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(no subject)
Aug. 9th, 2026 09:56 pmOne of the things I was able to do during my enforced staycation this week was actually play video games. For my birthday, I'd picked up the Namco Pack for Atari 50 (If only seven year old me knew what my Atari 2600 library looked like at 52).
I was really surprised at how well those arcade ports tranlated to the 2600. Yeah, you lost resolution and a lot of colors...but the gameplay was there. Dig Dug was really well done as was Galaxian.
Pac-Man...well...I liked it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tX6l7y9IPE
I was really surprised at how well those arcade ports tranlated to the 2600. Yeah, you lost resolution and a lot of colors...but the gameplay was there. Dig Dug was really well done as was Galaxian.
Pac-Man...well...I liked it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tX6l7y9IPE
(no subject)
Aug. 8th, 2026 12:11 amSo, because of the smoke, I've stayed in most of the whole week. A few years ago, I suffered from a chronic cough that took years to diagnose and fix. But since then, my lungs aren't really happy in bad air.
It's not so much an asthma thing as they just react to the bad air with phelgmy chronic deep coughs. I had some chores I needed to do today, so I decided to go out and get them done. The air quality wasn't the best, but it wasn't nearly as bad as it had been, and I was only going to be out an hour or so.
My lungs are telling me it was bad enough, and I've been coughing all evening. Thankfully, it's nothing worse than coughing up junk, but I'm going to stay in this weekend and hope I straighten out before Monday.
It's not so much an asthma thing as they just react to the bad air with phelgmy chronic deep coughs. I had some chores I needed to do today, so I decided to go out and get them done. The air quality wasn't the best, but it wasn't nearly as bad as it had been, and I was only going to be out an hour or so.
My lungs are telling me it was bad enough, and I've been coughing all evening. Thankfully, it's nothing worse than coughing up junk, but I'm going to stay in this weekend and hope I straighten out before Monday.
(no subject)
Aug. 5th, 2026 12:00 amThere's a quote I say a lot when I'm handed a crushing defeat: "What's a warrior to do when you lose the big one? Win some of the small ones." That was today. Lots of little wins.
With the constant shrinking on my vacation from, Historic Road Trip to Cross State Road Trip, to Coastal Road TRip, to "let's stay home" to "Wow, going out in the bakyard is really yuck" I felt like I was going to lose my vacation.
Instead I decided to ramp things down a bit. We took care of a bunch of chores, got our to do list in order and knocked out, and...
...I played video games. Do you know how long it's been since I really sat down and had a multi-hour run of video games? I managed to finally finish Echoes of Wisdom, the only game I've really played since it came out AND THAT WAS TWO YEARS AGO.
After that there was some database work with my video game shrine, updating a few games I'd recently picked up (A lot of Namco retro games, as well as Kangaroo for the Atari 5200). This was officially a "chore" but one I enjoyed, so I didn't mind doing it on my time off.
And that evening I sat and watched The Black Hole with a friend. Watched it with some good Middleswarth chips and Birch Beer.
And so I stayed inside all day cause the smoke outside was nasty. And I had a good time of it. And gven everything going on right now? I could use a good time.
With the constant shrinking on my vacation from, Historic Road Trip to Cross State Road Trip, to Coastal Road TRip, to "let's stay home" to "Wow, going out in the bakyard is really yuck" I felt like I was going to lose my vacation.
Instead I decided to ramp things down a bit. We took care of a bunch of chores, got our to do list in order and knocked out, and...
...I played video games. Do you know how long it's been since I really sat down and had a multi-hour run of video games? I managed to finally finish Echoes of Wisdom, the only game I've really played since it came out AND THAT WAS TWO YEARS AGO.
After that there was some database work with my video game shrine, updating a few games I'd recently picked up (A lot of Namco retro games, as well as Kangaroo for the Atari 5200). This was officially a "chore" but one I enjoyed, so I didn't mind doing it on my time off.
And that evening I sat and watched The Black Hole with a friend. Watched it with some good Middleswarth chips and Birch Beer.
And so I stayed inside all day cause the smoke outside was nasty. And I had a good time of it. And gven everything going on right now? I could use a good time.
(no subject)
Aug. 1st, 2026 08:37 pmIt's been a week since I put the script for Star Trek's "The God Thing" online. The final result of a month of trying to get this thing verified, a few false starts for making it available publicly, and one last final sprint of proofreading to get it online.
But what did I actually think of it?
