Just Tripping Along The Freakazoid

So - it is so bad that the UK is considering GMOs - yes ladies and gentlemen, the environment is changed and now we must too - http://www.guardian.co.uk/ environment/2008/oct/07/ gmcrops.food and then there is this no need for animal cruelty or vegetarian worries any more ;) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-17104501

Running like crazy as I am supervising a student-run environmental conference - but - as a hold over until time once more is mine.... I've been using a few tools of late for some ARG fun and other cool projects and just wanted to give them a quick shout out 1. http://zxing.org/w/decode.jspx - a very handy tool for online qr code reading when a smartphone or similar device is not handy. 2. QR code tag extension for Chrome - now I can quickly make any site into a QR code and blast it to the basic social media outlets - https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/bcfddoencoiedfjgepnlhcpfikgaogdg 3. http://camerasummary.com/ - Camera Summary allows for quick decoding of image exif data - http://www.exif.org/ 4. http://regex.info/exif.cgi - Jeffrey's Exif Viewer - and I also have that as a chrome extension So - just a few QR code readers and Image metadata - hidden data readers - great for finding all sorts of hidden treasures!

An update from one of the KickStarter projects I backed got me to thinking. Here's the project - http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/terribleminds/bait-dog-an-atlanta-burns-novel-by-chuck-wendig Here's the update with a question about the money levels set in the project - http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/terribleminds/bait-dog-an-atlanta-burns-novel-by-chuck-wendig/posts/176249 and here is my reply to that update - "you know, the question and your answer that you shared points out a very important thought/topic in regards to Kickstarter and funding projects. Since finding and getting into Kickstarter, I've viewed it more like the PBS fund drive you mention. Being a huge docwho and British show fan, I grew up on PBS and always pledged - knowing I was funding a big system and more than just my shows, but I knew that you have to keep the station running to get to see the shows you want. Rather than paying money to get a specific product, or to even "get somethi...

Ok - so I got sucked in - it is funny, odd, weird, definitely WTF territory - and yet, I am laughing my butt off clicking happily away. I speak of this performance, game, something called "The Dark Room" a choose your own adventure type story that uses YouTube as the platform, minimal effects and yet keep me and, at this writing, 1000s of others coming back and clicking. It uses the old-school MMORG concept of "typing" the directions for your character to explore. However, it quickly leaves that behind as the humor of the options and the unexpected choices leave you with a deer in the headlights feeling. I did enjoy the love poem and love letter ;) What was your favorite bits? below the video link I am adding a couple of my favorite screen shots - the actor in this story has wonderful expressions Here is the link - http://youtu.be/hvkjP6dqpfY

so - stumbled onto this site today - http://bigthink.com/about - which I am finding very interesting. Has any ever ued this, reads it, likes it, hates it? Almost as cool as the site is how I stumbled onto it as well as a few other points that are feeding my story and creative muse. I was perusing Google news and caught this article - http://www.washingtonpost.com/ national/health-science/which- foods-contribute-most-to-our- sodium-intake/2012/02/08/ gIQAbYABzQ_gallery.html - which is very distrubing, although i do not use salt on foods or cooking, it appears that is still not good enough. But - I had not visited the washingtonpost.com news and was looking for general news and i liked how the sections were laid out, specifically there was one called energy and environment - which fall right into my work and interests. so i click that and one of the main headlined stories is "Lake Vostok, a German Nazi base? Russian news agency floats odd theory" - http://www.washington...

Well, life has been a bit rough, would make sandpaper look like a baby's smooth butt ;) However, things seem to be settling into a bit more of a routine, which means I can get back to doing what I like - including writing here. I hope to be a bit more vocal as so much is going on. This weekend I may actually get to enjoy my World of Depleted: Day 419 DVD - complete with secret codes and other fun :) I hope to get back to writing on my Nikki and Nora fanfiction series. And my wikis have been so neglected (poor transmedia wiki and world of depleted wiki and my upcoming storyworld wiki) And yes, a couple storyworld projects I've been working on are finally starting to take shape. And of course I got caught up in a few ARGs, cool transmedia projects, awesome Kickstarter campaigns and more. To that end - I leave you with my YouTube debut ;) I did this in support of a Kickstarter campaign for this awesome ARG app project about Snowtown - so - enjoy my geek vaudeville craziness htt...

A lot is happening at World of Depleted including the release of "Depleted" Day 419" in ePub form - go check out the great story and the new updated WoD site - there are many things there to explore - enjoy!

