Tangent — Troll of the Century

If you’ve landed here looking for a serious piece, then don’t let that picture above deceive you into thinking this is merely a blog about that gorgeous specimen. Although it’s easy to stare at him without having any thought of politics. Oh, God no, let’s not talk politics while looking at that picture as this would defame his image. So just keep your eyes firmly affixed on my words.

Supposedly Julian Assange of Wikileaks desires open government. Strange way to go about it. Surely there are times in history when unorthodox means are needed to shake up the stagnant status quo, and government does need more transparency. But does Assange really think that exposing the confidential commuinques of governments to this degree is going to accomplish that? If anything, it’s creating an atmosphere of distrust which is certainly not conducive to openness.

Of course there is a theory that this is all a setup, and the information was purposely released in order to manipulate. That’s what my gut is fairly screaming. Plus, this is a much more plausible scenario than some hacker with altruistic intentions. Pardon me while I snort.

But since I cannot be entirely sure of this being a setup, I’m inclined to think he’s a troll. Jimmy Wales’ description of trolls on Wikipedia is apt (emphasis mine):

Trolling is any deliberate and intentional attempt to disrupt the usability of Wikipedia for its editors, administrators, developers, and other people who work to create content for and help run Wikipedia. Trolling is a violation of the implicit rules of Internet social spaces and is often done to inflame or invite conflict. It necessarily involves a value judgment made by one user about the value of another’s contribution. (Because of this it is considered not to be any more useful than the judgment ‘I don’t agree with you’ by many users, who prefer to focus on behaviors instead of on presumed intent). Not to be confused with large warty monsters thought to dwell under bridges, in caves etc.

Trolling is not necessarily the same as vandalism (although vandalism may be used to troll). A vandal may just enjoy defacing a webpage, insulting random users, or spreading some personal views in an inappropriate way. A troll deliberately exploits tendencies of human nature or of an online community to upset people.

There are many types of disruptive users that are not trolls. Reversion warriors, POV warriors, cranks, impolite users, and vocal critics of Wikipedia structures and processes are not necessarily trolls.

The basic mindset of a troll is that they are far more interested in how others react to their edits than in the usual concerns of Wikipedians: accuracy, veracity, comprehensiveness, and overall quality. If a troll gets no response to their spurious edits, then they can hardly be considered a troll at all.

I would bet Julian Assange is feeling mighty fine right now. He’s probably never felt more alive.

And now I must remember the cardinal rule concerning trolls.

December 4, 2010
Categories: Tangents . Tags: , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 7 Comments

Tangent — A Little More About Twitter in the Fine Art of Richard Armitage Watching

I’m not quite sure this is a tangent, since the point is ultimately about Richard Armitage watching, but it feels like a tangent. Hell, this whole blog feels like a tangent. Ahem.

Twitter is a great tool once you get used to it. Yeah, there’s a bunch of bs that goes on there, but it’s one of the quickest ways to find out information; however, you’re at a disadvantage if you’re only using Twitter to well, access your Twitter account. With the advent of Twitter, Facebook, et al, there had to be something on the scene to manage them easily. I use Hootsuite. The best thing about it for me is the ability to see several things at once. I can watch tweets on my account stream and also show streams for searches of which I can make a permanent stream or do one on the fly, like oh let’s say The Rover. Yes, I’ll explain a stream.

Here’s what my Hootsuite Dashboard looks like, and please don’t let it overwhelm you. It’s really a lifesaver, or maybe just a headache saver because you can get lost just navigating your Twitter pages without it.

Click on image to enlarge.

