But wait, there's more...

...maybe. This was new on Find 815 today. Stay tuned to see if this is the start of Find 815 Part II. Does Sam need more answers?

Fiction Meets Fiction- How it all comes together (Spoiler Alert)

From Find 815

From Confirmed Dead

In the first 6 episodes of Season 4 we've seen our Find 815 game clues and passwords tied into the show. Here's a brief recap of how the game has been incorporated.

Season 4 opens with views of the freckage of flight 815 as seen from ROV cameras operated by two men that are not Sam. The news reporter, recounting the story along with the footage, states that the wreckage was found by the Christiane 1, in the Sunda Trench.

From Find 815

From Confirmed Dead

We were introduced to five new characters whose names were passwords to unlock our Season 4 clues. (Click for pictures of the clues they unlocked):

• Matthew Abaddon- Oceanic "Lawyer"
• Daniel Faraday- Empathic physicist
• Charlotte Lewis- Ambitious anthropologist and possible Dharma hunter.
• Miles Straume- High-strung ghost whisperer
• Frank Lapidus- Former Oceanic pilot, who was supposed to be flying Flight 815.

All of the clues have now been accounted for as well:

• On the news story (The Beginning of the End) we were shown the Oceanic Hotline number.
• Charlotte Lewis in Tunisia shows us our Tunisian Newspaper.
• Hurley gives meaning to the Santa Rosa Pill Bottle.
• The passwords Southfields, and 423 Cheyne Walk have shown up in The Constant. Also, Desmond learns Penny's Number, and he finds Daniel at the Queens College (Department of Physics).
• Previously, Red Sox was discussed between Frank and Jack, and in The Other Woman we see Red Sox written on Ben's surveillance tape.
• The Other Woman also had our final clue, 36-15-28.

New update or just an error- It's not over until Oscar Talbot sings?

UPDATE 2/7/08- The new email from M Smerdon is now gone. (Thanks Codysmom) If it was necessary to complete progress, why did they put it up and then take it down? Your guess is as good as mine. Happy Lost Day, Everyone!!! Jess


There's a new mail on Sam's computer (thanks Maven for mailing about this). It's text reads as an error but it's sender is Mark Smerdon.

We've seen the name M Smerdon before on Talbot's cell phone along with the number 259 194 032. Is this mail really just a progress place-holder, or is something afoot?

Chapter Five Summary - That sinking feeling.

Sam's Story

• Sam has decided to take affirmative action and speak to Ockham. He tells him that he found the co-ordinates in Talbot's cabin and mentions that they are currently within range of the co-ordinates and it's the only chance they'll get for the next three weeks to check it out. He points out that Ockham gets paid for three months regardless of when they find “Black Rock”.

• Ockham agrees and they come up with a plan to reprogram the coordinates without Talbot finding out. Unfortunately this doesn't quite work out as planned and Talbot realizes something is amiss.

• Talbot argues that his search grid is based off of coordinates from Magnus Hanso's journal which his “employers” have access to. He question what makes Sam think that they will find something at those specific coordinates and demands their course is reset.

• Sam comes clean about how he acquired the coordinates, but that fails to help his argument, especially as Talbot claims the Maxwell Group makes no mention of him. Sam thinks Ockham is about ready to throw him overboard. However luckily for Sam the navigation equipment starts bleeping. “Mr. Talbot, I think we've found Black Rock," says Ockham.

• While Ockham sets things up, Sam retreats to his cabin to get away from Talbot's angry glares. He finds a voicemail from Tracy. She is worried about him and wants to remind him that he is, “not alone”.

• He also receives an email from Austral Air offering him a job with them. However Sam is not in a state of mind to think about this and writes a quick, polite reply rejecting their offer.

• Sam checks out a weather forecast for the area of the Sunda Trench. Rough Seas are reported.

• Finally he receives a final mystery email. This time, simply with the numbers 411151057. They are keeping it simple this time. It is hacker speak (Leet/l337) and says “ALL IS LOST”.

• Having had enough of the emails, he heads up to the top deck. It may be his mind playing tricks on him, but he hears Sonya's voice calling him, “Sam...Sam...” He looks over the side and is sure he can see Sonya's face saying, “Love you madly.” Ockham comes up behind him to give him an update on the situation. He tells Sam, “This place can get to you”. Ockham tells him as soon as the weather clears Sam will get to drive one of the ROV's down to get a look at the Black Rock.

• Sam takes the time to reflect in his video diary. He talks about his anniversary with Sonya and how he met her on the island “Tanna” in the Pacific.

• Finally the weather clears and Sam takes control of an ROV. They appear to be at a depth of 480 feet (according to the numbers Ockham counts out as they lower the ROV).

• After some maneuvering around the sea bed Sam spots something... “That's no ship,” says Ockham. Sam knows what it is right away. It is the wreckage of Flight 815. He is distraught. Talbot however just looks smug.

Epilogue

• Back at home Sam watches a news broadcast about his discovery. According to the report sympathies are flooding in for Sam. They even interview Oscar Talbot who plays things up for the media saying, “ Sam had studied every aspect of the plane and in an extraordinary twist of fate, he had his answer.” Sam looks a wreck.

