[LNH/META] How's this? (was Re: LNH FAQ)
martinphipps2 at yahoo.com
martinphipps2 at yahoo.com
Wed Dec 14 20:06:52 PST 2005
Version
4.0
===================================================================
Administered by: Faq Boy (Jamas.Enri... at vuw.ac.nz)
Updated information is preceded by an *.
The FAQ was last updated: 15/12/05
===================================================================
1.0 Introduction
.1 The LNH? What's the LNH?
.2 Why should I care about the LNH?
.3 What twisted mind came up with this "LNH" thing, anyway?
.4 All right, how do I get started?
.5 Well, this is all great, but I can't get
rec.arts.comics.creative
or alt.comics.lnh on my system. Should I commit hari-kari?
.6 Okay, then, where can I get back issues?
* .7 Is LNH2 the real LNH future?
.8 Where can I find out more about the LNH?
2.0 Common Terms and In-jokes
.1 Internet Terms and Abbreviations
.2 Looniverse Terms
.3 An in-joke? What's that?
3.0 Netiquette and Writing
.1 I'm set to start writing. What are the rules of the LNH?
.2 Why do y'all put "LNH:" in front of your titles?
.3 Hey, can I use Easily Discovered Man or Mouse in my story?
.4 Public Domain? Reserved? What's all this?
.5 Hey, wReam's messed up the continuity in my story! Help!
.6 What are Acraphobe books?
.7 Can I use Spider-Man or Superman in my story?
.8 Do I lose the copyright on my stories by posting them to
Usenet?
4.0 The Looniverse
.1 What's the Looniverse?
.2 Aaarrrgh! All these characters! How can I find out more info
about them?
.3 Who's the most powerful LNHer?
.4 Why not split the LNH?
* .5 Why is the roster so out of date?
* .6 So the roster is incomplete?
* .7 How reliable is the roster otherwise?
* .8 Can I just take one of the characters and make them my own?
* .9 But I want to be the next wReam! The next Tom Russell! I
want to
spread chaos!
* .10 What is the writer in question is on an island in the South
Pacific
with no internet?
===================================================================
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Q1.1 The LNH? What's the LNH?
A1.1 A short definition? My dear sir, that would be equivalent to
pouring the sands of the Sahara into a half-filled thimble. It would
be
comparable to funneling the waters of the Pacific into a broken
wineglass.
It would be like placing the collected works of Dave Van Domelen into
the
onboard memory of an Atari 800...however, this is the task you have set
for
us, and therefore I shall endeavor to elucidate.
The LNH, or Legion of Net.Heroes, is a society of those beings
who
emulate the spirit of adventure and undying quest for justice while
clothed
in spandex and a never-ending stream of bad jokes. In short, we are
super-heroes, or at the very least authors who spend what spare time we
have writing about super-heroes. Our stories are serious (Legion of
Occult Heroes), comic (Writers Block Woman and Mouse), tragicomic
(Decibel Dude and Vigilante Guy), lyrical (Tales of the LNH),
or simply strange (Surreal Tales). They all take place in the same
universe (except for wReam's, since he lives in his own), and authors
and characters often interact with each other.
Anyone can join, although new authors can expect a bit of
heckling
in direct proportion to the number of times they mention the X-Men.
Guidelines for writing can be found in the FAQ and then conveniently
ignored.
Your best policy is to read some of the stories for a number of weeks
before
writing your own. Most authors are willing to respond to e-mail
questions
about their stories, and many will even let you use their characters in
stories of your own. Only wReam, however, has the power to validate
your
parking.
So welcome to the LNH. I hope this isn't the last we hear
from you. Good luck, and get reading.
Q1.2 Why should I care about the LNH?
A1.2 Well, If you don't, there's a good chance that wReam will
bazooka
your home. Seriously, the LNH is a place where you can create great
adventures, without the pressures of being serious, formal, or good.
This is not to say that LNH writers aren't good. They're wonderful,
but that is not a pre-requisite. Also, some of the nicest net.people
can be found in the LNH. Try us, you might just make a friend.
Besides, it's cheaper than therapy. Of course, therapy also has the
advantage of occasionally working...
Q1.3 What twisted mind came up with this "LNH" thing, anyway?