The first stream is my account stream or what I would see on the home page of my Twitter account. The tweets showing on that page are the ones I make and the ones made by people I follow. Since I can see all of their tweets, I know if they say something to me. But not everyone who tweets to me am I following, so for those I have the second stream which shows any tweets that contain @RAFrenzy. The third stream I created to show any ‘Richard Armitage’ or #RichardArmitage comments in someone’s tweet. That pulls in anything anyone says on Twitter that has either of those phrases in it. The second phrase with # sign is referred to as a hashtag. You can create any search you want, and I have several on my ‘Twitter 2nd’ Hootsuite page. It makes things really easy to find. The fourth stream is one of my lists, which are groups of users you can make in lieu of following those users. I made one of media outlets that might have something of interest concerning RA but not necessarily use his name. If I followed all of these, it would clutter up my home stream, and frankly, from time to time I quit following some users and put them on a list. What’s great is that you don’t even have to make your own list. You can follow someone else’s.

Hopefully, you’ll consider doing Twitter and even Hootsuite. Frankly, if you’re going to make the most out of being a ripple in the RA pond, you should. LOL! You just have to ponder it a bit, and there are plenty of us to help if your eyes get glazed over.:D

Just more of my public service to you. ;-)

Screencap courtesy of RichardArmitageNet.Com

P.S. I know there are other tools for managing Twitter. Feel free to share them, and perhaps about accessing from a phone. I just didn’t want to get into that in this post.

November 26, 2010
Categories: Geek, Tangents . Tags: , , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 7 Comments

Tangent — I Love Capitalism

EDIT: If you landed here while in search of an image for “cooked turkey,” AND you like period dramas with good looking Englishmen, then hang around. You can find out here who is in the banner photo. His name is Richard Armitage if you prefer to look him up elsewhere.

I realize that statement about capitalism may be offensive to some, but I’m not saying I love capitalism running amok. There is nothing I love that runs amok much as it may seem by this blog’s premise and demeanor. I love it when someone knows how to take lemons and make lemonade and capitalism often facilitates that. What’s a laugh is when that lemonade is tantamount to giving the finger to someone who needs it. Do I need to explain “the finger” to the foreign readers? I didn’t think so. Perhaps it’s universal, no?

I hope I can endeavor to make lots of lemonade since there are lots of lemons in my life, and I suspect in yours as well. Yes, shit happens, and how well we deal with it is directly proportional to how well we live. Enough of that waxing philosophical, and no, I don’t mean I’m looking for ways to give anyone the finger. To date I have never done that. Seriously, I have never physically done it although I’ve thought about it. Just could never bring myself to do it. If I keep going, I will bore myself, so without further ado, here is what has me laughing and loving it:

Not sure what it is? Well, if you’re an American or you’re coming to visit America, you might want to become familiar.

On a serious note, I’m hacked about the new TSA rules. It’s disturbing what we’re willing to give up. What will next be required of us to maintain our safety?

And these scanners are not even close to foolproof. There will end up being so many exemptions for flyers, that it will be completely pointless except to perhaps let some TSA employees get their jollies. Key word there is some as I know there are TSA employees uncomfortable with the new rules.

If you want more information about that red object, you can check it out here since I’m really trying to keep this site “safe for work”. If you’re squeamish about nudity or near nudity, don’t look. Surely anyone reading this blog is not squeamish about nudity, but if so, you still might want to check it out as that little red object might become your friend.

Oh, and I did tag this post ‘bullshit’. Not because I’m peddling any today, but I think the TSA rules really are bullshit. Well, that and I’m not really sure the pasties are legit. And there will be no tags about you know who or even the mention of his name since this is a bonafide tangent! In lieu of his picture, I bring a turkey:

cooked-turkey-jpg

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, my fellow Americans and anyone else who may want to celebrate!

November 25, 2010
Categories: Tangents . Tags: , , , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 16 Comments

Tangent — Facebook, I Think I May Really Dislike You

Have you heard the news today that Facebook may eventually own the word ‘face’ when it’s used online in chat rooms or forums? Wow. I’m wondering exactly what that means. Sounds like they will have some sway over how the word ‘face’ will be used. Yep, that’s exactly what that means. And I’m sure they will charge for its use in some instances. Are they crazy to push for this word? They are already intensely disliked by many, and now we can’t even use this word without them involved? They need a good ass chewing. Where’s Mike Masnick when I need him?

