       TRAVELLER Digest 40

Topics covered in this issue include:

  1) Copyright discussion by Karl Knoflach <knoflach@sjaan.fbk.eur.nl>
  2) Balls From Orbit by "Les Howie"  <lhowie@cpx.Prograph.Com>
  3) Re: Hollow Points by Martin Fay <MFAY@fs2.cp.umist.ac.uk>
  4) End of Survey, Space Missiles, Strephon in _Survival Margin_ by alvin plummera <plummera@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
  5) Mountains ... for the explorer in you by alvin plummera <plummera@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
  6) Deneb subsector name? by alvin plummera <plummera@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
  7) Re: Deneb subsector name? by Rob Miracle <rwm@MPGN.COM>
  8) Food in Space by Ted7@world.std.com (Mitchell K Schwartz)
  9) Review of Traveller navigator? by Ted7@world.std.com (Mitchell K Schwartz)
 10)  by alvin plummera <plummera@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
 11) Repeated questions... by alvin plummera <plummera@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
 12) Re: Food in Space by Bertil Jonell <d9bertil@dtek.chalmers.se>
 13) New UWP rating system. by alvin plummera <plummera@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
 14) Re:Plasma Gun Development by "Tariq M. Rashid" <spstmr@gsusgi2.gsu.edu>
 15) Deck Plan Clarification by Rob_Prior@nynet.nybe.north-york.on.ca (Rob Prior)
 16) Pretty Much Everything by Steve Charlton/Avalon Software Inc
 17) Starports by jeff.zeitlin@execnet.com (JEFF ZEITLIN)

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 09:25:03 +0200
From: Karl Knoflach <knoflach@sjaan.fbk.eur.nl>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Cc: knoflach@sjaan.fbk.eur.nl
Subject: Copyright discussion
Message-ID: <199409140725.JAA37376@sjaan.fbk.eur.nl>

Hi folks,
I have been reading the disscusions of this mailing list for quite a while
and I think it is about time to contribute something to it.

A would like to add a small remark to all this copyright stuff. 

CHiggin@aol.com (That's Cynthia, I guess) writes:
>Mathematical formulas AREN'T copyrightable.  Tables of numbers by themselves
>AREN'T copyrightable. (There was an interesting case where it was ruled that
>the Phonebook isn't copyrightable because it is merely an alphabetized list
>of names... it fails the originality test.) Therefore...

I am quite sure about this. Just as an example:
Intel was not able to enforce the copyright of the name 486 for its
processors. If I remember this right the judge said something about
that it is impossible to protect numbers. Therefore the new processor
was called 'Pentium' instead of 586. If Intel is not able to enforce
its copyright I doubt that GDW will be able to do so.

The tables itself can be divided into two types:

One of them was developed from real world data (example: Fuel (FF&S p.63)).
These type can never be copyrighted by GDW. I could get them from any 
physics book.

The other type of table contains data which was at least partly invented
by GDW. All you have to do is to change the data slightly. If I make a
15.00001 out of a 15 it will not change the results, but it is a
completely different table. As for names make 'Hardened Steel' out of 
'Hard Steel' or 'Recrystallized Iron' out of 'Crystaliron' then the 
copyright matter is much more difficult for GDW.

Another point would be not using the copyrighted names of GDW (example:
'Traveller', 'The New era' ...) in the program. Just call it 'A Ship 
Design Program for our beloved RPG' for example.

And as last point: Internet is spread all over the world. It's very
hard to find out the real source of a program. Especially if the 
author uses a pseudonym and a address from russia (Lot's of fun for 
the lawyers of GDW).

All things said above are my personal opinion. As I am a plastics
engineer and not a lawyer I am surly not a expert on these
matters. But I am quite sure someone of you folks has a lawyer as a
friend (I've got several of them but only for european copyright
laws).

Greetings from europe,

Karl Knoflach

Note: 'Traveller' and 'Traveller: The new era' are Trademarks of
      Game Designers Workshop (GDW)
      'Pentium' is a Trademark of Intel Inc.
      (so much for the legal stuff....)


------------------------------

Date: Wed, 14 Sep 94 09:50:56 ADT
From: "Les Howie"  <lhowie@cpx.Prograph.Com>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Balls From Orbit
Message-ID: <9409141250.AA02755@Prograph.Com>

"Tariq M. Rashid" <spstmr@gsusgi2.gsu.edu> writes
> DROPPING BALLS FROM ORBIT.
> 
> Another thing that would be an interesting discussion topic is orbital 
[ cut out great points on how to do bad things from orbit ]
> create problems for your seekers/guidance if so but a little drag on it.  
> Anyone know the drag coeffecient for a ceramic coated steel cone?
> 
> Even a very small ship could carry a good wallop for special forces down 
> on the planet.  Recovery mission in trouble?  I shall call upon the wrath 
> of the skies!  (15 min later if youre still alive!) A big hole where the 
> TEDs whatever was.

