# 12082 bymikecombs@... on Sept. 22, 2011, 12:28 p.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
A new novel has been written which is set in a space habitat (first one in a long while, I think). The author had an app created which simulates the view inside the habitat:
http://biology.kenyon.edu/slonc/Frontera3D/Gilead.html
http://www.amazon.com/Highest-Frontier-Joan-Slonczewski/dp/0765329565/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid14211170&sr=8-1
Regards,
Mike Combs
# 12083 bybhn1700@... on Oct. 11, 2011, 7:41 p.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
I just checked out the site, it is very cool, if someone really had some time and skill they could make it really amazing. It is really crazy when you make it look straight up in the habitat.
Brooks
# 12084 byjoe@... on Oct. 11, 2011, 8:46 p.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
On 10/11/11 1:41 PM, brooksn wrote:
> time and skill they could make it really amazing. It is really crazy
> when you make it look straight up in the habitat.
> > http://biology.kenyon.edu/slonc/Frontera3D/Gilead.html
Yeah, but there are only like 20 buildings here... looks like a
population of 100 people or so. Hard to make the economics work out on
that. :) I do like the basic idea though -- something I've always
wanted (but never had the time) to do is make a detailed 3D simulation
of the inside of a colony, that lets the user wander around and play.
But that's a big job... the best I've managed to find time for so far is
an outside view [1].
Hmm. My day job is software consulting, i.e., I write custom code for a
living. Unfortunately, I need to keep doing my day job in order to pay
the bills. If SSI still had any teeth (or dollars) left, I'd see if
they want to throw some development money at such a project. Seems like
it would be a great way to help spread the dream.
But I doubt SSI has the wherewithal for that... NSS might be the
next-best bet. Perhaps I should pitch the idea to them.
Or perhaps I should set up a threshold pledge system [2] for this?
Perhaps Kickstarter or (more appropriately?) RocketHub. Would anyone be
interested in donating to such a project, if the end result would be
public domain?
Best,
- Joe
[1] http://strout.net/info/science/settlements/index.html
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Threshold_pledge_system
# 12085 bysailorbarsoom@... on Dec. 12, 2011, 1:09 p.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
I'd love to see one of these for Mendocino Island, and if'n
I had the money (which'n I don't) I'd be willing to spend a
few (thousand) pennies to have one.
# 12086 bysraj99@... on Dec. 12, 2011, 3:16 p.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
Couldn't all this be commercialized in the form of Video games, movies,
etc.?
block buster movie?
How many movies (good or bad) are there, on the subject of space
colonization?
Regards,
Selvaraj
On 12 October 2011 02:16, Joe Strout wrote:
# 12087 bymikecombs@... on Dec. 12, 2011, 3:44 p.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
> How many movies (good or bad) are there, on the subject of space
> colonization?
Also, the assumption is always that colonization beyond the Earth means planetary colonization.
A person might cite Deep Space Nine for being set on an orbital platform. But I would argue that DS9 did not qualify as "High Frontier" since everybody lived in small, metal rooms under close, artificial illumination. The producers of Babylon 5 did give a tip of the hat to O'Neill by specifying that B5 was an "O'Neill class space station". And it's true that there was that large, green, cylindrical section. But we almost never got to see that section of the station. The producers said that was because it was an expensive special effect. I suspect they meant the green-screen compositing of the live actors into the CGI background rather than the CGI background itself. But over the years the cost of digital compositing has come down, and more recent shows like "Sanctuary" have actually saved money by composting their actors into virtual sets. If they were making B5 today, maybe we would have seen more of that large, green area, and maybe the basic concept would have made more penetration into the public consciousness.
I think it's still the case that if you try to talk to people about High Frontier today, they're more likely to envision a set they remember from DS9 than the artist's conceptions from back in the day.
Oh, by the way, I don't know if I can recommend the book the below-mentioned app was intended to promote. I bought it, but never even finished it.
Regards,
Mike Combs
From: spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com [mailto:spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of sraj
Sent: Monday, December 12, 2011 9:16 AM
To: spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [spacesettlers] Re: App simulates view inside space habitat
Couldn't all this be commercialized in the form of Video games, movies,
etc.?
Why not pool some money and see if we could come up with a (cheap) but
block buster movie?
How many movies (good or bad) are there, on the subject of space
colonization?
Regards,
Selvaraj
# 12088 bylucioc@... on Dec. 12, 2011, 4:41 p.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
On Mon, Dec 12, 2011 at 1:44 PM, Combs, Mike wrote:
>
> > How many movies (good or bad) are there, on the subject of space
> > colonization?
>
> None, really. They all deal with interstellar war or corporate corruption. Colonization is assumed to have already taken place. The movies never deal with the colonization process itself; it seems like screenwriters have no interest that process.
>
> Also, the assumption is always that colonization beyond the Earth means planetary colonization.
