Migration Remnants
Posted on May 16, 2008
Filed Under computers | 2 Comments
I think the last of my issues from migrating web hosts is now done. I had a few DynDNS domains that I really only use to accept email. I had a Rube Goldberg style setup on Dreamhost that kept the mail flowing but it isn’t possible to do with HostGator. I made a failed attempt to set up these domains to use Google apps but since a free DynDNS domain doesn’t have a lot of flexibility I couldn’t make it work. It might not be impossible but I couldn’t do it. I gave up and just pointed it all to my home Linux box. That’s not as reliable as I’d like but screw it, it’s done now.
I sure hope I am done with this now. Moving webhosts, particularly when you have a lot of odd configurations and freaky domains, sucks almost as much as moving houses.
Popularity: 3% [?]
Gene Colan in Hard Times
Posted on May 13, 2008
Filed Under comics | Leave a Comment
One of my favorite comic artists of all time is Gene Colan. He drew Iron Man, a classic run on Tomb of Dracula including creating the Blade character, a stretch on Doctor Strange that I loved, and even worked on Howard the Duck with the late Steve Gerber. In the 80’s Eclipse comics published some wonderful comics that were shot directly from his expressive pencils without an inker.
Sadly, Mr. Colan is now having severe heath problems, including liver failure. You can help out with the expensive pharmaceutical bills by buying art on eBay. Also posted is an appeal to mail a card and an appreciation for what his work has meant to you. I have in the past failed to act on these appeals in time and the next thing I knew, the person was lost. It’s time to act on this one. A card to Mr. Colan is on the way tomorrow.
Popularity: 6% [?]
Tags: comics, genecolanGroadies I Have Known
Posted on May 13, 2008
Filed Under music | Leave a Comment
I am subscribed to the Large Hearted Boy music and literature blog. Today was a post about the PDX Pop Now festival. The thing that jumps out about that is that the band Jonny X and the Groadies are friends of mine. I’ve known Jonny for 10 years and on the last national tour they did we had a house full of Groadies in Atlanta. Check out their music and if you are in PDX, go see them. You need some midi metal mayhem in your life. I’d be seeing them if I could.
Popularity: 7% [?]
Tags: groadies, jonnyxandthegroadies, largeheartedboy, pdx, pdxppnowCoffee Break’s Over, Back On Your Head
Posted on May 13, 2008
Filed Under life, weblogs | Leave a Comment
After the worthwhile insanity of CREATE South and then the less fun insanity of the day job and home repair, there has not been much blogging here in almost a month. Add to that the server woes of recent days, and everything has been underproductive and overdramatic. If you can see this post, that means you’re now on the newer new host. More on that unpleasant topic later.
Blogging is like any form of discipline. When you do it regularly it seems unnatural not to do it and when you go too long without it, then it seems weird to return. I have a Google Reader queue full of stuff I have starred to return to later so I really need to get back and blog some of this crap. I hope to be crazy prolific in upcoming days. Keep me honest, y’all!
Popularity: 6% [?]
Moving Again
Posted on May 12, 2008
Filed Under weblogs | 3 Comments
I was warned about DreamHost and I didn’t listen. After this blog being effectively down for the last 4 days, I have pulled the plug on DreamHost. At least the service took a dump for me a few days before my 97 day guarantee was up, not after. More later, right now I’m worn out from migrating sites from DreamHost to HostGator. Sigh.
Popularity: 8% [?]
Cyberpunk Rumblings
Posted on May 9, 2008
Filed Under sciencefiction | 2 Comments
I’ve been thinking a lot about cyberpunk lately. No matter what its current fate in the literary fashion sweepstakes, I always had a great affinity for the genre and always will. No matter that its original young turks are now all too old and respectable to wield the crowbar with proper leverage. Sadly, the Ramones and the Sex Pistols are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It’s the fate of all punks to mellow or die, and they tend to do some of each.
William Gibson will be in my little town tomorrow accepting an honorary doctorate. It makes sense as he was born in this town. I’ve heard smatterings of outrage because apparently he speaks unkindly of Conway SC. He’ll be getting a “Doctor of Humane Letters” which leaves me wondering of they’ve actually read his books. His work has many wonderful virtues but humane is not at the top of the list. They may not have the option to give a “Doctor of Inhumane Letters.” I have Spook Country but haven’t read it yet. I’ve fallen off the Gibson pace in recent years but I still count him as equal influence with JG Ballard and William S. Burroughs in shattering my patterns of thinking and leading me somewhere new.
