Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Terry Pratchett's Hard Drive Destroyed By Steamroller (nytimes.com)

Posted by EditorDavid on from the commemorative-crush dept.

WheezyJoe writes: In accordance with his wishes, a hard drive formerly belonging to author Terry Pratchett has been crushed by steamroller. According to friend and fellow author Neil Gaiman, Pratchett (who died at 66 in 2015) wanted "whatever he was working on at the time of his death to be taken out along with his computers, to be put in the middle of a road and for a steamroller to steamroll over them all."

According to the article, on August 25, two years after the author's passing, Mr. Pratchett's estate manager and close friend, Rob Wilkins, posted a picture of a hard drive and a steamroller on an official Twitter account they shared. The pictures posted suggest the steamroller was one powered by actual steam.
Minutes later they tweeted a photo of the crushed hard drive -- which will soon be displayed at the Salisbury Museum in England as part of their new exhibit on the life and work of Terry Pratchett.

161 comments

  1. That's ok because by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    The NSA will have a backup copy.

    1. Re:That's ok because by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      true. but restore process is a bitch.

      could be a marketing gem for a clean room data recovery specialist like gillware or kroll ontrack, as well.

    2. Re:That's ok because by antdude · · Score: 1

      Also, isn't it possible to recover its datas with those disk recovery companies?

      --
      Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
    3. Re: That's ok because by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That mainly works when the disk heads stop working. When the disk doesn't spin due to being crushed by a steamroller, things get harder but some content might be available since the disk probably wasn't encrypted. Military practice is to use a chipper to turn the thing into dust and then through a furnace to melt it all.

    4. Re:That's ok because by stooo · · Score: 2

      On physically bent and torn apart disks, a partial recovery would be very very prohibitive, but theoretically possible.

      --
      aaaaaaa
    5. Re: That's ok because by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Fantasy author standard practice is to send a couple of Hobbits off to dump it in an active volcano.

    6. Re: That's ok because by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I punch a few holes with a drill myself.
      Cheap quick and easy.

    7. Re: That's ok because by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      For the first time in many years I seriously wish that

      a. I could access any of my accounts here
      b. that those accounts one accessed had accumulated tons of mod points I could shower you with.

      This comment has brightened a rather shitty day, shitty week actually..

    8. Re: That's ok because by Half-pint+HAL · · Score: 1

      The hard-drive was less damaged by the steamroller than expected, so they put it through a stone-crusher afterwards.

      --
      Got them moderator blues I blieve I walk out the do', With these mod-points I been gettin', I 'most never post no mo'
    9. Re:That's ok because by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'd be amazed if Terry himself didn't have at least a backup or two but hey, maybe he got a kick out of living on the edge.

      Still, cool symbolism.

    10. Re:That's ok because by RockDoctor · · Score: 1
      On platters made of glass, lets see you bend that!

      (I know - without heating it above the Curie temperature of the magnetic medium. Or decomposition of the binder holding the medium in place.)

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
  2. That's the British for you... by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 2

    If he was American, he would have put a bullet through the hard drive.

    1. Re:That's the British for you... by Alwin+Henseler · · Score: 4, Funny

      If he was American, he would have put a bullet through the hard drive.

      Pen testing physical security, eh?

      Guess he just wanted to see how the drive would perform under heavy load. That, or try a heavy duty tool to remove his Windows 10 spyw^H^H^H install (or was it systemd? Who knows).

    2. Re:That's the British for you... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      In America, no one has to die before we put a bullet through a hard drive.

      Now, someone might die while we're putting bullets through hard drives, but that's just what we call "Saturday night"

    3. Re:That's the British for you... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      If he was American, he would have put a bullet through the hard drive.

      Let me correct that for you: "If he was a Texan ...."

    4. Re:That's the British for you... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      If he was American, he would have put a bullet through the hard drive.

      Let me correct that for you: "If he was a Texan ...."

      I picture a hard drive, riddled with bullet-holes, adorned with a sticker that says "do not shoot at this hard drive."

    5. Re:That's the British for you... by arth1 · · Score: 2, Informative

      Let me correct that for you: "If he was a Texan ...."

      Let me correct that for you: "If he were a Texan..."

      He had the hat, if not the belt buckle.

    6. Re:That's the British for you... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Will should have specified BitBleach. Also Would have been a good Hilary joke.

      Or high Gauss electromagnets.

    7. Re: That's the British for you... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Who the hell is Will?

    8. Re:That's the British for you... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Then I am glad he was no American, because his work being literally "Steamrolled" feels a LOT better that just another dull "Put a bullet in it".

    9. Re:That's the British for you... by ET3D · · Score: 1

      Isn't "if he was a Texan" is the correct form?

