HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: chris@xerox.com (Chris Heiny 73186 - SETA)
Subject: Re: News update
Reply-To: chris@eso.mc.xerox.com
Organization: Xerox Corporation, Webster NY
Date: Mon, 9 Nov 1992 15:30:25 GMT

"it is very likely that I soon be able to announce a nice new US
deal which will...eventually mean the end of those delays so often complained
about there"

Hooray!  Hooray!  Will we go back to the 'true' covers, too, or still be stuck with the lurid D. K. Sweet things?

					Chris
From: D.M.Jones@newcastle.ac.uk (D.M. Jones)
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
Subject: Re: The Last Starfighter
Date: 13 Nov 92 11:17:52 GMT
Organization: Computing Laboratory, U of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK NE1 7RU.


In article <721406214.27609@minster.york.ac.uk>, car-a@minster.york.ac.uk writes:
>I don't know if anyone particularly remembers The Last Starfighter.  While the
>film itself WAS pretty crap, the graphics were absolutely spectacular - for 
>thier time.  All of the space-flight and combat sequences were computer graphics
>and I seem to remember them being astonishingly seamless.  I read somewhere that
>they actually constructed and animated all of the sequnces using a CAD program 
>and then fed it all into a ray-tracer/rendering system.  Apparently it took some
>super-fast computer (well fast in those days) over three weeks solid processing 
>to finish about 25 minutes of animation.  Just thought I'd bring that one up.
>
>The film wasn't entirely crap - 25 minutes of it was worth watching.  It wasn't 
>at all funny, though, so Terry can do nothing but improve on it.
> 
>Chris Reece.

	Having read about the making of this film in Computer and Video Games, I remember that the graphics were generated upon a CRAY supercomputer. Even though technology has improved quite a bit, this machine still stands up as one of the fastest machines in the world, retailing at well over 1 million pounds, give or take. In fact CRAY have got to the stage where to make the computer any faster they have to move the components closer together so that the digital signals don't have to travel as far and so can g


et to their destination in a shorter time

	Donald
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
From: tpratchett@cix.compulink.co.uk (Terry Pratchett)
Subject: UK signings                             
Cc: tpratchett@cix.compulink.co.uk
Reply-To: tpratchett@cix.compulink.co.uk
Date: Fri, 6 Nov 1992 19:41:00 +0000

Witches Abroad/Lords and Ladies signings:

A couple of extras to add to the main list posted last month:

November 18, 1-2pm: Heffers Paperback Shop, 31 St Andrews St, Cambridge.  [I
doubt this'll be a biggy, because I did one only a month or so ago on the
OYCSM tour -- but they heard I was giving a talk at the Cambridge Union
Society the night before and asked if they could set this up.]

December 4, 12.30-1.30 Volume 1, the Queensmere Shopping Centre, Slough.  I
don't know anything about this chain; this is a kind of test signing.

Terry
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
From: tpratchett@cix.compulink.co.uk (Terry Pratchett)
Subject: Re: Douglas vs Terry                    
Cc: tpratchett@cix.compulink.co.uk
Reply-To: tpratchett@cix.compulink.co.uk
Date: Fri, 6 Nov 1992 13:11:00 +0000

I don't think I've ever been critical of the money Douglas Adams makes,
especially since, as has been tactfully pointed out, I myself have had to
change banks having filled the first one up.  The only 'serious''negative'
comment I've made is that Long Dark Teatime showed signs of deadline-surfing.
Beyond that, it all boils down to what people like.  I don't think his sales
hurt mine, or vice-versa.

Terry
From: pmcauley@maths.tcd.ie (Paul Mc Auley)
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
Subject: Re: Good Omens (error?)
Date: 10 Nov 92 09:35:48 GMT
Organization: Maths R Us

In <BxGFIw.G7F@newcastle.ac.uk> Richard.Dalton@newcastle.ac.uk (Richard Dalton) writes:

|I've just been re-reading Good Omens again and i noticed that one of the
|scenes where Crowley is communing with Hell via his car radio has a 'Kylie
|Minogue' song playing in it ... 'I should be so lucky'.
|Now i am NOT a Kylie fan (not that there's anything wrong with them - he says
|covering himself from all sides), but the line goes something like this.

|'I should be so lucky, lucky lucky lucky lucky'

|Isn't there one too many 'lucky' in there? Is this deliberate? Is this a 
|mistake? Is there anyone likely to care? Am i going to get flamed for this?

