuffs and start a 30 minutes timer. This gives me Reduced access for 30 minutes because I have the key but a timer is running. Now I click on the cuffs, check that I have Reduced access by seeing the "Tug", "Squirm" and "Struggle" buttons, and press "Plugins...". As you can see, most of the buttons are unavailable now, they just show "(no key)" (I have the key but I can't use it). Oh wait, there is one I can still use, it is called "Color elegance". This means that despite my predicament, I still have control over the color of the cuffs. That won't get me anywhere closer to freedom, but it sure will just make me prettier *g*


Have fun !
Marine