905 lines
35 KiB
Plaintext
905 lines
35 KiB
Plaintext
Newsgroups: rec.toys.lego,rec.answers,news.answers
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Path: bloom-beacon.mit.edu!grapevine.lcs.mit.edu!olivea!sgigate.sgi.com!sgiblab!swrinde!ihnp4.ucsd.edu!pacbell.com!well!nigel.msen.com!zib-berlin.de!ceres.fokus.gmd.de!tom
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From: tom@fokus.gmd.de (Tom Pfeifer)
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Subject: LEGO frequently asked questions (FAQ)
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Message-ID: <lego-faq-01_766664297@fokus.gmd.de>
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Followup-To: poster
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Summary: FAQ about the construction toy LEGO, posted monthly
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Originator: tom@omega
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Keywords: LEGO, toy, construction, FAQ
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Lines: 885
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Sender: news@fokus.gmd.de (News system)
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Supersedes: <lego-faq-01_763146952@fokus.gmd.de>
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Reply-To: pfeifer@fokus.gmd.de
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Organization: GMD-FOKUS, Hardenbergplatz 2, 10623 Berlin, Germany
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Distribution: world
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Date: Mon, 18 Apr 1994 10:18:19 GMT
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Approved: news-answers-request@mit.edu
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Expires: Wed, 1 Jun 1994 10:18:17 GMT
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Xref: bloom-beacon.mit.edu rec.toys.lego:2567 rec.answers:4941 news.answers:18209
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Archive-name: LEGO-faq
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Last-modified: April 18, 1994
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This is the FAQ for the rec.toys.lego newsgroup
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***********************************************
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I compiled it from information in postings, email contributions and
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catalogues. Providers of larger pieces of information are mentioned.
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Please feel free to send corrections and contributions. The usual FAQ
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disclaimers apply.
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Please include the word LEGO somewhere in the Subject-line of email.
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Tom Pfeifer
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pfeifer@fokus.gmd.de
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phone (Germany) +49-30-25499-288
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*** New since Mar 8:
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minor revisions, DACTA catalog names
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*** New since Jan 17:
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official Legoland 1994 prices & hours, DACTA UK phone, Clones, etc.
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The charter of this group:
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==========================
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To provide a forum for the discussion of all things and experiences
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relating to the LEGO(tm), DUPLO(tm) and compatible construction
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toys. Including interesting models that one has built, experiences one has
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had using LEGO, or questions about how to build particular components.
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Contents:
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=========
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1. Addresses, Phone numbers, Mail order, Clubs
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2. Books & papers about LEGO
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3. Price comparison & profits
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4. LegoLand theme parks
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5. Large displays / play rooms
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6. Computer connections and DACTA
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7. Plural of LEGO
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8. LEGO advertising
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9. How to wash LEGO pieces
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10. Storing / sorting / using LEGO
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11. Taking pieces apart
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12. LEGO history / What does LEGO mean
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13. Material, Technology and Measurements
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14. Nice quotations
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15. FTP and WWW sites
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16. Substitutes / compatibles / clones
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Subject: 1) International addresses, Phone numbers,
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===================================================
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Mail order, Clubs
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=================
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Mail order:
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USA: see Shop at Home
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Europe: Ask your local service department for the
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"LEGO Service catalog of spare parts"
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AUSTRALIA
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LEGO Australia P/L.
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P.O. Box 639
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Lane Cove; N.S.W. 2066
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AUSTRIA
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LEGO Handelsgesellschaft mbH.
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Consumer Service
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Albert-Schweitzer-Gasse 11
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A-1147 Wien
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BELGIUM & LUXEMBOURG
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LEGO Consumer Service
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c/o LEGO BELGIUM
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n.v. Leuvenseteenweg 323, 1932 Zaventem
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CANADA
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LEGO Canada Inc.
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331 Amber Street
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Markham, Ontario
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Canada L3R 3J7
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Tel. (416) 940-6600
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Toll-Free 1-800-387-4387 (may be obsolete, please tell me)
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and 1-800-267-5346 (valid)
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Fax (416) 940-0745
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LEGO Club (newsletter, catalog information, etc.)
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P.O. Box 3700
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Markham
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Ontario, L3R 6G9
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DENMARK
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LEGO A/S
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DK-7190 Billund
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Phone +45 - 75 35 11 88
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Fax +45 - 75 35 33 60
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LegoLand
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Phone +45 - 75 33 13 33
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FINLAND
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Oy Suomen LEGO Pb
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PL 42; 02701 Kauniainen
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or:
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Oy Suomen LEGO Ab
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PL 46; 02631 Espoo
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Puh.: 90-520 533
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FRANCE
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LEGO France S.A., Service Pie`ces de Rechange
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B.P. 837, F-28011 CHARTRES Ce'dex.
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Te'l.: 37 28 53 68
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GERMANY
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LEGO GmbH
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Service: Regina
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24594 Hohenwestedt/Holstein
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LEGO-hotline (short story played from tape) (069) 19733
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GREECE
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N. Kouvalias S.A.
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25, El. Venizelou Ave.