With an atmospheric re-entry weapon, it should be pretty cheap to stick a laser 
sensor and terminal guidence system on, a-la copperhead, and get a really 
precise system.  

Les Howie
Technical Architect (Database)
Prograph International


------------------------------

Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 14:13:41 BST
From: Martin Fay <MFAY@fs2.cp.umist.ac.uk>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Re: Hollow Points
Message-ID: <5719E8B419A@fs2.cp.umist.ac.uk>

Tariq Rashid mentioned adding rules for hollow point ammo. It might 
be informative here to point out the 'real-world' significance of 
different ammo types.

Standard (Jacketed Hollow Point): designed to prevent mushrooming to 
the level found in HP rounds, due to the Geneva Convention stating 
that rounds should be non-lethal to prevent 'excessive cruelty' - 
this does not in any way rule out maiming, just death (strange but 
true). The JHP round is by it's nature not optimally effective.

Hollow Point: designed to expand and inflict severe wounds on flesh - 
actually penetrate nearly as well as JHP, they are just optimised to 
cause maximum trauma.

Armour Piercing: hard tipped to penetrate armour, but cause nearly as 
much damage as JHP.

In game terms, because of limited resolution, this means that HP and 
AP will both be 'better' than JHP, but matters of legality may 
interfere. For instance, in the US (please correct me if I'm mistaken 
you yanks out there) it would be quite normal to use a branded round 
like 'Jacketed Hydrashok' (a HP round designed for maximal damage 
potential/stopping power) in a home defense gun, and an AP round for 
some forms of game hunting - and we all know that certain armies have 
a bad habit of 'dum-dum'ing their ammo ;-)

Hope that all makes sense.

---------------------------------------------------------
T.Eldritch - Regency Intelligence Service - Regina/Regina
martin.fay@umist.ac.uk
---------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 14:58:16 -0400 (EDT)
From: alvin plummera <plummera@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: End of Survey, Space Missiles, Strephon in _Survival Margin_
Message-ID: <Pine.3.05.1.9409141423.A14361-d100000@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>


The conclusion of my unscientific survey is: 
  
     "Techies dominate, but PoliSci / Historians hold their own!"

..of all my responces (about 15), about 2 fall into the humanities: the
rest are involved in the hard sciences/technological fields in one way or
another. (As I expected: Who else do you think would enjoy constructing
'realistic' starships or speculating on a 11,000 system government, 3600
years into the future?) 

This implies that all members of TML (and by implication, a large majority
of Traveller players) have at LEAST a post-secondary education. Excluding
10-year old ship captains, of course.

==========================================================================

The space missile chart in FF&S has warheads up to the 1000 mt range.
(ie. pen 1/25, damage 79)  Does anyone here have a way to 'roll your own'
warheads i.e. a formula that can extend the chart?  

Same for regular nuclear missiles. (Especially the crater radius!)

==========================================================================

On Space Balls :  don't forget your typical lost 'space junk' ie. lost
satilites, forgotten screwdrivers, little bolts, orbiting gloves.  Even
now, the amount of microdust in low earth orbit is large enough that the
Space Shuttle has to change windows after every flight, and any new space
station will eventually massive 'shields'.  And these particles are
travelling at about 1-4 Gs. 

Note: a 1mm aluminum ball, travelling at 16000 km/hr, can cause the same
damage as a falling piano at 90 km/hr  (a formula to convert this into Mj,
please?  And a way to create a penetration rating for this?) 

Incidentally: how would a busy spaceport deal with this?  

Possibily with heavy grav devices, or garbage scoops (real BIG ones)?
Maybe with some form of electromagnetic repulsion/attraction device?
And how much is this going to cost, anyway?

============================================================================

In _Survival Margin_, a question on the late Emperor.

(Yes, Strephon isn't a post-virus subject, but _Margin_ is a post-Virus
book...)

----------------------
pg. 7, from the Emperor's memoirs. (Pre-Assassination.)

"Who is this woman - I want to say empress - mediated from one mind to
another across all that distance?  She did not even seem to acknowledge
me, yet I felt that she was speaking to me, and the relay felt that she
was speaking to him too.  Is it a still picture that I imagine is
surrounded by motion, or is it a pregnant moment moving unchanged through
time?"

----------------------
pg. 9, after The Assassination

"Now I have a new empress, but she is not the one I want"

"Now that you live in my mind, empress, tell me who you are."

----------------------
..and a message from 'Pentecost'

"HIS IMPERIAL MAJESTY

 ENCRYPTION KEY IM3-01 CHALLANGE BLUE
 
 ACCEPTED

 [...]

 PROJECT LONGBOW

 PER PROJECT REPORT 097-1112, INCOMING DATA FROM STATION _GABRIEL_,
 CORRESPONDS TO PRIORITY _ZEPHER_ [PERSONAL ATTENTION REQUIRES].  STATIONS
 _HEROD, RAPHAEL_ REPORTED SILENT, PRESUMED DESTROYED.  DATA CURRENCY
 INDICATES CONSTANT +1C CLOSURE RATE, ARRIVAL AT MERIDIAN 78, PRIME RADIAL,
 IN 90 YEARS.

