[TheCrimsonGhost]

I would agree that page is run by someone on the inside. All the otp22 style books are original posts and the rest are reblogged/posted from other places. And as mentioned before these are not just pictures, res is sooo clear, they look like they could be the original designs, like whoever made the books is posting them. Another crazy turn of events.

[L0j1k]

I went through all of the posted covers so far as of this writing, and scanned each image's barcode to see if there was something up. Here are some observations I noticed, as originally posted in #ARG:

Code:

19:18 <L0j1k> 1) a lot of books (~5%) share the same BARCODE ISBN as the first                ladies book... i have named these books "CORE BOOKS" in our                library, because almost all of the core books DO NOT have                matching printed ISBN numbers... of those with unique printed                ISBN numbers, it seems as though each book has a "twin" core                book that matches it's scanned barcode ISBN and also it's                printed number isbn 19:18 <crashdemons> L0j1k, is GRC in the tumblr collection? 19:19 <L0j1k> no 19:19 <L0j1k> 2) some of the books have UPC A barcodes, while most of them                have EAM 13... core books have EAM13 barcodes, and the UPC A                barcodes match the printed ISBNs 19:20 <L0j1k> 3rd revelation: SOME OF THE ISBNs ARE FAMILIAR-LOOKING... such                as "alloy-related trade agreements in eastern europe", which has                isbn 9780299 933357 19:20 <L0j1k> notice compared to phone numbers 2029993335 and 2029993337

An important thing to notice about the core books is that they are all the most familiar titles: "Designing Compelling Worm Sanctuaries", "Legacy of Postal Reorg Act", "Slate Deposits in Intermountain West", "Collecting Vintage Capacitors, Diodes, Thyristors", etc. etc. etc. There are a couple of core books that are NOT very familiar-sounding, however (for example "Tennis Courts of Panama Canal Zone" and "Prewar Lavatory Architecture of Western Canada" and "Sphericality Measurements of Oranges, Matsumas, and Tangelos"). Not sure what importance this has (yet), but it's definitely interesting.

[Xkeeper]

All of the OTP22-style book covers are tagged. Most of the rest are reblogged or reposted from other places:

http://exciting-books.tumblr.com/tagged/exciting-books

[crashdemons]

We noticed that a user tumblr user has been posting high-quality book cover originals matching some of our OTP22 Books. http://exciting-books.tumblr.com/

Molds and lichens (full quality from tumblr): http://exciting-books.tumblr.com/post/71478300222/molds-and-lichens-of-nova-scotia
Molds and lichens (from our drop): http://i.imgur.com/JsgZGbX.jpg


In one case, they posted a book about punchcards one day before we retrieved the Norfolk drop containing a punch card.
http://exciting-books.tumblr.com/post/75031471828/adaptive-reuse-of-punched-cards-in-public

It's not far-fetched for me to see that this user has at least some minor connection to OTP22's PM.



See also: http://pastebin.com/XEeJsBDQ relevant IRC log

[Xkeeper]

Since about that time yesterday, CONTROL number (3337) has been saying it has a corrupt bootloader and is asking for a bootloader to be input over the phone. So, who knows what to do next.

[aquinas]

so, after the brief outage of a few minutes, AS came back with some new stuff:

1320# gave us this: http://dialer.otp22.com/2014-02.dir/2014-02-07%2020-41%20UTC%20-%20202-999-3335%20-%201320%23.wav

Quote:

Maps target 33334 has been configured on MSP cluster. To view maps, please refer to your instruction manual for reverse license key installation.

