Most games have some sort of paddling-pool-and-water-wings beginning to ease you in: Oolite takes the rather more Darwinian approach of heaving you straight into the ocean, often with a brick or two in your pockets for luck. ~ Disembodied
That's awful - but on the bright side, you got a chance to perhaps drop him a line. Unfortunately, an author who means a lot to me, John Seymour had passed away about a year before I read his book, Blueprint for a Green Planet, which, sadly, although over 20 years old, is just as poignant today as it was then. (The Forgotten Arts And Crafts is a really neat one as well - I just wish it were a little more in depth as apposed to an overview.)
Edit to fix non-working "wp" link (I suspect that the parentheses have something to do with why [wp=John_Seymour_(author)]John Seymour[/wp] isn't working properly.
"I'll laser the mark all while munching a fistful of popcorn." - Markgräf von Ededleen,Marquess, Brutal Great One, Assassins' Guild Exterminator
--------------------------- At the helm of the Caduceus Omega,'Murderous Morrígan'
I know both Iain and Adele (if not that well), though I haven't seen either in the last few years. It is very sad and Iain will be sorely missed. As Stephen Fry put it he is two of the nation's best authors, and as I will add, a really nice guy.
Chat and relax with other commanders in the [url=irc://irc.oftc.net/oolite]DS's Seedy Space Bar[/url]. The Coolest Bar in the Eight.
I have a friend who also knows him personally, and he says the same thing..
He's a lovely bloke & a brilliant writer, someone who is never backward about getting his round in at the bar (in fact it's hard work buying him a drink).
Most games have some sort of paddling-pool-and-water-wings beginning to ease you in: Oolite takes the rather more Darwinian approach of heaving you straight into the ocean, often with a brick or two in your pockets for luck. ~ Disembodied
Hi Maaarcooose: for the Culture novels, it's best to start at the beginning, I think, with Consider Phlebas. Orbit published a boxed set last year of the first three Culture novels (Consider Phlebas, The Player of Games and Use of Weapons) if you want to get a bargain. But - for all sorts of reasons - I'd recommend Consider Phlebas as the starting point.
For non-Culture stuff, Against a Dark Background is a good read, and less ... odd ... than Feersum Endjinn and more straightforward than The Algebraist. Not that the latter is "difficult" or anything - just chunky.
Despot is probably based on Civilization, which Iain got seriously addicted to (to the point where he had to de-install it from his computer to meet an already late deadline) and which is referenced to in other books too, e.g. the description of an "Outside Context Problem" from Excession:
The usual example given to illustrate an Outside Context Problem was imagining you were a tribe on a largish, fertile island; you'd tamed the land, invented the wheel or writing or whatever, the neighbours were cooperative or enslaved but at any rate peaceful and you were busy raising temples to yourself with all the excess productive capacity you had, you were in a position of near-absolute power and control which your hallowed ancestors could hardly have dreamed of and the whole situation was just running along nicely like a canoe on wet grass ... when suddenly this bristling lump of iron appears sailless and trailing steam in the bay and these guys carrying long funny-looking sticks come ashore and announce you've just been discovered, you're all subjects of the Emperor now, he's keen on presents called tax and these bright-eyed holy men would like a word with your priests.
Apparently, it was losing at Civilization which game him this idea ...
Hi Maaarcooose: for the Culture novels, it's best to start at the beginning, I think, with Consider Phlebas. Orbit published a boxed set last year of the first three Culture novels (Consider Phlebas, The Player of Games and Use of Weapons) if you want to get a bargain. But - for all sorts of reasons - I'd recommend Consider Phlebas as the starting point.
These 3 are my favourite Culture novels closely followed by the the latest and sadly last novel, The Hydrogen Sonata.
The State of the Art is also a good "light" Culture primer.
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