The Hitchhiker's App To Starburst

Written by Kris Griffin Friday, 14 October 2011

Digital Jazz - by Kris Griffin

Another month upon us already, apparently time flies when you are having fun. Right now my life is completely day-to-day as my wife and I await the birth of our first child. I can't seem to get my teeth into anything with a vengeance, even my exploits into Google+ left me unfulfilled and empty, although it seems that I'm not the only one; more of that later. Considering the status of my life right now we'll cover some bits and pieces. You know, the stuff you put to one side to write a bigger article about but never do. I think the following will make time fly.

Google+ equals D-

Google+ has now been released for general consumption so it seems only fair to update you with my thoughts on what the internet behemoth Google is offering. It's not good and if you haven't joined yet you aren't missing much. The main principle of this social network is the ability to share different content with “circles” of people. For example you may want to share a joke with family but not with your work colleagues. This provides an antidote to the oft criticised Facebook privacy settings. Other features include an RSS feed, an all-in-one messenger service and cloud sharing. Not really enough to draw me away from Facebook and Twitter. In fact not even enough for me to contemplate spreading my social media time out across 3 delivery platforms. You see the trouble is that it feels a bit like Facebook and a bit like Twitter and not enough like anything individual. Unless cloud sharing really takes off and you need Google+ to access it this will go the same way as previous Google flops Buzz and Wave.

Twitter and Facebook are established and even with the might of Google behind it, it simply doesn't offer anything different. When I signed up I struggled to find even 10 groups or people I had any interest in and if you fancy adding me to your circle my profile is: http://plus.google.com/#104321511461272172901/posts – catchy isn't it!

I see no reason to migrate to Google+ and I'm hard pressed to recommend it. I can't import my Twitter followers and I'm not starting that game all over again. I'm even a little stuck to provide you with any interesting links on it so if you know of anything I have missed please be sure to let me know. In the meantime let's move on to a truly groundbreaking web development.

The Return of the Sfencyclopedia

No not a missing fossil from a long dead dinosaur, although the Sfencyclopedia sounds like a mighty beast, the Science Fiction Encyclopedia to give it the full name returns as a web based tool.

The first edition of the encyclopedia, whose founder and general editor was Peter Nicholls, appeared in 1979, and contained over 700,000 words. A second edition, edited by John Clute and Peter Nicholls, appeared in 1993 and contained over 1.3 million words. Both editions won the Hugo Award in addition to numerous other honours. The beta version of the third edition will contain some 3 million words, including about 12,000 entries and well over 100,000 internal links. The entries cover every area of science fiction including authors, illustrators, movies, music, games, and fanzines. The text will be completed through monthly updates by the end of 2012.

The paper version of the SFencyclopedia.

The online SFencyclopedia will be released by the newly-formed ESF Ltd, in association with Victor Gollancz, the SF & Fantasy imprint of the Orion Publishing Group, whose support will enable the text to be available free to all users. The initial “beta” version containing about three-quarters of the total projected content, will be unveiled in conjunction with Gollancz’s celebrations of its 50th anniversary as a science fiction publisher.

The project will continue to be work-in-progress as the science fiction landscape changes. Editor and science fiction writer David Langford commented, “When will it be finished? Technically never. Regular updates should continue until the exhausted editors topple with a final sigh of relief into the grave.” Author Neil Gaiman tweeted, “The best news of the week, unless Earth is saved from a Martian invasion on Friday: The @Sfencyclopedia is coming back...”

Time will tell if the project is a success and criticism has already been levelled at it for not having a printed release. However as the second edition ran to 1300 pages this double-the-size version could run to 3000 pages and be out-of-date the day you buy it. I'm sure there will be an app and Kindle support to pacify fevered brows. A draft entry released on Twitter for science fiction author Marion Zimmer Bradley runs to 4000 words and over 100 links. You could say the data is thorough and I'm incredibly impressed by the heart, soul and hard work put into this. Being a controlled edited environment I assume errors that makes Wikipedia so unreliable won't slip in and this will be on the favourite list for most science fiction fans.

