12/02/91 03:54am HOW TO PROPERLY WRITE AN ANARCHY FILE ------------------------------------- Written By The Freddy In Association With The National Network of Anarchists and Nihilists (NNAN) Introduction ------------ Have you seen the number of shitty anarchy files out there? It's pathetic the way some idiots try to write files. I wrote this to give those people and first time writers pointers on how to correctly write a file. Disclaimer ---------- This document was intended for informational purposes ONLY, the author and the National Network of Anarchists and Nihilists do not endorse or support any illegal action presented here or in any other documents which we release. The only motivation for the writing of this document is purely for educating the general public. The author and the National Network of Anarchists and Nihilists will not be held responsible for any actions by the reader of this document. Construction of a Good Anarchy File ----------------------------------- There are many things to remember when writing a file. Here are some pointers: 1) Always have the date and time at the beginning of the file like I have done. This is the most important part of any anarchy file because some material is time-sensitive and it is also nice to know how out-dated a file is. A good example of this is the Jolly Roger Cookbook. A very nicely written piece, however there was no indication of when it was written. Most of the sources to obtain slim jims, lock picks, etc. were out of business by the time I first got hold of it. 2) Always use ASCII. Not ANSI but ASCII. This is for several reasons. One is that some viewers, word processors, etc. do not or cannot support the extended characters. The same holds true for several types of printers. Second, I have what seems like millions of files that were written on Word Perfect, Word Star, Multimate, MS Word, etc. Most people don't have these editors or viewers. I remember it took me two weeks to convert the Terrorist's Cookbook to ASCII from the WP format so I could print it. And finally, ASCII files are smaller and there are several ASCII only editors that have all the same functions of expensive word processors. I personally use MULTI-EDIT V3.00b. Call your local 10 gig public domain board and you will find it or some other qualified ASCII text editor. 3) As a rule of thumb, set margins for 75 characters and never go beyond that. As mentioned before, a good ASCII editor will let you set up margins. This is mainly for printers. You may or may not believe it, but 90% of all anarchists print up files for easy reference. And some files have really strange margins. I once found a file with the right margin at column 100. 4) It is perfectly all right to FUCKIN' cuss in a file. It is also semi-acceptable(but lame) to say PHUCK, FONE, etc.; but never ever write like this: "so you want to be an anarchist? all ya gotta do is learn how to rebel and denounce all government laterz" Slang is okay, but learn to spell and for God's sake use proper punctuation and capitalization. 5) If you are going to include a diagram, schematic, or whatever, try not to do it yourself with ASCII characters if at all possible, unless you are good at it. Get someone else to do it for you. Very few people can draw a good ASCII schematic. If possible include two of each diagram or schematic. One in the text and one in ANSI format or .gif format. There are many draw programs out there. Also it's nice to find a self-loader for your .gif's. Keep the ASCII diagrams, as they will do in a pinch and not everyone can printout .gif files. ANSI is nice and all, but, generally, it should be avoided. 6) Do or have done what you are writing about. I once saw a file that scared me a bit. Here is part of it: "now that theoretically should be the right ratio. I dunno. Tell me if this works." Now if you don't know what the fuck you're writing about, then don't write about it. That simple. Also don't alter files. I once found a file where someone altered the ratios for nitro. Not to nice. If you've done it before, please don't. We don't need assholes like you. 7) You should have a good equipment, chemical, parts, or whatever list. It should also be complete. Like for instance a file construction of a olive box should tell you that: "Quantity Item Source -------- ---- ------ 1 Small plastic box Radio Shack (R.S.270-224) 1 1" x 2" perboard Radio Shack (R.S.276-1395)" I don't know how many times I've seen files which tell you what to get but not specifically. Like: "get some resistors and 2 capacitors" Now if this author knew anything about electronics, he would have known that you need the specific voltages or whatever. Be specific. 8) Also remember, don't use tabs. People have tabs set up for different spaces. You get some pretty strange stuff sometimes. For instance someone might have tab set at 9 characters and you have it a 8 characters. There are also many printers that use funny tab spacings. When you try to view or print these files, you get stuff like: "************************************************************** * How to Make Your Very Own Home-Made Tennis Ball Launcher * * by * * The Stupid Anarchist * * * **************************************************************" Always use the space bar to indent. 9) A disclamer is also important. Even though you don't think so, your handle doesn't conceal your identity. The police, FBI, sectret service, or any other government agency(not to mention Ma Bell) has both the time and the resources to get you nailed if they feel like. Don't laugh at this point. It could save your life. Or maybe 20 years of it. Conclusion ---------- Well, I hope this file will better the quality of the files out there. I can be reached at The DeaTh BoX BBS--(714)970-6710--which is the home of NNAN. Well, it's getting late so until next time, adieu. 12/02/91 04:43am