• The Maxwell Group website put up a press release/interview with Oscar Talbot. Seems Oscar is going all out to put a PR spin on this. He explains that it is impossible to salvage the wreckage given the depth of it. He also claims that the whole thing helped to put Sam at peace.

• Oceanic Air have been advertising for a new promotion/competition for a “Golden Pass”. The winner apparently will be able to fly anywhere, anytime as much as they want, for free (Like Jack from last seasons flash forward). It seems Sam isn't as peace as Talbot claimed as he is still hacking their commercials. This time with the message, “Don't trust these people”.

• Shortly after this, the Maxwell Group website went down and was replaced by a flashier looking version with a new look logo. The log in is still there however and at this time we do not know of a user name and password that gives us access.

Behind The Scenes

• This final clue hunt passwords are “Southfields” and “Red Sox” and the season four clue itself is a crate with the words “property of Queens College Dept of Physics”.
• As well as the usual array of various visual glitches in the final video diary there is also some reverse speaking. This turned out to be from the press release interview with Oscar Talbot that was posted up on the Maxwell group.
• The MP3 of the Maxwell Group press release contains the following in the "comments" area. So far we have found no meaning in it.

00000062 00000073 00002140 00001429 000000B6
000138F5 00007DB1 00006151 000000D0 000138DB

Left Over Questions and Clues

• Obviously the biggest question of this whole experience is how can Oceanic 815 be in the Sunda Trench when we know that it crashed on the island. Is this an elaborate set up or is it something stranger then that?
• What is Talbot's Agenda and what exactly are the links between Maxwell, Widmore (and with it the Hanso Foundation), Oceanic and the current events on the Island?
• Were the video glitches in game and if so what does that mean? They seemed to be coming from the future in many cases. Add that to the ghostly images of Sonya and the unusual electro magnetic disturbances, and we have a very curious puzzle. Especially as the electro magnetic stuff seemed to hint at “The Island”. Was that co-incidence (for the sake of teasing us the viewer) or is it more significant?
• A huge amount of clues from this game pointed us towards the works of James Clerk Maxwell, his equations and works on “Lines of Force”. We know Magnetism and the Island are linked, but what does this tell us specifically? It can't be a coincidence that the name of Talbot's group was also “Maxwell”.
• Was it really just amateur radio enthusiasts broadcasting the Amelia Earhart report?
• We still have no meaning or significance for the SHIMMR clue. Was there ever one? It seemed to relate to that complex Walt Whitman stegosaurus clue. There must be something to it all.
• Was there ever anything to the weird thing with the changing numbers on Sam's chest and his verbal hints about that?
• What's the deal with this code in the Maxwell press release MP3?
• Is there more significance to the L337 email and the words “All is lost”?
• What is the significance of the billboard locations, the phrases written on them and the pictures contained within?
• Things that seemed to lead nowhere: Sam's Mum, Sam's investment in a box company and the whole deal with Austral Air.
• A.M. Mullins, the apparent owner of the briefcase Talbot has in his possession. Also Talbot had various names on his phone. Could any of this have some meaning?

All the Season 4 “Clues” from the Clue Hunt

• The Season Four Clues in the Clue Hunt were: The Oceanic Hotline (888-546-0034), Penny's Number, A Tunisian Newspaper, Santa Rosa Hosptial meds. and a crate from Queen's College Dept. of Physics.
• The passwords for the Season for Clues were: Matthew, Abaddon, 423 Cheyne Walk, Daniel Faraday, Charlotte Lewis, 36-15-28, Miles Straume, Frank Lapidus, Southfields and Red Sox.

Okay, that's all for the five chapters of Find 815 and their immediate aftermath. What will happen next and when, I couldn't tell you. But we'll certainly be back here as and when (and even IF) it happens! In the meantime you can find all of us over at The Lost Community joining in the discussion as always of our favourite series and of course I myself will be posting my theories and analysis of Season Four over at The Lost Bullet Points. Also, don't forget to check the TLC Podcast this week as it features our very own Ange giving her opinions on the experience and it's possible direction.

In the meantime I'd just like to thank everyone involved here, all of you that have commented and emailed. We have a great think tank here. I'd especially like to thank Ange and Jess for their hard work getting the daily updates up. Without them we wouldn't have a site!

Namaste

~Fenris

Maxwell Updates with a Press Relaease and Sam's on TV Again

Update 2/2- The Maxwell Group site has returned after disappearing for a day, and it's had some enhancements (thanks oodles and tallone).

• If you're having trouble with the site, you can still access and download an mp3 of the press release here.
  
• *If you download the mp3 and then look at the properties (right click-properties) there are some letters and numbers in the "comments" area. So what's this all about?

00000062 00000073 00002140 00001429 000000B6
000138F5 00007DB1 00006151 000000D0 000138DB

Oceanic Air Commercial

1/31- 11:02 pm: During the show Eli Stone on ABC, they had an Oceanic commercial. In it they are touting a "Golden Pass" but Sam hacks the commercial. (Please excuse the video quality...I did my best.)

• There are some undersea pictures of the wreckage of Flight 815.
  
• Sam tells us, "We found it," and "You can't trust these people."
  
• The flight attendants in the commercial continue to direct us to www.FlyOceanicAir.com for details.
  
