partyStrands FAQ
What does it mean to "Join" a party?
When you join a party, you're allowing partyStrands to recognize you as an active attendee at the party. This has several benefits: influencing the music, displaying an avatar, and easier texting.
How does joining a party influence the music?
If you're a MyStrands member, or if you join using your Last.FM account, this means that your music play history influences the music that's played at the party. If you join with your MySpace account, the artists that you've listed on your MySpace page influence the music.
How do I get an avatar for a party?
Everyone who joins the party gets an avatar that identifies them for the evening. Random avatars are assigned to people who are not a member of MyStrands, Last.FM or MySpace; those affiliated with one of the three groups will get the avatar or photo associated with their profile. Wherever your avatar comes from, it provides a visual cue when you text the party, add artists, or influence the music that's playing.
I'm a MyStrands member. How do I join a party?
To have exclusive use of your MyStrands nickname and avatar in partyStrands, and to use member shortcuts, you need to enter your mobile number in your MyStrands profile, and verify that number by linking your account. Here's how:
On your computer, enter your mobile number using Preferences in your MyStrands account.
Next, send a LINK text message to 81890 (US) or 5331 (Spain). The LINK syntax is:
LINK [YourMyStrandsUserName]
For example: LINK MusicLover
Remember, the very first time you interact with partyStrands, you must opt-in to the partyStrands SMS program by replying with a "Y" to the return message you receive.
Your phone is now set up to use partyStrands.
After you are LINKed into the partyStrands program, join any party by texting the party code to the short code for that party. For example, to join the party at venue "Cantina" simply text:
Cantina to 81890 (US) or 5331 (Spain)
I'm NOT a MyStrands member. How do I join a partyStrands party?
Joining a party is easy, even if you're not a MyStrands member.
Remember, the very first time you interact with partyStrands, you must opt-in to the partyStrands SMS program by replying with a "Y" to the return message you receive.
To join a party: [PartyCode] join [yourNickname]
For example: Cantina join Bobby
MySpace members: If you're a member of MySpace, you can use your MySpace picture and music tastes by adding :MS after your nickname.
For example: Cantina join Bobby:MS
Last.FM members: If you're a member of Last.FM, you can use your Last.FM picture and music history by adding :FM after your nickname.
For example: Cantina join Marc:FM
How does joining make texting easier?
After you join a party, it's much easier to send a text message from your phone to the party screen: simply text! No need to text in the party code or even a keyword. After you join a party, all you need to do is type your message to the party and send it to the short code displayed on the party display.
If you want to add an artist to the music mix, start your message with "A" and partyStrands will direct the message to the right place. Similarly, when you vote, simply start your message with a "V" then text your choice of A, B, or C.
After I join a party, how do I interact at a party?
After you join a party, the rest of your interactions are easy:
To text a party: [your message]
For example: This band rocks!
To add an artist: A [ArtistName]
For example: A Madonna
To vote: V [a, b, or c]
For example: V b
I don't want to join a party. Can I text and interact anyway?
We'd rather everyone join, but we know that sometimes all you want to do is interact anonymously. Here's how you can do that.
Remember, the very first time you interact with partyStrands, you must opt-in to the partyStrands SMS program by replying with a "Y" to the return message you receive.
To text a party without joining: [PartyCode] T [yourMessage]
For example: Cantina T Great DJ!
To add an artist without joining: [PartyCode] A [ArtistName]
For example: Cantina A Madonna
To vote without joining: [PartyCode] V [a, b, or c]
For example: Cantina V b
I sent my first message to a party, but I haven't seen any evidence of that message on the party screen? What's the matter?
Make sure that you have "opted in." When you sent your first partyStrands message, you should have received a return message that invites you to opt in. Reply to that message with a "Y" to verify that you want to use partyStrands. After you send "Y," your original message (join, text, add artist, or vote) will be processed.
I'm a party host, and my party won't start. What should I do?
The most common start-up problem is lack of an internet connection. Check whether your internet connection is working by opening a browser and making sure that you can get to and browse your favorite site.
Once you have established a good connection, make sure that MyStrands is connected. On a Mac, you will see a green dot in the lower left corner of the MyStrands Music Discovery screen when you are connected. If you see a red dot, you are not connected. Use the "Preferences" option in the MyStrands menu to enter your user email and password to connect. On Windows, right click on the Muzika menu. If you see a "Connect" option in the menu, choose that option to connect MyStrands to the Internet. If there is no "Connect" option, then you are connected.
I have a good Internet connection but can't start a party. What do I do next?
If your Internet connection is working, and you still can't connect, especially if this is the first time you've attempted to use partyStrands, your network and firewall settings may be blocking partyStrands from operating. partyStrands communicates over port 8080.