Bruce Sterling posted a link to a bit wondering if “cyberpunk is dead.” He has some analysis that I love and find applicable in our ongoing food fights as to whether “podcasting is dead” or “vlogging is dead.”
Just for the record, nothing can be “dead” when people have to anxiously declare it “dead.” Once it’s REALLY dead, nobody publicly frets about its deadness. Broadway theater’s been dying for about a century, “belle lettres” has been dying for, gosh, maybe 250 years now. You have to get used to that.
Right on, brother Brucie! Rather than getting pissed off, I’ll just treat the declarations of things I care about as “dead” as a sign of their vitality. From henceforth, such things will be considered self-contradictory just by existing. That was easy. Staples easy button easy, in fact.
Rudy Rucker is so far from a young turk that he’s retired now, which gives him more free time to post weird shit on his blog and blow my mind. He seems like a true case of someone with no off switch. I’m still subscribed to his audio feed and get whatever he chooses to post on it.
And just now I noticed something in common with all three of these guys: all grew up in the south and no longer live there. Gibson: South Carolina and Virgina and now in Vancouver BC. Sterling: Texas and now in Beograde. Rucker: Kentucky and now in California. If only the south made more people weird like these guys, we’d really have something!
Popularity: 9% [?]
Tags: brucesterling, coastalcarolina, cyberpunk, rudyrucker, williamgibsonGet Out, Hillary Clinton
Posted on May 8, 2008
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Reading the news yesterday of the Democratic Primary, an insight hit me. Even though there are ways Hillary Clinton could win the nomination there are none still in play that wouldn’t taint the process, make it feel stolen and drive away all the new energized Democrats who have been signing up for the last six months. She could pull some chicanery with Florida and Michigan or she could appeal to the superdelegates but in either case she plays right into the scumbag Machiavellian stereotype many of us have about her and her husband.
I think this week is the one where the thing many of us feel becomes impossible to miss: HRC would rather be the nominee and lose in November than see her party win. I’ve felt this all along which is why I’ve never had a glimmer of support for her. No one should buy that she cares about the good of the masses when she obviously does not care about the good of even her political allies. If she persists on this this course from here forward, I want to see her lose her senate seat, and there be no chance whatsoever of another presidential run. She and Joe Lieberman can go form the “It’s All About Me” party and have a good ol’ time there. For the people whose primary concern is staunching the bleeding of liberty from our government and Constitution, there are more important things than individual quests for power.
Popularity: 7% [?]
Primary
Posted on May 6, 2008
Filed Under politics | Leave a Comment
I haven’t really taken an interest in the Democratic primary since John Edwards dropped out. I don’t believe the media talking point that this long primary is “hurting the Democratic party.” I think the opposite is true and that it actually helps in the long run. Despite all that, I’m ready for it to be over. I’m sick of Barack Obama, but not nearly as sick as I am of Hillary Clinton. I never voted for her husband and I sure don’t want to vote for her. Mostly I’m just fatigued by the bullshit, mostly perpetrated by the lazy media in endless service to an ever shifting master narrative. If one thing makes me proud of America, it is the way voters seem to be generally resistant to the manipulation. You go, America!
Popularity: 27% [?]
Free Comic Book Day
Posted on May 3, 2008
Filed Under comics | Leave a Comment
We’re out of town visiting my father-in-law in Goldsboro NC so I requested a side trip to the local comic store here for Free Comic Book Day. We got there about an hour before the store closed, so I don’t know if the comics selection was depleted or if they didn’t get the full array of stuff. I’d have liked to have gotten the Hellboy/B.P.R.D comic. Still, it’s hard to complain about free stuff.
Popularity: 31% [?]
Tags: comicsEGC Clambake for April 29, 2008 - “CREATE South Wrapup”
Posted on April 30, 2008
Filed Under audio | 1 Comment
Here is the direct MP3 download for the EGC clambake for April 9, 2008. I play a song from Alana Davis; I talk about our CREATE South conference and how it went, and our goals for the next year; I play a song by Chris Yale and then dance me to the end of love.
