Traveller-digest      Monday, August 30 1999      Volume 1999 : Number 1038



(R)1996. Traveller is a registered trademark of FarFuture Enterprises.
All rights reserved.

The following topics are covered in this digest:

Re: Python
Re: GenCon UK 99
Re: [www] Freelance Traveller Announcement
Re: Terraforming
Re: Terraforming (Slightly OT)
Re: FS .pdf at BITS
Re: Terraforming (Slightly OT)
Re: GenCon UK 99
Re: [www] Freelance Traveller Announcement
FW: 1st Inerstellar War Terran/Vilani Ships
Re: Architecture
Re: Terraforming
Re: Thrust effects (was HEPlar lives!)
Re: Vargr Extremes
Re: [www] Freelance Traveller Announcement
Re: [www] Freelance Traveller Announcement
Re: Architecture
Re: [www] Freelance Traveller Announcement
Re: [www] Freelance Traveller Announcement

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 08:25:15 +0200
From: Volker Greimann <volker@greimann.de>
Subject: Re: Python

At 22:05 29.08.99 -0500, you wrote:
>Any of you all know anything about the programming language Python.  I was
>thinking learning it to write my dream sector generator.

NO-Body expects the Spanish Inqusition !   ;-)

Volker
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------
Volker A. Greimann --- http://www.greimann.de --- volker@greimann.de

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 08:29:00 +0200
From: Volker Greimann <volker@greimann.de>
Subject: Re: GenCon UK 99

At 18:48 29.08.99 -0500, you wrote:
>SD Mooney wrote:
>> 
>> If any UK/Europe/Other TML'rs want to meet up at GenCon,
>> 
>> I'll be around the BITS stand (in the Trade Hall), probably dressed as a
>> Solomani Confederation SolSec^h^h^h^h^h^h^h^h Navy Officer. The one with
>> the limp (top tip - don't break a toe the week before the biggest con
>> you're doing this year)!

The limp is the PERFECT addition to the costume, in fact. 
Remember Allo Allo? 
Every Gestapo / SolSec agant needs a limp to be perfect...
This will be implemented in any future campaigns i have....
Volker
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------
Volker A. Greimann --- http://www.greimann.de --- volker@greimann.de

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 02:49:05 -0400
From: "Jory Earl" <j-man@iname.com>
Subject: Re: [www] Freelance Traveller Announcement

>You shouldn't have to specify width at all in tables. Or, if needed,
>specify it in % instead of pixels. That way, it won't matter if users
>are running at 640x480, 1280x1024, or even using their palm pad ...

Ok, I set the attributes on just my index page at 95%.  could you go check
it and see if it looks ok still?

___________________________________________________________
 J-Man
 ICQ# 2843475
 New Hampshire - U.S.A.
 Email : j-man@iname.com
 Home Page : http://www.geocities.com/~jman037/
___________________________________________________________

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 07:51:27 +0100
From: "Dr. Nik" <sharik@barrayar.demon.co.uk>
Subject: Re: Terraforming

>>Long answer, they could, but only via means which will be *glaringly*
>>obvious. For example, *large* mirrors in strategicly placed "orbits".
>>Or massive installations on the planet that tap internal heat. Or
>>just lots and lots of "heater" type installations, scattered across
>>the planet. 
>
>>The energy to *stay* warm over millenia has to come *from* somewhere.
>
>Absolutely, but think "out of the human-level box" for a minute.
>You're considering what a TL15 culture might be able to do, but I'm
>not talking about Traveller level technologies here.  I'm talking
>about tech as far beyond Grandfather's tech as he is beyond ours.
>What might TL30, 35, 40+ cultures be able to do?  We can only
>imagine.

You don't actually need TL15 to do the initial terraforming; you can
probably start it at TL10 and go from there. Nor is there a problem
keeping them warm over millennia. Once you've got them warm to start
with - via ZS terraforming, Ancient manipulation or any of Eris' nifty
ideas (which I may be forced to steal for a campaign of my own :) ), the
thermal inertia in a system will make them lose heat relatively slowly
over periods of tens of thousands of years.

