vol. 17 no. 2 - March 2001
The U.S.S. Alaric is a North Carolina chapter of STARFLEET, the International Star Trek Fan Association. Starfleet and the Alaric recognize Paramount's sole ownership of all Star Trek copyrights. Annual individual member dues to the international club are $15.00 per year.
U.S.S. AlaricHow To Join: U.S.S. Alaric
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Carolina Communicator
Carolina Communicator (c) 2001 by USS Alaric. Promotional materials copyrighted by Paramount Pictures, Universal Studios, and other companies, and selected submissions copyrighted by individual contributors. NEWSLETTER EDITOR: Ian "Krell" Johnsson Next Issue Deadline: Submission Guidelines: Please follow these guidelines:
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The views expressed in the Carolina Communicator do not necessarily reflect those of the staff, or all of the members of the Alaric. |
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Alaric
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ELECTED OFFICERS:
President (Captain) - Richard Heim |
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FCapt. Richard Heim |
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Welcome to the 0103 issue of the Carolina Communicator! And, if this is the first time you've read this newsletter, welcome to the U.S.S. Alaric! I have several things to report on, but first I'd like to introduce our new Computer Operations Department chief, Robert Saucier! Robert has a background in computers and is brimming with enthusiasm for the position ... check out the work he has done on our new club backup web site (http://www.ussalaric.org/)! Our primary club web site (http://home.sprynet.com/~ian/alaric/alaric.htm) was temporarily down in January, but access has been restored. Speaking of the web page, you may have noticed that it has been in dire need of updating. Revising the web site is too big of a job for one person to handle, so back in November I asked our internet-connected Alaric members to review the pages and identify those parts that need to be changed. In the last 4 months, I received a response from only one of you (thanks Susan B!). Come on, folks, I need your help here! At the October meeting, the subject of changing the meeting place was brought up. It was decided that I would survey everyone and get your opinion on where we should meet. I sent the survey out in early November. After four months, I have received 8 responses. Based on the Alaric Constitution, members 12 years of age or older are able to vote. I received votes from Mark, Susan, Sarah, Dale, Joe, David, Shirley, and myself. The voting results are as follows:
Last issue was a pretty thin issue. You'll notice that we had submissions from only three people. I want to remind all of our department chiefs (check the Department Reports section to see who you are) that regular reports in this newsletter are a requirement for maintaining your department chief position. So please get those reports to Ian (ian@sprynet.com) on time! I'd like to remind everyone of the special club activities. These include collecting Campbells product labels in support of Eliada Children's Home, and aluminum can recycling as a club fund raiser. Our XO, Dale Anderson, is heading up our participation in the Vessel Readiness Certification Program. I call upon the Alaric crew to please support these acitivities. Please note that April's meeting is going to be on the third Saturday of the month, instead of our regular second Saturday schedule, due to the library being closed that Easter weekend. I was out of town during our January meeting. I'd like to thank XO Dale Anderson for doing an excellent job leading the meeting and providing the meeting report! Seven people attended the 0101.13 meeting. Each person presented announcements and news to the membership. The most notable was the experiences and collectibles that Sheila shared from the recent convention that she attended. This was an especially fun meeting, as the members played Star Trek Monopoly and watched a STNG episode ('Q Who'). Attendance was light at our 0102.10 meeting. We had officer reports and our regular doorprize drawings. Our fun activity this month was watching the movie, Bicentennial Man. That's all for this report. Live Long, and Prosper! FCapt. Richard Heim Click Here to Return to Table of Contents
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Alaric Department Reports |
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DEPARTMENT HEADS:
Chief Science Officer - Richard Heim |
| Chief Science Officer | FCapt. Richard Heim |