You can subscribe to this podcast feed via RSS. To sponsor the show, contact BackBeat Media. Don’t forget, you can fly your EGC flag by buying the stuff package. This show as a whole is Creative Commons licensed Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5. Bandwidth for this episode is provided by Cachefly.
Links mentioned in this episode:
Popularity: 44% [?]
Tags: alanadavis, chrisyale, createsouthEd Cone on Conway
Posted on April 30, 2008
Filed Under life | 1 Comment
After his trip to CREATE South, Ed Cone and his wife came back the very next weekend. What’s interesting about that post is the place they had lunch is in downtown Conway, walking distance from my house. This little joint is across the parking lot from the hardware store I shop, around the block is the restaurant at which we had our anniversary dinner and the theater we go to see the community plays. I really enjoy my little town and I get a kick out of seeing Ed enjoy it too.
Popularity: 42% [?]
Tags: conway, createsouth, edcone, southcarolinaThe Way You Play the Game
Posted on April 30, 2008
Filed Under sports | 3 Comments
I’m not even going to pretend this story didn’t make me cry. At Central Washington University, the women’s softball team was playing Western Oregon. CWU really needed wins to make the NCAA playoffs. When Sara Tucholsky - a career .153 hitter - hit the only home run of her career, she hurt her leg rounding the bases. The umpires said the rules did not allow her teammates to help her around the bases, which would eliminate her home run. Central Washington players determined that nothing in the rules prevented the opponents from helping her, so two players picked up Tucholsky and carried her around the bases, stopping to touch each base with her good leg. This is a team that - if they lost this game by one run and if they lost a bid by one loss - was costing themselves the post-season by this action and they did it anyway. I have to say that makes them the biggest winners possible, regardless of the score of the game or their win-loss record. (They lost 4-2, and thus didn’t make the post-season.)
Thank you, Central Washington University softball team. Thank you, Mallory Holtman and Liz Wallace. You made my aching heart feel better.
Popularity: 43% [?]
Tags: centralwashingtonuniversity, softball, westernoregonCREATE South Wrap Up
Posted on April 29, 2008
Filed Under conferences | Leave a Comment
I have posted over on the CREATE South blog a big wrap up with lots of links to other posts and resources about the day. Check it out and relive or see what you missed.
Popularity: 43% [?]
Tags: createsouth, createsouth2008When You Cut Houses, They Bleed Money
Posted on April 29, 2008
Filed Under life | Leave a Comment
The house repairs continue. What started as a simple tile job escalated to a floor repair but it didn’t stop there. It kept going into a chimney, roof, soffit, wall and floor repair. I came home last night and saw where things were at. I never thought I’d be so happy to see rotten wood in my house. While some of it was bad, it wasn’t as much as we had feared. I think the worst is over and now we are back to putting this place back together. It’s a bad feeling when everything the workmen do requires more work from another workman, so I’m glad to see that chain come to an end.
Popularity: 40% [?]
Mevio/Podshow “Never Believed in User-Generated Content”
Posted on April 26, 2008
Filed Under podcasting | 7 Comments
Yesterday I got an email from Derek Coward, pointing me to this pair of articles: one about Podshow changing their name to Mevio, and another about how Mevio was focusing on professionally produced content, as opposed to that shitty stuff that they’ve focused on for the last three years, I suppose.
I’ve actually let up on Podshow a lot in the last few years. Their biggest positive is that they have done positive things for my friends. They allowed Drew Domkus and Michael Butler and others to quit day jobs that they weren’t digging and they’ve allowed a lot of people that I like to make some money podcasting. I’ve had my doubts about them and given them shit along the way but I decided that unless and until they really screwed a friend of mine I would give them a break.
Still, I’ve always been queasy about the company and particularly about Ron Bloom. Back when I used to listen to the Daily Source Code and they did that long episode that was Curry and Bloom discussing their views and goals for their newly forming and at the time still unnamed company. After listening to that long painful show, I decided that if I ever found myself shaking Bloom’s hand, I’d count my rings and fingers afterwards.
When I read the story, there is one quote that really stands out to me.
“We have never believed in user-generated content as a business, or even as a sustainable entertainment offering,†said Ron Bloom, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, MEVIO.
That statement puts the basics of the Podshow/Mevio philosophy into a funny state. Now the question is whether Bloom was lying three years ago or is he lying now? It’s really strange to claim that Podshow never believed in user-generated content as a business because, like, we were there. This seems like a form of brass balled, straight in the face prevarication that would be a stretch even for the Bush administration.
