The Pixel Gravity crew are interested in astronomical phenomena outside the computer as well as creating simulations to run. Check out some of our videos on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUuR-HOxFwQ&feature=g-upl
This one gives you the entire Transit of Venus of 2012 in just ten seconds. Have a look!
As exemplified by Thursday evening’s brief exposure to the timesense-warping effects of Triskaidekaphobicon, clearly the theory of attending BayCon is direct and clear, albeit a little boring, while the practice thereof is circuitous and exciting. Here we will continue our study of these contrasts by once more comparing plans and realities with a half-day experience on Opening Day:
| Time Frame | What the Plan was | What really happened |
| Friday afternoon | Arrive early, go to opening ceremonies, then “Irreproducible Results” panel, then to a reading by Lois McMaster Bujold. | Just couldn’t get out the door. Forgot reading glasses, then key, then left door slightly ajar while trying to find my sunglasses (for driving), then became convinced (older/medical-issues) cat had sneaked out, so searched out front and called out back and looked under furniture. Finally discovered cat hunkered down behind a chair.Arrived halfway through Irreproducible Results panel, but got a front-row seat & enjoyed panel, from nuts and bolts revelations such as that the staff of JIR are unpaid to the audience teaching JIR’s editor the song “There’s a Hole in My Bucket” and locating for him several online sources for flexible rubber with which to make graph paper.
I took a quick look at the Art Show, where they were nice enough to take care of my bag for me. Theresa Mather‘s dragons were there. Which one is it that I bought for Tirion? I wondered, Should I bid on one of these dragon-butterfly prints? I decided to come back later and sign up as a bidder. All of the cat-oriented artwork reminded me that I was worried about my cat (not to bore anyone with a pet’s medical issues, but no-one was home to check on Manta that day), but didn’t want to miss the reading. So stayed put for that. Bujold read a piece she doesn’t really plan to publish at present, a work-in-progress that may or may not become part of something, but it’s a “Miles” story, so she knew it would please her fans. The humor bits got big laughs. And she was good about doing a little Q&A while waiting for late-comers to arrive. Turns out that one intellectual goal for “Curse of Chalion” was to work out a society in which religion had a basis in physical reality. By then, it was after five, but decided to drive home to check on the cat –through Memorial-day weekend traffic. The freeway was a parking lot from San Thomas Expressway to, probably, LA. So, enjoyed elaborately costumed Fanime fans thronging streets of downtown San Jose on the unfreeway route home. Made pretty good time, actually. Oh, yes, and the cat was fine. Time for a quick freezer-cleanup dinner and half an episode of “Castle” before evening sessions. |
| Friday evening | Find out what a “boffer weapon” is and make one in the new DIY Room. Then go upstairs and learn some Regency dancing. Maybe get in to panel on talking to people. | Boffer-making was not in the DIY room. I had to go alllll the way to the “Ballroom” and creep past the big room where they were having the “meet the guests” reception. Way too scary in there. In the farthest room, kids were whapping each other with foam objects. Aha, that’s boffing.
But no one was making weapons.Wandered about. Became “brave” and strolled nonchalantly through the reception. Darn, there had been food. Extroverts were happily chatting each other up. Wandered back to boffers room to watch the swordplay. Maybe the “make your weapon” thing is over? I wondered. The program said they started at 6 and it was already nearly 8. Suddenly, someone called out, “Who wants to make a weapon?” Apparently, I had arrived at exactly the right time. Two hours later, I was working on the trickiest duct-taping tasks on three swords at once, after two teen sisters frantically realized they must dash off to what they described as “Mom’s Concert” and begged for coverage while they were away. Another hour later, and they were back in time for adding the blade tape and the final decorations. Clever girls. So finally 11:30 rolled around and I had myself a lovely PVC and pipe-insulation and duct-tape sword. But not prepared to wield it yet–too exhausted. Parked my sword in the car and wandered about a bit. Regency dancing was already up to a lesson on the Congress of Vienna waltz, which I can’t do with my broken shoulder yet, and which they use as the final dance. Oh, well. Time to go home. Big plans for tomorrow. |
There are anime fans at BayCon, too.
Have I got a game for you! You will master the ultimate algorithm, the one that conceals from you the books you love, the writers you want to see more from. This is your day, the day you will take command of the Amazon algorithm and make it do your bidding, release it from its subservience to major publishers and fake reviews, and bring unto yourself all the glory of the liberator.
Your secret weapon? The review.
If you want your favorite writers to succeed, by bringing their stories, information, or artistry (yes–graphic novels are books) to more readers, they need reviews.
Have you noticed, if you search for a book a friend has told you about, but it wasn’t a best-seller, that you had to work hard to find it? That’s because your friend’s recommended book didn’t have enough reviews. Amazon doesn’t like books without a lot of reviews. The great god Bezos promotes only those with at least a couple of dozen reviews. (The true trigger value is a secret, but statisticians tell us that roughly 25 is absolutely necessary to make it into search.) So tell your friend to write a review. Write one yourself.
It’s not hard.
Here are some qualifying reviews:
“I read this book. It was nice. It had characters in it and I liked some of them.”
“This is a useful book with information in it.”
“Shipped quickly and arrived in good condition.”
I know. Really? Really.
Algorithms do not care if you, the reviewer, have the time and energy to craft a New York Times Book Section Review. Besides, if you did that, the paper should pay you, right?
