The configuration options can be set from the settings dialog. I will explain them in the order in which they are displayed.
First of all the location of the atomsnet homedirectory has to be given. This is initialized to the directory atomsnet was installed in. Changing this value can make atomsnet unusable, so please make sure that it is always set to the location of the application. Again, under normal circumstances this option can be left alone.
Second, the local IP address and portnumber can be chosen. Under normal circumstances the IP address is guessed by the application. It should only be altered if a user finds himself shielded from the rest of the network by a so called firewall. Configuring atomsnet for use behind a firewall is discussed in the 'sharing data' section below. The local portnumber is set to 80 by default. This is the normal webserver port and it is advised to use this port. In case another application is already running on port 80 this setting can be changed to the user's liking. Please note that atomsnet will show a message in the message window if it is unable to claim port 80.
The next option regards connecting to an active network of atomsnet servers. If you want to become part of a network you should add the address of a known server, together with its portnumber (usually 80) here.
Finally, you can set the maximum number of simultaneous connections. By default this is set to 5, but it can be any number from 0 to 25. The number of simultaneous connections has nothing to do with the users that access the computer from their webbrowser. It deals with the number of other atomsnet servers your server can contact directly. Since increasing this value means more background communication is allowed it can seriously degrade both your computer's responsiveness and your available network bandwidth. Setting this value to anything higher than 5 can be considered unwise in a highly active network. It is however useful in private networks that generate little activity, such as company intranets or in-home networks. Please note that setting this value to 0 disallows any connections to other servers, thus making your atomsnet application a stand-alone webserver.