The PRE game fun...

[lt8480]

Hmm maybe the winner gets a trip to space? :)

[Zyphrax]

ok what is scheduled for January 8th:

New Orleans AMS session

Computational Algebraic and Analytic Geometry for Low-Dimensional Varieties

http://personalwebs.oakland.edu/~shaska/New_Orleans.html

2007 Dryden Lectureship in Research

http://www.aiaa.org/content.cfm?pageid=230...r652&id=652

CES schedule - still must be related to the 40th CES...

http://www.cesweb.org/press/events/exhibitor_events.asp

*sigh* feels like another dead end

[sinjor32]

What I think nobody explained is the fact that vanishing point is closely related to Perspective and Horizon. Reference to perspective was mentioned but Horizon wasn't.

Usualy vanishing point matches the Horizon, except when you make a bird eye view or a frog view.

So I think that times are callculated by a event that heppens on the horizon at that moment clock goes to 0.00

[Frogboy Administrators]

oh brad wardell is going to be at the announcement, he didnt really know anything about it. it sounds like quite a few people have been invited i wonder if anyone at ces will be able to just turn up...

Oh, I got the box from Loki in the mail and had been solving it but got stuck on the sound file until reading this thread.

[smash505]

List of scheduled space flights lol :alien:

Dec. 25 Proton ? Glonass

Launch time: 2018 GMT (3:18 p.m. EST)

Launch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan

A Russian government Proton rocket will launch a trio of spacecraft for the Glonass satellite navigation constellation. [Dec. 16]

Dec. 27 Soyuz ? CoRoT

Launch time: 1423 GMT (9:23 a.m. EST)

Launch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan

A Russian Soyuz rocket with a Fregat upper stage will launch the European CoRoT space observatory. The French-led mission will look for rocky planets around other stars. CoRoT stands for Convection Rotation and planetary Transits. Delayed from Dec. 21. [Dec. 16]

TBD Sea Launch ? NSS 8

Launch window: TBD

Launch site: Odyssey platform, Pacific Ocean (154? West, 0? North)

The Sea Launch Zenit 3SL rocket will carry the New Skies Satellite 8 communications spacecraft into orbit. The Boeing-built craft will fly in geostationary orbit to serve the Indian Ocean region. [Oct. 2]

TBD Falcon 1 ? DARPA

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands

The SpaceX Falcon 1 rocket will perform a launch demonstration flight for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). This will mark the second launch of the Falcon 1 vehicle. [July 27]

Jan. 18 Soyuz ? Progress 24P

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan

A Russian government Soyuz rocket will launch the 24th Progress cargo delivery ship to the International Space Station. Delayed from Dec. 20 and Jan. 16. [Nov. 29]

TBD Atlas 5 ? STP 1

Launch window: TBD

Launch site: SLC-41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket (AV-013) will carry six satellites during a complex launch of the Air Force's Space Test Program-1 mission. The payload list is led by the Orbital Express in-space refueling demonstration mission consisting of the Autonomous Space Transfer and Robotic Orbiter, or ASTRO, prototype servicing satellite and the NextSat serviceable spacecraft. Atlas will deploy four auxiliary satellites from the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Secondary Payload Adapter, or ESPA ring, including MidSTAR 1, FalconSat 3, STPSat 1 and CFESat. The rocket will fly in the 401 vehicle configuration with a four-meter fairing, no solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. Delayed from Oct. 12, Nov. 2, Dec. 7 and Jan. 18. [Dec. 15]

Feb. 15 Delta 2 ? THEMIS

Launch time: 2307:37 GMT (6:07:37 p.m. EST)

Launch site: SLC-17, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

The United Launch Alliance Delta 2 rocket will launch NASA's Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS) satellites. THEMIS consists of five spacecraft with identical instruments to study the Earth's magnetosphere. The rocket will fly in the 7925 vehicle configuration. Delayed from Oct. 19, Nov. 27 and Dec. 19. [Dec. 15]

