Word: plan
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...this paper, I examine one of Harvard's tiniest but most socially significant genres of literature: the plan file. To those of you unfamiliar with this academic field, please allow me to explain. When someone fingers your account on the Harvard UNIX server, the screen displays the last time and place that you logged on, as well as an optional message--the plan--that greets whoever is fingering you. Most often, these plan files are either blank or filled with a brief witty saying. It's not uncommon, however, to see plan files that push the very envelope...
Literary theorists are fond of saying that every text has its own ideal reader, the person for whom the text is most relevant and evocative. Who is the plan file's ideal reader? It's often hard to say--the very concept of a plan file is so steeped in irony, so full of wink-wink suggestion, that its purpose can be easily obscured. In one sense, a plan file is like a calling card, announcing your position and social status to whoever wants to call on you. Since anyone can finger your account, a plan file is theoretically written...
When executed skillfully, plan files present a snapshot of the author's values and intellectual preoccupations. Some people, however, seem to think that a plan file is the e-mail equivalent of a high school yearbook. They abuse our patience by writing 10-screen long plan files, filled with every obscure reference, movie line and aphorism they've collected over the past year. Such hodgepodge plan files are universally condemned by the critics. If you're about to put down 40 or so witty saying please keep the following maxim mind: Unless you're Voltaire, I really don't care...
Plaguing cross-campus relationships may actually be unrecognized blessings. Geographical separation forces members of a cross-campus relationship to plan dates, call often (or, at all) and generally avoid taking each other's company for granted. It eliminates a fundamental problem with collegiate relationships--that couples see far too much of each other...
Indeed, a happy Quad existence requires an affinity for scheduling and a penchant for planning. According to sophomore Quad enthusiast Luke Stoeckel '01, "In the morning I have to plan my whole day and pack up everything I'll need." While Stoeckel has been able to incorporate this into his daily routine without frustration, transfers commonly agree that the pitfalls of Quad life are outweighed only by the backpacks they're forced to lug around the Yard all day. Still, despite its basic inconveniences, many believe the separation between home and class is actually a positive benefit. '94 Pfoho graduate...