Chapter 2831: Information Dissemination Platform

The visual interface designed by Niya is mainly divided into two parts, including the navigation bar at the bottom and the main display area at the top, while the navigation bar is further divided into multiple tabs—

Address Book, Groups, Information, and an additional tab yet to be developed.

This covers the main content of this update, and all icons have both text and graphic prompts. For first-time users, they might need to recognize the text to use it proficiently, but as more people use it later, they will naturally know how to use it.

Xia Duo first clicked on the Address Book tab, and the main display area above immediately showed the Twin Marks saved within this Communication Magic Tool of Xia Duo's.

In fact, using this function for the first time defaults to uploading the Twin Marks (encrypted contact lists, which are essentially a spell) stored in the Communication Magic Tool to the Mythallar for online storage.

Afterward, if one changes the Communication Magic Tool, one needs to first purchase a new Communication Magic Tool, and then transfer the Permission Level from the old Magic Artifact to the new one; essentially, this is a transfer of Permission Levels between different Nodes.

If the old Magic Artifact is lost or destroyed, then there is no way; the previously saved contact list cannot be recovered, at least not at the user level, and this portion of data will disappear entirely when the Mythallar updates.

After all, since the Communication Magic Tool acting as a Mythallar Node has disappeared, it is effectively equivalent to deleting the account.

Although theoretically, a Communication Magic Tool can be used for a long time and will not affect the use of new functions from successive Mythallar updates until it breaks, Xia Duo certainly would not do that. Although he is not pondering planned obsolescence, he will still make users purchase replacements as much as possible; the most complex method is not restricting the use of new functions, as that is not difficult to achieve.

……

If it is not enough, one can consider purchasing more Communication Magic Tools, or purchasing value-added services that are not yet open, which is also what is colloquially called "paying extra."

After Niya connected, Xia Duo said something cautiously, and the two's Communication Magic Tools immediately emitted an echo because the two were too close, and most crucially, it was actually real-time communication!

The people on my address book right now are mostly members of the Tower of Time; besides Niya, there are also Aiboke, Saville, the Academy Five-Person Committee, the heads of departments such as the Academic Affairs Office, Personnel Department, Magic Technician Office, and Material Management Office, as well as the seven secretaries appointed not long ago.

"Niya, pick up for a moment."

Custom group names are not supported for the time being.

"Mm."

After creating a group, one can start pulling people from the address book. One can only pull contacts from one's own address book, but it is not limited to only the group creator being able to pull people. This is to say, as long as the person one pulls has a wide enough network, one could even pull all users in, but that is obviously impossible.

In fact, the maximum number of users the Communication Mythallar can currently support is only 140,000 (420,000, but the Tower of Time can only release 140,000 at most to ensure control). If one wants more, one can only wait for the next Mythallar update, and it must be a major update focused on increasing the number of Nodes.

……

The online address book and group functions are considered conventional functions, which can be regarded as an expansion of the basic functions of the Communication Magic Tool before the update, but "Information" is a completely new function.

Of course, it is not to say that this update just added a real-time communication function; this function existed in the past, but it was not integrated into the Mythallar. When real-time communication was needed, users had to cast spells themselves. Now, doing it this way is actually more convenient for some Spellcasters who have not mastered real-time communication.

And it is not to say that with real-time communication, the past "text message" form is gone; one can still send messages directly. Whether it is voice, text, or video, there is no problem, just like before the update.

Although I have tested it many times before, it was mostly testing whether the functions could be realized. Regarding the specific user experience, because I was in a rush, I saved time where I could, let alone doing two-person experiments.

When using it specifically, one only needs to click on the Group tab and then create a group. The user only needs to provide a spell element similar to a naming process, and then the Mythallar automatically names it "Group 1," and later there can be "Group 2."

Thus, Xia Duo immediately sighed, "Sigh, I neglected something during the previous tests; the real-time communication feels not very good as a first choice."

However, with the complex social hierarchy and the massive population of Xia Duo's hometown, limits like 200 or 5 are enough to use. The current Netheril is probably far from reaching that level.

After all, I cannot completely use the experience from Earth to apply to the usage situation of users here. Furthermore, user habits can also be cultivated; perhaps if it is set this way, users will like this method even more in the future!

Considering this situation, Niya followed Xia Duo's suggestion to limit the group member cap to 200 people, and at the same time, the number of groups an individual user can create is also limited to a maximum of 5.

This, of course, is the benefit of being a platform. As long as it can be built up, it will inevitably be a highly profitable venture. Therefore, whether in the early or late stages, Xia Duo will not sacrifice the fairness and authority of the platform for the sake of making money itself.

It can be opened when at least two people respond. Others in the group will receive a notification and can then choose whether to join, which is a bit like a chat room on Earth.

……

Xia Duo asked Niya to take out her Communication Magic Tool, and then he clicked on the Twin Mark that he and Niya had completed together in his address book. The next moment, a prompt came from Niya's side.

Next is the group function. For this, Niya even specially developed a Team-up Spell; the reason, of course, is that the Mythallar saves spells more conveniently than it saves general information.

"Perhaps!" Xia Duo did not refute.

Regarding groups, Xia Duo also tried it out and built a group with only him and Niya. Currently, the group only supports real-time communication; both voice and video are supported.

And as for this bulletin board, Xia Duo is not prepared to let the Tower of Time monopolize it exclusively, nor will he open it to other towers, or rather, open it to the Seventon Council.

The first contact on Xia Duo's address book is Niya. In reality, I have several Communication Magic Tools, similar to the distinction between public and private accounts on social software on Earth.

Doing this seems to sacrifice the Tower of Time's monopoly on information dissemination, but in reality, it also improves the authority of the bulletin board itself, bringing with it more authority to the information released by the Tower of Time, and even the Tower of Time itself.

This way, one can release some authoritative information, such as the relevant content of successive councilor meetings and plenary sessions, and some policy interpretations, including those from the Northland Alliance.

It is mainly because this aspect of the function is relatively difficult to implement. Niya currently has no way to develop it independently and can only look forward to the next update.

It is similar to a bulletin board, but currently, only the Tower of Time can unilaterally release new content. In the future, it might be made into a form similar to a forum, allowing users to release new content themselves.

However, Niya has a different view, "Isn't the purpose of people sending messages to let the target of the message know what they want to convey at the first possible moment? Real-time communication should be more in line with this need!"