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GR-17671 Kallithea
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HUNGARY
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LEGO Hunga'ria KFT
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1027 Budapest
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To"lgyfa utca 28
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ITALY
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LEGO S.p.A.
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Servizio Consumatori
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Via Colombo, 12
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20020 Lainate (MI)
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Tel. 02/93 74 581
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NETHERLANDS, The
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LEGO Nederland B.V.
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Afd. Konsumenten Service
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Postbus 18, 9860 AA Grootegast
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NORWAY
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A/S LEGO System Norge
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Postboks 66
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N-1301 Sandvika
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or: Postboks 38
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1314 Skui
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Telefon: 67131600
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PORTUGAL
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LEGO, Lda.
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Largo Joao Vaz. 9-A/B/C/D
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1700 Lisboa
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Tel.: (01) 847 33 41
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SPAIN
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LEGO, S.A.
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Apartado 500
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28850 Torrejo'n de Ardoz (Madrid)
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SWEDEN
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Svenska LEGO AB
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Fack; S-443 01 Lerum 1
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or: Box 304; S-443 27 LERUM
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Tel: 0302-229 60
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SWITZERLAND
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LEGO Spielwaren AG / LEGO Jouets SA / LEGO Giacattoli SA
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Neuhofstrasse 21
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CH-6340 Baar
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Tel: 042/33 44 66
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UNITED KINGDOM and IRELAND
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LEGO U.K. Ltd., (including club)
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Ruthin Road,
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Wrexham,
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Clwyd LL13 7TQ
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Customer Service - 0978 296 247
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LEGO Club - 0978 296 290
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Service, spare parts - 0978 296 233
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Anything else, DACTA UK - 0978 290 900
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The LEGO club costs 3.95 pounds (4.50 pounds for Ireland). They
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need: name, address, post code, sex, date of birth. Cheques made
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payable to 'LEGO U.K. Ltd' or credit card.
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UNITED STATES
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LEGO Systems, Inc.
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555 Taylor Road
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P.O. Box 1600
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Enfield, CT, 06083-1600
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1-800-243 4870
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LEGO Systems, Inc.
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Consumer Affairs
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P.O. Box 1138
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Enfield, CT 06083
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1-800-422-5346 (9am-9pm Mon-Fri) (Eastern time)
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(203) 749-2291
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LEGO Shop at Home Service
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P.O. Box 1310
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Enfield, CT 06083
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Tel.(203) 763-4011, -4012, and -6800 (8:00 - 8:00 EST)
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1-800-835-4386
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1-800-453-4652
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(catalog available, no charge for shipping, 3-5 weeks for
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delivery)
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LEGO Builders Club
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PO Box 5000
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Unionville, CT 06087-5000
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(one year $7.95, two years $14.00; membership kit and free
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bonus mini set, birthday mailing, magazine (Brick Kicks),
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...)
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LEGO Dacta
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555 Taylor Road
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P.O. Box 1600
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Enfield, CT 06083-1600
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orders and info: 1-(800)-527-8339
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fax: 1-(203)-763-2466
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Subject: 2) Books & papers about LEGO
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=====================================
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The World of LEGO Toys
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Henry Wiencek
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Harry N. Abrams, Inc., Publishers, New York
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Times Mirror Books
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TS2301.T7W474 1987 688.7'2 86-23200
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ISBN 0-8109-1790-4 (hardcover)
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ISBN 0-8109-2362-9 (paperback)
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Where does it come from? LEGO brick.
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Text and editing: Kathy Henderson
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illustrated by Diane Tippell
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Art Director: Debbie MacKinnon
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22 pages, fully illustrated in full color
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Morristown, NJ: Silver Burdett, 1986.
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Library of Congress: TS2301.T7T525 1986
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Dewey: 688.7'2
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ISBN: 0-382-09362-3
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The book traces the manufacture of Lego bricks all the way from
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the sucking of oil out of the earth to the placing of the finished
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bricks in the hands of children. While this edition is supposedly
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"adapted" for the United States market, it still has a definite
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British feel to it. Type is large and writing is simple enough for
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seven-year-olds. A delightful, if not deep, the book does the job
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for its intended audience. (Wes Loder (MWL2@psuvm.psu.edu))
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The Epistemology and Learning Group at the MIT Media Laboratory,
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has made some of their papers and publications available via anonymous
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FTP from cherupakha.media.mit.edu:/pub/el-publications/EL-Memos.
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Some papers of interest to the LEGO community are:
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memo13.PS.Z
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memo13.tar.Z
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memo13cvr.PS
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"BRAITENBERG CREATURES"
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by David W. Hogg, Fred Martin, and Mitchel Resnick
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This paper describes 12 autonomous ``creatures'' built with
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Electronic Bricks. Electronic Bricks are specially-modified LEGO
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bricks with simple electronic circuits inside. Although each
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Electronic Brick is quite simple, the bricks can be combined to
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form robotic creatures with interesting and complex behaviors,
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similar to the fictional machines described in Valentino
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Braitenberg's book Vehicles (1984).
