dear entropy press,

i'm taking a graduate class that is dealing with entropy. well, we're doing other things too. we have started with "order out of chaos", and we're going to be applying those principles to literature, art, music, and philosophy. i stumbled on your publication while looking for something relating to the class. i'm planning on visiting again soon, and i'm going to tell the class where to find you!

sincerely,
beth day
irvine, kentucky

dear beth,

wow! that sounds like a fun class. please feel free to share our web address with your class. we have forwarded an entropy press fun pack which includes all of our past hard copies, stickers, information on entropy press's current projects and other assorted neat stuff so that you would have something to pass around in class. anyway thanks for the note. it's always nice to hear from new people! warmest regards!

hi!

let me congratulate you on the sabotage episode, which-it hardly seems possible-has managed to supply an even higher quality of entropy's salmagundi of art, information and everything. in other words i liked it a lot and thought it was even better than the first two episodes.

i may want to make one suggestion of a more general type. you have deliberately chosen a specific, non-linear, architecture for the episodes, which is a valuable and interesting choice in and of itself. the consequences are clear and i have no problem with that. one thing one could envision, but it would take a lot of work, is a diagram, a flow chart, of the whole episode where a tree starts to branch out from the beginning of the episode into the individual branches, e.g. sexuality, technology etc. and then it branches out from these sub-branches to the individual articles, poems, etc. that can be reached from that page. at the nodes of the "tree" one could specify the kind of text, picture or else and author of the sub-branch and so on. by and large this would be something close to a map of the episode.

"the map is not the territory."- trubetzkoy.

such a map might be useful to the reader and via some hypertext features a reader could by recourse to that map also see where he/she is and what paths he/she has taken so far.

i realize that this would entail a lot of programming etc. and maybe even conflict with the underlying philosophy that originally facilitated the decision for the non-linear architecture, but it is only a suggestion and not more.

again i had a wonderful morning this morning with entropy and especially the self-sabotage tips will come in handy if i was to embark on that path again!

so much for today-
robert porzel
heidelberg, germany

dear robert-

thanks for the accolades! your suggestion for our website is right on! but we're not going to do it! because a) it would be a shit load of work! and b) because we want the web site to remain, as you had pointed out, reflective of our philosophy on a few different levels. first off it's important to us that the web site be easily accessible to anyone who has a computer, no matter what kind they have or how slow their internet connection is. the approach you describe would take way too long for many of our readers' computers. also, i like to think of our web site as a kind of metaphor for life in general... all of the information and experiences are there, and it's up to you to make the choices < albeit blindly >, and sometimes you have to experience the same situation over and over again. however, it is never really exactly the same place because of the new elements and/or information juxtaposed with the event.

is this getting too heady? well anyhow, we like the idea of people blindly stumbling through... but, we do intend to build a three dimensional representation of the web site out of tinker toys and keep it on display as a work in progress at entropy place < the gallery/ performance space/recording studio/cafe we're opening in boston in 1997 >! thanks for the comments! all the best!

hey entropy,

i just perused the sabotage issue on-line. it was excellent. all the hyperlinks and associated texts are brilliant and funny. thanks for printing my thought poem. i apologize for using the word "clown" three times in a two hundred word piece. the clown is such a tired metaphor. please let him sleep. anyway your work is inspiring and it will...

jim dunn,
boston, massachusetts

dear jim,

don't sweat the clown thing... thanks for the feedback and we will...

dear entropy press,

it's a very nice site you have! i appreciate the minimalist design style! also i loved the way that the hyperlinks within an article usually clarified that topic further, and didn't lead away from the article in the process. the scene from the lorax in the first episode was cool also! on my next update i'll make entropy press the link of the week < which usually means that it will be up for about two or three weeks >.

catch you later,
jim davis
virtually boston

dear jim,

thanks for the comments, and for the link!

dear editor,

i want to be your friend. not that i like your body any part of it. i like that sandwich you gave me by the water, while the summer whirled around us like a mad dog.

i am an untamed beast from the dry plains of europe, the spanish ocean of leather, old castle. everything around me is out of control. it is time to tie myself to a rock. do you know such a stone?

frederick alves-migues

dear sir,

who the... what the?

dear entropy press,

i am seeking a stimulating summer employment in media and publishing where my skills and enthusiasm will be mutually fulfilling for both myself and my employer. i plan to pursue publishing, editing, advertising, and mass communications as a career, and would like to find out more about these industries with an entry level position as editorial or research assistant, clerical worker, marketing or advertising trainee, or other similar position. the media and publishing world is a diverse and expansive one, and i am eager to productively gain both experience and knowledge that will be useful to me upon graduation through employment in the field.

gratefully yours,
stephanie s. morgan
duke university
durham, north carolina

dear stephanie,

you go to duke and want to intern with us? hee hee hee hee... ha ha ha ha!... oh god! ha ha haaaa ha... maybe.

dear entropy,

i just found your sabotage episode on a bench outside of the supermarket. i was wondering if you had other episodes out and where i can get them.

yours truly,
paul mayor,
tempe, arizona

dear paul,

yes we do have other episodes! the first was "what is entropy?" which was printed on card stock and glue pad bound so that it would eventually fall apart. the next was "the mental episode" which was printed collage style on the back of an actual blue print of the brain which was then map folded, because you know how mental you go trying to fold maps! the next was "the sabotage episode" which you apparently already found and as you know was crafted to resemble an office or government file. we distribute 2,000 copies world wide every eight to ten weeks. the only way you can get a copy is it find one that has been randomly placed somewhere on the globe or to order one from us directly...the prices vary per issue because of the different printing processes involved and the various weights of each episode...so call us at 617.227.3210 and we'll work out a deal! o.k.?