Maybe it's just a sign of good taste to get it wrong.... :-)

Meanwhile, is it just me or does there seem to be a problem somewhere along
the line about names? In Good Omens at one point, there's a line that reads
something like:
  "Agnes rummaged amongst the cards..." (It should, I hope, be Anathema)
I'm afraid I haven't got my copy to hand at the moment, but she and Newt
were discussing prophecy..... It also crops up in at least one other place
in the DW books, but I can't remember where....
			Paul.

|Who knows?

|	Rich 'Z'


|===============================================================================
|         Computing Laboratory          | Email: Richard.Dalton@Newcastle.ac.uk
|   University of Newcastle Upon Tyne   | Email: usr10131@tso.uc.edu
|===============================================================================
-- 
__________________________.
Paul Mc Auley             |   God is real . . . . . .
--------------------------|
AKA pmcauley@maths.tcd.ie |        . . . . . . . . Unless Declared an Integer.
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
From: u855271@franklin.cc.utas.edu.au (Peter Didlick)
Subject: Re: Good Omens (error?)
Organization: University of Tasmania, Australia.
Date: Wed, 11 Nov 1992 18:14:09 GMT

Richard.Dalton@newcastle.ac.uk (Richard Dalton) writes:

>I've just been re-reading Good Omens again and i noticed that one of the
>scenes where Crowley is communing with Hell via his car radio has a 'Kylie
>Minogue' song playing in it ... 'I should be so lucky'.
>Now i am NOT a Kylie fan (not that there's anything wrong with them - he says
>covering himself from all sides), but the line goes something like this.

>'I should be so lucky, lucky lucky lucky lucky'

>Isn't there one too many 'lucky' in there? Is this deliberate? Is this a 
>mistake? Is there anyone likely to care? Am i going to get flamed for this?

>Who knows?

>	Rich 'Z'

Welll (notice to overuse of the 'l') Rich 'Z' (?).

The musical masterpiece to which you refer - Has only got 4 lucky's per
line.  What I really want to say is that it's 5:17 AM - I'm bored writing
my thesis - and Kylie is my hero.

I even had a digitised sample of the Lucky song on my doorbell.

As for whether the Omens quote is an accidental or deliberate error I just
dont know - Anyway anyone with a warped mind can surely find more examples
of this thru Pterrys books.

I know this hasn't helped but - what the hey - I enjoyed it.

Keep on whatever it is you're doin'.

Pete.

PS - I was joking about being a fan of Kylie.
PPS - I wasn't joking about the doorbell.
From: ginsu@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu (Wes Simonds)
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
Subject: deadline surfing
Date: 12 Nov 92 19:03:20 GMT
Organization: The University of Texas at Austin, Austin TX

Terry Pratchett writes:
>No, I've heard the term used about people who never overtake the deadline. In
>fact, popular mythology says he DOES rush to meet his deadline -- Mostly
>Harmless was apparently finished on a plane.  It's just not THE deadline.

No doubt he did it using one of the new PowerBook models.  Surely Apple would
be interested in Adams' definition of their technology: it's anything which
facilitates the process of procrastination.  With the PowerBooks Adams can
not write in more places than ever before.

-- also, I'm told that in the case of Mostly Harmless there was a huge fight
with the publishers over the title.  Adams won, but the publishers felt it 
would have been more honest to put a capital C in front of the second word.

Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
From: arc@leland.Stanford.EDU (Andrew Richard Conway)
Subject: Re: Casting
Organization: DSG, Stanford University, CA 94305, USA
Distribution: alt
Date: Sat, 7 Nov 92 22:15:34 GMT

In article <1992Nov5.085443.7562@netcom.com> xtifr@netcom.com (Chris Waters) writes:
>In <GNAT.92Nov5182854@kauri.kauri.vuw.ac.nz> Nathan.Torkington@vuw.ac.nz writes:

	[ discussion about movie stars --- are they good actors ]

>>I still stick by my opinion that the majority of the parts should be
>>cast to English actors, in order that the movie be funny (and not a
>>disastrous flop, a-la the majority of barfacious "humorous" movies
>
>Starring Dudley Moore?  :-P
>
>And I don't think that a country that vomitted forth _The Benny Hill_
>show has any right to brag about the general quality of the humor that
>they produce.  :-)

Beeny Hill is inexcusable. However, ALL similar US shows are
inexcusable, whereas England has some good short shows to their
cridit : Eg. Hitch Hikers, Yes Minister, Black Adder. I can't 
think of any passable US sitcoms.  Disclaimer: This is entirely
my own opinion. If you disagree, I think that you are mad. this is
also entirely my own opinion.

>Let us remember Sturgeon's Law:  90% of everything, roughly speaking, is
>crap.  In the movie and television worlds, I think the percentage may be
>closer to 99%.  I think that it would be amazing, and a pure fluke, if a
>decent Discworld movie were made in any country, with actors and
>actresses of any nationality.  The only reason that I'd even support the
>making of such a movie is the fact that it would give Terry lots of
>money, so he could have more leisure to write his books the way he
>wants, rather than writing under pressure to pay bills.  I'm not sure
>that I'd actually want to _see_ what a horror a movie company would make
>of these fine books.

I can't immagine TPs books making good films. But they might...in 
which case it would be wonderful. I couldn't immagine a good story
being written on a flat world on an astrocheian before reading TP.
Just make sure that the director is English.

By the way: I am NOT English. (I am Australian).

Actually, an Aussie director should be OK too...
From: ssupears@csug.cs.reading.ac.uk (Robert Pearse)
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
Subject: Colour of Magic Graphic Novel!
Date: 12 Nov 92 10:57:16 GMT
Reply-To: ssupears@csug.cs.reading.ac.uk
Organization: Dept. of Comp. Sci., University of Reading

Popped into my local book shop, got a copy of Witches Abroad which is now out in
paperback, and found that someone has done The Colour of Money in Graphic novel format! Had a quick flick through it and it was.... interesting. Strange to see how
the artist has seen what various characters look like (The artist isn't Josh Kirby by
the way)

Cheers m'dears

  Rob
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
From: mcrosby@nyx.cs.du.edu (Matthew Crosby)
Subject: Re: the new kid
X-Disclaimer: Nyx is a public access Unix system run by the University
	of Denver for the Denver community.  The University has neither
	control over nor responsibility for the opinions of users.
Organization: Nyx, Public Access Unix at U. of Denver Math/CS dept.
Distribution: alt
Date: Sun, 8 Nov 92 11:38:13 GMT

In article <1992Nov7.4693.2902@dosgate> "steve degroof" <steve.degroof@canrem.com> writes:
>Hello:
>                              ***
>Re: Movie casting
>Jeffrey Jones as the Patrician - Wonderful! Anyone who disagrees should
>dig up a copy of Ferris Bueller's Day Off. (He played the principal)
>
>James Earl Jones as the voice of Death - I like it!
>
>Tom Hanks as Rincewind - I always pictured Rincewind as being
>considerably older.
I think (and hope) that this was a joke.

>
>
>How about: Tony Robinson as CMOT Dibbler? Arnold Swartzenegger (or
>something like that) as Detritus? Stephen Fry as Ridcully? David Bowie
>as Crowley?
>
>However...
>I've always imagined a Discworld movie as a Terry Gilliam / Jim Henson's
Well, I don't know about Terry Gilliam.  He would be good, but the movie would
have a somewhat, shall we say, downbeat tone?  (IMHO:  If someone can point
me to a Terry Gilliam move that *doesn't* have a donwbeat tone, then I will
consider myself flamed!)