A1.3 It was a dark and stormy night... No, scratch that. The LNH
got started as something of a joke. Ever seen one of those cascades in
a newsgroup, where people build onto a story bit by bit? Thus began
the
Legion of Net.Heroes in Spring of 1992, as several posters on the now-
defunct newsgroup rec.arts.comics assumed heroic roles such as
Cheesecake
Eater Lad.
Eventually, one poster got tired of this and posted as "Dr.
Killfile," threatening to rid the world of the LNH. One Craig Thomas
Judd posted a call to arms, assembling much of the early LNH in a
cascade
*story* to fight the evil Killfile. This story became what is now
called
the Cosmic Plot-Device Caper, and was most notable for, um... never
really
coming to an end. It was instead interupted by summer vacation
(remember,
at that time, the vast majority of people on the Internet were
academics
of one sort or another).
That might well have been the end of the LNH, except for one
person.
The following fall, Todd "Scavenger" Kogutt was responsible for
stirring
up interest in a revived LNH. Threads from the original story were
picked
up, new writers (including Dave Van Domelen, Ray "wReam" Bingham, and
Jeff
"Drizzt" Barnes) came in to contribute, old writers returned. It was
truly
the golden age of the LNH.
It was also a time of great opposition to the LNH, as some
people
on rec.arts.comics.misc (the second home for the LNH) began voicing
their
opposition to it being on that newsgroup. As a result, plans began to
be
made to create an alt newsgroup for the LNH. However, one of the
opposing
voices took it upon himself to create alt.comics.lnh without going
through
the formal RFD/CFV process, thus ensuring the group would not get full
propogation to all news servers -- and incidentally ensuring that the
LNH
would be crossposted to r.a.c.m. for quite some time. =) Take that.
And then came CRY.SIG, the first story written by one person, a
newbie named Jeff Barnes (then going by the nickname "Drizzt"). This
began a meteoric rise for the LNH, establishing an actual continuity
for
the first time. New writers came on board to write their own
miniseries.
Most notable of these was a story called INTEGRITY QUEST co-written by
Hubert Bartels, Stephane Savoie, and Doug Wojtowicz; their three
characters
(Panta, Kid Anarky, and Lost Cause Boy), with the later addition of
Mike
Escutia's Pliable Lad, came to be known as the Net.Patrol. It should
also
be noted this story was responsible for the infamous "Woody Incident"
(see
Q3.5 for details).
Then someone got an idea: "Hey, why don't we have ongoing
series?"
Ray "wReam" Bingham's ULTIMATE NINJA and Kyle Lucke's QUEST FOR CHEESE
debuted at around the same time. Suddenly, everybody had to have a
series.
The Silver Age of RACC-dom began as Jeff Barnes left for
Florida,
and the departure of Doug Wojtowicz (and subsequent death of Lost Cause
Boy) shattered the Net.Patrol. Some guy named Martin Phipps began
posting -- posting *a* *lot*. wReam's Ultimate Ninja assumed full
leadership of the team. Several miniseries and series were launched
over
the spring and summer of 1993, including Dave Van Domelen's
CONSTELLATION
and Mike Escutia's PLIABLE LAD.
In the fall, Jeff Barnes returned with a new miniseries and an
ongoing series featuring Continuity Champ. More new writers flocked
in,
including Peter "Tick" Milan and Matt "Badger" Rossi. The LNH
continued to
flourish with the addition of Rob Rogers' EASILY DISCOVERED MAN,
generally
considered to be one of the funniest series ever to appear on the 'Net.
Also of note, rec.arts.comics.creative passed, and the LNH moved
from r.a.c.m. to its new home, little suspecting what lay around the
corner for it there.
And then, in the summer of 1994, came the monstrous RETCON HOUR.
Conceived as a parody of DC's Zero Hour, it contained a plot so
labrythine
as to defy description. However, despite anything else, the crossover
did
result in one spectacular addition to the LNH's stable: Paul Hardy's
LEGION OF OCCULT HEROES, the first serious LNH series.
