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Date:	12/11/99 8:45:12 AM Pacific Standard Time<BR>
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Traveller-digest    Saturday, December 11 1999    Volume 1999 : Number 1479<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
(R)1996. Traveller is a registered trademark of FarFuture Enterprises.<BR>
All rights reserved.<BR>
<BR>
The following topics are covered in this digest:<BR>
<BR>
Re: Well guys, there goes our salvage...<BR>
Re: Well guys, there goes our salvage...<BR>
Re: Paintball is not a real gun, much less a light crew served weapon<BR>
Re: OT-Soviet Death Stars(sorta)<BR>
Re: Superpowers<BR>
Re: The Rise and Supposed Decline of the RPG Empire<BR>
Re: Prize vs Salvage<BR>
Re: Munchkins<BR>
Velocity/Vector<BR>
Re: Deserts<BR>
re: Munchkins<BR>
Institutional Memory<BR>
Re: Munchkins<BR>
Re: Inst. Mem.<BR>
Re: Mass communication, the nobility and epistemology (LONG)<BR>
Re: Mass communication, the nobility and epistemology (LONG)<BR>
Re: Superpowers<BR>
Re: Munchkins<BR>
Re: The Rise and Supposed Decline of the RPG Empire<BR>
Re: Velocity/Vector<BR>
Re: Paintball is not a real gun, much less a light crew served weapon<BR>
<BR>
----------------------------------------------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 1999 23:06:39 -0800 (PST)<BR>
From: Terry Mixon <tlmixon@yahoo.com><BR>
Subject: Re: Well guys, there goes our salvage...<BR>
<BR>
- --- Walter Smith <SmithW@HARTWICK.EDU> wrote:<BR>
<BR>
> I think the confusing part was when civilian ships were<BR>
> mentioned as taking prizes while a state of war did not<BR>
> exist. I think it was pretty clear that if you're at war<BR>
> with the Senlis Foederate, and one of their DE's captures<BR>
> one of your Subsidized Merchants, you're not getting it<BR>
> back with a lawsuit.<BR>
> <BR>
> You might, however, get it back with a treaty.<BR>
<BR>
In Eris's PbEM, the characters have inherited a ship that was <BR>
seized years ago from a foreign government as a prize by a lawful <BR>
privateer, if I remember correctly. That governemnt or the former <BR>
tried to have the courts return it when we were claiming it. <BR>
I bet the foreign government would see it as legal if the <BR>
former owners "stole" it away from us later. <BR>
<BR>
So to sumarize, be careful where you travel in your new ship <BR>
or you might have it taken away. <g><BR>
<BR>
Any guesses where we will *NOT* be going? <g><BR>
<BR>
Terry<BR>
__________________________________________________<BR>
Do You Yahoo!?<BR>
Thousands of Stores.  Millions of Products.  All in one place.<BR>
Yahoo! Shopping: http://shopping.yahoo.com<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 02:58:38 -0600<BR>
From: "Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net><BR>
Subject: Re: Well guys, there goes our salvage...<BR>
<BR>
On 12/10/99 at 11:06 PM,  Terry Mixon <tlmixon@yahoo.com> said:<BR>
<BR>
>In Eris's PbEM, the characters have inherited a ship that was  seized<BR>
>years ago from a foreign government as a prize by a lawful <BR>
>privateer, if I remember correctly. That governemnt or the former <BR>
>tried to have the courts return it when we were claiming it.  I bet<BR>
>the foreign government would see it as legal if the  former owners<BR>
>"stole" it away from us later. <BR>
<BR>
>So to sumarize, be careful where you travel in your new ship  or you<BR>
>might have it taken away. <g><BR>
<BR>
>Any guesses where we will *NOT* be going? <g><BR>
<BR>
Any guesses where the "big score" is going to be located?  No, I<BR>
wouldn't put it *inside* the territory of that foreign government<BR>
now would I?  <weg><BR>
<BR>
The McGuffin in my game for the first two years was "the ship."  Now<BR>
that they've found it, there will have to be another McGuffin out<BR>
there to draw them on.  Frankly, I'm not sure what that's going to<BR>
be, but there are plenty of "minor" plot threads that could develop<BR>
into something major. See, I'm a big believer in setting up several<BR>
pushes and pulls, then letting the characters plot their own course,<BR>
and that includes NPC characters.  Let's see what have the<BR>
characters got to work with...<BR>
<BR>
Why was Akus Moby murdered?  Did he have something, or know<BR>
