Re: [Leica] First contact

["Ted Grant" <tedgrant@home.com>]

Erwin,
First class, not only are you brilliant on your technical side, there is a
nice side of humour you've kept hidden lo these many years! :-)

Thanks for "de-cloaking" and presenting  your funny side, as many must have
thought you didn't posses a funny bone in your body~! Certainly any behind
those technical posts. :-)

I bet there are many LUGGERS this morning asking the question, "hey is this
really our Erwin Puts?" ;-)   Thanks Captain Nemo and wherever you are in
space have a good day travelling the Leica cosmos! ! ;-)   !
ted
Ted Grant Photography Limited
www.islandnet.com/~tedgrant
- ----- Original Message -----
From: "imx" <imxputs@knoware.nl>
To: "LUG" <leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us>
Sent: Sunday, February 11, 2001 4:25 AM
Subject: [Leica] First contact


> łCaptain Picard! Long range sensors pick up signs of an unknown lifeform.˛
> łBring us into orbit, Mr LaForge˛
> łData, can you identify this lifeform?˛
> łIt is a Borg-like collective, Sir. They are in constant mental contact
with
> each other and they share all their thoughts and emotions. They call
> themselves Luggers.˛
> łLuddites, you mean, Mr Data?˛
>  łIncorrect, Sir, They are Luggers!˛
> łWhat are they doing? Can they de dangerous?˛
> łI am not sure, but they seem to babble, Sir!˛
> łBabble Mr. Data?˛
> łYes Sir, they are communicating through a primitive technology about a
> large number of unrelated topics, that seem to repeat every 8 months, 3
> days, 6 hours and 13 seconds. They are a very closed society and do not
> assimilate knowledge from other cultures. In fact they refuse to accept
new
> knowledge and seem to internally generate their own concepts which they
> presumably value highly.˛
> łYou mean Mr Data that we are dealing with a non-learning culture?˛
> łEffectively, yes Sir. The repetitious nature of their conversation does
> indicate an unwillingness to expand their knowledge and experience.˛
> łCan you identify a leader with whom we may discuss their situation. They
> may be in danger when they encounter the Borg.˛
> łNo Sir, the Borg will only assimilate a culture when they can add to
their
> own knowledge. This culture does not offer the Borg anything they might
> need. There is no leader, either, Sir. Some individuals are more
expressive
> and express themselves more often, but they seem  not to be valued any
> higher than the others.˛
> łIn fact a very democratic or even anarchical type of society. Can they
> evolve?˛
> ł Hardly Sir, they lack the necessary tools and infrastructure to become a
> mature society. Nothing indicates they would prefer that.˛
> łData, can you identify a pattern in their doings?˛
> łDifficult to say, Sir. On the one hand they talk at length about weapon
> systems, idicating a violent nature, but on the other hand they indulge
> themselves in obsolete topics, that have lost meaning in our age.˛
> łExample, Mr Data?˛
> łAt this very moment they communicate about a topic called łDOF˛, that is
> part of applied geometrical optics, which has no meaning to us anymore, as
> we use fotons as the base for our imaging systems, and  we are in particle
> and electron optics. There is no consensus however, as they lack a common
> base of scientific knowledge and the structure of their debate is
> reminiscent of a fairy tale: full of surprising twists, but without any
> regard for facts. Based on my predictions, they will close the topic soon
> and start it again in 11 months, 12 days, 9 hours and 15 seconds with an
> error margin of 0.03 percent.˛
> łWell Mr Data, will they survive?˛
> łPositive, Sir, They have effective cloaking devices and shielded
themselves
> from outside sources by some peculiar human habits˛.
> łYes Mr Data, I am familiar with these. So let us leave this sector.  Mr
> LaForge, warp 6.˛
> łRed alert, red alert, the Luggers have infected our computer systems! We
> cannot leave. Abandon ship!˛
>
> Erwin
>