Generally, I think it's safe to say that despite the common reaction to bits and pieces of The God Thing being, "This is a terribly silly idea that wasn't going to go anywhere," the script is actually serious about its premise. For the most part, it’s played straight and has some genuinely chilling and thoughtful moments. There are some spots where it does veer really deep into silliness and, well, Gene is gonna Gene. But in the end, this was a serious attempt the make a movie that asks "What if God was an alien?" The premise was big in the early 1970s, with Chariots of the Gods? style books everywhere, and The God Thing tries to examine that idea in a truly Star Trek way.
The Good:
I really enjoyed some of the more creepy moments of the script.
The extent of the God Thing’s influence within Starfleet is pretty chilling, too. Starfleet is still just going about its everyday business. Admirals and officers going about their work, and casually saying they're doing it for the greater glory of God.
Random people coming up to Kirk, fully knowing he's on his way to secretly meet with his old crew members, quoting scripture. Assassination attempts on Kirk that come very close to succeeding, only failing when the assassins "prove God's love for Kirk." Another involves two people dressed as doctors assassinating an Admiral while a child looks on, knowingly brandishing a crucifix. I was getting some serious The Omen or '70s-era James Bond vibes from these scenes.
For all its silliness, the oil-covered women athletes turned assassins scene is very much a Gene Roddenberry moment. But what was surprising was how it was handled. It's a silly moment that's actually handled rather well. The dialogue is chilling and plays on Kirk's womanizing, with one of the athletes telling him "You've always loved women like us, Jim. Wouldn't this be a frightening way to die?" They know him, they know what he likes, and they're going to use it to kill him.
I was really happy with how Uhura was shown in the script. She was a Captain in her own right, confident in her command, and actually complains when the God Object forces them all back in their old uniforms and ranks. The Object also speaks through her, and I would have loved to see Nichelle Nichols thundering out "I AM THE BEGINNING! I AM THE NOW! I AM FOREVER!"
The first half of the movie is really well done.
The Bad:
The last half of the movie is where it kind of goes a little off kilter.
The 20th century theme park section is pretty goofy, and Scotty drunkenly running a 20th century bar complete with showtunes just feels very not-Scotty. I could see one or the other, but not both.
The behavior and motives of the God Thing become increasingly confusing. Oftentimes, it's helping Kirk get the crew back together, other times it's interfering. While the explanation of "It's gathering Earth's finest, because if it can take over them, it can take over anyone" is floated around, it's already taken over many people. Even the ending is confused enough that the Visitor itself tells Kirk it isn’t sure why it’s giving him the final “gift.”
Something that I consider "Bad," though I’m not sure it actually would have been one if the script had been completed, is a subplot using the Spock/Chapel relationship to explore Spock’s humanity. It’s dropped very quickly. I personally suspect this was added during revisions, since the revisions stop at page 86 and the subplot never gets a real payoff. That said, Gene seems to think exploring humanity with Chapel involves a lot of sex.
The Ugly:
When I was first studying the Gene Roddenberry versus Harold Livingston writing styles for The Motion Picture, there was one thing I really leaned on to determine who wrote what: Gene likes a slower pace, and to explain the story to the audience. The God Thing is full of scenes where the action stops for a crew briefing, explaining things that just happened. While this is kind of a necessary evil for sci-fi, it's done so often, for things so obvious that it starts to slow the action down.
With the script now published, I've had some time to really think about its place in the creation of Star Trek: The Motion Picture. There were definite themes Gene was exploring in the early 70s. Genesis II's "Robot's Return" is essentially The Motion Picture without the Star Trek set dressing, set completely on Earth. The God Thing seems to be a first attempt to take the Robot's Return idea and put it in space. The Object is very much an early analogue for V'Ger, and even the trip inside the Object mirrors the trip inside V'Ger. The Visitor, while not exactly the Ilia-probe of The Motion Picture, is similar. And of course, Spock's exorcism of his human half is moved almost directly into the movie.
One last thing before I finish up here. The last third of the movie, where the Visitor visits the Enterprise and takes on the image of Jesus, was one of the strongest examples that this script was legitimate for me. Kirk meeting Jesus should sound silly given the information and anecdotes we've heard over the decades. However, on reading this third of the script, I was really feeling echoes of the Original Series episode "The Savage Curtain." In that episode, Kirk greets the image of Abraham Lincoln, giving him full honors for an American president when he absolutely knows Abraham Lincoln cannot exist here. For most of the time Jesus is aboard the ship, Kirk affords him every courtesy and freedom appropriate to the figure he resembles, while knowing full well that this is not actually Jesus.