This begs for the invention of a word to replace ‘face’ or perhaps an emoticon. Something needs to thwart FB. Yep, we need another word for ‘face,’ or the emoticon might be even better. Then someone could trademark it and become mega rich. LOL!

I wonder if FB will get ‘book’ next.

Off to load up Paint app (yes, my graphics editor is crude).

In the meantime, perhaps we will meet ‘headfront’ to ‘headfront’ one day. Yeah, it’s lame, but it’s all I’ve got right now.

Do I need a picture? Oh yeah.

The perfect picture. That one’s for you, Sue. ;-)

Screencap courtesy of RichardArmitageNet.Com

And no tag for Richard Armitage on this one. I’m leaving him out of this mess except I like his picture. :D

edit:

Note to Facebook staff (or action fans): the picture is a joke, but my disenchantment with Facebook is not.

November 24, 2010
Categories: Tangents . Tags: , , , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 17 Comments

Tangent: All About Viggo

Okay, okay, I get it! I’ve just gotten a slew of e-mails from people wanting Viggo links. So here is a link with his art, writing and music, and another with links to links to his CDs. Enjoy!

And of course I must have a picture:

I’m sure this isn’t enough, but it will get you started. LOL!

By the way, ‘Eastern Promises’ was good, but it’s not for the fainthearted.

I hope some of you listened to that interview in the last post. It’s great, and sadly, RA can probably commiserate with him about some of the fans.

October 31, 2010
Categories: Fandom, Tangents, The Hobbit . Tags: , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 2 Comments

Tangent — No More Mushrooms

The days of the masses being in the dark about what is available for television viewing are almost gone in developed countries and maybe in some developing countries also. Well, only if you have a computer or know someone who does. But in the recent past, it was very frustrating to watch shows from other countries on a timely basis. There’s no question if I had relied solely on the television networks in the U.S., I still would not have seen North and South, would have been very difficult to watch Robin Hood or Vicar of Dibley, and certainly difficult to get caught up on Spooks before RA was involved.

It will be interesting to see just how long it does take for some of these shows to reach the U.S. Yeah, I know some of them have, but if you blink, you’ll miss them, and no thanks to BBCA, which is a dog of a station and pretty much considered a joke in the U.S. Why should I pay for almost 24/7 viewing of Cash in the Attic?

I wish the networks would get on the stick or they’re just going to lose more viewers, and oh, they have! However I have a niggling feeling that some of them won’t get on the stick but will instead try to limit the market by seeking government regulation in order to thwart access to such things as BitTorent. Aren’t the cable companies already trying to thwart it? Oh, you’re not sure? Some of you cannot get easy access to BitTorrent because your cable companies make the downloading process excruciatingly slow, and you just thought it was your system. Don’t worry. If they keep that up, they’re just asking for someone to come up with a workaround. LOL!

None of this is to say I’m for ‘Net Neutrality,’ which would be the government owning the backbone of the Net. Please God don’t let that happen! No, there does not need to be one entity in control or the cries really will fall on almost deaf ears.

At least with the current system in the U.S. one network might try to get the jump on the others and offer something the others don’t. YEA! for competition. And as much as I’m ranting here, some of the networks are trying to make progress. It’s just not quickly enough to suit me.

Hope to see many more blog pieces in the future like this one from Australia:

How fast is fast-tracked?

aturner | September 23, 2010

The networks continue to “rush” our favourite US shows to air in Australia.
With the rise of the internet, it’s become harder for local TV networks to treat us like idiots and pretend that old shows are new shows. It’s also become easier for people to download their favourite US and UK shows within hours of them going to air, rather than waiting for local networks to get around to screening them.

As more and more viewers turn to the BitTorrent channel, Australian networks have come up with terms such as “fast-tracked” to convince us that we’re seeing foreign shows as soon as possible. Rather than waiting months or even years for new shows, now it’s more like days or weeks. Unfortunately the networks struggle to deliver on such promises.