1st Quarter Sea Launch ? Thuraya 3

Launch window: TBD

Launch site: Odyssey platform, Pacific Ocean (154? West, 0? North)

The Sea Launch Zenit 3SL rocket will carry the Boeing-built Thuraya 3 mobile communications satellite into orbit. Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications Company of the United Arab Emirates provides space-based telephone services. [June 12]

Early '07 H-2A ? IGS

Launch window: TBD

Launch site: Tanegashima, Japan

The Japanese H-2A rocket will launch the country's third Information Gathering Satellite radar reconnaissance spy spacecraft. [June 14]

TBD Proton ? Anik F3

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan

An International Launch Services Proton rocket with a Breeze M upper stage will launch the Anik F3 communications spacecraft for Canada's Telesat. The EADS Astrium-built satellite will be used for telecommunications relay, broadcasting and Internet services across North America. [Jan. 5]

March 9 Soyuz ? ISS 14S

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan

A Russian government Soyuz rocket will launch the manned Soyuz TMA-10 spacecraft to the International Space Station with members of the Expedition 15 crew. The capsule will remain at the station for about six months, providing an escape pod for the crew. [Nov. 29]

March 15 Delta 4-H ? DSP 23

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: SLC-37B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

The United Launch Alliance Delta 4-Heavy rocket will launch the 23rd and final Defense Support Program missile-warning satellite. The largest of the Delta 4 family, the Heavy version features three Common Booster Cores mounted together to form a triple-body rocket. The vehicle will deliver DSP 23 directly into geostationary orbit. Delayed from Oct. 28, 2005, Jan. 31, 2006 and Jan. 31, 2007. [Nov. 16]

March 16 Shuttle Atlantis ? ISS 13A

Launch time: 1020 GMT (6:20 a.m. EDT)

Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida

STS-117 will be the 21st U.S. mission to the International Space Station. The flight will deliver and attach the next starboard truss segment to the station -- the Integrated Truss Structure S3/S4 and associated set of power-generating solar arrays. Delayed from Oct. 2, 2003 in wake of Columbia tragedy. Delayed from Feb. 22. [Nov. 26]

TBD Soyuz ? Radarsat 2

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan

A Russian Soyuz rocket will launch the Canadian Radarsat 2 observation spacecraft into a sun-synchronous orbit around Earth. The launch is managed by Starsem. [Jan. 10]

TBD Falcon 1 ? TacSat 1

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands

The third flight of the SpaceX Falcon 1 rocket will launch the TacSat 1 experimental communications satellite for the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory. [July 27]

April 3 Atlas 5 ? NRO L-28

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: SLC-3E, Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.

The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket (AV-006) will launch a classified spacecraft payload for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. It will be the first Atlas 5 launch from Vandenberg. The rocket will fly in the 411 vehicle configuration with a four-meter fairing, one strap-on solid rocket booster and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. Delayed from Spring and Nov. 15, 2006, Jan. 2007. [sept. 18]

April 25 Pegasus ? AIM

Launch time: 2325:16 GMT (7:25:16 p.m. EST)

Launch site: Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.

The air-launched Orbital Sciences Pegasus rocket will carry NASA's Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere (AIM) satellite into orbit to observe clouds at the edge of space. Delayed from Sept. 29 and March 29. [Dec. 15]

April? Minotaur ? NFIRE

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, Wallops Island, Virginia

The Orbital Sciences Minotaur rocket will launch the Near Field Infrared Experiment (NFIRE) spacecraft for the Missile Defense Agency. The four-stage rocket used U.S. government-supplied Minuteman 2 motors and Pegasus rocket stages. [July 27]

TBD Atlas 5 ? NRO L-30

Launch window: TBD

Launch site: SLC-41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket (AV-009) will launch a classified spacecraft payload for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. The rocket will fly in the 501 vehicle configuration with a five-meter fairing, no solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. [July 28]

May Soyuz ? Progress 25P

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan

A Russian government Soyuz rocket will launch the 25th Progress cargo delivery ship to the International Space Station. [Nov. 29]

May 31 Delta 2 ? Block 2010

Launch window: TBD

Launch site: SLC-2W, Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.

