The Library: Difference between revisions

From Tardis Wiki, the free Doctor Who reference
No edit summary
m (CosmeticChanges regards this as an error.)
 
(82 intermediate revisions by 29 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Infobox Location
{{Infobox Location
|name = The Library
|image       = The Library.JPG
|image = The Library.JPG
|aka         =  
|aka =  
|type       = [[Planet]]-sized [[library]]
|type = [[Planet]]
|location   =  
|location =  
|moons      = [[Doctor Moon]]
|natives=  
|first       = Silence in the Library (TV story)
|first = Silence in the Library (TV story)
|appearances = {{il|[[TV]]: ''[[Forest of the Dead (TV story)|Forest of the Dead]]''|[[COMIC]]: ''[[Booked Up (comic story)|Booked Up]]''|[[TV]]: ''[[The Name of the Doctor (TV story)|The Name of the Doctor]]''|[[GAME]]: "[[Betrayal and Redemption]]"|[[COMIC]]: ''[[A Stitch in Time (CC comic story)|A Stitch in Time]]''}}
|appearances = {{il|[[TV]]: ''[[Silence in the Library]]'' / ''[[Forest of the Dead]]''|[[COMIC]]: ''[[Booked Up]]''
|clip        = Meet the Vashta Nerada - Silence In The Library - Doctor Who - BBC
|clip2      = "River, You Know My Name..." Forest of the Dead Doctor Who
}}
}}
'''The Library''' was a [[planet]]-sized [[library]] that was built during the [[50th century]]. It contained every book ever written. Within its core was the largest [[hard drive]] ever, which served as an index [[computer]], as well as containing backup copies of every book ever written. The planet had one moon, which was actually an antiviral subroutine having the physical appearance of a moon. Due to its caretaking role, it was known as a [[Doctor Moon]].
The '''[[Lux Library Foundation|Lux Foundation]] Library''', ([[COMIC]]: ''[[Crossing the Rubicon (comic story)|Crossing the Rubicon]]'', [[PROSE]]: ''[[Time Traveller's Diary (novel)|Time Traveller's Diary]]'') usually called just '''the Library''', was a [[planet]]-sized [[library]] that was built during the [[50th century]]. It contained every [[book]] ever written. Within its core was the [[Data Core]], the largest [[hard drive]] ever designed to date, which served as an index [[computer]], as well as containing backup copies of every [[book]] ever written. The planet had one [[moon]], which was actually an antiviral subroutine having the physical appearance of a moon. Due to its caretaking role, it was known as a [[Doctor Moon]].
 
== History ==
== History ==
=== Creation ===
=== Creation ===
The Library was commissioned by [[Felman Lux]] and was managed by a head Librarian. Visitors to the Library used [[courtesy node]]s, sculpted computer terminals containing real faces made from donated flesh; the nodes would chose a face they thought a patron would like. The security were levitating wooden spheres. Visitors were advised to switch off their [[Mobile phone|mobile comm units]].
The Library and its computer was built by [[Felman Lux]] to embody his daughter [[Charlotte Lux]]'s living mind before her failing body died. She could enjoy eternal life in the virtual reality, with Doctor Moon nurturing her spiritual and mental well-being. To protect her identity and their child, the Lux family made the Library computers refer to her by the protracted name "CAL" to define the heart of its computer network. ([[TV]]: ''[[Forest of the Dead (TV story)|Forest of the Dead]]'') It was managed by a head Librarian. Visitors to the Library used [[courtesy node]]s, sculpted computer terminals containing real faces made from donated flesh; the nodes would chose a face they thought a patron would like. The security drones were levitating wooden spheres. All spheres had a camera lens and could communicate by displaying messages across a scrolling LED display in red letters. Visitors were advised to switch off their [[Mobile phone|mobile comm units]] for the courtesy of other patrons in the library.


