Comment: Re:Nice Pratchett reference (Score 1) 10
Need rain? You can have all of ours!
Oh, by the way I;m not a Brit.... Just a Greek guy born in Oak Park Il, not too far from you:)
Cheers!
Comment: Nice Pratchett reference (Score 1) 10
Hi,
Read your journal often but rarely comment, just wanted to say your pratchett reference is noted and well received.
Greetings from rainy London
+ - US Supreme Court: Video games qualify for First A->
Submitted
by
Wrath0fb0b
Wrath0fb0b writes "The United States Supreme Court threw out a California law prohibiting the sale of violent video games to minors (signed by a man who would never pander violence to children). Notable in the opinion is a historical review of the condemnation of "unworthy" material that would tend to corrupt children, starting with penny-novels and up through comic books and music lyrics. The opinion is also notable for the odd lineup of Justices that defies normal ideological lines, with one conservative and one liberal jurist dissenting on entirely different grounds.
In the process, they continue the broad rule that the First Amendment does not vary with the technological means used:
"
Link to Original Source
Video games qualify for First Amendment protection. Like protected books, plays, and movies, they communicate ideas through familiar literary devices and features distinctive to the medium. And the basic principles of freedom of speech . . . do not vary with a new and different communication medium.
Link to Original Source
Comment: Terry Pratchett's Bromeliad trilogy (Score 1) 1419
Hi,
I'm sure someone must have already mentioned Jules Verne, so let me introduce you to the lesser known works of a best selling author: Terry Pratchett.
TP is well known as the creator of the Discworld comic fantasy books (which are on my top list of reccommendation for adults) but has also written a few less known children's books, both in the Discworld and unrelated to it.
The Bromeliad trilogy is a a seried of 3 books (Truckers-Diggers-Wings) about the Nomes, a 4 inch tall ET tribe that's shipp wrecked in Earth and forgets about its history.
The books are very fun to read, but also beneficial for children as they discuss allegorically quite deep philosophical questions.
There's plenty more info on the Bromeliad trilogy, as well as TP's other works on wikipedia.
On a side note, TP's not strictly SciFi books such as 'The amazing Maurice and his educated cats' and the 'Wee Free Men' trilogy are also really good books for children and adults alike. Not to mention that the Discworld series is by far the most enjoyable read I've had for years!
Microsoft Partners With Zend 223
Posted
by
kdawson
from the hell-freezes-over-film-at-11 dept.
from the hell-freezes-over-film-at-11 dept.
jesse.castro writes to point out news of Microsoft striking a multi-year partnership with PHP provider Zend to improve PHP's performance on Windows-based Web servers. From the article: "Rather than marking a sudden change of course, Microsoft is openly engaging in a dialogue with Zend, a key open source promoter, and millions of PHP developers, analysts said."