Nik
- --------------------------------------------------------------
     Nik Whitehead C885587-B S zh++ as+ da+ kk-- A 224
sharik@barrayar.demon.co.uk    http://www.barrayar.demon.co.uk
           Having the moral high ground is good.
   Having the moral high ground and a meson gun is better.

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 07:42:41 +0100
From: "Dr. Nik" <sharik@barrayar.demon.co.uk>
Subject: Re: Terraforming (Slightly OT)

In message , cos 90 <cos90@powersurfr.com> wrote
>>> I guess I must have missed something. I thought B5's Mars was a habitat
>>> environment.
>>
>>It is.  However, it is still partially terraformed, with a much thicker
>atmosphere than mars has now.
>
>And your evidence for this is...? Sorry, but I don't recall anything
>anywhere in the series that suggests that the atmosphere on Mars is
>substantially different from what there is now...

During the final attack towards Earth, Lyta and Garibaldi go out onto
the surface wearing breathers and cold weather gear. At present, Mars'
atmosphere is <1% that of Earth, and you would need a pressure suit to
go outside. The fact they can go outside without the suits implies a
much thicker atmosphere than at present.

Nik
- --------------------------------------------------------------
     Nik Whitehead C885587-B S zh++ as+ da+ kk-- A 224
sharik@barrayar.demon.co.uk    http://www.barrayar.demon.co.uk
           Having the moral high ground is good.
   Having the moral high ground and a meson gun is better.

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

Date: Sun, 29 Aug 1999 23:17:42 -0700
From: "Legate Legion" <legate@futureone.com>
Subject: Re: FS .pdf at BITS

From: Jesse DeGraff <fenris@slip.net>
Subject: RE: FS .pdf at BITS


>Indeed, on both counts ;)
>Jesse

    All I have to say, is that Mark Miller & Loren Wiseman's game combined
with Jesse's art work has warped my wittle mind.  Lets leave it that, OK.

Legate Legion
ICQ # 8973001
legate@futureone.com
http://www.futureone.com/~legate/index.htm

"A man may fight for many things; his country, his principles, his friends,
the glistening tear on the cheek of a golden child. But personally, I'd
mudwrestle my own mother for a ton of cash, an amusing clock, and a stack of
French porn." - Edmund Blackadder

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 01:29:32 +0100
From: SD Mooney <dom@cybergoths.u-net.com>
Subject: Re: Terraforming (Slightly OT)

cos 90 <cos90@powersurfr.com> writes:

>>It is.  However, it is still partially terraformed, with a much thicker
>atmosphere than mars has now.
>
>And your evidence for this is...? Sorry, but I don't recall anything
>anywhere in the series that suggests that the atmosphere on Mars is
>substantially different from what there is now...

Wandering on the surface in parkas with a respirator?

Also, they've magically made it 1G!

Dom

- ----------Dom Mooney---dom@cybergoths.u-net.com------------
                       MiB - Marines in Battledress
   "Protecting the Imperium from the Scum of the Galaxy"
Rob Prior's Mac software @ http://www.bits.org.uk/ 

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 01:33:51 +0100
From: SD Mooney <dom@cybergoths.u-net.com>
Subject: Re: GenCon UK 99

Black ICE <wombat@premier.net> writes:
>> I'll be around the BITS stand (in the Trade Hall), probably dressed as a
>> Solomani Confederation SolSec^h^h^h^h^h^h^h^h Navy Officer. The one with
>> the limp (top tip - don't break a toe the week before the biggest con
>> you're doing this year)!
>
>Were you on a Battle or Strike assignment when you made your survival
>roll exactly?  ;-)

I'd plump for Battle as it's been a long and involved one getting
everything read for GenCon. I haven't time to go on strike!