>
>Or...
>How about an animated film? The problem with this is finding an
>appropriate animation house. Disney is out; too cutesy. Spielberg might
>do; maybe a bit too Hollywood. Nelvana has possibilities. Any
>suggestions?
Well, I don't know.  I suppose it has possibilities...
>Yep, that's Hollywood for ya. Better stick to Australian, European
>and/or
>Canadian film companies. (We really do make movies in Canada. Honest!)
Australian?  You mean there is actually an Australian film industry left?
(I would have thought that Oz's current economic woes would have wiped what
was left of it totally)


You know, I was thinking today.  How about:
Sybil Fawlty as Granny Weatherwax?  (don't forget that Granny isn't a hag!)
Who played her, anyway? 

Though it is my opinion that I really don't think there should be ANY film of
the discworld made.  It would ruin my own images.
IMHO, the biggest crime that Disney ever commited was making a film of the
Lord of The Rings.  I have never seen it, but I have seen enough to know that
it is a Totally Evil Creation.  I can imagine that the DiscFilm would turn
out similar!
--
-Matt
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the net!
mcrosby@nyx.cs.du.edu  -or-  crosby@cs.colorado.edu
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
From: leo@ph.tn.tudelft.nl (Leo Breebaart)
Subject: APF - Editorial Comments (Formal)
Reply-To: leo@ph.tn.tudelft.nl
Organization: Delft University of Technology
Date: Thu, 5 Nov 1992 21:28:00 GMT

I have just posted the Annotated Pratchett File v4.0 to this
newsgroup, in two parts.

- I was forced to split the APF into two parts -- it was already so
  large that the news software refused to accept it in one chunk.

  I had to do this at the last minute, and had no time to do it
  properly -- I just divided it into a large Discworld part and
  a smaller non-Discworld part.

  I would like to start a discussion as to what format the readers
  of this group would like me to use for future versions of the APF.

  Keep in mind that I want to cause a minimal amount of hassle for
  both the reader (who now has to make sure she has a complete set of
  files) and for myself (having everything in one big file allowed
  fast editing, sigh). I am looking for the least bothersome solution.
  Any suggestions from my 'readers' are more than welcome. PLease also
  give me your input on layout and formatting issues of the APF.  Do
  you like it as it is now? What would you change if you were editor?

- As of now, I am also slowing down the release-date of the APF to
  once a month instead of every three weeks. This is partly because I
  don't want to inflict too much data on this group too often, partly
  because I need a bit more time for editing purposes.

- From now on I will also be posting two other APF-related articles to
  the group each time. One is a list if rejected annotations, for you
  to mull over and/or object to, the other a list of open questions or
  things I'm not 100 % sure of that I need your help on (most of these
  are also spread throughout the APF itself, but I expect better
  feedback if I post them separate as well).

  I will post these articles in a week or so, after the first wave of
  comments on the APF has had time to run its course.

Thanks for listening,

-- 
Leo Breebaart  (leo @ ph.tn.tudelft.nl)
From: ginsu@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu (Wes Simonds)
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
Subject: Re: Douglas vs Terry
Date: 5 Nov 92 07:39:36 GMT
Organization: The University of Texas at Austin, Austin TX

>Hah!  I can recite the first 9 chapters of the HHG word perfect!  (A friend
>tested me once!)
 
>"Far out, in the uncharted regions in the unfashionable end of the western
>spiral arm of the galaxy there lies a small, unregarded little yellow sun.."
>(I won't say any more due to copyright lores ;-)
 
Ah, but laddie, you misquote the VERY FIRST LINE.  It's "backwaters of" and
not "regions in."  One must be careful when one cries one's own omniscience.
 
Wes
From: winalski@adserv.enet.dec.com (Paul S. Winalski)
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
Subject: Re: The Spell
Date: 8 Nov 92 02:16:46 GMT
Reply-To: winalski@adserv.enet.dec.com (Paul S. Winalski)
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation, Nashua NH


In article <1dgijiINNf0@violet.csv.warwick.ac.uk>,
maupb@csv.warwick.ac.uk (Mr J L Saunders) writes:
|>
|>I've only read TCOM and S so far, and I have two queries:
|>
|>1) Do we ever get to know what "The Spell" is?
|>
|>2) How does Rincewind get back into the UU B4 S? as in TCOM he's been
|>thrown out!