              PENTECOST"

---------------------

pg. 51 (180 - 1126.  During the stay of the _Arrival Vengeance_)

"I need Avery here, but they need him more, and they can take better care
of him than I can.  I'm just a silly old man, frightened of the future. 
Better Avery saves them than me.  Good bye, Avery.

Avery will know what to do."

---------------------

pg. 53 (in a letter to Archduke Norris)

"You will also do well to examine the Longbow documents enclosed, and
commit their study to your heirs.  Keep an eye on the Zhodani, for either
they know something, or they are prospective victims just as we are."

---------------------
 W h a t ' s     G o i n g        O n          H e r e ? 

Who is this 'Empress' in Strephon's mind?
Where/What are these stations, Gabriel, Herod, Raphael?
And what's arriving in 90 years?    (ie. 1205)

HELP!

==========================================================================

Alvin Plummer
(Who is very wary about the implications....)


------------------------------

Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 15:51:30 -0400 (EDT)
From: alvin plummera <plummera@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Mountains ... for the explorer in you
Message-ID: <Pine.3.05.1.9409141530.A24845-c101000@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>

--0-138870363-779572396:#24845
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII


Here is a brief mountain-construction post from USENET.  Consider it an
addition to your World Builder's Guide / Tamer's Guide...

Alvin Plummer
--0-138870363-779572396:#24845
Content-Type: APPLICATION/octet-stream; name=mountains
Content-ID: <Pine.3.05.1.9409141516.B24845@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
Content-Description: 

From: robink@aus.hp.com (Robin Kenny)
Newsgroups: alt.history.what-if,rec.arts.sf.science,sci.space.science
Subject: Re: What if Earth had higher mountains?
Followup-To: alt.history.what-if,rec.arts.sf.science,sci.space.science
Date: Mon, 12 Sep 1994 06:33:04 GMT
Organization: HP Australasian Response Centre (Melbourne)
Lines: 68
Approved: sci-space-tech@isu.isunet.edu
Message-ID: <1994Sep12.063304.5233@hparc0.aus.hp.com>
References: <33p2dk$cq2@nnrp.ucs.ubc.ca> <rjk.778085740@max.tiac.net>
<33vo1d$b8h@umd5.umd.edu> <CvHwxv.Aqp@brunel.ac.uk>
NNTP-Posting-Host: crl6.crl.com
Delivery-Date: Sun, 11 Sep 1994 23:42:22 -0700

[...]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Del Cotter (mt90dac@brunel.ac.uk) wrote:
[...]

: In article <rjk.778085740@max.tiac.net>, 
: rjk@max.tiac.net (Robert J. Kolker) says:

: >The hight of Earth's mountains is no coincidence. Given what that are 
: >made of, the weight of the mountain pressing down on the base will melt 
: >the supporting substrate causing a collapse until an equilibrium is 
: >established.  In other words, the hight of our moutains is a consequence 
: >of the earth's mass and the laws of physics. 

: It's true that the heights of mountains on Earth, Venus and Mars are on 
: the *close* order of the maximum possible (so far as we know).

: But there's still room for higher mountains on Earth, even an extra 5000m, 
: IMHO.  There have almost certainly been much higher mountains than Everest 
: in the past, and there will be much higher mountains in the future.  

: I can't remember if Everest is growing (due to the encroachment of India) 
: or shrinking (due to erosion) but either way Everest is not as tall today 
: as it can be.  Hang on, I've got some old email on this subject
: somewhere...

: Here it is.

: The maximum height of mountains H is determined by the condition that 
: the potential energy of a single molecule in the mountain be no more than 
: about 1/1000 of its Rydberg energy E (note the 'about' - there's nothing
: precise about this limit, it's just a BOTE estimate).

:  A mp H g = .001 E

: hence H = 0.001 E / A mp g

: where A  = mean molecular weight of the planet
:  mp = mass of proton
:  g  = acceleration due to gravity

: By coincidence, iron and silicates have similar molecular weights and
: may be taken to be 50 for the purpose of this calculation.  Hence maximum 
: mountain height is inversely proportional to surface gravity.

: For the terrestrial planets, observed maximum mountain height is about 
: 0.4 * theoretical mountain height.  Details in "The Physics of Planetary 
: Interiors" by G H A Cole, but beware! his equations are full of errors.

: I have a small uuencoded spreadsheet with the figures which I can post 
: if there's sufficient interest before my account expires.  Oh, and for 
: what it's worth, I don't think it would have much effect on history, 
: but what do I know :-)

: -- 
: ',',' ' ','     
:   ',', ,'             Del Cotter    mt90dac@brunel.ac.uk
:     ','



--0-138870363-779572396:#24845--


------------------------------

Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 16:02:36 -0400 (EDT)
From: alvin plummera <plummera@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Deneb subsector name?
Message-ID: <Pine.3.05.1.9409141636.A1022-8100000@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>


What is the name of Deneb's subsector?