Dom

- ----------Dom Mooney---dom@cybergoths.u-net.com------------
                       MiB - Marines in Battledress
   "Protecting the Imperium from the Scum of the Galaxy"
Rob Prior's Mac software @ http://www.bits.org.uk/ 

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 01:36:39 +0100
From: SD Mooney <dom@cybergoths.u-net.com>
Subject: Re: [www] Freelance Traveller Announcement

I've just tried the link to Freelance Traveller (via the 'come.to' address)
and it worked fine. I got one popup and it died on a click. Not like some
sites where you're swatting them like flies. This was with Navigator 4.08
for MacOS

BTW if you have a Mac and download the iCAB browser (which is HTML 4
compliant) you can tell it to automatically block add sized windows.

Dom

- ----------Dom Mooney---dom@cybergoths.u-net.com------------
                       MiB - Marines in Battledress
   "Protecting the Imperium from the Scum of the Galaxy"
Rob Prior's Mac software @ http://www.bits.org.uk/ 

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 17:40:19 +0800
From: "Antony Farrell" <Skaran@bigpond.com>
Subject: FW: 1st Inerstellar War Terran/Vilani Ships

- -----Original Message-----
From: owner-traveller@lists.imagiconline.com
[mailto:owner-traveller@lists.imagiconline.com] On Behalf Of Andrew
Moffatt-Vallance
Sent: Monday, 30 August 1999 12:32
To: traveller@lists.imagiconline.com
Subject: Re: 1st Inerstellar War Terran/Vilani Ships


From:           	"Tom" <tbergman@brawleyonline.com>
Date sent:      	Sun, 29 Aug 1999 10:37:39 -0700

> Here's what I need. A TL9 interstellar ship that would be typical of what
> the Terran Confederation (UN) would have.  I would love to see the
> silouettes in "Imperium" detailed out to fit CT/HG/MT/FFS1/FFS2 rules.
The
> Terran Confederation (TL9-11) ships as well as the Ziru Sirka (TL10/11)
> ships should present a challenge to nearly anyone.

If you don't mind them having been designed using FFS1 I have a stack of TL9
through TL11 designs on my website, which can be found at
http://www.users.bigpond.com/Skaran

I actually do have more ships and other equipment but have not got round to
adding them yet.

Antony

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 06:39:35 -0400
From: Christopher Thrash <thrash@io.com>
Subject: Re: Architecture

>Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 00:28:16 -0400
>From: Thad Coons <Sapience@compuserve.com>
>Subject: Architecture
>
>Places where a GM's imagination can use an extra boost might
>include:
>
>1) Worlds with inhospitable conditions:
>     Water worlds, desert worlds, tainted atmosphere, low
>atmosphere, vacuum, very cold, very hot worlds.
>2) Orbital architecture
>     Highports, orbital colonies, belters, asteroid hull ships.
>3) Special purposes
>     Agriculture in hostile environments, spaceports,
>construction in hostile environments, communications arrays,
>mining and manufacturing, military bases, public buildings.

Seems to me that the problem you pose falls into three groups:

(1) Conventional surface structures, perhaps with features like filters and
overpressure for tainted atmospheres
(2) Sealed structures (like spacecraft), whether free-floating or on the
surface
(3) Subsurface construction, which combines aspects of the first two with
excavation

>Some things to be considered:
>1) Construction
>     a) Materials types and costs
>     b) Labor costs
>     c) Construction machinery costs

For sealed structures, use the existing spacecraft construction rules of
your choosing as a base, with whatever cheap options you can employ. Good
planetoid hull rules might let you expand to subsurface construction.

For conventional surface structures, there are a couple of useful
references. The best are /Time Saver Standards for Building Types/, a
series of books for professional architects that give them the basics and
design parameters for unfamiliar building types (e.g., an architect with
experience in schools is called on to design an apartment building).
Another is the /Unified Building Code/ (for Yanks -- I don't know what the
rest of the world uses), which lists things like acceptable thicknesses for
concrete slabs. I have found both of these in mediocre-to-poor public
libraries.

There is also a series of books, the name of which escapes me (Mann's?),
that gives estimates for building costs on a per-square foot basis every
year, plus historical data. These are great, and are available online, but
at $150 apiece you won't find them outside an architect's office.

