Civic Geek Catalog Update 12/21/2014

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The latest updates to the Civic Geek catalog are here!  Be sure to visit the main site for the entire rundown sorted by Geeky Interest or Focus.

Computing

  • Charitable Work
    • DataKind – Helps connect data experts with good causes – and they’re looking for help from data techs, managers, and more!

General

  • Charitable Work
    • Kirkland Geek Gala – A geek event that raises funds for Seattle Children’s Hospital via Extra Life.
  • Collectibles
  • Education
    • Donors Choose – An online charity that helps you fund education intiatives in a project stile.

STEM

  • Citizen Science
    • SciFiles – Uses grassroots, micro-donations, and showcasing vetted projects to promote scientific advancement – with a heavy emhpasis on civilian science.

Writing/Reading

  • Books
    • Books To Prisoners – A US charity that sends free books to prisoners across the Unitied States, with a focus on self-improvement, education, and stopping recidivism.
  • Literacy
    • Alaska Literacy Program – An Alaska-based literacy charity with an emphasis on training and certifying teachers and tutors to impart reading, writing, and speaking skills.
    • Book Ends – A nonprofit focusing on empowering children through literacy and a focus on leadership in communities.
    • Family Reading Partners – A coalition of people and organizations that promotes literacy via family reading practices.
    • Reach Out And Read – A nonprofit organization of medical providers who promote literacy and school readiness in pediatric care with parental advice.
  • Military Support

– Steven Savage

Steven Savage is a Geek 2.0 writer, speaker, blogger, and job coach.  He blogs on careers at http://www.musehack.com/, publishes books on career and culture at http://www.informotron.com/, and does a site of creative tools at http://www.seventhsanctum.com/. He can be reached at https://www.stevensavage.com/.

Way With Worlds: The Game – Negatives

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despair depression sad man

(Way With Worlds is a weekly column on the art of worldbuilding published at Seventh Sanctum, Muse Hack, and Ongoing Worlds)

So last we met I discussed how using RPGs was actually a boon to Worldbuilding. There were positives in stimulating thinking, in sheer entertainment, and of course using premade concepts to test the consistency of an RPG system.

Now let’s talk the negatives of using using RPG systems in your worldbuilding, be they mapping characters to classes or diving into them for ideas. Yes, there are negatives.

Hey, it’s not all sunshine and worldbuilding here.  Some stuff is just bad.

The core issue is that RPG systems are just that –  systems – and any use of a system can constrain you. That is actually the point of having a system. The problem is the system is an outside factor influencing your imagination.

Which is good. Sometimes.

In this case however, we’ll look at how it can go bad.

Read more

Link Roundup 12/17/2014

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Career

Economics

 

– Steven Savage

Steven Savage is a Geek 2.0 writer, speaker, blogger, and job coach.  He blogs on careers at http://www.musehack.com/, publishes books on career and culture at http://www.informotron.com/, and does a site of creative tools at http://www.seventhsanctum.com/. He can be reached at https://www.stevensavage.com/.