Welcome to the first issue of the new TSAT! As that e-zine's long-time readers are aware, the former editorial staff chose to move on to other projects, and they were looking for a new group of people to take over the zine; a group that would preserve TSAT's virtues and values; a group that would keep things going pretty much the same as they had been, only better. What they got was... us. Two members of the TSA-Talk mailing list, Michael Bard and Quentin 'Cubist' Long. Our qualifications for taking over TSAT are... well... um... we responded to the old guys' call for help. Now, that may seem a little disrespectful to people who served their community so well for three years, but then we don't take ourselves all that seriously, okay?

So don't expect a whole lot of gushing, fawning, overblown Respect out of the new TSAT, no matter who you are. And while you're at it, don't expect to see a lot of 'stories' in which 50% of the word-count is devoted to loving, minutely detailed descriptions of the process of transformation. Such stories might well be called transporn. While we at TSAT recognize that transporn does have its place, we also don't believe our e-zine to be that place. Given the demonstrable fact that there are bazillions of other sites on the Net where you can luxuriate in all the transporn you can stomach, what point would there be in adding yet another to the list of such?

Something else you shouldn't expect is that TSAT will be a showcase reserved for the denizens of the aforementioned TSA-Talk mailing list. We don't consider ourselves a wholly-owned subsidiary of said List; we want to serve all of our particular community of interest, not just that subset which happens to subscribe to the same mailing list we do. So while this issue's list of contributors does display an unfortunate TSA-Talk bias, know that we are actively seeking out material from beyond the List, and we hope to do better in future issues.

Having just told you what TSAT isn't, it's now time to explain what it is, or at least what Bard and I want it to be. Our goal can be summed up in 25 words or less: We want to show you some neat stuff that you probably wouldn't have been aware of otherwise. Thus, our Classic Tales, of which Clark Ashton Smith's City of the Singing Flame will be only the first of a long, illustrious series. Also on our agenda are such goodies as factual articles about transformations in the Real World; excerpts from contemporary books; reviews of books, movies, and TV shows that address our mutual sphere of interest; and whatever else our twisted minds can conceive. Speaking of 'twisted', we can't forget TSAT's official comic strip, Modified Rapture, which will skewer a new and deserving target every issue...

Finally, we recognize that no matter how good the e-zine is, it simply isn't worth a tinker's damn if you can't actually see the bloody thing on your screen. Some sites use browser-specific HTML tags which don't work with your software; others depend on plug-in software that isn't compatible with your system; others still are so heavily overburdened with 'bandwidth vampires' (i.e. MIDI files, Javascript, 32-bit JPEG graphics, et cetera ad nauseum) that it takes them for-bleeding-ever to download through your online connection. All of these things, and many others, are obstacles which sites can place between themselves and their audience... so if you're wondering how come TSAT doesn't use [insert spiffy-new-technology here], that's why. Bard and I already know about whatever-it-is -- we just don't think our audience will regard its putative benefits as being worth the hassle associated with it.

It's going to be a long, strange trip. Welcome aboard, and we hope you'll choose to stick with us for the duration!