Ever called your computer's tech support asking about your hard drive, and gotten the question "what sounds does it make?" Yes, dying hard drives make several distinct sounds, and you can hear examples of all of them on Hitachi Global Storage Technologies's support site.
Link via Engadget.
Monday, May 31, 2004
Friday, May 28, 2004
Well, that was short...
Bydion 2004 is over. I think I may have gotten too used to two and three day conventions, because this one was way too short. On the other hand, considering how tired I and con-manager Yael were by the end of it, it may not be such a terrible thing.
The morning started off rather terribly, as I was called and informed that Gayle Harven will not be attending. This was rather distressing, as she was the anchor of one of our major events - the World Building panel. I should hasten to add that this was NOT her fault. No one called her to confirm, and she didn't even know the con was today...
After a few phone calls, I managed to secure Gili Bar Hillel as her replacement. This turned to be an a pretty good idea, as I'll elaborate later. After some more arrangements, Tammy and I set off for the con.
At the con, Tammy entered Nir Yaniv's "Mean Tricks for New Writers" workshop, which she mostly enjoyed, while I missed Gili's lecture (to a full room) on "There and Back Again in Children's Fantasy" in favor of Coffee.
Next up for Tammy was Ilan Eshkoli's lecture on "Nonsense and Intelligent Nonsense in the works of Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett." She reports that Ilan was well prepared, erudite, and amusing as always. I headed off to the "World Building" panel, hosted by Noa Menhaim and featuring Assaf Asheri, Dr. Emmanuel Lottem, and Gili. This was an excellent panel, as Gili and Emanuel sparred over the very existence of dos and don'ts in World Building, with Noa asking excellent questions and Assaf providing quite a bit of insight from an author's perspective.
Following that, I went to lunch and managed to miss lectures by Itamar Paran and Ayelet Aloni, both of which I really wanted to attend.
After that was my own lecture on Slipstream and the borders of SF&F. This was a difficult topic, as Slipstream is defined by being Not SF while looking LIKE SF. But it was a fun lecture, and after I managed to get off the topic of what is and what isn't Slipstream, and why, and on to the topic of Slipstream's impact on modern fantastic fiction, it also covered some meaningful ground. As I always do, I hyped Swanwick's Iron Dragon's Daughter and Mieville's Perdido Street Station as prime examples of the positive impact slipstream's rule breaking can have.
That was followed by general milling about, talking to people, and hanging with Paul Kearney while he signed people's books.
Next up was the day's grand finale - the Guest Author Lecture. I got to talk a bit about why we had this con, and then introduces Kearney, as well as Yael and ISSFF chairman Erez Avramovitch, who both spoke briefly.
Kearney's speech was excellent, very honest, and moving at times. He isn't the experienced showman Orson Scott Card proved to be in last year's Icon, but he spoke very honestly and eloquently about the process of becoming a writer, and the writing of his novels. For me, it was easily the highlight of the con.
Bydion was not a very well attended con, as it was held on a working day. However, it was always busy, and certainly well attended enough to show that quite a few people care enough about books and reading to show up at a con with no screenings, no games, no extracurricular activities. And the number of people that attended allowed everyone who wanted to a chance to converse with Paul Kearney, who turned to be a lovely man, friendly, intelligent, enthusiastic, and genuinely happy to be there. Having a guest of his talent and personality was a huge boost to my own enjoyment of the convention.
I think Bydion 2004 was a qualified success, but only qualified due to the less than perfect attendance. People seemed to enjoy it, and I know I did. Erez Avramovitch said on stage that we will have a second one next year, and I'm already looking forward to it.
The morning started off rather terribly, as I was called and informed that Gayle Harven will not be attending. This was rather distressing, as she was the anchor of one of our major events - the World Building panel. I should hasten to add that this was NOT her fault. No one called her to confirm, and she didn't even know the con was today...
After a few phone calls, I managed to secure Gili Bar Hillel as her replacement. This turned to be an a pretty good idea, as I'll elaborate later. After some more arrangements, Tammy and I set off for the con.
At the con, Tammy entered Nir Yaniv's "Mean Tricks for New Writers" workshop, which she mostly enjoyed, while I missed Gili's lecture (to a full room) on "There and Back Again in Children's Fantasy" in favor of Coffee.
Next up for Tammy was Ilan Eshkoli's lecture on "Nonsense and Intelligent Nonsense in the works of Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett." She reports that Ilan was well prepared, erudite, and amusing as always. I headed off to the "World Building" panel, hosted by Noa Menhaim and featuring Assaf Asheri, Dr. Emmanuel Lottem, and Gili. This was an excellent panel, as Gili and Emanuel sparred over the very existence of dos and don'ts in World Building, with Noa asking excellent questions and Assaf providing quite a bit of insight from an author's perspective.
