Close Encounters of the Nerd Kind! When student Sam wakes up in the house of a group of obsessive sci-fi fans, she becomes their reluctant new housemate after their home gets transformed into a piece of misfiring trans-dimensional technology! Now they can travel to places where no 2-up 2-down terraced house has gone before. Armed only with their wits (and Star Wars trivia) the group of misfits must survive in whatever horrifying dimension or alternate reality they find themselves in! An affectionate parody of Sci-Fi and Fantasy tropes, this quirky comedy adventure features steampunks, Dark Lords, cuddly Lovecraftian horrors and the occasional dysfunctional lightsaber!
A lifetime of wilderness adventures and the resulting insights relating to nature’s intricacies as experienced by a master in the art of primitive wilderness survival. "Fire! Wake up! The shelter is on fire!" His students affectionately call him "Doc Survival." He’s Quebec’s Indiana Jones in a forest setting. Searching for the treasures of the wilderness has been his life-long quest; with passion as his only guide, he has dared to penetrate the forest on its own terms, facing increasingly difficult challenges in the hope of becoming nature’s confidant, of learning her secrets. Professor emeritus André-François Bourbeau holds a Guinness World Record for voluntary wilderness survival in the boreal forest. Herein lies his path and his stories, unadulterated: gritty and often comical mistakes punctuated by inspiring successes. What remains of this lifetime of experimentation is one man’s everlasting love of the wilderness and its intricacies, a rousing reflection on our own human priorities, and need for deep connection with the environment and other fellow beings.
Winner of the 2003 Financial Times Germany/getAbstract Business & Finance Book Award Leading Geeks challenges the conventional wisdom that leadership methods are universal and gives executives and managers the understanding they need to manage and lead the technologists on whom they have become so dependent. This much-needed book? written in nontechnical language by Paul Glen, a highly acclaimed management consultant? gives clear directions on how to effectively lead these brilliant yet notoriously resistant-to-being-managed knowledge workers. Glen not only provides proven management strategies but also background on why traditional approaches often don't work with geeks. Leading Geeks describes the beliefs and behavior of geeks, their group dynamics, and the unique nature of technical work. It also offers a unique twelve-part model that explains how knowledge workers deliver value to an organization.
The Essential Cult TV Reader is a collection of insightful essays that examine television shows that amass engaged, active fan bases by employing an imaginative approach to programming. Once defined by limited viewership, cult TV has developed its own identity, with some shows gaining large, mainstream audiences. By exploring the defining characteristics of cult TV, The Essential Cult TV Reader traces the development of this once obscure form and explains how cult TV achieved its current status as legitimate television. The essays explore a wide range of cult programs, from early shows such as Star Trek, The Avengers, Dark Shadows, and The Twilight Zone to popular contemporary shows such as Lost, Dexter, and 24, addressing the cultural context that allowed the development of the phenomenon. The contributors investigate the obligations of cult series to their fans, the relationship of camp and cult, the effects of DVD releases and the Internet, and the globalization of cult TV. The Essential Cult TV Reader answers many of the questions surrounding the form while revealing emerging debates on its future.
