Riba Rambles:
Musings of a Mental Magpie

Posted by Lis Riba at 10:30 AM

The fire that's prevented us from living in our house was one month ago today.

Don't ask how it's going. There's a lot of stress in my life right now and trying to recount it is only going to dredge up issues I'm trying to submerge.

One good piece of news, though:

I managed to score two tickets to the Serenity advance screening in two weeks!!!

Ian and I get to go. I wonder if we'll get any of the cast members or production crew at this showing. [I doubt it, since they came last time, but one can hope.] Just in case, I'm going to bring along printouts of my Firefly DVD proposal to see if we can't make that a reality.

In the meantime, a few good things about staying at this hotel:

1. A whirlpool/hottub (I don't tend to like the jets) which I used this morning while Ian was still asleep. Very nice.
2. The shower has an amazingly good spray, so much so that I may want to buy that model shower head for home. Also nice, no risk of running out of water :)
3. The "continental breakfast" which includes english muffin -sized egg patties, sausages, a waffle machine, and other goodies. And before we leave, I'm going to have to ask after the unbranded "dill egg seasoning" to get some of that.

That is all for now.

Posted by Lis Riba at 11:54 AM

Can anybody point me to some useful comparisons among JPG vs. GIF vs. PNG vs. BMP vs. other graphics formats, ranking them in terms of file-size, resolution-quality, universality (accepted across operating systems), and any other aspects I'm forgetting?

Also, if you do a lot of work with graphics, which formats do you prefer for what and why?

Thanks.

Posted by Lis Riba at 7:25 AM

[I'm sure Ian will post something similar in his journal and in the B0st0n LJ community, also, but may as well get the ball rolling here using the knowledge of my readership. Feel free to spread the word elsewhere if you know of other places that might help.]

Request: we're going to need an upholsterer for Great Aunt Debbie's couches, which are smoke-damaged and dirty. They're forty year old vintage furnishings that will need to be completely re-covered and cleaned (possibly re-stuffed; I don't know enough about these things). A high quality of work is more important than low prices, but inexpensiveness is nice, too.

Can anybody recommend a good upholsterer in the Greater Boston area?

Thanks!

Posted by Lis Riba at 7:21 AM

After going through the house with our adjuster (last week), I realized that we may want to have our refrigerator professionally cleaned before we move back in. Ian seemed confused by this until I reminded him that we still had several leeks in the produce bin.

Ian: Right. I was going to make leek soup.

Me: I think we'll end up with that anyway...

Eww...

Remember, the fire was one month ago tomorrow. Be afraid. Be very afraid...

[I didn't look too closely in the fridge -- I was just trying to estimate the monetary value of the contents. But I just realized that we may have had cooked rice sitting in our rice cooker for the last month as well, because I had stirfry for dinner the hour before the fire... Ugh.]

Posted by Lis Riba at 12:33 AM

So, tonight I left work early for a lecture and signing at MIT by Jorge Cham, creator of the (only known) comic strip about graduate school: Piled Higher and Deeper.

Even though I'll probably never go for a doctorate, I've always identified with the inherent geekiness in the strip, and particularly the character of Cecelia (a female computer geek). She even resembles me physically. [Cham says he gets a lot of letters from male fans of Cecelia who wish to marry her -- sorry, boys, I'm taken!]

Checking my browser, I first bookmarked the comic's website in June 2001, which means I was probably reading it regularly for a while before that. While I was a full-time library school student, I bought the Cecelia "Support your local female geek" babydoll t-shirt (though I no longer feel as comfortable wearing it, since I'm no longer in grad school), and rereading the archives in the books (I now own both, autographed), I realized she dyed her hair blue before I did (though I had forgotten, so it probably wasn't much of an influence).

At any rate, if you don't read the comic, how about a few of my favorite strips (some of which I may have linked to before) to give you a sense -- both of the comic and of me:

Unfortunately, most of my friends who recently earned their PhDs (congrats again to you all) live far enough away that it didn't pay for me to buy extra copies. You can read most of the strips online (including a few extras that don't translate into print, such as MP3 filks, animations, and color) and I recommend it if you haven't already.

BTW, Cham says that his actual thesis involved designing cockroach-inspired robots, and is available here.

And now, I should really go to bed, though there are many other things I'm overdue to blog...

Posted by Lis Riba at 8:50 AM

I hate hotel beds and hotel pillows. In fact, having stayed in four hotel rooms (in three hotels) and as guests at three other houses over the last month, I'm rather tired of all beds and pillows not our own. That is (exhaustedly) all.

Posted by Lis Riba at 7:54 PM

Is the MPAA ruining the movie business?

No, not necessarily the usual diatribe.

The USA Today's review of Kingdom of Heaven concludes:

Of course, if the DVD really runs 80 minutes longer — as Scott has hinted — it'll be a different movie. It makes you wonder if seeing the movie in theaters is beside the point.