>2) Living space
>     a) Living space requirements (area and volume)
>     b) Access space (corridors etc.)
>     c) entrances, exits, and windows
>     d) Furniture and furnishings
>3) Life support.
>     a) Food requirements
>     b) Water requirements (Drinking and other purposes)
>     c) Air circulation (Oxygen supply, waste gas removal)
>     d) Heating and cooling
>     e) Gravity (rotation vs artificial)
>     f) Waste disposal
>     g) radiation protection

Best reference here is /Space Settlements, A Design Study/ (NASA SP-413)
and it's successors (/Space Resources and Space Settlements/, NASA SP-428),
which may still be on sale from the US Gov't Printing Office or available
from various space advocacy groups. The appendices list the numbers the
study used; the main text describes one approach to building space
habitats. They may be a little dated by now, but the data is still useful.
More recent material can be found in the Case for Mars books published by
the American Astronautical Society Science and Technology series (No. 74
has the very useful /Building Mars Habitats Using Local Materials/, Bruce
A. Mackenzie, AAS 87-216), or in the Journal of the British Interplanetary
Society.

For the VE2 fans out there, I recommend GURPS Architecture:

http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Arcade/2574/archt.html

This is a comprehensive building design system, modelled on GURPS Vehicles
2/e. The focus is pre-Industrial, but the coverage extends out beyond GT
tech levels (to force fields and teleporters). [Sorry -- there is a pop-up.
The information is worth the annoyance.]

Finally, GT: Starports (written by John M. Ford) is due out in November.

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

Date: Wed, 1 Sep 1999 00:18:19 PST
From: shadow@krypton.rain.com (Leonard Erickson)
Subject: Re: Terraforming

In mail you write:

> On 08/29/99 at 12:37 AM,  shadow@krypton.rain.com (Leonard Erickson) said:
>
>>>  too warm for their size, star and orbit?
>
>>Short answer. They *can't*.
>
> Can't, eh?  Given sufficiently high tech I can think of a few ways. <g>
>
>>Long answer, they could, but only via means which will be *glaringly*
>>obvious. For example, *large* mirrors in strategicly placed "orbits".
>>Or massive installations on the planet that tap internal heat. Or
>>just lots and lots of "heater" type installations, scattered across
>>the planet. 
>
>>The energy to *stay* warm over millenia has to come *from* somewhere.
>
> Absolutely, but think "out of the human-level box" for a minute.
> You're considering what a TL15 culture might be able to do, but I'm
> not talking about Traveller level technologies here.  I'm talking
> about tech as far beyond Grandfather's tech as he is beyond ours.
> What might TL30, 35, 40+ cultures be able to do?  We can only
> imagine.
>   
> Traveller tech barely acknowledges...
>   controlled antimatter,
>   force fields (black/white globes),
>   matter transmitters,
>   pocket universes.
>
> Traveller tech doesn't ever seem to have...
>   extensive use of nanotech,
>   stable wormholes,
>   catalyzed matter/energy conversion.
>
> Not saying I'd use such, but consider these "sufficiently high tech
> as to be magic" ideas...
>
> Put one end of tiny stable wormholes inside a gas giant's atmosphere
> and the other ends somewhere on (or under) the surface of a small
> planet.  Now you have an almost endless supply of atmosphere
> supplied by gravitational pressure...and a lot of heat too.
> Discoverable?  Possibly, but this might look a lot like natural
> outgassing if the ends were deep under the surface, and even if
> discovered what are the odds they could figured out a TL40 device?
>
> Reverse it for a massive atmosphere planet and vent the atmosphere
> somewhere(s) with lower pressure.  Now you have two (or more) places
> where their pressure equalizes to more manageable levels.
>
> Implant matter conversion devices throughout a small planet's core.
> They run, like a therostat, just enough converting matter to energy
> to keep the core molten.  Core stays hot, plate tectonics continue
> much longer than they should, magnetic fields exist, atmosphere
> continues to outgas and be recycled long after a marginal planet
> should have shut down.  To discover them you'd have to get into the
> core...
>
> ...see? 

