The 0 prefix in the lesson name indicates a ?published lesson? ? which means a frozen
copy of the original made by CDC and distributed as part of the PLATO distribution. The
original name was ?empire? and it became famous under that name at its original home,
University of Illinois PLATO.
As for PLATO simulation, there is one, which John mentions (cyber1). That consists of
the CDC 6000 emulator ?DtCyber? by Tom Hunter, plus a copy of PLATO authorized by its
current owners and taken from the last known production PLATO system, plus some additional
lessons (programs) recovered from various archives. It connects to terminals ? either
real PLATO terminals or an emulation program ?pterm? over TCP connections. Access is
available to all, on request, see the website
cyber1.org for details.
That said, the copies of empire on that system (there?s a 0empire and an empire) are not
set for open source ?open inspect? access. I had not seen John?s comment about open
source. Possibly he intended to make the sources visible at some other location. If he
wants the copy on cyber1 to be open-inspect, that?s easy to do but it would require a
specific note from him to the cyber1 admins (of which I?m one) to authorize the change.
paul
I?m still looking for a Plato IV terminal keyboard. Both the layout and tactile feel are
truly part of the ?Empire? experience.
Jerry