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memo10.PS.Z
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memo10.hqx
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"CHILDREN AND ARTIFICIAL LIFE"
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by Mitchel Resnick and Fred Martin
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Artificial Life is a new field in which researchers study living
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systems by trying to build artificial versions of them. In this paper,
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we argue that ideas from Artificial Life research can and should
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be shared with children. We describe various computational tools
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(including LEGO/Logo and Electronic Bricks) that students can
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use to build artificial creatures. By building and programming
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artificial creatures (and discussing and thinking about how the
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creatures behave), children can explore some of the central ideas
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of Artificial Life -- ideas like feedback, levels of organization, and
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emergence.
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memo8.PS.Z
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memo8.hqx
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"LEGO/LOGO: LEARNING THROUGH AND ABOUT
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DESIGN"
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by Mitchel Resnick and Stephen Ocko, September 1990
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Most classroom problem-solving activities focus on analytic
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thinking: decomposing problems into subproblems. Students rarely
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get the opportunity to design and invent things. In this paper, we
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describe how LEGO/Logo, a computer-based robotics
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environment, supports a variety of design activities. We examine
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how students using LEGO/Logo can learn important
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mathematical and scientific ideas through their design activities,
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while also learning about the design process itself.
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Israel Shenker
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in: Smithsonian magazine, June 1988
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(if you know it, please tell me title and publisher)
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Subject: 3) Price comparison & profits
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======================================
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thorinn@diku.dk (Lars Henrik Mathiesen):
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In April 1993 LEGO published their results for 1992. The mother firm
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reported a net profit (before Danish taxes, probably) of US$100,000,000,
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while the net sales in the North American market were given as
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US$4,000,000,000.
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Somebody calculated the price per piece in the 'old days' as $0.10. Today
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it may be between $0.10 and $0.30. Count, calculate and mail me (Tom)
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your comments.
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LegoLand, Billund, Denmark is reported to sell at list prices, no factory
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discounts.
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Subject: 4) LegoLand theme park
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===============================
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Billund, Denmark, Europe:
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+++++++++++++++++++++++++
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Billund is in Jylland (Jutland), roughly equidistant (35 km) from Esbjerg
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and Vejle, a town of only just over 4500 people.
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Tel. +45 - 7533 1333, Fax +45 - 7535 3179
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Legoland Park, Nordmarksvej 9, DK-7190 Billund
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(Legoland official:)
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Entrance fees for 1994: 1 day 2 days Season Groups (>=20)
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Little Kids (3-13) DKK 80 DKK 130 DKK 195 DKK 60
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Big Kids (14-59) DKK 95 DKK 160 DKK 240 DKK 75
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Senior Kids (60-) DKK 60 DKK 100 DKK 150 DKK 50
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(increase since 1993: little kids +5, big kids +0)
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When admission has been paid, all rides and exhibitions are free.
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The Traffic School has a separate booking and payment system.
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Guides and coach drivers are free and get free meal coupons.
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The whole park (both indoor and outdoor) will be open:
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from April 29, 1994 until Sept. 18, 1994, 10am - 20pm, activities -6pm
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peak season (June 25 - Aug. 14) 10am - 21pm, activities -7pm
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(end of Legoland official)
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probably obsolate, not mentioned for 1994:
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In the previous years the indoor exhibits (8000 m^2) were open longer,
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from Easter till 3rd Sunday in December 10 am - 17 pm (1993!).
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Examples of the replications in the park and their piece counts, found by
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Mike Weldy (bullwnkl@mentor.cc.purdue.edu) in a magazine:
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o Mt. Rushmore (American monument to Presidents Washington,
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Jefferson, Lincoln, and T. Roosevelt) (1.5 million regular bricks
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and 40K Duplo)
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o Billund Airport (complete with airplanes) (687,860 bricks)
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o Port of Copenhagen (3 million bricks)
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o The Statue of Liberty (1.4 million bricks)
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o Big Chief Sitting Bull (1.2 million bricks)
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o a buffalo hunt (2.5 million)
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fin@unet.umn.edu (Craig A. Finseth) and kokdg@diku.dk (Bo Kjellerup)
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have details how to get there:
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AIR:
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----
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From Europe: Fly to Billund. (Yes, there are flights directly to Billund
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from most major European cities.) The airport, which was at first build
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by the LEGO company, is the second busiest (behind Copenhagen) in
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Denmark. The first model of the airport was made out of LEGO bricks.
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From the US or anywhere else: Fly to Kobnhavn (Copenhagen), then to
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Billund.
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Once in Billund, walk. It's just across the parking lot, about five minutes
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away. The Legoland Hotelis half a mile from the airport.
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TRAIN:
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------
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You can't directly. Billund is about as far as you can get from any
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railway lines and still be on land in Europe. Since the town was
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essentially "put on the map" by LEGO Systems and that company didn't
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really get going until well after World War II, I would guess that they
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missed out on the railway building era. In any event, you can take a train
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to Vejle (nice town) and a bus to Billund (about half an hour).
