From: jsn@cegt201.bradley.edu (John Novak) Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.written.robert-jordan,rec.arts.sf.written,rec. answers,news.answers Subject: rec.arts.sf.written.robert-jordan FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) Date: 5 Jul 1997 21:32:48 -0500 Summary of changes: o Four words: _The Path of Daggers_. o Damn it, people, update those FAQ pointers. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ) for rec.arts.sf.written.robert-jordan Welcome to the rec.arts.sf.written.robert-jordan Usenet newsgroup. Before you rush off to post, we strongly recommend and request that you peruse this small document, which attempts to answer the most Frequently Asked Questions about Robert Jordan, The Wheel of Time series and the rec.arts.sf.written.robert-jordan newsgroup. TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. HISTORY AND CHARTER OF REC.ARTS.SF.WRITTEN.ROBERT-JORDAN 2. MOST FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT ROBERT JORDAN. 1. Who is Robert Jordan? 2. What is the Wheel of Time? What are the book titles? 3. What's the title of the next book? 4. When will the next book be published? 5. How many books will the Wheel of Time series end up being? 6. Is Robert Jordan on the Net? 7. Are there any other books about the Wheel of Time? 8. What will Jordan write after he finishes The Wheel of Time? 9. What else do I read while I wait for Book 8? 10. Are there any Wheel of Time related games? 11. Can someone type in an mail me a copy of SaSG? 12. What about the artwork? 3. GENERAL COURTESY AND NEWSGROUP SPECIFIC CONVENTIONS/POLICIES. 1. How to post so that you don't look like a fool or upset people 2. Spoiler Policy 3. The TAN Subject Header Convention. 4. COMMON ABBREVIATIONS 5. NEWSGROUP RESOURCES & ARCHIVES 1. The Wheel of Time FAQ. 2. The Jordan Archives (FTP site and WWW home page). 3. Wheel of Time WWW Index 6. OTHER AREAS OF ROBERT JORDAN FANDOM 1. Fan Clubs 2. Online Role Playing Games (MUSH/MOO/MUD) 7. HOW TO FIND THE LATEST VERSION OF THIS FAQ. 8. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS * * * Section 1: HISTORY AND CHARTER OF REC.ARTS.SF.WRITTEN.ROBERT-JORDAN This newsgroup, rec.arts.sf.written.robert-jordan, was created in July 1994 for the discussion of books written by contemporary author Robert Jordan (a pseudonym, see next section). In particular, this newsgroup is concerned with his ongoing "Wheel of Time" series, but also covers past and future works by him. Fandom is specifically included within the purview of this charter. The group is unmoderated. The discussions in this group originated in rec.arts.sf.written (the general group for discussion of all science fiction and fantasy books), where they were carried on for upwards of two years before this group was created. A more detailed history by Bill Garrett is available from http://www.cs.unc.edu:80/~garrett/jordan/history.html * * * Section 2: MOST FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT ROBERT JORDAN. Q: Who is Robert Jordan? A: Robert Jordan is actually a pseudonym for James Oliver Rigney, Jr., under which he has written seven volumes of the "Wheel of Time" fantasy series as well as seven books of the "Conan" series. Other pseudonyms are Reagan O'Neal ("Fallon" series; historic fiction), Jackson O'Reilly ("Cheyenne Raiders"; western), and Chang Lung (contributions to various periodicals including Library Journal). [Source: Contemporary Authors vol. 140] Q: What is The Wheel of Time? What are the book titles? A: The Wheel of Time is an in-progress series of fantasy books with a very complex plot that has gathered a large following of very devoted fans. The books in "The Wheel of Time" series are (so far; in order): The Eye of the World ISBN 0-312-85009-3 The Great Hunt ISBN 0-312-85140-5 The Dragon Reborn ISBN 0-312-85248-7 The Shadow Rising ISBN 0-312-85431-5 The Fires of Heaven ISBN 0-312-85427-7 Lord of Chaos ISBN 0-312-85428-5 A Crown of Swords ISBN 0-312-85767-5 All seven are available in both hardcover and paperback editions. (Despite popular misconception, there are hardcover editions of the first two books. The FAQ maintainer happens to own such copies.) All of the Wheel of Time books in the United States and Canada are published by Tor Books ( http://www.tor.com/ ). UK/International versions are published by Orbit. See the Wheel of Time FAQ for ISBN numbers and prices (see Section 5.1 for directions on where to get the Wheel of Time FAQ). Q: What is the title of the next book? A: According to Tor's web page, as well as a voice mail telephone number which Tor publishing has set up, the title of the next book will be _The Path of Daggers_. The Tor phone number is 388-0100 extension 701, and is a recording of Robert Jordan himself, giving some