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Guide to Discord For New Users

PostPosted:Thu Feb 07, 2019 3:11 am
by Jana Otahal
With the recent launch of TRMN's Discord for all things gaming, I thought perhaps a small guide for those, who've never used a similar program may be helpful. I personally find the program compact and easy to use, and definitelly would encourage everyone to jump on the bandwagon & join us on the TRMN Gaming Discord.

DISCORD - WHAT IS IT?

So, first things first - what is Discord?
In most simple terms, Discord is both an instant-messaging platform, as well as a place for voice-chat. Its' original intent was to be a venue for gamers to have a place to gather at, and allow for connecting with each other easily. Discord also allows for making free servers, and there are probably about hundreds of thousands of them by now.
Last, but definitelly not the least - It also fully supports one-on-one conversations and calls.

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Here is what you will see when you first join our TRMN Server
SERVERS

Discord have servers - their purpose is defined by the people who run them. They are entirely community driven & run. One of such servers is our recently created TRMN Gaming Discord, that was made with the intent for quick and easy connection between TRMN gamers. No matter what game you play, or may want to try; or even, if you look for a common place to mingle at, with your fellow TRMN members, regardless of your chapter or fleet. You don't have to limit yourself to talking just about the games

YOUR NICKNAME & YOU

On Discord, you have an username; but in addition to that, since a lot of people participate in various communities (I am part of about 15 separate servers/communities), you also may want to have a different name for each. Discord was smart enough, to allow you to set a separate Nickname for each server/community, that is different from your username.

We mostly use our TRMN names on the TRMN Gaming Discord, to be able to easily tell who is who. While it is not a rule, it's encouraged for you to use your TRMN name. Here is a quick way to change your nickname - On the right side-panel, where you see users on the server; find yours - right click your name and click 'change nickname', boom, done.
Alternative to this is, to click on the name of the server at the top-left panel & pick 'change Nickname'. Both work, and will only affect your name on that respective server.

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CHANNELS & THEIR USE

Each Discord server usually has a set of channels; our server included - think of them as of topics of discussions. They can be both text and voice-based. Most of them are open for everyone to post or join into - channels like Announcements however tend to be read-only, so the intended messages aren't lost in the walls of text. That's nothing to be alarmed about.
That said, these channels are for you to use - speak up! As I often say, the community becomes what we all make it.

VOICE-CHAT

I mentioned that Discord is also a platform for voice-chatting. That can, again, be facilitated through the channels on the respective servers, or you can essentially call someone privately. Before you do that, though, you should check your personal settings & make sure they're set up correctly. On the left-side panel, at the very botton, you see your username and set of icons. To change any preferences, click the grindwheel icon.
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What's important for this particular example is - Voice & Video tab. They will allow you to set up your microphone and sound-device (ie. headset) correctly.

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The other settings there involve the means of when your voice transmits over to people in the voice chat.
Voice-Activity - essentially means that your mic will activate whenever you talk - it's handy if you are in a small group.
Push To Talk - allows you to set a shortcut on your keyboard, that when you push that shortcut, your mic activates and you talk.
There are several settings under the Advanced tab (just scroll a bit lower), that I recommend turning on - Echo cancellation & Noise Suppression. I believe they are fairly self-explanatory. It can be not-so-nice to other people's ears to send in random noises or even echoes.

SENDING INVITES TO THE SERVER

Various servers have various setting for sending out invites. Some let only Administrators/Moderators to send them, some allow everyone to create an invite-link. The purpose of invites is rather clear - invite like-minded people to join in the fun.

Our TRMN Discord server allows everyone to send an invite & here is how: On the left-side pannel, where you see all the fancy channels on the server, you left-click on the #welcome channel and click the mini-icon next to it - it essentially will create an invite-link you can quickly copy/paste and share with your friends.

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Alternatively, here is a permanent invite link, that you can give to your friends: https://discord.gg/Mhuwy3V

QUESTIONS?

Discord may be intimidating if you've never used a similar software, especially; as it often is with a new software. But fear not, your friendly Staff Tactical Officer has you covered. That said - I tried to simplify the 'learning curve' - as there are many other different settings, but as a beginner's guide, it should do. If you have any questions, just shoot me a message - I'll try to answer them as best as I can.

Re: Guide to Discord For New Users

PostPosted:Fri Feb 08, 2019 11:57 pm
by Stephen Palmer
This was an awesome article. Would you by chance be interested in writing for us in the Office of Retention (BuPers)?