I remember the weird feeling I got in my stomach when I went to the first Podcast Expo in 2005 and saw the t-shirts Podshow was giving away. Of all the things they could have pumped, the important aspect to them was about podcasters “quitting their day jobs.” It was a blatant appeal to the wannabes who hoped to become Dawn and Drew. “Come join up with us, and soon you’ll be doing this for a living too!” As it turns out, that was never something Podshow “believed in as a business, or even as a sustainable entertainment offering.” Is there any possible reconciliation of that statement and of the pitch Podshow has used to recruit individual podcasters all through its history? I’ve looked for one and haven’t been able to find it.
I couldn’t remember the exact wording of those shirts, so I put out an appeal on Twitter for someone to send me a photo of themselves wearing the shirt. Slightly vindicating Twitter for me, I woke up this morning to the attached photos of Mr Jamie Nelson in said shirt. If I’m understand his email correctly, he was in fact already wearing it to sleep in when he saw my tweet. Now seriously, look at those shirts. I’m not treating the shirts as the definitive mission statement of the company, but they are a clear indicator of the way Podshow represented themselves to the amateur podcaster. Dudes, you were never part of the business plan, and you were never something the company believed in. How does that make you feel about the last three years of loyalty to the company. It puts me in mind of a quote Patrick Nielsen Hayden frequently uses: “Just because you are on their side doesn’t mean they are on your side.”
So, to clarify my stance: I wish no one in particular ill will. I’m not rooting for anyone’s business to fail, and I don’t want to see any of my friends out of work or experiencing any hardships. I don’t blame any of the Pod* companies for changing their names. When I was naming AmigoFish, the one rule I had is that there would be no “pod” anywhere in the name so I was maybe ahead of that curve. Other than this post, I’m resuming my general apathy towards Mevio. I listen to very few of their shows, and those that I do listen to will continue whether or not the company does. I do think if you are a Podshow podcaster you should pay attention to this. The company doesn’t believe in you, so maybe you should reciprocate by failing to believe in them and acting accordingly.
As someone who was doing a show when you could count the other podcasters on your fingers and listen to every other one produced every day, I can make one definitive statement about the medium. It was all a lot more fun when no one was making any money and only worried about putting out fun shows that mattered to them.
Popularity: 72% [?]
Tags: dawnanddrew, derekcoward, jamienelson, mevio, podcasting, podshow, UntitledSubgenius School
Posted on April 25, 2008
Filed Under misc | Leave a Comment
For those of you interested in such things, my personal clergyman Rev. Ivan Stang will again be teaching his online course on the history of the Church of Subgenius. This allows the students to download huge amounts of Subgenius media, audio and video and text. Even better, you are given the opportunity to create your own cult for fun and profit. What’s the Church of the Subgenius without a little schism action? At $135 course isn’t so much more expensive than a continuing education course at a college. I think I paid a similar amount for my Spanish course in Evanston IL, and unlike Spanish the Church is something that no matter how hard you work will never be decipherable.
I’m thinking about taking the course. If I create my cult, it will be quite something I’m sure.
Popularity: 51% [?]
Tags: ivanstang, subgeniusLife Kicks My Butt, Wins
Posted on April 25, 2008
Filed Under life | Leave a Comment
You might think that having CREATE South behind us means that things get calmer. “HA” is the response. Not only is this a very big week at my day job (which included having a server melt down right before we were going to upgrade it), but simultaneously we are getting our kitchen floor worked on. Every evening and several mornings, I’ve been sawing off the bottom portion of a pocket door and running a band saw over the edges of plywood to level it out. It’s been exhausting and yesterday was the biggest of the big days.
The guys came to install the tile, found that even with the cutting of the pocket door it wasn’t high enough so we had to come up with a workaround. Then, they found rotten wood under the washer which needed to be fixed before they can finish, so I had to work up a second set of repairs. It was a big day of arranging stuff I hate to arrange. Then, around 5 PM I went in to work for our big upgrade and ended up getting home around 4 AM. It was grueling and then today wasn’t much easier. Now it’s late Friday evening with me and the dog in an empty house with ourselves. I thought about doing a podcast tonight while there is free time but I just don’t feel like it. I’m too fried for that.
It’s been an awful week and now I’m just glad it is over.
Popularity: 47% [?]