details of the publishing schedule. Q: So when will I be able to buy it? A: Again, PNH has not told us, and again, he probably doesn't know yet. In an on-line chat, Robert Jordan gave a very tentative guess that he would deliver the eighth book in the fall of 1997, which means a reasonable publication date is spring of 1998. Eek. Quasi-Update: This information has been repeated by Jordan several times over the past months in varying locations, signings, and chats. Even though the information is not changing, it represents our best knowledge. Q: How many books will the Wheel of Time series end up being? A: In a recent letter from Robert Jordan (published on the Tor homepage) he tells us that the series will take at least ten books, though he is unsure of the final number. Q: Is Robert Jordan on the Net? A: No. He understands its addictiveness and can't afford the time. If you want to write to him, send a letter in care of Tor Books: Robert Jordan c/o Tor Books 175 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10010 Q: Are there any other books about The Wheel of Time? A: Not yet, but one is in the works. The web page for Tor Books indicates that _The World of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time_, by Teresa Patterson and Robert Jordan, will be published in November of 1997. Robert Jordan tells us that the artist is Cameron Hamilton (implying that Daryl Sweet will have little or no part), that the projected legnth is 80,000 words and 64 color illustrations including a complete map of the world, and that there will be information in that book not available in any other books. There is a recently written short story called "The Strike at Shayol Ghul" by Robert Jordan. The story was published as part of the Balticon XXX program guide, and details a bit of the events leading up to and including the strike at Shayol Ghul. WHILE SUPPLIES LAST, you can obtain one by sending six stamps, a request for the program guide, and a donation the Reading is Fundamental charity in any amount you can afford to the folks at Balticon at: B30 BSFAN P. O. Box 686 Baltimore, MD 21203-0686 Make any donation checks or money orders payable to the RIF charity. This short story is now available on-line at the Tor books web page, specifically at http://www.tor.com/shayol.html Q: What will Jordan write after he finishes the Wheel of Time? A: Robert Jordan has said that he has plans for a series tentatively titled "Shipwrecked", based on a Seanchan-like world and events revolving around a character who washes ashore. But he doesn't plan to start writing it until he finishes the Wheel of Time series. Q: What else can I read while I wait for Book 8? A: Tor is capitalizing on Jordan's popularity by rereleasing some of Robert Jordan's older works. A hardcover compendium of three of Jordan's seven "Conan" novels is currently in stores as "The Conan Chronicles", and includes "Conan the Invincible", "Conan the Defender" and "Conan the Unconquered". A hardcover of "The Fallon Blood" under Tor's 'Forge' imprint is also currently available in stores. It is a historical novel set in the Revolutionary War period, and is the first of a three-part series. (The sequels are expected to be reprinted in the future as well, but are currently out of print.) A bibliography of Jordan's works is maintained at: http://cegt201.bradley.edu/~jsn/bib1.html Q: Are there any Wheel of Time related games? A: Not yet, but Mayfair Games plans to release a Wheel of Time expansion set for its Fantasy Adventures collectible card game sometime in 1996. See their ad inside the back cover of the Lord of Chaos US mass-market paperback. (See also Section 6.2 for a list of online role playing games.) Also, Legend Entertainment Company, which produced the game "Death Gate", has reputedly picked up the license to create a Wheel of Time PC Game. According to the designer, it will be first person, set in a DOOM like engine, but be geared toward multi-person play. There is no firm information on a release, but it isn't past the concept stage at this point, so the game is a long way off. Q: Can anyone type up and send me SaSG (or anything else)? A: No. No. A thousand times, no. No. Not legally. Nothing which Robert Jordan has written is in the public domain. Everything which Robert Jordan has ever published is covered under copyright laws. That means everything. Please note that under the Berne Convention, an international agreement to which almost all nations (including the United States) are signatory, _all_ written works are under copyright automatically, even when no explicit copyright is mentioned. Seriously. This applies to EVERYTHING, most especially published materials. For emphasis, the _A Crown of Swords_ prologue, even though available through the