LordNews #5 Summary/Update  -- Issued November 22, 2000.

I have been working off, and on, on doing Issue #5 of the Lord Authors
newsletter since early October, but very few people have written in with
entries for it so far.  I need a firm commitment from all of you who
wish for the newsletter to continue, because the lack of interest shown
in it is leading to think abut discontinuing it, either for good, or for
a few months.  Wildcat T-Lord has been abandoned by IceRage and I can't
get any information from anyone about whether it even has a future or
not.  I am thankful that Joseph Watson continues to support it through
his igm writing, but he is the only person, that I know personally, who
is working on WT-Lord programming.  The only person I know of who is
doing active Lord programming is Lloyd Hannesson, which is equally
depressing to see.  There used to be dozens of Lord programmers doing
their thing, and now there is less than one dozen that I know of.  Lord
II seems to have been given up on by many programmers, and of those who
I thought were active, only a few have been in contact with me lately.
Due to his health problems, Bobby Queen has not been doing updates of
his Official Lord II site, so it has gone fully inactive, just like the
Lord II program itself.  Personally, I've not seen a single program for
Lord II released since Tien Lung's last igm update, other than the
Crystalline Stats program that Mike Dillon has released.  My only
possible conclusion is that all forms of Lord are slowly dying, and it
may be time to give up on the newsletter as a result.

I need to know from everyone what their thoughts are on the newsletter's
future are, and have a commitment from each of you, towards supporting
it if I decide to keep going with it.  Here are the options I can
consider, which I need your feedback on:

1) Continue as is with the newsletter, if enough friends will continue
to help me with it, through their contributions.

2) Change the newsletter to three issues a year, with the next issue
covering January through April.

3) Keep the newsletter going, every three months, as the web-page file
via my web-site, and distribute it to those who want it by email.  Close
down the Listbot lordnews mailing list.

4) Same as #3, except do the newsletter every four months.

5) Close the newsletter down completely, and just let the other active
Lord authors and webmaster friends know of stuff I learn about Lord
via email messages, every month or two.

I will finish up Issue #5 and issue it before Christmas, so as to not
be thinking about it during the holiday weeks of Christmas and New
Years.  Whether or not there is an issue #6 will depend on the feedback
I receive from all of you.  I am attaching the newsletter file with
this message for those of you who haven't kept up with it through the
copy I keep updated on my web-site.  Here is a summary of what I have
learned since I released Issue #4 in mid-September.

Closures:  Joel Gathercole's CNW site, the Frogland BBS and Hellas BBS
sites, the Help Port Lord Petition page, LitterBox site, and Sunshine
IGMs (Benjamin).  I do not know of a single new Lord site since the
summer.  Elric is working on redesigning his Earthdrake Software site
after all the computer troubles he's had over the year.  Lloyd Hannesson
continues work on his listing of the Lord IGMs, as most of you probably
have seen by now, on his Tech'N software site.

Official Lord II site/Kiteria site notes:  Bobby Queen continues to be
on the fully inactive category list due to the health problems he has
personally, and those of his grandparents who he takes care of.  He has
offered to let me take over running his web-sites for him, but I've not
seen any real reason to take him up on the offer.  Anything I've seen
for Lord II I've relayed to him, and there hasn't been a single IGM
for Lord II released since the summer months.  At some point, Bobby may
have a few new guide pages for the Kiteria site, based on pages we are
working toward adding from Dawn Bidot's L.O.R.D. Inn site, along with
some notes I made years ago on various features of Lord, and IGMs I
cared about.

Ruth Argust:  Continues to accept any Lord programs you release, per
the rules she sets forth on her DDS web-site, in the DDS-Info.zip file.
Send programs to her at ruth@doorgames.org, in the .ZIP format, with
scanned for viruses, and including a file-id.diz file.  Basically, the
same goes for Mike Ehlert, who is reachable at mike@pcmicro.com .
Justin Scott has given up on Lord matters, so is no longer in the
Lord webmaster group, for those who may not know this.

Mike Dillon:  One of the few active programmers left.  Recently released
his utility program, Crystalline Stats, for Lord, Lord II, TEOS, etc.
See the newsletter for full details.  Michael Everett:  Continues to try
to contact the various Lord authors and post information about them on
his web-site.  Has put up a utility program to register the Baldur's Camp
Lord igm on his site.  Lloyd Hannesson:  Released Felicity's Temple v2.0
last month, and is working on the Lord IGM project which he agreed to do
after discussing the need for a single site hosting all the Lord igms
with me over the summer.  Duncan Idaho:  Planning a move to Sweden, and
marriage there to a Swedish girl.  No idea when he will release
DuneLord, since I've not heard from him in awhile.  Tien Lung:  Has given
up on completing the Chaos: A Legend Is Born (CALiB) program, due to its
complexity, and is working on finishing the Nightmare's Gate Lord II igm.

Robert Olsen: No real information received from him, over than a brief
description of the Awakening Project.  Probably can be considered as
an Active Lord programmer.  Joseph Watson:  Still active, thank
goodness, with his WT-Lord igms.  Has released Trader Vic's and Lady
Cara's Tea Parlor igms recently.  Marty Blankenship:  Has said he will
try to do an update of his Marty's Mercantile IGM around Christmas.
Jason Brown:  Busy with college, but may be closing down his Lord
programming for good.  Elric:  Working on web-site rebuilding.  No idea
on his Lord II igm programming plans.

Michael Preslar:  I've heard from him a total of three times this year,
and still have no idea on how to ever finish sending my collection of
Lord programs to his Lord Legacy FTP site.  Has sent in an entry for
the newsletter this month, and is working far too much for his
slave-driver bosses, I think.   After months of wondering, I still know
nothing about whether he even got the contracts to work on Lord II or
not.  And no idea on when they will ever release a version of Lord, that
isn't labeled a beta program.  Ken Weitzel:  Supposedly working on a new
Seasons IGM for this year, but I've not heard anything about him from
him since this summer.  Black Omen - no real name known:  Is working on
an unnamed Lord II: new world.

Lord programs released since the last newsletter's release:

Hannesson:  Warrior's Graveyard and Felicity's Temple igms.
Bujold:  Frank's Firearms Lord II IGM.  Re-released other programs
   with new email/website info.  Considered fully inactive since every
   time I try to write him, the messages get returned to me.
Dillon:  Crystalline Stats utility for Lord/Lord II.
Watson:  Lady Cara's Tea Parlor, Dodge City, Fountain of Life, and
   Trader Vic's WT-Lord igms released since late October.

LordNews, Issue #1 - re-released the web-page with updated email and
web-site addresses, and notations on closed sites on Nov. 11.

Not very much to report, so perhaps some of you will be able to cheer
me up with a bunch of additional entries for the newsletter.

Please remember and not requote this entire file when you write back.
I hope everyone I've not heard from recently has enjoyed the fall
season, and is doing well.  Happy Thanksgiving this week to everyone.
Donald.