Other writers came on in late 1994 and early 1995, among them
Jaelle
Ihimaera-Smiler, Jamas Enright, and Mike Friedman. However, the winter
of
1995-1996 proved disastrous to the LNH, as they lost many of their best
and most prolific authors. Output slowed to a trickle for all the RACC
universes.
Since the Great Implosion, the LNH has begun to rebuild,
welcoming
several new writers. Would you like to be a part of the effort? Just
read on...
(*)Q1.4 All right, how do I get started?
A1.4 Goody, another victim... muwhahahahah. Anyway, the best way to
get
started is to read. The LNH has an archive site at ftp.eyrie.org,
under
/pub/racc/lnh/ (log in as anonymous). We also have our main web site
at
http://www.eyrie.org/lnh/. Both of these provide plenty of background
and
information for the newcomer.
After this, you need to count the cost of joining the LNH. It
will
take some work and effort. You'll have to write! Yes, that's
correct: in order to be recognized as an LNHer, *you* will have to
feature
your character(s) in your own stories. This does take some time. If
you
don't think you'll be able to do it right now, then don't. There's
little
more annoying than a story which starts but never finishes.
Assuming I haven't run you off, now you'll need a character.
Yes, I
know, it's tempting to create a whole super team of your own. Please
don't.
At least, not at first. Nothing alienates readers more than a book
full of
new characters they have never heard of and really don't care about.
Instead, begin with one character, spend some time telling what is
unique
about him/her, let the readers get to know and love him/her. Make sure
their powers are well-defined -- and make sure their limits are as well
(i.e., no omnipotent characters, please).
Okay, you have the character. They're completely unique (you
*did*
check the LNH Roster at http://www.eyrie.org/lnh/roster/ to make sure
they're unique, didn't you?). They're really cool. Now, write. Put
pen
to paper (or fingers to keyboard) and show the rest of the world how
creative you can be. You'll probably want to ground your story in the
LNH
Looniverse by featuring other characters in your story; it's generally
best to e-mail the owners of those characters first. You can find all
relevant character information on the Roster site as well. And don't
forget to register your characters there as well (but not until after
your
first issue is posted).
Now, post the first issue and wait for the reviews to pour in.
Also, once you have posted your first issue, please send your
real
name (if it is not in the post) to Jamas (Jamas.Enri... at vuw.ac.nz) so
you
can join the heady ranks of being in the Authors List. (A list of every
LNH story ordered by the author who wrote it.)
Q1.5 Well, this is all great, but I can't get
rec.arts.comics.creative
or alt.comics.lnh on my system. Should I visit Dr. Kervorkian?
A1. 5 Just go to
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.comics.creative It is that
simple.
If you want to post, Eyrie's own Russ Allbery has made a
mail-to-news gateway available for both rec.arts.comics.creative and
alt.comics.lnh. Simply send your message to
rec.arts.comics.creative at eyrie.org (also racc at eyrie.org) or
alt.comics.lnh at eyrie.org, and it will be posted to the appropriate
group on Usenet. You can also post by registering at googlegroups.
Russ has also provided a news-to-mail gateway for
rec.arts.comics.creative. Send a message to majordomo at eyrie.org with
'subscribe racc' in the body. Note: This will sign you up for every
message that is sent to rec.arts.comics.creative, but what better way
to
make sure you don't miss out on any LNH stories? :)
Also, you should probably talk to your system administrator
about
adding the newsgroups. Most sysadmins will if asked politely to do so.
Q1.6 Okay, then, where can I get "back issues"?
A1.6 FTP to ftp.eyrie.org for the rec.arts.comics.creative archives,
maintained by Russ Allbery. All LNH stories are automatically archived
here for posterity. If you don't want your stories placed there, use
an
X-No-Archive header. All of the stories on ftp.eyrie.org are
compressed
using gzip, *not* compress. If you do not have gzip on your system
already, ftp to prep.ai.mit.edu and get the file README-about-.gz-files
in the /pub/gnu directory. There is even an executable available for
VMS
systems.
If you have questions about this service, e-mail Russ at
eagle at eyrie.org.
Q1.7 Is LNH2 the real LNH future?
A1.8 Yes and no. The basic idea of LNH2 is that the new characters
being
introduced are mostly the sons and daughters of current LNH characters.