Paper editions of every book ever written were made specially for the Library. ([[TV]]: ''[[Silence in the Library (TV story)|Silence in the Library]]'') The forests cut down to make the books were home to [[Vashta Nerada]], which then hatched from the books and infested the Library. The computer managed to "save" all 4022 visitors to its hard drive, where they could dream an imperfect virtual existence. ([[TV]]: ''[[Forest of the Dead (TV story)|Forest of the Dead]]'')
Paper editions of every book ever written were made specially for the Library. ([[TV]]: ''[[Silence in the Library (TV story)|Silence in the Library]]'') The forests cut down to make the books were home to [[Vashta Nerada]], which then hatched from the books and infested the Library. When the Vashta Nerada hit their hatching cycle and began their attack, the Doctor believed someone in the Library set off an alarm that made the computer teleport everyone out of its halls and convert them into a virtual form for transmission to a safe location. However, the computer could not reconstitute anyone back to physical form, because it had no place to send them where they would be out of reach of the Vashta Nerada. Instead, the computer managed to "save" all 4022 visitors at the time to its hard drive, where they could dream an imperfect virtual existence. The virtual world was a false reality governed by fake perceptions of time and individuals, maintained by Doctor Moon, who would reassure its population there was nothing to fear, even if he had to alter memories. The computer then sealed off the planet to quarantine the [[Vashta Nerada]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[Forest of the Dead (TV story)|Forest of the Dead]]'')


=== Arrival of the Doctor and River Song ===
=== Arrival of the Doctor and River Song ===
The computer sealed off the planet, and it would be 100 years before the Lux family could arrange an [[archaeology|archaeological]] expedition led by [[Professor]] [[River Song]].
One hundred years after the planet was quarantined, the Lux family arranged an [[archaeology|archaeological]] expedition led by [[Professor]] [[River Song]] to get back inside the Library.
 
The [[Tenth Doctor]] and [[Donna Noble]] arrived after being asked to come by River Song, via the Doctor's [[psychic paper]]. River's expedition crew was gradually picked off and devoured by the Vashta Nerada, who began stalking the group for meat. [[Miss Evangelista]] was the first victim, followed by [[Proper Dave]], ([[TV]]: ''[[Silence in the Library (TV story)|Silence in the Library]]'') [[Other Dave]], and finally, [[Anita (Silence in the Library)|Anita]].
 
Wanting to save Donna, the Doctor tried to teleport her back to [[The Doctor's TARDIS|the TARDIS]] but she was accidentally beamed into the [[Data Core|data core]]. Doctor Moon, in the form of his caretaker avatar, set up a fantasy life where she could be married and have children, but this was soon unmasked by Miss Evangelista. Her fading [[data ghost]] had been intercepted by the Library and placed into the virtual world, but it was corrupted due to being captured as it was fading away, resulting in a disfigured appearance and a staunch IQ boost. She helped Donna see through the virtual existence and reclaim her grip on the physical world. ([[TV]]: ''[[Forest of the Dead (TV story)|Forest of the Dead]]'')
 
After Donna had been transported away, the Doctor and River briefly became distracted by the sudden appearance of a [[time fly]]. Before the Doctor could find out what it was, however, it was consumed by the Vashta Narada. ([[COMIC]]: ''[[A Stitch in Time (CC comic story)|A Stitch in Time]]'')


As the library contains a copy each book ever written, [[River Song's diary]] is not her only tome containing spoilers for the Doctor to avoid there. Also in the stacks would be her novel/memoir, ''[[Melody Malone: Private Detective in Old New York Town]]'', which chronicles an adventure with her parents in his future and her past. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Angels Take Manhattan (TV story)|The Angels Take Manhattan]]'')
After realising what CAL had done, the Doctor set about freeing the people trapped in the data core. After reading of the Doctor's fearsome reputation, the Vashta Nerada agreed to a deal with him: they gave him a day to get everyone safely off the planet and he'd make sure the Library would be left alone for them to wander. However, the computer systems lacked the memory capacity to restore all the visitors. The Doctor attempted to use his own memory space to provide the massive transfer, but River intervened by force, knowing it would kill him. Instead, she gave her life to provide the computer enough memory to return all 4,022 people and Donna to the real world, resulting in the loss of her physical body. Luckily, the Doctor's [[Twelfth Doctor|future self]] retroactively planned out a way to save her from death. River's [[data ghost]] was stored on [[River Song's sonic screwdriver|his future self's sonic screwdriver]], which his present incarnation found and uploaded to CAL. River would be able to live on with her expedition crew, whose ghosts had also been captured by the computer. As the Doctor repaired the data core, Miss Evangelista also regained her appropriate looks. River then took care of CAL and two of the virtual world's children as her family. ([[TV]]: ''[[Forest of the Dead (TV story)|Forest of the Dead]]'') Despite River wishing for a proper goodbye from [[Eleventh Doctor|her Doctor]], he never visited the Library as he felt it would be too hard to see her again. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Name of the Doctor (TV story)|The Name of the Doctor]]'')


