Making Friends - 07/Jun/2012
Before Spring, 2008, UK.
Not one of Brains (he guessed he'd call himself 'Brian' for this) better skills. Making friends.  Best to take the problem seriously.
Three lists.  3Ws: "Who", "When" and "Where".  He already knew "Why", and he thought he knew "What" a friend was, so he wouldn't bother with those.
A hour later he admitted defeat.
His local friends were Mrs Jones at the local shop cum post office, and...  That was about it.  She would always find time to talk to him.  When he went out for his doctor-mandated exercise there were various dog walkers, and people working on their gardens.  Most were polite and he nodded to or greeted them in return. A few were obviously affected by his wheelchair invisibility field.  He didn't think his custom "Vote for Dan Dare!"[1] poster, on the back, would offend that many.
The other place he met people face-to-face was at conventions.  He'd been 'Brains' there for years, ever since that fortuitous spelling mistake in 'Brian S'.  The miniatures war-gamers were about as tolerant of him as the SF fans, but he hadn't bothered with media fandom since the con where they pestered him to cos-play Davros.  Doctor Strangelove would have been much more fun, even if he couldn't stand up from his chair; it fitted more with his anti-war views.
While he'd like to count people on-line he wondered if that was OK.  He was on quite a few forums under different names.  He'd once had a memorable flame war with himself - both viewpoints seemed to make so much sense.  He'd tried the MMOs, 'Sims Online', and finally 'Second Life'.  The MMOs didn't really work for him, and 'Second Life' he dumped after two weeks of 14hr days and developing pressure sores.  His doctor had been very polite about that, something which still made him wince.  Yes, doctors and other professionals - he couldn't really count them.
He guessed his agent was sort of a friend.  He handled the agencies and employers that his programming and engineering design work involved.  Even, once he found out about it, the bigger miniatures painting and diorama jobs - he'd done some painting himself, when younger.  Most employers cared more about his work than anything else, but he'd dropped one who kept sending him literature about disablement, and hinting he was good for their diversity image.
But, none of those were people he'd be able to depend on, if he went and lived on the Moon.  Though he'd still be able to commute to attend cons, and the light-speed lag wasn't going to stop him using forums.  Looked like he'd have to 'wave' friends hello, rather than wave them goodbye.
The question was, who?
Robots would likely be less inconvenienced, not needing to breathe or eat.  "Mighty Atom" ("Astro Boy" to Westerners) would be loyal and brave.  But, would be always rushing off to adventure?  Maybe his sister, "Uran"[2] ("Astro Girl"), would be a better bet.
"Robert the Robot" of "Fireball XL5"[3] might make a good co-pilot; he could rename him "Gerry".  And, if he dared, a robot version of XL5's "Doctor Venus" could see to his health needs.  He did have a weakness for French accents, and, being his doctor would help keep a professional distance; 'Space Medicine' could be useful.  Maybe base her on an independent android from ST-TOS "I, Mudd"[4], with a upgraded brain, so she has the full mind of Doctor Venus.
If he did it right then the robots could keep backups of their minds, ready to restore them if they got really badly damaged.  He couldn't see a way to take a backup of his mind, though.  Not without a 'destructive read'.  And, he wasn't prepared to commit suicide, any time soon.  Still, backups were good.
Some greenery would help him keep sane, so maybe he needed a robot gardener? Using one of the "Laputa"[5] ones would be a bit cliched, not to mention dangerous. Still, the idea of a retired war bot was tempting, though DBZ's "Android 18"[6] would be asking for trouble.  Hmm.  Best shelve that for the moment.
Wait.  He'd just make a swarm of robot ants and bees that'd do the job.  And a hive to supervise them.  Hive Mind...  Maybe not.
Time to see what material's he'd need.  While he could probably buy a full-sized Uran doll, he'd prefer to make his own.  Building human-scale models would be new for him; the most he'd done before was make cos-play costumes.  There was a model supplies dealer that could get him some damaged-in-manufacture sex dolls - useful for reference, if nothing else.
Back to the anatomy books.  He wished he was better than a hack artist...
--
"It is the business of the future to be dangerous" - Hawkwind