(...)
a planet being terraformed, and they let it clear that it is a routine
process hapenning in many other places. (The Weyland-Yutani slogan
indeed is "Building better worlds". Which would also be a nice motto
for a company building orbiting habitats, BTW. :)
Also, leaving asside American movies, the anime "Cowboy Bebop" has
episodes in many different space settings, including one in a
hollowed-out rotating asteroid with a huge habitat hundreds of square
kilometers wide inside. There are a few scenes with old folks that
were the first colonists talking about how they arrived at a bare rock
and had to do everything.
# 12089 bysailorbarsoom@... on Dec. 12, 2011, 6:54 p.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
--- In spacesettlers, "Combs, Mike" wrote:
>> colonization?
> None, really. They all deal with interstellar war or corporate
corruption. Colonization is assumed to have already taken place. The
movies never deal with the colonization process itself; it seems like
screenwriters have no interest that process.
True that. There is L-5: First City in Space, but that's about it.
There are occasionally movies or TV shows (or at least there used to be)
about "the first colony" on the Moon, or under the sea, but not many and
they aren't around now.
> Also, the assumption is always that colonization beyond the Earth
means planetary colonization.
Again, this seems to be the rut. There is a notable exception, but wow,
one I can think of. Whoopy.
> A person might cite Deep Space Nine for being set on an orbital
platform. But I would argue that DS9 did not qualify as "High Frontier"
since everybody lived in small, metal rooms under close, artificial
illumination. The producers of Babylon 5 did give a tip of the hat to
O'Neill by specifying that B5 was an "O'Neill class space station". And
it's true that there was that large, green, cylindrical section. But we
almost never got to see that section of the station. The producers said
that was because it was an expensive special effect. I suspect they
meant the green-screen compositing of the live actors into the CGI
background rather than the CGI background itself. But over the years
the cost of digital compositing has come down, and more recent shows
like "Sanctuary" have actually saved money by composting their actors
into virtual sets. If they were making B5 today, maybe we would have
seen more of that large, green area, and maybe the basic concept would
have made more penetration into the public consciousness.
>
> I think it's still the case that if you try to talk to people about
High Frontier today, they're more likely to envision a set they remember
from DS9 than the artist's conceptions from back in the day.
Unless said people are Japanese, or Western fans of anime. Then said
people will remember Mobile Suit Gundam and it's various spin-offs.
This, of course, mostly involves warfare with giant piloted robots, and
the colonization has already happened. But the O'Neil habitats are
there on the screen, rotation and mirrors and all. I have a tiny
Japanese model of an Island 3 type.
--- In spacesettlers, "Selvaraj" wrote:
> Couldn't all this be commercialized in the form of Video games,
movies,
> etc.?
I don't see why not. The effects would be more involved than for a
planet, but it would be something new for the audience. Head over to
FILES and look for my name. I have ideas, but lack the talent to turn
them into finished ready-to-film projects.
> Why not pool some money and see if we could come up with a (cheap) but
> block buster movie?
Even something along the lines of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
(quality-wise, not content) would get it out there.
> How many movies (good or bad) are there, on the subject of space
> colonization?
See above, but are there any games? Halo might almost qualify.
# 12090 byjoe@... on Dec. 12, 2011, 11:37 p.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
On 12/12/11 7:44 AM, Combs, Mike wrote:
> below-mentioned app was intended to promote. I bought it, but never even
> finished it.
Me too. I got through several chapters of nothing much happening to a
teenage girl I couldn't care very much about, and gave up.
Best,
- Joe
# 12091 bysailorbarsoom@... on Dec. 12, 2011, 11:51 p.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
--- In spacesettlers, Joe Strout wrote:
>> Oh, by the way, I don't know if I can recommend the book the
>> below-mentioned app was intended to promote. I bought it,
>> but never even finished it.
> Me too. I got through several chapters of nothing much
> happening to a teenage girl I couldn't care very much about,
> and gave up.
Stuff happens to a teenage girl in a space habitat? Maybe I
should buy this after all, since, well, I'm familiar with that
idea.
# 12092 byalglobus@... on Dec. 13, 2011, 2:50 a.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
On Dec 12, 2011, at 3:37 PM, Joe Strout wrote:
>
> > Oh, by the way, I don't know if I can recommend the book the
> > below-mentioned app was intended to promote. I bought it, but
> never even
> > finished it.
>
> Me too. I got through several chapters of nothing much happening to a
> teenage girl I couldn't care very much about, and gave up.
>
I finished it. A decent read, actually.
# 12093 bysraj99@... on Dec. 13, 2011, 5:12 a.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
With so many talented writers in this group it should be possible to move a
project forward:
2. Bring out a book with say 10 paintings (drawings)
3. Expand into a book with 100 paintings (drawings)
4. Expand into a screen play.
Will be interesting to see if a group such as this can push such a project
forward.
We know Mike Combs is (was?) a prolific writer. Sailorbarsoom too; and I
think another two persons. We have the required talent and with
constructive criticism from all in the group the project can be moved
forward.