• DocArtz has the HQ version of the commercial up.
  
• Find815 has a new look. It seems they are trying to attract all of the Lost viewers that missed the game the first time around.

The Maxwell Group Updates

1/31- 11:27 pm: The Maxwell Group site has a new press release from Oscar Talbot.

• There's an audio interview there detailing how they found the wreckage. Click here or here (UCLAradio link from the page) to listen.
• The Maxwell Group reports a new message when you attempt to log-in as of 7:01 am 2/1:
  

  Authentication Error

  The username or password you entered was incorrect.
  
  Click here to return to homepage
  
  Server updated and secured.

*Robin Hood sent us some reversed audio blips on 1/31 from Sam's final video diary.

• HERE is the version Robin Hood sent.
  
• Fenris did some noise reduction, and compressed and normalized it. HERE is the modified version.
  
• After listening to both I can hear the words "two" (at 1 min. 21 sec. in the press release) "common" (at 1 min. 27 sec. in the press release) and "half-hour" (at 1 min. 46 sec. in the press release) in both sets of audio.
  
• These "blips" are certainly sound bytes from the press release. ~Ange

Chapter 5 - Find the Black Rock.... or did we?

Today's final update starts with a video of Ockham communicating with the crew of the Christiane 1 to lower the ship's ROV. Ockham is counting as they lower the ROV. The final number he says is 480. Is that 480 feet?

Once this is successfully done, we are led to the...

FINAL ACTIVITY

Find the Black Rock:

• The object of the game is to maneuver the ROV through ten different way points that could be the Black Rock.
• You have 3 minutes to complete the activity.
• If you have a slow internet connection you are advised to click the low resolution button.
• Thewonderllama sent in a PICTURE of one of the paths that works. (Thanks!)
  

Upon completion of the activity we are given our...

FINAL VIDEO

• As Sam watches the ROV top a crest on the ocean floor, Oceanic Flight 815 comes into view.
• Sam is extremely distraught!
• Talbot has a very smug look on his face.
• Then the video changes to Sam watching the news about how Oceanic Flight 815 was discovered. The news anchor reports that sympathies are flooding in for Sam Thomas.
• The news cuts to an interview with Oscar Talbot. Apparently Talbot "hopes this discovery will bring some closure to the families". Talbot says "Sam had studied every aspect of the plane and in an extraordinary twist of fate, he had his answer"!

FINAL THOUGHTS

As usual, there are screencaps posted in Oceanic-Conspiracies Photobucket Album.

It seems were are left with a lot of unanswered questions. Talbot's final words have me thinking that we were right all along about this being an "accidental" find. What do you think? Who is Oscar Talbot working for? Exactly how deep was the wreckage? I would assume that since Sam used an ROV to find it, it was too deep to "recover" the bodies. How did it get there? Who put it there? Last, but not least, how will they explain finding the wreckage in the Sunda Trench?

In closing, I just wanted to say (and I am sure I speak for the whole Oceanic-Conspiracies Team) how much I have enjoyed working with everyone here. I can't wait for S4 tonight! I look forward to chatting with everyone over at The Lost Community!

Thanks Everyone!

Thanks to Robin Hood who sent us some reversed audio from the video diary from last night. No doubt there is a voice in there. I've uploaded the file as sent (it is reversed, trimmed audio from the video). I also did some noise reduction, compression and normalization on it and put the modified version. HERE is the original, and HERE is the modified version. Check it out and post what you think it says. ~Fenris

NOTE: Don't forget, in theory the Maxwell site goes live at 7:08PM EST. So there may be one more part to this puzzle.

Chapter 5- Clue Hunt and Video Diary

**According to the timer on Find815.com our final "Activity" will come around noon eastern time on 1/31. According to the Maxwell-Group log in page and some creative conversions, it looks like the final log-in there will be at 7:08pm eastern time on 1/31. Synchronize your watches and after the conclusion of the game, head over to TLC for some Season 4 premier discussion! ~Ange

Tonights video starts with Sam walking the deck of the Christiane 1. He hears Sonya calling him..."Sam...Sam..." Sam looks out over the ocean. An image of Sonya's face appears and says "Love you madly". Is Sam just seeing things? Is Sonya projecting herself? Ockham walks up and tells Sam that "this place" can "get to you"!

After that we have our, Clue Hunt

Tonight's clue hunt takes place on the deck of the Christiane 1.

Clues:

1. Season 1 - Backgammon
2. Season 2 - Four Toed Statue
3. Season 3 - Gas Lamp
4. Season 4 - HERE

Which, of course, leads to a game at your Network Affiliate. (The clue hunt did not link to the right game, so you may have to go directly to ABC to get the right one.)

• Game - Navigate the Storms and Tidal Waves

1. This is pretty much self explanatory. You have to use the arrow keys to make your ship avoid the lightning storms and the tidal waves. You can touch the clouds without the lightning though.
2. Once you are finished you get your Chapter 5/Season 4 Clue. The passwords are:

A) ABC - Southfields
B) Yahoo - Red Sox Thanks to Patch and Pharmacopaeia for e-mailing.