something, that he couldn't be allowed to pass on, and if so where<BR>
is it now?  Does someone still want it...how much?<BR>
<BR>
Why were the lawyers dragging their heels so much?  Were they in<BR>
league with the government, the Spacer's Guild, that loan shark<BR>
Pele 'Pickaxe' Hiiki, someone else...or just incompetent?<BR>
<BR>
What does the local intellegence agency want from them?  Is it in<BR>
their interest to play along, and could they *not* play along even<BR>
if they wanted not to?  How about these two new characters that have<BR>
joined them, are either of them agents? For whom?<BR>
<BR>
Why was an unknown group trying to hijack the Mae Lee when they<BR>
arrived on the scene?  Why was a squadron of SDB's in just to right<BR>
spot to stop the hijacking?  Why did those hijackers *all* commit<BR>
suicide when the ship was boarded...or did they?<BR>
<BR>
What happened to Colin David, the missing engineer?  His brother's<BR>
body was found, but not his.  And what's the deal with those<BR>
artifacts they found in David's duffle bag?  Do they have anything<BR>
to do with anything?<BR>
<BR>
Wasn't it awfully unlucky that the ship's extremely hightech jump<BR>
sensor was reduced to a slagged wreak during the attack?  Is what<BR>
they found in forward engineering really the remains of that sensor<BR>
at all?  How will they know until they spend some time trying to<BR>
reconstruct it?<BR>
<BR>
Do the PC's have the "Maltese Falcon" in their possession without<BR>
knowing it?  You know how many people want that black bird...<BR>
<BR>
...and we haven't even scratched the surface of plots.  It'll be<BR>
interesting to see where the game goes from here.  <g><BR>
<BR>
Eris<BR>
- -- <BR>
- -----------------------------------------------------------<BR>
"Eris Reddoch" <eris@pcola.gulf.net>    using MR/2 ICE #245<BR>
- -----------------------------------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 01:12:48 -0800<BR>
From: "Kelly St.Clair" <kellys@efn.org><BR>
Subject: Re: Paintball is not a real gun, much less a light crew served weapon<BR>
<BR>
On Fri, 10 Dec 1999 18:52:52 PST, shadow@krypton.rain.com (Leonard<BR>
Erickson) wrote:<BR>
<BR>
>I recall seeing a cartoon *somewhere* that had an officer "plastered"<BR>
>to a jeep, with the remains of a basketball-sized paintball on his<BR>
>chest. There was a tank on the opposite side of the panel. I think the<BR>
>caption was "after testing, it was decided that paintball rounds for<BR>
>tanks wouldn't work..."<BR>
<BR>
Tank-scale (well, actually mecha-scale) paintball rounds appear in the<BR>
anime MACROSS PLUS.  It's an amusing bit, too:  two rival "test pilots" in<BR>
prototype giant robots/fighters are competing against each other in a<BR>
training exercise, set in a mockup of a city.  Their rifles carry paintball<BR>
loads.<BR>
<BR>
At one point, an enemy mecha pops up with a friendly mecha held in front of<BR>
it, human-shield style.  The disciplined mecha-jock only hits the enemy's<BR>
head, while the "maverick" sprays paintballs over both enemy and hostage...<BR>
 Oops.<BR>
<BR>
(To quote another movie that came out about the same time, on this side of<BR>
the Pacific:  "Take the hostage out of the equation.")<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
- --------------<BR>
Kelly St.Clair   "The Jigglypuff's trilling seems to have a <BR>
kellys@efn.org    tranquilizing effect on the human nervous system.<BR>
                  Fortunately, I am... immune..."<BR>
                            -- Mr. Spock, THE TROUBLE WITH POKEMON<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 04:50:54 -0500<BR>
From: Steve Noe <fusilier@mindspring.com><BR>
Subject: Re: OT-Soviet Death Stars(sorta)<BR>
<BR>
Luther Martin wrote:<BR>
> <BR>
> Wow. How much does it cost to lift 1 pound to orbit? That's some expensive<BR>
> paranoia.<BR>
 <BR>
> > Hi Guys,<BR>
> > ><BR>
> > > I came across a little interesting trivia while reading the book "Space<BR>
> > Power<BR>
> > > Theory"[snip]<BR>
> > > Ken<BR>
> ><BR>
<BR>
And what about m1v1 = m2v2 ??  Did anyone ever fire this suckah??<BR>
<BR>
Steve Noe, a newbie in Indianapolis<BR>
fusilier@mindspring.com<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 1999 23:30:41 +0000<BR>