    10. Re:That's the British for you... by cellocgw · · Score: 1

      He dead now. So use the past subjunctive "If he had been a Texan"

      This grammatical offering provided by someone who doesn't really care how good the grammar is in comments threads.

      --
      https://app.box.com/WitthoftResume Code: https://github.com/cellocgw
    11. Re:That's the British for you... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I just throw mines into creimer's head and it does the job since they disappear. There must be a black hole in there siphoning everything because it always stays empty:
      https://school.discoveryeducat...

    12. Re:That's the British for you... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or in your case, covered it in Big Mac sauce and eaten it.

    13. Re:That's the British for you... by arth1 · · Score: 2

      Isn't "if he was a Texan" is the correct form?

      No, it's a subjunctive, meaning it's speculative or hypothetical, not factual.
      You would say "If I were you", implying "but I'm not" by using "were" instead of "was". Likewise, saying "If Pratchett were a Texan", you signal that you know he was not. "If Pratchett was a Texan" implies that you don't know whether this is the case.

    14. Re:That's the British for you... by arth1 · · Score: 1

      Likewise, saying "If Pratchett were a Texan", you signal that you know he was not. "If Pratchett was a Texan "implies that you don't know whether this is the case.

      Sorry, I should have said "... whether this be the case.

    15. Re: That's the British for you... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      LOL. Thanks for this

    16. Re:That's the British for you... by Half-pint+HAL · · Score: 1

      Isn't "if he was a Texan" is the correct form?

      No, it's a subjunctive, meaning it's speculative or hypothetical, not factual. You would say "If I were you", implying "but I'm not" by using "were" instead of "was". Likewise, saying "If Pratchett were a Texan", you signal that you know he was not. "If Pratchett was a Texan" implies that you don't know whether this is the case.

      Both are correct forms.

      The subjunctive is dying out in English. The circumstances of its use vary between dialects, and a heck of a lot of people do not use it at all. I do not use it at all. It is not an "error", and it's damn rude to a hell of a lot of people to say it is.

      ...not to mention off-topic.

      --
      Got them moderator blues I blieve I walk out the do', With these mod-points I been gettin', I 'most never post no mo'
    17. Re:That's the British for you... by anybody_out_there · · Score: 1

      ...not to mention off-topic.

      I find a discussion on the use of the English language surprisingly on-topic in comments discussing an author ;-)

    18. Re: That's the British for you... by that+this+is+not+und · · Score: 1

      He should have wiped it, like with a cloth.

    19. Re:That's the British for you... by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      But he wasn't American, and was very glad of it.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
  3. " two years after the author's passing" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Plenty of time to copy the content off it, and then put on this PR stunt.

    Eat it up you fucking sheeple.

    1. Re: " two years after the author's passing" by joh · · Score: 2

      He who believes nothing will have to believe in anything.

    2. Re: " two years after the author's passing" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      So now even quotes are "pro Nazi"? wtf is wrong with you!

    3. Re:" two years after the author's passing" by deburg · · Score: 2
      >two years after the author's passing

      well, they had to be sure he wasn't coming back, you know. Also, rent the steamroller, get permits, approvals from local council/neighbours/etc

      But seriously, it's a hard disk, there could have been accounting stuff/family pictures/etc in there. Best to check first.

      RIP Sir Terry Practchett, see ya at the dark side of the sun

    4. Re: " two years after the author's passing" by Frank+Burly · · Score: 2

      The quote is attributed to GK Chesterton, who (according to wikipedia) also said: "[The Jew] should know where we are; and he would know where he is, which is in a foreign land." Even with this though, Chesterton seems to have opposed Hitler and eugenics, so it isn't fair to call it a Nazi quote, but it is more fair than your characterization of liberals.

    5. Re:" two years after the author's passing" by Maritz · · Score: 1

      Has anyone who unironically says 'sheeple' ever turned out to be more than a fucking moron? Is it yet to happen?

      --
      I do not want your cheap brainburning drugs. They are useless for work. And I am a working man today.
    6. Re: " two years after the author's passing" by joh · · Score: 1

      I didn't quote anyone, I just wrote what I thought. Sorry for that.

  4. Wow! by kaizendojo · · Score: 4, Funny

    What kinda porn was *he* trying to hide???

    1. Re:Wow! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      fan fiction involving Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax

    2. Re:Wow! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      he's obviously a closet furry

    3. Re:Wow! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Most people are familiar with steamrolling. You square bro?

    4. Re:Wow! by fibonacci8 · · Score: 1

      The kind involving four giant elephants and Chelys galactica, presumably.

