HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com (Leonard Erickson)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers,news.admin.misc
Subject: Re: Famous flame wars, examples please?
Date: 14 Dec 92 05:37:49 GMT
Article-I.D.: qiclab.1992Dec14.053749.11180
Reply-To: Leonard.Erickson@f51.n105.z1.fidonet.org
Organization: SCN Research/Qic Laboratories of Tigard, Oregon.

norlin@midway.ecn.uoknor.edu (Norman Lin) writes:

>>>d40937@aiken (Jean Yves Desbiens) writes:
>>>>I would like to know if there has been in the past some
>>>>celebrated flame wars in the past? 

>On sci.skeptic, there was a 'David Tiberio' who claimed to have
>invented a perpetual motion machine.  Naturally, the audience
>of sci.skeptic being what it is, this resulted in months and
>months of flamage.  In fact, there was so much traffic on that
>single topic that I unsubscribed to the group and haven't been
>there since.  (For all I know they could STILL be discussing it.)

Any other "old-timers" remember the infamous MES? 

Mark Ethan Smith was a *very* strange person who insisted on being
referred to as "he", "him", etc in spite of the fact that MES was
a female! "He" claimed that the legal name change "he" had gone
through had also involved somehow making it "discrimination" to
use the female pronouns in referring to "him".

One of the earliest examples of a person posting massively to inappropriate
groups and then threatening lawsuits right and left...


-- 
Leonard Erickson		      leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com
CIS: [70465,203]			 70465.203@compuserve.com
FIDO:   1:105/51	 Leonard.Erickson@f51.n105.z1.fidonet.org
(The CIS & Fido addresses are preferred)
Xref: sparky alt.folklore.computers:18101 alt.folklore.science:4408
From: shag@aero.org (Robert M. Unverzagt)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers,alt.folklore.science
Subject: Re: mean failure time vs power-to-weight ratio (was: Re: Sig file)
Date: 18 Dec 1992 22:27:22 GMT
Organization: Organization?  You must be kidding.
NNTP-Posting-Host: aerospace.aero.org

In article <1grnvaINN5i7@cat.cis.Brown.EDU> ST201026@brownvm.brown.edu (nathan marsh) writes:
> In article <1gqv3tINN6so@news.aero.org>, shag@aero.org (Robert M. Unverzagt)
> said:
> >He plotted power-to-weight ratio vs. mean time to failure for
> >all sorts of things -- alarm clocks, cars, gas turbines,
> >Saturn V's, etc. on log-log paper.  You guessed it -- it's a
> >line.
> 
> So which way does the line go?
> 
> (When you increase power-to-weight ratio, what happens to the mean failure
> time, does it increase or decrease?)
> 
> I'd assume that a higher power-to-weight ratio indicates a lower mean failure
> time, because the power beign generated applies stress to smaller/lighter
> parts...thus inducing failure at some earlier time.
>

Right -- higher power-to-weight decreases mean time to failure.  For
a "typical" launch vehicle it was something like 4 hours between
failures.  You can't do too much about it for rockets -- decrease the
power and you don't get enough "oomph" (note the technical jargon),
increase the weight and you're in the same boat.  Moral -- expect to
lose a Space Shuttle now and then.

For his alarm clock, he's had the thing for 30 years and
it's still running.

Shag

-- 
       Rob Unverzagt        |
  shag@aerospace.aero.org   |   The will to a system is a lack of integrity.
unverzagt@courier2.aero.org |                        - Friedrich Nietzsche 
   18348@rhodes.aero.org    |
Xref: sparky alt.folklore.computers:18129 alt.folklore.science:4418
From: shag@aero.org (Robert M. Unverzagt)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers,alt.folklore.science
Subject: Re: mean failure time vs power-to-weight ratio (was: Re: Sig file)
Date: 19 Dec 1992 19:23:56 GMT
Organization: Organization?  You must be kidding.
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: aerospace.aero.org

In article <1gv8pkINNlv7@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
> In article <1gtj8aINN1s5@news.aero.org>, shag@aero.org (Robert M. Unverzagt) writes:
> >Right -- higher power-to-weight decreases mean time to failure.  For
> >a "typical" launch vehicle it was something like 4 hours between
> >failures.
> 
> Hmmm.  How many launch vehicles are run for four hours?  How do they manage to
> carry enough fuel to run that long?