Chapter 5 Video Diary:

• Sam says they found the Black Rock.
• He said when they first got there it appeared as though nothing was there. Talbot said the coordinates were insufficient.
• Sam says at first Ockham wanted to throw him over board. When he tried to explain to them how he got the coordinates, emails and such, they looked at him like he was crazy.
• Sam says as Ockham was turning the ship around, the sonar finds something out of the blue.
• Then I think Ockham wants to kiss Sam, or something like that.
  
• Sam is going to get to drive one of their ROV's down to get a look at the Black Rock as soon as the weather clears.
• Sam starts talking about his anniversary and says that he and Sonya met on the island, Tanna in the Pacific.

Here is a slide show of the glitches in this video that Ange put together.


As usual all of the blip pictures can be found at the Oceanic Conspiracies Photobucket.

The video has a lot of glitches this time. I think I heard speaking as well. What do you think? Also, since we know the "actual" location of the Black Rock, what do you think they have actually found? I think this ending could either answer a lot, or leave us with a creepy cliffhanger!

Chapter 5- E-mail, Website, and a Voicemail

*Update 1/30- You might want to go over to ITE and see what Speaker has for us (Thanks Maven for the mail about this). **Update- Thanks to Memphish for linking in comments. ABC has an Oceanic Airlines press release today. ~Ange

Voicemail

Tracey is calling Sam to let him know she is worried about him (she also sounds a little sleepy). She wants to make sure he's okay as he hasn't seemed right lately. She reminds him he's, "...not alone."

E-Mail

Sent Items:

Subject: Employment Opportunity Recipient Austral Air

• Sam is responding to their offer of employment, but declining as "one or two things have come up". Also, he's not sure he wants to work for an airline.

Subject: Message Recipient: Tracey R

• He apologizes for not getting in touch with her but something has "come up" for him, and he has a "bad feeling" about what's going to happen.

Inbox:

Subject: Employment Opportunity Sender: Austral Air

• They are informing Sam that a position may have come up that would work for him, and would like him to come to Sydney. It's signed Isaac Chapman

Subject: [no subject] Sender: Unknown

• The number: 411151057 appears.
• Thanks to Maven for e-mailing about this. 411151057 translates to ALL IS LOST. WeBB at Dark UFO figured this out using 1337 (leet).
  

Website

The site is Ocean Forecasts and it is a weather report for the Sunda Trench for the next 24 hours.

• It reports Southerly gales and rough or very rough seas that may be occasionally high.
• Thanks to Memphish in comments for the link to the Beaufort Scale which is used for measuring gales.
• http://www.oceanforecasts.com is not a live site at this time.

I'm left with some questions, how about you? 1. What's so important about this correspondence with Austral Air? 3. Could that weather report be any more all encompassing? It does look like there's some rough weather ahead though.

Chapter 5- We Need to Cover Our Tracks

Tonight's update begins with a video which highlights Talbot telling Sam that he doesn't know who he's dealing with.

Next, we see Sam in a conversation with Ockham.

• He tells him a story about finding the coordinates on the slip of paper in Talbot's cabin, mentions that they are within range of the coordinates, and it's the only chance they will get for the next three weeks.
• Ockham and Sam agree on a deal and he and Sam come up with a plan to reprogram the coordinates without Talbot finding out. The first part of the plan is that Sam needs to navigate the ship through the reef.

Navigate the Reef:

Sam must get the Christiane 1 to the coordinates without hitting the reef.

• Hint: You will have to steer away from the coordinates to get through the reef safely. Beware of dead ends.
• It seems the best course is to bear to the left while also drifting up. You really need to keep track of where you've been.

At the end of successful navigation we get another video:

• Talbot knows they changed course, but that the coordinates Sam has are insignificant.
• Everyday Magnus Hanso recorded his ship's position in a journal. His employers have that journal and the search grid is based on it.
• He questions what makes Sam think his coordinates are the ones he needs. Sam says he got them from the Maxwell Group, but Talbot tells Sam that his employers never make mention of him.
• Sam comes clean about how he ended up there (e-mails, coordinates, etc.).
• Talbot wants the original coordinates reset...but just as they go to turn the ship around the navigation starts beeping, and Ockham says, "Mr. Talbot, I think we've found Black Rock."

We are left with lots to think about. 1. Who are Talbot's employers, and how did they get Magnus Hanso's journal? 2. If Maxwell sent Sam to the Sunda Trench and Talbot knows nothing of it then who works for whom? 3. And of course, if they have found the Black Rock...what now? Where does that leave Sam?

Chapter Four Summary - Light and Shadows

Sam's Story

• Continuing on from last week, Sam has found his opportunity to hack the chart plotter and try and figure out where these coordinates are. He has been carrying them around written on a piece of paper waiting for his chance.

• Sam tricks Ockham into thinking the plotter has a fault and while "fixing" it he uses a nifty little program on his pen drive to give him access and locate the coordinates. Turns out to be right in Talbot's search grid.

• Unfortunately for Sam, while he fooled Ockham, Talbot is more suspicious and finds the piece of paper that Sam had carelessly left lying around. Talbot gives him a warning "You have no idea what your involved in" he says.

• Sam counters by telling Talbot he was given the co-ordinates by the Maxwell group. Strangely Oscar isn't phased. "Stay away from those coordinates, you won't find what you're looking for."