(Needed for my RICE paper on Deneb...)


Alvin Plummer
"Preserve what we created, Norris, and remember what we stood for."
                     - Strephon


------------------------------

Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 16:19:28 -0400 (EDT)
From: Rob Miracle <rwm@MPGN.COM>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Re: Deneb subsector name?
Message-ID: <199409142019.QAA04509@Central.KeyWest.MPGN.COM>

> What is the name of Deneb's subsector?

How about Deneb?  Deneb/Deneb/Deneb :-)

Seriously, I would like to see the subsector names of all the Deneb
subsetors.  My current campaign is set there, and it would add 
flavor to my TNS messages.

In the meantime, I am using the Subector Capital as the sector name
(Such as Mora/Mora, Regina/Regina, Jewell/Jewell, etc.)  Most of the
Spinward Marches meets this criteria.  Only Vilas,Darrian,Swords 
Words, Five Sisters, and District 268 fail this criteria.  (Trin's
Veil doesnt count either way, since its subsector is Trin)

So 10 of sixteen say go with the Subsector name, if you dont know.
I'll take those odds!!!! 

Rob

-- 
Rob Miracle
Tantalus Inc.
rwm@mpgn.com
"You have a problem?  I have a plan!" -- Anton Devious

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 16:32:22 -0400 (EDT)
From: Ted7@world.std.com (Mitchell K Schwartz)
To: gdw-beta@quark.qrc.com (GDW-Beta mailing list),
Subject: Food in Space
Message-ID: <199409142032.AA12676@world.std.com>

Question about food aboard starships:

How much space aboard a vessel do rations take up?

Please correct me if I am wrong, but rations are part of the consumables
that folks aboard ship use up (and that cost 1 KCr per crew or passenger per
jump).

Now, its perfectly reasonable to me that some of the volume rations take up
are part of the space used by the life support system. But how much is
that? 1 jump (7 days per person) of rations? 10? 100? 1000?

Assume there is a standard meal pack that takes up one liter volume and
weighs .5 kg. 3 per day means 21 per jump; for a crew of 9, that's 100 Kg
and .2 cubic meters per jump. At 10 jumps (10 weeks; you could stay
somewhere for two weeks after 4 weeks travel), that's 1 ton and 2 cubic
meters.  And 4 jumps is not a long trip.

When you run to say 6 months, or start talking about vessels carrying more
people, you really start running into a lot of space taken up by rations. A
vessel carrying 20 people with rations for 25 weeks uses 10 cubic meters
and weighs over 5 tons. And those are all the equivalent of freeze dried
rations.

So, how much of my vessel is given over to rations that I don't get to
control? Frankly, much more than 1-2 cubic meters "by magic" is
unreasonable.  It should be accounted for in the vessel design. Or
accounted for in the vessel's cargo hold.

Ration size, BTW, doesn't matter. If a ration pack is only .5 liter, then
you are still faced with a limit; the limit is just twice as large.

Since there is no differentiation by volume or price for ration quality,
does  that mean that there is only one choice on the quality of food served
aboard any starship, be it military troop transport, first rate liner, or
royal  personal yacht?

One fellow player suggested that this isn't an issue, because the life
support  system features full recycling, from toilet to table and back
again. So what are you being charged 1 KCr per jump for if it's a closed
system? What are you replenishing? What are you adding? How much space does
it take up? How much can you carry? What Tech Level produces it? (Important
if you are out exploring or zooming about the Wilds)

I have a number of problems with that type of system anyway. While I can
easily enough buy that you can process out poisons from bodily wastes and
be left with a fair amount of neutral bulk, where do you get the additional
nutrition?

I'm curious what other folks have done. Or whether it has occurred to any
of you at all.

Note: this is granted a humano-centric view of food storage and
preparation. I won't tackle the Aslan requirement for live food or the
K'kree preference for fresh plants till later.

Suggestions:

I'd suggest that a vessel can stock up to a month's meager rations or two
weeks large or special rations out of life support. Carrying more rations
requires additional storage.  Meager rations require no special storage
facilities (freeze-dried etc.). Large or special rations require
refrigerated or freezing containers.

Meager: Prepackaged, prepared, ration packs, 1 l  .5 kg apiece. Various
    types: some require just heating; some require mixing with water; some
    are ready to eat (cold, hard, and crunchy; think MRE). Prepared in
    minimal galley. It is not always clear what the component items are;
    the meal is almost always a single item (one bar, one dish or bowl).
    Quality varies from just acceptable to nearly inedible. For example:
    the IN/IM SISR (Std Imperial Survival Ration, called SISO by the rank
    and file for Same in Same Out). Costs 3-10 Cr /meal.