Any existing story that will fit the bill?
(If funding is required I can promise a humble contribution of $ 200)
Selvaraj
On 13 December 2011 05:21, sailor.barsoom wrote:
# 12094 bysailorbarsoom@... on Dec. 16, 2011, 5:23 a.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
--- In spacesettlers, sraj wrote:
> possible to move a project forward:
>
> 1. A good story (preferably a comedy - of errors? + Romance)
> 2. Bring out a book with say 10 paintings (drawings)
> 3. Expand into a book with 100 paintings (drawings)
> 4. Expand into a screen play.
>
> Will be interesting to see if a group such as this can
> push such a project forward.
>
> We know Mike Combs is (was?) a prolific writer.
> Sailorbarsoom too; and I think another two persons.
That's sweet of you to say, but I've only ever finished the
one long writing project, and very little in the way of
short stories, and only the one long thing have I finished
and it has a High Frontier setting. Mike Combs is a much
better writer than I am. Indeed, though my story is much
different than what he writes, I kept him in mind a lot
while I was writing it.
> We have the required talent and with constructive
> criticism from all in the group the project can be moved
> forward.
>
> Any existing story that will fit the bill?
While I'd love to offer up Anzu James, it probably has too
much explicit sexual content for this project. Now, I have
a lot of fine IDEAS for stories, but ideas for stories are
not the stories themselves. I might be willing to work
with somebody else, to expand one of his IDEAS or one of
mine into an actual story. I haven't done anything like
that, and so I can't swear that I'd be any good at it.
Then again, I can't swear that I wouldn't be.
# 12095 bysdzafovic@... on Dec. 17, 2011, 2:22 p.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
>
> Why not pool some money and see if we could come up with a (cheap) but
> block buster movie?
>
> How many movies (good or bad) are there, on the subject of space
> colonization?
# 12096 bylucioc@... on Dec. 19, 2011, 5:08 p.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
On Sat, Dec 17, 2011 at 12:22 PM, Sean Dzafovic wrote:
>
> > Why not pool some money and see if we could come up with a (cheap) but
> > block buster movie?
> >
> > How many movies (good or bad) are there, on the subject of space
> > colonization?
>
> Wasn't Earth 2 (partially) about colonizing a new planet?
(...)
space station around Earth. But it was a space *station* in the
classic sense, with just indoor environments of corridors and rooms -
it was not something that we would call a space habitat in the
O'Neilian sense...
# 12097 bysdzafovic@... on Dec. 20, 2011, 2:33 a.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
2011/12/19 Lucio de Souza Coelho :
> On Sat, Dec 17, 2011 at 12:22 PM, Sean Dzafovic wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>> >
>> > Why not pool some money and see if we could come up with a (cheap) but
>> > block buster movie?
>> >
>> > How many movies (good or bad) are there, on the subject of space
>> > colonization?
>>
>> Wasn't Earth 2 (partially) about colonizing a new planet?
> (...)
>
> If Earth 2 is the movie that I am remembering then it was about a huge
> space station around Earth. But it was a space *station* in the
> classic sense, with just indoor environments of corridors and rooms -
> it was not something that we would call a space habitat in the
> O'Neilian sense...
>
unnamed disaster leaves Earth uninhabitable. The population lives on
space stations orbiting Earth.
It also had Tim Curry, which means it rules.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108758/
There was also a British series, Space Island One, based on a space
station in Earth orbit.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0172058/
# 12098 bylucioc@... on Dec. 20, 2011, 7:15 p.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
Thanks! BTW, here is the movie that I mentioned:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067039/
# 12099 byhitssquad@... on Dec. 21, 2011, 5:37 a.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
--- In spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com, "Combs, Mike" wrote:
> I don't know if I can recommend the book the below-mentioned app was intended to promote. I bought it, but never even finished it.
http://io9.com/5841145/new-3d-app-lets-you-imagine-living-inside-an-orbital-space-habitat
"Frontera, a cylindrical habitat 4 km long and 2 km across, contains colonial houses and farms. Rotating once a minute generates a centrifugal force of about one g."
Also, from Google Books: "In the past century we've built just seven spacehabs, each holding a few thousand people. Where are Earth's billions to go?"
> http://biology.kenyon.edu/slonc/Frontera3D/Gilead.html
Thanks for posting that 3D visualizer link. The habitat didn't seem as large as the dimensions imply in the visualizer, but computers are good at arithmetic, so I guess it's correct. What really doesn't seem to be correct is the orientation of the skyscrapers. They seem to be sideways to the artificial gravity. Or, maybe those boxes aren't supposed to be skyscrapers.
# 12100 byhitssquad@... on Dec. 21, 2011, 5:44 a.m.
Member since 2021-10-03
--- In spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com, "brooksn" wrote:
> It is really crazy when you make it look straight up in the habitat.