Topics

76

Announce Your Software/Service/Product / Autographed Paperback copies of Kyrathaba Rising novel available

« on: August 06, 2013, 07:57 PM »

click image for info and purchase links

As far as I know, I'm the first (but I'm willing to bet NOT the last) DC member to write a novel. For anyone who hasn't followed the main thread on this topic, I wrote a 70,000-word science-fiction novel that was released in late July. Thus far, it's garnering 4- and 5-star reviews, and I've made a whopping $23+ in royalties (I haven't quit my day-job: though I have been laid-off for the past six months -- hence, time available to write a novel). I owe much of my success to two wonderful proofreaders, 4wd and Perry Mowbray.

With significant help from the very talented and equally generous Perry Mowbray, I was able to get a properly formatted CreateSpace version of the book, and so can now offer autographed paperbacks of the novel. If you don't care about the autograph, you can order straight from Amazon, in either paperback or e-book format.

If you'd like to have an author-autographed paperback, I'm selling them for $10.80 + shipping/handling (since I'll have to mail the autographed book to any takers). The purpose of this post is to get a head-count of those who definitely want an autographed copy. When I have five or more definites (made definite by PayPal-ing me in advance), I'll have copies printed on demand, and get them shipped.

So, if you really want an autographed copy of this debut novel of what will become a science-fiction trilogy, please respond on this thread. If we meet head-count threshhold, I'll collect payments and enact an order or books.

77

Living Room / Infographic of Internet Usage Every 60 Seconds

« on: July 30, 2013, 07:37 AM »

78

Living Room / town in Canada getting 1 Gbps internet cheaper than Google Fiber

« on: July 20, 2013, 09:59 PM »

http://mobilizer.instapaper.com/m?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.engadget.com%2F2013%2F07%2F19%2Folds-canada-1gbps-internet%2F%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget

79

Living Room / Sci-fi novel now available from DC member kyrathaba!

« on: June 13, 2013, 04:19 PM »

Updated 7/25/2013:



       70,320 words


It's been a heck of a ride! I've always wanted to write and sell a book, and now I have (no, I'm not ready to retire just yet on what I'm making, but still there's the feeling of accomplishment).

My novel, Kyrathaba Rising, is the first of at least two, possibly three, books in a series. The next book is entitled Kyrathaba Waxing. If there is a third novel, it will be Kyrathaba Waning.

Special thanks go to mouser for his steadfast support (he LOVES this sort of community-oriented "let's work together to make this happen" sort of thing -- as do I), 4wd and Perry Mowbray.

The novel is approximately 70,320 words in length, and is available for download at the following URLs:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/155607736/Kyrathaba-Rising
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E3YJ4HY
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/339398
https://payhip.com/b/2WB5
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/kyrathaba-rising-william-bryan-miller/1116225433

80

Living Room / CalendarHome.com's cool 10K calendar

« on: June 12, 2013, 01:05 PM »

At CalendarHome, I found this cool 10,000 year calendar that has been helpful as I continue authoring a science-fiction novel eBook:

81

Living Room / Article about startup founders stuck in the middle of making it or breaking it.

« on: June 06, 2013, 10:17 AM »

http://www.seanpercival.com/blog/2013/06/03/how-to-survive-the-series-a-crunch-from-someone-who-didnt/

Recently I had to step down from my own startup for a few reasons, the main one being #1 on that list above: Don’t run out of money. Once I stumbled on that point, I found it tough to regain my footing with the business. So while the “Series A Crunch” was not the entire reason for my failure, it was a major contributor. It set off a chain of events that left me holding nothing but thoughts of how I could have done things differently.

The best advice I can give founders here is to ignore the cries for more traction, especially when it would hurt your business or deplete your cash to satisfy those demands. Buy yourself more time and make the investors wait. They hate waiting, and as a result you may miss a train or two, but if you can emerge with a more sustainable (or profitable) business, your fund-raising needs will quickly move from “we need cash to pay rent” to “we don’t really need your cash, but we’ll take it to grow even bigger.”