Large: Standard grocery mix of food prepared from raw materials for long
    term storage, but not cooked. Generally about 2 l .75 kg per meal.
    Canned or frozen vegetables, frozen meat, grain products. Requires
    cooking in some form of galley (see below) to prepare. While not the
    highest quality, meals look like meals made of separate courses, and
    you can usually tell what the components are - provided they are
    prepared by a competent chef. Costs 12-20 Cr/ meal.

Special: Gourmet meals made of high quality, fresher versions of the
    above. 2.5 l, .85 kg. This requires a full galley and a fine cook
    (Steward-4+ or Cook-3+); otherwise this tastes simply like a better
    version of the above). Costs 25-50 Cr/meal.

Minimal Galley: Basically just a small Microwave or similar heating
    facility, a hot plate, some open counter space, and a sink. at the edge
    of the crew lounge. This is part of the budget for life support.

Half Galley: 4 cubic meters dedicated to food preparation, cooking, and
    utensil storage. Oven is large enough to cook meals for 6-10 in one
    sitting. Suitable for preparing either meager or large rations. Usually
    opens onto one side of crew lounge; sometimes partitioned off.
    Mass: 1.2 t.        Vol 4 cu. m.    Cost .12 MCr    Power .1 MW

    (Alternative: large ships may require several: .2 cu m./crew &
     passenger; minimum of 4 cu.m. 1 dedicated cook (or steward) for every
     full 8 cu.m. of Half Galley)
     Mass: .3 t. per cu. m.    Cost .1 MCr/ton          Power .025 MW / cu.m.

Full Galley: 12 cubic meters dedicated to food preparation, cooking, and
    utensil storage. Includes variable configuration ovens, toasters,
    stoves, etc; more cooking tools than Julia Child can shake a spoon at.
    Completely separate room. Generally manned by a dedicated cook, who can
    create some truly spectacular meals.
    Mass: 3.6 tons      Vol 12 cu.m.    Cost .6 MCr     Power .4 MW

    (Alternative: large ships may require several: .3 cu m./fed person;
     minimum or 12 cu.m. Note: Not everyone aboard may be served by the
     Full Galley; for example, a liner's Full Galley may only serve the
     1st class customers; a rich noble may have his yacht's full galley
     only serve his immediate party and have an additional half galley for
     the crew.)
     Mass: .3 t. per cu. m.    Cost .1 MCr/ton          Power .025 MW / cu.m.

Additional Storage:
    Meager rations can be stored in any container with no special
    requirements. To preserve more than the minimal amount of Large or
    Special rations, additional preservative storage space is required. (I
    say preservative because newer technology may come up with something
    beyond refrigeration).

TL      Container       Mass    Storage   Power   Cost
6         1 m3          100 kg    .8 m3  .02 MW   .0005 MCr
6         2 m3          180 kg   1.7 m3  .035 MW  .0012 MCr


Container: Volume of container
Mass: Weight of empty container (decreases with tech)
Storage: Storage volume (increases with tech)
Power: Power used by preservation technology (decreases with tech)
Cost: Cost per unit (increases with tech)


                        1 m3 storage            2 m3 storage
Per TL Increase:
   Decrease Mass:       10 kg                   20 kg
   Increase Storage:    .01 m3                  .02 m3
   Decrease Power:      .001 MW                 .002 MW
   Increase Cost:       .0001 MCr               .0002 MCr

For example, at TL11, a 2 m3 food storage unit is:
    Mass: 80 kg     Storage: 1.8 m3        Power: .025 MW   Cost:.0022 MCr

Ted7


------------------------------

Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 16:34:21 -0400 (EDT)
From: Ted7@world.std.com (Mitchell K Schwartz)
To: traveller@MPGN.COM (Traveller:TNE mailing list)
Subject: Review of Traveller navigator?
Message-ID: <199409142034.AA13780@world.std.com>

Could anyone who has bought the Traveller Navigator post a brief review?

     ted7


------------------------------

Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 16:32:10 -0400 (EDT)
From: alvin plummera <plummera@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM, xboat@MPGN.COM
Message-ID: <Pine.3.05.1.9409141610.A22395-a101000@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>

--0-156792686-779574779:#22395
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII

--0-156792686-779574779:#22395
Content-Type: APPLICATION/octet-stream; name=letter
Content-ID: <Pine.3.05.1.9409141659.B22395@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
Content-Description: 


Glenn M. Goffin writes...
> Alvin Plummer asked about whether we on the tmls were mostly techies on the
> one hand and history/political science people on the other.  I think so.
> Most of the people I've played Traveller with have been one or the other.
> I have a history degree (and most of an advanced degree) and now practice
> law.  My main player has a PhD in physics, and is pursuing a post-doc at
> Princeton.  I guess we're classic examples.


It's a privelege be in such august company as the people on TML/XTML!

Alvin Plummer
(Next survey question: does EVERYONE here have advanced degrees? :)

--0-156792686-779574779:#22395--


------------------------------

Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 17:00:14 -0400 (EDT)
From: alvin plummera <plummera@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Repeated questions...
Message-ID: <Pine.3.05.1.9409141714.A18161-a100000@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>


O.K., now that a lot more people are on TML (how many, Mr. Miracle?), I
can re-ask a few questions in the hope of getting some answers.