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In January, I flew out to Albuquerque, New Mexico, for a work-related trip to the annual meeting of the American Meteorological Society. I gave talks on the Climate Reference Network and Trends in Climate Change Indicators 1950-1991, which are two projects I've been working on. I also chaired a couple sessions of the Global Change and Climate Variations Symposium. While in Albuquerque, I picked up a several brochures on local science-related places. Unfortunately, my schedule did not allow me to visit any of them. In this issue of the Carolina Communicator, I'd like to briefly discuss four of them. The Lodestar Astronomy Center is located at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, 1801 Mountain Road NW, Albuquerque, NM 87104 (phone 505-841-5955). Their brochure says you can "traverse time and space" via their planetarium, astronomy exhibits, real-life observatory (with a 16 inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope), SimEx Virtual Voyages (which "uses seats that dramatically move in six directions and has a large screen projector to create engrossing simulated experiences that take visitors on science missions ripe with learning opportunities"), and Starworks astronomy store. Visit their web page at http://lodestar.phys.unm.edu/new/home/default.htm. The National Atomic Museum, located on Kirtland Air Force Base just south of Albuquerque (phone 505-284-3243), is "the Nation's unique educational resource, heralding the history of the atomic age." Their web page (http://www.atomicmuseum.com/) describes the National Atomic Museum as "the nation's only congressionally-chartered museum of nuclear science and history. Through artifacts and audio-visual presentations the museum tells the story of the nuclear age and the ongoing developments in nuclear science." The Petroglyph National Monument is located in northwest Albuquerque and is a natural gallery of some 15,000 images made by early inhabitants of the Rio Grande (petroglyphs = images carved in rock). These images include some recognizable as animals, people, or crucifixes, while others are more mysterious. For more information, contact: Petroglyph National Monument, 6001 Unser Blvd. NW, Albuquerque, NM 87120; 505-899-0205; or visit http://www.nps.gov/petr/ on the internet. The International UFO Museum and Research Center is included here for people interested in Fortean Research Science. According to their brochure, the IUFOMRC "has become the world-wide center for UFO information" and provides information "about the 1947 Roswell Incident, UFO's, and any subjects relating to UFO's, and the phenomenon related to UFO's." For more information, write to them at 114 N. Main, Roswell, NM 88201 or call (505-625-9495) or fax (505-625-1907) or visit them at http://www.iufomrc.com/ on the internet. http://alaricrh.home.sprynet.com/science/AlaricSci.htm
FCapt. Richard Heim RDC REGION ONE SCIENCES NEWS Because I haven't received any applicants for the newsletter editor position, the Region One Sciences newsletter webzine has gone on hiatus. I simply do not have time to put out the newsletter, as I did in the past, and I need help! This year marks the second year of the new Region One Sciences Division Awards Program. The awards program is described in detail at our website: http://alaricrh.home.sprynet.com/science/R1Science.htm. I'll be going over some of the details below. What we need from Region One and Starfleet is participation in the nomination process. Nominations for the Hawking and Galileo awards must come from Starfleet members (Hawking Award) and R/1 Chief Science Officers (Galileo Award). So, WE NEED YOUR HELP!! Specifically, your nominations. When nominating, consider what the people you're nominating have done in support of science, either on the science-related starfleet listservers, in the R/1 Sciences newsletter, or on their ships, or in real life, etc. When nominating, please include a sentence or two explaining why you are nominating the person. This year, the RDC (myself) and ARDC (last year, that was David Klingman, but David resigned as ARDC midway through last year) are not eligible for the Hawking and Galileo awards. And we need your nominations soon, as the deadline to get them to me, RDC Richard Heim, AlaricRH@sprynet.com), is March 31, 2001. Here is the nominating procedure. Nominations should be submitted as follows: The Hawking Award: nominations must come from and be seconded by any dues-paying member of Starfleet: The International Star Trek Fan Association (local chapter members may submit nominations as well). The Einstein Award: the recipient(s) are chosen by the Sciences RDC based upon the number of report submissions. The Galileo Award: nominations must come from a CSO of a participating R/1 ship. Again, nominations for the Year 2001 awards must be sent to the RDC (Richard Heim, P.O. Box 2072, Asheville, NC 28802, AlaricRH@sprynet.com) no later than March 31, 2001. The winners will be announced at the 2001 Region One Summit at the end of April. Here is a brief description of the awards: There are three Region One Sciences Awards: The Steven R. Hawking Award for Original Article, The Albert Einstein Award for Regular Article Submission, and The Galileo Award for Chief Science Officer of the Year.