The Geek Gap is thoroughly original, virtually unique, of paramount importance and, on top of ALL that, a 'great read.' Bill Pfleging and Minda Zetlin deserve a giant 'Hats off' for this wonderful piece of work. --Tom PetersBusiness managers (suits) and technology professionals (geeks) have become warring camps in too many companies. While both groups have no trouble following the lingo of their own specialties, when they have to communicate with each other, neither side fully understands-or wants to understand-the other. And that's a big problem in an increasingly technology-dependent business environment where success depends on the smooth integration of both business savvy and technological expertise.Bill Pfleging-a respected computer and Web consultant-and Minda Zetlin-a veteran business writer-explore, in this insightful, witty, and very instructive book, the culture clash that pervades nearly every business-technology interaction. The Geek Gap provides members of both camps a practical guide to working together effectively. Using many real-world examples, the authors vividly illustrate the consequences in time, money, careers, and even lives when these separate cultures fail to communicate. By far the most serious example was the Challenger space shuttle disaster, which was likely the direct result of an internal clash and lack of communication between NASA's managers and engineers.The authors provide practical solutions for building trust between business and computer professionals. The book is filled with tips aimed at geeks and suits to help each group understand the other, communicate in what amounts to a foreign language, and get what they need to do their jobs effectively. The authors profile companies and individual executives who have successfully bridged the gap by conducting events that bring the two groups together, switching jobs from one area to the other, creating whole new careers as go-betweens, and much, much more.This is the first book to directly address issues of communication and understanding between business and technology people. The Geek Gap-in identifying this problem and providing numerous practical and workable solutions-is an indispensable guide for all.Bill Pfleging (Woodstock, NY) is a computer and Web consultant who writes a regular technology column for the Woodstock Times. With computer experience going back to the early 1970s at IBM, he has also worked for Tripod.com and Lycos Network.Minda Zetlin (Woodstock, NY) is a longtime business writer whose work has appeared in Crain's New York Business, Success!, Management Review, and other publications. She is also the author of Telecommuting for Dummies and co-author of The ASJA Guide to Freelance Writing.
This educational and highly useful book shows the hacker, geek, and maker communities how to bring science into their health and exercise routine to build a healthy lifestyle.
If you're a developer or system administrator lured to Mac OS X because of its Unix roots, you'll quickly discover that performing Unix tasks on a Mac is different than what you're accustomed to. Mac OS X for Unix Geeks serves as a bridge between Apple's Darwin OS and the more traditional Unix systems. This clear, concise guide gives you a tour of Mac OS X's Unix shell in both Leopard and Tiger, and helps you find the facilities that replace or correspond to standard Unix utilities. You'll learn how to perform common Unix tasks in Mac OS X, such as using Directory Services instead of the standard Unix /etc/passwd and /etc/group, and you'll be able to compile code, link to libraries, and port Unix software using either Leopard and Tiger. This book teaches you to: Navigate the Terminal and understand how it differs from an xterm Use Open Directory (LDAP) and NetInfo as well as Directory Services Compile your code with GCC 4 Port Unix programs to Mac OS X with Fink Use MacPorts to install free/open source software Search through metadata with Spotlight's command-line utilities Build the Darwin kernel And there's much more. Mac OS X for Unix Geeks is the ideal survival guide to tame the Unix side of Leopard and Tiger. If you're a Unix geek with an interest in Mac OS X, you'll soon find that this book is invaluable.
And the GEEKS shall inherit the earth! Although it may not be good for their pasty white skin, Geeks these days are enjoying a moment in the sun. From Pop Culture to High-Tech Everything, Geeks rule and everybody else, well, drools. Drawing on his own knowledge of being a geek for almost 30 years, author Alex Langley provides essential advice for growth and survival for the modern Geek, including the top five games to play on your phone while listening to boring graduation speeches. There are also quotes and anecdotes from classic Geek gods such as Bill Gates, Sheldon Cooper, Felicia Day, "Weird" Al Yankovic and Dr. Who, that inspire all geeks to embrace not only your iPhones and Xboxes, but who you are. Let's face it, sometimes being the smartest person in the room isn't enough. And when it's not, The Geek Handbook can help. You'll discover: • Basics on social interaction, both online and off. • Fashion: just because you can wear socks and sandals doesn't mean you should. • Making friends, making dinner, making babies. • Warning signs your appliances might secretly be plotting against you. • Geeky charities that give a +1 to your Light Side score. • Geek girls: tips on interacting with or becoming one of these burgeoning beauties. So get your Geek on, and keep it on with The Geek Handbook.
A young South Yorkshire journalist, Mark Widdowson is sent by his editor to follow a developing story in an ex mining village called Edlington. The woman at the centre of the action is one Jess Jennings, born and bred in the village, a hairdresser and now dubbed revolutionary, agitator, healer, prophet, even guru! Beginning with mild curiosity and leading to near obsession Mark is drawn deeper and deeper into the strange phenomenon that is Jess, a journey that takes him from South Yorkshire to the Peak District, Harrogate, Birmingham, and to a final incredible denouement in the Capital.