• Returning to his cabin, Sam finds a voice mail. Seems Sam isn't as broke as he thought he may be. An investment in a box company has come through, or so he is told by Richard who works for a person named Randy. The news is a welcome break for Sam.

• More Good news for Sam turns up in the form of an email from Tracey. She seems to have smoothed things over with Sam's Mum and has even agreed to spent Christmas with her.

• However things then take a bad turn. Sam receives another mystery email. This time containing a code (hidden in anagrams of numbers that then convert to letters of the alphabet). The message is "Love you Madly" something he and Sonya used to say to each other all the time.

• Later during one of Sam's night time strolls on the deck he spots something glowing off in the distance.He grabs a pair of binoculars and gives it a closer look. It looks like some kind of Aurora.

• Sam returns to his cabin to look into it. He emails Tracey who tells him (after joking about aliens from the planet Zubelleedubelee), that it probably was an Aurora, although she found it odd that it faded away so quickly. She speculates that it could be related to the strange mishap on the bridge the other day.

• Following on from this Sam looks up some information online on Aurora's and finds a website on the phenomenon of the Aurora Australis (the Southern version of the Aurora Borealis).

• Sam is having mixed feelings. Are people just messing with his head? He doesn't know, but he knows he misses Sonya and thinks about her all the time. He has decided to continue to help "these people" to find The Black Rock in the hopes that they will give him what he wants in return.

The Clues

• Love you madly - Were the Maxwell group playing with Sam with this message or is it a message from Sonya. It should also be noted this is something Sun and Jin used to say to each other as well.
• The Box Company - Sam's payout from his investment here has raised suspicion that this could be Hurley's box company.
• The Season four clue this week was a bottle of pills from the Santa Rosa Mental Hospital. The other clues included a picture of Vincent and playing cards with "The Swan" Station logo on.
• The Aurora Australis - Was this what Sam saw, or was it some other kind of Aurora
• There were a LOT of screen flashes in this weeks video diary. The highlights of which seem to be information relating to James Clerk Maxwell's equations.

Behind The Scenes

• We finally have the password (X4x98adfo97)to the hidden message in the stegosaurus picture from last week. This was provided via more braille characters hidden in this weeks opening video. The hidden message was binary code which when translated turned out to be a Walt Whitman Poem title "When I heard the learn’d astronomer". Seems Sam won't be following up on Tracey's "Holiday tip", so he will probably never find this out.
• There is hidden text in the background of one of the websites on Sam's laptop (Sunda Trench). There are columns of numbers under the headings of the letters A to F. When each column is added and divided by six they give: a: 115 b: 104 c: 105 d: 109 e: 109 f: 114. These numbers can then be converted into ASCII characters and these come out as: S H I M M R. What this means remains to be seen.
• Camp Millar - This comes from hazy sources, but is allegedly hidden in a code on the label to the pill bottle from the clue hunt.
• Commenter Oodles guided us toward how this clue was solved. ~Ange
  
• The passwords for this weeks clue hunt were: Miles Straume and Frank Lapidus (SPOILER ALERT: If you google this, you WILL be spoiled).

The other characters

• Oscar Talbot - Didn't seem surprised to hear Sam has been getting information from the Maxwell Group. He also seemed to know what the coordinates were all about.
• Mr. Ockham - Hardly present this week and seems Sam can easily pull the wool over his eyes.
• Tracey R - Seems willing to do a lot for Sam, including stay with his Mum for Christmas.
• Sam's Mum - Still worried about Sam but has Tracey looking after her now.
• Richard and Randy - We don't know much about these two except that Randy seems to be Sam's accountant and Richard works in his office.

Unless there is a false ending at the conclusion of the supposed final chapter, next weeks summary will be the last. So that will be posted followed by a retrospective the following day. To end this week I leave you with a quote:

"Stars hide your fires! Let not light see my black and deep desires."

Chapter 4- Video Diary 4

Video Summary

Sam recaps Chapter 4 for us saying he can not pin Talbot down. He recounts the incident with Talbot and the coordinates. Sam admits that he indeed has no idea who he is dealing with. He thinks they (Maxwell) are toying with him, using coded e-mails.

He mentions the LOVE YOU MADLY mail and how he and Sonya said that to each other all the time. He feels that someone is trying to mess with his head, or spur him on. Sam misses Sonya and thinks about her all the time.

He knows he can't trust, "these people," but he feels that he needs to find The Black Rock to give them what they want. Then maybe they will give him what he wants in return.

Screen Shot of Disturbances and Helpful Links

Here are some great shots of the blips from Video Diary 4 (Thanks Jess and Fenris!). Also some links to James Clerk Maxwell's Theories written by Germain Rousseaux (thanks Jess) and Carol in comments found what appears to be the Philosophical Magazine and Journal of Science where it appears the image blips from Sam's video may have come from. Oodles in comments also found James Clerk Maxwell On Physical Lines of Force that shows more of the images that look to have been used.

Chapter 4- Some e-mails and some reading.

Tonight there are two e-mails and a web site.

Sent Mail

Subject: Strange Lights Recipient: Tracey- Sam explains to Tracey that he saw a "green cloud of light" while on the deck of the Christaine 1. He explains that they blended and moved, and faded after 20 seconds.

