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Around the Internet
Around the Internet: Hyperbole and a Half
Apr 28th
Despite the fact that my internet was down way more than it was up this past week (an issue I’ll have to rant about in a future post), I still had some time to browse the web and see what was new and exciting in the world of funny websites. And boy, did I ever hit the jackpot this time around. It started with an innocent enough looking link in a thread on a message board: The Alot is Better Than You at Everything. Intrigued–mostly by the strange use of “a lot” put together in one word and used in a strange context–I clicked. Once the page loaded, I noticed the funny image just below the first paragraph. I looked at the image and got confused, then read the first paragraph and understood clearly:
As a grammatically conscientious person who frequents internet forums and YouTube, I have found it necessary to develop a few coping mechanisms. When someone types out “u” instead of “you,” instead of getting mad, I imagine them having only one finger on each hand and then their actions seem reasonable. If I only had one finger on each hand, I’d leave out unnecessary letters too!
Sure enough, the More >
Around the Internet: Welcome to April Fools
Apr 1st
Oh, hello there! You must be new here. What’s that? Yes, I know, it can be extremely confusing. How long have you been a netizen, now? Only two days? Where on Earth have you been for the last decade, under a rock? Oh. I see. Sorry about that, just a … anyhow, I can see you’re clearly lost and confused. You see, every year on April 1st–typically known as April Fools Day–the denizens of this magical place you yourself have recently become a part of celebrate by posting ridiculous news stories, changing their names, making horrid redesigns, and more. I can see you’re still confused. Here, let me give you some examples of this year’s pranks:
Google Topeka-based Pranks:Google announces new company name: Topeka
Youtube adds new text-based mode for videos called TEXTp (I must say, seeing certain videos in TEXTp mode can blow your mind…)
Google Wave adds new methods of notification
Google Docs allows you to upload physical objects to the cloud
Strange News Stories:French Government Bans use of “2.0″
Ferrets key to bridging the digital divide
High Energy Collisions Reveal a Paleoparticle
Man arrested at Large Hadron Collider claims he is from the future
New Features at Popular Websites:Around the Internet: “Sarah Palin: Vampire Hunter”
Mar 17th
While I don’t usually take a lot of time to read eBooks (I prefer traditional, dead tree books) I stumbled across an interesting looking book on Smashwords last week when I was getting my own book put up on there. At the time, it was simply titled “Twinkle”. With the name and cover being an obvious play on the Twilight series (no, I’ve not read them, but have seen the cover image on the top of both the “Worst Books Ever” and “Best Books Ever” lists over on Goodreads simultaneously) it intrigued me. Initially I thought it must be some sort of fan fiction, but didn’t think fan fiction was allowed. After reading the first review, I decided it was definitely worth a shot, and downloaded it.
I just finished it last night, and I must say I really enjoyed it. Quite funny, and well worth the small amount of time it takes to get through it. I think I’m going to have to check out some other things by the author (Dan McGirt, blog here) when I get the chance…