What the hell is a Carrol's Mirror?

Carroll's Mirror: (Colloquial term, the proper term is "combination mirror") So called because it was invented by Robert M. Carrol in 1820 in reaction to the scarcity of imported floo powder after the British embargo of 1813. A mirror, used in pairs or sets, which allow swift transportation and communication between places. It is a bastard cousin to the floo, and fills the niche created by the lack of fireplaces in modern buildings.

Carroll's Mirrors come in two varieties: the talker (properly called a "single combination") and the walker (properly called a "double combination".) The walker can transport people and things, the talker acts as more as a telephone. The individual mirrors are called "stations."


Talkers:
Talkers can only project an image, no physical matter can pass through them. They can be made from common float glass, and don't require a license to operate or install, and are reasonably cheap (talk is cheap!) Small, short-range sets are frequently given to children as gifts, and are usually around 5d a pair. More powerful sets, or larger glasses are more expensive, with the most common selling between 50d and 75d. a piece. Talker stations can be had with any number of functions and features. Depending on the range and size, stations must be kept a few inches apart to avoid crosstalk or interference. Where there are many sets, such as a school or business, special charms are used to dampen wild signals.

To use a single combination, one first has to calibrate it. Most often, this consists of the person who owns it laying hands on it and using a certain phrase or command. This establishes ownership of the station, the command to activate it, and the way it responds to a call. (A good example is the Model 22, made by the former Northern Lights Co. of Prince Edward Island. This mid-priced model was in production for almost forty years, and was for several years the top selling Single combination in the states. The Calibration sequence would be as follows: Face Mirror silver side up. Lay hands on either side of it. Say "Calibrate" and tap two opposing corners twice at the same time with the fingertips. After the mirror flashes, say your full name, and nicknames. Mirror will glow. Tap the centre of the mirror and say "answer" to immediately open a connection, "call for answer" to hear the caller summon you, or "signal" for a non-verbal summons (then state the signal-eg. "bell," "flash," "knock," etc.") After the flash say"finished." If the glass flashes twice it was calibrated correctly.)

Even with a well-adjusted station, the charms will "drift" over time, with the result that the stations will have fuzzy or no picture or sound. Unusually cold weather, storms, and electrical interference will all have an effect on reception. Lightning, in particular, is a great annoyance, and the smaller stations are particularly susceptible. Most stations above the very cheapest have some form of "tuning" in.

A single combination that is part of a fixed installation, or tied to one business or institution can be included in a Wide Area Single Station System. The Station will operate in the same way, but will be assigned a unique number, instead of a name. The number will be assigned based upon the location of the station. (New Dominion Academy is located in the NEW DOMINION area, and St. Jerome Dr. is in town, so it receives the designation of "1". There are 31 numbers in use ahead of it, so it gets the next available number, which is 32. This their WASS# is" NEw Dominion 1-32. or 631-32. Saying either will connect you to their main office.

Some common names of Single Combination Stations include:

Pocket Owl, who makes small lightweight and "toy" sets.
Northern Lights Co. (no longer in business, but their products are still very common in the states)
Peerless Transport Inc. They make large single stations, as well as a wide assortment of double stations.
Maxwell & Davis, makers of the wildly popular "Golden" series of desktop models, as well as the designer wall series from interior designer Lucien Dabney.
MagikMirra, who make a complete assortment of designer-inspired desktop stations, as well as personal stations.
Conover, who make and import medium-sized wall stations, and a few larger desk stations.

Walkers:

A walker, or double combination, is expensive, and must be installed, maintained and operated by a licensed individual. Getting a license to operate is the simplest, followed by the maintenance license, and finally the installer license. While the varying layers of licensing may sound unreasonably onerous, it is all for the users' own good. There are plenty of things that can go wrong with a double combination, and instead of simply carrying voice signals it is carrying you and me! The MTA (Mage transport Administration) is responsible for the licensing of these facilities.

The operator license entitles one to use their own station, or other stations with the permission of the owner. Getting this license requires 10 hours of training, a written and practical test, and can be had after age 14. Children can (and frequently do) learn to use a walker before then, and most of the time nobody cares. Citations for underage use of the double combination are rare, and are usually only given in conjunction with other citations.

The maintenance license entitles one to perform simple calibration and repairs to individual stations, and renew the first layer of charms. Those responsible for a number of stations are usually required to secure an operator license, due to the problems that many stations together present. This license requires a 40 hour class, written and practical exam, and is only offered to those 18 and above.

The installer license entitles one to install and perform all maintenance to double stations, both for themselves and others. This is the license that must be obtained by anyone wishing to repair or build walkers for a living. This license is the result of a special training, usually offered by manufacturers of combination mirrors. A test is required, wherein the candidate must disassemble and reassemble a double combination of unknown make and age, and correct any faults that may be present. Unpardoned felons are not allowed this license.

Calibrating a double combination is a delicate matter. Each charm has a specific purpose, and changing one may correct one fault, but cause another. Because so many operations are taking place at one time, the smallest missallignment in charms can cause a lot of trouble. A good example of this would be the locator charm, which coupled to both a projection and carrier charm, determines the proper arrival station, and clears the temporal path there. The proper sequence is: Locater charm (On completion of spoken directions, this charm directs the station to clear the path to your destination) Projection Charm (should complete approximately .2 second from speaking destination name; which determines that the path is free, and establishes that a connection exits with the destination) and finally the Carrier Charm (begins as soon as you touch the surface of the "mirror," which carries your physical being to the arrival station,)

A deviation of .1 second in any of the three charms is enough to bungle a connection, and .2 second would possibly be fatal! Ironicaly, a locator charm that is wildly out of calibration is less dangerous than one slightly out, because you will simply emerge from the wrong station on the arriving end, whereas if the set is only slightly miscalibrated you may miss the intended arrival but not be far enough to one side or the other to make it out of another station.) Modern sets (after 1990) have an "all or nothing" charm in effect, which essentially refuses the connection and loops you back to the departure station if you "land" between stations. This charm can be added to older stations, but they have to be completely divested of all charms first, for it is among the first applied, and must be in effect for all of the other charms to operate. This means that it is often cheaper and easier to replace stations, unless the old one holds great sentimental or financial value.