The United Launch Alliance Delta 2 rocket will launch the Block 2010 Spacecraft Risk Reduction research and development mission. NASA will oversee the launch for the U.S. Air Force. Delayed from December 2006 and March 15. [Nov. 16]

May 31? Atlas 5 ? ICO

Launch window: TBD

Launch site: SLC-41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket (AV-014) will launch a mobile communications satellite for ICO North America. Space Systems/Loral is building the geostationary spacecraft. The rocket will fly in the 421 vehicle configuration with a four-meter fairing, two solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. [July 28]

TBD Soyuz ? GIOVE B

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan

A Russian Soyuz rocket with a Fregat upper stage will launch the second Galileo In-Orbit Validation Element, or GIOVE B satellite. This is the second demonstration satellite for Europe's Galileo navigation system. The launch is managed by Starsem. Delayed from April 14. [March 2]

June Ariane 5 ? ATV 1

Launch window: TBD

Launch site: ELA-3, Kourou, French Guiana

The Arianespace Ariane 5 rocket will launch the European Space Agency's first Automated Transfer Vehicle, named Jules Verne. The ATV is a cargo-carrying spacecraft to deliver supplies and equipment to the orbiting International Space Station. [Nov. 29]

June 21 Delta 2 ? Dawn

Launch window: TBD

Launch site: SLC-17, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

The United Launch Alliance Delta 2 rocket will launch NASA's Dawn spacecraft that will use an ion propulsion system to visit and orbit the asteroids Vesta and Ceres. The rocket will fly in the 7925-Heavy vehicle configuration. Delayed from June 2006 for a program review that led to cancellation. Mission was restored after controversy. [July 27]

June Delta 4-H ? NRO L-26

Launch window: TBD

Launch site: SLC-37B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

The United Launch Alliance Delta 4-Heavy rocket will launch a classified spy satellite cargo for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. The largest of the Delta 4 family, the Heavy version features three Common Booster Cores mounted together to form a triple-body rocket. Delayed from 2005 and May 2006. [July 27]

June 28 Shuttle Endeavour ? ISS 13A.1

Launch time: 1540 GMT (11:40 a.m. EDT)

Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida

STS-118 will be the 22nd U.S. mission to the International Space Station. The flight will deliver and attach the third starboard truss segment to the station -- the Integrated Truss Structure S5. A Spacehab module riding in Endeavour's payload bay will ferry supplies and equipment to the outpost. Delayed from June 11. [Oct. 27]

Summer Falcon 1 ? RazakSat

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands

The fourth flight of the SpaceX Falcon 1 rocket will launch the RazakSat Earth-imaging spacecraft for Malaysia. The satellite also features the name MACSat, or Medium-sized Aperture Camera Satellite. [July 27]

Aug. 3 Delta 2 ? Phoenix

Launch window: TBD

Launch site: SLC-17, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

The United Launch Alliance Delta 2 rocket will launch NASA's next lander to Mars. The Phoenix spacecraft will use a robotic arm to examine samples of the soil at its landing spot on the arctic plains. The rocket will fly in the 7925 vehicle configuration. [July 27]

Sept. 1 Soyuz ? ISS 15S

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan

A Russian government Soyuz rocket will launch the manned Soyuz TMA-11 spacecraft to the International Space Station with members of the Expedition 16 crew. The capsule will remain at the station for about six months, providing an escape pod for the crew. [Nov. 29]

Sept. 7 Shuttle Atlantis ? ISS 10A

Launch time: 1040 GMT (6:40 a.m. EDT)

Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida

STS-120 will be the 23rd U.S. mission to the International Space Station. The flight will deliver the Node 2 connecting module to the station that will serve as the portal to the international partners' laboratories. Delayed from Aug. 9. [Oct. 27]