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If you arrive with a ferry from England (Harwich - Esbjerg), take the
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train from the ferry to Esbjerg rail station, and go by bus to Billund
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(about one hour).
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BUS / AUTO:
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-----------
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The bus goes there. A main road goes there. As I recall, the airport and
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LegoLand parking lots are one and the same.
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Store:
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------
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There is a large store and it carries the entire current line. It does _not_
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carry old, non-standard, or discontinued kits. All sales are at list price. If
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you're from the US, the only reason to buy anything is that the current
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line is somewhat different in Europe than the US, so you might find a
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new kit (and wince when you have to pay for it). Price is a smaller
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consideration for other countries.
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Features:
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---------
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Family Hotel LEGOLAND, open all year round, Tel. +45 - 75 33 12 44
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Banking: Den Danske Bank has a branch in the Information Office.
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Handicapped: Walking-impaired and wheelchair users can go all over the
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park.
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More:
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-----
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To keep the FAQ in limits, I'll email you the heartwarming descriptions
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by some visitors, if you send a Subject line 'LEGOland Billund request'
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to pfeifer@fokus.gmd.de
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New international theme parks
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+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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** USA ** flournoy@cs.stanford.edu (Ray Flournoy):
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LEGO has now decided on its US site for Legoland, and it is:
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Carlsbad, California, a city near San Diego. It will open in 1999,
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probably.
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** UK ** Tom Gardner knows:
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Legoland UK will be on the site of the old Windsor Safari Park in,
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surprise, Windsor. It will probably be finished in 1996.
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Subject: 5) Large displays / play rooms:
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========================================
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The Seattle Science Museum has (or had 2 years ago, anyway) a large
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room filled with LEGO to a depth of several inches.
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leech@cs.unc.edu (Jon Leech)
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The Mall of America, in Bloomington, Minnesota (USA), has a Legoland
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store near the center of the mall. It has a large area for play, with tables
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and chairs. The tops of the tables are LEGO, and there are basins set in
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the center where loose LEGO bricks are stored. There are also huge
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models there: some hang from the ceiling by cables, others stand tall on
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the ground, with moving parts and blinking lights. And best of all: ALL
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AGES ARE WELCOME.
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nudnik@camelot.bradley.edu (Steven Parks)
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... The sculptures range from dinosaurs, circus performers, and animals,
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to scientific models of such things as the space shuttle.
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... there are two *MEGA LARGE SIZE* lego blocks located in one part
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of the surrounding parking lot that you might want to take a picture of.
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foo@drycas.club.cc.cmu.edu (FOO)
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Subject: 6) Computer connections and DACTA
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==========================================
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See address of DACTA in the address section.
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Fred Martin from the MIT provides:
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LEGO Dacta is the educational branch of the LEGO company (which
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has its U.S. headquarters in Enfield, CT). Dacta sells the LEGO Technic
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product line -- the geared and motorized version of the LEGO system.
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Call Dacta and get their catalog, which has many LEGO Technic kits.
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Recommended kits are the 1038 Technic Universal Buggy (a specialized
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kit for building a small LEGO vehicle with a dual motor drive; about
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US$60), the 1032 Technic II with Motorized Transmission (a small
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general-purpose kit including one motor and one battery pack; about
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US$76), and the 9605 Technic Resource Set (a large general-purpose kit
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including two motors and two battery packs; about US$200).
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Catalog names:
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o "Making Connections" (new 1994)
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o "Small Hands: Big Imaginations"
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o "Gear Up for Learning" (probably obsolete)
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Dacta charges 5% shipping cost (while Shop at Home shippes free).
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vaughn@pluto.cis.udel.edu (Chris Vaughn) found in the Dacta catalog:
|
|
MS-DOS or Apple II Slot Card Pack - US$161.50 includes slot card,
|
|
cable, LEGO TC logo software and reference guides. (card is for most
|
|
MS-DOS machines, except IBM PS/2 Models 50 and above or any other
|
|
microchannel computer)
|
|
|
|
Interface Box and Transformer - US$188.00 This box is what you
|
|
connect all your motors, lights, and sensors to. It has 2 inputs, and 6
|
|
outputs (3 if you want to use three motors and have them all be
|
|
reversible).
|
|
|
|
carol@edfua0.ctis.af.mil (Andy Carol):
|
|
The Lego Control Lab for Macintosh and/or PC is available for about
|
|
US$600. It connects to any computer via serial cable (RS-232), has 8
|
|
different output ports which can control motors, lights, and sounds. It has
|
|
8 different inputs for buttons, angles, thermal, etc. This is _NOT_ a plug
|
|
in card, but rather an external device hooked up via serial cable. It is
|
|
programmed with LOGO, and has a really nice graphical system under
|
|
Mac and Windows. It's also possible to use a C and C++ API for all
|
|
control functions.
|
|
|
|
jkoch@ee.ryerson.ca (jim koch) provides:
|
|
The price for Apple or IBM starter pack US$798.00 (Jan 92).