Rudy Rucker on Evangelism of Ideas
Posted on April 21, 2008
Filed Under podcasting | 1 Comment
I read Rudy Rucker’s blog, listen to his podcast when it is published and have read his fiction for the last 20 odd years. One day I’d like to interview him as he is quite and interesting dude. As I get into really old Google Reader posts, I ran across this one from him a few weeks ago. He talks about how is odd ideas of how things might work are distressing to some but that he no longer cares much.
But at this point in my life, I no longer care very much if I can convince anyone or not. It’s like, at this point, my increasingly far-fetched ideas are art objects I’ve crafted, and it’s pointless to ask if they’re true. I’m fond of them, and I draw some comfort from them, and I like dramatizing them in SF novels — but I don’t want to put emotional energy into the task (which by now I know to be fruitless) of converting people.
As odd as it seems for having spent my weekend trying to convert people into using new media, I wasn’t really converting anyone. It was more a matter of putting specifics to desires that already existed. If people aren’t interested in podcasting or Twitter or blogging, I don’t really care anymore. I’m not interested in flipping anyone that doesn’t agree with me. I’ll just do what I do and if the value isn’t obvious enough to convince people it is worthwhile, I’ll press on without them.
That’s the power of new media. I don’t need anyone’s permission or sign-off or money to do my work. If it interests me and I want to do it, onwards. If you think it is stupid, don’t listen/watch/read. The world is a hard and cold place, and I’m done with those people who want to deny others moments of joy. Andrew Keens of the world, you are invited to kiss me ass. I need you even less than you need me. I’m here to do my work, to make myself happy. Anyone that wants to can come along.
Popularity: 65% [?]
Tags: newmedia, podcasting, rudyruckerGTD For Me: Still Broken
Posted on April 21, 2008
Filed Under life | 3 Comments
This weekend at the conference or the pre-dinner someone asked me how I was doing with GTD. The sad truth is, not at all. My original attempt atrophied and failed, my reboot atrophied and failed and now I am in a state without any functioning part of it. Had I been working on the conference with a functioning GTD implementation, life would have been much easier for me. As it was, I was in a constant state of almost screwing things up. Things got done but more things would have gotten done better with less effort if I could have been better organized.
Here’s where the truth starts to hurt. I’ve tried things a couple different ways and the one thing all the failed attempts have in common is me. It’s not that I’m not capable of it because obviously I am. I failed to fully commit or stay disciplined or something.
What I wonder now is that despite bouncing off of a couple of attempts, I still believe in GTD as a system and I believe that it would make my life better if I had it working. Why do I believe in GTD in a way I never believed in the XP programming methodology? I bounced off of attempts at both, but the latter I derided because whenever implementations failed the response was always “You weren’t doing it right.” I didn’t like that mindset of non-falsifiability. There appeared to be no way to fail at XP without the proponents pinning the blame on you. Surely it can’t be universally perfect for everyone in all situations so there has to be some way of determining it isn’t right for you.
Is it possible that GTD isn’t for some people, or that it isn’t for me? Is something in my makeup or my character (or lack thereof) that keeps me from succeeding at this? Do I say I want it and think I want it and then subconsciously sabotage myself when I try? I have lived my whole life as a disorganized and messy packrat and maybe deep down I don’t really want to change that.
I don’t know that I have it in my to try that reboot in the next week. I’m just too exhausted and beat down and will be that way for at least the next week as both work is hard and home repairs happen - all this in the aftermath of CREATE South and the deep down tired it left. A good tired, but a tired nonetheless. Maybe I need to read the book one more time to get refilled with the holy fire and try it again. I’m not defeated, but my faith on this topic is wavering. I need to get a win under my belt.
Popularity: 57% [?]
Tags: gtdCREATE South is In the Can
Posted on April 19, 2008
Filed Under misc | 5 Comments
The CREATE South conference is now behind us. Big swatches of the day went not like I hoped they would but like I dreamed they would. The day wasn’t perfect by any stretch but the flaws were forgivable and survivable and the strengths powerful and heart-warming. I’d write more, but now I’m driving down to Surfside Beach to see newly minted blogger Roger Yale and his band Sick Stooges play. More later, after I have had my socks rocked.
Popularity: 66% [?]
Tags: createsouth, createsouth2008, rogeryale, sickstoogeskeep looking »
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