From: Martin Hardgrave <martin@deira.demon.co.uk><BR>
Subject: Re: Superpowers<BR>
<BR>
In message <VA.000008e3.001743b7@taz.compulink.co.uk>, Simon Early<BR>
<sre@taz.compulink.co.uk> writes<BR>
>> >Not dust, but combustion gases.<BR>
><BR>
>Dom was right - it was coal dust, not combustion gases that were the problem <BR>
>at Sellafield.  I remember an article in New Scientist on the subject.  The <BR>
>problem was due to coal dust settling on surfaces near the detectors, which <BR>
>gave off enough radiation to trigger the sensors.<BR>
><BR>
>The extra radioactive CO2 in air would never be concentrated enough to set <BR>
>off the sensors due to plume dispersion from the flue gas stacks.<BR>
><BR>
>Simon<BR>
><BR>
><BR>
The guide at the THORP plant said that they couldn't build a small coal-<BR>
fired plant because the radioactivity released on burning would have set<BR>
the sensors off.  The carbon itself shouldn't be radioactive (too many<BR>
half-lives).<BR>
- -- <BR>
Martin Hardgrave<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 10:19:16 +0000<BR>
From: SD Mooney <dom@cybergoths.u-net.com><BR>
Subject: Re: The Rise and Supposed Decline of the RPG Empire<BR>
<BR>
At 22:07 -0500 10/12/99,  "David L. Pulver" <dlpulver@kos.net> wrote:<BR>
>_First In_ is not a worldbook, of course -- it's a sourcebook, and one with<BR>
>a broad appeal far beyond Traveller, so it should do very well. I've been<BR>
>recommending it to my non-Trav sf gaming friends.<BR>
<BR>
I'd have thought that 'Far Trader' and possibly 'Star Mercs' have <BR>
similar chances of selling beyond the Traveller SF gaming segment? <BR>
'Far Trader' is one of the best treatments of trade in SF that I've <BR>
seen beyond CJ Cherryh or Andre Norton's Solar Queen stuff.<BR>
<BR>
Hmm. A CJ Cherryh Alliance/Union sourcebook for GURPS - now that I would buy!<BR>
<BR>
Dom<BR>
<BR>
- ----------Dom Mooney---dom@cybergoths.u-net.com------------<BR>
                        MiB - Marines in Battledress<BR>
    "Protecting the Imperium from the Scum of the Galaxy"<BR>
Rob Prior's Mac software @ http://www.bits.org.uk/ <BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 02:34:48 PST<BR>
From: shadow@krypton.rain.com (Leonard Erickson)<BR>
Subject: Re: Prize vs Salvage<BR>
<BR>
In mail you write:<BR>
<BR>
> Also IMTU stolen propery is stolen property. If you find a <BR>
> ship in space with all hands dead and it turns out that the <BR>
> ship had been hijacked years ago then the ship is still stolen <BR>
> property and belongs to the original owners or their heirs, <BR>
> unless paid of by insurance. In that case, the insurance <BR>
> company owns it. The finders are still entitled to a prize <BR>
> fee of 10% of the vessels appraised value. If the old owners <BR>
> cannot pay, then the vessel must be sold and the prize paid. <BR>
> The remainder goes to the owners or their heirs. If the vessel <BR>
> had been stolen so long ago that no owner or heir can be found <BR>
> in a reasonable time, as determined by the Admiralty court, then <BR>
> it becomes the sole property of the finders.<BR>
<BR>
That's rather different than current Admiralty law. If it's been "lost"<BR>
for long enough (say 100 years) then the rights of the original owners<BR>
have lapsed. And the wreck belongs to whoever finds it.<BR>
<BR>
- -- <BR>
Leonard Erickson (aka Shadow)<BR>
 shadow@krypton.rain.com        <--preferred<BR>
leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com     <--last resort<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 02:38:00 PST<BR>
From: shadow@krypton.rain.com (Leonard Erickson)<BR>
Subject: Re: Munchkins<BR>
<BR>
In mail you write:<BR>
<BR>
> James Lindsay wrote:<BR>
>>>>>>>>>>>>><BR>
>> Anybody who tries *that* level of "rules lawyering" in a campaign *I* <BR>
>> am running will get shown the section of the rules that states the GM <BR>
>> is free to alter or interpret rules any way he chooses. If that doesn't <BR>
>> work, he or she will be shown the door. <BR>
><BR>
> Question: Why don't rules lawyers ever remember *those* particular rules? <BR>
> Selective memory, I would think. <BR>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>><BR>
> I think it's appropriate for a player to take the rules as written,<BR>