Moon Land - 06/Jun/2012
Before Spring, 2008, UK.
Did anyone care you owned land on the Moon?  Before 2007, maybe not.  These days lawyers were salivating.
Brains had got the first certificate as a Christmas present[1].  His elder brother has always thought his SF fandom amusing, and likely this was a fun way to poke him.  But, it got him thinking.
All the land for sale was on the Earth-locked side of the Moon, presumably so people could point at the bit they owned.  Brian, as he called himself then, thought the privacy of the Far Side looked attractive.  It was certainly the place to do things like radio astronomy from, though that wasn't really one of his hobbies.
A little investigation and he owned a good chunk of a nice crater on the Far Side[2], for only a few hundred pounds.  The recent inheritance from his father's death covered that.  He didn't bother telling what was left of the Family, his brother's family and a few distant cousins, how he'd 'wasted' family money.  He now owned a bit of the Solar System, and had certificates to prove it.
Living on the Moon seemed a good idea.  Earth didn't hold much of interest for him, these days.  And he'd always loved the idea of robots and space travel, from a young age.  His brother would have trouble hiring people to 'check up' on him there.  On the other hand, no National Health Service[3] on the Moon, and he did need regular check-ups.  Loosing the dower house would be really bad, too.  Just in case he needed to come back.
And, he wasn't a complete fool.  He'd read enough human sciences to know living alone could really mess you up.  The voices he sometimes heard, in his head, were annoying and mostly ignorable.  What if he had to do what they said?
He needed advice.  And, he really didn't like where he thought he'd need to get it from.
"Emily, I need you."  ("Not quite 'Mr Smith, I need you'[4][5]", snarked his mind.)
Reaching up, from sitting in a wheelchair, and touching a Victorian picture on the wall was probably not how most people thought to get help.  But, that picture scared Brains far more than anything in quite a few miles radius.  And that included exploratory surgery.
Colour faded from the room, as everything went sepia.  There was a woman, cradling a cloth cat in her arms, in front of Brains.  Suddenly he realised he was now four foot away from the wall.  His arms ached.
"Good timing.  I wondered when you'd ask for help.  If you're interested I've been entertaining myself in virtual worlds, like 'Second Life', and 'Eve Online'.  The politics can be quite predictable."
She waited, politely, for Brains to gather himself.
"How do I move out of here?  You imply you know what I've been doing.  How do I move to a house, make a home, on the Moon, while staying at least as physically and mentally fit and healthy as I am now?"
Brains mentally crossed his fingers, as this was at least as risky as asking a genie to grant a wish.
Seeing as the Singularity hadn't arrived shortly after Emily had first appeared he had to assume that she was a 'Friendly AI'[6], at least as benevolent as Lisa in the film "Weird Science".  He'd always liked the way that Lisa had answered the boys wishes, for popularity and girlfriends, stated before she even existed.  The fact that she'd done a Pygmalion[7] on them in the process was something he guessed that he'd unconsciously hoped for himself, when summoning Emily.
He had to assume that if she was a superhuman AI then she's one who thought the rapid arrival of Vinge's Singularity[8] was worse for humanity than the current situation.  The way handwavium worked made him pretty sure, to, that it was in some way benevolently intelligent.  Though it seemed to have a Puckish sense of humour.
He didn't believe anything she'd done was 'magic', or psionics.  Or even direct reality manipulation.  She wouldn't even have needed to use nanotechnology.  Even he could see more than one possible way using SF technology.  Clarke's Third Law certainly applied, "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic".
He waited for her response.  None of his logic had changed since he planned his first bootstrap attempt.  Yet she still scared him near his wit's end.
"You need to re-invent yourself.  I know you say you despise cos-play.  But you're clever enough to make something you can live with.  I don't think you'd make a good Sailor Bubba.  As for being isolated, if you can't find existing people you can live with, then you'll have to 'make friends'."
She smiled a little.
"I don't think you've any need for Bagpuss at the moment.  Would you mind if I had some tea?  And maybe some of those nice biscuits you got from Mrs Jones, down at the village shop?"
And, they sat and talked.  And occasionally laughed.  Until the early hours of the next morning.
--
"It is the business of the future to be dangerous" - Hawkwind

And, ultimately, this will become the build for Lady-Iron.
Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.956
http://www.cohplanner.com/
Click this DataLink to open the build!
Sample TW-WP Toon: Level 50 Natural Brute
Primary Power Set: Titan Weapons
Secondary Power Set: Willpower
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Fighting
Power Pool: Leadership
Ancillary Pool: Energy Mastery
Hero Profile:
Level 1: Defensive Sweep

