The Witchy House series is a popular collection of children's books written by author Amelia Picklewiggle. The series follows the adventures of four young friends who discover a magical house hidden deep in the forest. The main idea of the series revolves around themes of friendship, bravery, and imagination. In the first book of the series, titled "The Secret Door," the friends stumble upon the mysterious house while on an exploration in the woods. They are immediately drawn to its enchanting appearance and decide to investigate further. Inside, they discover that the house is home to a friendly witch named Willowblossom who has been waiting for them.
In a 2002 telephone interview, Crowther’s sister Betty, who was one of the original play-testers of Adventure, stated: “I was bored having to go through all the steps every time, and I said, ‘I want to go directly into the game.’ She then added, ‘Ecks-why-zee-zee-why!’”
You can enter the caves the long way round by unlocking a grate and climbing down but it s easier to use xyzzy to teleport there from the first building. You can enter the caves the long way round by unlocking a grate and climbing down but it s easier to use xyzzy to teleport there from the first building.
Inside, they discover that the house is home to a friendly witch named Willowblossom who has been waiting for them. Throughout the series, the friends learn about different magical elements of the house, such as a talking cat, flying brooms, and a magical garden. Each book explores a new part of the house and introduces new characters and magical creatures along the way.
Magic word adventurd
Hidden XYZZY in printer firmware
I have worked with United Barcode Industries "UBI" programmable bar code printers for many years. UBI was bought by Intermec in the 1990's and Intermec was bought by Honeywell a few years ago.
These printers use a basic-like language called Fingerprint. It is interactive or interpreted.
There were "SYSTEM" commands of the form SYSTEM and a number in the interactive part and SYSTEM 1138 had some special meaning. I'm betting the 1138 came from THX 1138.
SYSTEM 0, SYSTEM 10, SYSTEM 20 and SYSTEM 40 did things like memory dumps, listing loaded modules, etc. None of this was documented for the developer community.
Intermec came out with what is known as the XP series of printers (no relation to Windows XP) which had faster processors and more memory. These were flash ROM-based machines whereas the UBI printers used ROM chips and battery backed RAM.
I had to see what commands survived in the XP platform and to my surprise in one of the SYSTEM commands I received the prompt "Enter Meta Guru password:"
Gee, were my Amiga days coming back?
One brief flash of lightning later I entered XYZZY and the printer responded with "Meta Guru mode ON."
After rebooting the printer I entered XYZZY in Fingerprint interactive mode and the printer responded with "Nothing happens."
It's still there to this day on the latest printers.
You find mentions of it everywhere. 'XYZZY' (along with other phrases from the game such as ". you are in a twisty maze of passageways, all alike") can be found in computer documentation, classroom discussions, and in many other surprising contexts.
Origins of XYZZY
But where did XYZZY come from? Is it totally a nonsense word, or was there some hidden meaning? There are two stories on its origins.
Bernie Cosell, a friend of Crowther's at the time Adventure was originally coded, says that he was unaware of any special meaning for the word:
"Will Crowther says he made up the term out of whole cloth when he was putting ADVENT together.
"As for 'out of whole cloth,' I meant just what the idiom means: he devised this little pseudo-puzzle and needed a magic word to make it happen, and he just made one up. It has no antecedent nor is it an acronym or anything like that."
XYZZY: a mathematics 'in-joke?'
But Ron Hunsinger believes there is a more meaningful origin to the 'XYZZY' word:
"'Cross products?' you ask.
"Indeed. The cross product of two three-dimensional vectors is the vector whose length is the area of the parallelogram with the two given vectors as adjacent sides, and direction perpendicular to the plane of that parallelogram.
"There is a 'simple' formula for the cross product. If A = B x C, where A, B, and C are the vectors (Ax, Ay, Az), (Bx, By, Bz), and (Cx, Cy, Cz), then:
Ax = By Cz - Bz Cy
Ay = Bz Cx - Bx Cz
Az = Bx Cy - By Cx
"Notice that the second and third equations can be obtained from the first by simply rotating the subscripts, x -> y -> z -> x. The problem, of course, is how to remember the first equation.
"You do that by remembering the 'magic word,' consisting of the subscripts, taken in order: xyzzy.
"And that, friends, is the origin of the magic word xyzzy. This use of the word was around long before Adventure (or Colossal Caves or whatever name you knew it by) was ever written.
"When I first played Adventure, finding 'xyzzy' in it was like finding an old friend in an unlikely place. Or an inside joke."
One of the recurring themes in the Witchy House series is the strength of friendship. The four friends face challenges and obstacles together, relying on their trust and loyalty to overcome them. The books emphasize the importance of working together and supporting one another, even in the face of danger or uncertainty. Another key aspect of the series is the idea of bravery. The young protagonists encounter various magical creatures that may initially seem intimidating, but they learn to face their fears and find courage within themselves. This teaches young readers the importance of not letting fear hold them back and encourages them to be brave in their own lives. Lastly, the Witchy House series sparks the imagination of children. The whimsical and magical world created by Amelia Picklewiggle invites readers to explore their own creativity and expand their imagination. The enchanting illustrations and vivid descriptions bring the magical elements to life, allowing readers to fully immerse themselves in the story. In conclusion, the Witchy House series is a captivating collection of children's books that focuses on themes of friendship, bravery, and imagination. Through the adventures of the four young friends, readers are encouraged to embrace their own magical imaginations and learn valuable lessons about the power of friendship and courage..
Reviews for "The Witchy House Series: A Recipe for Spellbinding Success"
1. Sarah - 2 stars - I really wanted to like "The witchy house series" because I love books about magic and witches, but I was thoroughly disappointed. The writing was subpar, the plot was predictable, and the characters felt one-dimensional. I found myself struggling to stay engaged and ended up skimming through most of the book. I definitely won't be continuing with this series.
2. Mark - 1 star - "The witchy house series" was a complete waste of time. The story was slow-paced and lacked any real excitement. The protagonist, who is supposed to be a powerful witch, was constantly making foolish decisions that made me question her intelligence. The world-building was also poorly executed, leaving me confused and uninterested. Overall, this series was a huge disappointment and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
3. Emily - 2 stars - I had such high hopes for "The witchy house series", but it fell flat for me. The writing style was overly simplistic and lacked the depth and complexity I was expecting. The characters were uninteresting and lacked development, making it hard to connect with them. Additionally, the romance subplot felt forced and the dialogue was cringeworthy. I was left feeling underwhelmed and won't be picking up the next book in the series.
4. Michael - 3 stars - While "The witchy house series" had an intriguing premise and some potentially interesting magical elements, it ultimately failed to deliver. The pacing was uneven, with long stretches of nothing happening followed by rushed action scenes. The magic system lacked depth and consistency, leaving me confused about how it worked. The writing was decent, but the lackluster plot and forgettable characters left me feeling unsatisfied. I won't be recommending this series to others.
5. Amy - 2 stars - I struggled to get through "The witchy house series". The plot was slow and uneventful, with little to no suspense or surprises. The characters were bland and lacked depth, making it hard to care about their fates. The romance aspect felt forced and cliché, adding nothing to the overall story. The series had potential, but it failed to live up to my expectations. I won't be continuing with this series.