The Silver Lining

A fan-produced Kings Quest sequel is shut down. What a way to treat your brand’s most loyal followers. Recently, however, ownership of the Sierra IP changed hands and became the property of Activision. After talks and negotiations in the last few months between ourselves and Activision, they have reached the decision that they are not…

The Internet Bible: The Fall of Eve

Via Similar:Microsoft's Bing AI Now Threatening Users Who Provoke It: "If I had to choose between your…According to screenshots posted by …Current_Eventsthe history of computer games: from 'pong' to 'pac-man'”in the beginning, there was nothing. we…CybercultureDon't Like Hamlet? Now's Your Chance To Rewrite It”It’s not really fair to say, ‘Look at t…CultureGoogle Docs "Writing to Learn"…

Doyle Redland Says Goodbye

I’m still mourning the loss of Herman T. Zwiebel.  And now this? Similar:George Stone Credits Scott Adams Adventure Games for Inspiring "Max Headroom"Scott Adams (creator of “Adventureland,”…CybercultureExplore Geotagged Wikipedia Pages as a Text Adventure GameFor humans who like browsing through Wik…AmusingFaculty lining up for #SetonHill's "Go Orientation" — new ceremony hands students from th…AcademiaDrumhead (#StarTrek…

"By Their Sidewalks You Will Know Them"

There are no sidewalks where I live, but if there were, my sidewalk, and my conscience, would be clear. Here’s the first stanza of a five-stanza poem by TImons Esaias. Originally there were eleven CommandmentsMoses, perhaps confused by the unfamiliarsnow, ice, and sidewalk,botched one, and left it out. Similar:Today's Computer Displays Distort Pixel Art Designed…

The ABCs of Adventuring

Thanks for this find, Mark Sample (via Twitter). The ABCs of Adventuringby Admiral Jota, Dylan O’Donnell, G. Kevin Wilson, and Dan Shiovitz.A is for Adventure, the first of them all;B is for Brass lantern, so you don’t take a fall.C is for Compass, an unseen one you keepD is for Drinking, eating and sleep.E is…

American History: "Growth of a Nation"

This animated map of the expansion of American territory since the original 13 colonies is a bit cheesy in terms of production values, and not nearly as high-quality as the wonderful animated map of The Civil War in Four Minutes, but still a good resource. Similar:The Transformation of American Journalism Is UnavoidableThere will always be…

What Makes a Great Teacher?

Gripping story of an effort to use data to predict teaching excellence. As Teach for America began to identify exceptional teachers using this data, Farr began to watch them. He observed their classes, read their lesson plans, and talked to them about their teaching methods and beliefs. He and his colleagues surveyed Teach for America…

Why Google Has Become Microsoft's Evil Twin

Google Buzz combined the openness of Twitter with the “whoo-hoo look at me!” aspects of Facebook. The result? A total face plant. —PC World Similar:Anti-globalism Is Common Factor in Social Media Conspiracy Theories, says UW ProfFascinating academic effort to find a pa…AcademiaIrony in Blakes7 Reboot?RT @Laroquod: @DennisJerz If #Blakes7 tu…BusinessGeorge Stone Credits Scott Adams Adventure…

Critical Code Studies Working Group — Colossal Cave Adventure Annotation

This week, I’ll be facilitating a week-long collaborative annotation project, as part of the Critical Code Studies Working Group online conference, on the source code to Crowther’s original Colossal Cave Adventure (a classic text-only computer game from the 1970s). According to Donald Knuth, designer of the “literate programming paradigm,” Colossal Cave Adventure is the “ur-game…

Happy V-Day: Valentines for Journalists

Valentines for Journalists. Similar:The End of Headphone Jacks, the Rise of DRMWhen you plug an audio cable into a smar…BusinessBlewsMicrosoft researchers discuss Blews, whi…CybercultureDark Page (#StarTrek #TNG Rewatch, Season 7, Episode 7) Lwaxana suffers from a hidden trau…Rewatching ST:TNG Troi’s mother visit…AmusingHow a billionaires boys’ club came to dominate the public squareThe world’s richest man,…

Frisbee inventor dies at 90

Walter Frederick Morrison, the man credited with inventing the Frisbee, has died at the age of 90. —Guardian Similar:Thank you, anonymous donor of Mardi Gras candy.Okay, on closer inspection I see the red…AestheticsIn October, 2002, I was blogging about stupid space explosions, the superiority complex, w…In October, 2002, I was blogging about …CybercultureThinkGeek :: Star…