Following that, I went to lunch and managed to miss lectures by Itamar Paran and Ayelet Aloni, both of which I really wanted to attend.
After that was my own lecture on Slipstream and the borders of SF&F. This was a difficult topic, as Slipstream is defined by being Not SF while looking LIKE SF. But it was a fun lecture, and after I managed to get off the topic of what is and what isn't Slipstream, and why, and on to the topic of Slipstream's impact on modern fantastic fiction, it also covered some meaningful ground. As I always do, I hyped Swanwick's Iron Dragon's Daughter and Mieville's Perdido Street Station as prime examples of the positive impact slipstream's rule breaking can have.
That was followed by general milling about, talking to people, and hanging with Paul Kearney while he signed people's books.
Next up was the day's grand finale - the Guest Author Lecture. I got to talk a bit about why we had this con, and then introduces Kearney, as well as Yael and ISSFF chairman Erez Avramovitch, who both spoke briefly.
Kearney's speech was excellent, very honest, and moving at times. He isn't the experienced showman Orson Scott Card proved to be in last year's Icon, but he spoke very honestly and eloquently about the process of becoming a writer, and the writing of his novels. For me, it was easily the highlight of the con.
Bydion was not a very well attended con, as it was held on a working day. However, it was always busy, and certainly well attended enough to show that quite a few people care enough about books and reading to show up at a con with no screenings, no games, no extracurricular activities. And the number of people that attended allowed everyone who wanted to a chance to converse with Paul Kearney, who turned to be a lovely man, friendly, intelligent, enthusiastic, and genuinely happy to be there. Having a guest of his talent and personality was a huge boost to my own enjoyment of the convention.
I think Bydion 2004 was a qualified success, but only qualified due to the less than perfect attendance. People seemed to enjoy it, and I know I did. Erez Avramovitch said on stage that we will have a second one next year, and I'm already looking forward to it.
Thursday, May 27, 2004
Another Bydion Reminder
In just a few hours, Bydion 2004, the first ever ISSFF con devoted solely to books and writing, is set to begin. I'll be talking about stuff that looks like SF&F, but ISN'T, stuff that may not look like SF&F to some, but IS. And how both types impact the genre. Some lecture buzzwords: Slipstream, Sterling, Mieville. Be there, as I've been moved to the (LARGE) auditorium, and I'll feel very lonely in a mostly empty room.
Oh, and Gilly Bar Hillel, Gayle Hareven, Dr. Ilana Gomel, Ayelet Aloni, and several other great speakers will be there. Trust me.
And yeah, we happen to have an author Guest of Honor - Ireland's own Paul Kearney.
If you're not there, you hate books. And reading. And little children.
Oh, and Gilly Bar Hillel, Gayle Hareven, Dr. Ilana Gomel, Ayelet Aloni, and several other great speakers will be there. Trust me.
And yeah, we happen to have an author Guest of Honor - Ireland's own Paul Kearney.
If you're not there, you hate books. And reading. And little children.
Wednesday, May 26, 2004
Artist arrested for... having art supplies?
I'm going to follow Warren Ellis' example and just paste the whole thing:
This is just scary.
FBI ABDUCTS ARTIST, SEIZES ART
Feds Unable to Distinguish Art from Bioterrorism
Grieving Artist Denied Access to Deceased Wife's Body
DEFENSE FUND ESTABLISHED - HELP URGENTLY NEEDED
Steve Kurtz was already suffering from one tragedy when he called 911 early in the morning to tell them his wife had suffered a cardiac arrest and died in her sleep. The police arrived and, cranked up on the rhetoric of the "War on Terror," decided Kurtz's art supplies were actually bioterrorism weapons.
Thus began an Orwellian stream of events in which FBI agents abducted Kurtz without charges, sealed off his entire block, and confiscated his computers, manuscripts, art supplies... and even his wife's body.
Like the case of Brandon Mayfield, the Muslim lawyer from Portland imprisoned for two weeks on the flimsiest of false evidence, Kurtz's case amply demonstrates the dangers posed by the USA PATRIOT Act coupled with government-nurtured terrorism hysteria.
Kurtz's case is ongoing, and, on top of everything else, Kurtz is facing a mountain of legal fees. Donations to his legal defense can be made at http://www.rtmark.com/CAEdefense/
FEAR RUN AMOK
Steve Kurtz is Associate Professor in the Department of Art at the State University of New York's University at Buffalo, and a member of the internationally-acclaimed Critical Art Ensemble.
Kurtz's wife, Hope Kurtz, died in her sleep of cardiac arrest in the early morning hours of May 11. Police arrived, became suspicious of Kurtz's art supplies and called the FBI.
Within hours, FBI agents had "detained" Kurtz as a suspected bioterrorist and cordoned off the entire block around his house. (Kurtz walked away the next day on the advice of a lawyer, his "detention" having proved to be illegal.) Over the next few days, dozens of agents in hazmat suits, from a number of law enforcement agencies, sifted through Kurtz's work, analyzing it on-site and impounding computers, manuscripts, books, equipment, and even his wife's body for further analysis. Meanwhile, the Buffalo Health Department condemned his house as a health risk.
Kurtz, a member of the Critical Art Ensemble, makes art which addresses the politics of biotechnology. "Free Range Grains," CAE's latest project, included a mobile DNA extraction laboratory for testing food products for possible transgenic contamination. It was this equipment which triggered the Kafkaesque chain of events.
FBI field and laboratory tests have shown that Kurtz's equipment was not used for any illegal purpose. In fact, it is not even _possible_ to use this equipment for the production or weaponization of dangerous germs. Furthermore, any person in the US may legally obtain and possess such equipment.
"Today, there is no legal way to stop huge corporations from putting genetically altered material in our food," said Defense Fund spokeswoman Carla Mendes. "Yet owning the equipment required to test for the presence of 'Frankenfood' will get you accused of 'terrorism.' You can be illegally detained by shadowy government agents, lose access to your home, work, and belongings, and find that your recently deceased spouse's body has been taken away for 'analysis.'"
Though Kurtz has finally been able to return to his home and recover his wife's body, the FBI has still not returned any of his equipment, computers or manuscripts, nor given any indication of when they will. The case remains open.
HELP URGENTLY NEEDED
A small fortune has already been spent on lawyers for Kurtz and other Critical Art Ensemble members. A defense fund has been established at http://www.rtmark.com/CAEdefense/ to help defray the legal costs which
will continue to mount so long as the investigation continues. Donations
go directly to the legal defense of Kurtz and other Critical Art Ensemble
members. Should the funds raised exceed the cost of the legal defense, any
remaining money will be used to help other artists in need.
To make a donation, please visit http://www.rtmark.com/CAEdefense/
For more information on the Critical Art Ensemble, please visit http://www.critical-art.net/
Articles about the case:
http://www.rtmark.com/CAEdefense/news-WKBW-2.html
http://www.rtmark.com/CAEdefense/news-WKBW.html
On advice of counsel, Steve Kurtz is unable to answer questions regarding his case. Please direct questions or comments to Carla Mendes .
This is just scary.
Hitler won?
Howard Waldrop is one of my favorite authors of all time. He writes a weekly column for Infinite Matrix, and in his latest entry, lists some of the oh so many books and stories in which Hitler won. I knew there were alternate histories in which the nazi won. I just didn't know there were so many.
Tuesday, May 25, 2004
DC Comics TPBs in Hebrew
Eilat was fun and relaxing, though the infinite bus rides there and back were neither.
I see an official announcement has been made regarding the Hebrew translation of several DC comics tpbs to Hebrew by Mahrwood Press, a publisher which has previously specialized in religious literature for the Orthodox Jewish market.
I've been contacted as a possible translator for some of the books in the series, and I really hope the books do well, as this is something I've tried to convince both my current employers at Modan and my previous employers at Opus to do.
I see an official announcement has been made regarding the Hebrew translation of several DC comics tpbs to Hebrew by Mahrwood Press, a publisher which has previously specialized in religious literature for the Orthodox Jewish market.
I've been contacted as a possible translator for some of the books in the series, and I really hope the books do well, as this is something I've tried to convince both my current employers at Modan and my previous employers at Opus to do.
Thursday, May 20, 2004
Going to Eilat
In a few hours, I'll be getting on the bus to Eilat, for what will hopefully be a fun, relaxing weekend. I'll be back on Sunday. If anyone has an urgent need to reach me, email me at dcanoch at yahoo dot com, which I'll be checking on my cellphone.
Kinneret-Zmora-Dvir blog
Kinneret-Zmora-Dvir, Israel's biggest publishing house, has a new blog, with literary news and house-specific news. The content seems excellent, and this looks like a new addition to my already heavy blog reading load.
Wednesday, May 19, 2004
Good comments about bad advice
Teresa Nielsen Hayden picks apart some particularly bad advice about cover letters and manuscripts. Be advised, her comments definitely DO apply to Israeli submissions as well.
Wiley v. Simmons
Ralph Wiley and Bill Simmons, my two favorite sports writers on the planet, square off in an epic blog conversation about the NBA playoffs, tv, Spike Lee, and a whole bunch of other topics. Even if you don't like the NBA, you should check it out for the writing.