World Wide Web, is not public domain. You may of course add a link to that page in any page you create, but the text itself is not public domain. For emphasis, the story "The Strike at Shayol Ghul" is not public domain. If you receive an electronic copy of this story, be advised that it is stolen property in a very real fashion, and the person from whom you received it is a thief. Asking for electronic copies of Robert Jordan's material to be posted or mailed is asking for commission of theft. It is in extremely poor taste. Please do not do it here. Q: What about the artwork? A: That's slightly different. Artwork falls into two categories, cover art and chapter icons. Cover art may be used, as long as you do not delete any of the text from the coer (for instance, Robert Jordan's name, the title, quotes on the back, etc.) Chapter icons, until recently, were off limits. According to PNH, this has changed. It is now permissible to use scanned in chapter icons on Jordan-related web pages or printed materials, so long as you note that the icons are copyrighted by Tor books and used with permission. You MAY NOT place chapter icons on any consumer good, nor may you sell them or make money from them. Interior maps, unfortunately, are still off-limits. You may not scan in and use interior maps. * * * Section 3: GENERAL COURTESY AND NEWSGROUP SPECIFIC CONVENTIONS/POLICIES. Section 3.1: General Courtesy: Before you post, please read the newsgroup for a while. This is the best way to see how things are done, and you'll probably find that whatever question/point you wish to pose has already been discussed before. You will want to take this into account if and when you bring it up. We urge all readers to follow these few points of "netiquette" to avoid irritating people and to increase the likelihood that people respond to your ideas. The idea behind these recommendations is two-fold. First, to make the newsgroup run as smoothly and pleasantly for all concerned, both old-timer and new user. Second, to help the new user communicate efficiently, because communication is the prime goal of Usenet. The idea is NOT to stifle discussion or add unnecessary restrictions. It should also be noted that all of these maxims can and should be applied to every Usenet newsgroup, not only this one. Section 3.1.1: Read the Wheel of Time FAQ. Before posting your brilliant new idea (e.g. "Hey! I think Shaiel = Tigraine," or "Hey! Maybe Slayer = Luc + Isam!"), make sure it has not been discussed to death months before. The collected wisdom of the jordan discussions is available in the form of the Wheel of Time FAQ. It is a huge document, and even if you don't feel like reading it all at once, you should read it at some point, and at least search it for keywords before bringing up something that has already been discussed. Details on how to get the Wheel of Time FAQ are found in in section 5.1 below. Note that just because a topic is covered in the Wheel of Time FAQ does not mean you cannot post to the newsgroup about it. However, it would be a good idea, and the polite thing to do, if you check the WoT FAQ first so that you can consider previous discussion of your idea and hopefully discover something we all missed. Section 3.1.2: Keep quoting to a minimum. Only keep as much of the previous post post as is necessary for people to know what you are talking about. Summarize wherever possible (i.e. instead of 20 lines of included text, summarize it in a sentence). Make sure you attribute the right things to the right people, and ALWAYS DELETE .sigs WHEN QUOTING. On the same token, don't post a reply to a specific post without quoting or summarizing at least some of it. The idea is to include *just enough* context for people who have not seen the article to which you are replying (which can happen quite frequently) to be able to understand your comments. Section 3.1.3: Use descriptive subject headers. If you want to discuss the intermarriages of the royal houses in Andor, use a subject line like "Royal Lineage in Andor". Threads (lines of discussion) often drift from their original topic. When this happens, subject lines might have little to do with the content of the articles. Try to avoid this situation by using a new title when you start a new thread, and try not to drift from the topic too much within a thread. Drift is inevitable, though, and when it happens, it's usually appropriate to rename the thread. To continue the example above, if the topic shifts from royal lineage to Rand's parents to intermarriages in the Two Rivers, you might rename the thread "Two Rivers Genealogy (was Re: Royal Lineage in Andor)" or simply "Two Rivers Genealogy". If it shifts to non-book related material, include TAN in the Subject line (see Section 3.3). Section 