So, in summary, we need your nominations for the Steven R. Hawking Award for Original Article and the Galileo Award for Chief Science Officer of the Year. Send your nominations to me by March 31. And, thank you for your support! Again, check out the Region One Sciences web page: http://alaricrh.home.sprynet.com/science/R1Science.htm
FCapt. Richard Heim
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| Chief, Computer Operations | Ensign Robert Saucier |
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My first report as CompOps chief and it's late. Way ta go! Allow me to introduce myself; I'm Robert Saucier, on my second tour-of-duty on the Alaric. My first tour of duty was in the late '80's...when the CC was using cut and paste in the true sense of the word. At that time, I had the position of ship's librarian. Moving to Lexington, KY in '89 to sell software at a new Waldensoftware store, I hooked up with the local chapter/ship which was, unbeknownst to me, in the midst of a slow self-destruct sequence. An abortive attempt to gain sanction to start a shuttle with a friend and a bunch folks who were interested, some being former members of the existing ship, pretty much ended my Starfleet career. Without turning this into a resume, let me just say that it's been a lucky draw of the cards that's gotten me where I am in the world of computers. After pretty much planning on a career in retail, I took side-step to the distribution side. Since then, I've been lucky enough to get experience with a huge variety of systems from mainframes to PDAs, and applications from command-line message transfer agents to massive ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems. I'm currently the webmaster for a growing e-learning software company based in Grand Rapids, Michigan and also run the web sites for our parent company and primary investment group. You'd never know it but my primary areas of interest is Information Architecture and the closely related Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) -- related because they both deal with making the process of getting from Point A to Point B most intuitive. Enough! Let's get on with it, eh? What should be on the top of every computer user's mind? SECURITY! Unless you absolutely don't care one iota about what happens to the data on your system, you SHOULD care about security. Computer security takes a couple of different forms:
Data integrity covers topics such as backups and virus protection. System integrity covers topics like how to keep unauthorized entities from gaining access to your data in the first place. Data integrity is pretty simple:
System integrity is not so simple. In a work environment, your IT group handles external intrusion counter-measures. (A trip to Down Under and some latinum will get Krell going for hours!) At home, especially if you've got broadband Internet access via DSL or cable, YOU are the IT group. I'll focus on ways to help protect yourself in a home environment with broadband access. Keeping unauthorized folks away from your keyboard at home is best served by a trained attack dog or rabid hamster. My advice: buy a router. Most residential level routers run around $150 for a 4-port (4 computer) model up to $200+ for 8-port models. These routers function as firewalls, keeping casual hacker types out. I really recommend one regardless of how many computers you have; Linksys sells a 1 port model for around $100. A single port model and an inexpensive hub will easily allow you to build a home network. Features to look for:
Most of these routers will not need any configuration -- plug 'em in and go. If you're more paranoid like me, you can also get an application like ZoneAlarm for about $40. While it can become annoying, ZoneAlarm will ask for your permission before letting anything in to or out of your computer. There are options to "remember" what can have access and what can't, so after some training, you'll hardly notice it. There is also BlackICE Defender, which only blocks incoming attacks. It's easily configurable with three settings from wide open to completely locked down. If you're adventurous, you can even dig into its configuration file to customize what it will and will not block. If you've made it this far, thank you for putting up with a huge column. I'll try to pare it down a bit for the next go round! Please take a moment to let me know what topics you'd like to see covered in the CC! You can drop me a line at compops@ussalaric.org. Until next time! The secondary computer core is in need of a little data migration... Click Here to Return to Table of Contents
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 Ian "Krell" Johnsson The Sims Before I can properly explain The Sims I first need to give you a little background information. Many, many years ago... somewhere along the time that Pac-Man was considered to be the best video game ever...a young geeky-looking programmer named Will Wright came up with a game/simulation called Sim-City. It was a simulation in the true sense of the word: you started out with a big stretch of open land and a bundle of money, and from there you had to design and create a city. You started out by zoning areas for residential, commercial and industrial use, laid in a few roads to connect the areas, and then before you knew it little electronic people (called "Sims") started to move into your new city. You didn't actually see the people on the screen, but buildings would start to pop up in your zoned areas, and little cars and trucks would start to work their way along the roads. The trick then was to build your creation up into a huge, teeming Metropolis. But you had to take into account all of the things any real city