Monday, May 17, 2004
Bram Stoker winner and Nebula nominee in Hebrew
Bruce Holland Rogers' creepy, award winning short-short story "The Dead Boy at Your Window" has been translated to Hebrew and published in Bli Panika. Check it out.
Sunday, May 16, 2004
Abu Ghraib
Seymour Hersh has been covering this topic ever since it broke, and now gives a comprehensive report of why and how the horrors of Abu Ghraib prison came to pass. Wow. A story that actually makes the CIA sound like the GOOD GUYS. Scary.
In any case, if you want the full report, and not just the shortened version you'll get in most media outlets in Israel and elsewhere, read this.
In any case, if you want the full report, and not just the shortened version you'll get in most media outlets in Israel and elsewhere, read this.
Friday, May 14, 2004
This would make Heinlein's day
Special corrspondent Lavie Tidhar brings this little newsbite to my attention. SpaceShipOne becomes the first ever privately built rocket to reach the edge of space.
Thursday, May 13, 2004
Stephenson's Quicksilver wins Clarke award
Dark Establishment's British correspondent (he doesn't know that's what he is, but I'm sure he won't mind) Lavie Tidhar writes to report that Neal Stephenson's huge historical novel Quicksilver has won the Arthur C. Clarke award. Locus confirms.
Geek = Cool
I've never had any interest in watching The O.C. Now, thanks to this review (which also doubles as the article equivalent of the geek pride parade), and thanks to the incomparable Bill Simmons' review of the season finale on ESPN's Page 2 (which doubles as a bashing of every season of Friends except the first one), it looks like I may well give it a shot.
Wednesday, May 12, 2004
Hugo nominated story in Hebrew
Gromit, editor of the excellent Hebrew SF webzine Bli Panika (Don't Panic), points out that David D. Levine's "The Tale of the Golden Eagle" has been translated into Hebrew and published in Bli Panika.
Best Ellis idea EVER
Warren Ellis is a brilliant comics writer, creator of The Authority, Planetary, Transmetropolitan, and others. However, in the last few years, he's developed a nasty habit of starting mini series and taking forever to finish them, while constantly starting OTHER mini series. That's why this is such a great idea. Series that are MEANT to only have first issues. Excellent!
Hugo-Nominated Fiction: 2004
Almost all of the works nominated in the short fiction categories are online, and someone already took the time to gather up all the links and put them on one page, like I used to do. I hope to read as many of these as I can before Worldcon, even though I'm not voting this year (I AM voting next year, of course, as I'm going to the con), and I'll give my opinions when I've got some.
Monday, May 10, 2004
English
Well, I've made the Blog into the main page. It's easier to update, and add links and so on, and I'm lazy...
The blog will remain in English. News will be reported here, in English. Reviews will go on the old site, and will remain in Hebrew, for now. I'll link to any new review here. Quickie reviews may appear here, and will also be in English. It's simpler for me, and I hope no one will gripe about having to read a short review in English.
That's it. Thanks to everyone who kept checking the site when it was updated once a year. I hope to reward your steadfastness with new and interesting content.
The blog will remain in English. News will be reported here, in English. Reviews will go on the old site, and will remain in Hebrew, for now. I'll link to any new review here. Quickie reviews may appear here, and will also be in English. It's simpler for me, and I hope no one will gripe about having to read a short review in English.
That's it. Thanks to everyone who kept checking the site when it was updated once a year. I hope to reward your steadfastness with new and interesting content.
Nostalgia
If you were a kid in the eighties, and had a computer, it is quite likely that you will LOVE this. Link via Rich Johnston
Update
Well, it's been an age since I last updated. I suck.
The site is due for a major revamp soon (including, yes, some new content and reviews). By soon, I mean "when I find the time and energy". But the blog is coming back to life. Right now.
First, a plug for the first ever Bidyon, a one day con which will have no screenings. That's right, no movies, no tv episodes. Just people talking about books, including Northern Irish author Paul Kearney, who will also sign some books. Since it's a stage to speak on, I'll be there as well, talking about Slipstream and the borders of SF. I'll probably sneak in a reference or five to New Weird, and explain why Michael Crichton ISN'T an SF writer, whereas Connie Willis IS. Should be fun.
The site is due for a major revamp soon (including, yes, some new content and reviews). By soon, I mean "when I find the time and energy". But the blog is coming back to life. Right now.
First, a plug for the first ever Bidyon, a one day con which will have no screenings. That's right, no movies, no tv episodes. Just people talking about books, including Northern Irish author Paul Kearney, who will also sign some books. Since it's a stage to speak on, I'll be there as well, talking about Slipstream and the borders of SF. I'll probably sneak in a reference or five to New Weird, and explain why Michael Crichton ISN'T an SF writer, whereas Connie Willis IS. Should be fun.
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