      --
      Inheritance is the sincerest form of nepotism.
    5. Re:Wow! by alexo · · Score: 4, Funny

      A proof that P != NP

    6. Re:Wow! by Applehu+Akbar · · Score: 4, Funny

      What kinda porn was *he* trying to hide???

      Turtle porn, all the way down.

    7. Re:Wow! by thygate · · Score: 0

      all my modpoints for you sir, if i had any

    8. Re:Wow! by Ihlosi · · Score: 2
      fan fiction involving Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax

      It is stated in "The Shepherds Crown" that Nanny Ogg had many husbands - three of which were her own.

  5. I understand, but... by ToTheStars · · Score: 3

    I can understand him not wanting his world to be weighed down with posthumous publications (looking at you, Dune), and some of his later books were slipping a little compared to his peak (still all worth reading). Nevertheless, I would have liked to know what he was working on.

    Going forward, the Watch were some of my favorite characters (and the books where they starred were some of my favorites), so I hope the TV series is successfully completed!

    1. Re:I understand, but... by Dunbal · · Score: 2

      (looking at you, Dune

      Nothing "posthumous" about THAT. Merely a son bad at writing trying to fill his father's shoes and failing miserably.

      --
      Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
    2. Re:I understand, but... by MarkTina · · Score: 4, Insightful

      He wasn't 100% there towards the end and apparently had concerns his work was crap and didn't want anyone digging it up and publishing it when he was gone .. fair enough :-)

    3. Re:I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Understandable, but destroying the tools the disease had robbed him the use of still feels a bit sad and bitter. You could guess it perhaps would be to stop any kind of memorabilia trade or so, but ultimately it feels a bit... petty. The tweets were a brilliant farewell, I wish he'd left it at that -- steamroller notwithstanding.

    4. Re:I understand, but... by fermion · · Score: 4, Insightful
      If you don't want publishers to scrap every penny from whatever dregs you left behind, the only thing to do is destroy the work. Some writers like Heinlein were probably ok with work being published posthumously. He was well known to believe that he wrote for a paycheck, and everything he wrote was to published. He supposedly said the day that his publisher rejected a work was the day he would walk across the street to another publisher.

      For those who are more selective, destruction is the best option.

      --
      "She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
    5. Re:I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Implying the father wrote well? I have read Frank Herbert - all of his works - and I don't think the apple fell far from the tree.

    6. Re:I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Moist von Lipwig was my favorite.
      I was hoping there would be a Collecting Taxes or something like that to end the series.

    7. Re:I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It was more to do with his concern of them getting someone else to finish them, which if history tells us anything would be a fucking disaster and insult to his legacy.

    8. Re:I understand, but... by drinkypoo · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Implying the father wrote well? I have read Frank Herbert - all of his works - and I don't think the apple fell far from the tree.

      Herbert was perhaps only a good and not a great writer, but he was a great imaginer.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    9. Re:I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I can understand him not wanting his world ...

      His creations, and his ending of the same on his terms. Good for him.

    10. Re:I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      His final works were a bit dire as was. I think he was trying to give his characters a canonical happy ending, which I can understand, but they definitely weren't his best work by far.

    11. Re:I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Either way, I am sad that Terry Pratchett is dead. But very happy that he lived.

    12. Re: I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Troll

      I, on the other hand, am not happy that he lived because he was just another repressive patriarchal male. He should have died much earlier and left his money to find a Herstory or Gender Relations program.

    13. Re:I understand, but... by Dunbal · · Score: 1

      Saying a son is terrible at writing does not imply the father was good, merely that father was better than the son.

      --
      Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
    14. Re:I understand, but... by arth1 · · Score: 1

      His final works were a bit dire as was. I think he was trying to give his characters a canonical happy ending, which I can understand, but they definitely weren't his best work by far.

      I'm not too sure how much of the later books were actually his.
      IMO, the decline started when the type of humour changed, back around the turn of the century. Gone were the groaners, trivia (and more obscure) references and shaggy dog stories, and Vimes became a Marty Stu. But plenty of people loved his later books too - who am I to judge?

    15. Re:I understand, but... by arth1 · · Score: 1

      His creations, and his ending of the same on his terms. Good for him.

      He wouldn't know. On account of being, well, dead.

    16. Re:I understand, but... by Dunbal · · Score: 1

      His last couple books were crap, and I say that as a fan who has bought/read them all. But considering what he was facing it's understandable and I didn't hold it against him.

      --
      Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
    17. Re: I understand, but... by Dunbal · · Score: 0

      I guess it's easy to tell other people what they should do with their money when you've never had any nor ever will.