82

Living Room / Google Buys A Quantum Computer

« on: May 24, 2013, 09:14 AM »

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/16/google-buys-a-quantum-computer/?smid=tw-nytimesbits&seid=auto

Google and a corporation associated with NASA are forming a laboratory to study artificial intelligence by means of computers that use the unusual properties of quantum physics. Their quantum computer, which performs complex calculations thousands of times faster than existing supercomputers, is expected to be in active use in the third quarter of this year.

The Quantum Artificial Intelligence Lab, as the entity is called, will focus on machine learning, which is the way computers take note of patterns of information to improve their outputs. Personalized Internet search and predictions of traffic congestion based on GPS data are examples of machine learning. The field is particularly important for things like facial or voice recognition, biological behavior, or the management of very large and complex systems.

83

Living Room / This strange Dutchman in an orange van almost broke the Internet

« on: May 21, 2013, 05:57 PM »

Sven Olaf Kamphuis is accused of global cybercrime, but Spanish police found him in a squalid flat with his name on the letterbox

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2013/may/20/man-accused-breaking-the-internet

84

Living Room / SAP to bring in autistic workers as software testers and programmers

« on: May 21, 2013, 07:40 AM »

http://gigaom.com/2013/05/21/sap-to-bring-in-autistic-workers-as-software-testers-and-programmers/

Those on the autistic spectrum often display highly focused and analytical traits. SAP is the latest company – and the first major multinational – to move to harness these characteristics for IT-related work.

85

Living Room / 4 Guys Buy Mountain for 40M, On Which to Host Startup Conferences

« on: May 08, 2013, 06:49 AM »

http://www.businessinsider.com/what-summit-series-is-and-why-it-bought-40-million-powder-mountain-for-summit-eden-2013-5

That's Powder Mt in Utah,  the largest ski mountain in the U.S.

86

Living Room / May the 4th Be With You... (cue Star Wars music)

« on: May 04, 2013, 11:49 AM »

Heard on the local radio station this morning that today is National Star Wars Day.

"May the 4th Be With You!"

87

Living Room / Microsoft Mohoro OS?

« on: May 02, 2013, 07:16 AM »

Microsoft 'Mohoro' Could Be A Whole New Way To Use Windows

http://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-mohoro-could-be-a-whole-new-way-to-use-windows-2013-5

In addition to the next version of Windows known as Windows Blue, Microsoft is also working on something called Mohoro, which would be a form of Windows that's served up remotely over the network, reports ZDnet Mary Jo Foley.

Apparently Mohoro will be a way to use the Windows desktop in a software-as-a-service way, dubbed "desktop as a service."

That means instead of having Windows installed on the PC or tablet, the device would grab Windows and apps from the Internet and beam it to your device.

Read more: http://www.businessi...2013-5#ixzz2S8YFtqpH

88

Living Room / Announcing The CrunchBase Venture Network

« on: May 01, 2013, 08:29 AM »

Everyone agreed that CrunchBase is an important source of that information, but we also heard something else: CrunchBase needs to evolve fast to keep pace with these new demands. In particular, Crunchbase needs to be more timely, accurate, and detailed.

That’s a big challenge, and today at TechCrunch Disrupt NY, we are annoucing one key initiative to get us there: the CrunchBase Venture Program. We designed the venture program to appeal to venture firms that want to improve CrunchBase’s data set, and we’ve found just about universal willngness to participate.

http://techcrunch.com/2013/04/30/announcing-the-crunchbase-venture-network/

89

Living Room / Now you can "Log-In with PayPal"

« on: May 01, 2013, 08:15 AM »

http://thenextweb.com/insider/2013/04/30/paypal-launches-login-with-paypal/

You know how you can sign into sites using your Twitter, LinkedIn, Google or Facebook accounts? PayPal just launched something called "Log In With PayPal...