In all, I was fairly impressed by the script, but can totally see why this was not going to fly for a Star Trek film in 1975.
If you read the script, what did you think of it?
If you haven't read the script, you can read it here: http://www.dolari.net/scripts/97506.30%20-%20Star%20Trek%20II-OCR-Transcription.html
#StarTrek #TheGodThing
But what did I actually think of it?
Generally, I think it's safe to say that despite the common reaction to bits and pieces of The God Thing being, "This is a terribly silly idea that wasn't going to go anywhere," the script is actually serious about its premise. For the most part, it’s played straight and has some genuinely chilling and thoughtful moments. There are some spots where it does veer really deep into silliness and, well, Gene is gonna Gene. But in the end, this was a serious attempt the make a movie that asks "What if God was an alien?" The premise was big in the early 1970s, with Chariots of the Gods? style books everywhere, and The God Thing tries to examine that idea in a truly Star Trek way.
The Good:
I really enjoyed some of the more creepy moments of the script.
The extent of the God Thing’s influence within Starfleet is pretty chilling, too. Starfleet is still just going about its everyday business. Admirals and officers going about their work, and casually saying they're doing it for the greater glory of God.
Random people coming up to Kirk, fully knowing he's on his way to secretly meet with his old crew members, quoting scripture. Assassination attempts on Kirk that come very close to succeeding, only failing when the assassins "prove God's love for Kirk." Another involves two people dressed as doctors assassinating an Admiral while a child looks on, knowingly brandishing a crucifix. I was getting some serious The Omen or '70s-era James Bond vibes from these scenes.
For all its silliness, the oil-covered women athletes turned assassins scene is very much a Gene Roddenberry moment. But what was surprising was how it was handled. It's a silly moment that's actually handled rather well. The dialogue is chilling and plays on Kirk's womanizing, with one of the athletes telling him "You've always loved women like us, Jim. Wouldn't this be a frightening way to die?" They know him, they know what he likes, and they're going to use it to kill him.
I was really happy with how Uhura was shown in the script. She was a Captain in her own right, confident in her command, and actually complains when the God Object forces them all back in their old uniforms and ranks. The Object also speaks through her, and I would have loved to see Nichelle Nichols thundering out "I AM THE BEGINNING! I AM THE NOW! I AM FOREVER!"
The first half of the movie is really well done.
The Bad:
The last half of the movie is where it kind of goes a little off kilter.
The 20th century theme park section is pretty goofy, and Scotty drunkenly running a 20th century bar complete with showtunes just feels very not-Scotty. I could see one or the other, but not both.
The behavior and motives of the God Thing become increasingly confusing. Oftentimes, it's helping Kirk get the crew back together, other times it's interfering. While the explanation of "It's gathering Earth's finest, because if it can take over them, it can take over anyone" is floated around, it's already taken over many people. Even the ending is confused enough that the Visitor itself tells Kirk it isn’t sure why it’s giving him the final “gift.”
Something that I consider "Bad," though I’m not sure it actually would have been one if the script had been completed, is a subplot using the Spock/Chapel relationship to explore Spock’s humanity. It’s dropped very quickly. I personally suspect this was added during revisions, since the revisions stop at page 86 and the subplot never gets a real payoff. That said, Gene seems to think exploring humanity with Chapel involves a lot of sex.
The Ugly:
When I was first studying the Gene Roddenberry versus Harold Livingston writing styles for The Motion Picture, there was one thing I really leaned on to determine who wrote what: Gene likes a slower pace, and to explain the story to the audience. The God Thing is full of scenes where the action stops for a crew briefing, explaining things that just happened. While this is kind of a necessary evil for sci-fi, it's done so often, for things so obvious that it starts to slow the action down.
With the script now published, I've had some time to really think about its place in the creation of Star Trek: The Motion Picture. There were definite themes Gene was exploring in the early 70s. Genesis II's "Robot's Return" is essentially The Motion Picture without the Star Trek set dressing, set completely on Earth. The God Thing seems to be a first attempt to take the Robot's Return idea and put it in space. The Object is very much an early analogue for V'Ger, and even the trip inside the Object mirrors the trip inside V'Ger. The Visitor, while not exactly the Ilia-probe of The Motion Picture, is similar. And of course, Spock's exorcism of his human half is moved almost directly into the movie.
