Just added the admin screen for Action Rounds to the RPG module. These settings don't actually do anything at this time, as one still can't perform actions. However, I also added new database tables to begin handling types using widgets, which begins to create the framework for actions.
So the way that action points are set up:
1) You can specify the duration of an action round, with a minimum of one second. If a user tries to click on an action before the next round, they either get a message telling them to wait their turn, or the action gets added to a queue, depending on whether we've even implemented a queue, and if the admin activates it.
Why even have a duration? Computers use a clock cycle to run threads. There has to be an order of processing events in game. There's always going to be server lag, and we still have to determine the system of performing actions anyway. I have a fuzzy framework in mind, involving a combination of cron and page load event firing, but this still needs to be worked out in better detail, keeping in mind the execution time limitations of php. Note to self: look at the implementation of the bot module, which overcomes some of these limitations, although with some command line trickery which might not be desirable.
2) You can specify the maximum action points a character will have available at any time. In general, one action will take one action point. Some actions may take more, such as crossing a mountain range, while others might take no action points, such as viewing one's inventory. Once the action points have been used up, no more actions. TODO: I guess if we set it as 0, there are no action points required. This is for when a site has 10,000 active users, and they want to encourage people to share the system resources.
3) You then specify a recharge rate. This is how many action rounds are required before a single action point is recharged, when a character has used their action points. The setting for this comes with a handy calculator at the bottom that suggests recharge rates to the admin, so you don't have to figure how many seconds in a date by the duration, etc.
That's basically it. There are also other admin screens as well, in various stages of development.