PayPal is rolling out a new identity solution designed to help streamline the mobile shopping experience. Unveiled at the Future Insights conference in Las Vegas, the payment company is launching Log In With PayPal. With this service, developers and third-party commerce sites can easily help shoppers pay for what they want with as few swipes and information needed — but still in a secure environment.

Log In with PayPal is not PayPal’s competitor to Facebook Connect or Google+ Sign In. However, it does leverage the OAuth 2.0 protocol that Facebook uses to authenticate users. The idea is that the company’s 128 million account holders can simply complete their purchase through the use of their username and passsword, or mobile number and PIN as a confirmation of their identity."

90

Living Room / Transcript of GoodReads video conference with author Terry Brooks

« on: April 29, 2013, 01:38 PM »

Apparently, the video conference had technical difficulties, as can be seen in the content of the transcript below. But I think it's a wonderful thing, and will be great when they get the kinks ironed out.

I couldn't get any replay of the video, perhaps it was live-feed only, though surely they'd have recorded something like this.

Patrick Brown:
Mar 18, 2013 11:54am
Join us on Monday, April 29 at 2pm ET/11am PT for a live video chat with legendary fantasy author Terry Brooks. We'll be talking about his latest book, The Bloodfire Quest, the second in his series The Dark Legacy of Shannarah, as well as his previous work and his life as a writer. Don't miss your chance to ask a question of this titan of the genre!

If you have a question for Terry, feel free to post it below.
Kurt Chambers:
Apr 04, 2013 11:16am
I started reading your books when I was twelve, and you were my inspiration to white my epic fantasy series, Truth Teller. But who inspired you to write fantasy?
Nada Faris:
Apr 04, 2013 06:56pm
How many drafts do you write for one book and how do you feel about editors' comments.
Isabelle:
Apr 07, 2013 06:18pm
I am 12 years old and I just wrote my first book, Daughter of Power, you're one of my inspirations. How do you get your ideas?
Ron Forde:
Apr 08, 2013 08:25am
q. Looking at the tremendous success of The Lord of the Rings in movie format, have you explored doing the same for your Shannara series. I keep hoping...
Chase Ricks:
Apr 16, 2013 08:51am
Your Shannara books have exponentially revealed far more about the fantasy world with each new series. I have been working for many years to create a similar type of mythos with both my own original created characters and those of friends who also have been my cowriters and rpers online.

My question is what can one do to keep going on as a potential published writer when sometimes the ideas they create have resulted in having to restart from scratch entirely as a result of peers often suggesting it would be better to start over and shelve ideas permanently?
Jordan Kirchhoff:
Apr 16, 2013 10:16am
What type of lawyer were you in your early career?
Jake Scholl:
Apr 17, 2013 10:31am
What do you think of eBooks & Self-Publishing?
Jon Harris:
Apr 17, 2013 12:46pm
Is there ever gonna be a book about Galiphile and Brona?
Chase Ricks:
Apr 22, 2013 12:05pm
Um,m when will the recorded live video chat be available to view? I am ashamed deeply I missed it all today because of unexpected guests and not able to have my computer on during the time they were at my residence.
Uthayakumar Krishnan:
Apr 23, 2013 01:29am
Is there any plan / idea to have an important Goblin character in any of the future Shannara novels? I would love to have one.