      PS I'm guessing this is a joke. Just imagine I'm addressing the personality you are satirizing.

      --
      Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
    18. Re:I understand, but... by Dunbal · · Score: 1

      There was but it got crushed under the big heavy wheel of progress, as it were.

      --
      Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
    19. Re:I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      OH DOESN'T HE?

    20. Re:I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Just say like "The Silmarillion" and be done with it!

    21. Re:I understand, but... by Dunbal · · Score: 2

      I actually liked The Silmarillion?

      --
      Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
    22. Re:I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't know! Why are you asking me?

    23. Re:I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Hey! Look at what Binky left on my lawn! You going to clean that up?!

    24. Re: I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Obvious troll is obvious.

    25. Re:I understand, but... by Jeremy+Erwin · · Score: 1

      From a footnote (of course) attached the Afterword of "The Shepherd's Crown".

      We will now not know how the old folk of Twilight Canyons solve the mystery of a missing treasure and defeat the rise of a Dark Lord despite their failing memories, nor the secret of the crystal cave and the carnivorous plants in The Dark Incontinent, nor how Constable Feeney solves a whodunit among the congenitally decent and honest goblins, nor how the second book about the redoubtable Maurice as a ship’s cat might have turned out. And these are just a few of the ideas his office and family know about.

    26. Re:I understand, but... by thomst · · Score: 4, Interesting

      fermion stated:,/p>

      Some writers like Heinlein were probably ok with work being published posthumously. He was well known to believe that he wrote for a paycheck, and everything he wrote was to published. He supposedly said the day that his publisher rejected a work was the day he would walk across the street to another publisher.

      For those who are more selective, destruction is the best option.

      Actually, the day his publisher rejected a book WAS the day he "walked across the street" to another publisher, never to return.

      In 1959, Charles Scribner's Sons rejected Heinlein's novel Starship Troopers as "too mature and too controversial" for their juvenile imprint. Heinlein immediately ended his exclusive contract with the firm and his agent was quickly able to strike a deal with Putnam's to publish the book, instead. Starship Troopers marked the beginning of his polemical middle period as a novelist, a trend which I tend to think was at least in part due to his "liberation" from the stuffy confines of Scribner's editorial policies.

      I've always been grateful that I got to meet the man in person at Octocon II in Santa Rosa in 1977. He'd been a hero of mine since I was 7 years old - and, in person, he did not disappoint. It just so happened that I was assigned to work security at the door, while RAH and Theodore Sturgeon spent all day signing autographs at a table in the back of the bloodmobile that he (or, more likely, his wife Virginia) had talked the 'con's organizers into welcoming. Despite the long hours and the repetitive nature of his self-assigned task, he was unfailingly courteous to the stream of blood doners who waited with sometimes-voluminous stacks of books in hand for their chance at his signature.

      The only exception was a hippie type who wandered into the coach after the blood collection was done for the day and, practically wagging his non-existent tail, requested an autograph. When the author asked him if he'd donated blood, he said "No.". Heinlein then inquired, "I take it they wouldn't allow you to donate?" The guy shook his head and replied, "Nah. I don't believe in that stuff." The great man tossed his unsigned book back across the table, looked him dead in the eye, and said, in a voice as cold as liquid helium, "You, sir, are unwelcome here. Leave. Now."

      Which he did, figurative tail between his legs.

      That was my only personal experience with Heinlein, but it sure left a lasting impression ...

      --
      Check out my novel.
    27. Re:I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually yes. Frank Herbert is one of the best fiction writers in all of history. The universe he created is so deep and rich. There are very few other works that can compare. Perhaps Lord of the Rings comes close.

    28. Re: I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      His universe being rich implies he's a good imaginer, not necessarily good writer. The latter is more about how well he manages to convey his image of his world to you, and verbally create suspense.

    29. Re: I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I, on the other hand, am not happy that he lived because he was just another repressive patriarchal male. He should have died much earlier and left his money to find a Herstory or Gender Relations program.

      Grow up.

    30. Re: I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The latter is more about how well he manages to convey his image of his world to you, and verbally create suspense.

      Which is very well. Every time I read through the Dune series, I can see exactly what he envisioned down to the finest detail.

      That's why I actually sort of like the David Lynch Dune film. It was pretty bad in every way, but the set design and costumes were spot on, almost exactly as I saw them in my head when reading the books.

      God Emperor of Dune is probably one of the finest works of fiction ever written.

    31. Re:I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      https://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2003/10/15/honesty-time

    32. Re: I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Not to mention, I think David lynch is top 10 of all times. Very underrated.

    33. Re: I understand, but... by that+this+is+not+und · · Score: 1

      The big wheel of the steam roller was actually a restored vintage steam powered steam roller. Not the wheels of future of a modern machine.

