---
title: "West of House"
date: 2005-10-20T23:09:49-04:00
url: https://blog.lmorchard.com/2005/10/20/west-of-house/
author: Les Orchard
tags: [asides, gaming, bbs, oldschool, if, interactivefiction, games, ifiction, zork]
---

# West of House

<blockquote cite="http://ascii.textfiles.com/archives/000168.html">The next documentary I am working on is about Text Adventures, or Interactive Fiction. It is called "Get Lamp".</blockquote>
<small style="text-align:right; display:block">Source: <a href="http://ascii.textfiles.com/archives/000168.html">ASCII by Jason Scott: There is a Shiny Brass Lamp nearby</a></small>

Sweet merciful crap!  Man, aren't I smack-dab in the middle of Jason Scott's target demographic?  I snatched up his [BBS Documentary][bbs] with the quickness, but I got my initiation into Zork a very long time before I ever heard the dulcet tones of my first 300 baud modem.

[bbs]: http://www.bbsdocumentary.com

<!-- tags: bbs interactivefiction zork ifiction if gaming games oldschool -->

<div id="comments" class="comments archived-comments">
            <h3>Archived Comments</h3>
            
        <ul class="comments">
            
        <li class="comment" id="comment-221088058">
            <div class="meta">
                <div class="author">
                    <a class="avatar image" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.darcynorman.net"><img src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar.php?gravatar_id=4f523b36360882764462462cc95f040d&amp;size=32&amp;default=http://mediacdn.disqus.com/1320279820/images/noavatar32.png"/></a>
                    <a class="avatar name" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.darcynorman.net">D'Arcy Norman</a>
                </div>
                <a href="#comment-221088058" class="permalink"><time datetime="2005-10-21T04:47:02">2005-10-21T04:47:02</time></a>
            </div>
            <div class="content"><p>Hehe. I was a Zork addict. Still have a copy on my Powerbook... My /. sig is:</p>

<p>It is pitch dark. You are likely to be eaten by a grue.</p></div>
            
        </li>
    
        <li class="comment" id="comment-221088059">
            <div class="meta">
                <div class="author">
                    <a class="avatar image" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.decafbad.com"><img src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar.php?gravatar_id=2377f34a68801b861c3e54e1301f0dce&amp;size=32&amp;default=http://mediacdn.disqus.com/1320279820/images/noavatar32.png"/></a>
                    <a class="avatar name" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.decafbad.com">l.m.orchard</a>
                </div>
                <a href="#comment-221088059" class="permalink"><time datetime="2005-10-21T10:56:04">2005-10-21T10:56:04</time></a>
            </div>
            <div class="content"><p>I think I spent some short period as a little kid actually wondering whether or not there were grues in dark rooms.  :)</p></div>
            
        </li>
    
        <li class="comment" id="comment-221088061">
            <div class="meta">
                <div class="author">
                    <a class="avatar image" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.8dot3.com"><img src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar.php?gravatar_id=2d870e8df3af0d62fa636b336b17cd60&amp;size=32&amp;default=http://mediacdn.disqus.com/1320279820/images/noavatar32.png"/></a>
                    <a class="avatar name" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.8dot3.com">Nick</a>
                </div>
                <a href="#comment-221088061" class="permalink"><time datetime="2005-10-21T15:11:26">2005-10-21T15:11:26</time></a>
            </div>
            <div class="content"><p>I'm going to have to pick that one up.. How is the BBS DVD?  I might have to grab it, as I was known to visit a BBS or two in my past..</p></div>
            
        </li>
    
        <li class="comment" id="comment-221088064">
            <div class="meta">
                <div class="author">
                    <a class="avatar image" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.textfiles.com"><img src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar.php?gravatar_id=a1f131cb4b90d31bf78f7450404ab317&amp;size=32&amp;default=http://mediacdn.disqus.com/1320279820/images/noavatar32.png"/></a>
                    <a class="avatar name" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.textfiles.com">Jason Scott</a>
                </div>
                <a href="#comment-221088064" class="permalink"><time datetime="2005-10-25T06:55:44">2005-10-25T06:55:44</time></a>
            </div>
            <div class="content"><p>I need more than 1.5 films to have a target demographic, Les!</p></div>
            
        </li>
    
        <li class="comment" id="comment-221088066">
            <div class="meta">
                <div class="author">
                    <a class="avatar image" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.decafbad.com"><img src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar.php?gravatar_id=2377f34a68801b861c3e54e1301f0dce&amp;size=32&amp;default=http://mediacdn.disqus.com/1320279820/images/noavatar32.png"/></a>
                    <a class="avatar name" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.decafbad.com">l.m.orchard</a>
                </div>
                <a href="#comment-221088066" class="permalink"><time datetime="2005-10-25T14:54:22">2005-10-25T14:54:22</time></a>
            </div>
            <div class="content"><p>@Jason:  Pssh...  Years from now, when you've released your 10th documentary, your master plan will be clear for all to plainly see!</p></div>
            
        </li>
    
        <li class="comment" id="comment-221088067">
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                <div class="author">
                    <a class="avatar image" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.decafbad.com"><img src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar.php?gravatar_id=2377f34a68801b861c3e54e1301f0dce&amp;size=32&amp;default=http://mediacdn.disqus.com/1320279820/images/noavatar32.png"/></a>
                    <a class="avatar name" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.decafbad.com">l.m.orchard</a>
                </div>
                <a href="#comment-221088067" class="permalink"><time datetime="2005-10-25T14:55:43">2005-10-25T14:55:43</time></a>
            </div>
            <div class="content"><p>@Nick:  Oh, and the BBS Documentary very much rocks.  You should definitely pick it up.  I've got it, of course, and could lend it should we ever get together for that beer.  :)</p></div>
            
        </li>
    
        <li class="comment" id="comment-221088068">
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                <div class="author">
                    <a class="avatar image" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.coarseblog.blogspot.com"><img src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar.php?gravatar_id=9f4ee019e82a520e3b5de87e0edd6f29&amp;size=32&amp;default=http://mediacdn.disqus.com/1320279820/images/noavatar32.png"/></a>
                    <a class="avatar name" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.coarseblog.blogspot.com">Robert</a>
                </div>
                <a href="#comment-221088068" class="permalink"><time datetime="2006-07-01T20:02:47">2006-07-01T20:02:47</time></a>
            </div>
            <div class="content"><p>Zork!  I grew up on the BBS, learned so much about ignoring my family there!  I'll be picking up the BBS Documentary...  I just wish I could fire up QModem and hit the boards still...</p></div>
            
        </li>
    
        </ul>
    
        </div>