Twenty-five launch vehicles running for about 10 minutes apiece
makes about 4 hours.  Since LVs are something like 96% reliable,
you lose 1 out of 25.

Shag

-- 
       Rob Unverzagt        |
  shag@aerospace.aero.org   |   The will to a system is a lack of integrity.
unverzagt@courier2.aero.org |                        - Friedrich Nietzsche 
   18348@rhodes.aero.org    |
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers,alt.religion.kibology,alt.folklore.urban
From: lasner@watsun.cc.columbia.edu (Charles Lasner)
Subject: Re: Proper pronounciation of 'Kibo'
Reply-To: lasner@watsun.cc.columbia.edu (Charles Lasner)
Organization: Columbia University
Date: Tue, 15 Dec 1992 03:10:26 GMT

In article <27961@dog.ee.lbl.gov> TWChan@lbl.gov (Terry Chan) writes:
>std_fleming@hg.uleth.ca writes:
>
>  +Kibo, what do you do on the net?  Also, what do you do in the real world?
>
>What's the difference?

No one ever asks you to get a net.

cj "non-bo" l

Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: kwp@wag.caltech.edu (Kevin W. Plaxco)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers,alt.junk,alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Re: Proper pronounciation of 'Kibo'
Date: 16 Dec 1992 20:31:42 GMT
Organization: California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA
NNTP-Posting-Host: sgi1.wag.caltech.edu
Summary: I'M REALLY SORRY
Keywords: Tkibosk

In article <Bz2wAA.9Kx@world.std.com> kibo@world.std.com (James "Kibo" Parry) writes:
>In article <1992Dec10.212922.14416@nezsdc.icl.co.nz> derek@nezsdc.icl.co.nz (Derek Tearne) writes:

>>A good test would be to post using the phrase "Eskibo's count 1,2 many" 
>>in the a group like 

>>soc.culture.really.obscure.ex-soviet.independant.state.d
              ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^          
>But I'd just ignore that, the way I do when the grep script finds many
>"skiboots for sale", "Skibo hall", "kibosh", "Tkibosk", "kibou to
                                               ^^^^^^^^

I admit it, I am ashamed, but I admit it.  While posting a note to
soc.culture.soviet requesting information for a trip I am planning 
on taking to a really.obscure.ex-soviet.independant.state, (Kirgh-
izstan) I slipped this made up place name into it just in a fit of 
piqueishness. I guess I just wanted some attention.  No such place 
exists.   I apologize for any inconvenience my thoughtless actions 
may have caused.

                                                                 
-Kevin "is right justification of his post penance enough?" Plaxco
From: daniel@mertwig.uucp (Daniel Drucker)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: PI
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 92 16:11:28 EST
Reply-To: daniel%mertwig@uunet.uu.net  (Daniel Drucker)
Organization: Abnormalities of Reality

Szymon Rusinkiewicz <smr2@cornell.edu> writes:

> Daniel Drucker (daniel@mertwig.uucp) writes:
> >A while back people were asking for the 50000 digits of pi; if anyone is 
> >still looking for it, please mail me with a subject of "send pi".
> 
> >If I get more than 15 requests in the first day, I will post it.

I did get 97 requests already, but no, I won't post it, don't worry!


> For THE 50000 digits of pi? Since when is pi finite?   :-)

I know, but 50000 is (I think) the canonical number of places of pi to
have hanging on the wall.


> BTW, you can get the first few million digits of pi by anon FTP from
> wuarchive.wustl.edu in /doc/misc/pi/pi.dat.Z

Thanks!



--
Daniel Drucker        N2SXX       Coconut seashells whispering to me
daniel%mertwig@uunet.uu.net         "Forever, forever, my Coda..."
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: peter@NeoSoft.com (Peter da Silva)
Subject: Re: What is so greate about the PDP 10?
Organization: NeoSoft Communications Services -- (713) 684-5900
Date: Sun, 20 Dec 1992 00:39:14 GMT

In article <1992Dec18.103218.21635@spectrum.xerox.com> hdavies@rx.xerox.com writes:
> If Dave Cutler's leading the development team, it can't be *all* bad.

