Ebook Lending Seems Like a Thing

Ebook lending has taken the Internet by storm since our last post on the subject.  Two new sites, the verbose ebooklendinglibrary and the tease ebookfling, have opened up, both offering lending of Kindle and Nook ebooks.  This expands on the idea of creating mock friendships online so people will give you free things.  I expect Facebook will be the next to offer an app to allow you to borrow and lend ebooks to friends and family, as well as marking them "Lolz" and "gay" after you announce you are looking for literary classics to make yourself look better.

Wizard Magazine Closes Down, Geek Nation Dies A Little

RIP Wizard Magazine, 1991-2011

According to BleedingCool, Wizard Magazine has closed its print publication doors and open its doors for public trading.  After publishing in 1991, Wizard became one of the most influential magazines in comic culture for asking the burning questions such as "Who would you want to play Mogo in a Green Lantern movie?" and "How come Uatu does not come off his high horse and start kicking ass?"  As one of the first magazines to follow comic news and events much like a dog follows a car, this influential magazine will go down as the magazine many boys of my age bought to masturbate to pics of Psylocke.  

In all seriousness, I do feel a small piece of my childhood die when I read this news, much like when I heard Leslie Nielson died.  Wizard was the one of the first magazines I remember buying with my own money, along with Cracked.  I remember following the prices of my own comics at the local Books-a-million when I could not afford a copy.  Unfortunately, I was one of the many who never subscribed and began checking the internet as soon as it came along.  I understand the closure of this magazine, as little as Wizard is in the grander scheme of other giants contemplating closing their print outputs.  When the New York Times does the same, we will know the Digital Age has finally taken over.  Much as the farmers moved into cities 200 years ago, now so do readers migrate into the vast expanse of the Internet.  At least the magazine will continue on the Internetz, hopefully to flourish much in the way Cracked.com has.

Plus, in less than a week I'll be at the Wizard World New Orleans Comic Con!

Hawaii Schools Lack Librarians, Where Do I Sign Up?

According to the Star Advertiser, about 16 percent of Hawaii's public schools are without a librarian, despite the fact that all have a functioning library.  Okay, I will bite the bullet and go to Hawaii.  I knew it would come to this.  I knew that this day would come and I would have to stand up and deliver myself into the belly of the beast, the end of the earth, the land of palm and fire.

 

Truly, this is hell on earth.

I once heard Christopher Moore say (and I am paraphrasing), "Living in Hawaii is like dating a supermodel.  After a while you just want conversation."  Well, I am willing to dive into the Hawaiian Hades if I never again have the type of daily conversations that suck out my soul.  While I have never been to Hawaii, I would gladly throw myself on this tropical grenade.

I know now what this calling of the librarian, a call that sounds suspiciously like the the pages of a book rustling, would lead me to uncharted disasters in need of relief.  If we can help but one library, one class of surfer dudes, just one hula dancer, then my sacrifice would have not been in vain.  May God have mercy on my well tanned soul.  

Image from here

I Don't Wanna! Okay... Steampunk Sarah Palin

I use this to hunt Russi... polar moose bears, you betcha!

I do not know why I am reporting this, but here goes:  The Steampunk Sarah Palin comic book is not just a joke I made up to point out all the things I hate in politics/sci fi right now no it is a real thing that hurts my brain meat.  If anyone, man, woman, child, or manwomanchild, comes up to you the library and requests this graphic novel or tries to start a conversation about this, you beat them over the head with a copy of Preacher and then tell the media why.  You tell them of the bile and filth you live with, that this cannot go on.  Then, show them this post and stand back as they begin to beat the corpse of the manwomanchild themselves.  

Via Daemons Books

DC Drops Comic Code in It's Pants

Not anymore, motherf$@ker

DC Comics stated in a press release that it will no longer use the "Comics Code Authority" seal of approval.  The out-dated non-rating system has rarely been seen on the majority of comics since the 1960s when Spider-Man started doing drugs, whoring around, and killing fools (throwing away Gwen Stacy).  The code was instituted as a witch hunt in the early days of comics to protect juvenile minds.  Then the birth control pill came along and no one cared anymore.  The writers of Archie Comics, the last major comic to consistently hold the CCA, has proclaimed the comic will now become the epitome of hedonistic, sadistic, and puppy stealing horror they always wanted it to be.  I am praying they get Garth Ennis to write it.

Packer Librarian Steals Book From Bears Librarian

What the hell is a "packer?"

Over this past weekend, two librarians decided to bet library books on a pro football game.  I just wrote that sentence.  The directors of the Brown County Library in Green Bay and the Chicago Public Library made a friendly wager to give the books "We're going on a Bear Hunt" from Brown County (among others) and "The Stinky Cheese Man" from Chicago (among others).  While this was going on, I was drinking one beer (among others) and getting into one fight (among others) over the game in question.  Daaaa Bers!

Article with video here

Google Doing More Stuff with Ebooks?

One of Google's first purchases of the new year is eBook Technologies, an online publishing company.  What does this mean?  Google is going to further its already well-endowed Google Books ebook store?  Google will begin offering robust ePublishing for the public?  Google is planning to publish its own books, forgoing authors all together using a supercomputer with the combined intelligences of Stephen King, Edgar Allen Poe, and H.P. Lovecraft to create the ultimate Harry Potter fanfic?  The future is full of possibilities.

PC Mag and pic from here