|
|
|
|
vaughn@pluto.cis.udel.edu (Chris Vaughn) writes:
|
|
The Mini Board is a "miniature microprocessor-based controller board
|
|
designed for control of small robotic devices". It was designed at the MIT
|
|
Media Laboratory. This board is perfect for controlling LEGO devices
|
|
(and in fact looks to be much better than the interface designed by
|
|
LEGO).
|
|
|
|
All of the information about the Mini Board is available at an FTP site
|
|
(the address is "cherupakha.media.mit.edu (18.85.0.47)")). This includes
|
|
diagrams and a parts list. The tech reference is a 47-page Postscript
|
|
document.
|
|
|
|
There is a mailing list at listserv@oberon.com. Send the body
|
|
"SUBSCRIBE ROBOT-BOARD your_name" to this email address, the
|
|
body HELP for help.
|
|
|
|
The purpose of this mailing list is to discuss robot controller boards, and
|
|
robot control in general. In particular, this list will be used to support the
|
|
Miniboard 2.0 and 6.270 board design by Fred Martin and Randy Sargent
|
|
of MIT. However, any and all traffic related to robot controllers is
|
|
welcome.
|
|
|
|
slh@toklas.HQ.Ileaf.COM (Stephen L. Hain) contributes:
|
|
May I suggest adding Paradigm Software's Pearl Controller and Object
|
|
Logo to this section. The Pearl Controller connects between a Macintosh
|
|
serial port and a LEGO Robotics controller, and it is daisy chainable.
|
|
Object Logo has an extension consisting of a set of object-oriented
|
|
robotics programming features, allowing event-driven robot control.
|
|
Contact Paradigm at 617 576-7675. (Stephen works for them.)
|
|
|
|
Subject: 7) Plural of LEGO
|
|
==========================
|
|
|
|
While most people point out that they yust say LEGOs,
|
|
lunatic@netcom.com (Lunatic Johnathan Bruce E'Sex) dug out:
|
|
|
|
One catalogue, dated 1980, has the following on its back page:
|
|
|
|
Dear Parents and Children
|
|
The word LEGO(R) is a brand name and is very special to all of
|
|
us in the LEGO Group Companies. We would sincerely like your
|
|
help in keeping it special. Please always refer to our bricks as
|
|
'LEGO Bricks or Toys' and not 'LEGOS.' By doing so, you will
|
|
be helping to protect and preserve a brand of which we are very
|
|
proud and that stands for quality the world over. Thank you!
|
|
|
|
Susan Williams
|
|
Consumer Services
|
|
|
|
Subject 8) LEGO advertising
|
|
===========================
|
|
|
|
LEGO is new toy every day.
|
|
LEGO c'est un nouveau jouet chaque jour.
|
|
LEGO es un juguete nuevo cada dia.
|
|
LEGO ist jeden Tag ein neues Spielzeug.
|
|
LEGO e' un gioco nuovo ogni giorno.
|
|
|
|
LEGO - eine Sprache der Kinder (LEGO - a language of the children).
|
|
LEGO zeigt, was Kinder koennen (LEGO shows what children can).
|
|
|
|
European LEGO advertising is quite good - they just show an animated
|
|
film of lots of LEGO being assembled, disassembled, reassembled etc. a
|
|
few times over in 15 seconds. Some of them are quite impressive.
|
|
|
|
Subject: 9) How to wash LEGO pieces
|
|
===================================
|
|
|
|
From a LEGO catalog...
|
|
DUPLO and LEGO SYSTEM toys can be washed by hand, using
|
|
warm water -- max. 104 degrees Fahrenheit (40 Celsius) -- and
|
|
a mild liquid dish detergent. Storage temperature max. 104 degrees
|
|
Fahrenheit = 40 Celsius. Electric parts are not washable.
|
|
jc@gmd.de (Juergen Christoffel) and gilmer@gandalf.ca (Jack Gilmer)
|
|
say:
|
|
Put your LEGO bricks into a pillow case or a mesh bag (the kind
|
|
for washing small articles of clothes) and wash in your washing
|
|
machine at a low temperature. Tested in kindergarten once a year.
|
|
alekz@library.welch.jhu.edu (Alekz Vermont) says:
|
|
stick them in the tub w/warm sudsy water and swish about... let
|
|
soak. swish more. drain tub. spray with shower (to rinse) and let
|
|
air-dry...
|
|
Do not wash your LEGO people -- their faces come off!
|
|
... but mengsoo@bnr.ca (Meng Soo) notes:
|
|
There's nothing wrong with that. I'd pretend that their faces
|
|
melted, and became faceless mutant LEGO people. The fun really
|
|
started when I discovered permanent markers...
|
|
|
|
Subject: 10) Storing / sorting / using LEGO
|
|
===========================================
|
|
|
|
One of the greatest ideas was:
|
|
Keep them on a bed sheet: spread the sheet for playing - fold it together
|
|
to tide up in seconds, and put it in whatever container you like.
|
|
|
|
Most netters strongly object sorting their pieces and enjoy sitting on the
|
|
floor having their pieces all around them.
|
|
|
|
The variety and size of technic elements may still demand some sorting.
