Please do not give Clyde Calwell any future cover-art work. Or, at the very least, give him a description of the main character beyond “lives in cool-looking city, female, long dark hair, spends time on rooftops”.

I say this because I’ve been reading PC Hodgell’s novels since 1982, and the chick on the cover of The God Stalker Chronicles ain’t Jame.

I’ll have to scan in the cover of my battered old first-edition paperback, because that is Jame.

I think I know how this outfit came about:

[recklessly navigating past the pallets of feathers and tulle in the H!P wardrobe dungeon, two Apprentice Bedazzler Technicians collide]

A: “You got your cheerleader outfit in my candy-striper uniform!”

B: “No, you got your candy-striper uniform in my cheerleader outfit.”

Together: “Heeeeeeeey!”

more...

Morning Musume’s least talented singer gets her sixth solo single (video here). And people wonder why I call her Satan.

Over on slashdot, someone quotes:

"The study also found that over a third have suffered from sleepless nights or headaches as a result of IT problems at work, while 59 per cent spend between one and 10 hours a week working on IT systems outside normal hours...."

In the modern vernacular, I say “It’s fine, learn to play, noob”.

“Why, when I was a boy, we had to walk to the server room through three feet of snow, uphill both ways! Now get off my lawn!”

Stolen Pixels takes a very gentle look at fighting games. I’m pleased that the deep meaning of the dialogue was faithfully translated.

Announced at CES: The 3GSpot. It’s open to negotiation, anytime, anywhere. All it wants is a little power, and it guarantees you a good networking experience. Use it alone, or share with your friends. Perfect for when you’re on the road and you need to make a personal connection in your hotel room.

I can’t think of a better summary of a major genre of anime and manga than this:

She is a princess of loving mischief!
He is a dull boy who is not at all lucky!
They are really close couple
though they have a lot of problems.

This comes from the front cover of the groundbreaking new manga series きつねのよめいり, featuring the fresh imagination and original story-telling of newcomer Sato Takagi.

Naaah, just kidding. I’m sure it delivers exactly what it promised on the cover (seen here on Amazon). The title, and perhaps a few tiny nuggets of the story, are based on classic folk tales about trickster-fox brides, but I’d be stunned if it rose above genre clichés.

Here’s my progress report from DHL:

(naturally, the dollar jumped back up 4 yen after my order was processed…)

[Update: and… there it was on my desk waiting for me today. I think I’ve got enough light novels, music, concerts, and bikini DVDs to last me for a few months now. Still one more item on the way, but Amazon will be shipping it free since it got delayed for so long.]