The Lobby window is displayed inside the user's web browser as shown below. The window is not a real operating system window but is instead a graphical representation produced by the Flash player. It can be moved and closed like a real window but is confined to the interior area of the web browser. The site name that you entered in the server module will be displayed just below the lobby's main menu.

♣ Lobby Menu

The menu at the top of the Lobby window contains the following commands:

Account

• Login - This is equivalent to the Login button on the Logins tab and displays a Login dialog.

• Create - This function displays a dialog so that first time visitors can create an account on your site. It is the equivalent of the "Create New Account" button on the Login dialog.

• Change info - This function allows the user to change any of the editable fields for their account, excluding their player name.

• Show balance - This function displays the player's chip balance and is equivalent to the "Acct Balance" button on the Logins tab.

• Exit - This function will log the player out and close the Lobby window. To reload the Lobby window and log back in the player can click the refresh button in their web browser.

Options

• Beep sounds - Plays a beep sound when it is the player's turn to act at a poker table.

• Bet sounds - Plays a sound effect when any player bets or calls a bet.

• Card sounds - Plays a sound effect when cards are dealt onto the table.

• Check sounds - Plays a sound effect when any player checks on their turn.

• Pot sounds - Plays a sound effect when a pot is awarded to any player.

• Login sounds - Plays a sound effect when a new player logs in to the site.

• Start tournament - Displays a Start Code dialog allowing the current selected tournament to be started remotely (if that option was enabled in the server module).

Help

• Contact site administrator - Displays a dialog with links to the site administrator's email and web site, as determined by the "Support email" and "Support web site" settings in the server module.

• View site news - Displays the text (if any) that was entered in the "Site news" setting in the server module. This dialog is displayed automatically at login if the text has been updated since the player's last login.

• About Poker Mavens - Displays a copyright notice and a link to the Briggs Softworks web site.

♣ Player Login

Each player must login before they can observe or join any poker games. Clicking the Login button on the Logins tab or selecting Login from the Account menu will display this dialog:

First time visitors can click the "Create New Account" button to create a new account at your site. You must have "Allow new accounts" set to "Yes" in the server module to enable this feature. If the player knows their Player Name but forgets their password they can click the "Email My Password" button to have it emailed to them. You must have all the SMTP settings filled in correctly in the server module to enable this feature. Same is true for the "Email Validation Code" feature if you have the "Validate email addresses" setting turned on in the server module.

♣ Logins Tab

Once logged in, each player can see the list of all players currently logged in on the Logins tab:

The chat feature on the Logins tab can be used by the players to talk to each other. Players type in a line of text in the Chat box and then press Enter to submit it. A player can block the chat of others by selecting their name in the login list and clicking the "Block Chat" button. Clicking a second time removes the block. The block also affects chat entered at the poker tables. Players can click the "Acct Balance" button to see what their current chip balance is.

♣ Ring Games Tab

The Ring Games tab displays a list of the active ring games currently available at your site (only the Pro version of Poker Mavens supports multiple tables). When one is selected, the list of players currently seated there is also displayed. Click the "Observe Table" button to observe or join the selected ring game. To join a ring table, the player simply clicks on any empty seat in the Table window. If all seats are currently filled, a "Waiting List" button will be enabled in the Lobby window. Clicking it will add the player's name to the waiting list. Once a seat become available, a invitation will be displayed to the player at the top of the waiting list.

♣ Tournaments Tab

The Tournaments tab displays a list of the active tournaments currently available at your site (only the Pro version of Poker Mavens supports multiple tables). When one is selected, the list of players is also displayed if the tournament has started. Players must click the Register button to join a tournament. Seats are randomly assigned and no one is seated until the tournament is ready to start. Also, no one can join a tournament after it has started. They can, however, register for the next tournament while waiting for the current one to finish. The list of starting options for the selected tournament is displayed just above the "Observe Table" button. A tournament can be started by up to 4 different methods as long as there are at least 2 people registered to play:

• When full - if set to "Yes", the tournament will automatically start when all seats have been registered.
• By Start Now - if set to a number, the tournament will start automatically when that number of players have registered and checked the "Start Now" box. A registered player who checked this box will have an asterisk next to their name in the waiting list.
• By Start Code - if set to "Yes", the tournament can be started by anyone (registered or not) who knows the start code and enters it by selecting "Start tournament" from the Lobby's Option menu.
• By Administrator - this option is always set to "Yes". The administrator can start any tournament from the server module via the Action button on the Tournaments tab.