Read the rest here.

Don’t those people from “Big Bang Theory” look like they’re having fun? I guess you wouldn’t know if they really are if you’ve never seen it. Heh.

September 24, 2010
Categories: Geek, Tangents . Tags: , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 9 Comments

Tangent — Sassy Librarians

sassy librarianI’m always surfing around for ideas, and I have a blast doing it. I run across all kinds of interesting things of which most will never see the light of day on this blog. But some demand I give them attention. So I can’t ignore any longer what I’ve come across almost daily for years — a set of people who have me curious about how they really are face to face. On the Net they’re pretty up front. Demuring is not their thing, and there’s a downright fiery nature about some of them. To the point that I’ve found myself asking: where did all these sassy librarians come from? Have librarians always been this way and I had them in a boring box but didn’t realize it? If so, my humble apology.

Even if I did pigeon hole them, I’ve almost always had a fondness for librarians. It started when I was ten years old. My friend, Debbie and I used to venture out on our bikes every Saturday morning to parts unknown — meaning we never knew where we were going to end up. One Saturday we ended up at the library, and this was not a common occurrence for me since I hated to sit still long enough to read a book. To go to the place that was teeming with them? No, I rarely darkened their doors unless my mother dragged me there.

That particular morning I was on a mission to read something about Fred Demara. Unfortunately, the library had no books about him, and I was about to leave when a lady asked me if I needed help. She had such a sweet face, and yes, she wore glasses. I was reluctant because the library ladies represented confinement to me. If she was going to help me find a book, certainly it was going to be something dull and dry, and I would have to endure it whereas I was on a lark to find out about The Great Impostor. But being respectful, I answered her question truthfully. She looked again in the card catalogue as I had done, and I remember wondering why she had to do what I had just done. I know now that all librarians do their thinking and everyone else’s too. I was pleased when she hit a wall as I had.

Then she pulled a rabbit out of a hat and said, “Maybe you could read a magazine article about him.” Wait! I didn’t have to read a book to find out about him? Hmmm, this was sounding good. Then she threw water on it by saying, “Or perhaps you could borrow a book through Interlibrary Loan.” Huh? No, the magazine was proffered, and I jumped on the suggestion. Besides I didn’t know what Interlibrary Loan was, and it sounded scary.

It was a little disappointing when she led me over to a shelf full of some of the dullest looking books in the reference section, and that’s saying something since almost every book in the reference section was dull looking. Dang! I knew I was going to have to read a book. She laid one of the dark green books open and began to explain how to use The Readers’ Guide to Periodical Literature. It surely didn’t sound like anything about magazines, and if a librarian hadn’t shown me those books, I doubt I ever would have opened one. Little did I know at the time this was going to be a pivotal event in my life. Although I was aware it was an epiphany even if I didn’t know the word epiphany yet. When I realized I could look up almost anything in those books and get not a book but a magazine to read, my heart could barely stand it. Fred Demara was just the beginning!

I’m sorry to say I don’t remember that woman’s name. She was not at that library on a regular basis but was a floater. I found this out the next time I went to the library, and I was so bummed. I think she was at that branch perhaps one other time when I was there. But I never got to talk to her again. Lately I’ve been wondering if she was as sassy as some of these others I’ve encountered. Was she as intrigued by Fred Demara as I was? What happened when she left the library at night? If I were a writer, I would write a story about that.

Whatever she did, surely all of that information in her head and passion to share it went somewhere besides helping people find books and periodicals to read. Surely. And now I know it did.

Below are just a handful of the many librarians I’ve run across in my travels around the Net, and if any of them come around here to look, yes, I’m a subscriber to your blog.

Stiletto Storytime — Courtney makes it sound very hip to be a librarian. By the way, she has a book on her 2010 reading list, “Recent Reads,” that you will find of interest. I think she’s one of us. :D

Lipstick Librarian — Diary of a Library Fashionista — Librarian angst with humor which is definitely designed to take the mickey out of the rest of us who aren’t librarians. Enter at your own risk.