OK, so I kinda disappeared for a long bit - been incredibly busy, will have to catch up - this is a hard time of the year, but, I am starting to climb back up, so should be posting a bit more frequently and a little more focused : ) Happy Holiday everyone

WOW - my article was published - http://www.microfilmmaker.com/tipstrick/Issue70/GenCon_1.html Of course everytime I read it, I find ten more things I want to change, and I look like a dork in my pics, one of these days, I will look damn fine in a picture ; ) I do like the ones of me in front of the dice ;P wheeeee, not only was the con fun, but I got to talk about it and ramble and babble and ok, now I want to go back - is it 2012 yet ;)

Alright - so here is my firsthand account (well a bit vague as I did a lot of clicking and wandering around) of how I found a new story/transmedia property or whatever ya wanna call it. I am very interested in the concept of UX (user experience) and user narrative, so I thought I'd try to document how just this simple little journey worked. I am amazed as I started writing this entry how far that little rabbit hole or entry point led me. 1. So, I am going through my twitter stream and I come across this tweet - http://twitter.com/#!/Megaton_us/status/108664814808731648 from Megaton_US. 1a. Megaton hosts a very cool all things Post-apocalyptic site - http://www.megaton.us/ which I started following because 1b. I participate in World of Depleted - http://worldofdepleted.com/ a very cool post-apocalyptic film, story, shared storyworld. 1c. Megaton was woven into the WoD storyworld as well as being a supported/Dark Dreamer and more, and thus I found out about the Mega...

Check out this article on Jeremy Hanke's visit to GothiCon - http://worldofdepleted.com/archives/1768

Hanging in so far, this has been the year for natural disasters.

Well, among everything else, I am needing to build or work on multiple web sites. A good chunk of them are using WordPress as the content management system (CMS). As a result, my limited knowledge of WP programming is growing by leaps, bounds and massive amount of growling at the screen in frustration, followed by pounding the screen a few times, shaking the computer, searching the web for knowledge, redoing something multiple times and finally shouting Eureka! :) One site I am building is for a training center. We will offer workshops, educational information and a treasure chest of resources people can use. so, cataloguing is a main focus there. two other projects are shared storyworlds, so that requires not just cataloguing information, but also providing a crisp feel for the SSW as well as needing to build a community for SSW participants. Another site is my personal story site, which is just a collection of my stories and a few other items of interest. I really needed a n...

Hmm - I think I want to look into this - anyone already using it? I need to contact world of Depleted and ask if they are going to convert the stories into ebook format and if we can offer them in some format on some platform and all that. time to start making that story make magic for me ;) http://mashable.com/2011/08/11/movellas/

So - reading over this article - http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/77516 The fact you can do this seems only for the movies, but it does exist and it is getting easier and easier to do it. More and more, it could be your friend or ex using this on you, not some secret or rich group.... of course there are good ways to use AR and this, but.... And, for the generation growing up in this, what will they be like and expect?

I hope I get to see stuff like this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIDF_60ok04

Some thoughts about fans and user narratives and the like In trying to find a single idea from the collection of scattered ideas always swimming in my head, I wanted to think about/write about a topic that spoke to how a fan, like me, can become more involved in a Shared storyworld. now, by "fan like me", I mean someone who is not employed as a writer, artist, filmmaker, or any other entertainment and related job. I am an "average" joe who makes a 9-5 living and as a "hobby" is interested in becoming more involved in a shared storyworld (SSW) (just go back and look at what I have written so far and I know the English teacher/editor/polished writer is cringing). But, that is what I am and the level of skills/ability I bring to any SSW or project; I have lots o' heart and desire, not so much technical skill. I know this is one of the top gripes people have with fanfiction. It's a bunch of poorly written story. Maybe, but think of how ...

Why learning is awesome http://www.good.is/post/this-inspiring-video-will-remind-you-why-you-love-learning/

A very interesting article about data, privacy and where the world may be headed http://falkvinge.net/2011/08/09/everything-you-say-can-and-will-be-used-against-you-by-anybody-now-or-decades-into-the-future/

I enjoyed Gen Con more than words can help me express :) I'll have some thoughts and this and that, but working on an overview article, so plan on writing that first, then sharing that here and whatever else pops up. slowly realizing the summer is about done and the school year is right around the corner. Have some awesome projects coming - http://docwho2100.com/qt/areyouready.html and a few others so much is going on and so fast :) was reading an article how the Census data shows the US changed much faster an more dramatically than people had thought. That means that shifts can and will occur at speeds that will demand more critical thinking, communication skills and even a touch of survival instinct. To use a well-spoke quote, "What interesting times we live in"