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Archive for the ‘Hi Tech’ Category

The Reformation, Part Deux

Posted in Hi Tech, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on 15 Feb 2013| Leave a Comment »

Stack of BooksA follow-up to my earlier post about reformatting print-ready files for e-book readers…

In case these two points didn’t register in that post, here they are again:

  • Take Your Time…
  • Check Your Work…

I spent many hours over the past couple of days struggling with the files for FC Books II-V. I took my own advice (see above) and carefully and deliberately went through each reformation step, file by file. Then I uploaded the reformatted files and downloaded the KDP-converted files (in MOBI format) Then I previewed each MOBI file, using the Kindle Previewer, taking care to preview each file in each of the possible devices, from Kindle DX to iPad.

What I found was that while everything was fine on Kindle hardware, something was throwing off all the formatting when the MOBI file was ported to the iOS hardware. On iPads and iPhones, all my careful font styles were dropped and the whole shebang popped up in Courier New monospaced font. Ick.

Luckily, I had one file that was working on iOS (FC:I) so it was just a matter of comparing that file to the other files and trying to find the one thing that was causing the KDP conversion software to have a hissy-fit. I don’t know exactly what it was or exactly why, and I won’t bore you with details too tedious to be suffered. Suffice it to say that I was able to create files that work on all devices.

However, I still have not released FC:II-V into the e-book wild. I’m taking even more time, and will upload them all to my Kindle account, so I can see them on a Kindle, an iPad, and an iPhone for myself.

But it brings home my admonitions: Take Your Time and always Check Your Work.

That is all.

k

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The Reformation

Posted in Hi Tech, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on 12 Feb 2013| 1 Comment »

As promised, I’ve begun to release the Fallen Cloud Saga in e-book format. And, just as I decided on CreateSpace to be my “publisher,” I’ve decided on the Kindle for my e-book format. The reasons are basically the same as before: ease of use, platform reach of the product, and essential friendliness of the agreement. Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) website is easy and reliable.

But I just can’t take my print-ready files and use them to build an e-book. Well, okay, I can, but I shouldn’t. Print-ready files are just that: print-ready, not e-book ready. To work best, e-books need to be reformatted; not much, just a little more here, a little less there, but they need it and it’s important to the reading experience.

Fortunately for those of us who are heading into the world of self-publishing, Amazon has given us a primer.

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Win8 Phone Home

Posted in Hi Tech, tagged , , , , on 28 Jan 2013| Leave a Comment »

Apologies, folks. Last week I was “on call” for work, and didn’t get to my “The View from Here” installment. And I’m not going to post it now, either. Other things on my mind.

Namely, the new Windows 8 phones.

After a long campaign, my wife has succeeded in dragging me into the Smart Phone Era. Last week, we turned in our old pay-as-you-go clamshell phones and spent some times trying to decide between iPhone, Android, and the new Windows 8 phone.

iPhones are expensive. Android was a “possible,” but Verizon had a deal on the Win8 phones. The deal was for a package with phone, case, and screen protector for $50 (cost $100, with a $50 mail-in rebate). Not bad. We listened to the spiel about how the phone will synch up with all our contacts and calendars in Outlook (a must, for me), and how the “SkyDrive” (the MS version of the iCloud) could hold all our documents, music, photos, etc. We played with the demo phone, customizing it, navigating the new interface. It all looked pretty slick, and having heard good things about the new MS_OS, I (as resident “techie” and thus the person who’d be setting this all up) decided to go Win8.

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Deficit Death Star

Posted in Hi Tech, Politics, tagged , , , on 14 Jan 2013| 3 Comments »

Proving that someone there has both a good sense of humor and a fair dollop of geeky sf-background, the White House officially responded to the petition that the government begin building a Death Star by the year 2016. Any petition having garnered more than 25,000 signatures requires an official response, no matter how silly they might be, and this petition was definitely silly. But, rules is rules, so despite it being a ludicrous idea, the White House gave it the same attention they gave the petitions from all those states that want to secede from the Union.

I encourage you to read the full, official response. From its title (“This Isn’t the Petition Response You’re Looking For”) to its final reminder that nothing can beat the power of the Force, it is chock full of little nods to Star Wars.

And it’s not just the White House that has a sense of humor. Did you know that NASA has a program called the Commercial Crew and Cargo Program, and that it carries the acronym of C3PO? Hehehe.

k

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Sensawunda

Posted in Hi Tech, tagged , , , , , , on 14 Jan 2013| Leave a Comment »

A short time ago, the VISTA (Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy) was doing a “warm-up” routine. It was pointed to a random spot and took a photo. You know, like you, with a new camera, might take a shot of the street outside your house.

But in this analogy, when you took a shot of that street outside your house, you caught the newest Ferrari driving by, or of that model from the Fiat Abarth commercial, or of . VISTA, in an unintentional moment, captured a stunning image of 47 Tucanae, otherwise known as NGC 104.

47 Tuc is a huge globular cluster of millions of stars crammed into a 120 light year diameter sphere. They all orbit the gravitational center of this cluster, but each in its own direction, buzzing around the core like angry bees. This accidental picture is amazing, and if you can, I’d recommend you download the massive 8000×8000 image and play with it a while.

I did, and I zoomed in and out on blue giants, red giants, a field of stars so densely packed that they’re like pave diamonds. In the outer sectors of the image, you can zoom in and, between the stars, see red-shifted galaxies. It’s amazing.

k

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Speaking of Snake-Oil

Posted in Culture, Hi Tech, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on 29 Nov 2012| Leave a Comment »

Yesterday, several writers I know—professionally- and self-published both—went ballistic at the news: Simon & Schuster Join with Author Solutions to Create Archway Publishing

Why the furor? Why is this such a bad thing? Two reasons.

Reason #1: Conflict with Writer’s Rule #1

Writers Rule #1: Money flows toward the writer.

When you’re self-publishing, this is a hard rule to keep. Remember, though, that when you’re self-publishing, you’re wearing two hats: Writer and Publisher. Money flows toward the Writer, but the Publisher has some up-front costs. But how much up-front cost is too much? Most writers don’t know, are naifs in the wilderness of the writing/publishing ecosystem, and are in general insecure about the whole “business” side of their business. (more…)

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Time for a Change

Posted in Culture, Hi Tech, tagged , , on 15 Nov 2012| 2 Comments »

Obey the Kitty!In other news, I’m getting a divorce.

Yes, after 20+ years with the same company, I’m finally so weary of the booshwah that I’m going to risk a re-entry to the job market. It’s not often you find someone who’s been with the same company for 20+ years, nowadays, but it happens. To be frank, it’s the way I’ve always thought it should be.

Growing up, I watched my father work long and steady hours for only two companies. He was a lithographer, and there weren’t too many shops back then, even in San Francisco, but there were enough that he could have switched jobs every few years. But he didn’t. Few people did. Longevity was the norm, back then. You found a place you liked; you stayed there, and your tenure was respected. (more…)

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