~ Winged Hunter ~
Geoff:
Apr 23, 2013 06:42pm
I've been an avid rerader sinnce i 1st read Sword of shannara when i was a teenager. Unfortunately i won't be able to attend as it will be 3am here when its on.
Korum Emrys:
Apr 23, 2013 06:45pm
Why isn't Walker' Shade the one that appears at the HadesHorn??? When might we expect to see another Druid of Bremen, Allanon or Walker's character and calibur appear and stick around for more than two or three novels?
B.J. Whittington:
Apr 23, 2013 06:48pm
What is the thing that you feel has improved the most in your writing over the years?
Korum Emrys:
Apr 23, 2013 06:49pm
If you are planning to end the series, having made enough money, perhaps you'd be williing to write the Interlude stories or trilogy between First King Of Shannara and The Sword Of Shannara??
Jennifer Addington :
Apr 23, 2013 06:55pm
Who is one of your favorite character creations?
Joshua Free:
Apr 23, 2013 07:05pm
Terry, you are the definitive model for epic writers in the current era. The interwoven message relayed via the years and generations chronicled in your stories is paramount and relevant for human future or the 'Next Generation' -- and the work is timeless! I miss meeting up with you annually at Tattered Cover in Denver, but you remain for the most part the only fiction I give time and attention to these days and have remained at the top of my list of favorite writers since I discovered your work in 1995. May life find you blessed.
Jessica Rister:
Apr 23, 2013 07:13pm
What advice would you give to an independent author just starting out?
Jason Strudwick:
Apr 23, 2013 07:30pm
how much planning goes into your books and exactly what is it that you do I always was curious about how authors did this. thanks.
Yamilé Nadra:
Apr 23, 2013 08:02pm
Hi Terry. I'm too shy to enter a chat when I don't know all about all of your books. I'm from Argentina, where most of your titles have not been published, but I try and order them from abroad. So it's slow progress. I was captivated by The Genesis of Shannara trilogy, and then mistified by how it all fit as in a big puzzle with the Word and Void trilogy. All of those six books are among my favorite ones. I once asked you in your site wheter you would write a story connecting the two series (more precisely: how are John Ross Freemark's first years, or the years near the time he will become Hawk; and does Nest still have a part to play in the story?). I was lucky you picked my question to answer. It was not for that moment, but you urged me to keep asking, so you would keep thinking about it, so, will you? I would love to read that story. Thanks for reading!
John Long:
Apr 23, 2013 08:23pm
mr. brooks: why hasnt word/void series been put on film yet...please let it happen soon
Yu Yang:
Apr 23, 2013 09:50pm
q When will the books be adapted into a movie/series?
Aj Lazarus:
Apr 23, 2013 10:17pm
q. How do yoi finds so many stories within Shannara
Aj Lazarus:
Apr 23, 2013 10:18pm
q. How do you find so many different characters and stories within the Shannara world
Eric Benoit:
Apr 24, 2013 12:05am
Terry, I have been a huge fan since my father handed me a copy of "Sword of Shannarah" more than 30 years ago. I would like to know how you keep yourself inspired and how you have been able to keep this series going so strong for such a long time and large number of books.
Bruce:
Apr 24, 2013 06:34am
Hello Terry! I am really disapointed that I have to work when this gig is happening, but I just wanted to say that I have been with you since the '70's with the 'The Sword of Shannara', and enjoyed your work ever since. Thank you for your hard work!
Jo:
Apr 24, 2013 08:00am
Hi Terry, I'm looking forward to your visit in Mass in July! I was wondering, I know that you are an avid reader as well as a writer. Do you ever find your writing being influenced by what you are reading?
Sharon Dwyer:
Apr 24, 2013 12:09pm
Terry, Do you wver have to go back and rewrite the first chapter because it isn't as exciting as you thought when you first wrote it?
russellndeborah king:
Apr 24, 2013 02:36pm
When was your first book published and how long did it take to complete?
Jaya Bell:
Apr 25, 2013 12:35am
I know a lot of people would like/are asking if you would think about turning the Shannara books into movies/TV. Are you worried that if you did allow this that the result wouldn't be up to standard with the book? It's a big risk to take with something so beloved when others have tired with other series and failed. IF you ever did allow it what would be the conditions? How would you ensure that it didn't get mess up? <3<3<3
Hui Yoo:
Apr 25, 2013 01:50pm
Thank you for the book, I loved it
Sean Casey:
Apr 26, 2013 08:46am
Personally I perfer your Landover series, I found them more interesting to me. I do wonder though how do you come up with all the names? They're so out of this world that it's perfect.
Ted Fauster:
Apr 26, 2013 10:52am
Writing question: I've seen many authors break paragraphs at odd times. I understand the general rules (new speaker, topic, time, place). And I understand that a brief, one-liner can be used for emphasis. But when do you (personally) break into a new paragraph during dialogue? You must have some formula.
Walter Conner:
Apr 26, 2013 12:19pm
Beginning with my own first novel, I found one or two of my characters started slipping outside my control and asserting themselves in ways that changed both relationships and elements of the story arc.
Also, my stories often take on a life of their own as I'm writing and I end up feeling as if I'm reporting on a story unfolding before me rather than creating it in my mind.
My question: Have you experienced similar surprises in the creation of your stories and characters? If so, any examples?
Emilyann:
Apr 26, 2013 10:26pm
Congrats on this trilogy Terry and thank you for all of the amazing stories you continue to share with us. The Elf Queen of Shannara has been my favorite book since 8th grade As a fellow writer speaking to a mentor, I want to ask what aspect of writing has most kept you motivated to continue through the years? Authors sometimes endure extensive criticism or writers block, is it the creativity, therapy, communication, connection to fans or something else that keeps you motivated?
E.S. Tilton:
Apr 27, 2013 11:59am
I've not only read the first Shannara books as a young adult but also read them to my kids when they were young. If I could write like any writer you would be my first choice. q Like everyone else I want to know when you will have the Shannara series out in video.
Robin A. Burrows:
Apr 27, 2013 05:41pm
You have a lot of young protagonists in your books, yet your books are marketed as fantasy and not as young adult. Is this because the young adult genre did not exist when you started writing? I am writing a novel with a teenage protagonist, but I'd prefer to market it as fantasy, not as a young adult novel (and if it crosses over into the young adult market that's fine). I want it to be shelved in the fantasy section of the book store, not the YA/teen section. I'm told that if my protagonist is a teenage, then I'm writing YA, but I want to write fantasy, not YA. Is the categorization of your book something you have any control over as a writer? I've read a couple of books recently that I'd categorize as fantasy, but I had to go to the YA section to find them.

