green comet close approach

thanks for the heads-up but akshuly I already knew about this. Tawakalnistan's advanced space telescopes and detection systems (binoculars) have already established that what your Western space propaganda is telling you is a "green comet" is actually the flare of a Mark IV plasma drive of an Xzqwthll alien scout-ship decelerating as it enters our solar system - no doubt filled with slimy lizard insect-things intent on eating us and/or impregnating our women with alien space larvae.

As you're well aware, comets are traditionally harbingers of disaster (which itself means "evil star") so I can assure that during it's closest approach to Earth, the citizens of Tawakalnistan will be safe in hardened bunkers (also useful for storing coal) in preparation for the inevitable alien invasion/zombies/flesh-eating man-size plants that will ensue from this ill-omened visitation from beyond the stars. Having said that, if the kid turned into a zombie, I wouldn't notice the difference....

Not that we'll see much of any celestial phenomena here - unless you class snow clouds as phenomena. I remember in 1973 all the palaver over Comet Kahoutek, went out every night to the fields near where we lived with me telescope, saw nowt but cloud. same for meteors, aurorae*, spacecraft, eclipses, conjunctions, we see nothing.

except that UFO that time.

*and the one time in the late 80s when I went out for a cig in the wee hours and there were the aurora borealis swirling away above me, we very rarely see them in Tawakalnistan's latitudes plus the sky is normally overcast and polluted.

Coinkidinkally, my equine chum, I was reading "The Drowned World" - by J G Ballard, very similar in many ways to John Wyndham's "The Kraken Wakes" - and the other nigth just before you posted I was watching an old video of "Night of the Comet" - that 80s film about a comet turning everyone into dust apart from a handful of survivors and some zombies. The one where the girls go shopping in a deserted LA to Cyndi Lauper tunes and get saved by Chakotay, of all people. (He was wooden in that too..)

you'll note that they were rescued by a British submarine? from Gibraltar, as it 'appens...

that 50s version of DoTT wasn't particularly good, was it, although it had it's moments of inspiration. It scared me as a kid when I first saw it one Saturday afternoon in the 60s in black & white! The early 80s BBC telly production was much better, and it was recently announced that it's going to be remade by the BBC. Good show.

If you're in a post-apocalyptic frame of mind, you may well find interest in J.G Ballard's "The Drowned World" and I will assume that you've read Richard Matheson's "I am Legend" - far superior to the Will Smith film and to Chuck's "Omega Man" (even though I'm a big Chuck fan) You might also be interested in Penelope Lively's "Voyage of QV-66" for an entertaining change of focus, and the graphic novel of 28 Days Later - Aftermath that explains how and why the Rage virus was created, and ties the two films together.

I've always been rather keen on this genre myself, I read a lot of Wyndham and Ballard as a kid and recall seeing On The Beach when I was about 7 and not really understanding it but being absolutely fascinated by what was going on. I think I also feel in love with Ava Gardner then too <sigh> Plus as well the original series of Survivors I found utterly gripping.

I think that's why I like the genre so much - it's not so much the events themselves (unless they are credible) but how ordinary people would react to extraordinary circumstances which there would be no escaping from. One of the things that I liked about the novel I am Legend is that the protagonist isn't a military man or a scientist like in the film(s) but an ordinary man trying to figure out what's going on.

btw have you ever seen The Quiet Earth? Australian film about an advanced physics experiment that wipes out everyone, except those who died at the moment of the experiment (or does it?)

here's your comet, Seabiscuit!

(photo courtesy of the Al-Tawakalni High Altitude Deep Space Observatory, Mount Mullah - a division of IndyCorp)

wasn't Alas Babylon the inspiration for Jericho? (which I wish hadn't been cut short, I thought it was gripping!) I know it had some bearing on The Postman, which wasn't anything like as bad as everyone made out (despite being two hours too long. Costner really should learn to edit!)

J G Ballard is indeed rather depressing, but that's not surprising considering his personal history during and just after the war. I consider his best novel to be The Day of Creation which is a sort of low-key bonkers Heart of Darkness. Disturbing but wonderfully evocative.

There was a series on the telly about ten years ago, called The Last Train about an asteroid impact, very good in places, loses itself in the middle a bit sadly, but picks up towards the end. Really rather good on the whole, marvellous scenes in a deserted, ruined Sheffield. Worth a watch if you get the chance.

I swear that I read Riding the Torch years ago but I can't remember a single detail of it.

I just remembered that the very first post-apocalyptic novel that I read was Earth Abides, I must've been 7 or 8 and picked it up in the local library during the school holidays, loved it. Didn't really understand it but I recall distinctly really enjoying it and trying to talk about with my mum and dad over tea, which was a bit of a thankless task, they weren't exactly into speculative fiction if you catch my drift.

I also wrote a short story myself about a future neo-fascist dictatorship in Britain that comes to power following a civil war and total economic and political collapse due to an energy crisis caused by the destruction of the Saudi oilfields, I eventually worked it into a short novel with situation maps, explanatory appendices and an entire history of the war, had it right and credible in every detail, spent years on it, but my then girlfriend got into a strop one time when I was working on it and slung it out, with all my notes too never had the heart to start it up again even after I dumped her (which wasn't long after, the mad cow) Then about 6 years later, a series comes on telly called Knights of God which was almost the same bl**dy story! (having said that, mine was largely inspired by a 1979 tv series called Noah's Castle.)

And at the same time Alan Moore was working on V for Vendetta which also covered much the same turf, except his was brilliant and mine was just a good idea. But I didn't copy him cos I didn't read Warrior!

old horse pal, I love Andre Norton's books and when I was a kid I used to save up my spare dinner money so that I could buy them from the monthly book club (for two whole shillings!) I alwasy wanted to know, did she ever write a sequel to the Zero Stone cos I always wanted to know what happened to Murdoc Jern and Eet (well just Eet, wasn't interested in Murdoc except in as much as he was narrating the story.)

