News Of The Day 10/4/2011

by

And it's a day of calm . . . oh I'm kidding. It's Big Apple Announcement day, and thus a massive progeeky news day! Let's dive on in!

Apple:
Apple unveils the iPhone 4S. OK so t's not the 5 everyone expected, but it's pretty powerful – and includes a kind of verbal-command personal assistant. Frankly it seems to be the "5" in all but name.

Here's the high points.

And my high points?

  • The addition of Sprint further expands their audience
  • There's a lot of improvements hardware and software-wise
  • Siri, the assistant, is getting a lot of attention. That may interest – and distract – competitors

Economics/Geekonomics:
We're still getting all the data, but the greek mess appears to be winding down and it sounds like Greece will still be in trouble and some banks are hosed.

Music:
The Zune HD is dead. This is because Microsoft is moving towards Windows Phone devices – which is a bigger trend to follow actually. They're putting their eggs in two baskets – Phone and 8 (you are learning to develop in these I hope).

Adaptions and Remakes:
Fuel for our resident analyst Scott:

Comics:
A CG Batman series in 2013 on Cartoon Network that seems to be extra odd – unusual villains, a replacement for Robin, etc. Perhaps bigger is the "DC Nation" block which sounds like a near variety-show format of comicdom, and might provide room for innovators and newcomers (hint, hint). I also get the vibe DC's goal is to do multiple interpretations on everything possible.

Geek Law:
Amazon re-invites associates it shut out after the California out-of-state tax bill was repealed. I think it's actually good for them due to bad blood – but the taxes are coming one way or another.

Tablets:
Kindle Fire pre-orders sell like crazy. I'm sure you're surprised.

QUESTION OF THE DAY: OK, do you care about the iPhone 4S?

– Steven Savage

A Guide To Fansourcing Part 6: Wish List

by

So I've talked about how and when to do fansourcing, and how to use it to enhance your career.  I'd like to close out this series by looking at some things I'd like to see to help fansourcing:

  • Convention Events #1 – Let's start talking fansourcing at cons.  Do panels on the opportunities it has, discuss ways to use it on a resume, etc.  Heck, maybe I ought to set one up . . .
  • Convention Events #2 – What about a need-skills networking event for larger cons, where people can find folks that have the skills they need, or people find folks that need fansourced talent.
  • Job Boards and More – Cons, fan groups, etc. can have job boards for fansourcing.  In fact, someone could do a website just on this (this is a huge hint, by the way).
  • More Use Of The Term – As I noted, I've seen it used to mean various things, so let's use it enough to make sure fan-to-fan talent exchange is one of the meanings.  That way more people think about it and it's advantages.
  • Mentorship – If you fansource, take someone under your wing and help them do it.    You'll spread the idea and help them out.
  • Support groups – Building on Mentorship, perhaps in larger areas people who do fansourcing can form a support group (say, via meetup.com) to help people find "fannish" work.
  • Share Ideas – Got ideas for the way to put hobbies on resumes, fansourcing in your skills section?  Let me know and maybe you can write it up and post it here!

So go forth and fansource!

(Oh, series edited as I misnumbered them)

– Steven Savage

T-2 Days: On Screw-Up Patrol

by

Well it's all ready; books, websites, etc.  Things are queued and ready to go.  Editing done.  I'll push the button tomorrow and announce everything to the world.

So what am I doing tonight?  Murder Board.

No, the Murder Board is not a weapon in a video game, but it's at term for people whose goal is to find out what's wrong with an idea.  Me, I'm a one-man Murder Board, in that I can seriously come up with many ways to figure what's wrong.

Tonight, I'm on screw-up patrol.

This is a weird time, since I should have some sense of achievement, but mostly I'm looking for last-minute problems.

But it's coming: "Focused Fandom: Cosplay, Costuming, and Careers."  Look for it tomorrow!

– Steven Savage