• (A) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge
  
• (36) Obliteration - Damage
  
• (37) Obliteration - Chance for Smashing Damage
  
• (43) Obliteration - Accuracy/Recharge
  
• (43) Obliteration - Damage/Recharge
  
• (45) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
  

• (A) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance
  
• (3) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Recharge
  
• (3) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
  
• (5) Resist Damage IO
  
• (5) Steadfast Protection - Resistance/+Def 3%
  

• (A) Titanium Coating - Resistance/Endurance
  
• (7) Titanium Coating - Resistance/Endurance/Recharge
  
• (7) Titanium Coating - Resistance
  

• (A) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge
  
• (37) Obliteration - Chance for Smashing Damage
  
• (37) Obliteration - Damage
  
• (40) Obliteration - Accuracy/Recharge
  
• (46) Obliteration - Damage/Recharge
  
• (46) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
  

• (A) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance
  
• (9) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Recharge
  
• (9) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
  

• (A) Mako's Bite - Accuracy/Damage
  
• (15) Mako's Bite - Damage/Endurance
  
• (34) Mako's Bite - Damage/Recharge
  
• (36) Mako's Bite - Accuracy/Endurance/Recharge
  

• (A) Rectified Reticle - To Hit Buff
  
• (36) Rectified Reticle - To Hit Buff/Recharge
  

• (A) Winter's Gift - Slow Resistance (20%)
  

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed
  
• (19) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
  
• (19) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Recharge
  
• (21) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
  

• (A) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance
  
• (21) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Recharge
  
• (23) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
  

• (A) Superior Brute's Fury - Damage/Recharge
  
• (27) Superior Brute's Fury - Accuracy/Damage
  
• (27) Superior Brute's Fury - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
  
• (31) Superior Brute's Fury - Accuracy/Endurance/Recharge
  
• (39) Superior Brute's Fury - Recharge/Fury Bonus
  
• (40) Superior Brute's Fury - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge
  

• (A) Performance Shifter - EndMod
  
• (23) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Recharge
  
• (25) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Accuracy/Recharge
  
• (25) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Accuracy
  

• (A) Accuracy IO
  

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed
  
• (40) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Recharge
  
• (42) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
  
• (43) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
  

• (A) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge
  
• (31) Obliteration - Chance for Smashing Damage
  
• (34) Obliteration - Damage
  
• (34) Obliteration - Accuracy/Recharge
  
• (48) Obliteration - Damage/Recharge
  
• (48) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
  

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed
  
• (29) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Recharge
  
• (29) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
  
• (31) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
  

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed
  

• (A) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge
  
• (33) Obliteration - Chance for Smashing Damage
  
• (33) Obliteration - Damage
  
• (33) Obliteration - Accuracy/Recharge
  
• (46) Obliteration - Damage/Recharge
  
• (48) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
  

• (A) Recharge Reduction IO
  

• (A) Titanium Coating - Resistance/Endurance
  
• (39) Titanium Coating - Endurance
  
• (39) Titanium Coating - Resistance/Recharge
  
• (42) Titanium Coating - Resistance/Endurance/Recharge
  
• (42) Titanium Coating - Resistance
  

• (A) Resist Damage IO
  

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
  
• (45) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed
  
• (45) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
  

• (A) Performance Shifter - Chance for +End
  

• (A) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance
  
• (50) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
  
• (50) Performance Shifter - Chance for +End
  
• (50) Performance Shifter - EndMod
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Numina's Convalescence - +Regeneration/+Recovery
  
• (11) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
  
• (11) Miracle - +Recovery
  
• (13) Miracle - Heal
  
• (13) Regenerative Tissue - +Regeneration
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Efficacy Adaptor - EndMod/Endurance
  
• (15) Efficacy Adaptor - EndMod/Accuracy
  
• (17) Efficacy Adaptor - EndMod/Recharge
  
• (17) Efficacy Adaptor - EndMod
  

Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.956
http://www.cohplanner.com/
Click this DataLink to open the build!
Street-Knight (Speed): Level 50 Natural Brute
Primary Power Set: War Mace
Secondary Power Set: Willpower
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Fighting
Power Pool: Leadership
Ancillary Pool: Energy Mastery
Villain Profile:
Level 1: Pulverize