Inbox

Subject: Lights Sender: Tracey- She kids Sam about aliens from the planet Zubelleedubellee. She also explains that Sam most likely saw an aurora, but that the one he saw seems like it faded away too quickly. She also mentions that it could be related to the "...mishap on the bridge the other day." (referencing the time all of the instruments went haywire).

It seems Sam decides to to a little aurora research himself and finds tonight's website.

Website:

On Sam's laptop we get a web site for the Aurora Australis (It looks like Kyle was a little clairvoyant with that link he posted in comments today!).

• These are natural phenomena in the southern hemisphere caused by magnetic forces in the atmosphere and plasma particles colliding with the Earth's magnetic field.
• www.southernauroralights.com is a live site.
• There are two images not loaded and one that is.

Some things of note. The planet name Tracey mentions seems long and elaborate. Is there something hidden in Zubelleedubellee? Also when Sam writes to Tracey he sometimes writes to Tracey and other times to Tracey R. Is this significant?

Lag Alleviation!

As usual, a place to discuss as tonight's update unfolds.

Chapter 4 Clue Hunt

UPDATE 1/24/08- At Darkufo there is a post regarding a possible solution to the numbers found on the pill bottle in the Chapter 4/Season 4 Clue. We are not sure if it is legit because the clues on how to solve it came from Lostforever in their chat room. At one point Darkufo informed us that characters in his chat room are fake and the real "in game" characters are posting in his comments. I really apologize for all of the confusion. We do not want to fall behind if it is a "real" clue. Also, I know there may be some of you who would like to try to solve if for yourself. Soooo, I will give you the synopsis hidden with links to Photobucket pics if you want to check it out. :D

Kudos to TAE at Darkufo who came up with THIS solution to the numbers on the pill bottle. Here is a Map of the clue. (Thanks aimless22 and Kirsten)
~Jess
The Chapter 4 Clue Hunt Video tonight shows Sam walking the outside decks of the Christiane 1. He spots something off in the distance and grabs his binoculars to get a closer look. (What is that he sees?)
*Maven had an interesting post in comments with a link to Wiki on how electromagnetism and auroras are related. It even references Faraday.

The Chapter 4 Clue Hunt takes place in the Lounge area of the Christiane 1. You can see where the clues are located by clicking on the following picture.
Clues

• Season 1 - Picture of Vincent
• Season 2 - Swan Hatch Logo on Cards
• Season 3 - Parachute (Naomi)
• Season 4 - Picture HERE

Once all of the clues have been found, you are guided to your Network Affiliate for tonights Game.

• Mr Ockham wants to test Sam's ability to locate coordinates on a map.

• You are given 5 sets of coordinates that you have to mark on a map. Screenshots of the answers are posted in Photobucket. The coordinates are:

1: -11.1784, 69.2522
2: -6.4024, 117.0123
3: -27.0297, 35.8210
4: 36.5817, 107.4063
5: 12.7017, 83.5802

After the game is solved you are given one of two passwords to enter at Find815.

• ABC- Frank Lapidus SPOILER ALERT: If you google this, you WILL be spoiled.
  
• Yahoo 7- Miles Straume (Thanks Carol and Patch)

Entering the password reveals our Chapter 4, Season 4 clue.

Chapter 4- E-mails, & voice mails, & letters, oh my!

UPDATE 1/23 - Last night Maven e-mailed us about some numbers showing up in the Sunda Trench website on Sam's laptop. I took a screen grab and played with the contrast and they are there. Click here for the picture in the Oceanic Conspiracies Photobucket. Carol in comments mentioned that the numbers are in columns and when thinking about the Walt Whitman poem from the other night along with the equations at the bottom of each column, we glean that you need to add each column and divide by 6. Here's what you get:

a: 115 b: 104 c: 105 d: 109 e: 109 f: 114

These numbers can then be converted into ASCII characters and these come out as:

S H I M M R

What these are for and/or what they mean is as yet unclear.

~Ange

Tonight we have a voice mail and four new e-mails.

Voice Mail:

• From Randy's Office- It's someone called Richard calling per Randy. There is an insurance pay out from an investment in a box company that has come through and would like to know how he is to get him the money.

E-mails:

Inbox

• Subject: your mum Sender: Tracey- she called his mum and confirms that she is worried about him. She's also scored an invite for Christmas with Sam's mum.
• Subject: [no subject] Sender: unknown- It's a random string of numbers and letters again.
• The letters in each line are anagrams for numbers spelled out (ie. twelve, fifteen, etc). When decoded you get:
  
• 12 15 22 5 25 15 21 13 1 4 12 25 which using corresponding letters of the alphabet gives you LOVE YOU MADLY
• Is this a message from Sonya?!
• Thanks to Ellen in comments who points out: Sun would tell Jin that she loved him every time she spoke to him, and then he would ask her, "madly?" and she would respond with "yes, madly." It became sort of an icon...especially when we got the flashback of her infidelity.

(Thanks Takes a Village for the e-mail and Jess and Fenris for working it out.)

Sent Mail

• Subject: payout Recipient: Randy- Per message he is replying by e-mail because he can't make calls. He's happy about the box company payout and he needs the money now that he's not at Oceanic.
• Subject: Homesick Recipient: Tracey R- Sam thanks her for the "holiday tip" but he won't be following up on it.