One last thing before I finish up here. The last third of the movie, where the Visitor visits the Enterprise and takes on the image of Jesus, was one of the strongest examples that this script was legitimate for me. Kirk meeting Jesus should sound silly given the information and anecdotes we've heard over the decades. However, on reading this third of the script, I was really feeling echoes of the Original Series episode "The Savage Curtain." In that episode, Kirk greets the image of Abraham Lincoln, giving him full honors for an American president when he absolutely knows Abraham Lincoln cannot exist here. For most of the time Jesus is aboard the ship, Kirk affords him every courtesy and freedom appropriate to the figure he resembles, while knowing full well that this is not actually Jesus.
In all, I was fairly impressed by the script, but can totally see why this was not going to fly for a Star Trek film in 1975.
If you read the script, what did you think of it?
If you haven't read the script, you can read it here: http://www.dolari.net/scripts/97506.30%20-%20Star%20Trek%20II-OCR-Transcription.html
#StarTrek #TheGodThing
(no subject)
Aug. 1st, 2026 04:41 pmFourth Vacation starts now!
I meant to post this yesterday, but I had a dental emergency I had to take care of, but given how my third vacation went, I did want to mention that I'm mostly going to be incommunicato.
This won't be like when I went to Kalaloch where I had no wifi or phone, since I'll be at home, but my third vacation got eaten up by obligations and I'm trying not to let that happen this time.
This time? Unless it's an emergency, any work that needs doing this week is happening next week. :)
I meant to post this yesterday, but I had a dental emergency I had to take care of, but given how my third vacation went, I did want to mention that I'm mostly going to be incommunicato.
This won't be like when I went to Kalaloch where I had no wifi or phone, since I'll be at home, but my third vacation got eaten up by obligations and I'm trying not to let that happen this time.
This time? Unless it's an emergency, any work that needs doing this week is happening next week. :)
(no subject)
Jul. 25th, 2026 10:49 pmIt's finally done!
In 1975, Gene Roddenberry wrote the first draft of what was intended to be the first Star Trek movie. Today, it's better known by fans as The God Thing.
About three years ago, I found a copy of the screenplay online. The problem? It was only the first 20 pages.
Then, this January, a complete copy unexpectedly landed in my email inbox.
After reading it thoroughly and verifying that it was legitimate, I began writing a scene-by-scene synopsis. I also wanted to find a way to make the screenplay itself available...either privately or, if I could get the file size small enough, publicly.
Progress was slow until about two weeks ago, when a friend wrote a script that could OCR the PDF while preserving the original text layout (screenplays are heavily formatted). That automated about 90% of the transcription work, and suddenly the race was on to get it published before Star Trek: Las Vegas.
You can find it on The Evolution of Star Trek: The Motion Picture webpage:
http://www.dolari.net/startrek/tmp/index.html
Click the "Genesis II" button at the bottom of the page. On the left is a link labeled "Click Here to Read" next to "Star Trek II (Commonly Known as 'The God Thing')." You can also scroll to the right to read a complete scene-by-scene synopsis.
There's a lot here to explore. It's surprising just how many ideas that eventually appeared in Star Trek: The Motion Picture have their roots in this screenplay. It also settles a few long-standing rumors.
No, Kirk doesn't punch Jesus on the bridge.
Yes, there really is an assassination attempt by voluptuous, oil-bathed women.
I hope this proves useful to Star Trek fans, screenplay enthusiasts, and anyone interested in the fascinating road that eventually led to Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
Enjoy!
#StarTrek
In 1975, Gene Roddenberry wrote the first draft of what was intended to be the first Star Trek movie. Today, it's better known by fans as The God Thing.
About three years ago, I found a copy of the screenplay online. The problem? It was only the first 20 pages.
Then, this January, a complete copy unexpectedly landed in my email inbox.
After reading it thoroughly and verifying that it was legitimate, I began writing a scene-by-scene synopsis. I also wanted to find a way to make the screenplay itself available...either privately or, if I could get the file size small enough, publicly.
Progress was slow until about two weeks ago, when a friend wrote a script that could OCR the PDF while preserving the original text layout (screenplays are heavily formatted). That automated about 90% of the transcription work, and suddenly the race was on to get it published before Star Trek: Las Vegas.
You can find it on The Evolution of Star Trek: The Motion Picture webpage:
http://www.dolari.net/startrek/tmp/index.html
Click the "Genesis II" button at the bottom of the page. On the left is a link labeled "Click Here to Read" next to "Star Trek II (Commonly Known as 'The God Thing')." You can also scroll to the right to read a complete scene-by-scene synopsis.