|
|
Hardware stores sell storage units with 18-60 drawers, intended for
|
|
sorting nuts and bolts and the like. The transparent plastic drawers
|
|
(which can include transparent dividers) allow one to see the contents of
|
|
a drawer without opening it.
|
|
|
|
Subject: 11) Taking pieces apart
|
|
================================
|
|
|
|
People use teeth, fingernails, screwdrivers, penknives, ...
|
|
|
|
LEGO now sells a small handle-like gizmo called a "brick separator". It
|
|
works GREAT! It's under US$2 and also found in some basic buckets.
|
|
[part number 821]
|
|
|
|
dholmes@netcom.com (Dennis Holmes) means: What you need is TWO
|
|
separator tools. Stick one on top and one underneath, with the handles
|
|
facing the same direction, and then squeeze the handles together. Works
|
|
like magic!
|
|
|
|
1x1x1s are easy - twist one of them through 45 degrees, and then prise
|
|
them apart with fingers.
|
|
|
|
To separate 2x1 flats crj10@phx.cam.ac.uk (Clive Jones) writes:
|
|
|
|
Let: -
|
|
...be the 1-wide cross-section of the 2x1 block, so:
|
|
-
|
|
-
|
|
|
|
represents the two blocks stuck together. Now find two 12x2 plates.
|
|
Apply them like this:
|
|
|
|
------------ <- wiggle
|
|
-
|
|
-
|
|
------------ wiggle ->
|
|
|
|
...and wiggle them backwards and forwards *hard*. Within a second or
|
|
so, you'll find that all but the most stubborn plates separate, and getting
|
|
the 2x1s off the 12x2s is then easy.
|
|
|
|
Joe Garlicki (jg6a+@andrew.cmu.edu) has another way to separate 2x1
|
|
flats. First, take two 2x1 blocks (the regular size). Put one on top of the
|
|
2x1 flats, and put the other one on the bottom. Then, snap the two 2x1
|
|
flats apart. After that, it's easy to get the 2x1 flats off of the 2x1 blocks.
|
|
Note: This method can be applied to other small plate sizes as well.
|
|
|
|
malakai@potomac.engin.umich.edu (Jeff Jahr) uses
|
|
|
|
... the small black mechanics wrench from some of the old space sets. The
|
|
jaw of wrench is designed so it can grab onto a LEGO bump - absolutely
|
|
useless for prying - but the other end is flattened like a screwdriver. They
|
|
seem to be made from a slightly softer plastic than the blocks to avoid
|
|
scratches.
|
|
|
|
Subject: 12) LEGO history / What does LEGO mean
|
|
===============================================
|
|
|
|
While LEGO comes from Danish "leg godt", "lego" means 'I assemble"
|
|
in Latin.
|
|
|
|
The recent "20th anniversary" refers to the LEGO company in the US
|
|
(1973), not to LEGO itself. It was available before because Samsonite
|
|
had a license to produce it.
|
|
|
|
Andreas Henning (d2henan@dtek.chalmers.se) and Timo (tho@tik.vtt.fi)
|
|
say:
|
|
|
|
The LEGO patent has expired some years ago.
|
|
|
|
nad@cl.cam.ac.uk Neil Dodgson found:
|
|
|
|
My "The Art of LEGO" book says that the company name, LEGO, came
|
|
from the Danish "Leg godt", roughly translated as "Play well". The
|
|
company originally made wooden toys during the depression. They also
|
|
made yo-yos for a while, during the yo-yo craze. Unfortunately this left
|
|
them with warehouses full of yo-yos when the craze suddenly stopped; so
|
|
the boss just cut all the yo-yos in half, and used them as wheels for toy
|
|
trucks, etc. The same guy invented the LEGO bricks, initially without the
|
|
tubes inside; the addition of these tubes meant that the blocks held
|
|
together really well, and sales took off. I think it was in the mid to late
|
|
'50s that LEGO decided to drop all its other products and just make the
|
|
bricks (risky...).
|
|
|
|
(Somebody found in a book that LEGO dropped their other product lines
|
|
when a fire burned down the building housing them. Thus, it was not as
|
|
risky to sell the bricks exclusively. It would probably have been riskier to
|
|
re-capitalize the wooden toy line than to drop it.)
|
|
|
|
Bo Kjellerup (kokdg@diku.dk):
|
|
The fire was caused by the son of the boss, Kirk Kristiansen, who was
|
|
playing in their garage/hobby room aside the factory and set it all on fire.
|
|
BTW, the son's name was misspelled in the church's annuals, so he is
|
|
spelled with 'K' now.
|
|
|
|
"The Art of LEGO" says that one reason LEGO survives is that it
|
|
constantly adapts itself to the modern world; e.g. the original LEGO
|
|
trains, and now the remodeled one that will run off the mains. Perhaps
|
|
all these new special blocks are a reflection of a society that wants instant
|
|
gratification, rather than spending a few hours building a model?
|
|
|
|
found by r1b6116@zeus.tamu.edu / Ken Blair:
|
|
|
|
Taken without permission from _Brick Kicks_ #1 ("The official
|
|
magazine of the LEGO builders club", USA) (circa 1987 or 88?)