Read THE LIGHT FANTASTIC, which is the immediate sequel to THE COLOUR OF MAGIC.
The events in SOURCERY take place after the events in TLF.  TLF answers both
your questions.

--PSW
From: s_wilkin@csd.uwe.ac.uk (Simon)
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
Subject: Re: More questions
Date: 5 Nov 92 13:26:14 GMT
Organization: Tree of Woe, Bristol
X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL5

Aha! Thats how you post a followup article...

I digress though...

Are you saying that if more women walked about toting scythes our perception
of Death as a scythe-toter would shift more towards the feminine?

Interesting point of view.

Does this mean that if The great Mr. P had portrayed Death as 7 foot tall in a 
dress we'd almost definitely perceived it as female?

yes, damn. Unless Death had some _serious_ personality problems.

Clutching at Straws...

Simon(never had any trouble with being excessively tall)
From: jere@uta.fi (Jere K{pyaho)
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
Subject: Re: Actors for DW Film (was Re: new topic)
Date: 8 Nov 92 21:29:49 GMT
Organization: University of Tampere, Finland

In article <2148@eagle.ukc.ac.uk> spt1@ukc.ac.uk (Stephen Thomas) writes:
>In article <ano.721043083@reading> ano@csug.cs.reading.ac.uk (Adrian Ogden) writes:
>>nickles@sage.cc.purdue.edu (john a nickles) writes:
>>> The Patrician: Patrick Stewart
>>
>>Hmmm, Jean-Luc Vetinari... has anyone seen him in anything other
>>than ST:TNG?
>
>Yes - he was Gurney Halleck in David Lynch's _Dune_,
>and he was also Sejanus in the BBC's dramatisation of _I, Claudius_.

He also played the director of a criminal institution
in Tobe Hooper's _Life Force_. I, however, pictured the
Patrician to be more skinny, with dark hair and thick
eyebrows. Sly, with a sharp look in his eyes.
I can't remember if any of the DW books contains an
accurate description of him.

Jere
-- 
---= Jere K{pyaho (jere@kielo.uta.fi) =--= U. of Tampere, Finland =---
---= 'I have nothing to say, and I am saying it.'  John Cage      =---
From: alien@acheron.amigans.gen.nz (Ross Smith)
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
Subject: Re:  Casting Pratchett movies (was Re: new topic)
Date: 5 Nov 92 22:41:47 GMT+12
Distribution: world
Organization: Wanganui Amigans, Wanganui, NZ

How about Nicholas Lyndhurst (Rodney in "Only Fools and Horses") as Mort?


--
...... Ross Smith (Wanganui, NZ) ...... alien@acheron.amigans.gen.nz ......
                  "Sir, trust me. My whole case hinges on
               proving you're a dork." (Kryten, "Red Dwarf")

Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
From: johnf@apollo.hp.com (John Francis)
Subject: Re: The Annotated Pratchett File, v4.0, part 1 of 2
Date: Fri, 6 Nov 1992 16:30:58 GMT
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Corporation, Chelmsford, MA

>
>THE COLOUR OF MAGIC
>
>- [p.171] 'Zweiblumen' is the literal German translation of 'Twoflower'.
>  'Rjinswand', however, is merely something that was intended to *sound*
>  Scandinavian -- it is not a word in any language known to the readers of
>  alt.fan.pratchett.

Could we have "intended to sound Scandinavian (or Dutch - opinions differ)"?

The last time I brought this up there seemed to be more people who felt
that 'Rjinswand' was meant to sound Dutch than felt it was meant to sound
Scandinavian. Oddly enough the most emphatically-held views were held by
Dutch and Scandinavian posters, some of who were convinced that nobody
could possibly think that 'Rjinswand' sounded in the least bit Dutch*

Has Terry pronounced on this, or is this still just an intelligent guess?


* Or Scandinavian.