My mum threw them all out when I was at sea, she said that she didn't think I'd want to read childrens' books again. I was speechless.

Andre Norton was brills! :lol:

You know of course that now I'm going to have to buy them all again and read them again? btw wasn't Daybreak 2250 originally called Star Man's Son? lawks I haven't read that for thirty years or more!

haven't seen Jeremiah but you aren't the first to recommend it to me, and with SGA ended and BSG ending soon, there's bob all else on the box worth watching.

I agree, this last BSG episode was very lacklustre. If this is what it's going to be like for the rest of the series, then lawks only knows what Caprica will be like. It already looks more like a soap opera.

"gets the girl" - so there's more? I thought it ended on the jungle planet after the Patrolman had left, Murdoc and Eet went off into the wild blue yonder to find their destiny (no girls, just a boy and his super-intelligent cat lemur alien thing.. and that was that. Obviously not.

the last FL mod that I played was Monkey Universe and that was to hunt down and kill that self styled ersatz El-Ahrairah, Esquilax. Before that I can't remember. I don't play online anything much anymore (except F.E.A.R.) tbh I prefer Freespace 2 over FL, and I loved StarLancer and Wing Commander/Privateer. But I'll certainly take a look, I need to install FL on the machine I'm using most these days, and I do need some new mod material, and that sounds rather appealing.

Comet Lulin was a washout again. apparently this Friday will be another opportunity to see it, around midnight, near Saturn(?) but it'll probably be raining again anyway. Clearly Britain is well-placed to survive evil comet mutations and zombies, as our dismal weather will prevent the comet dust from reaching our sceptred isle, instead infecting foreigners (so we won't notice any difference, particularly if they're French) and thus ensuring that once it's all over, we will be the ones restoring civilisation, electricity, running water, being polite and civil etc, fried breakfasts and afternoon tea etc.

meanwhile FD can hide out in his survivalist shack in the Alabama mountains waiting for the zombies to lurch their way up to him, silly fellow, everyone knows that zombies only attack shopping malls and army bases.

The guy with the beard, only has a partial beard. Sorry, it's not me.

beards have a fascinating history and a formal hierarchy, as it turns out..

turns out that FD is the Grand Psychopomp of the Legions of the Hirsute, Knight-Commander of the Matted Furface Cavalry, and Captain-General of the Birdsnest Brigade. In the beard world he's a superstar, especially now that Pavarotti's passed away and Brian Blessed is up a mountain.

Quote from "MrEd"

The sequel to the Zero stone is Uncharted Stars -- and thats the one i was talking about

Oh and to play Frontier space you must have original disk or you have to install the no-cd addendum -- there are 4 other addendums to the main file -- and you have to place them in thier proper places -- when your ready i will walk you thru -- its not hard -- 2 min max -- mace is the original author -- and bejyamc ( i think i spealt that correctly ) is the one who fixed it up to 1.75

I have not played online -- didnt have the time or energy in past -- am contemplating doing so in near future though -- i reinstalled frontier cause i wanted to reaquaint myself with the mod -- i have a short story idea based on a certain sector

I have played alll the wing commander games and star lancer also played elite and Loved privateer I'm also a big fan of Moo and Civ and age of empires and age of Mythology

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I gotta tell you guys - I've played FL since '04 and lots mods too, but just started playin MP in November last. Ain't nuttin like it - I been told lots that it's an entirely different experience and it definitely is all that. Not sure I'll ever stop now

Find a mod you really like and a server that runs it, or - do like I did and choose one you never played in SP just to go in 'cold' and start from 0. Either way, you'll see things you've not before, find people to fly/ hunt/ fight with, and find people to argue/ fight with as well. It is a world unto itself and there is much that can be said for this fantastic form of escapism. Just my take, but why not give it a try! Later -
LW

I play Snap, Old Maid and Whist. That's about as racey as I get these days

I just can't get into the MP thing. You go online after everyone tells you play this it's great! and within seconds some 10yr old is blowing you apart repeatedly and won't leave you alone even if all you want to do is explore.* Where's the skill when you're in your tinpot starter ship with popguns and armour as thick as paper against some kid who's got all top kit who thinks it's funny to blow up new people, just because it adds to his score.

At least in SP you can stay neutral, not bother anyone, and generally get left alone to get on with mining or exploring or trading etc.

I don't like being online with kids either, being a miserable old s*d. If I want to interact with kids I'll talk to my own.

*that's what happened to me, over and over. Plagued by bl**dy kids! The whole point of FL is that it's a space fighting, trading, and exploring game, and some of us don't particularly like to fight, nor are we riddled with adolescent testosterone and energy drinks, twitching behind the keyboards of glory, desperate to *pwn* someone* to make up for the total inadequacy of teenage life.

Both you guys have valid points indeed regarding MP and exposure on the net in general. I have seen some instances such as Taw mentions, but for the most part that is not so much the case where I play. There are those who take things a bit too seriously without a doubt - and a few folks have been scared away because of that - but it is mostly like anything else, a mix of many factors.

As in RL, friendships as well as enmity can form, and I guess it may be a matter (sometimes anyway) of sheer circumstance. I'll draw a correlation to the Royal Caribbean cruise I just booked (can't believe I'm spending so much flippin' $) because one expects that it will be entirely enjoyable; but, how do I know there won't be two bloody hurricanes out there - right? I'm by no means trying to make a case that anyone should play online, but there are better environments in some places than in others.

In any case, enjoy whatever endeavors you might pursue my freinds, that is all that matters Later-
LW