    34. Re: I understand, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      boring cunt.

    35. Re:I understand, but... by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      Nevertheless, I would have liked to know what he was working on.

      That may well still be on Rob's hard drive.

      Quite likely, for things that were in the planning stages there were some discussions about [project name] with his publisher, collaborator, PA (Rob). Which are already covered by NDAs.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
    36. Re:I understand, but... by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      Nice anecdote. Sounds very Heinlein.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
    37. Re:I understand, but... by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      All the more reason for his friends, colleagues and fans to welcome this fulfilment of his wishes.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
    38. Re:I understand, but... by thomst · · Score: 1

      RockDoctor observed:

      Nice anecdote. Sounds very Heinlein.

      Yeah, it seemed perfectly in character to me, too.

      BTW - when it was my turn to ask for his autograph, I felt obligated to inform him that I had borrowed three of his characters for a novel I was writing.

      His response?

      "Just make sure you file the serial numbers off ..."

      --
      Check out my novel.
    39. Re:I understand, but... by Rastl · · Score: 1

      His last couple books were crap, and I say that as a fan who has bought/read them all. But considering what he was facing it's understandable and I didn't hold it against him.

      I blame his editors and his agent who were trying to squeeze every last dime out of his books before he died.

    40. Re:I understand, but... by david_thornley · · Score: 1

      Lovecraft might be a better example. August Derleth got hold of his notes, and would take a random paragraph Lovecraft had discarded and write a story including it, then call it a collaboration. Derleth took something of a cosmic nihilism and made it into good vs. evil, confusing people about what Lovecraft meant for some time.

      --
      "When you have eliminated the unacceptable, whatever is left, however improbable, must be the truthiness" - Holmes
    41. Re:I understand, but... by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      I refer the honourable gentleman to my comment three messages upthread.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
    42. Re:I understand, but... by thomst · · Score: 1

      RockDoctor commented:

      I refer the honourable gentleman to my comment three messages upthread.

      Agreed!

      --
      Check out my novel.
  6. That's one way to do it. by Gravis+Zero · · Score: 1

    When clearing your browser history just isn't enough, there's a steamroller.

    --
    Anons need not reply. Questions end with a question mark.
    1. Re:That's one way to do it. by Dunbal · · Score: 2, Funny

      Hillary Clinton is furiously taking notes. For when hammers just won't do.

      --
      Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
    2. Re:That's one way to do it. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      Whereas Donald Trump is trying to figure out which end of the pointy thing they gave him produces ink. And that's the just the start of his problems.

    3. Re:That's one way to do it. by Carewolf · · Score: 2

      When clearing your browser history just isn't enough, there's a steamroller.

      I think running over a harddrive with a steamroller is going to damage the road more than the drive. The drive might not be plug and play anymore, but the data is probably unharmed for forensic recovery.

    4. Re:That's one way to do it. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There's no ink left in it, and it's not pointy any more.

  7. well obviously the steamroller is powered by steam by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    A roadroller that is not powered by steam is not a steamroller. Shit any idiot with two brain cells knows that. It's right in the freakin word!

  8. IDE drive? by CharlesAKAChuck · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Seriously, is that an PATA IDE drive? I believe it is. I thought Terry Pratchett was really into computers...and that leaves me with two questions: What the hell kind of computer was he using that had an IDE drive, and considering how slow IDE drives are, what the hell is GRR Martin using-chisels and stone tablets?

    1. Re:IDE drive? by beckett · · Score: 1

      There was a time on /. this comment would have been modded 5: insightful

    2. Re:IDE drive? by alvinrod · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Writers can be a bit weird when it comes to their equipment. It may well be that he still used an ancient machine to actually write his novels that he had been using for some time. If all you're doing is some simple word processing, you could probably get by with using something from the 80's. Probably not a bad idea if you don't want the possibility of distraction.

    3. Re:IDE drive? by arth1 · · Score: 2

      Yes, it's an old HD, and I am fairly certain that pterry said he had gotten a new computer back in 2007 or so, at which point SATA had taken over. So I am not totally convinced that this was "the" HD, even though I have no doubts that it came from one of his computers.

    4. Re:IDE drive? by wisnoskij · · Score: 1

      We had an article about GRR a while ago. I believe his computer is DOS with a floppy drive.

      So yes, basically.

      --
      Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
    5. Re:IDE drive? by arth1 · · Score: 1

      Harlan Ellison still used a manual typewriter just a few years ago, and if memory serves me right, he has lamented the difficulties in obtaining ribbons. Which could be why Dangerous Visions 3 is somewhat delayed...