As LNH2 is only set fifteen years into the future, these characters
have all been born by now and merely have yet to grow up. So, in a
sense the LNH2 is pretty much inevitable. But the events described in
LNH2 need not be repeated word for word in LNH when the time comes.
For example, Generation Y #15-16 foretold of an attack on the LNH by
wReamicus Maximus which would leave the LNH decimated but when it
actually happened in YYY #5-6 it was wReamicus Maximus who was
defeated. The mainstream LNH continuity trumps LNH2 continuity so that
any changes to LNH will automatically be reflected in LNH2 as a retcon.
Another complication is time travel. In Drizzt's Cry.Sig (from way
back in 1992), Drizzt had a mysterious figure known as "Captain
Continuity" come back from the future. He later revealed Captain
Continuity to be the future version of Continuity Champ Junior.
Continuity Champ Junior now goes by the name Captain Continuity.
(Similarly, Jailbait is now going by the codename "Seductress" that her
future self had in Generation Y #16.) With the LNH now having multiple
means of travelling through time, it is possible that Captain
Continuity may have already travelled back in time by now in order to
help set in motion the events described back in 1992.
LNH2 has also subtly affected LNH continuity with writers fashioning
events in LNH continuity such that they are consistent with LNH2
continuity. That is to say that some past events previously described
in LNH2 stories have now happened in LNH stories. Again, this doesn't
mean that writers are now restricted by LNH2 continuity. After all,
most of the characters in LNH2 continuity belong to their respective
writers, not you, and the remainder are public domain characters who
you wouldn't have been allowed to make major changes to anyway. Rather
than see this as a restriction, writers should see this as an
opportunity to write stories set in the future knowing that there are
some things that will not have changed in the meantime.
Q1.8 Where can I find out more about the LNH?
A1.8 Well, fine, be that way. =) A good place to start (after
you've
read this FAQ, of course) is the LNH web site, conveniently located at
http://www.eyrie.org/lnh/. This has background on the LNH, the
Looniverse, LNH writers, past history, current series, and so on.
It also has a link to the LNH Roster
(http://www.eyrie.org/lnh/roster/). This is the definitive place to
look
for information about characters, as well as for registering your own
characters. Just follow the easy instructions.
If you have further questions not answered here in the FAQ, you
can
write to l... at eyrie.org and someone will answer your queries.
===================================================================
2.0 COMMON TERMS AND IN-JOKES
Q2.1 Internet terms and abbreviations (or, everything you ever wanted
not to know about the 'Net but are going to have to learn anyway).
A2.1 Here are some basics you'll need to know:
BTW -- By the way
FAQ -- Frequently Asked Questions -- Most newsgroups and/or
subjects have one of these compiled somewhere on the
'Net.
Flame -- A heated insult.
FTP -- File Transfer Protocol -- It's how you can get archived
editions of almost all the old LNH stuff. Just FTP to
ftp.eyrie.org and log in as "anonymous." For help,
e-mail
eagle at eyrie.org.
FWIW -- For what it's worth
IMHO -- In my humble opinion
IRC -- Internet Relay Chat -- Much like a computer-based CB
system.
Netiquette -- The unwritten rules of the Internet, like "Don't
repost someone else's 10K message and then add 'me,
too'
at the end."
ROTFL -- Rolling on the floor laughing
WWW -- World Wide Web -- Enter the world of multimedia
computing.
The LNH has a page at http://www.eyrie.org/lnh/.
:-) -- Smiley -- the writer is speaking sarcastically, or
should
not be taken seriously (look at it sideways if you
don't
understand).
Q2.2 Looniverse terms and abbreviations (or, everything you need to
know
in order to understand your garden-variety LNHer)
A2.2 Okay, here goes:
CANADA -- Conspiracy to Annihilate North American Democracy
Altogether
LNH -- The Legion of Net.Heroes
LNHQ -- LNH Headquarters (AKA LNH HQ or LNHHQ)
Looniverse -- The LNH universe
Mr. Paprika -- One of the leading soft drinks of the
Looniverse.
Its motto is "Now that's a man's pop."
RAC -- rec.arts.comics -- The now-defunct original home of the
LNH.