Also, I am fasinated by the character of the King of the Silver River and would love to know more about his story.
Mark Lawrence:
12 hours, 41 min ago
I saw that you're considering releasing a very high quality leather-bound set of Shannara books. Do you think this is likely to become a new model for genre greats, providing this sort of volume for beloved classics? It certainly seems like a product that can't be pirated - which is definitely something the modern author needs!
Scott Harper:
55 minutes ago
q. Mr. Brooks, is there any advice you could briefly share with fellow authors, please?
Claire LeFort:
54 minutes ago
q ok so first let me just say omgomgomgomgomgomg! ur my freakin hero Terry! My best friend is lettin me attend instead of her because i've been raised on your books. alright, so first of all; Obviously we don't have Witch Wraith yet, but with High Druid's Blade set to come out as a one shot, I have to wonder what the future of the four lands holds....are you getting ready to draw the books to a close? Third, do you ever let people reference characters or events from your books in theirs? and fourth, I have always wondered....did you base the king of the silver river off of yourself, or at least give him traits and thoughts that you share? He has been the one constant of the whole universe you have built, since the beginning and you often describe him as mainly a watcher, able to somewhat influence the entire world around him....kind of seems like the 3rd person POV quite a bit
Aaron Markworth:
54 minutes ago
Did you know all along that word and the void was the precursor of shannara or did you decide to merge the story arcs later on? Did you have a master story arc, or do you keep adding on to the mythos series by series on purpose so you can explore more themes?
Jennifer Schultz:
49 minutes ago
q How did you know it was time to give up being an attorney in order to focus all of your energy on writing?
Jason Williams:
47 minutes ago
How much time to you spend developing the names and personalities for each character, and what goes into that development?
Danielle Mathieson Pederson:
37 minutes ago
q What advice can you give an author who has trouble getting up the gumption to sit down and actually edit?
Mike Elmore:
36 minutes ago
q Any future plans for movies?
Leslee Jacobs:
34 minutes ago
I am a fan of all of your works. Will you ever have a novel about the "Gray Lady" Or of the time between Gypsy Morph series and the new ones? I am interested in the Gypsy Morph.
Jo:
33 minutes ago
q is Shawn Speakman taking over the Shannara series?
Leslee Jacobs:
32 minutes ago
q 1 minute ago I am a fan of all of your works. Will you ever have a novel about the "Gray Lady" Or of the time between Gypsy Morph series and the new ones? I am interested in the Gypsy Morph.
Paul Quinn:
32 minutes ago
Hi Mr Brooks, With out a doubt my favorite author. What advice do you have for a first time author to publish. You are one of the most influential authors in my writing style. I just published my first book "Child Of Promise"
Constance Eddy:
31 minutes ago
Do you envision all of Shanara as taking place in a post-apocalyptic world? That really threw me for a loop in the Voyage of Jerle Shanara books. (And also, I first read you at 12 years old and have been hooked on Fantasy ever since -- THANK YOU for the memories I have of your books!!)
Ron Glick:
31 minutes ago
Hey Terry - I cannot tell you how much of an honor this is. I just wanted the chance to tell you how much of an influence your work has been for me. Even moreso than Tolkein, your work taught me that in world building, you don't have to tell all of a world's history in one telling. Shanara is a world built upon some kind of past where technology is there but long since forgotten - and it just wasn't necessary to tell us the history. Unique and powerful to me, and I like to think you gave me an insight I would never have had without Shanara.
Janet Mckenzie:
30 minutes ago
Q names - so many names, and places and events - how do you keep track of your timeline?