    6. Re:IDE drive? by Dunbal · · Score: 1

      what the hell is GRR Martin using-chisels and stone tablets?

      Which would explain why his last book(s) are taking so long.

      --
      Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
    7. Re: IDE drive? by jordanjay29 · · Score: 2

      That time was about three seasons of GOT ago.

    8. Re:IDE drive? by Jeremy+Erwin · · Score: 1

      He used Dragon Dictate and Talking Point on his last few novels, as his Alzheimer's had embuggered his typing skills. Not necessarily something you'd use on a older machine.

      THE LATE SIR TERRY PRATCHETT TALKS TALKINGPOINT

    9. Re: IDE drive? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Word is, and I'm not joking, he also types with one or two fingers.

      http://hbowatch.com/george-r-r-martin-types-with-one-finger/

    10. Re:IDE drive? by eclectro · · Score: 1

      Writers can be a bit weird when it comes to their equipment. It may well be that he still used an ancient machine to actually write his novels that he had been using for some time.

      This very well could be the case. Wordstar was a wildly popular DOS word processor back in the day.
        A number of authors really liked it.

      --
      Take the cheese to sickbay, the doctor should see it as soon as possible - B'Elanna Torres, "Learning Curve"
    11. Re:IDE drive? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      considering how slow IDE drives are

      That's news to me. 30-50 MB/s is what they do and it sounds plenty. The best SATA hard disk drives get maybe 120-150 MB/s at best, but frankly I don't see them being more than 2-3 times faster than a 'slow IDE drive'.

    12. Re:IDE drive? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      With those skills, I bet you work for Geek Squad. Sounds like you have the same attitude.

    13. Re:IDE drive? by thegarbz · · Score: 2

      It may well be that he still used an ancient machine to actually write his novels that he had been using for some time. If all you're doing is some simple word processing, you could probably get by with using something from the 80's. Probably not a bad idea if you don't want the possibility of distraction.

      Hate to break that lovely idea, but Terry Pratchett was the opposite. He was a big advocate of complicated Word processors, used MS Word to write his novels, and did so with all the wonderful distraction of a computer with 6 monitors.
      Here's a picture of his writing workdesk from an older BBC interview: https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/image...

      He often quoted as never being without a computer and frequently moved between laptop and the many computers he had in his house.

      Not to mention that his last few novels he was using dictation software. It's about as complicated and far from the "quirky weird writers" as it can get.
       

    14. Re:IDE drive? by argStyopa · · Score: 1

      You know at least 90%+ people wouldn't even notice the difference in the normal use of their machine, right?

      --
      -Styopa
    15. Re:IDE drive? by bill_mcgonigle · · Score: 1

      So I am not totally convinced that this was "the" HD

      There's respecting a dead man's wishes, and there's donating a million dollars to childhood cancer research. Everything is a compromise.

      --
      My God, it's Full of Source!
      OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
    16. Re:IDE drive? by blindseer · · Score: 1

      Judging by the size of the text on his screen I have to wonder if he had vision problems and the multiple screens were to get some lost screen real estate back. It's hard to tell but it also looks like he had multiple computers running. That was also likely to get sufficient screen real estate. I do that too, I have multiple computers side by side so I can look things up on the web on one computer while typing into another. I'm not writing a novel, just doing programming homework and writing up assignments.

      --
      I am armed because I am free. I am free because I am armed.
    17. Re:IDE drive? by Wolfrider · · Score: 1

      --And you can still use Wordstar key bindings to edit text files in Linux - install the "joe" package and use ' jstar '.

      / still my favorite editor

      --
      .
      == WolfriderV6 == I'm willing to admit that *I just might* be wrong... Are you??
    18. Re:IDE drive? by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      I thought Terry Pratchett was really into computers

      Pratchett was a professional writer, having started as a journalist with ink, paper and shorthand, and worked his way through a gamut of technologies including using a nuclear power station to power his typewriter (CEGB, Hinckley point IIRC). He'd have used what worked well enough, and maybe had a different rig for computer games ("Only You Can Save Mankind") out of the office.

      I suspect you're conflating Douglas Adams or Stephen Fry with Pterry. DNA and Fry certainly "gadgeted together", but Pterry wasn't really a metropolitan person, living 70-odd miles (and several darned peculiar furlongs) form the Great Wen.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
    19. Re:IDE drive? by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      Quite an old picture that. The text on the screen is a scene from "Dodger", published in 2012, dating this to 2011 at the latest.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
    20. Re:IDE drive? by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      Photo from 2009 actually.