> until the GM tells her otherwise. Yes, the "GM has final say" rule<BR>
> trumps any other text in the book, but a player can't make *any*<BR>
> character or piece of equipment without being able to trust the <BR>
> applicable rules. Now, if the GM hasn't been clear about which<BR>
> particular rules are applicable...<BR>
<BR>
True. Though usually, it was someone trying to tell me (or the GM if I<BR>
was a player) that some rules clearly indicate as "optional" or<BR>
"unofficial" *had* to be used. <BR>
<BR>
Beyond that, *I* try to keep people aprised of "house rules". And I'm<BR>
not too proud to start a game by telling the players "Ok, X is getting<BR>
to be a *real* problem. If it isn't toned down, it's going to really<BR>
screw up the campaign. So I've altered the rules governing it a bit.<BR>
Here's the way it works now. Any questions?"<BR>
<BR>
And that *usually* works. Sometimes folks will suggest handling the<BR>
problem a bit differently. Sometimes I'll agree. Sometimes I won't. But<BR>
once we are done discussing it *that's it*. We have a new rule. Only<BR>
somebody who wasn't at the session gets to argue about it. <BR>
<BR>
BTW, it's odd, but I can't *ever* recall the *players* telling a GM<BR>
that a rule  or power or gadget needed to be "toned down". Funny how<BR>
that works...:-)<BR>
<BR>
> Writing that, I've seen GM's who never even let a player *see* the<BR>
> rulebook, much less allowed them to make something rule-tweaky with<BR>
> it. "How can I get a faster starship?" <roll, roll, roll> - "You<BR>
> ask Feldzarr the Engineer NPC, he says your ship is as fast as you<BR>
> can get." "Why?" <roll, roll, roll> - "Your character blows his<BR>
> Engineering roll, you don't know why."<BR>
<BR>
I know a couple of people who can run a good *interesting* campaign<BR>
*without* a rulebook. Both are natural story tellers and really fair<BR>
about things. And they started doing this in the early 80s, long before<BR>
the "story teller" type games arrived on the scene. <BR>
<BR>
- -- <BR>
Leonard Erickson (aka Shadow)<BR>
 shadow@krypton.rain.com        <--preferred<BR>
leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com     <--last resort<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 06:20:21 -0500<BR>
From: "Josh W. Spencer" <macmanjws@earthlink.net><BR>
Subject: Velocity/Vector<BR>
<BR>
Hello.<BR>
This is probably considered an easy question: Does any ship maintain its<BR>
original velocity and vector when exiting jumpspace?<BR>
<BR>
- --<BR>
Josh<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 06:06:44 -0700<BR>
From: cos 90 <cos90@powersurfr.com><BR>
Subject: Re: Deserts<BR>
<BR>
><< While I'll agree with you on the mosquito nets, don't most deserts<BR>
> get pretty chilly at night?<BR>
> <BR>
> Or is that just North Africa? >><BR>
><BR>
>Get's pretty f*****g cold here in Vegas at night in the winter...:-)<BR>
<BR>
Please define "pretty f*****g cold". I'm going to be spending a week<BR>
in Vegas this coming March, and wouldn't mind knowing what kind of weather<BR>
to expect. :)<BR>
<BR>
(My definition of "pretty f*****g cold": when it gets down to -40, as it<BR>
usually does at least once during the winter up here. That's *really*<BR>
f*****g cold!)<BR>
<BR>
:-D<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
     Glenn St-Germain  Edmonton, Alberta, Canada <BR>
cos90@powersurfr.com  http://plaza.powersurfr.com/glenn<BR>
        "There is no longer any normal to be"<BR>
                                 -- Gary Numan<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 23:20:32 +1000<BR>
From: "Alan Bradley" <alanb@elf.brisnet.org.au><BR>
Subject: re: Munchkins<BR>
<BR>
> From: Walt Smith<BR>
> It's a matter of expectations, of course. I recall seeing a Champions<BR>
> (superhero RPG) campaign planning sheet, which gave new players a<BR>
> combination of hard & fast character creation rules ("no one can<BR>
> have defenses that make their hero perfectly immune to normal bullets")<BR>
> and campaign expectations ("the heroes will be relatively unknown<BR>
> vigilantes in a city where corruption and crime are rife, morality<BR>
> of the stories will be in shades of grey..."). I really liked that<BR>
> idea, and stole (er, "expanded") it for use with other kinds of<BR>