Between (1) the increasing growth in home theater systems that rival the movie experience, and (2) directors' cuts and extended DVDs, there's much less point in paying a premium for the movie theater experience. [Particularly considering the decline in that experience over the last decade, between the high prices for tickets and concessions, draconian policies against outside food, and the recent growth in commercials before the films.]I guess that partly explains the growth of the IMAX format for mainstream flicks -- that's one thing home viewers haven't yet managed to replicate...

You know, there's a business plan good for the next five years or so: Small-scale individual theaters!

Get a storefront and divide the space into little shoebox theaters (seating from six- to 20-persons) with home theater equipment. People can bring in their own DVDs and rent the room for several hours to watch shows in the theater environment. Make money from the room rentals and concessions (to a lesser extent, since people could bring outside food).

Locate it in the city near the student neighborhoods, where folks don't have room for large A/V setups in apartments or dorms. I mean, where else do such people go for the big screen experience?

Rentals would probably be hourly (taking both walk-ins and reservations), plus some kind of subscription service. Would have to take credit cards (like video stores do) in case anything gets damaged or disappears. It would be a huge initial investment for all the equipment, and soundproofing might be tricky. But it would be relatively easy to franchise and fit into all kinds of spaces. And I think it would find an audience, at least for a while.

Maybe pair up with local furniture and appliance stores, get a discount on the seats and equipment in return for a little advertising ("Like these couches? They're for sale at..."). It might be a natural to affiliate with a video rental store, but I rather like the idea of steering clear of copyright entanglements by making the customers responsible for that aspect. Would also have to have a policy against people bringing in outside electronic equipment, to further reduce the risk of piracy. Although, a region-free player would be a useful investment.

What circumstances would I use such a service? Because I wanted to see something on the big screen and missed it second run. Because something that didn't play in the theaters (TV, foreign, limited distribution) is worth close scrutiny. Because I'm tired of waiting to see Lawrence of Arabia again. Because they added new footage to the DVD that wasn't in the theatrical release. Maybe host a party there: a custom mini-marathon by series or theme?

Now, I don't have a humongo TV with all the bells and whistles, so it makes more sense that I'd find uses for someplace like this. But even people with home theater setups might not have adequate seating for small parties, and not needing to worry about cleanup before and afterwards would be a further benefit. Private dates, parents with infants, teaching small kids theater etiquette... I can see loads of applications. The facilities could even host small film festivals like Channel Zero or showings by local filmmakers, though that's a bit further from the primary goal (requiring even larger rooms and individual admissions).

Still, it's a cool idea with a lot of potential. I even have a preliminary name which seems to check out in a trademark search. Unfortunately, I'm not in a position to startup such an undertaking. [Any deep pockets want to buy the idea from me? Prospective partners?]

I can't quite picture something like this lasting longterm for two reasons: (1) As the technology becomes cheaper and more ubiquitous, a place like this will be less necessary. (2) I think the entire Hollywood distribution system is overdue for an overhaul, which could squeeze out this kind of thing.

But until then, what does anybody else think of this idea?
If there was one in your neighborhood, would you use it? If so, how? If not, why not?
Is anybody out there already doing something like this?

Posted by Lis Riba at 7:25 PM

I forget whose LiveJournal I found this on, but when I saw the The Google Won't Help Test ("These questions are rather difficult. You will most likely need to use Google to answer them. In fact, for many of these, simply using Google will not help. You need to know how to use Google to answer questions.") I knew I had to try it.

Spent about an hour searching for the answers.

This quiz format is somewhat frustrating. The variable scoring ("Correct answers are worth two points, almost correct answers are worth one point. A few have answers that are so wrong, you will lose a point if you choose it.") means I don't even know how many I got right, much less which ones or what the correct answers are. Which is frustrating, because I have a few questions and quibbles.^*

At any rate, the first time I took it, I spent about an hour searching for the answers, under less-than-optimal conditions, and here's how I did:

Impressive Congratulations! You scored 34!

You are either much smarter than the average genius or you really know how to use Google and other search engines to find out information. Of course, there is the possibility that you just had a lot of lucky guesses, but I won't tell anyone.

Link: The Google Won't Help Test written by tmbrau00 on Ok Cupid

Subsequently, I forgot to save the code and took it a second time from memory. That time I scored three points higher, but I don't know what I did differently.

^* I may contact the quiz author about a few matters.
     [Mild spoilers for several questions (highlight to reveal): a 2005 discovery may supercede the options for #7; I found several different calculations for #21, but none resolved to any of the choices; and #22 completely stumped me, so if anybody else can offer insight, I'd appreciate it.]

Oh, and while I enjoy okcupid quizzes, you may wish to think twice before directly pasting their test results into your blog/journal/site without editing. Because buried within their HTML are several links to okcupid with wording that seems designed to boost their site engine rank. And because the images are hosted on their site, they can use it like SiteMeter to track where they're getting hits from:

<A HREF="http://www.okcupid.com/"><IMG SRC="http://is0.okcupid.com/graphics/0.gif" BORDER="0" ALT="free online dating"/></A>

Sure enough, if you Google on that ALT phrase, they're hit #1. Clever ploy, but I'm not interested in playing that particular game...