Sure. But even *without* getting to the core, it would be "glaringly
obvious" that there was *something* messing around with the planet. The
effects would *not* be natural. 

> I'd never give the PC's unlimited (or even limited in most cases)
> access to *any* of the above technologies, but deep background you
> never know what might have happened hundreds of thousands of years
> ago.

Sure. But my point was that it'd be obvious that there was tampering,
not that anyone could figure *how* the gizmos doing the tampering
*worked* (well they could figure out *what* it did, just not *how*).

And stumbling across a few "Forerunner" artifacts that can't even be
*moved*, much less taken apart ought to be good for the more "arrogant"
players.

> The TL15 Imperium *might* be able to figure out how some of this was
> happening, but not how to duplicate or control the processes.

As I said above, they could figure out *what* was happening
(teleportation, mass/energy conversion, etc), bur not *how*.

A 19th century physicist could figure out that an RTG  or even a
nuclear reactor was turning heat into electrical power. But he'd have
*no* idea *where* the heat was coming from. 

BTW, according to speculation by Dr. Robert Forward the "best" tech to
"invent" would be something that converted angular momentum into
energy. The conversion factor is *obscene* (based on the way angular
momentum contributes to the stress-energy tensor). A barely measurable
amount of angular momentum amounts to something like several *kilos* of
mass. :-)

- -- 
Leonard Erickson (aka Shadow)
 shadow@krypton.rain.com        <--preferred
leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com     <--last resort

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

Date: Wed, 1 Sep 1999 00:27:51 PST
From: shadow@krypton.rain.com (Leonard Erickson)
Subject: Re: Thrust effects (was HEPlar lives!)

In mail you write:

>>> GT:SL ships are designed as radically streamlined lifting bodies, and may
>>> safely enter an atmosphere at transsonic speeds. GT:USL ships are not
>>> streamlined, but are compact designs; most are capable of entering
>>> atmospheres at low speeds, although 'heavy weather' can be a severe 
> danger.
>>
>>But as I noted in the part you didn't quote the *question* was "what is
>>the justification for THE RULES saying the unstreamlined ships can't
>>land on planets with atmospheres?"
>>
>>That means that it *can't* be GURPS that's being talked about. Of
>>course that should have *also* clued people in that a lot of *other*
>>things brought up in the discussion weren't relevant either. :-(
>
> I guess I was confused about _which_ rules you were talking about. I dare
> say I wasn't the only person confused either. (Not a criticism, more a plea
> for clarity.)
>
>
> Just to clarify things (before my morning coffee):
>
> Streamlined Ships: No one has a problem with them entering atmoshere at
> high speeds. They're designed for it.
>
> Partly Streamlined Ships: Note that this includes the GURPS Traveller USL
> (unstreamlined) configuration. They aren't optimized for atmospheric work,
> but have centre of mass/centre of thrust aligned so that they _can_ travel
> in an atmosphere. Their control computers are programmed to allow this. Not
> nearly as maneuverable as a streamlined ship, and the referee should
> definately require piloting skill checks, especially in high-speed and
> heavy weather situations.
>
> Unstreamlined Ships: Note that this catagory is basically open frame and
> planetoid hull forms, although really asymmetric designs should also be
> classed this way. Atmospheric resistance has been totally ignored when
> designing them. Even if their engines can support them, turbulence will be
> a real danger: any attempt to enter an atmosphere should require amazing
> piloting rolls, and there's a large chance of damage to struts, antennas,
> and so on.
>
> You (Leonard) were talking about the third catagory (unstreamlined), not
> the second (USL hull code from GURPS Traveller). Have I got that right?

Yep. Since they are the only type that *any* version of the rules says
"may not enter atmosphere" about. 

And I'd class *some* properly designed "open frame" ships as
"partially streamlined". After all there are a lot of "open frame"
objects on earth that handle strong winds ok. 