> campaigns as well.<BR>
<BR>
A couple of quick OT comments, before I get on to Traveller stuff:<BR>
> "no one can have defenses that make their hero perfectly immune to normal<BR>
> bullets"<BR>
Yuck.  I always liked playing bricks in Champions.  (Bricks are the tough,<BR>
strong guys, for those who don't know.)  I played other characters too,<BR>
but...  <BR>
<BR>
I played other Hero games too, though, so I could cope with not being<BR>
bullet-proof, but still...<BR>
<BR>
OK, with that out of my system:<BR>
Introducing new players to the OTU can be a bit of a worry.  There's a<BR>
whole lot of "stuff" out there, and it takes a long time to assimilate. <BR>
Because I've got my new game starting soon, I'm trying to work out what is<BR>
necessary for people to know to make sensible decisions about character<BR>
generation, and so on.<BR>
<BR>
How do people deal with that?  I don't really care what game you are<BR>
playing:  how do you go about introducing new people to a complex, and<BR>
unfamiliar setting?  I have to admit that I originally used to just wing<BR>
it, but the games I tended to run weren't particularly coherent, and this<BR>
time I'm trying to focus on a small astrographical area and a very intense<BR>
power struggle.<BR>
<BR>
(I should have been starting my game tomorrow, but the club (Brisbane<BR>
Independent Gamers - mostly a miniatures club) I'm running it at has an<BR>
open day on, and I'm going to be pushing panzers instead.)<BR>
<BR>
Alan Bradley<BR>
alanb@elf.brisnet.org.au<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 20:34:39 -0800<BR>
From: Rob Dean <rsdean@REMOVETHIS.erols.com><BR>
Subject: Institutional Memory<BR>
<BR>
> From: GDWGAMES@aol.com<BR>
> Subject: Institutional Memory<BR>
> Just out of curiouslty, who here remembers the controversy that erupted when<BR>
> I first signed up to TML?<BR>
<BR>
Well, I was here and very active at the time--would that be the discussion over<BR>
whether having a company rep would have an inhibiting effect on the discussion,<BR>
or are you referring to the wider controversy over the desirability of the move<BR>
to TNE which erupted sometime around then?<BR>
<BR>
Rob Dean<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 10:22:26 EST<BR>
From: GaryBartz@aol.com<BR>
Subject: Re: Munchkins<BR>
<BR>
In a message dated 12/11/99 1:43:10 AM Eastern Standard Time, <BR>
owner-traveller-digest@lists.imagiconline.com writes:<BR>
<BR>
<< > > Coax them gently, and they tend to come around. The stubbornest I've <BR>
met,<BR>
 > > however, was a man who was the non-gamer to his avid-gamer wife. He <BR>
became<BR>
 > > a rules lawyer from HELL. So bad, in fact, that no one wants to game with<BR>
 > > him. And he'll only play AD&D 2nd, and only FR or DL settings, and won't<BR>
 > > tolerate even the minorest of house rules, deviations from print, or<BR>
 > > interpretations which conflict with his (unless backed up in Dragon).<BR>
 > <BR>
 > Anybody who tries *that* level of "rules lawyering" in a campaign *I*<BR>
 > am running will get shown the section of the rules that states the GM<BR>
 > is free to alter or interpret rules any way he chooses. If that doesn't<BR>
 > work, he or she will be shown the door.<BR>
 <BR>
 Question: Why don't rules lawyers ever remember *those* particular rules?<BR>
 Selective memory, I would think.<BR>
 <BR>
 >><BR>
<BR>
<BR>
Ummmmm.....guys?<BR>
May I point out that you are quoting a rule to justify your failure to follow <BR>
the regular rules?<BR>
Finding and using loopholes, who is the better rules lawyer?<BR>
<BR>
And what's wrong with lawyering? I had a character once who was a lawyer in <BR>
D&D, there were no courts in the wildreness area we were in, so when ever we <BR>
were attacked and captured one or more of them I would call for a court, we <BR>
would select a party member as a judge, and I would present my case for <BR>
killing or enslaving the attacker for his crime. In or near a village we <BR>
would bring them for law. It was okay, but some of the group got tired of the <BR>
procedure, so strangely the jurisdiction of the local towns grew out quite a <BR>
bit.<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 10:29:58 EST<BR>
From: GDWGAMES@aol.com<BR>
Subject: Re: Inst. Mem.<BR>