There's a lot here to explore. It's surprising just how many ideas that eventually appeared in Star Trek: The Motion Picture have their roots in this screenplay. It also settles a few long-standing rumors.
No, Kirk doesn't punch Jesus on the bridge.
Yes, there really is an assassination attempt by voluptuous, oil-bathed women.
I hope this proves useful to Star Trek fans, screenplay enthusiasts, and anyone interested in the fascinating road that eventually led to Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
Enjoy!
#StarTrek
(no subject)
Jul. 17th, 2026 12:12 amYou know you're getting punchy writing synopsis when you're stuck with a missing line of dialogue:
KIRK
(considers it a long moment; then)
[EDITOR'S NOTE: THIS LINE IS CUT OFF FROM OUR SCAN, DETAILED ANALYSIS OF REMAINING CHARACTERS, AI RECONSTRUCTION, AND LITERARY COMPARISON OVER THE COURSE OF HUMAN HISTORY GIVES A 78% CONFIDENCE LEVEL THAT THE NEXT LINE IS WHAT KIRK ORIGINALLY SAID:]
Fuck this shit, I'm going to Arby's
KIRK
(considers it a long moment; then)
[EDITOR'S NOTE: THIS LINE IS CUT OFF FROM OUR SCAN, DETAILED ANALYSIS OF REMAINING CHARACTERS, AI RECONSTRUCTION, AND LITERARY COMPARISON OVER THE COURSE OF HUMAN HISTORY GIVES A 78% CONFIDENCE LEVEL THAT THE NEXT LINE IS WHAT KIRK ORIGINALLY SAID:]
Fuck this shit, I'm going to Arby's
(no subject)
Jul. 15th, 2026 09:13 amSo the Star Trek project I was working on has hit just a tiny snag, but in a good way.
One of the reasons I don't offer my scripts publically isn't to keep them rare, it's a matter of bandwidth. When bots start indexing PDF files repeatedly, that bandwidth stacks up quick. So while I share them with people, I do ask they not share the link.
Today, a friend took on the task of building an Automated OCR script that would look at a PDF, pull the text out of it while maintaining the formatting (scripts are wierdly formatted), and then convert that to one text document, and an HTML form.
So now, a 3.7MB PDF converts with the press of an enter key (And about 5 minutes) into a 258.2KB HTML file.
What does this mean?
It means you'll finally get access to the scripts. In HTML. But I'll keep the originals for anyone who requests them. It's OCR, so there's bound to be typos and issues but it's worth it for the bandwidth savings.
Can't wait for people to see the 20th Century Theme Park. "Ice Cream! Made with REAL animal milk!"
One of the reasons I don't offer my scripts publically isn't to keep them rare, it's a matter of bandwidth. When bots start indexing PDF files repeatedly, that bandwidth stacks up quick. So while I share them with people, I do ask they not share the link.
Today, a friend took on the task of building an Automated OCR script that would look at a PDF, pull the text out of it while maintaining the formatting (scripts are wierdly formatted), and then convert that to one text document, and an HTML form.
So now, a 3.7MB PDF converts with the press of an enter key (And about 5 minutes) into a 258.2KB HTML file.
What does this mean?
It means you'll finally get access to the scripts. In HTML. But I'll keep the originals for anyone who requests them. It's OCR, so there's bound to be typos and issues but it's worth it for the bandwidth savings.
Can't wait for people to see the 20th Century Theme Park. "Ice Cream! Made with REAL animal milk!"
(no subject)
Jun. 30th, 2026 06:32 pmDid you know I was today years old when I realized you don't HAVE to eat the kabob off the stick? Which is great because it's SUPER inceonvenient.
(no subject)
Jun. 3rd, 2026 11:38 amSongs that make Jenn cry everytime she's hears it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJZ_ViDADOE
(no subject)
May. 22nd, 2026 11:23 amI'm watching The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon (I HAVE TIME FOR TV AGAIN!), and my goodness, this is about the time I got tired of River Song.
I actually liked her at first, and on the rewatch I did a few...years?...ago her first few episodes were really good. But about this time, she's really started to become a two-dimensional cliche of herself.
I thought she was a really neat idea, but they don't really explore too much about her being from the Doctor's future outside of the repeated "Spoilers!" line.
I actually liked her at first, and on the rewatch I did a few...years?...ago her first few episodes were really good. But about this time, she's really started to become a two-dimensional cliche of herself.
I thought she was a really neat idea, but they don't really explore too much about her being from the Doctor's future outside of the repeated "Spoilers!" line.