The [[Tenth Doctor]] and [[Donna Noble]] arrived after being asked to come by River Song, via his [[psychic paper]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[Silence in the Library (TV story)|Silence in the Library]]'') The Doctor helped to return the visitors and agreed with the Vashta Nerada to make sure no one arrived in the Library again. ([[TV]]: ''[[Forest of the Dead (TV story)|Forest of the Dead]]'')
After entering [[the Doctor]]'s [[time stream]], a copy of [[Clara Oswald]] ended up in the Library, watching the Tenth Doctor. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Name of the Doctor (TV story)|The Name of the Doctor]]'')


At some point after being uploaded to the Library computer, River's data ghost was able to link into a [[psychic]] "[[conference call]]" initiated by the [[Paternoster Gang]] to discuss [[Clarence DeMarco]]'s message. After the "call" ended, River kept the line open between her and [[Clara Oswald]], allowing her data ghost to project itself outside the Library to guide Clara through [[Trenzalore]]. The Doctor later displayed the ability to see this projection of River to her surprise. After getting the final goodbye she wanted, River's data ghost faded back into the Library computers. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Name of the Doctor (TV story)|The Name of the Doctor]]'')
=== Other visits by the Doctor ===
The [[Seventh Doctor]] once borrowed a book on [[Roman]] history from the Library. In it, he discovered {{Ainley|n=an advisor}} to [[Julius Caesar]] he had never heard of. ([[COMIC]]: ''[[Crossing the Rubicon (comic story)|Crossing the Rubicon]]'') The [[Ninth Doctor]] later mentioned visiting the Lux Foundation. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Way of the Burryman (audio story)|Way of the Burryman]]'')


=== Later visit by the Doctor ===
The [[Eleventh Doctor]] and [[Amy Pond]] later visited the Library, where they encountered the [[Book Monster]]s. ([[COMIC]]: ''[[Booked Up (comic story)|Booked Up]]'')
The [[Eleventh Doctor]] and [[Amy Pond]] later visited the Library, where they encountered the [[Book Monster]]s. ([[COMIC]]: ''[[Booked Up (comic story)|Booked Up]]'')


{{TitleSort}}
{{TitleSort}}
[[Category:The Library| *]]
[[Category:Planets]]
[[Category:Planets visited by the Tenth Doctor]]
[[Category:Planets visited by the Tenth Doctor]]
[[Category:Library planets]]
[[Category:Planets visited by the Eleventh Doctor]]
[[Category:Planets visited by the Eleventh Doctor]]
[[Category:Artificial planets]]
[[Category:Felman Lux Corporation]]
[[Category:Planets visited by River Song]]

Latest revision as of 17:26, 21 October 2024

The Lux Foundation Library, (COMIC: Crossing the Rubicon, PROSE: Time Traveller's Diary) usually called just the Library, was a planet-sized library that was built during the 50th century. It contained every book ever written. Within its core was the Data Core, the largest hard drive ever designed to date, which served as an index computer, as well as containing backup copies of every book ever written. The planet had one moon, which was actually an antiviral subroutine having the physical appearance of a moon. Due to its caretaking role, it was known as a Doctor Moon.

History[[edit] | [edit source]]

Creation[[edit] | [edit source]]

The Library and its computer was built by Felman Lux to embody his daughter Charlotte Lux's living mind before her failing body died. She could enjoy eternal life in the virtual reality, with Doctor Moon nurturing her spiritual and mental well-being. To protect her identity and their child, the Lux family made the Library computers refer to her by the protracted name "CAL" to define the heart of its computer network. (TV: Forest of the Dead) It was managed by a head Librarian. Visitors to the Library used courtesy nodes, sculpted computer terminals containing real faces made from donated flesh; the nodes would chose a face they thought a patron would like. The security drones were levitating wooden spheres. All spheres had a camera lens and could communicate by displaying messages across a scrolling LED display in red letters. Visitors were advised to switch off their mobile comm units for the courtesy of other patrons in the library.

