Subject: Tom Clancy FAQ: Introduction
Date: 15 Apr 1996 22:19:06 GMT
Summary: This posting contains a list of Frequently Asked Questions (and answers) about the alt.fan.tom-clancy and alt.books.tom-clancy newsgroups, posting etiquette and information about Tom Clancy.  This posting, together with the Books and Movies postings, should be read by anyone wishing to post to either of the newsgroups.
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Last Modified: November 13, 1995
                                                                        
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                      Tom Clancy FAQ - Introduction

Welcome to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) list for the
alt.fan.tom-clancy and alt.books.tom-clancy newsgroups.  These
newsgroups are for discussions of books written by Tom Clancy,
movies made from books written by Tom Clancy, and Tom Clancy
himself.

This FAQ is divided into three parts: Introduction, Books, and Movies.
The first part contains questions on etiquette and Tom Clancy.  The
second part covers the books written by Tom Clancy.  The third part
covers the movies made from books written by Tom Clancy.  This part
(Introduction posting) contains the Newsgroups and Author portions.

Archive:
   HTML Homepage: URL: http://charlotte.acns.nwu.edu/glg/tc.html
   
   Anonymous ftp: //rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/alt.answers/books/
                    tom-clancy-faq/introduction
   
   US Mirror:  http://www.wpi.edu/~elmer/clancy.html
   
   Australian Mirror:  http://www.powerup.com.au/~iheywood/tc.html
   

Changes:
   Introduction:
      None.
   Books:
      1. Moved Debt of Honor summary into Plot Summaries section.
      2. Moved Tom Clancy's Op-Center summary into Plot Summaries
         section.
      3. Added question #10. Question about author of Op-Center.
      4. Added question #11. Question about Op-Centers different movie
         and book plots.
      5. Added Question about Clancy's political essay book.
      6. Added some authors to list of authors.
      7. Added ISBN numbers to publishing history.
      8. Added Op-Center: Mirror Image Plot Summary.
      9.   Added Fighter Wing to Publishing Record.
      10.  Added UK/AUS/NZ paperback records.
11.  Added French translation records.
12.  Added Christmas 1995 message.
13.  Added Dutch translation records.
14.  Added German translation records.
   Movies:
      1. Added Title Credits and Cast Credits for Op-Center.
      2. Added some information about the Without Remorse Movie.
      3. Removed Clear and Present Danger video question and
      4. Removed Op-Center mini-series release question.
      5. Added new Op-Center mini-series question.
      6. Added Op-Center Plot Summary.

This FAQ is originally the work of Bob Marek and is maintained by Geoff
Gass.  I will distribute and maintain on a time-permitting basis.  All
contributions are welcome and will be fully credited.

Contents of all parts:

The Newsgroup - (Introduction posting - this part)
   Questions
      1. Does Tom Clancy actually read and post in this newsgroup?
   Etiquette
The Author
   Tom Clancy
   Larry Bond

The Books - (Books posting)
   Questions
      1. What are the acronyms being used for book titles?
      2. What books has Tom Clancy written?
      3. In what order were Clancy's books written?
      4. In what order should Clancy's books be read?
      5. What is Clancy's best book?
      6. What other authors write books like Tom Clancy?
      7. Where did Jack Ryan go to college?
      8. What is bug juice?
      9. When will the next Jack Ryan story be published?
      10. Why doesn't Clancy's Op-Center seem to be up to Clancy's usual
          quality of writing?
      11. Why did the Op-Center book plot differ from the movie plot?
      12. What happened to "Reality Check"?
   Publishing Record
   Plot Summaries
   Characters
   Acronyms
   References
   Story Spoiler Summaries

The Movies - (Movie posting)
   Questions
      1. Does the movie timeline follow the book timeline?
      2. Why didn't Alec Baldwin play Jack Ryan again, instead of Ford?
      3. Why aren't the movies like the books?
      4. Where did Jack Ryan go to college?
      5. What's happening with the movie version of Without Remorse?
      6. Why did the Op-Center book differ from the mini-series?
   Movie Title Credits
   Plot Summaries
   Cast of Characters
   References

The author's comments and requests for additional information are
surrounded by /* ... */ comment delineators.

Asterisks "*" around words are used for emphasis.  *get it*?

An Underline "_" character before and after words denotes an underlined
word.  _like_this_

Contributions by readers of the newsgroup are surrounded by "-----".

Text format is: column 1, column 4, column 7, with column 72 the last
character on the line.

The major chapters are delineated by:
                                                                        
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                              The Newsgroup

Questions
   
   1. Does Tom Clancy really read and participate in these newsgroups?
      I've seen some postings by Tom Clancy, is it actually him?
      
      Yes!
      
      Tom Clancy sometimes reads these newsgroups and will respond to
      some questions and will sometimes post to clarify some points in
      the various discussions.  His participation is at his discretion
      and limited by his various other activities.  His postings have
      been informative, interesting, polite and fun.  The readers of
      these newsgroups value and enjoy his participation and appreciate
      whatever time he gives.


Etiquette
   
   Other than the usual netiquette there are a few additional things
   deemed worthwhile to encourage and enhance participation in these
   newsgroups.
   
   The main one is the notification of story spoilers in a posting.
   These are newsgroups dedicated to discussions of Tom Clancy and his
   stories.  Please be considerate of your fellow readers who may not
   have read the latest Clancy story or seen the latest Clancy movie. If
   you are going to include information that may spoil the book or movie
   for other readers of this group, please have the courtesy to place
   the title and the word "SPOILER" before any such information;
   preferably in the Subject line.  Since the paperback version may take
   up to a year to be published, it is appropriate to continue to add a
   spoiler warning for that length of time after a hardcover book comes
   out.
   
   If you want to ask Mr. Clancy a question, post it on the appropriate
   newsgroup; *don't* email him.  Flooding his mail with questions is
   discourteous and counter productive.  Besides, another reader will
   very likely be able to answer your question faster than Mr. Clancy.
   We all know that he's busy researching and writing and that demands
   on his time are huge.  See the answer to question 1. above.
                                                                        
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                               The Author

Tom Clancy        /* writes good books */
   
   Father of four.  Catholic.  Owned and operated independent insurance
   business before starting writing career.  Did not serve in any branch
   of the US Military.  Jesuit education - 8 years.

Larry Bond        /* co-author of Red Storm Rising */
   
   Former US Defense Analyst.  Author of Harpoon wargame.  Author of
   several independent books.
                                                                        
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