This in a thread on the PDP-10? I'll let all the real DECheads (if it
doesn't have 36 bits you aren't playing with a full DEC) explain that
one.
-- 
Peter da Silva.  <peter@sugar.neosoft.com>.
 `-_-'   Oletko halannut suttasi tnn?
  'U`    
Tarjoilija, tm ateria el viel.
From: kiki@bass.bu.edu (Keith Baccki)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: PI
Date: 17 Dec 92 15:49:27 GMT
Reply-To: kiki@bass.bu.edu (Keith Baccki)
Followup-To: alt.folklore.computers
Organization: Boston University

In article <1992Dec15.134732.3739@piccolo.cit.cornell.edu> smr2@cornell.edu (Szymon Rusinkiewicz) writes:
>Daniel Drucker (daniel@mertwig.uucp) writes:
>>A while back people were asking for the 50000 digits of pi; if anyone is 
>>still looking for it, please mail me with a subject of "send pi".
>
>>If I get more than 15 requests in the first day, I will post it.
>
>For THE 50000 digits of pi? Since when is pi finite?   :-)
>


	Oh, around the time they invented computers...

			
				keith
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: peter@NeoSoft.com (Peter da Silva)
Subject: Re: Apple IIGS being discontinued Dec 1992
Organization: NeoSoft Communications Services -- (713) 684-5900
Date: Tue, 15 Dec 1992 12:06:05 GMT

In article <1992Dec14.190338.15293@gallant.apple.com> cheryl@gallant.apple.com (Cheryl Lins) writes:
> is a Unix implementation running on the PowerPC chip. The PowerPC based
> Macintoshes will not be based on Unix. There is 68020 emulation at the
> bottom.

...and then I very carefully boggled my mind.
-- 
Peter da Silva.  <peter@sugar.neosoft.com>.
 `-_-'   Oletko halannut suttasi tnn?
  'U`    
Tarjoilija, tm ateria el viel.
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: oh3mqu@ee.tut.fi (Saastamoinen Ari)
Subject: oops.
Keywords: grr
Organization: Tampere University of Technology
Date: Mon, 14 Dec 92 23:19:22 GMT


 Regarding my last article, the frigging xrn's editor somehow let
me pass the 80 char width.... sorry if i caused any inconvenience.




Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: peter@NeoSoft.com (Peter da Silva)
Subject: Re: octal to decimal converter?
Organization: NeoSoft Communications Services -- (713) 684-5900
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 1992 12:05:52 GMT

In article <1992Dec16.064335.16072@news.columbia.edu> lasner@watsun.cc.columbia.edu (Charles Lasner) writes:
> I don't understand your whining about late '70's use of a 4K PDP-8
> since by then virtually every one of them was running OS/8 which requires
> 8K with good enough peripherals,

Well, it WAS over 12 years ago but the system I was using didn't appear to
HAVE an OS. It ran Basic loaded off paper tape, for some physics grads who
didn't want to soil their hands with actual programming so they got high
school students like me to do it for free.
-- 
Peter da Silva.  <peter@sugar.neosoft.com>.
 `-_-'   Oletko halannut suttasi tnn?
  'U`    
Tarjoilija, tm ateria el viel.
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: peter@NeoSoft.com (Peter da Silva)
Subject: Re: What is so greate about the PDP 10?
Organization: NeoSoft Communications Services -- (713) 684-5900
Date: Sun, 20 Dec 1992 00:45:42 GMT

In article <1992Dec18.111917.27380@news.columbia.edu> lasner@watsun.cc.columbia.edu (Charles Lasner) writes:
> Successful companies make *many* products, and divisions don't backstab each
> other.

