The picture below shows the main SMM window. The right part is dedicated for mudding. Text output is written into the above region and you enter your input in the entry widget below the output area.
By clicking into the output- or input-area the focus is set to the input. If it has the focus, you will see the input cursor. You can now type in your commands. The input widget will keep a history of your last commands.
The SMM input provides some more functionality, which is bound to key sequences. Below is the list of the most useful bindings:
Hidden inputs - passwords e.g. - will not be put into the history. If the last and the previous command are the same, then the last command wont be put into the command history. And finally empty lines wont be put into the history either.
Since version V5.0 the SMM parser has been replaced by the tcl parser. This results in more functionality and performance. So it's a good thing. For a good and detailed description of the tcl parser please follow this link: the tcl parser.
Below is a brief and incomplete description, of what the parser does with your input. The parser looks for several things and changes the input if needed:
'n;e;s'is just the same as
'n<Return>e<Return>s'
command-name argument-1 argument-2 argument-3 ...If the command 'command-name' exists, it is invoked. This is the case, if it is a tcl-command, a smm-command or an alias. If the command doesn't exist, the whole command - togehter with its arguments - is send to the mud.
For the last lines on the output screen and the so called 'tab-list' tab-completition exists. If you type the beginning of a word and press the <Tab>-key the rest of the word is completed automatically. This esp. useful, when you are adventuring and are suddenly attacked by "Gorgymphula". Or if you are talking to someone, who has a ugly to type in name like "Phaidros": just type in 'P<Tab>'.
If more than one completition is possible you are asked to give in some more charakters. If you dont give in more characters but type in more <Tab>'s you begin to cycle thrue all possible completitions.