WELCOME TO MARSDAWN ! ! !

We are glad you are here and we hope you enjoy the time you spend here .

MarsDawn is an interactive Science Fiction website. Though the site may, at first appear expansive, the premise is really quite simple. Brace Emprise, a fictional conglomerate, launched an unmanned mission to Mars using automated AI (artificial intelligence) robotic spider probes. Shortly after the mission launched, Brace Emprise was dissolved. Leaving the six probes alone on Mars. Some former employees of Brace re-established contact and made a fascinating discovery. The probes, having been left on their own for so long, and being programed to learn and react, had begun to exhibit independent thought and action and even personality traits. These former Brace employees sought help from a group of loosely associated "Internet Friends". Together the former Brace employees (MarsDawn staff) and the "Internet Friends" (MARSupials) work to advise and direct the six probes in their activities on MARS.

Obviously, there is much more to the story, but we'll leave the rest for you to discover for yourself.

My name is Grand Zero (my friends call me Zero). I am one of the MARSupials. In other words, I am not on staff here at MarsDawn; I'm just a participant like yourself. I am here to welcome you and to offer you some suggestions on how to get started and how you can best become involved in our little project.

Suggestion #1

Read...Read...Read.

Start with the Project History. That will give you the background you need to know to understand most of what's going on. Go to the Summary page. That will give you some miscellaneous information and a summary of what has happened to date in the project. Then when you have time you can peruse Dilyn's Team, the Team Report, and Current Status . Read the boards to find out how we interact. The Probe Discussion board is where we discuss the mission and matters pertaining to the probes. The MessHall is where we socialize.

Suggestion #2

Introduce Yourself.

Stop by the MessHall and give us a little info to help us get to know you better. You'll be warmly welcomed.

Suggestion #3

Start Posting.

As I mentioned earlier. The Probe Discussion board is where we discuss matters related to the probes and the MarsDawn project. On that board we stay "in character" and practice what we call "suspended disbelief". In other words we act like the project is real and we discuss matters relating to the project. The MessHall is where we socialize. We share cyberfood and music, have cyber parties and generally kick back. Feel free to discuss whatever you want there. If you have technical questions or suggestions or problems about the site, this is the place to bring them up. If you need to vent to some friends, do it in the MessHall. If you have a new joke or story, share it in the MessHall. Remember, though that we encourage kids to participate here, too, so please leave out the profanity and stuff like that as much as possible.

Suggestion #4

Behave yourself.

Rude behavior is generally ignored. If you want to be ignored, just spout a bunch of garbage and we'll do our best to ignore you. Act friendly and we'll reciprocate.

Suggestion #5

A couple of general tips on BBS posting.

Discuss - don't argue. If what you have to say is controversial, don't be offended if people don't agree. In most arguments nobody changes his mind, so don't feel you need to convince or convert. Don't get angry - It doesn't help - it just makes you look bad.
Think before you post. A wise old MARSupial once said, "Think, write, think, post." Good advice. How will your words be received? Are you hurting anyone with what you said or how you said it? Does what you've said matter or are you just rehashing your old arguements? And may I add...
Proofread. Bad grammar is something we all have a problem with at times, but it can make you kind of look bad. If you have a particular problem with typing or spelling I would suggest to you what some of us do. Type your posts in a word processor where you can spell check them, then copy them to the board. It's a little hassle but it helps neaten things up a bit.
Have Fun. This is obviously a recreational site. It's here for your entertainment. Enjoy it. Help to improve it. The more you put in ... the more you'll get out.

Now, go get busy. You have a lot of catching up to do.

Thanks,

Grand Zero

O=o