As regards Vipmud you can find explanations of connection info in This topic
Sorry to effectively not explain but as that topic isn't too old I'm afraid I'm being a little lazy and not wanting to repeat the explanation from there.
As to Cosmic rage, @Rioncross, if the activities in the game cannot be soloed, then they need to be marked as group, that way solo players will know not to try them.
If people enjoy grouping activities, fare enough, but that's just not why I play muds, and yes, I know that the idea of playing a multiplayer game for solo activities does seem a little paradoxical, however given the absence of single player games with theme and activities muds are what we have, and indeed muds are quite able to accommodate both solo and group orientated players.
likewise, if combat isn't possible in a ship of a lowerlevel, then activities should not be made available equipment is adequate to do them.
I apologise for the tone of my last post, I had spent all night awake and probably wasn't in the best humour when I wrote it, but I do hope that the admins take a good look at combat, especially in asteroid fields and do some rebalancing, also that and their stats and accessaries will be a little more logical.
I'm afraid this is why I moved on from Cosmic rage previously. I'd tried all the activities up to that point from ore collecting to debris salvage and generally enjoyed them incredibly, but the second ship combat got into the mix everything went to hell.
I would suggest the following:
1: better balance of ships for activities and equipping of cloaks on ship types like frigates to actually make combat possible while harvesting etc.
2: Actual availability of weaponry.
3: a halfway decent explanation of how to find and destroy enemy ships in the combat help file, ---- preferably including how to do it without basically constantly relying on the cloak.
4: schematic insurance so that once you'd bought a ship with all it's upgrades you don't have to trek round buying them all again (this coul obviously be expensive).
Btw, it also makes absolutely no difference if say you can build weapons in your factory at level 200 or whatever. If it is intended that players get into ship combat in asteroid fields at level 110, players need equipment at level 110 that is adequate to the task, end of story!
If this means overhauling ships and actually giving players something vaguely affective at lower levels (other than that one asteroid who's only asset is the cloak), then so be it.
I have really enjoyed cosmic rage, but I'm afraid this imbalance is seriously putting me off the game at the moment, since what is the point of a space game where flying out of known space and attempting to actually explore is instant death?
With our dreaming and singing, Ceaseless and sorrowless we! The glory about us clinging Of the glorious futures we see,
Our souls with high music ringing; O men! It must ever be
That we dwell in our dreaming and singing, A little apart from ye. (Arthur O'Shaughnessy 1873.)