designer had to worry about: making sure the power plant provided enough electricity; balancing the zoning between commercial and residential areas; making sure the industrial zones weren't too close to the residential areas, because Sims don't like living near polluting factories. Then your citizens began making demands: they want schools; they need hospitals; they need police and fire protection; they want entertainment centers; they want more parks and lakes. Then remember that your city also needs to raise taxes in order to pay for all this construction; that you need to create roads connecting to neighboring cities in order to encourage people to move to your fair city; and that at any time you could be hit with an earthquake or tornado. Playing Sim-City was a lot like being an actual mayor but without the paycheck. "So why would anybody want to play such a game?" you ask. Good question. And one that I can't honestly answer. When I first heard about it, it sounded tedious and boring to me. It sounded like one of those educational games thinly disguised as a game. But when I finally tried it for myself, within five minutes I was hopelessly hooked. I built city after city, each more grand than the one before. Later versions of the game added more features, new problems to worry about, new threats waiting to destroy everything I had worked to create. And I loved every minute of it! Countless other people were hooked just like I was, some even more so. As a result, the Sim-City series is still one of the most popular computer games ever created, and Mr. Wright is now wealthy and praised as a God by millions of game addicts the world over. But then a few years ago Will announced that he had plans for a new game, one that would take Sim-City to a whole new level. A game that would revolutionize the computer gaming market. "What could possibly top Sim-City?" we all wondered. The answer: "The Sims"! In Sim-City you created an entire city. But in The Sims, you get to control the lives of the individual citizens of Sim-City! You decide what they look like, what their personalities are, where they live, where they work, who their friends are... their lives are in your hands. In short, you get to play God over your little group of Sims. Who could resist such an offer? You start by creating your first Sim. You select their appearance (called a "skin" in the game): age, race, gender, clothes, it's all up to you. You can start with just one Sim or create an entire family. Next you build them a home. You pick out a lot in the neighborhood and build the house from the ground up. You pick out the wallpaper, carpeting, furnishings, etc. Money is limited at first, so you have to start small. But your next goal is to have your Sim get a job. As he works his way up the career ladder he can afford nicer things, a bigger house, etc. In the game you control one household at any given time. Then when you save the game and start a second household, the Sims from the first one are now their neighbors! You can invite them over, throw a party, even start a romance between your Sims. And just like in Sim-City, with your control over the Sims' lives comes the responsibility of making sure they're happy. You have to make sure that they eat regularly, get plenty of sleep, develop friendships, improve their work skills so they can get promoted, etc. Think of it like you're the producer of a TV soap opra. Will Ted leave his job to try for his big break as an actor? Will Alice find the man of her dreams and live happily ever after? Will Tina find out that her boyfriend Doug is cheating on her? It's up to you to decide! And just like with Sim-City, there's no real end to the game in The Sims. Your Sims keep on developing, making new friendships, changing jobs once they've reached the top of their profession. Fortunately, Sims don't grow old. So you can just keep the story running endlessly. Like the previous Sim games, The Sims is terribly addicting. You may not think it sounds like it, but I predict that once you try it you'll be just as hooked as I am. And one of the most interesting things is the fan support for the game. Thousands of Sim fans wasted no time in designing their own skins, furnishings, wallpaper designs, etc. You can go to countless sites on the web and download these new items into your game. I've found skins for Star Trek characters, super models, TV idols, rock stars and even pro wrestlers. And Maxis, the software company fast growing rich off this wildly popular game, has already released one expansion pack for the game and is getting ready to release a second one later this year. So not matter how much you play it, there'll always be something new you can experiment with. If you're still not sure if this is the game for you, here are a few snap shots from some of my Sim families. And be sure to check out the Maxis Sim site. It has a full outline of the game, screen shots, links to fan sites, even a chat room for talking with other Sim addicts.  From my Trek family, Dax poses for Picard...  Jobs range from a lowly record store clerk to astronaut!
KRELL'S "LATINUM RATING": 10 Bars (out of 10) COMMENTS: I just can't say enough about this game, it quickly became my all-time favorite and I've been playing it fanatically ever since. If I were married I'd probably be divorced by now, with my wife claiming abandonment. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: A 233 MHz PII processor; 2 MB video card; 32 MB RAM; Windows 95/98. (These are minimum requirements; for best performance you really should have a 400 MHz or better processor, 128 MB RAM and at least a 16 MB video card.) Manufactured by: Maxis/Electronic
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