<BR>
In a message dated 99-12-11 01:43:10 EST, you write:<BR>
<BR>
<< > Just out of curiouslty, who here remembers the controversy that erupted <BR>
when <BR>
 > I first signed up to TML? <BR>
 <BR>
 I can't remember what I had for breakfast.  Give us a clue.  >><BR>
<BR>
Well, without getting too involved, there was a small but highly vocal core <BR>
of people who thought that I, as a GDW rep, should be _banned_ from <BR>
participating in the TML lest I somehow inhibit free discussion. <BR>
<BR>
I was welcomed by the majority, however.<BR>
<BR>
Loren Wiseman<BR>
    GDW Emeritus, <BR>
    SJ Games Emigre<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 1999 19:14:22 -0500<BR>
From: Robert Prior <robert_prior@sympatico.ca><BR>
Subject: Re: Mass communication, the nobility and epistemology (LONG)<BR>
<BR>
>>> What, he argues *against* quality television shows???<BR>
>><BR>
>>It depends on what you mean by "quality".<BR>
><snip><BR>
>>He's not arguing against a better Power Rangers, he's arguing against any<BR>
>>sort of Sesame Street at all.<BR>
><BR>
>I knew Postman was out to lunch, but this really confirms my viewpoint...<BR>
<BR>
He's got a point. I can generally tell which of my kids watched a lot of TV<BR>
when they were younger: they're the ones with shorter attention spans.<BR>
Sesame Street does tend to encourage snipping learning into small chunks.<BR>
It certainly hasn't lived up to the early promises made for educational TV.<BR>
(Which were made for movies, and which are being made now for computers and<BR>
the internet. Le plus ca change...)<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
>This does not appear to have happened in Canada... I get the impression<BR>
>that candidates down on your side of the border have to show what good<BR>
>moral character thay have, by showing that they are stable family men.<BR>
>Someone who is single, or divorced without being remarried, doesn't stand<BR>
>a chance in many venues. Up here, we don't care.<BR>
<BR>
Well, so far the majority of voters don't seem to care. The local Reform<BR>
party types are trying to make this an issue.<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
>>Having been the recipient of email bombs sent by kids who don't like to have<BR>
>>their points argued against on Usenet (points which, coincidentally, smacked<BR>
>>of television slogan-mongering). Having been in a class where a student,<BR>
>>upon receiving a cellphone call, argued with the teacher that he was a<BR>
>>paying customer, and as such had some sort of moral right to receive calls<BR>
>>whenever they came in, whether or not those calls were distracting to the<BR>
>>class.<BR>
><BR>
>Any kid who tried that up here would immediately have their telephone<BR>
>confiscated.<BR>
<BR>
You're in Edmonton, right?<BR>
<BR>
Here in Toronto, we have a "no cell phones and pagers" regulation. The<BR>
school administration won't enforce it, because many of those phones are<BR>
encouraged by parents.<BR>
<BR>
(The cell/page companies are pushing this as a way of talking to your kids.<BR>
Now you don't have to feel guilty about getting home late, because you sent<BR>
the kids a page telling them to order a pizza for supper.)<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 09:44:46 -0600<BR>
From: "Thomas Vickers" <redroach@flex.net><BR>
Subject: Re: Mass communication, the nobility and epistemology (LONG)<BR>
<BR>
>Here in Toronto, we have a "no cell phones and pagers" regulation. The<BR>
>school administration won't enforce it, because many of those phones are<BR>
>encouraged by parents.<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
Here in wonderful Texas where I teach, we also have a NO cell phone or pager<BR>
policy.<BR>
It is very strictly enforced. Possession causes confiscation and the device<BR>
will only be returned to the parent  after a fee is paid to the campus<BR>
police. Of course for my particular part of the school district its not rich<BR>
parents trying to get in touch with kids, its fellow gang members paging<BR>
their buddies, which led to this policy<BR>
<BR>
TV<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 08:01:06 PST<BR>
From: shadow@krypton.rain.com (Leonard Erickson)<BR>
Subject: Re: Superpowers<BR>