3.1.4: Avoid incendiary language and unconstructive criticism. Words like "rip-off," "crap," and "semi-literate, brainwashed fools" will irritate people, even if that was not your intent. If you disagree with someone, tell the group why you disagree; don't just call that person names. Section 3.1.5: Legibility, readability and other miscellenia. Usenet is a media designed to facilitate communication, and the rasfwrj newsgroup is a fairly busy newsgroup, with many articles streaming in every day. A good way to encourage people to read your articles is to present them in a format which makes them pleasing to as many eyes as possible. The following are a few helpful hints on how to keep your articles legible. Make a paragraph form by introducing a blank line between each paragraph, and a blank line between quoted text and your own text. Put "quote marks" in front of each line of quoted text. Many newsreaders do this automatically, by putting a '>' symbol at the beginning of each line. Keep your line lengths to below 80 characters, preferably somewhere in the range of 70 to 75 characters, so that people reading news on standard 80 column terminals (that is, most of us) can both read and quote your text easily. Finally, make some attempt to follow the dictates of English grammar. It is a given that people will make mistakes, mispellings and the occasional gaffe. No one claims to be perfect (for very long). Likewise, we all have our own style. But in general, posts which are written in good English, with proper capitalization and punctuation are the easiest to read. And we all want people to read our posts with the minimum possible effort. Section 3.2: Spoiler Policy: When a new book comes out, some people obtain and read it before other people do. People who have read parts of the book want to talk about them, but people who haven't gotten that far don't want you to spoil the surprises for them. When not everybody has read what you want to talk about, be sure to include the keyword "SPOILERS" in the subject line along with the title of the book you're talking about. For example, Subject: LoC: Padan Fain (SPOILERS) Just be sure not to spoil the book with the title! Spoiler warnings are really important for the first few months after a new book comes out and becomes less important after that time. You should also include a spoiler warning at the top of the message itself, with either a form-feed (control-L) or several (20 or so) blanks lines to hide the spoiler from those who do not wish to see it. Currently accepted practice is to use spoiler warnings for about six weeks after the Hardcover release in the United States Due to the inherent nature of Usenet and the types of discussion typical on rasfwrj, it is virtually impossible to maintain spoiler warning for longer periods. Therefore, those of you who wait to buy the paperback version are out of luck, unfortunately yet unavoidably. Sorry... :-( Consider yourself forewarned, and exercise due caution when/if you read rasfwrj (unless you don't mind spoilers, of course). Section 3.3: The "TAN:" Subject Header It is inevitable that there will be threads that do not directly pertain to the books, and it is inevitable that this sort of thing will annoy some people. In order to keep things civilized, it is suggested that such discussions be labeled "TAN:" for "tangential." For example: Subject: TAN: Warder Applications Subject: TAN: Plot Contest Subject: TAN: What did Lanfear give Roy for his birthday? * * * Section 4: COMMON ABBREVIATIONS You may note that there are many strange and arcane acronyms and abbreviations used on this group. Here are interpretations of the most commonly used: TWoT = The Wheel of Time (also just WoT) TEotW = The Eye of the World (sometimes just EOW) TGH = The Great Hunt TDR = The Dragon Reborn TSR = The Shadow Rising TFoH = The Fires of Heaven (sometimes just FOH) LoC = Lord of Chaos CoS/ACoS = A Crown of Swords rasfw = rec.arts.sf.written (also "r.a.sf.w", sometimes "rasw" ) rasfwrj = rec.arts.sf.written.robert-jordan (also "r.a.sf.w.r-j") AOL = Age of Legends (or America OnLine, depending on context) AS = Aes Sedai (or Amyrlin Seat) Asm = Asmodean BA = Black Ajah DF = Darkfriend DFS/DS = Darkfriend Social (Two usages: The event in the Prologue of TGH, or a real-life meeting of newsgroup members.) DO = Dark One DotNM = Daughter of the Nine Moons Eg/Egw = Egwene El = Elayne Ish/Ishy = Ishamael LTT = Lews Therin Telamon Mog/Moggy = Moghedien Mo/Moi/Moir = Moiraine MPS = Mad Passionate Sex, (c) Mike Macchione MT = Mazrim Taim Ny/Nyn = Nynaeve OP = One Power PNH = Patrick Nielsen Hayden (Sr. Editor, Tor Books). Randland = The Wheel of Time world. Sometimes used to refer to the entire world, sometimes just the mainland areas shown on the maps. RJ = Robert Jordan (also referred to as 'The Creator') SG = Shayol Ghul SS = Siuan Sanche TAR/T'A'R = Tel'aran'rhiod TS = True Source TV = Tar Valon WC/WCs = Whitecloak(s) WO/WOs = Wise One(s) WT = White Tower YKYBRTMRJW = You Know You've Been Reading Too Much Robert Jordan When... (also IKIHBRTMRJ = I Know I Have Been...) And a few of the most common Usenet-wide acronyms: AFAIK = As Far As I Know (also AFAIR = As Far As I Remember) FAQ = Frequently Asked Question(s) FWIW = For What It's Worth HTH = Hope This Helps(Helped) IIRC = If I Remember Correctly IMHO = In My Humble Opinion (also IMNSHO, where NS = Not So; IMNAAHO, where NAA = Not At All; IMAO = In My Arrogant Opinion) ROFL/ROTFL = Rolling On the Floor, Laughing RTFF = Read The Flaming FAQ! YMMV = Your Milage May Vary ("Tastes Vary") WWW = World Wide Web grep = (verb) search, usually a file for key words. (from a Unix command to search files for words). Ob (prefix) = Obligatory reference to something. (For example, an ObJordan is an obligatory reference to RJ, usually in an article that would otherwise be off-topic. But usage varies; often, it indicates a reference to an inside-joke or past event.) YHBT. YHL. HAND. = You Have Been Trolled. You Have Lost. Have A Nice Day. Indicates you interpreted words at face value when they were intended to be a joke. Enjoy a good laugh, it happens to the best of us too. * * * Section 5: NEWSGROUP RESOURCES AND ARCHIVES This FAQ isn't even the tip of the metaphorical iceberg of Robert Jordan fandom accumulated on the Internet and other venues. We strongly suggest that you download a copy of the Wheel of Time FAQ, a much lengthier collection of questions, discussion, humor, and fandom. There is also tons more information, collections and humor available by anonymous ftp or on the WWW. (See the end of Section 5.2 for directions on how to use ftp.) Section 5.1: The Wheel of Time FAQ. The Wheel of Time FAQ is an extensive collection of culled from discussions of the Wheel of Time over the past several years. It includes summaries of many discussions/conclusions/ideas/theories from Usenet and other sources, plus a list of collected prophecies from the books for your handy reference. It is STRONGLY RECOMMENDED that you get a copy of the Wheel of Time FAQ and check if your idea has been already discussed before you post it. Pam Korda maintains the Wheel of Time FAQ and posts it to rasfwrj as her schedule permits, which is roughly once couple months. You can always obtain a copy by sending Pam email at kor2@midway.uchicago.edu or by downloading it via anonymous ftp from ftp.cc.gatech.edu (the Jordan Archive site; see below). Note that there are TWO versions of the Wheel of Time FAQ: one contains discussions (spoilers) for book 6, Lord of Chaos; the other only contains discussions through book 5, The Fires of Heaven: /pub/people/viren/jordan/wot-loc.FAQ (through Lord of Chaos) /pub/people/viren/jordan/wot-tfoh.FAQ (through The Fires of Heaven) (Note that it's "viren" and not "verin"....) Both versions of the Wheel of Time FAQ are available on the WWW: http://www.cc.gatech.edu/ftp/people/viren/www/jordan/FAQ.html http://www.cc.gatech.edu/ftp/people/viren/www/jordan/preLoC.html Andy Carlson has set up an automatic server to email copies of the Lord of Chaos version of the Wheel of Time FAQ. Send an email message to jordan@andyc.carenet.org (subject and body don't matter.) Versions of the Wheel of Time FAQ are also available on America Online, Prodigy and Compuserve, though they may be out of date or modified. On America Online, the WoT FAQ is in the Fantasy Library section of the Fantasy and Science Fiction Area (Keyword: SF). On Compuserve, it is in the Science Fiction Literature Forum Library in the Fantasy Section (GO: SFLIT). On Prodigy, a variation of the WoT FAQ is posted on the Science Fiction/Fantasy Bulletin Board in the Robert Jordan Topic about once every two months in three parts, under the subjects FAQ, GTW, and JORDANFAQ. Info on Prodigy Exporting can be found by JUMPing: Bulletin Boards under the section entitled "BB How To's." Section 5.2: The Jordan Archives (FTP site and WWW home page). The Jordan Archives contain an extensive collection of information culled from the discussion on rasfwrj and from earlier discussions on rec.arts.sf.written. In addition to this FAQ and the Wheel of Time FAQ, it contains numberous other submissions ranging from humor (filksongs, The Dark One's Dictionary, etc.), results from surveys and plot submission contests, collections of information from the books (an Old Tongue dictionary, character lists, etc.) and much more. The Jordan archives are available by anonymous ftp to ftp.cc.gatech.edu in the directory /pub/people/viren/jordan and various subdirectories. All of the archive