|
|
|
|
"Bricks & Pieces: The LEGO Story"
|
|
|
|
Did you know that 300 million children have owned LEGO sets since
|
|
they were first made? And that you are one of the 68 million kids from
|
|
around the world who like to play with LEGO building bricks today!
|
|
Here's the story of how we grew...
|
|
|
|
Although the international LEGO Group is now very large, it is still a
|
|
family-run company that started out quite small. More than 50 years
|
|
ago, a carpenter named Ole Kirk Christiansen and his 12-year old son,
|
|
Godtfred, started making toys in the little town of Billund, Denmark.
|
|
Plastic had not been invented yet, so they made toy cars, trucks, yo-yos,
|
|
animals, and other toys out of wood. They decided that a good name for
|
|
their company would be LEGO, which means "play well" in Danish, and
|
|
also, they discovered, happens to mean "put together" in Latin! Ole and
|
|
Godtfred were very proud of their workmanship, and adopted the LEGO
|
|
motto that "only the best is good enough."
|
|
|
|
When plastic became available after World War II, LEGO began to make
|
|
both wooden and plastic toys. It was about this time that the idea of
|
|
plastic LEGO bricks was introduced. Godtfred loved to build with these
|
|
colorful new pieces, and was continually putting them together and
|
|
taking them apart to build new designs. In fact, it was Godtfred who
|
|
perfected the special design that makes every single LEGO brick fit
|
|
together in any combination, over and over again. The first LEGO
|
|
building set was made more than 30 years ago- and the bricks from that
|
|
set can still be used with even the newest LEGO building set of today!
|
|
|
|
LEGO bricks first appeared in the United States in 1961 and quickly
|
|
became as popular here as in Europe. The international LEGO group is
|
|
now worldwide, and is run by Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen, Old Kirk
|
|
Christiansen's grandson. As the company keeps growing, so do the kids of
|
|
exciting LEGO kits that are now sold in 129 different countries ... from
|
|
DUPLO preschool to FABULAND, LEGO BASIC, to LEGOLAND,
|
|
LEGO boats and trains to LEGO TECHNIC SETS. In fact, this year
|
|
alone, we will make more than six billion bricks and building pieces for
|
|
all the LEGO lovers 'round the world- like you!
|
|
|
|
Subject: 13) Material, Technology and
|
|
=====================================
|
|
Measurements
|
|
============
|
|
|
|
The LEGO motto: Det bedste er ikke for godt. (Only the best is good
|
|
enough.)
|
|
|
|
from Wiencek's The World of LEGO Toys, paraphrased by
|
|
saint@cats.ucsc.edu (Dan):
|
|
LEGO brick are made out of ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene
|
|
styrene), it is heated to 450 degrees Fahrenheit (232 C), then
|
|
injected into a mold which is kept at 85 degrees. The pressure used
|
|
to mold the bricks varies from 24 to 150 tons. The molds are kept
|
|
within one degree of the 85 degree specification. ABS absorbs
|
|
moisture, so the entire molding hall is kept at 50% humidity. The
|
|
allowable tolerance for a brick is two-hundredths of a millimeter,
|
|
or about eight ten-thousands of an inch.
|
|
|
|
My xwebster says: ABS: a tough rigid plastic used esp. for automobile
|
|
parts and building materials.
|
|
|
|
bullwnkl@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (Bullwinkle J. Moose) found in Israel
|
|
Shenker's article:
|
|
|
|
The ABS granules is dyed to LEGO's secret specifications in factories in
|
|
Holland and Germany. Molds for the pieces are made in a factory in
|
|
Germany and two factories in Switzerland. The margin of error in the
|
|
molds can only be 5 one-thousands of a millimeter -- less than the
|
|
thickness of a human hair! For security reasons, LEGO inters worn-out
|
|
molds in the concrete of its new buildings.
|
|
|
|
There are LEGO factories in Billund(3), Switzerland, Brazil, South
|
|
Korea, and the United States (in Enfield, Connecticut).
|
|
|
|
Two 2X4 bricks can be joined 24 different ways. Six can be joined
|
|
102,981,500 different ways.
|
|
|
|
Geometry, provided by Jef Poskanzer (jef@netcom.com): Thanks to
|
|
various pointers, especially the MIT course notes, here is the metric
|
|
version. **All measurements in mm.**
|
|
|
|
|side: __ __ __ __ top: +----------------+
|
|
| +----------------+ | () () () () |
|
|
| | | | |
|
|
| | | | () () () () |
|
|
| +----------------+ +----------------+
|
|
|spacing of knob centers: 8
|
|
|diameter of knobs: 5
|
|
|height of block: 9.6
|
|
|
|
|
|end: __ __ bottom: +================+
|
|
| +--------+ # -- -- -- #
|
|
| | | # ( )( )( ) #
|
|
| | | # -- -- -- #
|
|
| +--------+ +================+
|
|
|height of knobs: 1.7
|
|
|thickness of block walls: 1.5
|
|
|outer diameter of cylinders: 6.31
|
|
|thickness of cylinder walls: 0.657
|
|
|
|
(height of block) =
|
|
(spacing of knob centers) * 6 / 5
|
|
(thickness of block walls) =
|
|
((spacing of knob centers) - (diameter of knobs)) / 2
|
|
(height of knobs) =
|
|
(height of block) / 3 - (thickness of block walls)
|
|
(outer diameter of cylinders) =
|
|
sqrt(2) * (spacing of knob centers) - (diameter of knobs)
|
|
(thickness of cylinder walls) =
|
|
((outer diameter of cylinders) - (diameter of knobs)) / 2
|
|
|
|
Subject: 14) Nice quotations
|
|
============================
|
|
|
|
I'm surprised that no one has ever mentioned the glorious sound of
|
|
LEGO. LEGO bricks are about the only present you can tell what is by
|
|
shaking it.