    21. Re:IDE drive? by SuiteSisterMary · · Score: 1

      And yet I remember using Dragon NaturallySpeaking on at least a Pentium. There was DragonDictate before that, which ran on DOS.

      --
      Vintage computer games and RPG books available. Email me if you're interested.
  9. Re:well obviously the steamroller is powered by st by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    shut it, pedant

  10. Let's be honest by Breakerofthings · · Score: 0

    He clearly didn't want anyone seeing his browser history, or porn stash ... respect.

  11. Our Heroes Leave. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I met him at a games conference in 1990/1991? in Dublin.

    Wonderful man. Got drunk with us. Laughed his ass off.

    The books started off as whimsical, then turned profound, without pomposity.

    When I think of the death of Granny Weatherwax, and the ribbon tied to the tree, as guide to where she should be buried,
    written by a man who knew his time grew close ...

    These things we choose. Frost to flame.

    Adieu, Terry.

    1. Re:Our Heroes Leave. by Dunbal · · Score: 1

      Wonderful man. Got drunk with us. Laughed his ass off.

      Only because he wasn't sure if you were related or not... too soon?

      --
      Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
  12. The BIG question is... by sbaker · · Score: 1

    Did he actually stipulate that nobody could copy anything off of the hard drive BEFORE it would be crushed by a steam roller?

    --
    www.sjbaker.org
  13. What A shame.... by mysidia · · Score: 1

    I hope they looked over the data and backed up anything important first.

    1. Re:What A shame.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, 'cause *fuck* someone's final wishes, right?

      From you, it was serious. From me, it was sarcasm.

  14. Re:well obviously the steamroller is powered by st by Dunbal · · Score: 3, Informative

    If you bothered to look at the pictures in TFA you'd realize that they used an actual STEAM roller.

    --
    Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
  15. Disc drive by billybob2001 · · Score: 2

    Title: Disc-whirrled
    Sub-title: Erasing Steam(roller)

  16. Statue by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Is the platter still intact? I'd love to see it mounted as the disk over Great A'Tuin and the elephants in a small statue display.

  17. Steamroller? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Did they actually find an old steamroller just for this?

    You'd think a modern diesel model would have been fine.

    1. Re:Steamroller? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Don't you think a Steamroller was more in line with the humor of Terry Pratchett?
      Sometimes I really hate that "modern" bland cold and dull materialistic thinking...

    2. Re:Steamroller? by Half-pint+HAL · · Score: 1

      They went to a fair/show organised by a vintage engineering preservation group. Must have been a hell of a day for the owners when they were asked to do something so special.

      --
      Got them moderator blues I blieve I walk out the do', With these mod-points I been gettin', I 'most never post no mo'
  18. Re:well obviously the steamroller is powered by st by AK+Marc · · Score: 1

    Well, shit. I put plates in my cupboard, and created a singularity.

    --
    Learn to love Alaska
  19. Encrypt, pass out. by stooo · · Score: 3, Funny

    Don't need no stinkin' steamroller.
    Use full disk encryption.
    May the passphrase be gone when you pass out.
    And yes, you can call it the "pass out phrase"

    --
    aaaaaaa
    1. Re: Encrypt, pass out. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And in twenty years quantum computing allows it to be decrypted, perhaps? A steam roller, however is fun and final.

      But just one hard drive? Where are the backups?

      I was more hoping Pratchett had signed over the rights to complete to Gaiman, profits to Alzheimer research.

    2. Re:Encrypt, pass out. by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      Given Pterry's memory and ... thingumy .. problems, that's not really funny

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
    3. Re: Encrypt, pass out. by david_thornley · · Score: 1

      Quantum computers aren't magic. Assuming we can build one with enough bits, it would cut the effective key size in half. Use AES-256 and stop worrying about brute-force attacks by any entity that doesn't have about a small galaxy's worth of resources.

      --
      "When you have eliminated the unacceptable, whatever is left, however improbable, must be the truthiness" - Holmes
  20. "evidence of destruction" ?!? by molecular · · Score: 1

    How is steamrolling a hard-drive (even if it is the proper original one, which I don't doubt) evidence of destruction of data at all?

    There could be copies.

    If, as an author or anyone else, want some data to be inaccessible after your death, just strongly encrypt it with a long password you don't write down anywhere. No need to put instructions into wills and trust poeple or anything like that.

  21. DELIVERY RECEIVED by Alain+Williams · · Score: 4, Insightful

    MY FRIEND SIR TERRY CAN NOW WORK IN PEACE AT MY HOUSE and complete his books. You may read them when you join us.