Joshua Eiben:
30 minutes ago
There's a lot of drivel that gets published, compared with how few Tolkiens, LeGuins, and so on appear. Did you ever worry that your first Shannara book was drivel, too, not worthy to stand with Tolkien? If so, how did you deal with it and move forward?
Clint Ivy:
28 minutes ago
q: It seems like you still write lengthy manuscripts but there's an obvious trend over the last couple of decades to break up long manuscripts into multiple books (there's no way that Sword of Shannara would be published as single novel today). So do you still write manuscripts in the same length and then let your editor and publisher break the manuscript into pieces or are you now more compartmentalized in your writing?
Paul Quinn:
26 minutes ago
In the Shannara series do you have a favorite character?
Cody Flanigan:
25 minutes ago
q could you describe a typical day of writing for you?
Martin St-laurent:
25 minutes ago
The fantasy genre gained momentum since The Sword of Shannara, although you are a successful and already established author, do you find it difficult to keep a distinctive style and stand out from the mass?
Tom Tobiasen:
24 minutes ago
tom tobiasen: what is terrys opinon on game of thrones tv series and is he frustrated by the lack of interest in turning his work to movies or tv
Janet Mckenzie:
24 minutes ago
Q what's the weirdest marketing tie in for merchandise you've ever had suggested to you? (I quite fancy my very own bag of elfstones :-)
Joshua Eiben:
23 minutes ago
What do you think of a new author aiming to write a "huge book" for their first novel? Risk of biting off more than they can chew?
Clay Norman:
23 minutes ago
How easy is it to become a writer?
Jo:
23 minutes ago
Do you want them to be movies? or would you have rather them left to the imaginations of the readers?
Christy Weathers:
23 minutes ago
Awesome!
Joshua Eiben:
22 minutes ago
How do you feel about Hollywood "meddling" with a story when adapting a book into a movie or show?
Claire LeFort:
22 minutes ago
q Obviously we don't have Witch Wraith yet, but with High Druid's Blade set to come out as a one shot, I have to wonder what the future of the four lands holds....are you getting ready to draw the series to a close? Do you ever let people reference characters or events from your books in theirs?
Ken Byars:
21 minutes ago
Your book "Sometimes the magic Works" was extremely helpful to a number of writers, myself included. Are you planning to write any more books that will help and encourage new writers?
Claire LeFort:
20 minutes ago
ty
Ken Byars:
20 minutes ago
q Your book "Sometimes the magic Works" was extremely helpful to a number of writers, myself included. Are you planning to write any more books that will help and encourage new writers? (Forgot to add the q, listed question 2x)
Paul Quinn:
18 minutes ago
Do you have plans to write about the time between the shield falling and "The Sword Of Shannara"?
Joshua Eiben:
18 minutes ago
Do you still consider outlining to be very important to the process?
Claire LeFort:
16 minutes ago
q how do you figure what is going to happen next in a scene, if you end up somewhere totally different than where you started
Ken Byars:
10 minutes ago
Awesome thank you, Terry is one of my few writing heroes!!!
Paul Quinn:
6 minutes ago
Without a Doubt you have captured a Tolkienesk writing style.
Paul Quinn:
6 minutes ago
Thank you Mr Brooks
Clint Ivy:
6 minutes ago
Thank you Terry!
Janet Mckenzie:
6 minutes ago
Thank you so much for your time xxx
Christy Weathers:
5 minutes ago
Thank you so much for chatting today
Leslee Jacobs:
5 minutes ago
Thank you
Cody Flanigan:
5 minutes ago
thanks!
Clay Norman:
5 minutes ago
thank you
Claire LeFort:
5 minutes ago
thanks terry!
Leslee Jacobs:
4 minutes ago
Thank you
Kyla Patton:
4 minutes ago
so we should def. do this again soon. great, but not nearly long enough!
Danielle Mathieson Pederson:
3 minutes ago
got a phone call. could someone please recap for me the answer terry gave for advice for new writers? I really wanted to hear it and didn't catch it