RACC -- rec.arts.comics.creative
RAC* -- The rec.arts.comics hierarchy
Retcon -- retroactive continuity - changing or redefining a
character by revealing some previous "hidden truth"
which
reveals all we've ever known about them was a lie.
Retcotheric energy -- magic, a substance which is in opposition
to
and harmful to continuity.
TEB - Trade Ether Back - A collected format of an LNH story.
wReam - Evil and entropy incarnate. One of the early LNH
writers now reknown for his ability to bend continuity
--
and the reader's mind.
Q2.3 An in-joke? What's that?
A2.3 An in-joke is short for an "inside joke." This is usually in
the
form of an allusion to another work, and can only be fully understood
if
you understand its use elsewhere. For example, when Robin said, "Holey
rusted metal, Batman" in BATMAN FOREVER, it was an in-joke alluding to
the campy '60s series. Ha-ha; get it?
The LNH works feature numerous in-jokes. For extensive
examples,
see CONTINUITY CHAMP AND THE DRIZZT'S DEFENDERS, which alluded to
everything from the JFK assassination to "Hitchhiker's Guide to the
Galaxy" .
===================================================================
3.0 NETIQUETTE AND WRITING
Q3.1 I'm set to start writing. What are the rules of the LNH?
A3.1 There are no "rules," per se. However, here are some
suggestions
you'll probably be much better off respecting:
Respect others' characters. One of the neat things about a
shared
universe is that certain characters can pop up and guest star with
almost
any other character. Which means that you may be able to use others'
characters in your stories. There are five ways to help ensure that a
character is done right: (1) read the roster, (2) email the creator or
primary writer (listed on the roster, (3) read stories that feature the
character in question, (4) email the character's creator or writer for
advice, and (5) don't portray a character in a way that could be
considered insulting.
Be careful with huge changes. Another neat thing about a shared
universe is that events from one series can affect events in another.
However, people tend to have long term plans. Sometimes their long
term
plans will involve your character in some essential way, or you may
mess
up something they had planned. For example, I planned on cultivating a
rivalry between Continuity Champ and Ultimate Ninja in the pages of
CONTINUITY CHAMP AND THE DRIZZT'S DEFENDERS, one which would eventually
result in a fight between the LNH and the DDs; however, wReam decided
to
retcon events so that the testosterone-driven Ultimate Ninja was in
fact
an evil clone of the real UN, which destroyed. Give the rest of the
group some advance notice of what is going to happen to your character
and the Looniverse in general, and be prepared to compromise. Some of
our veterans have dined on fried newbie after said newbie has decided
to
remake the Looniverse in their image. Also, start out with only one,
two, or maybe three new characters at first; let the readers get to
know
them, then slowly bring in more. Nothing turns off many people more
quickly than dumping 15 berzillion new characters on them in your first
issue. Also, you'd be wise not to do more than an issue or two a week;
a faster pace will cause some people not to read.
Be consistent with what others have written. You have some
leeway
here: for one thing, it seems that the size of any given room varies
directly with the number of Legionnaires in it; similarly, the
conference
table in the Central Command Center appears to adapt for the number of
Legionnaires around it. Nevertheless, some effort has been made by
certain writers to visualize Legion Headquarters as having a lobby, a
cafeteria, laboratories, HoloDecStations, etc. Some consistency in
their
description would surely be appreciated.
Also, don't start a storyline you can't or won't finish. The
exception here is a subplot: people can feel free to write subplots for
no
other reason than to inspire others. For example, a couple of
McLaughlin
Man subplots in DEJA DUDE AND MASTER BLASTER set the stage for the use
of
McLaughlin Man in ULTIMATE NINJA #10 and LNH: Open House.
Be careful in creating new characters. Why create a character
who
serves a minor plot point when there may already be one in existence?
Scour the LNH web roster and use some of the under-utilized characters
listed there. There's no need to overpopulate the Looniverse, after
all.
Read other LNH stories. Obviously the roster won't tell you
everything. One thing to look for is how the characters interact. The
best way to see this is to read previous stories. It's also a good
idea
to write the character's owner and make sure you're portraying the
character well.
Above all else, have fun. No one is forcing you to write.
Hopefully, if it's good for you, it'll be good for us as well.