<BR>
In mail you write:<BR>
<BR>
> In message <VA.000008e3.001743b7@taz.compulink.co.uk>, Simon Early<BR>
> <sre@taz.compulink.co.uk> writes<BR>
>>> >Not dust, but combustion gases.<BR>
>><BR>
>>Dom was right - it was coal dust, not combustion gases that were the <BR>
> problem <BR>
>>at Sellafield.  I remember an article in New Scientist on the subject.  The <BR>
>>problem was due to coal dust settling on surfaces near the detectors, which <BR>
>>gave off enough radiation to trigger the sensors.<BR>
>><BR>
>>The extra radioactive CO2 in air would never be concentrated enough to set <BR>
>>off the sensors due to plume dispersion from the flue gas stacks.<BR>
>><BR>
>>Simon<BR>
>><BR>
>><BR>
> The guide at the THORP plant said that they couldn't build a small coal-<BR>
> fired plant because the radioactivity released on burning would have set<BR>
> the sensors off.  The carbon itself shouldn't be radioactive (too many<BR>
> half-lives).<BR>
<BR>
Sure, but coal has a *lot* of impurities (just ask anybody that's ever<BR>
used it for heat about all the slag you have to shovel out). And many<BR>
of those impurities contain harmless amounts of radioactive materials. <BR>
<BR>
But the emmision limits for nuclear plants are *so* strict that the<BR>
*natural* levels of radioactivity of things like coal (and especialy<BR>
the slag and "fly ash" produced by *burning* coal) is enough to set off<BR>
the alarms. <BR>
<BR>
We really are overly catious about some aspects of nuclear energy.<BR>
<BR>
- -- <BR>
Leonard Erickson (aka Shadow)<BR>
 shadow@krypton.rain.com        <--preferred<BR>
leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com     <--last resort<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 08:05:56 PST<BR>
From: shadow@krypton.rain.com (Leonard Erickson)<BR>
Subject: Re: Munchkins<BR>
<BR>
In mail you write:<BR>
<BR>
> Introducing new players to the OTU can be a bit of a worry.  There's a<BR>
> whole lot of "stuff" out there, and it takes a long time to assimilate. <BR>
> Because I've got my new game starting soon, I'm trying to work out what is<BR>
> necessary for people to know to make sensible decisions about character<BR>
> generation, and so on.<BR>
><BR>
> How do people deal with that?  I don't really care what game you are<BR>
> playing:  how do you go about introducing new people to a complex, and<BR>
> unfamiliar setting?  I have to admit that I originally used to just wing<BR>
> it, but the games I tended to run weren't particularly coherent, and this<BR>
> time I'm trying to focus on a small astrographical area and a very intense<BR>
> power struggle.<BR>
<BR>
One thing that works is to use some "canned" scenarios from supplements<BR>
or magazines as a way to let people get familar with the system and<BR>
background. Sure, this means the first week or three will be devoted to<BR>
the scenario. But once they've been through that, and you've cleared up<BR>
any worries ("Yeah, I *know* the setup in the enemy HQ was *stupid*,<BR>
but that's the way the scenario was set up and I didn't want to waste<BR>
time rewriting everything. Don't worry, I'll be sneakier." :-) *then*<BR>
you can start them generating their characters.<BR>
<BR>
Or let them borrow rule books between sessions of the "training<BR>
scenario" to let them try to design something and have you look it over<BR>
next session.<BR>
<BR>
- -- <BR>
Leonard Erickson (aka Shadow)<BR>
 shadow@krypton.rain.com        <--preferred<BR>
leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com     <--last resort<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 08:27:09 PST<BR>
From: shadow@krypton.rain.com (Leonard Erickson)<BR>
Subject: Re: The Rise and Supposed Decline of the RPG Empire<BR>
<BR>
In mail you write:<BR>
<BR>
> At 22:07 -0500 10/12/99,  "David L. Pulver" <dlpulver@kos.net> wrote:<BR>
>>_First In_ is not a worldbook, of course -- it's a sourcebook, and one with<BR>
>>a broad appeal far beyond Traveller, so it should do very well. I've been<BR>
>>recommending it to my non-Trav sf gaming friends.<BR>
><BR>
> I'd have thought that 'Far Trader' and possibly 'Star Mercs' have <BR>
> similar chances of selling beyond the Traveller SF gaming segment? <BR>
> 'Far Trader' is one of the best treatments of trade in SF that I've <BR>