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
  
• (3) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance
  
• (3) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Recharge
  
• (5) Impervium Armor - Resistance
  
• (7) Steadfast Protection - Resistance/+Def 3%
  

• (A) Mako's Bite - Accuracy/Damage
  
• (19) Mako's Bite - Damage/Endurance
  
• (19) Mako's Bite - Damage/Recharge
  
• (31) Mako's Bite - Accuracy/Endurance/Recharge
  

• (A) Titanium Coating - Resistance
  
• (5) Titanium Coating - Resistance/Endurance/Recharge
  
• (34) Titanium Coating - Resistance/Endurance
  

• (A) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
  
• (11) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance
  
• (13) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Recharge
  

• (A) Kinetic Combat - Accuracy/Damage
  
• (15) Rope A Dope - Accuracy/Endurance
  
• (15) Rope A Dope - Accuracy/Recharge
  
• (36) Kinetic Combat - Damage/Endurance
  
• (36) Kinetic Combat - Damage/Recharge
  
• (36) Kinetic Combat - Damage/Endurance/Recharge
  

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
  
• (13) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Recharge
  
• (17) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
  
• (17) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed
  

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
  

• (A) Kinetic Combat - Knockdown Bonus
  

• (A) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
  
• (37) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance
  
• (37) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Recharge
  

• (A) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge
  
• (39) Obliteration - Chance for Smashing Damage
  
• (40) Obliteration - Damage
  
• (40) Obliteration - Accuracy/Recharge
  
• (40) Obliteration - Damage/Recharge
  
• (42) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
  

• (A) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Accuracy
  
• (21) Performance Shifter - EndMod
  
• (21) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Recharge
  
• (46) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Accuracy/Recharge
  

• (A) Titanium Coating - Resistance
  
• (23) Titanium Coating - Resistance/Endurance
  
• (23) Titanium Coating - Resistance/Endurance/Recharge
  

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
  
• (25) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
  
• (25) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed
  

• (A) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge
  
• (27) Obliteration - Damage
  
• (27) Obliteration - Accuracy/Recharge
  
• (31) Obliteration - Damage/Recharge
  
• (31) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
  
• (46) Obliteration - Chance for Smashing Damage
  

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed
  
• (29) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
  
• (29) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
  
• (50) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Recharge
  

• (A) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff
  
• (34) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Chance for Build Up
  
• (42) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Endurance
  
• (42) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Recharge
  
• (45) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Recharge/Endurance
  
• (46) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Recharge/Endurance
  

• (A) Obliteration - Damage
  
• (33) Obliteration - Accuracy/Recharge
  
• (33) Obliteration - Damage/Recharge
  
• (33) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
  
• (34) Obliteration - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge
  
• (37) Obliteration - Chance for Smashing Damage
  

• (A) Recharge Reduction IO
  

• (A) Aegis - Resistance
  
• (39) Aegis - Psionic/Status Resistance
  
• (39) Aegis - Resistance/Endurance/Recharge
  
• (43) Aegis - Resistance/Recharge
  
• (43) Aegis - Resistance/Endurance
  

• (A) Perfect Zinger - Chance for Psi Damage
  

• (A) Performance Shifter - Chance for +End
  

• (A) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
  
• (48) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance
  
• (48) Performance Shifter - EndMod
  
• (48) Performance Shifter - Chance for +End
  

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed
  
• (50) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
  
• (50) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
  
• (7) Numina's Convalescence - +Regeneration/+Recovery
  
• (9) Miracle - Heal
  
• (9) Miracle - +Recovery
  
• (11) Regenerative Tissue - +Regeneration
  

• (A) Efficacy Adaptor - EndMod/Accuracy
  
• (43) Efficacy Adaptor - EndMod
  
• (45) Efficacy Adaptor - EndMod/Recharge
  
• (45) Efficacy Adaptor - EndMod/Endurance
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

• (A) Empty
  

Dr Empty - 21/Jun/2012
The brilliant eco-engineer woke again.  As usual she could smell strong drink about her person, though she was completely sober, 'knurd'[1] as she liked to call it.  As she often did when she woke, she speculated on the nature, even the gender, of the person who transformed into her.  But, she was dressed as usual, in her Mad Scientist lab coat, over dark clothes that didn't stain easily.
Others called her the 'Mad Terraformer'.  She preferred 'Dr Empty', from 'Dr MT'.  It was as good a name as any, and she didn't need any other.  Though, she'd sometimes fancied 'Sara' – it meant 'princess', though that was a bit frivolous.
The first priority was to obtain coffee, as strong as possible; she wished Klatchian Coffee[2] really existed, it'd make the process of staying herself easier, but, she'd make do.  Next, to check her distributed secret bank accounts - she thought they were running a bit low, so maybe she'd have to do some paying work, before more fun research.  Fortunately she hadn't got any existing projects running she'd need to check-up on.
Two days later she'd built another ten Standard Asteroid Terraforming Kits[3], and dispatched them to the usual suspects who'd sell them on.  The money was already winging its way to her bank accounts.  Maybe she'd take a little break and enjoy herself, before getting on with some research.
Wait a minute!  She'd been cheated!  This is... Decaffeinated Coffee!  Arrrggg!
---

