Sir Arthur C Clarke - Amiga User - Sci Fi Giant: RIP
SPOnG remembers a man who genuinely appreciated the technology.
Sir Arthur C Clarke: RIP.
Sir Arthur C Clarke died aged 90 at home today. A giant of science fiction, he is probably best known for the extension of his 1948 work, The Sentinel that became 2001: A Space Odyssey the book and movie, which were produced simultaneously in the late 1960s.
Clarke, however, transcended fiction having predicted the idea of the geostationary satellite for communications back in 1945.
Some SPOnG staff, however, also remember Sir Arthur as the kind of man who was prepared to speak to young upstarts working on, of all things, a magazine about the Commodore Amiga. Back in the 1990s SPOnG's Tim Smith and Marcus Dyson both worked on the hugely popular Amiga Format magazine. So did Nick Veitch who, as editor and technologist on the title, would speak to Sir Arthur over a satellite phone link that connected the Format offices in Bath to Clarke's home in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
Nick kindly agreed to provide some of his memories regarding those times and those conversations.
"I remember having many long conversations with Arthur, and I always found it curious that for someone so interested in technology he should be living in Sri Lanka, but the climate suited him there he told me.
"Our conversations took twice as long as they might have done, mainly because of the satellite delays and the crackly reception, ironic given his part in popularising the idea of communications satellites.
"Arthur originally got in touch with me on Amiga Format because he was creating a book called The Snows of Olympus, about terraforming Mars. A lot of the book was graphical - the images having been made by Arthur himself using Vista Pro.
"The conversations we had were mainly about the quality of output, and the fact he had stored a lot of images on magnetic tape cartridges, and since his drive had died he needed help recovering them.
"In all my conversations with him, what struck me was what a very down-to-earth and friendly person he was, but also that he was constantly thinking about the technologies that we had at the time, and how they might be improved.
"It saddens me slightly that he will probably be best remembered for 2001:A Space Odyssey - undoubtedly a great film, but Arthur was more than just a sci-fi author - he had a genuine creative and inquiring mind and was always quick to see the possibilities and applications of technology."
SPOnG mourns the death of Sir Arthur C Clarke. We would also recommend that you visit the Arthur C Clarke Foundation, whose mission statement includes the following:
SPOnG would like to say a big thanks to Nick Veitch for his invaluable contribution.
Clarke, however, transcended fiction having predicted the idea of the geostationary satellite for communications back in 1945.
Some SPOnG staff, however, also remember Sir Arthur as the kind of man who was prepared to speak to young upstarts working on, of all things, a magazine about the Commodore Amiga. Back in the 1990s SPOnG's Tim Smith and Marcus Dyson both worked on the hugely popular Amiga Format magazine. So did Nick Veitch who, as editor and technologist on the title, would speak to Sir Arthur over a satellite phone link that connected the Format offices in Bath to Clarke's home in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
Nick kindly agreed to provide some of his memories regarding those times and those conversations.
"I remember having many long conversations with Arthur, and I always found it curious that for someone so interested in technology he should be living in Sri Lanka, but the climate suited him there he told me.
"Our conversations took twice as long as they might have done, mainly because of the satellite delays and the crackly reception, ironic given his part in popularising the idea of communications satellites.
"Arthur originally got in touch with me on Amiga Format because he was creating a book called The Snows of Olympus, about terraforming Mars. A lot of the book was graphical - the images having been made by Arthur himself using Vista Pro.
"The conversations we had were mainly about the quality of output, and the fact he had stored a lot of images on magnetic tape cartridges, and since his drive had died he needed help recovering them.
"In all my conversations with him, what struck me was what a very down-to-earth and friendly person he was, but also that he was constantly thinking about the technologies that we had at the time, and how they might be improved.
"It saddens me slightly that he will probably be best remembered for 2001:A Space Odyssey - undoubtedly a great film, but Arthur was more than just a sci-fi author - he had a genuine creative and inquiring mind and was always quick to see the possibilities and applications of technology."
SPOnG mourns the death of Sir Arthur C Clarke. We would also recommend that you visit the Arthur C Clarke Foundation, whose mission statement includes the following:
"(To) Stimulate creative use of communications technologies and social resources to improve health, education, and the quality of life for people everywhere, with emphasis on the needs of developing countries."
SPOnG would like to say a big thanks to Nick Veitch for his invaluable contribution.
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Comments
Timbro 20 Mar 2008 01:15
1/2
Arthur C. Clarke rules. Rest in peace.
DoctorDee 20 Mar 2008 10:04
2/2
I recall the Amiga Format Arthur C Clarke affair well. One of our freelancers called me and said Arthur was having some Amiga related problems. He'd been given some Vista renders of Mars by (and I forget who, maybe Fred Hoyle???) on a tape, and Arthur couldn't get them off. The freelancer (and I forget now who it was) gave me Arthur's phone number, and advised me to give him a call. Smelling a story, and a chance to speak to one of my heroes, I called the number in Sri Lanka, and the phone was answered by a woman who spoke no English. I asked for Arthur Clarke repeatedly, slowly and loudly - because we all know how effective that is when speaking with someone who doesn't understand a thing you are saying. Eventually, Arthur's house woman tired of this loud stupid Englishman, and called Arthur to give me a piece of his mind. He picked up the phone and in his stentorian tones asked who it was. I explained, and he immediately began talking to me as if we were old friends. He was familiar with the magazine, though issues took three months to get to him in Sri Lanka.
I left AF shortly afterwards, Nick did all the hard work - as he would have done if I stayed, since he was the technical genius and I was merely the well meaning bumbler. As a result, Nick got to speak to Arthur frequently and at length. And in the end, he was instrumental in Snows of Olympus being published. I only spoke with Arthur a couple of times, but both times, I was in awe, not just that I was speaking to one of the giants of my literary youth, but also because he was such a pleasant, polite and smart man.
After 2001 was such a seminal movie, I never understood why more of his books were not made into movies. I am looking forward with great anticipation to the 2009 release of Rendezvous With Rama.
I left AF shortly afterwards, Nick did all the hard work - as he would have done if I stayed, since he was the technical genius and I was merely the well meaning bumbler. As a result, Nick got to speak to Arthur frequently and at length. And in the end, he was instrumental in Snows of Olympus being published. I only spoke with Arthur a couple of times, but both times, I was in awe, not just that I was speaking to one of the giants of my literary youth, but also because he was such a pleasant, polite and smart man.
After 2001 was such a seminal movie, I never understood why more of his books were not made into movies. I am looking forward with great anticipation to the 2009 release of Rendezvous With Rama.