You bring up some good question there. What I can do I would like to give my interpretation to some of those questions. The ones that I don't answer I don't have a clue maybe someone else might know the answer to them.

I'll start with the other questions.. Since I don't know. And I would like others to include their thoughts about it as well.

3? Well I guess we can say that's a very older version of Ed Dillinger. and yes that is a type writer from some other movie that was old and mechanical. Probably thought that it would look cute to have in there. Or it could be one of the typewrites that the good old card holders used to use to enter in the instructions into the mainframe or supercomputer before the modern day terminals of 1982. they were all that way and took longer to get things done and compiled on the computer.

4> Probably hi somewhere within the recognizer for safe keeping. Don't know if he needs to be fed.

5> Probably just before Flyn got sucked into the computer he was typing furiously at the terminal at Laura laser target area booth there.

6> Yes you can be right. But what about the Null unit. that was hanging right next to Sark when he was looking at the over all map of the system. If I remember correctly some where. that he was the equivilant to the real world guy that asked for the popcorn. If I remember correctly they did mention something about that in the 20th anniversary.

7> Probably beause the MCP was looking over each programs shoulders on what they were doing. and how they were conducting their daily requests. I believe that it may have been a kind of a dictatorship type of control on the good old programs.

I hope this helsp out in some way. I wonder what the other conscript here think or interpret the questions you have. I am intrigued what they think as well.

Those are some good answer there sketch.

Thanks. I've watch comentary and makeing part on the DVDs alot.
I love watching that type of documentary stuff about special effects. Heck I have a book about ILM.

The book talks about how they did special effects in different movies. Gives very indepth stuff too. Let's see.

Industrial Light+Magic
Into the Digital Realm.
by Mark Cotta Vaz and Patricia Rose Duignan

Foreword by Steven Spielberg

Ballantine Books, Ney York
1996

It talks about their technical inovations, computer graphics, robotics and models, etc... Very deep stuff. Talks about everything from Starwars, Back to the Future2, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, Forest Gump, etc, etc... If you love reading these types of books and ever run into this book at a store, get it!!! It's a must to read. It's has so much info I don't even know where to begin.

#3. Yes, the MCP was typing on a manual typewriter--at least that's what it looks like and what the sound is. It's kind of like "Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!" in the Wizard of Oz. Our enemies are never as mighty as they pretend to be--pride goeth before a fall. My assumption would be that the MCP was stripped down to his first incarnation and that the face there is his first user.

#5. Alan went to his computer station with Lora and was ready to go as soon as Flynn had forged them Group 6 access codes. My assumption was that time in the computer goes at a speed we can't imagine. Alan sent the info to Tron as soon as the access was forged. Flynn's entire time in the computer was probably only a few human minutes.

#6 I don't know if that's Dan Shor asking for the popcorn, but the real-life counterpart of the Null Unit that is at Sark's right hand, is Peter, Dillinger's assistant. He is seen when Dillinger comes back to his office from the helicopter.

Those are the only ones I really have an opinion on. Everyone's answers have been great

1. What's up with Ram's death? Did his body release something that caused the damaged Recognizer to power up?
Nah, when Ram died he just died. Flynn, being a user, some how activated the recogniser and restored it. He didn't even know what he did.
Scuzzy Says: Yep.

2. Wasn't Sark's carrier supposed to derez? If so, what was Lori and Flynn standing on above the MCP? Why didn't that part derez? Come to think of it, how did Lori get to the ground level with Tron immediately afterwards?
It did, just not all the way. Yori got to the ground cause, if you watch, when the mcp dies, the system is free, thu
Scuzzy Says: Actually, that's Flynn again. I figure that he helped keep the carrier afloat when he restored Yori, again without knowing exacly.

3. Who was that when the MCP was destroyed; the one inside that sphynx-looking thing like Dumont was in? And what was that he was pecking at? It sort of looked like a typewriter or a type setter. What was it? Who was he? Did he have a real world counterpart?
In the movie it is said the MCP was origianlly a chess program back in the younger days of ENCOM. The MCP himself said "No one user wrote me, I'm worth millions of their man years." The MCP was written by a bunch of programers. Though it seems Dillinger rewrote the MCP to his present form in the film. The typwritter is there just to show it's an older program I guess. I thought that was kinda neat.
Scuzzy Says: I saw it that it was all the programs that he appeneded, all the other "Man-Years" that went into programming the other programs. That he was a Chess Program only allowed him to learn from his experiences.

4. Where did Bit go after the Recognizer crashed? Did it kill him/it?
A question all us programs would love to know. Who knows. In the origianl script it seems Bit was suppose to hag around for the rest of the film. They probally had to cut that short cause of time.
Scuzzy Says: The bit was assigned to the Recognizer. When the Recognizer crashed the Bit went to wherever Bits go. Maybe that Bit was the one that belonged to Clu.

5. How did Tron get programming instructions from Alan 1 when Alan didn't have access due to denied clearence?
Flynn used a group 6 access to acivate Tron, there Alan programed Tron, from his terminal in the cubical, to go and terminate the MCP.
Scuzzy Says: Flynn used Group 6 Access to get into the system where he was intercepted by the MCP. Alan1 worked through the night to access Tron either by Level 6 or maybe even hacked Level 7. In any event, when he called Tron, Tron came a'running!

6. Was that Ram's real-world counterpart that asked for Alan's popcorn? I think so, am I right?
I think it is, at least it seems. Poor guy, all he want's is some popcorn.
Scuzzy Says: Coincidence in actors. Remember that Ram is a book keeping program. Alan's pal was a programmer who's face wasn't even seen.

7. What was this so-called "free system" that Tron was fighting to restore? How would they be any more "free"? Wouldn't they still be programs fulfilling the wishes of users? What's the difference, I mean apart from everything turning a glorious shade of blue?
The MCP was all about control. In the begining of the film the programers had little access to the system. The red beams mean the towers are not communicating with the real world.
Scuzzy Says: Yep.

Very cool idea, JediUnit! It would be VERY interesting to have had Flynn's face as the MCP's. Did Flynn mention actually programming himl, or just playing chess with him. OooOOoooOOo perhaps they should've cast Lloyd Bridges as the MCP...."I AM YOUR FATHER, FLYNN!"

...nor is it evidence of the contrary either.

It could have been made possible without having to change that line.

All in all, it's just fun speculating.

Yea, that's sort of like Palpatine in Star Wars; he himself wasn't powerful enough to take over the galaxy... not without the exploitation of others. He uses others in such a way to think they're helping themselves to a slice of power pie, but in reality he's the one that ends up with the rest of the entire pie. Dillinger's like that too. Without what he stole, he's actually quite, quite puny.

Genius' come up with all the creativity and ideas whereas the greedy do their best to take their glory.

Interesting.

You know, Foilism is on to something there... not only do we not know the proportions of the Grid Bugs, but we don't know ANYTHING about the Grid Bugs. It almost seems they were thrown in just because they went to the trouble of making the effect and didn't have any better way of tossing it in for eye candy. It's like, every time I see that part I get juiced up thinking there's going to be a lengthy combat sequence with Grid Bugs clammoring over our heros in a pitched battle of brute force bombarding us with flashing effects and explosive images... until I remember that's the only fleeting non-eventful glimpse we'll get of them at all.

I know there was a nearly transparent effort to marry the film with the arcade game simultaniously in production, but there could have been a slightly more pertinant reason to have tucked them in the film, even a quick shot of Flynn glancing over the edge of the Solar Sailer and leasurely commenting, "hey, look at those funny things" then looking away. He he he

Oh well. No big deal.