He woke, as usual, after one of his several day benders, in a strange hotel room.  His clothes were clean, and matched what he'd been wearing when he started drinking.  As usual, he smelled strongly of coffee.  Hard to tell if the hotel room had been prepaid for, so, best to take a quiet leave...
He called himself 'Joe', "Just Joe", was his answer if anyone asked; he'd never liked being called 'Mr Bates'.  His latest bender had probably cost him his gardening job.  Though sometimes he'd call himself an 'ecologist', unless they asked to see his qualifications.  He got by.
If he'd gone to university, the way he wanted, before he left Earth, maybe he'd have made more of himself.  Always fancied swanning around in a brilliant white lab coat, telling people what to do.  Closest he'd got to university was cleaning out some really nasty sumps.  That green stuff got everywhere, but he made sure to safely dispose of every drop.
He guessed that's where he got biomodded.  He'd not noticed much difference. Cuts healed faster, and hangovers, he didn't get them any more.  And he couldn't stand coffee, made him nauseous, had to make do with tea.
He fed himself, stayed clean enough to get jobs, had a few casual friends.  It'd be nice, he guessed, to settle down some day.  Maybe get married, have kids.  But, somehow, whenever he tried to think about his ideal, the woman he wanted to marry, it just made him feel more depressed.
Funny, he didn't feel the desire to dress in women's clothing any more.  The secret guilt, the furtive joy, had gone out of it.  He'd never wanted a sex change, for him it'd been about the clothes.  But, his benders, he just didn't remember them any more.  And, he couldn't go a few months without one.
Still, he'd a badly broken leg at the start of one of them, and it was all healed afterwards, three days later.  No sign of the cast.  That other time, a smashed foot.  Where'd the matching shoe come from, he'd been wearing when he woke up?  And, even if they'd got pretty bad while drinking, his clothes were always clean.
One of these days he'd have to make a serious effort to find out what his biomod was...

Open Source
You can make free use of this character (these two characters?) in your stories.  The only thing that might stop Joe going on these benders is if he was living a totally happy life.
Joe was probably at least a borderline alcoholic when he was biomodded, maybe self-medication for his mental problems, and is now functionally immune to the bad effects of alcohol.  He's also got effectively double the lifespan.  Unfortunately he only gets to live half of that.
Dr Empty is functionally immune to the bad effects of (too much) coffee, and while she would like some more research time, something always goes wrong after at most seven days, and she wakes up again at least a week, or longer (rarely more than a few months), later.
If either of them is critically injured, and 'dies', they will permanently revert to a cleanly dressed, fully healthy, other.  Who now can't touch either alcohol or coffee without feeling nauseous.  And still counts as biomodded.  For extra fun, they now might start remembering bits of the other's life.
Please don't kill Joe, just to get Dr Empty full-time.  Though, if you come up with a good story that needs his death, that'd work.  Visa versa Dr Empty.  Preferably not until Season 2, though.
If either of them (or anyone) makes a serious attempt to figure out their shared biomod (mostly they don't think about it too much) interesting things are likely to happen - Discordian levels of interesting.  Until they give up.  It isn't that they can't find out, it's just that there'd better be some really, really, good reason to do so - threatened life-or-death situations for one of them might not be enough.
Note: Yes, I realise that Klatchian Coffee exists in Fenspace.  However, even though she's a 'Discworld' fan, Dr Empty hasn't heard about it.  Yet.  If she does Joe's benders will likely get longer.  And Fenspace will 'benefit' more from her skills.
--
"It is the business of the future to be dangerous" - Hawkwind

From todays XKCD:



He's right. It really is an exciting time.

When: To be determined.Where: Paragon City
What: A Pajama Party, silly!
Why: Because we can!  (See: Swimsuit TF; Get Naked, Fight Crime!; Halloween Hijinks; etc)

Who: Everyone!

So we were gabbing in the channel and it occurred to me, we should do a Legendary Pajama Party and Task Force night.  Rhea, or any of my other alts, will bring (virtual) snacks and their best PJs.  Most likely will have to happen on a weekend or a Friday night, given people's schedules, but let's work it out here so we have some idea -- assuming there's interest, of course.