Q3.2 Why do y'all put "LNH:" in front of your titles?
A3.2 Why not? You think we'd be *ashamed* of proclaiming our title
is
part of the LNH family? Huh? Do you? Do you?
Ahem. Anyway, the convention on rec.arts.comics.creative is to
identify stories by the universe in which they take place. Thus, LNH
stories have an "LNH:" in front of them, Superguy stories have an "SG:"
before their title, Omega stories have "Omega," and so on. This serves
a
two-fold purpose; first, interested readers of one universe can easily
spot said universe, and, second, disinterested readers of one (or more)
universes can easily avoid that story.
Q3.3 Hey, can I use Easily Discovered Man or Mouse in my story?
A3.3 See above. Be sure to write the creator and/or primary writer
of
a character before using that character. It's common courtesy, for one
thing, and it might allow you to get some insights as to how the
character would act in the story. If that author flat out refuses to
let
you borrow the character, that's his/her business, since they do own
the
character. Just move on and find another one if this happens. It
should
be noted, however, that the number of times this has happened in the
entire history of the LNH can probably be counted on one hand.
Q3.4 Public Domain? Reserved? What's all this?
A3.4 As well as a large number of characters in the LNH, there are
also
character classifications, which say when a character can be freely
used,
or whether permission should be asked first. If you're not sure, ask a
long timer, or post on the group. 'Public Domain' is now no longer
used,
but it means 'not reserved' (ie. free for use).
Check with the LNH Roster (at http://www.eyrie.org/lnh/roster/)
to
see what status the character is listed as.
Not reserved - Examples are Cheese-cake Eater Lad, Bad-Timing Boy,
Doctor
Stomper, Captain Cleanup, The Time Crapper, The Crossover Queen.
These characters were once owned by someone, but now no-one plans
to
do anything important with them. This means you can use the character
freely, without having to ask anyone. But, so can anyone else, so if
you,
say, turn Captain Cleanup into a woman, not everyone else will follow
suit. It's best not to alter these characters too much, or you can
post
large notices saying that you're reserving them, or changing them.
(Even
then, some people may not notice.)
Reserved but usable with permission - Examples are Writer's Block
Woman,
the Net.Elementalist, Kid Kirby, Pointless Death Man, Plummet
These characters are owned by people. If you want to use them for
anything more than a brief cameo (even then it's still polite to ask
first), ask the owners for permission. Most people will allow you to
use
them, the most often proviso being sent a copy of the work to check
over
first. Some people may say 'No,' and please respect that.
If you don't get a reply, don't assume that you can use the
character
and no-one will notice. Try to write a different character, or, if they
are absolutely essential to the plot line, post on the newsgroup about
it.
Reserved - Examples are Rebel Yell, Lurking Girl.
These characters are tied up in plotlines, and are not to be used.
(You can still ask, but don't be surprised by a 'No.') If you do use
them,
your work can be Elsewhirled by the reservers.
wReam's characters - Examples are Ultimate Ninja, Sister
State-The-Obvious, CAPTAIN CAPATILIZE, wReamicus Maximus.
wReam has a chaotic effect on everything, including classifying
characters. :) While not strickly public domain, they are still free
for
everyday use. If you want to do anything drastic with them, consult
wReam
first.
Q3.5 Hey, wReam's messed up the continuity in my story! Help!
A3.5 Yes, that's one problem with a shared universe; someone else can
change something in the Looniverse that affects a story you've got
planned. This is tricky: on one hand, you should place stories in
continuity; on the other hand, the story might not fit where you want
it
to. You have four options: (1) make changes and repost, (2) have
Doctor
Stomper, the LNH's resident continuity expert, explain the continuity
error way :), (3) declare your story a dream / Elsewhirl, or 4)
negotiate
a compromise with the conflicting writer to the effect that at least
one
of you can make the changes necessary to allow both stories to
co-exist.
Q3.6 What are Acraphobe books?
A3.6 After the infamous "Woody Incident" (in which an author, without
warning, threw a sex scene seen as somewhat crude by certain LNHers
into
the middle of an otherwise innocuous, four-color story), certain LNHers
decided to create an adult label called "Acraphobe." Stories labelled
with this title may contain mature situations and/or language.