You mean, like the way IBM kept crippling their PCs to maintain an artificial
market for the Series 3?
-- 
Peter da Silva.  <peter@sugar.neosoft.com>.
 `-_-'   Oletko halannut suttasi tnn?
  'U`    
Tarjoilija, tm ateria el viel.
From: gorokho1@husc10.harvard.edu (Zhenya Gorokhovsky)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: PI
Date: 16 Dec 92 16:35:45 GMT
Organization: Physicists for Poetry
In-reply-to: wolff@liberator.et.tudelft.nl's message of Wed, 16 Dec 1992 08:10:04 GMT

wolff@liberator.et.tudelft.nl (Rogier Wolff) writes:

> Szymon Rusinkiewicz <smr2@cornell.edu> writes:

>>For THE 50000 digits of pi? Since when is pi finite?  :-)

> Since about the beginning of time. (There is some disagreement about
> the first 1e-30 seconds of the universe). Many cultures before us
> knew already that pi was somewhere between 3 and 4.  :-)
Well, it is well-known today that pi==3 for large values of 3 and small values
of pi.
Zhenya
From: daniel@mertwig.uucp (Daniel Drucker)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: PIRATE BBS?
Date: Sat, 12 Dec 92 18:04:08 EST
Reply-To: daniel%mertwig@uunet.uu.net  (Daniel Drucker)
Organization: Abnormalities of Reality

6o25@sdf.lonestar.org (Stephen M. Jones) writes:

> ]<ALL M1 ]<1LLER ULTRA P1R8 B0ARD D00D5
> 1-800-BB5-P1R8

This looks remakably like the Software Publishers Association's tattle-tale
hotline.

I forget the exchange, but it is 1-800-xxx-PIR8.



--
Daniel Max P. Drucker   Amateur radio: N2SXX   xyzzy%mertwig@uunet.uu.net
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers,alt.folklore.urban,alt.religion.kibology
From: treincke@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu (Tim Reincke)
Subject: Re: Proper pronounciation of 'Kibo'
Keywords: Tkibosk
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 1992 14:58:22 GMT

What is a "pronounciation"?  Pronunciation is spelled just like it is
pronounced.  :)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Core memories and flip-chips .
From: mohan@tulip.cse.utoledo.edu (Mohan Pakkurti)
Date: 18 Dec 92 12:33:22 EST
Reply-To: mohan@tulip.es.utoledo.edu

Hi,

Is there anyone here who would have a few flip-chips from PDP-8s,
and any kind of core memories that you can give me ?

I want these for no particular reason, just want to see them and 
keep them.

Thanks.
:) mohan
-- 
===============================================================================
+ Mohanakrishna Pakkurti            + mohan@jupiter.cse.utoledo.edu           +
+ HOME: 2239 University Hills Blvd #204, Toledo OH 43606. Phone:(419)536-9073 +
===============================================================================
From: jones@pyrite.cs.uiowa.edu (Douglas W. Jones,201H MLH,3193350740,3193382879)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: Core memories and flip-chips .
Date: 18 Dec 92 18:50:20 GMT
Organization: University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA

From article <1992Dec18.123323.547@uoft02.utoledo.edu>,
by mohan@tulip.cse.utoledo.edu (Mohan Pakkurti):
> Hi,
> 
> Is there anyone here who would have a few flip-chips from PDP-8s,
> and any kind of core memories that you can give me ?

I have 3 PDP-8 machines, lots of flipchips, and 20K of core memory (total,
16K OMNIBUS variety, 4K vintage PDP-8 variety).  No, I won't give any of
it away!  I want to get all three machines to work.

On the other hand, if you have any flip chips or PDP-8 core to spare,
I'll gladly try to find a home for it!  What I can't use, I know others
who can.  The same applies to antiquated peripherals such as DECtape
drives, 8" floppy disk drives (RX01, RX01), and high speed papertape
reader/punch units.
					Doug Jones
					jones@cs.uiowa.edu
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: davei@wam.umd.edu (The One True Dave)
Subject: Re: Famous flame wars, examples please?
Organization: University of Maryland, College Park
Date: Wed, 16 Dec 1992 17:58:51 GMT

In article <1gm2u1INN2g5@darkstar.UCSC.EDU> aryeh@cash.ucsc.edu (Aryeh Friedman) writes:
>In article <1g5s9sINN97a@armory.centerline.com> jimf@centerline.com (Jim Frost) writes:
>>concluding that INed is preferred.  In the MKS case most of the users'
>>machines couldn't run a real version of emacs even if they tried, and
>>many of the machines aren't really fast enough anyway.
>
>That proves vi kicks emacs' butt.  The reasons being:
>
>	-- Who the hell wants a Cray just to edit their e-mail?
>
>	-- Vi has all the power who would ever want or need, in a editor at
>	least.  Anything that it doesn't do shouldn't be done by an editor.
>-- 
Well, if you look at it that way, ed has all the features you NEED in an
editor. (As a matter of fact, I still use ed. (Stop laughing!) Vi is a pain
to use for me, probably because I used to do my coding on an HP/3000 using
TDP. (I said stop laughing!)) 