is available from the Wheel of Time Home Page: http://www.cc.gatech.edu/ftp/people/viren/www/jordan/jordan.html Or from one of the mirror WWW site: Europe (Germany): Helmut Geyer's mirror WWW site: http://polyhymnia.iwr.uni-heidelberg.de:8080/jordan/jordan.html The Wheel of Time Home Page contains links to the web pages of several of the regular posters to rasfwrj, some of whom also have Jordan related web pages. HOW TO USE ANONYMOUS FTP: Use the login name of "anonymous" or "ftp", and type your email address for the password. Type "cd /pub/people/viren/jordan" to change to the correct directory, use "ls" to see what files are there, and use "get file" (replace 'file' with the name of the file) to copy the file to your local machine. Also, don't type in the quotes.) For more information, ask someone at your local site since they will be able to best answer questions regarding your specific software/setup.) Section 5.3: The Compleat Wheel of Time WWW Index Pam Korda also maintains an index of all the Wheel of Time related resources on the WWW at http://student-www.uchicago.edu/users/kor2/WOT/WOTindex.html * * * Section 6: OTHER AREAS OF ROBERT JORDAN FANDOM Section 6.1: Fan Clubs: The fan clubs listed below are dedicated to Robert Jordan and/or the Wheel of Time. There may be others that I haven't heard of because they don't have a net.presence. The Wheel of Time Club run by Carolyn Fusinato is now defunct. The Robert Jordan/Wheel of Time Fan Club: The RJ/WOT Fan Club publishes an 8-10 page bimonthly newsletter, "Threads", as "a forum for Jordanites to discuss their views of the series in letters and articles, serious or humorous." Shosh is no longer associated with the Robert Jordan/Wheel of Time Fan Club. Please direct all inquiries to: RJ/WOT Fan Club P.O. Box 463 Mansfield, MO 65704 or: agiddens@mail.orion.org Section 6.2: Roleplaying Games: There are several online roleplaying games on the internet that have Wheel of Time themes or areas. For the MUSHS/MUDs/MOOs, basically, just telnet to the site (e.g, "telnet unix.pretend.com 8888") and follow the directions on your screen. For more information on about what a MUSH actually is, check out the rec.games.mud.* newsgroups and their FAQ(s) at ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/games/mud-faq There exists a list of Jordan-based MUDs at http://www.io.con/~sionnach/mud/jordan.html Section 6.3: Mailing Lists: Ron Festine runs and maintains the Robert Jordan List, for those overwhelmed by the bandwidth of the newsgroup: A great discussion group, especially helpful to readers new to Robert Jordan's books, takes place via email. To subscribe send a brief message to rfestine@spider.lloyd.com. Advanced readers are welcome also, but please, no jumping on newbies. A list is maintained at: http://www.icon-stl.net/~samsysd/rjl.html * * * Section 7: HOW TO FIND THE LATEST VERSION OF THIS FAQ. As always, the most up-to-date version of this FAQ can be obtained via anonymous ftp from rtfm.mit.edu (the official news.answers archive site, where all FAQs that are posted to news.answers are kept), in directory /pub/usenet/news.answers/sf as the file robert-jordan-faq. On the WWW (World Wide Web), use the URL (Uniform resource locator) http://www.landfield.com/faqs/by-newsgroup/rec/rec.arts.sf.written.rober t-jordan.html or use ftp://joeshaw.bevc.blacksburg.va.us/pub/jordan/robert-jordan-faq or ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/sf/robert-jordan-faq for a plain text version of the FAQ. This FAQ is also available on the rasfwrj archive site (ftp.cc.gatech.edu) mentioned above, but it is not currently updated automatically every time the FAQ is posted. Andy Carlson has set up an automatic server to email copies of this FAQ. Send an email message to rasfwrj@andyc.carenet.org (subject and body don't matter.) Or, you can always send me email at jsn@cegt201.bradley.edu and just ask me for a copy. As a last resort, you can use the news.answers ftp-by-mail server. Send a message to mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu with the following two lines in the body (not the subject) of the message: send usenet/news.answers/sf/robert-jordan-faq quit Be warned that the turnaround time for the rtfm mail server can be rather slow. * * * Section 8: ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This FAQ was created by Bill Garrett, Pam Korda and Joe Shaw, and is maintained by John S. Novak, III. The authors and maintainer wish to thank the many people who have contributed information, with Special Thanks to Patrick Nielsen Hayden of Tor Books. This document was prepared under strict supervision by the Secret Usenet Cabal and has been brought to you by the letter U. -- John S. Novak, III jsn@cegt201.bradley.edu The Humblest Man on the Net