-- 
John Francis                                 johnf@apollo.hp.com
with 9 cats to feed, I don't have time to think up a clever .sig
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
From: ggoodman@theraj.enet.dec.com (Graham Goodman)
Subject: Re: Good Omens (error?)
Organization: Digital Equipment Scotland Ltd. Sth.Queensferry
Date: Tue, 10 Nov 1992 00:30:17 GMT


Richard Dalton writes...
>I've just been re-reading Good Omens again and i noticed that one of the
>scenes where Crowley is communing with Hell via his car radio has a 'Kylie
>Minogue' song playing in it ... 'I should be so lucky'.
>Now i am NOT a Kylie fan (not that there's anything wrong with them - he says
>covering himself from all sides), but the line goes something like this.
> 
>'I should be so lucky, lucky lucky lucky lucky'
> 
>Isn't there one too many 'lucky' in there? Is this deliberate? Is this a 
>mistake? Is there anyone likely to care? Am i going to get flamed for this?
> 

Hmmm, the phrase 'Nothing better to do with your time' comes to mind...  But
then, you were expecting that, weren't you...  :*)

But, yes, there were only 4 Luckys in the song not 5, but then again, I'd be
surprised if Miss Minogue can count that far anyway...  See, he should've
stuck to the Queen songs. Nobody can ever remember how many Bismilahs there
were...

Graham.
********************************************************************************
*DISCLAIMER - These are not necessarily the views held by Mr.Graham Goodman.   *
*	      He's probably just talking through a hole in his head again...   *
*                                                                              *
*  Graham Goodman :-  ggoodman@theraj.enet.dec.com                             *
*                     Digital Equipment Scotland Ltd - Sth.Queensferry         *
*		      Tel 044 31 331 8436                                      *
********************************************************************************
Newsgroups: alt.fan.pratchett
From: mcrosby@nyx.cs.du.edu (Matthew Crosby)
Subject: Re: Douglas vs Terry
X-Disclaimer: Nyx is a public access Unix system run by the University
	of Denver for the Denver community.  The University has neither
	control over nor responsibility for the opinions of users.
Organization: Nyx, Public Access Unix at U. of Denver Math/CS dept.
Date: Thu, 5 Nov 92 20:02:48 GMT

In article <1992Nov5.104424.1@vax1.tcd.ie> eaobrien@vax1.tcd.ie writes:
>In article <1992Nov3.224027.29400@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu>, mcrosby@nyx.cs.du.edu (Matthew Crosby) writes:
>> In article <roddi.720758602@bruce.cs.monash.edu.au> roddi@cs.monash.edu.au (Roddi Walker) writes:
>>>lindap@bruce.cs.monash.edu.au (Linda Penington) writes:
>>>
>>>> 
>>>> > IBRUNTON@ESTEC.BITNET () writes:
>>>> > :   Will someone out there nail their colours to the mast and admit to liking
>>>> > : Craig Shaw Gardiner, or preferring Douglas Adams. What about 'Bored of the
>>>> > : Rings'?.
>
>  Craig Shaw Gardner ! The man makes me long for the cool clear lucid prose
>  of L.Ron Hubbard ;->
From before or after his death? ;-)

>  As and for 'Bored of the Rings', well .. just takes your breakfast away.
Hmm.  I didn't think it was THAT bad...it was amusing the first time I read
it  (of corse, I can see where many people would be offended by the pokes at
The Great One)

>>>>Terry pokes fun at so many bits of life/language/humanity that we
>>>>usually take for granted, and once you've stopped laughing... well...
>>>>ok... while you're taking a break from laughing to gasp for air, it
>>>>actually does set all sorts of subversive and serious chains of thought
>>>>in motion, when you least expect it.
>  
>   I agree. The other reason why I prefer Terry to Douglas is that Terry's
>   universe is basically a happy place. OK, so some of the funniest passages
>   rely on confusion and misunderstandings, but the DW books do have a very
>   cheerful tone. Even the villains are all either misguided (Coin) or not
>   quite sane (Felmet), with the possible exception of Vorbis.(I haven't
>   read Lords & Ladies yet..)
How about The Mall Lifeform?  That is pretty evil!  Or the Dutchess.


--
-Matt
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the net!
mcrosby@nyx.cs.du.edu  -or-  crosby@cs.colorado.edu