However,
they should always be in good taste. Acraphobe books are not "porno"
books. Cursing is allowed, but use good sense when doing it. Only
words
that you could find in issues of SANDMAN or HELLBLAZER are appropriate.
If your only reason for writing an Acraphobe story is so you can use
curse words, you're probably better off just not doing the story.
Q3.7 Can I use Spider-Man or Superman in my story?
A3.7 No, I'm afraid not. You see, these characters are the property
of
Marvel and DC, respectively. How would you feel if one of them used
one
of your characters in a story without *your* permission? It's the same
issue. Plus, there's always the possibility someone at a big company
might decide to make an example of you and sue. Unlikely, but
possible.
Q3.8 Do I lose the copyright on my stories for posting them to
Usenet?
A3.8 Not at all. You retain copyright on anything you write,
regardless
of how it may be published. To quote the Copyright Myths FAQ, found at
http://www.clari.net/brad/copymyths.html:
Nothing is in the public domain anymore unless the owner
explicitly
puts it in the public domain... Explicitly, as in you have a
note
from the author/owner saying, "I grant this to the public
domain."
Those exact words or words very much like them.
Some argue that posting to Usenet implicitly grants permission
to
everybody to copy the posting within fairly wide bounds, and
others
feel that Usenet is an automatic store and forward network where
all
the thousands of copies made are done at the command (rather
than the
consent) of the poster. This is a matter of some debate, but
even if
the former is true... it simply would suggest posters are
implicitly
granting permissions "for the sort of copying one might expect
when
one posts to Usenet" and in no case is this a placement of
material
into the public domain. Furthermore it is very difficult for an
implicit licence to supersede an explicitly stated licence that
the
copier was aware of.
And for you weisenheimers playing along at home, no, I didn't violate
the
copyright of the Copyright Myths FAQ. =P File it under "fair use."
===================================================================
4.0 THE LOONIVERSE
Q4.1 What's a Looniverse?
A4.1 *The* Looniverse is the shared universe that the Legion of
Net.Heroes inhabits. It's as wildly improbable as you might suppose,
with everything from talking dogs to mildly psychotic appliances.
LNH adventures take place on one of the many earths in many of
the
dimensions in a galaxy far, far... wait a second. It takes place on
"an"
earth in the omniverse in the present time. Which isn't to say that it
can't be moved to other planets, other dimensions, and other times.
The Legion of Net.Heroes Headquarters (LNHQ) is located in the
city
of Net.ropolis in the Loonited States of America. Net.ropolis appears
to
be located somewhere in New York or New Jersey, though its exact
location
remains undisclosed. Other cities include Net.York City, Net.lanta,
Sig.ago, and Coastal City. You can find out more by checking out the
Looniversal Gazetteer at the web site.
The LNHQ is a sprawling complex containing rooms for all present
LNHers, guest rooms, a monitoring room, a central command center, a
high-tech war room, a Peril room, a shuttle bay, transmat chambers,
HoloDecStations, swimming pools (indoor and outdoor), a vault, prisoner
holding cells, laboratories, and any other convenience you can think
of.
It sits on a nexus to all realities, so these realities at times
overlap
into the LNH's with slight vibrational differences. This causes the
slight annoyance of phantom images, which explains how deceased or
otherwise inactive/occupied characters seem to pop up from time to
time.
There are other planets with their own populations as well.
Webster's World, for example, is the home of Spelling Boy, while the
planet Qwerty (home of Myk-El) was destroyed by the Logic Bomb of the
Dvorakian Empire.
The various alt, rec, etc. groups exist, as the LNH visited
alt.fan.dan-quayle during Cry.Sig. The Crossover Queen is currently
trapped in rec.org.sca. There have been various cross-overs with
alt.cyberpunk.chatsubo, alt.fan.suicide-squid, and alt.fan.bugtown.
Several characters are known to derive their powers from a region of
existence known as the Dyslexia Dimension. Alt.ernate timelines have
also been found. Other dimensions also exist (such as the "evil LNH"
dimension).
Q4.2 Aaarrrgh! All these characters! How can I find out more info
about them?
