It seems every posting I must apologize for being so long between posts. But this time I have an excuse that might be at least semi-valid.
My computer suddenly developed an upset. I took it to the computer doctor, who was busy with seven or so folks ahead of me. Eventually they got back to me to confirm the death. I’d had to upgrade the thing to Windows 10 for self-publishing, but the hardware wasn’t built to sustain that. So, new computer, and then transfer data from new to old.
Then I discovered another problem. The new one had Libre Office installed. It may be a fine system for doing fancy stuff and stunning business presentations, but it’s not designed for writing fiction for publication. There was no way to turn off “smart quotes”. Yeah, what you see right there. The quotes slant in toward the text, and the apostrophe a few lines above slants. When I started submitting to publishers a few years ago (okay, nine years ago) a few said in their guidelines they didn’t want smart quotes.
There was also no way I could find to have an automatic indent for each new paragraph.
As you can see, the second problem is fixed. But the first is not. I have it set to not substitute smart quotes for regular quotes, yet, obviously it’s doing it. I’ll have to investigate this problem. Or, perhaps the disapproval of smart quotes is no longer “a thing” in the publishing biz.
But those things are why I haven’t posted as soon as I would have liked. There are other delays, too, involved with the new computer.
Have you noticed the number of music hits from the 60’s and early 70’s being used in television commercials? There’s been a bunch over the last two years or more. Right now “Build Me Up, Buttercup” is a favorite of Geico. I read an internet conversation with one person saying he hated his treasured music being used for commercials—thought it cheapened the music.
I disagree. I like it—I get a kick out of every time I can identify the music in a commercial. It doesn’t cheapen the music, it elevates the commercial.
I get the same feeling when, watching something new99movie or tv show—I see an actor that I recognize from a different show. Sometimes I’ll be compelled to go to the trusted internet—usually the Internet Movie Data Base (IMDB)—to either confirm my belief or to help me find the connection.
On the reading front, I finished The Testament, then read Patterson’s Cross and now reading his Double Cross. Alex Cross sure gets more than his share of psycho murderers in Washington D.C. And he has to deal with idiots, power-hungry officials, crooks, and that’s not even including politicians.
I was just now watching The Adjustment Bureau starring Matt Damon. I’ll admit to being a Damon fan. He manages to combine earnest sincerity with a good-natured mocking humor. One movie he did which I’d never heard of is The Great Wall. It’s different from anything else he’s done. It has monsters and a primarily oriental cast. It is entertaining, with special effects, and a few spots of dry humor.
After this long lapse and I have no more to write. I could mutter imprecations about the wind, but I suppose you all have your own mutterings. Reading not only makes you more knowledgeable, it actually makes you smarter, as long as you read something that challenges you a little.
Thanks for reading.
My computer suddenly developed an upset. I took it to the computer doctor, who was busy with seven or so folks ahead of me. Eventually they got back to me to confirm the death. I’d had to upgrade the thing to Windows 10 for self-publishing, but the hardware wasn’t built to sustain that. So, new computer, and then transfer data from new to old.
Then I discovered another problem. The new one had Libre Office installed. It may be a fine system for doing fancy stuff and stunning business presentations, but it’s not designed for writing fiction for publication. There was no way to turn off “smart quotes”. Yeah, what you see right there. The quotes slant in toward the text, and the apostrophe a few lines above slants. When I started submitting to publishers a few years ago (okay, nine years ago) a few said in their guidelines they didn’t want smart quotes.
There was also no way I could find to have an automatic indent for each new paragraph.
As you can see, the second problem is fixed. But the first is not. I have it set to not substitute smart quotes for regular quotes, yet, obviously it’s doing it. I’ll have to investigate this problem. Or, perhaps the disapproval of smart quotes is no longer “a thing” in the publishing biz.
But those things are why I haven’t posted as soon as I would have liked. There are other delays, too, involved with the new computer.
Have you noticed the number of music hits from the 60’s and early 70’s being used in television commercials? There’s been a bunch over the last two years or more. Right now “Build Me Up, Buttercup” is a favorite of Geico. I read an internet conversation with one person saying he hated his treasured music being used for commercials—thought it cheapened the music.
I disagree. I like it—I get a kick out of every time I can identify the music in a commercial. It doesn’t cheapen the music, it elevates the commercial.
I get the same feeling when, watching something new99movie or tv show—I see an actor that I recognize from a different show. Sometimes I’ll be compelled to go to the trusted internet—usually the Internet Movie Data Base (IMDB)—to either confirm my belief or to help me find the connection.
On the reading front, I finished The Testament, then read Patterson’s Cross and now reading his Double Cross. Alex Cross sure gets more than his share of psycho murderers in Washington D.C. And he has to deal with idiots, power-hungry officials, crooks, and that’s not even including politicians.
I was just now watching The Adjustment Bureau starring Matt Damon. I’ll admit to being a Damon fan. He manages to combine earnest sincerity with a good-natured mocking humor. One movie he did which I’d never heard of is The Great Wall. It’s different from anything else he’s done. It has monsters and a primarily oriental cast. It is entertaining, with special effects, and a few spots of dry humor.
After this long lapse and I have no more to write. I could mutter imprecations about the wind, but I suppose you all have your own mutterings. Reading not only makes you more knowledgeable, it actually makes you smarter, as long as you read something that challenges you a little.
Thanks for reading.
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