1) A good outline of what's available - and what's not - at the various
tech levels between TL10 and TL15?

(Especially the Medical stuff...and I HAVE seen the cybernetic portion of
 FF&S!  I mean things like memory-copying, brain wiping, etc.)
(And when do grav cities arise?)

2) Has anyone here developed a good set of Hydroponic rules? 

(I did some research - ie. scanned a few books - but the hydro books I
found all related to greenhouses, rather than closed-system biochemical
systems.)

3) A nice set of rules for small-engines. (The FF&S rules for engines all
end up creating monsters that won't fit... a motocycle, for example)

Thanks for any replies,

Alvin Plummer
("Shut all systems down, revieve no messages.  
  Further rep p p sqcir......... . . .n?..........o}e>>. . o&@... . ."
  - famous last words)


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Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 23:13:31 +0200 (MET DST)
From: Bertil Jonell <d9bertil@dtek.chalmers.se>
To: Ted7@qrc.com (Mitchell K Schwartz)
Cc: gdw-beta@quark.qrc.com, traveller@MPGN.COM, xboat@MPGN.COM
Subject: Re: Food in Space
Message-ID: <199409142113.XAA04282@varoom.dtek.chalmers.se>

> How much space aboard a vessel do rations take up?

  I wrote some stuff on this based on data from modern subs long
ago on the beta list. Is it still on the site?

-bertil-
-- 
"It can be shown that for any nutty theory, beyond-the-fringe political view
or
 strange religion there exists a proponent on the Net. The proof is left as
an
 exercise for your kill-file."

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Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 17:11:33 -0400 (EDT)
From: alvin plummera <plummera@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: New UWP rating system.
Message-ID: <Pine.3.05.1.9409141733.A113-c100000@hubble.sheridanc.on.ca>


I find that for my universe, the UWP is too restrictive.  It doesn't rate
systems, but only worlds, and doesn't give enough data on the starport.
Thus, I offer the new RISS UWP (prototype)...

PCT-L  WLG-SUCO-NM AI

P - Port type (the best in-system)
C - Port Capasity (for the above port)
T - Port Tech level

L - Law level of the port (perhaps it's extraterritory law?
                           the rigidity of Customs?)

W - No. of worlds in system 
L - No. of 'living' worlds in system ('Living' = Terra Norm/Terra Prime)
G - No. of Gas Giants

S - System population   (SYSTEM, not mainworld!)
U - Unified under one government? 
C - Centralized population?
   (% of system population that the most heavily populated world has)
O - Orbiting colonies?
   (% of system population that is in the space stations/asteroids)

N - No. of systems within one parsec
M - Top tech level of system military

A - alliegence to a multisystem polity
I - attitude to interstellar visitors 


Port Capasity code: 0  < 100 disp          7    10,000 - 99,999
                    1    100 - 299         8    100,000 - 999,999
                    2    300 - 499         9    1,000,000 - 9,999,999
                    3    500 - 999         A    10,000,000 - 99,999,999
                    4    1000 - 2999       B    100,000,000 - 999,999,999
                    5    3000 - 4999       
                    6    5000 - 9999       etc., in a log fashion
 
No. of worlds in system
           1 - 9    1 - 9 worlds
             A     10 - 20
             B     21 - 30  (you may certainly bias your system geneation so
             C     31 - 40   the average is about B or C)
             D     41 - 50  (our solar system has about 50 worlds, incl.
                             moons and the planets, excluding asteroids) 
             E     51 - 60
             F     61 - 70

Unified system
    Y = Yes,  N = No  P = Partly           ('Partly' is similar to  
                                            'not innocent' in Scottish law)

Attitude to interstellar visitors
        0 - GET OUT.  NOW.
        1 - We don't LIKE people like you.
   
        3 - What kind of weirdo's ARE these people, anyways?

        5 - Oh, it's just another bunch of traders and tourists.

        7 - Hey, if you have any problems, just ask!

        8 - Oh, VISITORS!  Please come in, please... care for some coffee?

        9 - Everybody's smiling, a gang of kids surround Our Heroes, 
            people invite Our Heroes to the front of the line as
            photographs are made...

       10 - (All together now, holding hands...)
            I LOVE YOU, YOU LOVE ME,
            WE'RE ONE HAPPY FAMILY....

Alvin Plummer
(Have I posted enough yet?)


