Category Archives: PopCulture

Friday Fun Link – BookLamp

There are a lot of recommendation engines out there – Amazon, GoodReads, LibraryThing, Novelist, etc. etc. etc. – but BookLamp is one of the most unique I’ve found in that it tries to use pure mathematical algorithms to choose the books it recommends for users, similar to what Pandora does for music. Their biggest fault […]

Wisdom Wednesday – Is YouTube Killing Television?

And the answer (at least according to this infographic) is yes. Bonus: here’s a wise prognosticator on the same subject back in 2006… (Okay, it’s me but I’m pretty proud of this one – not just that it was my highest mark of library school but also because I really kicked ass on my presentation […]

Saturday Snap – Michael Jackson – The Immortal World Tour

[Edit: this post got linked to by a MJ Fan Community.  Visit that page for more news & reviews of the Saskatoon and other shows.] I’m sitting in a hotel room in Saskatoon having just watched “Cirque Du Soleil Presents: Michael Jackson – THE IMMORTAL World Tour” show. This is my third Cirque show (I […]

Music Monday – “And all I can do/Is read a book to stay awake/And it rips my life away/But it’s a great escape…escape…escape.”

I’ve been on a bit of a 90’s kick lately. This is a classic of that era…

The Best Non-Fiction Book I Read This Year…

…was quite possibly a fiction book! I think I’ve mentioned before that I read mostly non-fiction – probably 80-90% NF to 10-20% Fiction.  But a recent Reddit thread on “eye-opening books that have improved the quality of your life” led me to a great fiction find. In the thread, somebody recommended Bill Bryson’s “A Short […]

Music Monday – “I’m putting all my fears down/I can hear the cheers now/See peace signs when I look around”

X-Factor is the new Simon Cowell owned-show he’s imported from the UK to compete with American Idol, the top-rated franchise he left last year.  Although both shows have similar formats, X-Factor allows groups, a wider age range for contestants and holds auditions in front of an audience instead of just the judges’ panel among other […]

Friday Fun Link – “Dad Dancing”

Evolution even has an explanation for why your old man dances the way he does! (h/t to SM on Twitter)

Amazon, You Magnificent Bastard

An article on how Amazon’s use of their Kindles as loss-leaders for the digital content within their own “walled garden” ecosphere is a winning strategy that makes them a strong contender against Apple.

Reddit, Free Speech and “Child Porn”

It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of the site, Reddit. In fact, I’d go so far as to say it’s currently my favourite site on the Internet. One of the reasons I like the site so much (and one of the site’s greatest advantages) is the fact that it literally has an unlimited […]

Steve Jobs: 1955-2011

Just heard the news and, as with Jack Layton’s passing, the death of the co-founder of Apple was probably not a complete surprise but still pretty shocking. In fact, when I said how sad I was, Shea said “As sad as when Jack Layton died?” and I replied “More.”  I went on to explain that […]