Librarians are Weird — No argument there, but I’ve always liked weird people.

Laughing Librarian — Home of the Zen Librarian. Aren’t they all a bit Zen?

Free Range Librarian — They let her out of Georgia. I would explain. Just read the blog.

Low Rider Librarian — Max is on a mission.

Warrior Librarian — What it says on the tin.

Meg Wood — One of the sassiest of them all, and I’m sure I’m not the first to say that. Some of you may recognize her name from “Boyfriend of the Week” fame, and yes, before you ask, RA made the list, and he had one of the highest scores ever. Did you doubt it? The real question is when is he going to make the list again? All I know is that he better make the list again if he actually comes to America. Meg owes us that. ;-)

Our own Phylly3 — what can I say? I’ve already made it plain how much I think of Phylly with my Do Wah Diddy Diddy award.

One more:

Under the Mad Hat The Madhatter doesn’t blog there much anymore. She’s started a Children’s book blog. You can check that out for yourself if you like. But what’s left of this blog is well worth reading, so here it is on my list! Maybe a little traffic over there might cure her ennui and get her to write again. I know I would love to see that, and I hope she still has some of those hundreds of posts she removed.

Oh, and as I was surfing around trying to find a free picture of a librarian with glasses (see the one above), I ran across this —–>

Is he cute or what? No, he’s not a librarian, but if he had been when I was single, I would have tried to live at the library.

And to be fair to him since we’re ogling his picture, here’s his website. The link to the blog entry with him in glasses is here. His blog has absolutely nothing to do with librarians or RA so this is a bona fide tangent. I just thought you might appreciate an attractive picture, and yes, he looks like someone famous. It should be pretty obvious amongst this crowd, so I’m going to be shocked if someone doesn’t jump up and say it quickly. I mean these guys look like they were separated at birth. Bet people tell him he looks like, uh, that other guy.

While I was on his site, I actually read several blog pieces and downloaded a book called Thrivability, which I’m currently reading. It’s found here. I also went on to download the book that inspired Thrivability. Its called What Matters Now, and it’s found here. See I can really go on a tangent. I was just messing around until now, and hey, I figured since this is a piece about librarians, I should at least read a book or two while I’m at it. Plus, most librarians I know love segues, so they ought to love this post.

And if Leif ever comes over to read this piece, yes, I’ve read the Utne Reader, and read it when you were probably too young to write for it. Uh oh, did I just give something away?

August 18, 2010
Categories: Tangents . Tags: , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 18 Comments

Chillin’

So I had to take another breather from all that’s RA. Actually, I couldn’t completely take a breather. I’ve just been reading and not talking so much about RA. Poor guy what would he do if I didn’t bring my nonsense to cyberspace? Probably be a lot better off, but I wouldn’t have nearly so much fun.

I’m going to tag this post a tangent, but I can’t bring myself to put tangent in the title, ’cause the word implies chaos, and I’m not feeling the least bit chaotic right now. Usually, I can’t sit still. Toes are tapping, fingers thrumming, or teeth clicking all the time. It’s a little bit of the curse from ADHD, but I refuse to take medication, and NO, I’m not saying others shouldn’t take medication.

Thankfully, I have relaxed for a few days, which is something I don’t do very often. It’s been pretty quiet around my house, and that’s probably because my kids are all gone somewhere, SO is very busy with other things, and NO ONE has come to my front door in almost a week. I guess everyone in town who might come to my door is on vacation. Yea! for vacations. :D Despite how it sounds in this post, I really do love people. They fascinate me and always have, and probably always will. But sometimes I need a break from all that goodness.

So I’ve been listening to some “new” music a friend sent me. I cannot believe I never bought these songs on CD, but I have them now! And they’re still good and oh so easy to chill to:

This next one is one of my favorite songs of all time. I have it on vinyl but why I never bought it on CD I don’t know.