91

Living Room / Court Denies Motorola the Billions It Sought From Microsoft

« on: April 26, 2013, 09:00 PM »

http://allthingsd.com/20130425/court-denies-motorola-the-billions-it-wanted-from-microsoft-for-standard-essential-patents/

A federal court in Seattle issued a ruling Thursday that could help settle the question of just how much a company can expect to reap from standards-essential patents.

In the highly anticipated court ruling, U.S. District Judge James Robart determined that Google’s Motorola Mobility unit is entitled to about $1.8 million a year from Microsoft for its use of certain patents.

Motorola had been seeking in excess of $4 billion in the case, which centered around patents related to the the H.264 video standard and the 802.11 wireless standard.

92

Living Room / The Upcoming Death of upcoming.org

« on: April 23, 2013, 07:14 AM »

This is a well-written, heart-wrenching article by writer and coder Andy Baio, of Portland, Oregon, organizer of XOXO, builder of  Playfic and Supercut, and one of the builders of Kickstarter.

http://waxy.org/2013/04/the_death_of_upcomingorg/

"In hindsight, selling Upcoming to Yahoo was a horrible mistake. Selling your company always means sacrificing control and risking its fate, and as we now know, online communities almost always fail after acquisition. (YouTube is the rare exception, albeit one with billion-dollar momentum.) But Yahoo was a particularly horrible steward for [upcoming.org] the community." -- Andy Baio

93

Living Room / After Asia and Europe, North America is next in line to run out of IP addresses.

« on: April 22, 2013, 07:25 PM »

http://arstechnica.com/business/2013/04/inet-denver-considers-internet-life-without-ipv4-addresses/

According to Huston, at some point during the next five years we have to make a choice. We can go down the path of Carrier Grade NATs (CGNs) and put an entire neighborhood behind a single shared IPv4 address. Or, we can bite the bullet and upgrade or replace all those devices (mostly in the last mile infrastructure) that are keeping us from moving towards IPv6. "And it's not yet clear which path the Internet will take!"

94

Living Room / “World’s largest videogame”

« on: April 22, 2013, 09:24 AM »

How one professor and his team ported Pong to a 29-story office building.

95

Living Room / When Geekery and Parenting Collide...