Terr has proposed we do Tin Mage in our PJs.  I like this plan.  I think we should all be part of it.

--sofaspud
--"Listening to your kid is the audio equivalent of a Salvador Dali painting, Spud." --OpMegs

Singularity Club – 19/Jun/2012
"The First Rule of Singularity Club, is that you don't talk about Singularity Club."
"The Second Rule of Singularity Club, is there is no Singularity Club."
There are occasional rumours, on the edge of the Hacker Underspace.  When you ask people who should know, the usual answer is "How could you tell?".
Singularity Club, if it did exist, would be concerned with existential threats to Fenspace, and all known sentient beings.  The headline threat is a runaway Singularity, which if it can occur, almost certainly, sooner or later, will do so.  Singularity Club might be enthusiastic about the 'later' option.
There are some incredibly powerful AIs in Fenspace.  You'd expect them to be more involved in things, seeing as they think orders of magnitude faster than humans.  And humans, they manage to get their fingers in everything, even running "Plains Ape 1.0".  Do AIs ever seem distracted?  Are they just playing an AI-speed MMORPG?  Singularity Club might be one answer.
You might be concerned that everything depends on the benevolence of handwavium. You might be concerned there is no Plan B.  A Singularity would likely suck-in all sentient beings in the Solar System.  For sentience as we know it to have a Plan B, if the Singularity fails in some way, there must be a functional culture outside it's short-term reach.  Somewhere beyond the Solar System.
So, this might be one reason why nanotech is taking so long to arrive in Fenspace.  This might be one reason superintelligent AIs just seem to think like humans, only faster.  This might be one reason...
SfX: *FLASH*
What was I saying?
== The use of neuralizers by representatives of Singularity Club cannot be confirmed or denied. ==

META: Emily[1][2] was one early AI, with at least superhuman intelligence, and potentially access to as much processing power as she wanted, and could find power supply and cooling for (without advancing Global Warming too much).  She was tasked to "fix the world", and a basic part of her nature is to fix things for people which are broken.  She was also tied into the virtual world via "TRON", which is an abbreviation for the command "Trace On", implying an imperative to find out what was wrong there.  Emily hasn't surfaced in the early history of the Hacker Underspace – what might she have been doing with her time?
--
"It is the business of the future to be dangerous" - Hawkwind

Wind's four quarters, Air and Fire,
Earth and Water, hear my desire!
Grant my plea, who stands alone,
Maiden, Warrior, Mother and Crone.

Eastern Wind, blow clear, blow clean,
Cleanse my body of its pain.
Cleanse my mind of what I've seen,
Cleans my honor of its stain.
Maid whose love has never ceased,
Bring me healing from the East.

Southern Wind, blow hot, blow hard,
Fan my courage to a flame!
Southern Wind, be guide and guard,
Add your bravery to my name.
Let my will and Yours be twinned,
Warrior of the Southern Wind.

Wind's four quarters, Air and Fire,
Earth and Water, hear my desire!
Grant my plea, who stands alone,
Maiden, Warrior, Mother and Crone.

Western Wind, blow stark, blow strong,
Grant me arm and mind of steel!
On a road both hard and long,
Mother, hear me where I kneel.
Let no weakness on my quest
Hinder me, Wind of the West.

Northern Wind, blow cruel, blow cold,
Sheathe my aching heart in ice!
All around my soul enfold,
Crone, I need not call you twice.
To my foes bring cold of death,
Chill me, North Wind's frozen breath.

Wind's four quarters, Air and Fire,
Earth and Water, hear my desire!
Grant my plea, who stands alone,
Maiden, Warrior, Mother and Crone.
Maiden, Warrior, Mother and Crone.

-- Heather Alexander, "Wind's Four Quarters"

(There's also a version performed by Leslie Fish, who co-wrote this song with Mercedes Lackey, which sounds very different.)
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

Awww lordy, here we go again...  Just as when Firewire faced off against USB 2.0...
On one side we have Apple's contribution: Thunderbolt.  On the other: USB 3.0.  Both have their pros and cons.  Both have backwards compatibility.
What I find amusing about everyone's scuffle over which is better... is that Intel played major roles in the development of BOTH!!!  So now I'm just wondering why all the hubub is over.  Both seem remarkably similar (though Thunderbolt is admittedly ultimately intended for a display device).  The only real advantage I see one having over the other is that USB 3.0 inherits 1.1 and 2.0's absurd daisy-chain abilities... while Thunderbolt can only handle six, with the seventh item being a display device.