SILICON SOAPWARE wafting your way along the slipstreams of the Info Highway from Bubbles = Tom Digby = bubbles@well.com http://www.well.com/~bubbles/ Issue #149 New Moon of February 17, 2007 Contents copyright 2007 by Thomas G. Digby, with a liberal definition of "fair use". In other words, feel free to quote excerpts elsewhere (with proper attribution), post the entire zine (verbatim, including this notice) on other boards that don't charge specifically for reading the zine, link my Web page, and so on, but if something from here forms a substantial part of something you make money from, it's only fair that I get a cut of the profits. Silicon Soapware is available via email with or without reader feedback. Details of how to sign up are at the end. ********************* I'm about to head off to a convention over the long weekend, so don't be surprised if I don't post or reply to anything on the list for a few days. I could probably check in somehow if I really wanted to. Many conventions nowadays have an Internet Room, or I could plug in my laptop or something, but based on past experience I probably won't. I think part of me wants a vacation from the Net. So except for some possible last-minute posts tomorrow (Friday) morning, this is likely to be the last you'll be hearing from me until Monday night or Tuesday, depending on how tired I feel. The convention? Pantheacon. See http://www.ancientways.com/pantheacon ********************* One major event now retreating into my past is a monster of a cold I suffered through a week or two before this issue was due out. One thing that seemed a bit unusual was that it went through some well-defined stages, more so than most other colds and such that I recall. First came a vague "coming down with something" feeling. Then there was a day or so of extreme sniffles and runny nose, with occasional sneezes. Nothing unusual so far, except that I hadn't been that sick for several years. And yes, the nose ring did add a bit to the overall misery, but not all that much. The next thing on the agenda after the runny nose was a cough and sore throat, along with an even stronger general feeling of being ill. I spent much of the next couple of days in bed. What seemed odd was that although this was when I felt sickest, the nose stuff had largely subsided. The colds I recall getting before didn't normally progress in such well-defined stages, or at least I didn't notice it if they did. The various symptoms all came and went together, except that sometimes a cough would linger for weeks after the rest of the cold had abated. In other words, this was a serial cold, while most of the others I recall were more like parallel colds. Have others on the list had this kind of cold yet? ********************* Groundhog Day was a couple of weeks ago. http://www.groundhog.org/ Reports are that "the" groundhog did not see his shadow. Does this mean Australia will get an early fall? ********************* In other news, Microsoft finally released its new Vista version of Windows. Among its "features" is some anti-piracy stuff that's supposed to prevent the use of illegal copies of the software. There's also "Digital Rights Management" that's supposed to prevent playing of pirated music and movies and such. This means that in effect your Windows computer's first loyalty is not to you, its nominal owner. It's trying to serve two masters. Matthew 6:24 says: "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon." Another reason to avoid Microsoft products? ********************* In the kind of news regular readers of this zine are more likely to expect, we're coming up on "Don't Walk Like a Zombie" Day. You know that slow shuffling walk, with legs stiff and straight as if there were no such thing as knees, and arms straight out in front like a cartoon sleepwalker? This is the day not to do it. Ideally the media should be full of pictures of people not walking like that, perhaps with some clips from old low-budget horror movies to sort of illustrate the point, if there is one. But alas, Don't Walk Like a Zombie" Day is kind of new and the media bigwigs aren't really aware of it yet. Besides, I don't think the date has even been officially set. Maybe next year? ********************* The symphony concert is nearly over, with just one more piece to go. The conductor raises his baton, looks over toward the brass section, and apparently doesn't like what he sees: Several vacant chairs. As the audience starts to murmur he steps down off the podium, walks over to the brass section, and confers briefly with some of the remaining musicians. After making a call or two on his cell phone he returns to the podium. "We regret to inform you that the final piece on tonight's program, the Trumpet Voluntary, will not be heard." He goes on for a bit about how the word "Voluntary" in the title doesn't really mean that the trumpet players are not obligated to perform and can just pack up and go home if they feel like it. Next time the orchestra attempts the piece he'll retitle it "All Instruments Mandatory" to avoid a recurrence of the problem. Be that as it may, for now the orchestra has no choice but to substitute something else that doesn't use trumpets. Luckily they'd been considering expanding their repertoire, and some new music they'd ordered arrived this afternoon. So why not try it out now? It's Hieronymus Kleidge's "Concerto #23 for Bassoon and Glockenspiel", as arranged for two theremins and a snare drum by the composer's brother Melvin. It's supposed to symbolize the eternal tensions between siblings, or at least so say those who like to write deeply analytical music reviews. Were the reviewers right? We are about to find out. ********************* As most of you probably know, a "truth table" is a concept in logic. You won't find truth tables on sale in a furniture store. But what if you did find one there? What would it be like? Perhaps it would look like a regular dining table, but with a spell or something on it to the effect that people eating at it won't be able to lie to one another, at least during the meal. That might be an interesting thing to have. My first thought was of a family using it as their regular dining table. How would it affect them if none of the family members could tell a lie during meals? And what would happen at parties they hosted, if guests couldn't lie while at that table? What might be even more interesting would be to put it in a restaurant or perhaps a bar. Perhaps the staff would know about its special properties, but most customers, except for a few regulars, wouldn't. Then those in the know would either choose it or avoid it when deciding where to sit, depending on who they were with and what the purpose of their getting together was. That could make an interesting story series. ********************* Incident Along Fantasy Way 2245 hr 4/8/75 The Edge Near the highway's end is a motel-- Small, quiet, half-empty. There is no flow of travelers to points beyond pausing for the night As there are no points beyond To pause on the way to. This is the edge of the world. People do come, but not many: There are rumors that looking too closely or too long Can drive you mad, Or worse, that people may think you mad When you are not. So the tourist families that come to snap pictures of their children Standing next to the big sign near the edge ("But not too close!") And buy picture postcards showing the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria Falling through endless sky Are few. Most of the trade is "regulars" returning again and again-- Some in groups, Some meeting friends here, Some alone. The Edge somehow goes with aloneness And one's own thoughts. Indeed, no two see it alike, And like one's thoughts, It is never the same twice. For the motel this is a problem. Everyone who goes to the edge extends it: An inch here, a foot there, two feet somewhere else. So in a few years The motel will have to move Or lose its claim to fame And be just another motel. Thomas G. Digby written 2245 hr 4/08/75 entered 2345 hr 2/08/92 ********************* HOW TO GET SILICON SOAPWARE EMAILED TO YOU (This may change soon, so check the latest issue.) If you're getting it via email and the Reply-to in the headers is ss_talk@bubbles.best.vwh.net you're getting the list version, and anything you send to that address will be posted. That's the one you want if you like conversation. There's usually a burst of activity after each issue, often dying down to almost nothing in between. Any post can spark a new flurry at any time. If there's no mention of "bubbles.best.vwh.net" in the headers, you're getting the BCC version. That's the one for those who want just Silicon Soapware with no banter. The zine content is the same for both. To get on the conversation-list version point your browser to http://bubbles.best.vwh.net/cgi-bin/mojo/mojo.cgi and select the ss_talk list. Enter your email address in the space provided and hit Signup. When you receive an email confirmation request go to the URL it will give you. (If you're already on the list and want to get off there will be an Unsubscribe URL at the bottom of each list posting you receive.) To get on or off the BCC list email me (bubbles@well.com or bubbles@well.sf.ca.us). I currently do that one manually. -- END --