« on: April 18, 2013, 06:52 AM »

http://www.makeuseof.com/tech-fun/geek-parenting/

I had to laugh out loud!!

96

Living Room / Why Microsoft Wants to Be Amazon — And Amazon Wants to Be Microsoft

« on: April 18, 2013, 06:29 AM »

http://www.wired.com/wiredenterprise/2013/04/microsoft-amazon/

“We going right into the heart of Amazon’s mainline business,” says Bill Hilf, the general manager of Microsoft’s cloud operation.

Microsoft has long offered its own cloud services, but these were a little different than what Amazon offered the world — they didn’t give you as much freedom to run whatever software you wanted to — and now, with Windows Azure Infrastructure Services, it’s providing that freedom.

97

Living Room / An End To The Aggregation Debate?

« on: April 17, 2013, 10:45 AM »

http://techcrunch.com/2013/04/16/repost/

emphasis added:

Yes, there are lots of sharing services. But here’s the thing, they don’t actually share the content. They share links to content. VERY different.

    If you want to take an article from one site and publish it on another, you have to find a person, get permission, and then manually copy it. Assuming you don’t break all the formatting in the process, you’re still not in good shape because you still have to worry about search engines seeing it as duplicate content.

With Repost, I can just copy-and-paste an embed code into my post, and then you get the full article, with all the formatting and images preserved.

98

Living Room / Nasdaq execs get spanked for screwing up Facecrook's IPO

« on: April 12, 2013, 10:50 AM »

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/12/us-nasdaq-compensation-idUSBRE93B04820130412?feedType=RSS&feedName=technologyNews

Greifeld's bonus for 2012 fell 62 percent to $1.35 million...

The mishandling of Facebook's IPO also cost Anna Ewing, Nasdaq's executive vice president of Global Technology Solutions, a $263,625 cut to her bonus for 2012...

<comment>Poor execs. They needed that bonus, too...</comment>

<conversation>Greifeld: "Honey, I know I said my bonus would be almost $1.9 million, but somebody's gotta get spanked for that glitch.  We'll just take 3 vacations instead of 5 this year..."</conversation>

In March, U.S. regulators approved Nasdaq's $62 million compensation plan for firms that lost money in Facebook's market debut, far less than the $500 million in estimated losses.

99

Living Room / IBM To Invest $1 Billion in R&D for Flash-Media Data Centers

« on: April 12, 2013, 10:21 AM »

http://news.cnet.com...79-92/ibm-to-invest-$1-billion-in-r-d-for-flash-storage/

...IBM's Ambuj Goyal, general manager of the company's storage systems unit, said the economics are lining up to make flash pervasive in data centers. Steve Mills, head of IBM's software and systems division, said flash is at a key tipping point and IT will see all-solid state data centers sooner than later...

He added that "the rotating disk has served us well," but what does become clear is that the economics have shifted toward flash. Mills added that flash can run $10 per gigabyte compared to $6 per gigabyte for rotating disk drives. However, traditional drives aren't fully utilized. "There's no question that flash has compelling economics," he said. The economic variables break down like this:

    * Data center space savings by putting 1 petabyte on one floor tile;
    * Cooling;
    * Better application performance;
    * Lower software via fewer cores, licensing and maintenance and hardware costs via better utilization and fewer servers;
    * Durability leveraging IBM's research and engineering on flash;
    * And better operational data.

100

Living Room / Bing Delivers 5X As Many Malicious Websites As Google

« on: April 12, 2013, 10:01 AM »

http://securitywatch.pcmag.com/security/310268-bing-delivers-five-times-as-many-malicious-websites-as-google

Searches on Bing returned five times more links to malicious websites than Google searches, according to an 18-month study from German independent testing lab AV-Test. Though search engines have worked to suppress malicious results, the study concluded that malware infested websites still appear in their top results.

The study looked at nearly 40 million websites provided by seven different search engines...

Doing some quick arithmetic, it looks like the chance of a Googler hitting malware is about one in 40,118.