22# gave us this funny music with bpsk tones: http://dialer.otp22.com/2014-02.dir/2014-02-07%2020-41%20UTC%20-%20202-999-3335%20-%2022%23.wav

...which Xkeeper converted to: AI--DID YOU RECEIVE LICENSE KEY? PLEASE INSTALL ON 33334 USING SECURE METHOD SPECIFIED IN MAINT-0002/STANDBY FOR WO 9482.9N IN LSB REDBOOK CARRIER/

(another reference to LSB [we assume as Least Significant Bit])

anyway, we don't have the red book, L0j1k was trying to get it from Robby before he went AWOL. but we *did* receive the "license key" in Norfolk, the punch cards. which had two strings of numbers-- 70298487537 and 92368006706.

so, since we don't have the red book to tell us what the "secure method" is to install the license key, i tried XORing the two 11-digit strings on the punch card against each other just for shits'n'giggles, which gave me 25225733315.

so dialing the agent system, entering 33334, then entering 25225733315 resulted in this:

http://dialer.otp22.com/2014-02.dir/2014-02-07%2021-14%20UTC%20-%20202-999-3335%20-%2033334%23wwwwwwww25225733315%23.wav

Quote:

License key 25225733315 is now installed. Please press reset on controller card. Please press reset on controller card. Please press reset on controller card. Please press reset on controller card. Please press reset on controller card. Please press reset on controller card. Please press reset on controller card. Please press reset on controller card. Error, error, error. Controller card not in reset mode. Error, error, error. Controller card not in reset mode.

and now the entire agent system just gives us this message when dialed. ball might be in PM's court...

[bobdamnit]

Earlier today sometime (not sure exactly when) all numbers besides 888-854-2402 started playing a busy signal. It is a legitimate busy signal, not a recorded busy signal.

Cleveland Direct is busy.
Control/Deploy is busy.
All 0004 numbers are busy.
Agent System is busy.

888-854-2402 is playing the "dot matrix printer" noise.
Message Desk is still playing the normal beeps/boops.

This activity is very similar to when we wardialed Agent System and somehow broke it. The only difference is that Cleveland Direct, Control, and Deploy are also playing the busy signal.

We are unsure what caused it, but a few theories are:
-PM ran out of funds to keep his Twilio account active
-PM messed up his configs for Twilio somehow
-PM scrapped the game (unlikely, due to 888 still "working")
-PM is having a "grandpa moment"

Hopefully we dont have another 2-3 month outage.

[Xkeeper]

It changed again recently, to "33334" now. Another pointer to that number.

Nothing seems to work in it.

[arthurdent11389]

Xkeeper wrote:

New message on 1320 too. Quote: Maps target 12809 has been configured on MSP cluster. To view maps, please refer to your instruction manual for reverse license key installation. 12809 is just random numbers.

Message on "1320" different - only change: "12809" changed to "85710"

"85710" is just numbers and does not work on "33334".

[Xkeeper]

I wrote an ABISM decoder today while bored. Decided to look through old messages I could find using ABISM.

Format changed early last year, not really sure on the details. Observe:

Early:

Quote:

0*¤¤(8( ( <0 1359656487

Later:

Quote:

CURRENT EPOCH 1371228997

Some time later on (October?), all ABISM messages are now just "ERRORMJ==>". ABISM on **# is same.



New message on 1320 too.

Quote:

Maps target 12809 has been configured on MSP cluster. To view maps, please refer to your instruction manual for reverse license key installation.

12809 is just random numbers.

[bobdamnit]

To elaborate on bambusar's post:

*# is the same from original Agent System
**# is the same from original Agent System

In that neither are playing strings of numbers, but playing tones, albeit old tones that we have either figured out or really have nothing to do with anything recent.

*#: http://dialer.otp22.com/2014-02.dir/2014-02-05%2020-54%20UTC%20-%20202-999-3335%20-%20*%23.wav

**#: http://dialer.otp22.com/2014-02.dir/2014-02-05%2021-41%20UTC%20-%20202-999-3335%20-%20**%23.wav

Both have been figured out, I think. (Not so sure about **#, as I cannot find anything about it on Wiki) Please feel free to let me know if I am incorrect.

[bambusar]

Current status of "new AS". All numbers except 22# and 33334# spell numbers. And all mubers have that bloob right after dialtones.