It might even be possible to design a "planetoid" type hull to land.
But that would definitely be a case of "throwing money at a problem" to
solve it. :-)

- -- 
Leonard Erickson (aka Shadow)
 shadow@krypton.rain.com        <--preferred
leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com     <--last resort

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

Date: Wed, 1 Sep 1999 00:31:50 PST
From: shadow@krypton.rain.com (Leonard Erickson)
Subject: Re: Vargr Extremes

In mail you write:

>> Children who've had asthma can hear up to 30kHz (maybe more).
>
> Why is that?

I don't know if anyone knows *why*. It's just an observed fact. 

At a guess, maybe the same genetic(?) problem that causes the lung
condition is linked to the way the inner ear works. 

- -- 
Leonard Erickson (aka Shadow)
 shadow@krypton.rain.com        <--preferred
leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com     <--last resort

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 10:51:13 +0100
From: SD Mooney <dom@cybergoths.u-net.com>
Subject: Re: [www] Freelance Traveller Announcement

"David J. Golden" <goldendj@pcisys.net> writes:
>	Folks? Can I just make a (futile) plea to NOT design websites for
>any specific presentation? That's the whole underlying premise of a
>markup language--the user agent takes care of the presentation the
>way the USER wants it ...

Interesting; the most common emails I get about the BITS website are that
it is too big for their browser to view properly. I have had one comment on
frames (and I've since put in a no frames option), and one on launching the
detailed product descriptions onto new windows (deliberate to avoid people
reloading the images for the main page).

The size is the biggest issue - several people have emailed and asked me to
shrink the site in width and height (which has been done since it was
relaunched last November). The biggest problem is that several people use
browsers modified by their ISP which eats part of the screen. As a result,
the only assumptions I make now are (1) 256 colours. Workarounds are in for
(2) <800 x 600 and (3) non-Frames. At present, the BITS site is
non-Javascript (which may change).

Like it or not, HTML is moving away from the original hypertext concept to
something more akin to print press. I'm willing to bet that most sites out
there aren't HTML 4 compliant...

Dom

- ----------Dom Mooney---dom@cybergoths.u-net.com------------
                       MiB - Marines in Battledress
   "Protecting the Imperium from the Scum of the Galaxy"
Rob Prior's Mac software @ http://www.bits.org.uk/ 

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 10:55:01 +0100
From: SD Mooney <dom@cybergoths.u-net.com>
Subject: Re: [www] Freelance Traveller Announcement

"Jory Earl" <j-man@iname.com> writes:

>>FWIW GoLive (ex-Cyberstudio) 4.0 recommends 580 width max to ensure 14"
>>monitors can see the whole page. Something that I admittedly did not put
>>into practice for BITS' site.
>
>You think I should do this then?

Ideally, you need to find a way to view the screen as other users are.
Perhaps dropping the resolution just before you check the site - just a
click on the control strip. I do wonder if I should reinstall navigator 2
and try checking things at 640 x 480.

As I said, I ignored the 580 initally.

Dom

- ----------Dom Mooney---dom@cybergoths.u-net.com------------
                       MiB - Marines in Battledress
   "Protecting the Imperium from the Scum of the Galaxy"
Rob Prior's Mac software @ http://www.bits.org.uk/ 

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 13:03:15 +0100
From: John Wood <John@elvw.demon.co.uk>
Subject: Re: Architecture

Thad Coons <Sapience@compuserve.com> wrote,
>The topic of SF architecture has been tickling
>the back of my mind lately, so I thought I'd start to sketch out
>some construction rules.

If you're not too violently anti-GURPS I strongly recommend you take a
look at Matt Riggsby's "GURPS Architecture", which can be found at
        <http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Arcade/2574/archt.html>
(the html file's 148k, plus another 28k of graphics).

It covers building at all TLs, although it does focus more on historical
times because of the more accurate information available. It doesn't go
into much detail for exotic environments (although it mentions
underwater & antigrav floating buildings), but has a lot of good general
ideas. I don't have FF&S but imagine you could convert the GURPS
Vehicles references to it.

