Ukagaka
Information wanted: Information on Ukagaka history, information on baseware for platforms other than Windows.
Ukagaka, also known as Ghosts, are a type of desktop application that originate from Japan. They can be extremely diverse, since they are entirely customizable by those who develop them. They generally consist of one or more characters that appear on the user's desktop and talk every few minutes, but there are many ukagaka that don't fit neatly into this mold. Some ghosts are considered to be utilities that may aid the user with specific tasks.
Ukagaka is known by many names, having undergone multiple name changes since its inception. Ukagaka (伺か) is the current name, but there is also Nanika (何か).1) Ghost is also an official term for them, though it can also sometimes refer specifically to the coding and writing portion of an Ukagaka, depending on the context.
Ukagaka is, at its heart, a set of standards. There are different standards for making shells, SHIORI, etc., and these are all assembled by a baseware program to display a character that can talk and move on the user's desktop. Because of this, there is not one single program to run Ukagaka, but many. In the English community, SSP is the standard on Windows, as it is the only baseware to have English translations for its menus. Other options are MATERIA and CROW, but neither of these have been updated in a very long time.
A selection of ghosts is available on our Ghost List. There are many more ghosts available, primarily in Japanese, on other listing sites such as GHOST TOWN.
