Sherlock

1. In version 21, if the growler cab happens to take you to Oxford Street, and you haven't been there before, then you see the cab as if you weren't in it: "At a cabstand along the curb you see a growler cab."
2. In version 21, you can LISTEN TO HEART without wearing the stethoscope.
3. In version 26, when you have your coat, if you READ something that's in your pocket you take it out first. In version 21 this happens only if there's nothing to read on it. It happens even if you have your hands over your ears.
4. In both versions, EMPTY a container INTO a container is buggy. Frotz exits with "Fatal error: Illegal attribute". The Infocom interpreter handles this command without complaining, but EMPTY COAT INTO something leaves everything in the coat. You can also EMPTY things INTO a container whose contents are usually restricted, allowing you to put some strange things in such places as the pipe, your lapel, or the girl's mouth.
5. In both versions, at Clock Tower you can PUT or THROW body parts or ME IN SHAFT. You get, "[whatever] disappears into the shaft. A long time later you hear a faint "thud.""
6. In both versions, PUT COTTON BALLS ON EARS is definitely the wrong syntax! You get, "You put the cotton balls in your ears.", but they seem to disappear. They don't show up in your inventory, and they don't affect your hearing. You can EXAMINE them, etc., but REMOVE COTTON BALLS only pretends to take them out. You're told, "You take the cotton balls out of your ears.", but nothing changes. In fact, you can PUT a number of other objects ON EARS, each of which similarly disappears. COVER EARS WITH something works the same.
7. In both versions, you can take the sapphire without the bell ringing. GET SCRATCH says, "You take the sapphire's scratch off of the clapper.", and you take the sapphire.
8. In both versions, you only need the cotton balls in your ears to protect you from Big Ben's first ring. You can then take them out and the other rings for that same hour don't affect you. On the other hand, if you don't have them in and you take your hands off your ears after the first ring, then the second ring has the same effect as the first.
9. In both versions, you can WEAR things while your hands are covering your ears.
10. In both versions, when the pipe is lit, you can take out the burning tobacco using BURN TOBACCO.
11. In both versions, if you POUR PIPE when it's lit, the tobacco spills out. A few turns later you get, "The pipe has gone out.", even though it was already out, and the tobacco disappears.
12. In both versions, if the last object referred to was HAT, COAT, or POCKET, then the command FILL (with no object) says, "You are not holding the [garbage]."
13. In both versions, if you're wearing your hat, then EMPTY HAT claims, "Your hat is closed."
14. In both versions, you get several strange messages when interacting with objects if they're in a vehicle and you're not. For example, if your hat is in the cab, then PUT STETHOSCOPE IN HAT says, "You cannot reach the stethoscope. You put the stethoscope in your hat." GIVE something TO DRIVER claims, "You cannot reach the [object]." before telling you he's not interested. Also, GET IN an object that's in a cab or the boat tells you to get out of it first.
15. In both versions, FOLLOW behaves oddly. For example, if Holmes is present, then FOLLOW HOLMES says, "You cannot see Holmes here."
16. In both versions, BURN HAT says nothing but, "[your hat]". BURN COAT or POCKET behave similarly.
17. In both versions, you can get a weird message from GET OUT OF something, such as ME, SKY, or GROUND. The Infocom interpreter says, "[from [garbage]] That's impossible." In Frotz, the garbage is "object#177".
18. In both versions, if you have something in your pocket, then PUT ALL BUT something somewhere says, "You are not holding a [object in your pocket]."
19. In both versions, trying to stand up in the boat is inconsistent:

     > STAND UP
     It isn't safe to stand in a boat.
     
     > SIT DOWN
     You're already seated.
     
     > GET UP
     You are already standing.
    

    --Alan Galloway
20. In both versions, you can put things on Nelson's Column, even though it is 167 feet tall. You cannot put things on the pedestal, which presumably is much lower. Also, the story reports the following if you look on the column:

     > PUT PIPE ON COLUMN
     You put the pipe on Nelson's Column.
    
     > LOOK ON COLUMN
     On Nelson's Column you see a pipe.
    
     > GET PIPE
     You take the pipe off of Nelson's Column.
    
     > LOOK ON COLUMN
     On Nelson's Column you see nothing.
    

    When of course there is supposed to be something there -- the statue of Nelson. --Alan Galloway