When it comes down to it, the best text editor is the one you like.

If you want to see some fun flame wars, try reading alt.sex.bestiality.
They're all small, but there's always one going on.
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: souva@aibn58.mpifr-bonn.mpg.de (Ignatios Souvatzis)
Subject: Re: Old Disney Films, was Re: Apple II Games
Reply-To: isouvatzis@babsy.mpifr-bonn.mpg.de
Organization: Radioastronomisches Institut der Universitaet Bonn, Bonn, FRG
Date: Wed, 16 Dec 1992 20:49:31 GMT

In article <18021@mindlink.bc.ca> Charlie_Gibbs@mindlink.bc.ca
(Charlie Gibbs) writes:

   In article <ByJJ0s.MKH@geovision.gvc.com> pt@geovision.gvc.com
   (Paul Tomblin) writes:

   >* - Remember pinball?  It's what University students used to waste their
   >money on before they had video games.  (And even after - I never found a
   >video game I liked as much as a good Williams pinball machine.)

	Yes, nothing beats a good pinball machine.  You just can't
   nudge a video game the same way.  I too found Williams machines

Hm... you don't happen to know the pinball game program running on
TRS-80 Model 1, loaded from the cassette player? One of the best
realtime computer games I ever saw (maybe reached by Tetris for
MsDoesn't)... That was running in 16k  RAM and 64*16  char video screen (which
make 128*48 graphic dots)...

--
Paper mail: Ignatios Souvatzis, Radioastronomisches Institut der 
            Universitaet Bonn, Auf dem Huegel 71, D-5300 Bonn 1, FRG
Internet:   souva@babsy.mpifr-bonn.mpg.de ignatios@cs.uni-bonn.de
From: klaus@diku.dk (Klaus Ole Kristiansen)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: man - command
Date: 17 Dec 92 08:55:41 GMT
Organization: Department of Computer Science, U of Copenhagen

ig25@fg70.rz.uni-karlsruhe.de (Thomas Koenig) writes:

>Just wondering idly - has anybody in the known history of UNIX ever
>complained about the fact that the command to print out manual pages
>is called man(1) and not woman(1)?

There was a proposal some time ago to replace man with a more advanced
version called woman. At the same time, a replacement for cat named dog
was proposed. This new command was to be able to do a lot of stuff. It
would therefore have a very complicated syntax. This of course means
that "woman dog" would be a much used command, and it was proposed to
introduce a new standard alias "bitch".

Unfortunately, I don't remember who made this proposal, or in what group.

Klaus O K
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: dp@world.std.com (Jeff DelPapa)
Subject: Re: Apple ][e emulator (?)
Organization: The World Public Access UNIX, Brookline, MA
Date: Sun, 13 Dec 1992 23:47:09 GMT

In article <carlos.724246410@morgan> carlos@morgan.ucs.mun.ca (Miguel Borges) writes:
>daniel@mertwig.uucp (Daniel Drucker) writes:
>>c3q@vax5.cit.cornell.edu writes:
>>> A couple of us CS types were discussing the old ][e, and concluded that it
>>> would be a SMOP to write a ][e emulator (sort of an interpreter that took ][e
>>> object code and ran it on a virtual 6502, virtual graphics chips, etc). 
>
>There's one such emulator for MSDOS.  There's also one that emulates a
>Spectrum, and I think I've seen a ZX81 emulator around as well.  
>A C64 on is available, but it only works with Hercules graphics cards.
>
>Anyway, most of these are available from simtel mirrors, I believe, in
>the emulators directory.  

