Here are some important things to keep in mind when creating message files:

• Always start work on a new message file by making a copy of the current "Default.awm"
  
  
• If you are not going to override a particular message in your message file, then leave it out completely. Active Worlds will use the message from Default.awm. Leaving it in just makes your message file larger than necessary and harder to maintain.
  
  
• Pay attention to the & character! Most menu and dialog box items have one. It designates which key is the keyboard shortcut for that item. If you leave it out there will be no shortcut for that item which many users find very inconvenient. Also, you must make sure that your shortcuts don't conflict! If you assign the same shortcut to two different items within the same menu or dialog, one of them will not work.
  
  
• Pay attention to the "%s" and "%d" markers. These are locations where values or other messages will be substituted into the message at runtime by the browser. The order of these markers is critical. If you change the order of the markers or leave them out, Active Worlds may crash!
  
  
• Finally, wherever possible, test your messages! A blind translation of the messages into another language without testing how those messages appear within the browser will almost certainly result in many messages that don't fit properly within the space available. We have tried to make as much space available as possible for longer messages, but space is still tight in some of the dialogs.
  
  
• Please direct all message file questions, changes, and submissions to roland@activeworlds.com.