What is the "Waste Game" or the "Byzantine Ziggurat?" It all started like this. At the time, Radiohead had put up a new website, and this was a page called the Byzantine Ziggurat. People were freaking out about how to figure out the password. And by freaking out, I mean some were going totally out of their minds. I was one of them. I started keeping a copy of everything to do with the game, as did others, some of which helped me collect stuff, and this website was born. While the game was still going, this site helped others keep track of the latest news. the waste game (Byzantine Ziggurat) was designed and executed by Radiohead, Stanley Donwood, and many other associates. The game is currently over. It has been for some time now. It was a great time, and I met lots of exciting people in the process. I would most especially like to thank Mel from w.a.s.t.e for putting up with my annoying emails, maxk for putting up with all of us, Stanley for doing so much incredible artwork, and finally Radiohead - for giving us a very creative way to interact with them. This website exists as one of the only known collector of remnants of the Byzantine Ziggurat, or the "waste game." I collected the contents of this website while playing the game and working with others to figure out what the heck was going on. Most links will not work, and rightfully so, as this is all from several years ago. Anything following is provided for sentimental reasons only. below, i'm providing what i feel may help you get up to speed so that you can join in on the game.   first of all, remember i'm playing it just like you. sometimes it can get frustrating, but it feels great when you realize you've made some progress. keep at it, and be patient. that's the best advice i can give. the waste game is broken down into pieces, called chapters. currently, the game is between chapter 2 and chapter 3. Each chapter is a different game, and the way you play changes completely. right now you can go to the waste game homepage and sign in to the Byzantine Ziggurat. chapter 3 of the game hasn't started yet, but there's a chatroom in which you can talk to other game players. the black box in the upper right corner is normal, no one's sure as to it's purpose just yet. also, the ! button to the left of the text box is disabled when you click on it. again, no one's sure what that ! button does yet. no knowledge of a previous chapter is necessary in order to play later on. each chapter gives everyone the same chance of winning, you all start from the same place. the prizes are still a bit of a mystery (it seems that you're mostly playing for the satisfaction of knowing you've won). UPDATE: see some prizes awarded for winning chapter2 here. if you've won, you can help others along if you wish. for help with the current chapter, click on the information page. previous chapters have required you to pay attention to the waste game page and look for any updates. help is sometimes provided by the game team, but don't always count on that. there have been hidden pages in the waste game directories, scrambled html, and subtle clues involved in the past chapters. deciphering UPC codes, translating the ancient greek alphabet, translating a fictional language, and password cracking have been important elements to earlier chapters. some of the things you discover may not directly help you solve the game, but they could lead you to the solution. anything you find, even if it seems trivial, might in fact be pivotal to solving the chapter later. also, there have been occasional "mistakes" made by the game team, which allow you to see directories of images, or pages that might disappear suddenly. if you find something strange, make a note of it, and be sure to save all images you find or pages you run into. you never know if it will be there when you refresh your screen, or if you'll need it later and can't find it. the number 7 has appeared a number of times throughout the game. it's significance could come into play later. chapter 1: there were 7 ships floating around on the map. chapter 1: 7 secret texts - their filenames were the cities where the 7 wonders of the ancient world were located. when deciphered, they led you to a secret page which let you affect the map and the ships with storms, magnetizing the ships' compasses, or creating an evil ship (which never activated). chapter 2: 7 "artifacts" appeared on the island of crete. each of the artifacts (7 tablts, as translated) linked to a picture, with letters from a fictional language. the translation was a series of clues describing a person. the solution was polykleitos, who (if you entered him as your mentor at the beginning of chapter 2) provided you with a few extra pieces to build items for King Minos. chapter 2: each "apprentice" to Daedalus had to try to build 7 "pieces" for King Minos. It was sort of like a Tetris puzzle, with the bits placed on a grid. you can see how many pieces each apprentice got on this page.   - begin public service announcement - if you attempt to hack into the waste game server, you're not going to get away with anything. the team monitors the game exceptionally well, and your actions will be noted. also, realize that you'll probably interrupt the game for a lot of players who aren't interested in cheating, and enjoy the challenge that this game offers to Radiohead's fans. so please, don't try to hack into the waste game server. thanks everybody. - end public service announcement -   if you find anything on here erroneous, or if you feel you require more help, feel free to contact me at mike@waste-game-news.com contact the oracle at oracle@waste-game-news.com back to waste-game-news.com go to www.waste-game.com