    This was first written entirely in caps ... but a soulless slashdot filter complained that that was shouting :-(

    1. Re:DELIVERY RECEIVED by Big+Hairy+Ian · · Score: 1

      MY FRIEND SIR TERRY CAN NOW WORK IN PEACE AT MY HOUSE and complete his books. You may read them when you join us.

      This was first written entirely in caps ... but a soulless slashdot filter complained that that was shouting :-(

      Doesn't matter I still read it with Sir Ian Richardson's voice (Played Death in the Hogfather) playing in my head

      --

      Build a Man a Fire, and He'll Be Warm for a Day. Set a Man on Fire, and He'll Be Warm for the Rest of His Life.

  22. Technical problems by DrYak · · Score: 1

    If, as an author or anyone else, want some data to be inaccessible after your death, just strongly encrypt it with a long password you don't write down anywhere.

    There might have been a few technical problems with this strategy.

    (As his Alzheimer's disease had progressed, Terry was complaining of not being able to type).

    --
    "Sufficiently advanced satire is indistinguishable from reality." - [Tips: 1DrYakQDKCQ6y52z6QbnkxHXAocMZJE61o ]
  23. A faint scream was heard.. by PixetaledPikachu · · Score: 1

    ...Wryyyyyyy

  24. The ROADROLLER was one powered by actual steam. by Badger+Nadgers · · Score: 2

    "the steamroller was one powered by actual steam." They always are. The clue is in the name.

  25. Wikipedia spared from Discworld by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Thank god.
    No need to remove additional "in popular culture" references to Discworld in any and every random article.

  26. Fall in line by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Actually a good story with a terrible ending that hints on Heinlein's true nature. Egotistical and uncompromising. My way or the highway.

    1. Re: Fall in line by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Egotistical? How the hell do you get egotistical out of that?

      I'll give you points on uncompromising, but again, this goes for the person who didn't believe in blood drives as well.

      Oh wait, I get it.

      You're anti-vaccination!

      Door's where you left it.

    2. Re: Fall in line by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Some people do have religious convictions that forbid them from giving blood. Unfortunate, but that's just life.
      Also, another thing to consider is that some people simply can't or shouldn't give blood. Hemophiliacs, for example, or people who know that their blood carries a communicable disease. And people, more often than you might think, are unwilling to admit to these things out loud. If you've ever given blood yourself, you should be aware that they give donors the option to privately and quietly note on their paperwork that their blood should not be used. This is specifically so that people who, for example, come in with a group, don't get peer pressured into donating dangerous blood without their medical confidentiality being compromised.

  27. startup, restart, and shutdown? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What constitutes normal use?
    What if they powered on and off the computer daily?
    What if they regularly restarted for windows updates?
    What if the computer is rendered otherwise unusable while it does virus scans, daily?

    1. Re:startup, restart, and shutdown? by argStyopa · · Score: 1

      If your computer is unusable because the HD is chugging through a simple virus scan, your computer/OS is fucked up - it's not just the HD.
      And if you're running a full HD scan daily, you're just dumb.

      --
      -Styopa
  28. Re:What a waste of hardware by Half-pint+HAL · · Score: 1

    Do we know it wasn't a piece of out-of-date hardware with no resale value...?

    --
    Got them moderator blues I blieve I walk out the do', With these mod-points I been gettin', I 'most never post no mo'
  29. Re:What a waste of hardware by Half-pint+HAL · · Score: 1

    (except the invaluable data on it, that is)

    --
    Got them moderator blues I blieve I walk out the do', With these mod-points I been gettin', I 'most never post no mo'
  30. Re:well obviously the steamroller is powered by st by Half-pint+HAL · · Score: 1

    A roadroller that is not powered by steam is not a steamroller. Shit any idiot with two brain cells knows that. It's right in the freakin word!

    ...which is why they specifically went to a vintage steamroller show, who would have been extremely happy for the unusual publicity that it generated for the guys involved.

    --
    Got them moderator blues I blieve I walk out the do', With these mod-points I been gettin', I 'most never post no mo'
  31. Call DriveSavers by TheDarkener · · Score: 1

    They'll get it =p

    --
    It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue.
  32. Hunter S. Thompson by JBMcB · · Score: 1

    Had his ashes shot out of a canon at his funeral.

    Top that :)

    --
    My Other Computer Is A Data General Nova III.
  33. Colour me suspicious, but by BoogieChile · · Score: 1

    That's the hard drive he was using two years ago?

    How long has it been since you could even buy a hard drive with an IDE interface?

  34. Steamroller by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Do they really still use steam?

  35. IDE by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Holy crap, it's IDE? Was Terry using a computer a decade old?

    Yeah... yeah he probably was.

  36. COOL by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Cool, nothing like steamrolling the hell out of it, after making an image.