Cob "A Pattern Language"

[Jeffrey Kirsch]

Douglas,

Thanks for the reading tip!
No, "A Pattern Language" is not difficult at all to read. Its not really 
a front-to-back book either. You can attack it in a very non-linear 
fashion. They have each section referenced to other relevant 
sections, so that method is encouraged. 
The book is for city planners as well as individuals that are planning 
to build their own homes. It is heavy in photos and drawings to 
illustrate their points, and though it is big at 1000+ pages, it isn't a 
an albatross. 
Each section is called a pattern. Pattern 197 is "Thick Walls" . 
You'll like this: "Houses with smooth hard walls made of 
prefabricated panels, concrete, gypsum, steel, aluminum, or glass 
always stay impersonal and dead.".
They go on for several pages explaining what they mean and what 
to do about this. 
Other patterns are 190. Ceiling height variety, 193. Half open wall, 
204. Secret place. There are 253 patterns in this book, so there is 
a lot to think about and discuss.

-Jeffrey



Date sent:      	Tue, 18 Aug 1998 01:02:47 -0700 (PDT)
From:           	douglas scheffer <dscheffer at earthlink.net>


> Jeffery do tell us a bit more. I've heard many discussions on this topic
> but I have never come across any text that explored this in depth. Is the
> reading on the scientific side or will a lay person like myself be able to
> dig into it? (Maybe I should hang out with civil engineers more often.)
> 
> I just finished reading Progress & Poverty by Henry George. An absolutely
> amazing and dramacticaly styled commentary. 500 pages thick like a phone
> book (I admit to skipping a few chapters) and it took me a good six months
> to get through it, but I highly recommend it if you are into subjects like
> the laws of human progress, social effects of land, labor and capitol
> distribution. He outlines interseting remedies too. Originally published
> in 1880 and not surprising that things havent changed much today.