Anyone interested in signing up for the latest news on the project can do so at www.sf-encyclopedia.com. The Encyclopedia is also on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sf-Encyclopedia/138995776178949 and on Twitter at @SFEncyclopedia.

The Hitchhiker's App To The Universe

Douglas Adams would have approved. As a lover of gadgets, and owner of one of the first Apple Macs in the UK, turning his fiction creation into the real thing would have been a real dream for him. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy project was first announced in May by Vancouver-based start-up Hothead Games. Joel DeYoung, Hothead Producer commented, "The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy app is an authentic experience, allowing fans to feel like they’re holding the device that Douglas Adams described over thirty years ago. Users can learn all about the importance of towels, Vogons, Milliways, the Babel Fish, a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster, how to survive in space and more."

An opening image to the new Guide.

The screenshots I've seen look good, albeit a little cartoony. However the company must be allowed a certain amount of artistic licence and we as fans must trust in their reverence of these hallowed materials. Now we have the technology, and let's be honest who hasn't held an iPad and not imagined the guide, this is a wonderful opportunity to fulful another piece of whimsy from the mind of Douglas Adams.

The app will be released this autumn for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch later in the year. For more information visit www.thenewhitchhikersguide.com.

Twitter Funny

Twitter has always been a good place to find a funny. An innocent comment gone astray, a wise guy put down or a stand up comic trying out new material can all raise a t(w)itter. Our genre is doing pretty well too and for the first time in Digital Jazz history I give you a Top 10: The Starburst-Genre Funny Twitter Accounts (catchy), each individually furnished with a flavour of the humour.

1. Cobra Commander - @CobraCommander
“REM broke up. You're welcome.”

2. God Damn Batman - @god_damn_batman
"It’s true I’m the World’s Greatest Detective. But no one ever pissed themselves in terror when they met Sherlock Holmes."

3. Death Star PR - @DeathStarPR
“Don't think of it as being "tortured with Force lightning", think of it as being "tickled by Jazz hands with pretty sparkles".”

 4. Jerk Superman - @JerkSuperman
“Yes, I ate the muffin. Did it have your name on it? It did? Well why don't you cry about it some more, Green Waaaaahntern?”

 5. Darth Vader - @darthvader
"Fun Imperial fact: "Terminate her, immediately!" can actually mean hours or sometimes days later. #tarkin #oldcoot"

 6. Drunk Hulk - @drunkhulk
“KARDASHIAN WEDDING HAVE BIGGER BUDGET THAN FRIGHT NIGHT! WHICH EXPLAIN WHY IT MORE SCARY!”

 7. Admiral Ackbar - @_Admiral_Ackbar
"When I was taken captive by the Empire, their attempts to water board me were unsuccessful. Air boarding on the other hand...."

 8. Yoda - @yoda
“Ass of Scarlett I did enjoy. Text it to me personally she did. Welcome you all are. Herh Herh Herh”

 9. Lord Palpatine - @LordPalpatine
"Imagine there's no Jedi, It isn't hard to do, Nothing to kill or die for, And no rebellion too, Imagine all the people, Float in outer space."

 10. J Jonah Jameson - @JJONAHJAMESON
“HANG ON. MISS BRANT TELLS ME I HAVE OVER 7,000 FOLLOWERS ON THIS THING? SLACKERS, THE LOT OF YOU. GET BACK TO WORK! DON'T MAKE ME FIRE YOU!”

There are loads of these out there and if you find one and think it worthy of Digital Jazz just tweet me at @kristhescript.

Digital Superheroes

How can someone spell the end of the paper book in one column and then oppose the march towards digital comics in the next? What does the humble comic have over the traditional paper read? Purists would say comics are art, bibliophiles would tut unknowingly.