Posted by Lis Riba at 7:25 PM

I received the following e-mail recently, in regards to my essay Debunking myths of working motherhood:

Hi Lis,

I'm currently doing some research for a character I am writing: a homemaker in the early 1970s. That's how I googled onto your website. I was fascinated by the "debunking..." piece you wrote. I see also that you are an avid reader and librarian, so I thought you might be able to point me in the direction of helpful reading. I would like to gain some insight into the type of advice women were receiving from "experts" such as doctors, and "common wisdom" re: childrearing ca. 1965 - 1973.

Any advice?

Since others might be interested in this subject, here's my response:

I haven't done much reading about that period (though I recently finished a fascinating book on cooking in the 1950s that may be relevant as background for what your character grew up with: Something from the oven: reinventing dinner in 1950s America by Laura Shapiro)

However, in my searches, I've come across:

For her own good: 150 years of the experts' advice to women by Barbara Ehrenreich.
I haven't read it, but that may cover some of the material you're seeking. I'll point out it was originally published in 1978, so may not have quite the perspective on the early 1970s as something written more recently.

If you're specifically looking for childrearing, there's a recent book Raising America: Experts, Parents, and a Century of Advice About Children by Ann Hulbert which sounds promising.

I did some quick searching for books on childrearing published in the late 60s/early 70s and found two books published in 1974 that might be of use: New Wives' Tales: Conversations With Parents About Today's Pediatrics by Lendon Smith and Doctor Spock's Raising children in a difficult time They're probably out of print, so you may need to check with your local library (or haunt ABEBooks.com).

Otherwise, that period isn't too remote. If you have a convenient public library, reading actual women's magazines from the period can be most useful: both the articles and advertisements really give a strong sense of the time.

Hope this comes in handy. Let me know how it turns out.

That was fun.

If anyone has other recommendations for this person, let me know and I'll pass them along.

Posted by Lis Riba at 7:45 AM

Among the knicknacks in my parents' house when I was growing up was a little set of four transparent plexiglass cubes, each with one of the above symbols printed/etched into it.

It was alledgedly intended as a personality quiz: sort the pieces into the order you like best and an associated booklet explained what the 24 combinations meant. Alternately, you could close your eyes and put them in order randomly for a sense of your "inner" self (I'm not sure what that was supposed to prove, other than how suggestible you are), and the booklet also suggested using them without the meanings for ESP testing.

At any rate, I haven't seen them in years. I don't think my parents still have them (I seem to have inherited many of the other small puzzles that kept this company on the bookshelves, including a Soma cube), but this seems to have vanished.

And darnit, I'm feeling nostalgic for it.

• Does anybody else remember this little thingie?
  • If so, remember what it was called?
• Have you seen anything like it on the web? I mean, if you discount the tactile and aesthetic aspects of the plexiglass cubes themselves, four symbols and 24 interpretations should be easily digitizable.

Well, if anybody runs across them, please let me know.

Speaking of mystical mumbo-jumbo, this week's Free Will Astrology horoscope is up: (emphasis mine)

It's the Fertile Inquiry time of year for you, Cancerian. The more questions you ask yourself, the better you'll feel. Here are a few to get you started. What do you want to be when you grow up? Are you prepared to start nurturing yourself as well as you nurture others? When will you dismantle the barriers within you that prevent those who love you from loving you with all their power? Are you finally ready to act on the understanding that home is not just a building, but a state of mind, and that you need to work harder to foster that state?

That last bit has been difficult. While vacation did provide some emotional closeness (funny how spending time with extended family can make you much more appreciative of the member of that family that you chose), now that we're back in tight quarters, it's getting snappy and tense once again...

Posted by Lis Riba at 11:30 PM

Found this by way of Keith R.A. DeCandido:

Claim Your Old British Man by jgurlpunkrck
Your Name
Your Age
Your Old British Man
You met...	through a clever disguise
The relationship ended...	with your arrest
Quiz created with MemeGen!

Works for me.

Posted by Lis Riba at 6:15 PM

Massachusetts. [Well, technically, it's a Commonwealth.]

Still not home, but we're a lot closer than we've been since Thursday. Staying in a different room in the same hotel as before. My computer is still at home, so I'm using Ian's laptop. While it may be technologically superior, it's not as comfortable as my machine with my sofware and shortcuts and keyboard. So I'm keeping this short.

Ian wrote up his account of the weekend here. My perceptions and things I might like to emphasize differ, but he gives good gist.

And now, back to the house to pick things up and drop things off... Sorry for being so boring. Hopefully I'll have more to write soon (including a review of a new Boston-area Shakespeare production this weekend!)

PS: I'm somewhat upset at having missed my chance for tickets to both Boston-area Serenity pre-screenings. [Couldn't've attended the first one anyway because we were out of town, but it's extremely frustrating not to have the usual always-on connection to stay up-to-date with things.] If anybody can get us two tickets to the next Serenity pre-screening in Boston, I'm willing to beg, borrow or barter (not quite desperate enough to break the law and steal). I really really want to see this, between my love of the show and all the sh!t we've been going through, feel like I deserve something good...