Are you shy? (I am, so I understand.) Did you know that in your Amazon settings you can give yourself a reviewer pseudonym? There’s a little Edit button right next to your name at the top of the review page.
Now that you’re ready, start with the easiest gift you can give that writer you like. Post a quick note that you read the book, you liked it (and no, you don’t have to give it five stars, but, please, don’t take off stars if the site you’re posting to had trouble shipping it or the bookseller sent a copy that wasn’t quite whole–that’s a job for the complaints desk, not the review box).
That gets you to Level 1 of Review, The Game. <Sparkling fireworks appear>
Wanna go to Level 2?
Help out your fellow readers. What will they enjoy when they try this book? Add a few sentences to your review to let others know what it was you liked and to give some hints about the content. Is it a wild, exciting adventure tale? A romance that made you cry? A self-help book that made a difference in your life? For fiction, if you’re going to reveal plot points, your fellow readers ask that you put such reveals below a simple message, “Spoiler Alert.” It’s OK to share spoilers, just let the sensitive ones know it’s time to skip.
This kind of review may end up being a paragraph or an essay, whatever you want.
Bing! You’ve achieved Level 2! Congratulations!!! <Shower of fluttery butterfly confetti>
OK, grab a fresh cup of whatever. You’re going to level up again. You’re hooked on this game, now, right?
This level’s easy. You’ve already written your review. Now, spread it around. Amazon isn’t the only place you go for books, right? Go to Barnes and Noble, find the book there, and post the same review. If you bought on Smashwords, do the same there (they want reviews only from their own buyers, but the price points are great if you like digital.)
Visit Rakuten Kobo and connect with the international market! Did you know there’s a “Write a Review” button on Google Books? Have you an account on any other bookstore sites, like indigo.ca? You own your review; you can post it wherever you like–on your blog, or your Facebook page, or your Twitter feed, even.
DingDingDingDingDing! Level 3 Mastered. <Cascade of shiny shimmeryjewel-toned sprites>
Relax. You got this.
Go to Goodreads. If you are not already a member, now’s the time to find all the friends you never knew you had. Let yourself roam the stacks, build your virtual pile of books you have read, that you plan to read, that you’re currently reading. Once you come up for air, find the book you’re reviewing, and drop that commentary here. You have found your most appreciative audience. Note that on Goodreads, you can make your fav writer happy by just putting their book on your to-read list.
You are home. Stir yourself up a lovely cup of hot cocoa.
Bask in the warmth of Level 4. You have achieved nirvana. You no longer need . . .
Sure you do. <Tremendous fanfare of victory! Coruscating fusillade of fireworks! Thundering drumrolls! Rainbow confetti made of actual rainbows!>
Across your game screen, the following banner floats, surrounded by pink and purple and gold hearts and stars:
“Your Writers Love You Soooooo Much“
They really do.
Now, go read another book.
Oh, if by some chance it’s my book you’re thinking of reviewing, here are the links to go straight to the places I mentioned above:
Amazon (This takes you directly to the review form.)
Barnes and Noble (Scroll down until you see the Customer Reviews section, then click to add yours.)
Smashwords: (Smashwords wants you to purchase the book there. Scroll down to the review section to add a review.)
Rakuten Kobo (Just page down a bit to the Write Your Review button.)
Google (Yes, a direct link to the review form.)
Are you in Canada? Then you know indigo books! Have an account on indigo.ca? (Look for “Write a Review” button just below the book specs.)
Êtes-vous en France? Mon livre est sur amazon.fr. (Partagez votre opinion avec les autres clients. Écrire un commentaire client.)
And, of course:
See you on Goodreads! (This is a direct link to the review form.)
Here is some feedback from the game. I kept score of Layin’ Pipe when they batted. Susan, the acting manager, kept score of the Aeromen and has the batting stats. The game was played on Field 5 so we expected a low scoring affair. The Aeromen led the entire game for a efficient and satisfying 5-3 playoff victory. A blend of 7 veteran (i.e. older) Aeromen and 4 younger so-called “Other” players (Jose, Nick, Ulongo(?), and Mandy) provided the winning lineup. It was a fast paced win taking only 55 minutes.
Everyone contributed to the win. Alan (P) pitched a gem. He gave up only 2 earned runs. After the 4th hitter in the 1st inning, he retired the next 10 in a row. He only gave up 8 hits and only an one extra base hit, a double. Charlie (C) was his supporting battery mate. The defense was almost flawless. There were 14 fly outs and 7 ground outs. In the outfield, Antonio (LC) had 5 putouts, Ty (LF) 3, and Jim (RC) 1. In the infield, Jason (SS) was busy with 6 assists and 4 putouts, and Mike (3B) had an assist and a putout. He had the most creative play of the night when he dove to his left to snare a one-hop line drive, got to his knees, and shot put the ball to Ulongo for a force out at second base.
I asked our fans —OK, really our fan— to respond to such an artful win by the Aeromen. Vanessa stated matter-of-factly, “Isn’t that the way they’re suppose to play!”
That’s why we love the Aeromen Nation.
Next week we progress to Round 2 game, and with a win, to the Championship game. The Round 2 game is against New Market Mallers, who are 1st seed and had a bye.
Think: Aeromen are the Champions
(Note: Detailed coverage of the Aeromen will occasionally appear in these pages. Guest authors retain copyright. Less-detailed game reports can be found on the team’s Facebook page.)
© 2012-2026 Vanessa MacLaren-Wray All Rights Reserved