So is the box company THE box company? Is there more to the whole Mum part of this story? Are these messages telling us something? Does Sam not following-up on the holiday tip mean that that clue is a dead end? Could the possible Jin and Sun reference be a clue that Paik Heavy Industries is involved here?

Chapter 4- Hack the Chart Plotter

UPDATE: Thanks Eugene for the clue finding process and Maven for the poem. The password for Openstego is X4x98adfo97. There were braille characters and arrows (thanks Zort70 for the pictures) indicating capital or lowercase letters in tonight's video. After the video on find815, OurMutualFriend posted "Braille AOE" in Dark UFO's comments . Googling Braile AOE took you right to dafont.com where the symbols can be translated. When the password is entered correctly you get a bunch of binary code that when translated is a Walt Whitman poem title. The binary had to be translated to text, then copied and pasted to hex and converted to text (thanks Jess for working so hard to figure this out!). Then that text had to be copied and pasted to base 64 and converted to text. There's a translator here if you want to try it yourself.

We begin with a video recap reminding us that Talbot is working for Maxwell per the file in his cabin. Next we're taken to a video to set us up for tonight's game. In it we see Sam steering the ship. He pulls the coordinates (-11.1784, 112.2363) out of his pocket and waits for his opportunity to hack. Ockham leaves the helm and Sam opens panel and tampers with the plotter to give him a reason to "fix" it. When he is asked to fix the "faulty" plotter he inserts a flash drive into the computer and the game begins.

Hack The Chart Plotter

The Instructions: The password for the chart plotter is a combination of 5 unique numbers and letters. None are repeated. There are 8 possibilities narrowed down by Sam's hacking software. You need to choose 5 possibilities and enter them. You will be prompted if they are wrong, all correct, or some correct. You get 10 chances and 3 minutes before a security breech alert sounds.

Possible Passwords:

• 6H957 and S38TI (Thanks Lost2010)
• O74ZF (Thanks ib4uc)
• EA87I (mine)
• ZE1FQ (Thanks Memphish)
• XV529 (Thanks Zort70)
• F5XSW (Thanks DedJezter)

A strategy e-mailed to us by Lost2010:

1. Take the 8 coordinates - abcdefgh
2. Enter - aaaaa (if you got a red - keep an a in the first slot
3. Enter abbbb (if you got a red and now have a white, leave a and b and move on to c
4. Enter abccc (say you now have one red and two whites)
5. Enter acbdd (every time you get an additional dot, you know to keep the letter)
6. If you add nothing just take that letter out of your next sequence. And as long as you have whites and not reds, keep sliding the letters that got a hit one slot to the right.
7. You should have a couple of tries left after you have all five dots even if they aren't all red - then you can play with it.

If you succeed, you get a video where:

• Sam tells Ockham that it was a loose display cable and Ockham tells Sam he is on call 24/7.
• Talbot asks Sam if he fooled with the chart plotter. He shows him the paper with the coordinates and Sam denies any knowledge of what they are.
• Talbot tells Sam, "You have no idea what you're involved in do you? You don't know who you're dealing with."
• Sam tells Talbot that his employer Maxwell gave him the coordinates to which Talbot replies, "Like I said you don't know who you're dealing with. Stay away from those coordinates, you won't find what you're looking for."

A challenging little game tonight, and lots left open for speculation. Who is Talbot working for? Are we sure it's Maxwell? Also, do you think this canine friend looks familiar? What could the poem mean?

E-mail us at the usual place with any hints, clues, or anything that you find. Please be sure to tell us how you got the information, and sign your mails so we know what name you post by :D. THANKS!

Lag Alleviation

In preparation for tonight's update, here is a new thread to chat in.

Dear TLC,

There's a lot of angst flying around in comments regarding spoilers. In keeping synchronized with out parent blog, The Lost Community, we are going to try to play the game and stay spoiler free. Everyone is certainly entitled to their opinion about the spoilers. Perhaps a better way to voice your opinion about it would be to email other sources directly rather than have heated discussions in comments.

We welcome clues from other places at anytime, but please do not post comments that are potential spoilers or come from any methods, such as decompiled flash or chats, that are not game related. If you find information from other methods that you really think are "in game" please send an email to oceanicconspiracies@gmail.com.

We value each and every member of our community, as well as your opinions. Our goal is to keep this blog game related and fun!

Sincerely,
Your Oceanic-Conspiracies Blogger Team

Chapter Three Summary - Reading between the lines.

Sam's Story

• Chapter three kicks off with Sam trying to negotiate his way off the Christiane 1.
  
  
• Mr. Ockham informs Sam that they will not be returning to Jakarta until January (after Christmas) and that there is no way he can deviate from the search for Black Rock just to allow him to jump ship. He reminds him to report for his 3am shift.
  
  
• With nothing better to do and finding an opportunity (with Talbot heading off somewhere), he sneaks into Talbot's cabin and has a dig around. Eventually he finds a briefcase with the initials AMM on it, and a document within (on the salvage of the Black Rock) that links Talbot to the Maxwell Group and the group itself to Widmore.
  