A former co-worker wrote a trash-80 emulator for the symbolics lisp
machine. I have no idea what happend to the code or the author
(Dinarte Morais).

<dp>


Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: cmcurtin@bluemoon.use.com (Matthew Curtin)
Subject: Re: Apple IIGS being discontinued Dec 1992
Organization: Blue Moon BBS ((614) 868-998[024])
Date: Sat, 12 Dec 92 12:32:03 EST

cheryl@gallant.apple.com (Cheryl Lins) writes:

> In article <gFqkVB6w165w@bluemoon.use.com> cmcurtin@bluemoon.use.com (Matthew
> >While I think that technically the Macs are, for the most part, neat 
> >machines, I don't think I'd ever get one for several reasons. a) they're 
> >closed boxes. The Apple II was the original open system, and everything 
> >that I've used and liked has been an "open system." 
> 
> Gee, Macs have had slots since, oh the Mac II in 1986. You can get a 'closed'
> Mac if you don't need expansion, but you have many other choices.

Gee, uh, there's more to an "open system" than just slots. You still can't 
buy all the pieces for a Macintosh and put it together yourself. Why do 
think that in order to clone a Mac, you need to have the ROMs from a real 
Macintosh? They just don't come much more proprietary than the Mac...

 __________________________________________________________________________
| C. Matthew Curtin             ! "But I am the enlightened one, they are  |
| P.O. Box 27081                ! but mere sheep, following each other in  |
| Columbus, OH 43227-0081       ! the name of compatibility." -B. Heineman |
| 614/365-3272 (voice mail)     !              Apple II Forever!           |
|_cmcurtin@bluemoon.use.com_____!_____________GNO_your_AppleIIGS!__________|
From: ivie@cc.usu.edu (CP/M lives!)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
Subject: Re: 8008 related to PDP-11? (was: What is so greate ...)
Date: 18 Dec 92 10:36:30 MDT
Organization: Utah State University

In article <17DEC199214463809@rover.uchicago.edu>, frank@rover.uchicago.edu (Frank - Hardware Hacker - Borger) writes:
> 
>  0000 0001 0001  0044 33 fid:     .word  1,1,0     ;file id of index file
> ..
> 56      68   3C  0006 60         movzwl	(r8),r6	   ;Get the size of the buffer
> 58   04 A8   D0  0009 61 	 movl	4(r8),r8   ;get address of buffer
> 
> 	Please note that source code is read from left to right, (and the
> 	moves go from the left operand to the right operand,) but the
> 	generated hex code is read from right to left. Also, line counter
> 	is decimal, but generated code is all hex.

The hex code from right to left is a feature, not a bug. With Z80 assemblers,
you have to keep mentally byte-swapping addresses; on the VAX, you just have
to remember to read code from right to left.
-- 

Roger Ivie                      "My God! That computer is full of Pentium!
ivie@cc.usu.edu                  It's a wonder that you haven't been turned
                                 into mutants!"
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers
From: bjackson@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (Ben Jackson)
Subject: Re: PI
Organization: Purdue University Computing Center
Date: Mon, 21 Dec 1992 01:31:33 GMT

In article <1992Dec20.022736.22191@noose.ecn.purdue.edu> gfritz@tesla.ecn.purdue.edu (Geoffrey M Fritz) writes:
> [...several estimations of pi...]
>So far, this last one is the winner.  Are there any *more* accurate than this?
>Better yet, any similar computations out there for "e"?

Well, obviously there ARE more accurate expansions--where do you think the
million plus digits on wuarchive came from? :-)

Hm, I know the Taylor series for e:

  oo
 ---  x^n
 \    ---  =  e^x
 /    n!
 ---
 n=0

It's times like these that make TeX look mighty appealing. :)

I read an article which made fun of people seeking large numbers of PI digits,
as a circle with the radius of earth's orbit can be approximated to within 2cm
with only 7(?) digits.  Can anyone cite an exact source?  (what? here in the
alt.folklore heirarchy?  heh)
--
"If your outgo exceeds your income, your upkeep will be your downfall."-Lewis
Ben Jackson, ben@ben.com, bjackson@mentor.cc.purdue.edu
Xref: sparky alt.folklore.computers:18041 alt.folklore.science:4390