Here's the table of contents:

        Introduction 
                Vehicles and Architecture 
        Building a Building 
                Rooms 
                Surfaces 
                Other Building Components 
                Components from Vehicles 
                Roofs 
                Structure 
                Material Descriptions 
                Height and Width 
                Variant Structural Materials 
                Fortified Walls 
                Fortification Variations 
                Frames 
                Excavation 
                Exotic Buildings 
                Windows and Vision 
                Building Time and Labor 
                Composite Buildings 
                Floors and Pavements 
                Bridges 
                Land 
        Building HT 
                Damage to Buildings 
                Fire 
                Weathering and Natural Disasters 
                Repair and Restoration 
        Advice on Buildings 
                Homes 
                Churches and Sacred Buildings 
                Fortifications 
                Public Buildings 
        Author's Notes
        Appendix I: Furniture
        Appendix II: List of Files

To quote the author on its limitations:
"Some types of buildings are better built with Vehicles than with these
rules. Specifically, orbiting and free-floating space stations are more
properly built with Vehicles rules than with these architectural rules.
These rules are designed to represent stationary structures supported by
solid ground. A space station is simply a large vehicle with no engines
(or, more likely, very small ones for attitude control)."

John
 
John G. Wood            <john@elvw.demon.co.uk>
Oxford, United Kingdom  http://www.elvw.demon.co.uk/

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 08:44:41 -0600
From: "David J. Golden" <goldendj@pcisys.net>
Subject: Re: [www] Freelance Traveller Announcement

At 02:49 AM 8/30/99 -0400, you wrote:
>>You shouldn't have to specify width at all in tables. Or, if
needed,
>>specify it in % instead of pixels. That way, it won't matter if
users
>>are running at 640x480, 1280x1024, or even using their palm pad ...
>
>Ok, I set the attributes on just my index page at 95%.  could you go
check
>it and see if it looks ok still?

	Unfortunately, it's still coming up completely black. Quick check
with View|Source reveals that Netscrape did in fact download the
page, as the source is there. A little more digging shows that you
set the background to black (bgcolor="#000000") ... but I don't see
anything where you change to _foreground_ (i.e. text) to something
other than the default ... black! At least not until a ways down the
page. However, there's images with ALT tags further up the page that
will wind up showing black text on black background for anybody who's
got images disabled. Doesn't explain why I can't see the links where
you've changed the font color to something other than black though.
I'll have to investigate ...

	Incidentally, I don't see anywhere on the page that you've even got
a table width set ... I'm confused.
- -- ------------------------------------------------------------ --
   Dave Golden                  http://www.pcisys.net/~goldendj 

   Rome did not create a great empire by having meetings, they 
   did it by killing all those who opposed them.

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

Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 08:49:44 -0600
From: "David J. Golden" <goldendj@pcisys.net>
Subject: Re: [www] Freelance Traveller Announcement

At 10:51 AM 8/30/99 +0100, you wrote:
>"David J. Golden" <goldendj@pcisys.net> writes:
>>	Folks? Can I just make a (futile) plea to NOT design websites for
>>any specific presentation? That's the whole underlying premise of a
>>markup language--the user agent takes care of the presentation the
>>way the USER wants it ...
>
>Interesting; the most common emails I get about the BITS website are
that
>it is too big for their browser to view properly. I have had one
comment on

	That's my whole point--website creators shouldn't make *any*
assumptions about the browser. You can't guarantee that the user is
in your resolution, sees your colors, for that matter, you can't even
assume that the user can SEE! That, and the cretins who assume that
just because it loads in only five seconds on their workstation from
their hard drive, it must load just fine out at the end of a 28.8
connection ...

	Not that I'm innocent of the crime of forcing my presentation on
others, but its still a minor pet peeve of mine and I'm working on it
... 
- -- ------------------------------------------------------------ --
   Dave Golden                  http://www.pcisys.net/~goldendj 

   Rome did not create a great empire by having meetings, they 
   did it by killing all those who opposed them.

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

End of Traveller-digest V1999 #1038
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