Oct. 7 Delta 2 ? GLAST

Launch window: TBD

Launch site: SLC-17, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

The United Launch Alliance Delta 2 rocket will launch NASA's Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope observatory into orbit. [Oct. 27]

TBD Atlas 5 ? WGS

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: SLC-41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket will launch the first Wideband Gapfiller Satellite. Built by Boeing, this geostationary communications spacecraft will serve U.S. military forces. The rocket will fly in the 421 vehicle configuration with a four-meter fairing, two solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. [Nov. 28]

Oct. 17 Shuttle Discovery ? ISS 1E

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida

STS-122 will be the 24th U.S. mission to the International Space Station. The flight will deliver the European Space Agency's Columbus science laboratory module to the station. Delayed from Sept. 27. [Oct. 27]

4th Quarter Minotaur ? TacSat 3

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, Wallops Island, Virginia

The Orbital Sciences Minotaur rocket will launch the Air Force Research Laboratory's TacSat 3 advanced technology research spacecraft. The four-stage rocket used U.S. government-supplied Minuteman 2 motors and Pegasus rocket stages. [July 27]

Nov. 21 Delta 2 ? STSS

Launch window: TBD

Launch site: SLC-17, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida

The United Launch Alliance Delta 2 rocket will launch the Space Tracking and Surveillance System technology demonstration mission for the Missile Defense Agency. NASA will oversee the launch for the U.S. Air Force. [Oct. 27]

TBD Atlas 5 ? NRO L-29

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: SLC-3E, Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.

The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket will launch a classified spacecraft payload for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. The rocket will fly in the 521 vehicle configuration with a five-meter fairing, two strap-on solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. [July 28]

Dec. 8 Shuttle Endeavour ? ISS 1J/A

Launch time: TBD

Launch site: LC-39, Kennedy Space Center, Florida

STS-123 will be the 25th U.S. mission to the International Space Station. The flight will deliver the Japanese experiment logistics module to the station for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. Delayed from Nov. 29. [Oct. 27]

[novastar]

someone confim, the extra n in circumambulation is gone!

EDIT:

everything is fixed!!!

[Leo]

someone confim, the extra n in circumambulation is gone!

And Singapore is now spelled correctly.

Edit: Yep, everything seens fixed now.

[Rob2687]

They've also fixed the rest of the spelling errors.

[novastar]

That was seemed to be soon after we found out about the NIAC thing

[AnTimOnY]

That was seemed to be soon after we found out about the NIAC thing

yeah, same as the other things being found - we find something, they remove it. I think this shows thet the mis-spelld things are important. IMO.

[novastar]

something else is weird, the names of the flash counters are not consistent... a "smart" programmer would have consistent naming

[sinjor32]

They are cheking the progres here. :D

[Zyphrax]

Or it really a spelling error... hmmm...

I am trying to connect the places in Google Earth, quite hard...

[konamouse]

Just wanted to poke my head in here and say thanks to neowin for sharing keys so us folks on unFiction (who are not on MS mailing list) could help out with solving the puzzles.

I registered for neowin so I can also post in the thread here. I'm hoping everyone will look on this as a collaborative effort (like we do at unFiction) rather than a contest.

I'm also in a unique position since I live in Las Vegas and just got a pass to the CES Expo. I'm also familiar with 42Entertainment's methods for viral marketing/ARGs from playing other activities. I don't play Halo, so never got into ILB. But followed along the puzzle/ARG part. But I was an advid participant in their followup 'game' Last Call Poker (marketing for Activision's GUN). I am very good at organizing resources for these games (I think I have a little compulsive gene). While the clues point to meeting up with Loki at the Bellagio Fountains on Monday evening, I'm very sure there will be an online component as well. May I suggest representatives here in LV be on cell phones back to folks online to report the meet and the clues we'll probably get from this meet. BMW Films did something similar a few years back at the same time as CES (live meet in front of the Stardust with a fellow in a track suit (you had to have the proper password) that led to a room in the hotel and then a short drive to another location to see the car, then up to a party and other stuff - a miniRally of sorts).

