So, is Google really finished?
 

Darn, I recall when Google was in diapers, I should have got in then. Maybe this is my chance again.

http://www.independent.ie/business/t...r-1728947.html

Weird. One of my teachers told me about something like this a while ago. But he also told me that Teflon was 17 dimensional, so I only half-believed everything he said. Looks like he was right occasionally.

That is so scary. Imagine the future when books and newspapers are gone and all we have to rely on is Alpha, now owned by the Murdoch conglomerate and an ultra fundamentalist consortium composed of you-name-it, the scariest one you can think of.

Actually I think a book on that subject has already been written--a number of times.

Take Alpha together with the options to manipulate documentary fiilms and ohmagod. Time to re-read Brave New World and The Handmaid's Tale, and what was that novel by Ira Levin where vital literature was preserved only by people who had learned big chunks by heart. Well, time to re-read the whole dystopian genre. I get depressed just thinking about how depressed I will be when I have done that.

Will everybody please stop watching American Idol and subscribe to a real newspaper.

(I can't help it, I was born with a soapbox attached to my feet.)

Don't watch, do read. But this whole Alpha thing intrigues me.

Can't we keep all three so everyone's happy?

Like I could stop anyone from watching., not even when I put on my Wonder Woman helmet, can I stop my grandkids from watching.

I'll just slink away now, totally subdued, and wallow in my dystopian novels.

If you don't know about it, The Wanting Seed by Anthony Burgess is my favorite dystopian book to read all the way through before I get good and lathered up and launch steam balls from my ears about the monstrous plan of it all.

In the meantime, before Alpha erases human thought, I like to use this search engine:

CLUSTY. It categorizes its initial findings so you can speed past most.

Also there is KARTOO, which reads English of course and is French fun in two-dimensions. I found stuff on me here that Google had missed.

- Allen

But Janice, nobody reads a newspaper for the NEWS. We get that elsewhere. And I don't read most of the books I read for information. I can't see how they will be changed in any way by Wolfie whatever. And I simply don't believe it will be able to answer the sort of questions I want to ask it.

Is Gordon Brown mad?
Will England beat Australia at cricket?
Why is Gwyneth Paltrow more sexy with a beard?
Who killed Christopher Marlowe? (Much more interesting than who killed Kennedy)
How green was my valley?

Allen, that KARTOO site is incredibly useful. Thanks.

Why can't I do both?

After all, I have to know what the newspaper critics thought of last night's performances, don't I?

John, I looked it up. Your valley was very green.

I'm not going to stop watching American Idol because I refuse to start. A newspaper with black, squigley signs printed on paper comes to our door every day, but I'd be careful about calling it real. England will beat Australia at cricket - probably not as often as they'll lose.

John, spoken like a true poet.

Roger (and Marion) of course you can and will. I figured someone would jump on me for that. But I don't have a television and I didn't know any other show to name by name. "American Idol" was used as a synecdoche, the specific to represent the general. Just wanted to make sure you hadn't all fallen asleep with the remote in your hand.

Alas, poor Cassandra! I knew her, Horatio, a woman of infinite
pessimism, of most excellent prophecy.

Janice,

In this particular case I am going to agree with John. Google may be finished, but (once again) the human race and life as we know it are not.

Rick

I'm Janice, but that's OK. Janet is the metrics whiz.

The human race will likely go on as before, Rick, I agree. Life as we know it, well, I am not so sure about that. Life isn't even as we knew it ten years ago. Hey, you are the one who wrote that great poem about--I don't remember the details, but I remember the poem, you were driving in your car and there was the police officers and the homeless man. Great poem that made an impression but I can't quote it. You know though, you wrote it.

Darned if I'm going to tell. Pogonotrophy is not just for pagans anymore.

- Alpha

Janice,

What! Everyone hated that poem! Where were you when I needed you!!!~,:^)

Just kidding.

Yes, life as we know it keeps changing. Connect the dots--Hobbes to Better Living through Chemistry to Dr. Wulfgang's Google killer.

But forget Dr. Wolfgang. The guy to keep your eye on is Ray Kurzweil. On the other hand, he is only keeping his eye on...us.

We have seen the enemy,
Rick

I was right beside you battling for you and the poem.

Janice, I was just kidding. Wait...you mean everyone else did hate it?

(Really, I'm kidding.)

More to the point. I hope Google gets out of this thing alive. Amazon takes a hit...? So be it.

RM