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Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 18:09:17 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Tariq M. Rashid" <spstmr@gsusgi2.gsu.edu>
To: Traveller Submission <traveller@MPGN.COM>
Subject: Re:Plasma Gun Development
Message-ID: <Pine.3.87.9409141816.A10935-0100000@gsusgi2.gsu.edu>

PLASMA GUN DEVELOPMENT

lets say a plasma cart 3 cm in diameter and 9cm long has a volume
of 6.362e-5 m^3.  Given a density of say 8e+3 kg/m^3 the mass of
this is 0.500 kg or 500 gm (7830 grains).  This is a 0.21 MJ
cartridge.  Plenty of energy right.  Even Using 15*sqrt(DE) you get
DV 7 which is crappy.  However a tl 12 3 cm HEAP round will get you
a Pen of 29.  And even with battledress you couldnt carry too many
of those half kilo cartridges.  Certainly no more than 5 or 6 in
the weapon.  I say this is one instance where we bend reality for
the sake of asthetics.  A tl 12 PPC this big and heavy should
deliver at least twice this performance, maybe even three times.

I would not equip my battle dress troopers at tl 12 with one of
these weapons.  I like the idea of high attentuation, but for the
money a plasma gun should be absolutely devastating at short range. 
I dont want to get into fusion guns.  I'm talking the 3cm gun
having a DV of at least 15 out to 60m.  Even there Im not gonna
give it to the troopers.  A truly man usable plasma gun should
deliver DVs of 10 or so out to 60m with 25mm Diam cartridges(0.290
kg) at TL 12.  This is minimum acceptable performance.  Why?
because I can design a Gauss gun of ETC gun that will deliver the
same performance with vastly better range for a fraction of the
cost.  8 or 9 d10 is about the deadliest "small arm" you can make
that someone could carry.  Maybe battle dress would allow you up a
few dice.  Logically a plasma gun will never match a projectile
weapon for range.  Balance? Make the plasma gun abso-bleeping-
lutely devastating at short ranges.  Maybe something goofy like
sqrt(DE/10)/10 where DE is in Joules (for small arms) IE up to say
1 MJ.  


Tariq Rashid
spstmr@gsusgi2.gsu.edu








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Date: Wed, 14 Sep 1994 13:23:30 -0400
From: Rob_Prior@nynet.nybe.north-york.on.ca (Rob Prior)
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Deck Plan Clarification
Message-ID: <2570244093.1477424@nynet.nynet.nybe.north-york.on.ca>

A couple of issues ago I mentioned that I had deck plans available.  These
are
in _paper_ format, not electronic.  Even though I used a computer to generate
them, the original design is still copyrighted by GDW, and their permission
to distribute copies refers only to paper versions

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Date: 14 Sep 94 15:27:18 MS
From: Steve Charlton/Avalon Software Inc
To: traveller <traveller@MPGN.COM>
Subject: Pretty Much Everything
Message-ID: <9409142129.AA13073@khan.avalon.COM>

Ed Fok (the Caffeine Achiever) asks:
>p.s. Thanks for the comments!  A friendly suggestion: Steve can you
>perhaps switch to an editor that inserts hard returns at the end of 80
>columns?  It makes reading and reformatting much easier! :)

Sorry.  My gracious employers have inflicted me with Lotus Notes.
It has some nice features, but convenient line control isn't one of
them.  As for comments, read on good sir...

Harold Hale notes:

>The only problem with leaving steel balls in orbit or using them in space
>is that they become an extreme navigation hazard not only to your enemy,
>but you as well.  In orbit for example, not only will you damage the enemy
>spacecraft, there is a very good chance you'll knock out your own satellites
>as well.  Release enough of them, and you can pretty well forget launching
>a spacecraft from the surface anytime soon.  Such munitions have no
>friends, only lucky and unlucky targets--and with Murphy's Law being
>what it is, there is a very good chance you will have to go back to that
>area where you released the spheres and be a clay pigeon for a while....

Yes, this is not really a very user-friendly defense, but then again, 
just how much property damage did English and German cities 
suffer in WWII when anti-aircraft shells and fragments that missed 
their targets plummeted back to earth?  The idea is to disrupt the 
enemy's activities, hoping that you hurt yourself less than the 
enemy would have hurt you otherwise.

Finally, Tariq Rashid sez:

>Another thing that would be an interesting discussion topic is orbital 
>bombardment... (ETC)

Once upon a time, the Thor weapons system was proposed to the 
DoD.  This was a missile system (strategic or theatre-level) that 
would deploy a satellite into low or medium orbit.  This satellite 
would be able to drop a number of single or bundled tungsten or 
depleted-uranium rods with minimal control surfaces against 
ground targets.  The general consensus was that you could armor
things as much as you like, but nothing not buried in a deep 
bunker could withstand such an attack.  Various treaties against 
space-borne weapons systems made this all just a theoretical 
exercise, but it could easily be built with current technology.  I 
know I have seen it in several SciFi books, but the only one that 
comes to mind just now is Footfall, by Larry Niven and Jerry 
Pournelle.  Really a nasty little weapon.  

Tariq, please be sure to post whatever you come up with on this.  I 
would be interested in seeing it.

I wonder if FASA had to pay the DoD for publication rights?  No, I
digress.  I like GDW, so I don't want them to get damaged by a
slew of copyright suits.  I might distribute my own material to my
gaming group (and it might include some bits of GDW stuff), but I
would not post such material.  I would also make it clear my gaming 
group was not to post this material (and I would know if they did so).  
I would do all of this not out of fear of GDW's horde of lawyers, 
but simply as a mark of respect for a company I appreciate
(Of course, I still have an army of literate monkeys, so I could fight 
back with an infinite supply of appeals and legal briefs).