Maybe in a day or two (or maybe in a few hours) I’ll be back waxing on and on and on about Richard Armitage. This is probably just the calm before the storm.

Hope you all are having a great week!

Screencap courtesy of RichardArmitageNet.com

August 13, 2010
Categories: Musicilove, Tangents . Tags: , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 9 Comments

Tangent — Facebook, Facebook, Facebook, What am I going to do with you?

I guess I should have made a Facebook page before this week. My hit count has gone up quite a bit from that link! So welcome to all of you who have come here from Facebook. I love you! It’s just Facebook that doesn’t thrill me. It’s a pain in the ass to get around on, and they (the guys who run that place) make the functions one way. There is no back out plan on some things unless you’re technical and have a crystal ball or you’re a bulldog. I’m technical but don’t have a crystal ball; however, I am a bulldog. Even though this is what you have to be if you’re going to run a “page” on FB, I hesitate to go into that mode. But for RA and all of you, it’s worth it. Hope you enjoy the blog. :D

Hmm. I almost hate to associate RA’s picture with Facebook, but I did post his picture over there several times now, and this is really in honor of all of you. So I’ll post one that some of you might not have seen. OH, and since snaffling seems to be the order of the week ;-), I snaffled this one from Mulubinba. Over here. Be sure to thank her! and frankly, she has a wonderful blog that’s thoughtful on several levels. Definitely one of my favorites.

I also need to say thanks to WordPress or whomever it was that wouldn’t allow me to embed that Strike Back Viral video on my first attempt. Yes, good can come out of bad. I’ve always known that, but Facebook had me doubting it.

edit:

I’ve added snaffle to the lexicon. I didn’t learn it from the RA fandom but would have never used it in a sentence if not for the British ladies I now interact with on a frequent basis. The context in this blog entry makes the meaning pretty plain, but hey, you need to read the lexicon if you haven’t already.

MC864RTMW5AG

July 24, 2010
Categories: Fandom, Strike Back, Tangents, Vicar of Dibley . Tags: , , , , , , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 7 Comments

Got Your Sunshine Award

I’ve received a few awards in my life, but never one that made me smile so much. I’m a bit humbled that anyone would give me an award for all of my nonsense, but I’m glad to know I could make someone smile. It’s wonderful there is something redeeming about being snarky and talking about Richard Armitage incessantly. A big thank you to That Fond Impossibility for the Sunshine Award. I’ll wear it with pride. And we’ll have to keep a close eye on you as I think you might be a candidate for The Addict List.

Now to bestow this on someone. I assume the Sunshine Award is about making people smile, and if I’m wrong, well, the award I’m giving is about smiling. I thought of several bloggers immediately. I understand from somewhere (I’m sorry I don’t remember exactly where) that I can give it to three bloggers. If I’m wrong about that too, well, does it matter? I’m giving it to three bloggers:

Reforming Geek I’ve read this blog for quite a long time. It always makes me smile and yes, I feel a bit of sunshine reading it and for awhile after I’m done. I have never commented over there but will today when I make this “presentation.” It will be interesting when she comes over here to find out who I am and realizes we are a bunch of nuts. But hey, we’re happy nuts, and she might enjoy the wallpaper, and maybe we can get her to watch Vicar of Dibley (see below).

Armitage Fan Blog Of course I have to give this to Nat. If there was ever anyone who deserved the Sunshine Award, it’s her. I don’t even care if she’s already gotten one. She deserves another one! Plus, the anniversary of her blog is upon us, so she REALLY deserves one for making so many of us smile for so long. Thank you, Nat.

and last but not least:

reviewerama I have missed her! So in honor of our Ragtag returning to the blogosphere, I have to give her one. Well that, and I always get a smile when I read her stuff. Still think she should be writing for a living. Welcome back, Ragtag!

Yes, the entire episode is back on YouTube. :D

July 23, 2010
Categories: Tangents . Tags: , , , . Author: RAFrenzy . Comments: 11 Comments

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