The big comic creators have finally cottoned on that in order for digital comics to compete with paper comics they have to be available at the same time. And so it was. Just recently we've started to see Marvel and DC release their books online at the same time as the shops. I can't see the average comic-book retailer being overly pleased about this state of affairs because one would assume digital sales will affect physical sales in shops which in turn will affect the bottom line. You would think so.

I'm just an average comic-book fan. I have a nice collection and as I got older moved towards graphic novels and more obscure, arty titles. The hype for the DC #1 relaunch got to me and I just had to indulge. Along with a couple of Marvel title, Ultimate Spider-Man with Miles Morales, I spent around £20 on digital titles purchased through the Marvel, DC and ComicsX apps. I'm not going to review the comics or the apps for that matter, in short the comics were a good read and the apps worked; you really can't ask for more. The question I asked myself after reading them was, “what am I left with?” You see when I buy a comic I bag it and board in acid free conditions. My collection is generally mint and catalogued. There is a value to my collection both in the marketplace and to me personally. Digital comics just feel so...disposable and I'm paying in excess of £2 for this privilege.

The new 52. JL #1

So what is the difference between being comfortable buying a digital book to read on my Kindle and not being comfortable about buying a digital comic? No doubt a digital comic is great to read on a tablet or your iPhone so it's not about the experience of reading. In my opinion it is about the difference in relationship you have with the comic and the book. I still buy books, my personal favourites and some signed copies. They stand alone on my bookshelf. Comics come in collections and are much more visual, we're back to the art argument again. It seems to me that the pressure to moves towards digital comics is stronger because on the surface of things, “it just makes sense”. But you don't need to scratch too hard to find the problems. The intrinsic value of leafing through a collection of comics, selling them, finding or bidding for an issue 1 of a particular edition. I realise that you can have the same experiences with books but because books are stand alone (and I'm including graphic novels when I talk about them) you can have that duel relationship. Comics appeal to the collector in all of us. Remember when your favourite comic just got rubbish and you cancelled it, still felt pretty bad didn't it? Like you shouldn't have done it. That's us giving up on a collection. If issue 14 of Ultimate Spider-Man is your favourite issue ever and you decided you wanted the physical copy of it as well as the digital copy that issue will never be any more than just a single issue perhaps not even worthy of storing away correctly. Comics are a sum of their parts, that's why the graphic novel has become so popular in recent years.

Where does this leave the industry? I don't think comic shops have much to worry about, unlike music. I don't believe the switch to digital will be wholesale and I believe the market will settle. What digital comics will allow us to do is discover new talent. It has never been easier to create a comic and publish it online or through an app. The cream will rise, especially in the free market. I've downloaded plenty of free comics recently from creators I've never heard of and books that haven't been publicised. Some have blown me away, some have been truly terrible. The point is many of those comics would have never made it into a store, let alone the opportunity of having me pick it up.

Ultimate Spiderman #14

Standards will rise, new talent will be discovered and we'll all still get that amazing buzz every time Action Comics #1 breaks a new auction record. I don't have much to show for that £20 I spent but the lesson I learnt was invaluable. Comparing digital books and digital comics is like comparing Aquaman and Sub-Mariner, really hard to do. By their nature comic collectors won't play by the rules, they'll do what feels right and I suspect we'll be bagging and boarding for many years to come.

Just to finish and on the subject of bits and pieces I'd like to leave you with a fabulous fan made montage of Stanley Kubrick films. Not only does this film capture the majesty of one of the greatest director of film but also conveys themes and emotions from The Killing (1956) all the way through to Eyes Wide Shut (1999).

You will find the film here at this shortened link: http://t.co/bMJcTf0

Until next time.

FONASHEK!

@kristhescript

kris.griffin@starburstmagazine.com

Kris Griffin finds himself in the realm of Kidderminster, UK. He writes, shoots and scores (on occasion). He loves Doctor Who, his Kindle, intelligent movies, Twitter, and Richard Burton. He can normally be found dancing the night away, with The Mavericks no less, or working the day job that pays the bills.