Q4.2 Luckily for you, Kyle Lucke oversees the LNH Roster -- which is
now
found on the Web at http://www.eyrie.org/lnh/roster/. Here you can
find
out a considerable amount about the LNH, its members, and some of its
most
notable villains.
Q4.3 Who's the most powerful LNHer?
A4.3 This is, of course, open to much debate, and it's all beside the
point. The LNH is not about who can beat who, but rather telling good
stories in the super-hero genre. If you just want to play
"Ho`'odwin..."
the LNH is most likely not the place to go. There's very little as
boring as an ultra-powerful fighting machine with no personality
(though
you could probably get a job writing for Liefeld if that's your idea of
a great character).
Q4.4 Why not split the LNH?
A4.4 AAAAAAAAARRRRRRGGGHHHH!!! NO, NO, NO, NO, NONONONONO --
NEVER!!!
Ahem. Anyway, as you might have gethered, this idea has already
been thought of and dismissed roughly... oh, I dunno, a billion times,
give or take a few million. The reasons it wouldn't work are varied
and
sometimes complicated, but a few of them are:
(1) We have a hard enough time getting names straight without
having
to remember Limp-Asaparagus Lad is with the LNH West Coast team, and
Canadian Smelling Guy is with the LNH International, etc. In such
chaos,
only wReam could thrive.
(2) A majority of LNH writers and hang-arounders don't want to.
(3) Such a split is really not needed; the LNH lends itself to
sub-
groups pretty well.
(4) Such a split would destroy a lot of the uniqueness of the LNH.
It helps new writers to have a central team to "play off" of. The
continuity it provides helps to establish new legends, even as many of
the older ones branch out to explore the rest of the Looniverse.
Q4.5 Why is the roster so out of date?
A4.5 The on-line version of the roster was created by Drizzt and was
supposed to be maintained by Kyle Lucke. Neither of them are currently
actively involved with the LNH.
Q4.6 So the roster is incomplete?
A4.6 None of the characters created by either Tom Russell or Jesse
Willey
are included in the roster. Nor are most of the characters from the
Miss Translation series. For that matter, neither is Ultimate Ninja!
Q4.7 How reliable is the roster otherwise?
A4.7 Not very. Some characters went from "Usable with permission"
to "The
person who created this character now has a life and doesn't want you
to bother them". In some cases, the characters were actually killed
off (eg Kid Mysticism) or, believe it or not, retconned out of
existance (eg Panta) and the roster says diddly squat about that.
Q4.8 Can I just take one of the characters and make them my own?
A4.8 Not without the permission of their original writer.
Q4.9 But I want to be the next wReam! The next Tom Russell! I
want to
spread chaos!
A4.9 Too bad. wReam and others took characters that had already
been
declared public domain and used them as he saw fit. Tom, well, he just
took other people's characters. To an extent, this is flattering: you
like a character enough to include him or her in your stories without
getting permission first. But it is better to try to get permission
first.
Q4.10 What if the writer in question is on an island in the South
Pacific
with no internet?
A4.10 Post to the group saying you can't contact so-in-so by e-mail.
Chances
are somebody has a snail mail address. If you absolutely have to use
somebody's character and you can't contact them then just make it a
cameo or, at the very least, don't make any major changes to them, ie
don't kill them off, cut off one of their hands or make them gay. :)
===================================================================
As with any work which is the result of collective efforts, the list
below does not even begin to include everyone who has contributed to
the
FAQ. Many thanks to everyone who has contributed to help this document
grow and change over the years.
CONTRIBUTORS:
Russ Allbery (e... at eyrie.org)
Jeff Barnes (dri... at precisionet.net)
Ray "wReam" Bingham (r... at fc.hp.com)
Jeff Coleburn
Mike Escutia (e... at eyrie.org)
Jamas Enright (Jamas.Enri... at vuw.ac.nz)
Tori Fike (t... at panix.com)
Mark Friedman (crim... at ihz.compuserve.com)
Todd "Scavenger" Kogutt (s... at eyrie.org)
Brian Perler
Martin Phipps (martinphipps2 at yahoo.com)
Rob Rogers (e... at delphi.com)
Steph Savoie (ana... at eyrie.org)
Ken Schmidt (t... at eyrie.org)
and a cast of thousands...
Martin
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