The vanishingpointwiki was organized by some unFiction folks last night to bring all the keys and information into a common repository so there isn't more "I haven't read the whole thread, have you guys seen/tried/etc this" type posts. Again, we look on these events as team building exercises. You guys at neowin seems to get the clues/keys first (probably b/c you have direct ties to MS) but unFiction is experienced at the puzzle solving (hence ymgvr and ehsan solving the puzzle pages which were immediately shared here at neowin). I see it as a win:win situation.

Looking forward to working with you guys.

[Moroz]

yeh that what i was going to say they cheking how we doing cool. sup banishpoint people sent me a pakage :D

dude i speled vanishpoint wrong my bad anyways send me something vanishpoing people

[Zyphrax]

Connecting the cities in Google Earth gets me totally nowhere.

Time for bed. Good luck all.

[Rob Veteran]

Konamouse - I absolutely agree, it's only with collaboration the puzzle has been solved in the manner that it has thus far. While Neowin may have been the first on the scene (though as to the ties with Microsoft, you are somewhat misinformed), certainly unFiction has been instrumental in the progress.

Congratulations to us all. But the game isn't over yet.

[konamouse]

I didn't mean professional or financial ties. I meant discussion-wise. :)

My 2 cents. The biography is that of the character "Loki" (aka the woman in the video).

There are more puzzle boxes out there (but may contain duplicate keys) - mail delivery and the holidays could have delayed arrival, or they may be sitting on desks/inboxes while folks are out of town/not at work. So far we've only heard about 3 people with the boxes/videos to upload.

Speaking of videos, inzenity posted that he hosted the high res version of the video on http://halowars.heavengames.com/key but I couldn't find it (I like tearing apart screen caps for clues). You guys are right that if it's in the video (quick cuts to specific object), there may be a reason. Although I think the extra guy in the doorway & the extension cord was not intentional.

Game won't be over until someone's name is very well known (spec: a microsoft product with their name on the title, the box or on the screen? their name on the side of the space shuttle? their name as a character in an upcoming video game? name a star or a Mars crater after you? who knows?).

Edited December 27, 2006 by konamouse

[gliscameria]

Maybe the misspells were actually just that, and that's why they are fixed now.

Singapore university has it spelled "Singpore" in the header of their webpage, San Francisco uni has many instances of franciso on their page... etc...

I just think that if they were real clues they would remain on the site, so everyone isn't dependant on what previous people have discovered in order to solve it. (Other than the packages)

[yanowhiz]

The vanishing point is the boundary between Something and Everything; between What Is and What Can Be. Fewer than a thousand people have ever been there to see the ultimate vista*. The grand prize winner will be one of them^.

The race for that destiny will begin when the countdown hits zero.

* must mean: "Windows Vista Ultimate"

^ Guess the winner of the game will win a free copy of Microsoft Vista Ultimate.

[Not Cool]

* must mean: "Windows Vista Ultimate"

^ Guess the winner of the game will win a free copy of Microsoft Vista Ultimate.

uh..... ya......

all this hype over a copy of Vista Ultimate :rolleyes:

This has been gone over before, and btw, more than 1000 ppl have used Vista

[episode]

* must mean: "Windows Vista Ultimate"

^ Guess the winner of the game will win a free copy of Microsoft Vista Ultimate.

So the runners up will get a laptop. But the grand prize winner will get Vista Ultimate Edition, which is less of a value?

Use your brain much?

[geevans1]

Use your brain much?

Now there's an idea

[konamouse]

Hey, LaughingSquid got an Acer Ferrari laptop from MS with Vista Ultimate and the Loki letter inside.

Update 3: Microsoft Sent A Free Laptop With Windows Vista

Guess this pretty much cinches the link between this game and MS Vista.

Nice laptop, btw. My hubby bought one last Christmas. Makes a the sound of the car's engine when you turn it on. Mmmmmmmm, nice.

[Rob2687]

I wonder how many of those puzzle boxes they sent out.