In Windows, you can test whether this port is open using the "Run" option from the Start menu. Click Run from the Start menu, then type "telnet update.openstrands.com 8080". On a Mac, open Terminal.app from Applications | Utilities, and type "telnet update.openstrands.com 8080". In either case, if you see some garbled text, the port is open and communication is taking place. If you don't see any response, you will need to reset your network and firewall settings so that the MyStrands client has access to all ports.
If both of these options fail, there may be other problems. Contact MyStrands at partystrands.help@mystrands.com to start up a problem resolution session. Please provide detailed information about your system, including the version of your operating system, the name and version of your media player, and the version of MyStrands you are using. (The MyStrands version in available in the Help | About menu.)
How do I change the language for my party if I'm using Windows?
You must choose the party language before starting a party.
We recommend that you select a default language using the party wizard. Start the wizard using the partyStrands setup option in the Muzika menu, and select the desired language on the language selection screen. This will be the standard start-up language for your parties.
If you ever want to change the language for a particular party, you can select a language from the dropdown menu on the Settings tab of the partyStrands host form.
How do I change the language for my party if I'm using a Mac?
On the Settings tab of the partyStrands host display, choose the party language from the Set party language dropdown menu. You cannot change the language after the party starts.
I'm running a party, but I don't see any instructions for how to interact with partyStrands. What's wrong?
It's possible that the party settings are not set to allow text messaging. You must set this before the party starts.
In Windows, you can accept messages by default using the party wizard. Start the wizard using the partyStrands setup option in the Muzika menu, then select "Activate text messages for my party." Parties will accept text messages by default, and the interaction instructions will appear on your screen. You can turn text messaging on or off when you start a party by checking or un-checking the "Activate text messages for my party" option on the Settings tab of the partyStrands host form.
On Mac, a dialog box will ask Would you like to enable text messaging for this party? Select Enable to allow text messaging.
How do I make the party display screen appear on my remote TV?
Before a party starts choose the location of the party display. On Windows, you can use the partyStrands set-up wizard to choose a default location, or you can select the location from the host form. On Mac, you can choose "A TV or other remote display" from the Settings tab of the host display. This option will be available only when another display is connected to your Mac when you open the partyStrands host form.
On a PC, the display settings must be set to "extend my windows desktop." The best remote screen resolution is 1280x720.
On a Mac, the remote screen use the System Preferences | Displays option to set up the resolution of the remote screen. The best resolution for a remote screen is 1280 x 720.
How do I get my photos to display on a Windows party?
Photos must appear in the Photos tab before they can show up on the party display. When a party starts, photos are loaded into the party gradually, so it may take a while before you see all of the photos in the party itself.
If you don't see any photos in the party, but they do appear on the photo tab, it is possible that another application is also trying to use the photos. Close all other applications and see if the photos start to appear in the party.
If photos still don't appear, select all the photos on the tab, delete them, and drag in new photos. Remember, you can drag in multiple files at once.
How do I get my photos to display on a Mac party?
Make sure that the correct directory path appears in the Picture directory field on the Settings tab of the host display. Use the Choose... button to select the directory.
I see a 16-digit number instead of a short code when I run a party. Why?
If you are in the US, you should see the short code 81890, and if you're in Spain, the code 5331. Throughout the rest of the world, an international number appears.
If you don't see the right short code, you must update the country setting on your MyStrands web page. To show the US code, make sure that the country you've set in your MyStrands web page preferences is the US. To show the Spanish code, set your MyStrands web page country to Spain. Any other country, or no country, will result in showing the international number on the partyStrands display.
I use Windows Vista, and some of the pictures on the photo tab in the host interface don't appear on the party display when I run a party. Is there a way to fix this?
This problem was fixed in version 0.8.3.004. A Vista's security feature stores some files in a different location than where the partyStrands photo feature expects to find them. Version 0.8.3.004 accounts for this incompatibility. However location data for some of the photos from your previous install may point at the old file location.
To fix this, close the MyStrands client. Go to your install directory, usually C:\Program Files\MyStrands_
Start the MyStrands client and start partyStrands. Drop your photos onto the photos tab and they will appear in the party normally.
My only display option for starting a party is "window mode". Why is this? How can I put partyStrands on another screen in full screen mode?
If you are using a non-English version of Windows, restrictions in the flash projector used with partyStrands make a Flash window the only available display mode. This means that you cannot automatically start a party in full screen mode on another screen. However, you can start a party in Window mode, drag the window to the second screen, and type Ctrl-F to expand the window to full screen. Typing Ctrl-F again will reduce the flash window.