22#

http://dialer.otp22.com/2014-02.dir/2014-02-03%2021-14%20UTC%20-%20202-999-3335%20-%20%2322.wav

bloop (morningcoffee noticed "bloop" in the dialtones on 22# and crashdemaons converted binary bloop to 1320, it was the clue to dial 1320 to get drop info a few days ago) followed with horrible scream that sounds to me like seagull or baby seal screaming.


http://dialer.otp22.com/2014-02.dir/2014-02-01%2000-13%20UTC%20-%20202-999-3335%20-%2022%23.wav
<aquinas> yeah we didn't notice the bloop at the beginning of that and other AS #'s was the same as the bloop embedded around 24 secs on that 22# recording
<aquinas> i think 22# "screech" sound was just PM saying "COME ON, listen to the bloop"


33334#
http://dialer.otp22.com/2014-02.dir/2014-02-03%2021-16%20UTC%20-%20202-999-3335%20-%2033334%23.wav


This is only number that is the same than it was on good old Agent System AS36 (but on AS36 33334 and 33335 were same which is no longet the case.)
3 noises + 3 beeps repeated a few times (where was this used before?) You can enter DTMF tones
http://otp22.referata.com/wiki/Agent_Systems/33335

Number was found on Pennsylvania_Tree_Trunk_drop.

Code:

33334        REVERSE AGENT   REVERSE AGENT NUMBER, USE ACCESS CODE 33335        AGENT MAINT     AGENT MAINT CODE

Same number was also mentioned in Directory for 3333x range on Agent number: 899053



All other #
Agent numbers return mysterious number station like numbers:
16043# This should be Ais number
http://dialer.otp22.com/2014-02.dir/2014-02-03%2021-14%20UTC%20-%20202-999-3335%20-%2016043%23.wav
33335#
http://dialer.otp22.com/2014-02.dir/2014-02-03%2021-42%20UTC%20-%20202-999-3335%20-%2033335%23.wav


1320# and 81320# don't give numbers either, but they're related to the latest drop
1320 is some funny song with some digi mode decoded by BPSK
81320 is SSTV

[bambusar]

This looks super interesting. Big thank to retriever and whoever placed the drop aswell


We also revisited that cemetery near Montevideo (that was third drop in histoy of OTP22, back in 2012)
SuperDan went there but he didnt find any code.
So no bellcode was found.











Reason for revising Montevideo drop site were two messages we found recently that referenced Bell Code and Montevideo:

No1:
Oct 16 2013

Agent code 6880#:
http://dialer.otp22.com/2013-10-16%2011-36%20UTC%20-%20202-999-3335%20-%206880%23.wav

Quote:

For whom the bell tolls, inscribed on the bell. A code, a bell code. Not paper flapping in the wind.

No2:
Dec 10th 2013

Quote:

male voice: "How, no, how how how, one, zero, three, nine, six, bell code at Montevideo you not go here, you not call here, how, no, how how how" female voice: "How, no, how how how, Montevideo, you not go here, you not call here, how, no, how how how" male voice: "hybridized Cochliobolus heterostrophus, obtain seed vault contents, melt, melt, melt, blight, blight, blight, failure, failure, failure, sell, sell, sell, we will have them all, least significant bit, left 4 bit, right 4 bit, least significant bit, song, song, song, start marker, wink, filesize, go"

[morningcoffee]

DROP ACQUIRED!!

Thanks to a very kind user, jalbertbowdenii, from subreddit r/Norfolk, we were able to acquire the Norfolk, VA drop in less than 24 hours!



Some nice snowy scenery from the park where the drop was:









Our drop was taped to the back of this sign.





Ta-da!





Close-up:





We're trying to work out how to use this in the IRC channel now. Remember you can join us if you want to help us out or play along with the ARG!
webchat.freenode.net and join channel #ARG

[Xkeeper]

Here's a better shot of the SSTV image, just resized 2x to the right aspect ratio:



You can see the shadow of the person taking the picture, too