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Gary
Gygax is the creator of the role-playing game (RPG)
Dungeons & Dragons, -- a game which initiated a new
genre of interactive fiction, presaging the rise of the
Internet. He's my favorite notable person ...!
Gary's
pure ideal of promoting personal liberty and all of the
risky trust of people that that entails is perhaps his greatest
legacy. His 'invention' empowers individuals to be heros
of their own lives and to work together with others in a
fun and meaningful way.
I believe that when scholars look back at this time in history,
the rise of the role-playing game will be looked at as a
bright point in the rising consciousness that people have
about personal liberty, -- much like a political revolution
of sorts against the tendency of the well-moneyed to cram
their ideas and systems at us over a TV, book, etc.
Gary
produced a legacy that inspires people to look within rather
than to someone more powerful for their stories.
And
what more is our life about with each other than our ability
to tell each other stories?
Gary
is still active writing RPGs and promoting liberty through
his web site.
Gene
Roddenberry had a similar philosophy and said about
Star Trek, in talking specificlaly about the Enterprise
as the "medium" for the adventures:
"The
starship Enterprise is not a collection of motion picture
sets or a model used in visual effects. It is a very
real vehicle; one designed for storytelling. You, the
audience, furnish its propulsion. With a wondrous leap
of imagination, you make it into a real spaceship that
can take us into the far reaches of the galaxy and sometimes
even the depths of the human soul."
For
my part in carrying on what these guys have done, I would
like to help ensure that 3-D virtual reality is a place
where people have the tools to create their own worlds,
and are not merely the subjects of worlds created by corporations
like Disney and Nintendo. (Although I love the worlds
these companies create!) Promoting this brand of personal
liberty is what my Zebra
Lines project is about.
...!
join the posse
...!
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