Technology is more-or-less equal to that of the Old World, as that's where the majority of the riders originated from. Thanks to the technologically-inclined Meera, there is heating and air-conditioning, running water, lights, and other such creature comforts. More advanced technology is allowed, however trips to ancient Terra or other non-dragonriding worlds simply to obtain toys is discouraged. (Which, naturally, makes the black market of terran products run by Sh'ro and Ekorael all the more successful.)
There are also several smaller villages and towns where non-dragonriding people live. These dwellings are scattered throughout the forests around the dragonry. They mostly ignore the dragonry residents and are mostly ignored in exchange, except for trading or the occasional search.
The mountain is surrounded by dense forests that extend infinitely in all directions. These trees are mostly decideous with some coniferous trees thrown in. It has a mostly temperate climate, though some areas are more jungle-like in climate and flora. There are four seasons; winter, spring, summer, and fall, and it often snows in winter, though it still gets fairly hot in summer. A wide range of terran and pernese animals live in the forests, and several decidedly non-terran creatures have been seen as well.
As far as Darkling Dawn's residents can tell, they are not actually on a planet and seem to be between dimensions. This can cause some very odd things to happen. People who wander in the forests occasionally find themselves on a completely different world with no idea how they got there. Also, time seems to be unstable; things or people may age much faster than they're supposed to, or much slower.
The current Weyrleaders are Rahel, on Senior Queen Micath, and A'ra, on Bronze Mazdath. Some other characters of note are the searchriders, Ean, Rahel's unofficial 'second in command', and the Headwoman, as well as others who can be found here. If you wish to use any of my riders for any reason, please feel free to do so. I don't mind as long as you keep them reasonably within character.
Darkling Dawn's Weyrlingmaster is P'nieral, on Blue Yersamath. The emphasis is on caring for and working with your dragon, but some defense and Thread-fighting practices are done as well, for those who are planning to go to Pern or other dangerous worlds.