Google Plus: Kicked the Shat Out, Anonymous, and Total Sausage Fest

Well, for all of those of on the outside looking in, Google Plus is becoming sort of a Studio 54 with invites as the red velvet rope.  So as I learn news I cannot help but share.  Here we go:

William Shatner was blocked for a bit.  For reasons not disclosed, The Shat's personal Google Plus account was put on hold.  The actor went to Twitter to air his displeasure but was soon put back up.  [Today]

Hacker group Anonymous was blocked also by the social network.  The group decided, "eh, we know some computing" and decided to put up their own social network. [MSNBC]

Google Plus is a total sausage fest.  Statistics from two analytical sites have shown that 73% of current Google Plus users are dudes.  While this does show a total lack of Mom's that can embarrass you, it does show that your dude friends may be already sharing embarrassing pics of you with Mable the Goat Lady. [MSNBC]

College Students Can Now Rent Text-eBooks from Amazon

Amazon announced a new opportunity for college students to rent their textbooks as ebooks through its Kindle platform instead of buying the books outright.  The ebook rental prices will at times be as much as 80% less than the retail value of the books.  I can see this affecting students in three ways:

1. Students will no longer give Christmas presents to their families or be able to go home for the summer.  The valuable income that comes at the end of the semester when students sell back the books their parents or student loans paid for will be lost as the text-ebooks vanish into the ether.

2.  Students will no longer have a proper reminder for classes.  Waking up at the crack of noon, stumbling over to the mini-fridge to get that first brew, then BAM!  Your big toe cracks into the edge of your Algebra II book.  As you collapse to the floor in pain, you remember that your final for Civics is tomorrow.  How?  The girl that saw you vomit off the balcony onto the goat that time is in both your Algebra and Civics class.  Without the book, you would never remember.

3.  Rolling joints and doing blow on a Kindle sucks the big one.  Seriously, have you ever tried to cut anything on the screen of that eInk stuff?  Cuts it right up.  And remember how happy you were to shake out the book and find a toothpick's worth of weed in the cracks of the pages?  So happy.

[ComputerWorld]

Dolly Parton Donates Books; Obvious Boob Joke to Follow

Dolly Parton recently donated materials to the Coleridge children’s centre in Rotherham, UK.  The Imagination Library, which mails books to children to facilitate reading, was started by Parton in her home state.

Boob joke with reading.  Boob joke about kids.  Country boob joke set to a song.  Curious George Goes to the Grand Ole Opry (and Finds Cleavage).

Okay, now that that's out of the way, this is an awesome thing this sweet lady has done.  The fact that it has not gotten more press or coverage throughout the library community is crazy.

[Guardian]

Call of Dewey: Modern Librarians Create Video Game

Librarians at Fairfield University in Connecticut have created a video game to help with freshman orientation at their school library.  The video game was inspired by Scene It (hopefully not the Twilight edition) as a point and click question and answer type game to familiarize students with basic library functions. [Library Journal]

Shudder...

This is a cool step in teaching the young'ins about libraries, but how about we go further.  Video games were doing 3D animation nearly twenty years ago with titles like Doom and Duke Nukem.  Why can't there be a tool like that in libraries?  With lower graphic standards on extremely popular Internet games (Minecraft, how I love thee), someone out there could create a virtual library that users could run around in, click on switches and items and be led to real time catalog searches and eBooks.  Think that's a weird idea?  Ask anyone who played the first Dragon Age or Mass Effect games how much crap there was to read in those games.  A 3D virtual library could revolutionize catalogs as you could look at a library shelf in real time, see what's there, pick out an ebook version, or just find something interesting by browsing.

If any programmer out there wants to start programming this library "game" I have presented, be my guest.  If you make money on it though, I want a kick back and a mention in the credits.  And you better follow me on Twitter.

Stop Talking about Harry Potter Like He's Dead, You Guys

The movie just came out and everybody's all, "Harry was great.  Remember when Harry did this or Harry did that?" Everyone's talking in the past tense.  WHY?!  He's not dead, Harry's still alive, you guys!  Stop acting like marrying a redhead is the end of your life.

I mean, as soon as the movie came out and the reviews started coming in, people were all like, "Harry made kids read.  I'm gonna miss Harry."  He's not dead!  Stop talking like that! You guys are horrible.  Nobody's talking about Ron or Herm... Hermy.... that girl like that.  Harry is, like, the best and always will be the best and you people should all just start talking like he just woke up in that damn closet under the stairs and started getting goofy letters!  Don't let go!  Harry is inside you, he is NOT in the past and I will murder anyone with my Nimbus 2000 right up their ass if they say different.

Harry is in my heart.  Harry is deep inside me.  My dreams...

Guest post by mrspotterloverpancakebreath

Behave on Google+ Or Lose Everything,

Google announced this morning that it's new Google+ social network is taking applications for businesses to tryout the site, but that's not the good stuff.  The good stuff is this article about a 10 year old that tried to violate Google+ 13 year old age limit and got smacked down.  Turns out, you break those little "Agree"-ments you make with Google and they will delete you.  Well, not delete, delete you, but everything you worked so hard on will be gone.  Gmail, Docs, Calendar, probably that Angry Birds Chrome app they have, you will be locked out of them all.  So be good on Google+ or no more Farmville for you.
[ComputerWorld]
[TheOnion]
[BusinessInsider]

British Library Raising Money for $14.5 Million Dollar Book, Economy Can Go Moon Itself

The British Library is raising $14.5 million USD (9 million local) for the St. Cuthbert Gospel, a seventh century Latin translation of the Gospel of John, from the British Society of Jesus (Jesuits).  The library has already committed $5 million pounds to the sale.

Well, I am really glad our libraries here are not struggling with having to raise $14.5 million for a single book.  Hell, down right makes a $10 ebook seem ridiculous.  Think about it, that really shows the strength of their economy where that kind of purchase is possible.  Makes a little book burning seem silly in comparison.

[WashingtonPost]