> seen beyond CJ Cherryh or Andre Norton's Solar Queen stuff.<BR>
><BR>
> Hmm. A CJ Cherryh Alliance/Union sourcebook for GURPS - now that I would buy!<BR>
<BR>
I'd rather have one for the area the Chanur stories take place!<BR>
<BR>
- -- <BR>
Leonard Erickson (aka Shadow)<BR>
 shadow@krypton.rain.com        <--preferred<BR>
leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com     <--last resort<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 08:12:21 PST<BR>
From: shadow@krypton.rain.com (Leonard Erickson)<BR>
Subject: Re: Velocity/Vector<BR>
<BR>
In mail you write:<BR>
<BR>
> Hello.<BR>
> This is probably considered an easy question: Does any ship maintain its<BR>
> original velocity and vector when exiting jumpspace?<BR>
<BR>
Actually, it's the source of a lot of arguments, because the rules<BR>
don't *say*, and Mark Miller gets a bit vague about details when we<BR>
ask. :-)<BR>
<BR>
Personally, I say yes. You maintain your velocity as determined by<BR>
refernce to whatever object you used before the jump. Both magnitude<BR>
and direction.<BR>
<BR>
Others say it keeps the vector *relative* to the local star. That is<BR>
you enter jump with a certain vector relative to the star you are<BR>
jumping from and leave jump with the same magnitude and direction<BR>
vector, but relative to the *destination* star. My question is, that's<BR>
fine for velocity towards or away from the star, but if you've got any<BR>
"sideways" velocity, what determines what direction *it* is in? <BR>
<BR>
And then there are those who point out that the rules seem to suggest<BR>
that it's preferable to have a "low velocity" when entering jump, and<BR>
then say you enter jump at rest, and leave it at rest. And of course, I<BR>
come back with "at rest relative to *what*?"<BR>
<BR>
Retaining your original vector does the least damage to physics, and<BR>
with a typical Traveller ship, it doesn't take all the long to kill<BR>
even 200 km/sec relative velocity carried over from the previous<BR>
system. <BR>
<BR>
It also gives a reason for ships to prefer certain "lanes" depending on<BR>
their planned destination. Make a run to jump such that it helps match<BR>
your velocity vector to that of your destination. That means that from<BR>
any given planet, and any given time, there's a "preferred" direction<BR>
to boost in on your way to the 100 diameter limit. Going in any other<BR>
direction means there will be a bigger mismatch in velocities when you<BR>
arrive and thus, higher fuel consumption.<BR>
<BR>
It's not *critical*, but it makes a difference. Sort of like modern jet<BR>
airliners preferring altitudes where they'll have a tail wind over ones<BR>
where they'll have a headwind. It's not that they can't make the trip<BR>
even against a headwind. It's just that they'll save a *lot* of fuel if<BR>
they get the tailwind. :-)<BR>
<BR>
- -- <BR>
Leonard Erickson (aka Shadow)<BR>
 shadow@krypton.rain.com        <--preferred<BR>
leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com     <--last resort<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
Date: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 11:39:42 -0500<BR>
From: "Chris Seamans" <semo@pil.net><BR>
Subject: Re: Paintball is not a real gun, much less a light crew served weapon<BR>
<BR>
From: Kelly St.Clair <kellys@efn.org><BR>
<BR>
<BR>
> Tank-scale (well, actually mecha-scale) paintball rounds appear in<BR>
>the anime MACROSS PLUS.  It's an amusing bit, too:  two rival "test<BR>
>pilots" in prototype giant robots/fighters are competing against each<BR>
>other in a training exercise, set in a mockup of a city.  Their rifles<BR>
>carry paintball loads.<BR>
<BR>
In one of the Battletech equipment supplements they introduce the paint<BR>
sprayer, not for mechs, but for engineers and maintenance types. One little<BR>
bit that was interesting was that these types of people would settle their<BR>
duels and disagreements with paint sprayers.<BR>
<BR>
ObTrav: At the starport the party is visiting a local engineer challenges<BR>
the party's engineer to a duel... with paint sprayers.<BR>
<BR>
------------------------------<BR>
<BR>
End of Traveller-digest V1999 #1479<BR>
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