Ah, these posts are informative. Thank you.

Well, once I can get the blasted client to stop cat-fighting with my OS, I'm sure it will be an experience. (For those who are curious, beloved Windows is complaining that PlaneShift is trying to access un-allocated memory every three minutes or so, and shooting it down. It might only be in the character creation segment, though. I could tell Windows to ignore it, but since I suspect Windows is right and I don't fancy playing darts with my active RAM... Well. Trying linux version now.)

if you want to actually see people it would be better not to play on the EZPC non-role play server. The main server is listed first and has the most people. Don't get fooled by ping time.

This will let you know who is one the main server (zeroping) and how many.

Don't worry, I'm not that foolish. Besides, what earth would possess me to play on the non-RP server? No offense, but if I was going to go play an MMO without engaging any imagination on my own part, I'd instead be playing something much shinier and modern, like those fancy Korean grind-fests, with bright colours and a chat panel filled with truely creative prose along the lines of "need hlz / party 4 mid-lvl boss". Not to say that there's anything wrong with those games, but that's not what I'm looking for here.

Ah, thank you for the link, though.

This marks the third time that I have come to attempt to get into playing PlaneShift. The first time I was naive and disappointed by the lack of shiny graphics. The second time it was the emptiness and frustration; I was confronted by what seemed to be a vast, lonely expanse in which I found almost nobody, spoke with no-one, and then died (from fall damage, I seem to recall, and thereafter I failed utterly to regain the surface).

I am hoping that, as I set out a third time, I will actually get the chance to meet with and interact with the community here in game; the prospect of an MMO server that genuinely believes in roleplaying remains enticing, and unfortunately, insofar as I can tell, unprecedented elsewhere. But how exactly should I start out in PlaneShift, so as to be able to meet people and, hopefully, enjoy the game? Is technical character advancement (the gaining of stats, spells, etc.) something I should first focus on, or is it recommended to seek out other players immediately? (I realize some of this may be a matter of preference, but nonetheless, I seek guidance.)

...on a completely unrelated note, is one expected to have studied the game's background and lore before playing? And if so, to what degree?