Thanks for the feedback, folks!  More is welcome.
scharlto@avalon.com

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 13 Sep 94 19:39:00 -0500
From: jeff.zeitlin@execnet.com (JEFF ZEITLIN)
To: TRAVELLER@MPGN.COM
Subject: Starports
Message-ID: <899C49B.0100032343.uuout@execnet.com>


I'd written...

T::>  1) An airport has a landing area (the runways) and a service
 ::>  area (hangars/terminals).  A seaport combines the two (into the
 ::>  dock).  Which model should I follow with a starport?

 Rob Miracle replied...

T::>The Airport model is acutally a little better.  But a lot depends on
 ::>the planet.  For instance, one world (from a published GDW product,
 ::>though which one slips my mind) with a 'C' atmosphere, brought the
 ::>ships inside the planet.  Some star ports will have big open areas
 ::>that the ships reside in, others will have docking bays.  In Asmov's
 ::>Foundation series, the Starport at Trantor was of a docking bay config.
 ::>The ships were in the star port, and the people on Trantor never left
 ::>the concreate and steel of the capital.

 Yes, I see your point.  But, broadly speaking, we still have the 
 "airport" class and the "seaport" class.  In the case of the C 
 atmo world above, once the ships are brought into the planet, are 
 they moved from the "elevators" (airport model) or do the 
 terminals and maintenance facilities get linked to them right 
 there (seaport model)?  Similar questions with respect to Asimov's 
 Trantor.  If you have the old "Star Fleet Technical Manual" (the 
 one that corresponded to the original series), you'd see that SFHQ 
 was essentially a seaport model, and many of the (non-canon) 
 novels that described a docking at a starbase used the same model.  
 On the other hand, if all of your starships were designed around 
 airframe hulls (visualize the Space Shuttle with J-drives) the 
 airport model makes more sense, as it would allow for landings 
 that were "environment friendly" and cheap (minimal to zero fuel 
 expenditures.

 For the record, though, the planet in question is habitable 
 without artificial environments.

T::>Depending on the local tech level, you will have either run ways, or
 ::>lifters or both.  Some SciFi (which I use) have large magnetic/tractor
 ::>beams that reach up into space and pull the starship down, and lift it
 ::>back into space.  So you can get by with not having run ways.  Also it
 ::>has been implied that some starships (and ships boats) can hover, also
 ::>eliminating the need for long runways.

 Which, if you assume that this capability is widespread, implies 
 that the seaport model is more space efficient, as with such 
 technologies (remember thruster plates?) there's no reaction wash 
 area to worry about.  This leads into my original question 2, 
 below.

T::>  2) Should I assume that _all_ starships, shuttles, etc., that use
 ::>  the starport are VTOL-capable?  If not, then I obviously have to
 ::>  follow the airport model.  If so, the question is still open.

T::>  3) For ships that use Newtonain reaction mass for takeoffs and
 ::>  landings, how much of a clear area around the vessel itself
 ::>  should I allow?

 In other words, how big is the shuttle, and how big is the blast 
 area around it?  And does the size of the blast area go up as the 
 size of the ship does, and at what rate/ratio?

T::>  4) How big should I make the "parking" zones for the ships, and
 ::>  how far apart?

T::>You should plan to be able to support the largest starship that YOU
 ::>intend to do.  You could say, that for this world, ships over 1000T
 ::>have to use the orbital facility.  You can then plan your space needs
 ::>accordingly.

 Begs the question, though.  I don't have a good feel for what's 
 "realistic".  As I remember, the 100dt type S looked comparable in 
 size to something like a MD-9. Should I look at the plan view of 
 one and just draw the smallest circle that it fits completely 
 within?  Or do I need to allow some extra space to the nearest 
 fixed structure?  Do I depress the actual landing area, or leave 
 smooth ground?  Do I make some docks/landing areas/whatever's 
 capable of handling only the smaller ships, or do I make them all 
 capable of handling the largest ships I expect to have land on a 
 regular basis?  Do I even allow starships to land at the downport 
 at all, or do I instead have the planet run a fleet of ship's 
 boats (with airliner-type usage of the cargo area) between Up and 
 Down?

 Incidentally, my previous comment still stands...

T::>  Once I have these questions answered, I think I can construct the
 ::>  starport sensibly, and then make a decision on the physical
 ::>  relationship between the starport proper, the extrality zone, and
 ::>  the planetary city.  But I'm willing to listen to any comments
 ::>  that anyone else has on this topic...
==========================================================================
Jeff Zeitlin                                      jeff.zeitlin@execnet.com
---
 ~ QMPro 1.52 ~ Chief Archivist, Regency Institute for Cultural Education

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End of TRAVELLER Digest 40
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