|
|
chelius@studsys.mscs.mu.edu (The Shaggy T.A.)
|
|
|
|
I can hear that restful sound of LEGO pieces in my mind even now. It's
|
|
kind of like the peaceful sound of a waterfall, but more tinkly.
|
|
kurisuto@chopin.udel.edu (Sean J. Crist)
|
|
|
|
LEGO is not a toy. - It's a way of life.
|
|
mikes@bioch.ox.ac.uk (Mike Smith)
|
|
|
|
Subject: 15) FTP and WWW sites
|
|
==============================
|
|
|
|
Paul Gyugyi (gyugyi@earthsea.stanford.edu) maintains an FTP archive
|
|
of LEGO information. It is located at earthsea.stanford.edu in
|
|
~ftp/pub/lego, there is a README there that describes what the site
|
|
contains, for example CAD, faq, games, images, sets, uploads. The latter
|
|
is an upload area for contributions.
|
|
|
|
A World Wide Web (WWW) server is also available, the URL for it is
|
|
http://legowww.itek.norut.no. It contains a lot of information that has been
|
|
collected from the newsgroup and the FTP site, maintained by David
|
|
Koblas (koblas@netcom.com).
|
|
|
|
Subject: 16) Substitutes / compatibles / clones
|
|
===============================================
|
|
|
|
Finally some information about similar products. Most people state that
|
|
the quality is much lower then original LEGO pieces.
|
|
|
|
TYCO are reported to sell compatible basic bricks in 1000-piece buckets
|
|
for approx. $0.03 per piece. They also made that LEGO-looking
|
|
telephone. Erik Wilson (erwg0233@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu) says that Tyco's
|
|
clone-LEGO line (superblocks) is discontinued. They were of fair quality
|
|
(for a clone) in different colors (orange, green, hot pink, pastels),
|
|
including 1/2 height plates (not LEGO 1/3).
|
|
|
|
Mini-Micro Blocks are found in 1000-piece buckets about $0.02 per
|
|
piece. There are large quantities of the basic 2x4, 2x2, and 1x2 bricks,
|
|
more tight but reported to be fully LEGO-compatible. Made by a
|
|
company called Ritvik, which also makes Mega-Micro blocks. The latter
|
|
may be larger?
|
|
Ritvik Toys Inc., P.O. Box 1408, Champlain, NY 12919
|
|
HQ in Quebec, Canada. Offices in U.K., Australia, and New Zealand.
|
|
|
|
Ken Koleda (KOLEDA_K@msb.flint.umich.edu):
|
|
Tandem Bricks, made in Taiwan Tandem Toys, Rolling Hills, CA 90724
|
|
Notes: Largest brick is the 2x4 full height. A large portion of these bricks
|
|
are 1x flats. The flats are the same height as LEGO (1/3). Colors are
|
|
similar to lego, except with a good number of gray flats and greens bricks.
|
|
Quality is similar to other clones, generally somewhat below LEGO
|
|
(loose, but workable).
|
|
|
|
PEDLO is reported to be similar, but not compatible with LEGO. Their
|
|
plates are only 1/2 height of full bricks, not 1/3 like LEGO.
|
|
|
|
mckinney@adonis.ee.queensu.ca (Alexander (Sandy) McKinney):
|
|
Qubo ville Basic Building Bricks, look identical except for the LEGO
|
|
missing from each of the studs. Assortment of 23 standard pieces, 2x4,
|
|
2x2, 1x4, 1x2, 1x1, about CAN$ 2.95
|
|
Made in Italy by GOMPLA S.n.c. di Bisello D.&C., Via Emila Romagna
|
|
13/15, 35020 Saonara (PD) - Italy Imported by Wallace Companies Inc.,
|
|
USA, 175 Citation Court, Birmingham, Al 35209 CANADA, WSP
|
|
Marketing Int., 49 Valleybrook Dr., Con Mills, Ontario, M3B 2S6
|
|
|
|
elgaard@diku.dk (Niels Elgaard Larsen) says:
|
|
Some years ago LEGO did have a lot of trouble with a far east company
|
|
that made LEGO clones called "0937". I wonder if they placed them
|
|
upside-down in the stores.
|
|
|
|
** end of rec.toys.lego faq **
|