Paper editions of every book ever written were made specially for the Library. (TV: Silence in the Library) The forests cut down to make the books were home to Vashta Nerada, which then hatched from the books and infested the Library. When the Vashta Nerada hit their hatching cycle and began their attack, the Doctor believed someone in the Library set off an alarm that made the computer teleport everyone out of its halls and convert them into a virtual form for transmission to a safe location. However, the computer could not reconstitute anyone back to physical form, because it had no place to send them where they would be out of reach of the Vashta Nerada. Instead, the computer managed to "save" all 4022 visitors at the time to its hard drive, where they could dream an imperfect virtual existence. The virtual world was a false reality governed by fake perceptions of time and individuals, maintained by Doctor Moon, who would reassure its population there was nothing to fear, even if he had to alter memories. The computer then sealed off the planet to quarantine the Vashta Nerada. (TV: Forest of the Dead)

Arrival of the Doctor and River Song[[edit] | [edit source]]

One hundred years after the planet was quarantined, the Lux family arranged an archaeological expedition led by Professor River Song to get back inside the Library.

The Tenth Doctor and Donna Noble arrived after being asked to come by River Song, via the Doctor's psychic paper. River's expedition crew was gradually picked off and devoured by the Vashta Nerada, who began stalking the group for meat. Miss Evangelista was the first victim, followed by Proper Dave, (TV: Silence in the Library) Other Dave, and finally, Anita.

Wanting to save Donna, the Doctor tried to teleport her back to the TARDIS but she was accidentally beamed into the data core. Doctor Moon, in the form of his caretaker avatar, set up a fantasy life where she could be married and have children, but this was soon unmasked by Miss Evangelista. Her fading data ghost had been intercepted by the Library and placed into the virtual world, but it was corrupted due to being captured as it was fading away, resulting in a disfigured appearance and a staunch IQ boost. She helped Donna see through the virtual existence and reclaim her grip on the physical world. (TV: Forest of the Dead)

After Donna had been transported away, the Doctor and River briefly became distracted by the sudden appearance of a time fly. Before the Doctor could find out what it was, however, it was consumed by the Vashta Narada. (COMIC: A Stitch in Time)

After realising what CAL had done, the Doctor set about freeing the people trapped in the data core. After reading of the Doctor's fearsome reputation, the Vashta Nerada agreed to a deal with him: they gave him a day to get everyone safely off the planet and he'd make sure the Library would be left alone for them to wander. However, the computer systems lacked the memory capacity to restore all the visitors. The Doctor attempted to use his own memory space to provide the massive transfer, but River intervened by force, knowing it would kill him. Instead, she gave her life to provide the computer enough memory to return all 4,022 people and Donna to the real world, resulting in the loss of her physical body. Luckily, the Doctor's future self retroactively planned out a way to save her from death. River's data ghost was stored on his future self's sonic screwdriver, which his present incarnation found and uploaded to CAL. River would be able to live on with her expedition crew, whose ghosts had also been captured by the computer. As the Doctor repaired the data core, Miss Evangelista also regained her appropriate looks. River then took care of CAL and two of the virtual world's children as her family. (TV: Forest of the Dead) Despite River wishing for a proper goodbye from her Doctor, he never visited the Library as he felt it would be too hard to see her again. (TV: The Name of the Doctor)

After entering the Doctor's time stream, a copy of Clara Oswald ended up in the Library, watching the Tenth Doctor. (TV: The Name of the Doctor)

At some point after being uploaded to the Library computer, River's data ghost was able to link into a psychic "conference call" initiated by the Paternoster Gang to discuss Clarence DeMarco's message. After the "call" ended, River kept the line open between her and Clara Oswald, allowing her data ghost to project itself outside the Library to guide Clara through Trenzalore. The Doctor later displayed the ability to see this projection of River to her surprise. After getting the final goodbye she wanted, River's data ghost faded back into the Library computers. (TV: The Name of the Doctor)

Other visits by the Doctor[[edit] | [edit source]]

The Seventh Doctor once borrowed a book on Roman history from the Library. In it, he discovered an advisor to Julius Caesar he had never heard of. (COMIC: Crossing the Rubicon) The Ninth Doctor later mentioned visiting the Lux Foundation. (AUDIO: Way of the Burryman)

The Eleventh Doctor and Amy Pond later visited the Library, where they encountered the Book Monsters. (COMIC: Booked Up)