  
• Sam is caught leaving Talbot's cabin by the man himself. He claims the door was open and he was just shutting it, but Mr. Talbot is obviously suspicious.
  
  
• Back in his cabin Sam writes to Tracey once again, this time the only favour he asks is for her to contact his mother and let her know he is alright but that he won't be home for Christmas.
  
  
• He also receives and replies to an email from "Ian and Pam", who appear to be Sonya's parents. They give Sam their support and ask him to come and stay with them. Sam tells them he is out of the country but he is thinking of them and will get in touch some time in the new year.
  
  
• Finally, he receives a new mystery e-mail. This time with a string of letters. Some of which appear to be in a slightly small typeface with a space after them.
  
  
• Later. While taking a breather on deck (presumably during his 3am shift), Sam hears some strange noises from below and comes across some strange anomalies in the control room. The radio is crackling and all the screens seem to be going crazy and making strange beeps and chirps. Sam's never seen that before.
  
  
• Sam returns to his cabin and e-mails Tracey about this. While waiting for her reply he decides to see if he can find out some more information about the significance of the name "Maxwell" by searching on "Answermyquestions.org". The most interesting result was relating to James Clerk Maxwell, a pioneer in the field of electro-magnetism.
  
  
• Tracey replies to his e-mail and tells him that it was probably caused by lightning or a temporary failure inside the system. Although she does mention that it could have been caused by a really strong wave of electromagnetic energy.
  
  
• Tracey's email takes a strange direction however when she suggests to Sam that he may need a holiday and suggests he check out the "BaliHolidayFun.com" web site. A website that appears fake (see clues section).
  
  
• Around the same time Sam receives a voice mail message from Sean Dowling at Oceanic Air. Mr. Dowling informs Sam that his loyalty flyer points have been revoked due to his dismissal and that he shouldn't try and use them. There is however something strange about this message (see clues section).
  
  
• With some time to himself, Sam has figured out that those two mystery e-mails he received earlier contain co-ordinates. He plans to hack into Talbot's chart plotter to find out what they point to.

The Clues

• Talbot's "deep pockets" - He relies on a syndicate, which allows them to plunder heritage sites without tarnishing their reputations.
  
  
• The Document that links Talbot with Maxwell (could this be the "Syndicate"?) and Maxwell with Widmore.
  
  
• The initials on the Briefcase are AMM which seems to refer to a number in Talbot's phone for "A. Mullins".
  
  
• Talbot's mobile phone (used to get the code to the briefcase).
  
  
• The altered letters in the second mystery e-mail are AABBCFC, which when changed to number (A=1, B=2, etc) give 1122463 which read as a co-ordinate is 112.2363 and works with the numbers in the previous email (-11.1748) to give a location in the Sunda Trench.
  
  
• The season 4 clue this episode was a Tunisian Newspaper with an article about flight 815 and Oceanic closing the investigation.
  
  
• The passwords for that clue were "Charlotte Lewis" and "36-15-28"
  
  
• It seems the Maxwell group may well have been named after James Clerk Maxwell.
  
  
• When e-mailing the contact at the BaliHolidayFun.com website (baliholidayfun@gmail.com) you receive a garbled response from a Mr. Ole, but included in the email are fragments of a URL that leads to http://www.find815.com/steg/stegosaurus.png. The subject of the reply email "Amuses Mr.Ole" turns out to be an anagram for "Samuel Morse". Meanwhile the phone message from Sean Dowling contains Morse Code that reads "OPENSTEGO". An application that opens hidden information contained within a file. When run against the stegosaurus.png file it is apparent something is hidden. The suggestion seems to be that the password is somewhere in the clues listed below (from Sam's Video Diary).
  
  
• Sam mentions several things during his video diary that may be clues. While talking about Sonya he mentions that she liked things to be straight forward and out in the open. He also said he feels it is good to get things off his chest.
  
  
• It is worth noting that on his chest there are some figures that appear to be numbers and a minus or dash. By the end of the video these numbers have changed. At the start this appears to read "79-" by the end it is less clear but appears to be something like "7S2". The only thing that is clear is that they change.
  
  
• There are several video flashes during the diary, the most significant of which appears to be something that is clearly braille code. Several possible translations of this have been made so far. But nothing is definite.

Other Characters

• Mr Ockham - As stubborn as ever, he refuses to get Sam off his ship. He does however answer some of his questions.
• Oscar Talbot - Continues to grow even more suspicious about Sam. It seems to Sam that whoever his mystery contact is within Maxwell, they haven't told Talbot to expect Sam's company on this trip.
• Tracey R - Continues to aid Sam and perhaps us in direct and indirect ways.
• Ian and Pam - Likely Sonya's parents. They are concerned about Sam.
• Sean Dowling - Continues to be a long distance pain in the butt for Sam. Seems Oceanic aren't going to do him any favours.
• A.M. Mullins - Apparently the owner of Talbot's briefcase.

It's a bit of a strange one this weekend with an important piece of information not quite revealed yet. Hopefully we will have an update for you some time today or tomorrow with that password we need to get into the hidden file inside the picture. Stay tuned folks!

Note: It is likely that this Experience was postponed due to the writers strike and so this is why the current in game time seems to be earlier then the launch date we were given for Oceanic.