#84: Writer Communities & Author Websites

I must say that I have neverr contacted a favorite author or any author. I have noticed that alot of authors have their websites underneath their photo on the back inside cover or just underneath the breif info. of that peticular author. I have always been satisfied with knowing just that small piece of information about them. If I like their writing then that is all I need to know. The idea of a book being published based on popular vote does not make me have less faith in the material, but does make me question it a bit. If it still sounds interesting to me then by all means I would still read it. I have read books before that many people would tell me how excellent the story was and then when I read it I find it to be very boring. I have also read many books by the same author and have found many of them to be excellent and then some that I can't even finish reading because the story is not holding my interest.

# 83: Paper to Pixels (or e-ink)

I totally prefer paper over pixels. There is just something comforting about have the book in hand while reading a story. I can totally put myself into the book when I am reading it, verse's through some other device. For some reason it just doesn't work for me. I have tried and can never finish reading the entire story. As for, price or availability I would rather wait a little longer for the requested material then to pay more for sooner and I would not pay the same price for a digital book as I would for a paper copy. Once again, it is about having that book in my hand.

I visited iFiction and I do like the idea of previewing before I pay. That way I know if it is something that I would really be interested in or not. I would be more likely to make the purchase knowing that it would be something that I would like to read. BUT...........I still like the real thing, call me old fashion : )

#82: Print on Demand

After visiting the sites I found that some of the books can be cheaper and some are about the same. I liked what Xlibris had to offer especially the "take a look inside". It gave you a sneak preview of the contents of the book. I must say that I have never read any of books from either of the sites and I don't think that I ever would. I say that because my time is linited to how much I can read ever day, therefore I would prefer not taking my chances on something that has not gone through the traditional route of a company's financial backing.

I did enjoy what Lulu had to offer with publishing your own calendars, cookbooks, & photo books. NOW..........that is something that I would like to do. I also, thought that POD (print on demand) would be the way to go cost wise (especiallly if you where just starting out).

#81: Get Out Your Crystal Ball

I don't agree that 3D will be like the switch to color. I personally do not care to wear the glasses and have found that watching something in 3D will cause me to get a severe headache and has also made me nauseated. I do think that the younger generation will adapt to it quickly.

I am not that quick to adapt to some of the new gadgets. A few years back my husband and I purchased our first flat screen HD television and now less then 3 years later we have noticed that there is an imagine that has burned into the screen. It is very annoying when they show a person's face where the image is burned, because it puts a shadow on the persons face. We also own a television (tube television) that is over 20 years old and it still has a crystal clear picture. So, much for new technology :( My favorite new gadget is my DVR, I have only had it now for 5 months and I do not know what I ever did without it : )

# 80: Movies

I have watched an entire film on my computer before, but found that it is not something that I would do again. First of all I find it more comfortable form my sofa and it still allows me to do other things at the same time. Second, of all when I watch a movie I usually have one or more of my family members with me.

I viewed some of the sites for trailers on upcoming film, but I found that I would not use them, simply because my inter-net provider has the trailer viewing on the home page. It is very convenient.

We have satelite television and prefer buying the movies through pay per view. I think the only time that I would use one of these free based services would be to search for movie trailers.

#79: Television

I have never used Hulu.com before, but after watching a couple of my favorite show on it, I became hooked. I must say that I prefer watching them on abc.com only because most of the shows that I watch are on abc. I was able to watch full episodes on both sites.

I have not ever watched a t.v. show on my cell phone only because the phone that I have now is not capable of that. In the future should I purchase such a phone I don't think that it would be something that I would do. Although I do see the advantages of having the option to do so, especially if you are waiting in a doctors office or the bus ride to work. I have never posted video's to a site.

#69 Database Researching

REMINDER: #70 Genealogy is on blog prior to #67.

I used Ancestry.com for my search. The subject that I used was my father-in-law, from when he was in the military. He served in the U.S. World War 11. When he enlisted in the Army he was first stationed at Fort Hayes. It was interesting to find out that prior to his enlistment he was a skilled brick and stone mason, and tile setter. This was a piece of info that I never knew about my father-in-law.