Archive for September, 2009

Heading to Hackfest

Sep 30th

Posted by Julien McArdle in Everything

On the weekend of November 7th, I shall be in beautiful Quebec City for Hackfest, a bilingual hacker con. In exchange for five books and a banner on the Rice Tea website, they will waive the entry fee and provide me a table to sell the book.

It’ll be the first time that I sell the book publicly like that, so I’m really curious to see how it will all go down.

In other news, I’ve been hearing lots of positive comments about Daemon lately, a techno-thriller by author Daniel Suarez. He originally started self-publishing the work as well, and I aim to replicate his success. In any case, I’m thinking of picking up his book from Chapters.

What’s New Baboo

Sep 9th

Posted by Julien McArdle in Everything

What’s new in my world:

  • I’ve lost 10 pounds since August 3rd. Progress has stymied lately, but I aim to lose another 20.
  • I’ve lost my appetite for video games. I don’t own a television or pay for cable, and books have come to fill the void. I usually read two hours a night now, if I’m not out fulfilling some sort of commitment.
  • I’ve finished one book by the name of Nickel and Dimed, which covers the situation of the working poor in the United States, but is evidently just as applicable to Canada. I also just finished off Appetite for Self-Destruction: The Spectacular Crash of the Record Industry in the Digital Age. The title is a little misleading, as the book is in fact a dry historical account of the record industry from the end of the Disco era onwards. It is, however, full of interesting tidbits – such as the explanation for the surge of boy bands in the late nineties.
  • Interest for my own book, Rice Tea, has picked up a tad. It’s being mentioned on a few free ebook sites, which has led to my first actual donation.