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Season 5 of The Guild...
...if you're like me, you can't wait to see it! Pre-production is well under way and the opportunities are coming thick and fast for people wanting to be apart of it - but you have to be quick, and you have to know where to look. Twitter is a great place to start but to get the longer updates you need to be following The Guild on Facebook.

The Guild Facebook page has lots of updates and - details of how YOU can be an extra in Season 5. What are you waiting for? Get over there now!!

Why U2 probably won't join Quora

 Quora logo (image from Crunchbase)

Quora - the Season's big New Social Media Thing
So what's all the fuss about? Quora has been described as "..Yahoo answers for geeks.." and I think that's quite accurate. It has been causing excited ripples in the Tech Blogger world in the last few weeks and received a massive upsurge in users following some positive reviews. I joined after Louis Gray mentioned that the recent improvements made it very useful. After a bit of poking around I started to see how it might be beneficial. I was even really pleased that Quora was generating interest in my go-to social media site, Friendfeed.

Easy to join
You can use Facebook or Twitter to join and sign up is easy. When you do it this way, though, you might overlook an important issue. At the moment, Quora has the following rule:

You have to use your real name:


"The rules of the site are that you have to use your full real name on your account. To change your name, please see How do I change my display name on Quora?.


If you are ever uncomfortable about associating your identity with a particular question, you can become anonymous for that question.  See How can I anonymously add questions on Quora?"

Bono: Not a Real Name?
While I understand that any site/app/whatever can make their own rules for the membership they want, I'm very puzzled by this. There is no verification process to go through for your 'real' name, and it doesn't seem that they can check it out. And people with the same names will do what? And what about poor Bono, who only has one name? Or The Edge, who has a silly 'real' name?

Or people who have new 'real' names, like Marion Robert Morrison?

What's in a name?
I joined using Twitter and filled in my name as World ofHiglet, since that was the most sensible way of fulfilling their requirement to have a first and second name. I've done that on a few sites. Many of the people I follow on Twitter are on Quora, so I connected with them easily and started to edit the groups Quora automatically added me to. I replied and followed some questions and posted one of my own.

It didn't take too long before I received a message from a Quora admin directing me to the name rule. I replied explaining that using my real name would make me more anonymous and asked whether the policy would change. Last night I received a message:

"A Quora admin blocked you from editing on Quora for this reason:


User needs to respond to name change request."

Of course, I had replied but I hadn't change my name. Obviously the only reply that is acceptable is to comply without asking questions.

Disagreeing with Louis Gray
That is not something I would do lightly. But in this case I do not agree with him fully. In his recent post about Quora, Louis said:


"Where I have heard people express concern about Quora is what could happen if it breaks into the mainstream and becomes diluted as sites like Yahoo! Answers have, suffering from the chatroom phenomenon that doomed other sites targeted toward casual discussions. Safeguarding Quora from this is the use of one's real identity, connected through Facebook or Twitter, and the community's ability to downvote or mark as "Not Helpful" responses that don't pass muster..."

I connected through Twitter with the name people associate with me, but that is not good enough for Quora. On the one hand I can see the reasoning behind it. But it isn't flexible or responsive and will keep some people who want to participate out. Maybe that's a risk they are willing to take to keep some spammers out, and if so then that is their right, of course.

In the meantime...
More people I know from Twitter, Friendfeed and Facebook are following me on Quora and there are questions and threads that I would like to participate in. I'm not sure what to do at this point, but I think I'll wait and see. Chances are that Quora will have to change their policy. And if they don't then maybe I'll have to change my name...

"Loot Envy": The Guild S4 Ep5 launches Cheesybeards online!

 Vork rolls out the welcome wagon

The Guild Season 4 knocks it up a notch
If you haven't seen this week's episode, watch it now!


My full review of "Loot Envy" is on PinkRaygun.com, and you can find my reviews for the rest of Season 4 (plus all of Season 3) there, too. One of the things I talked about was the way The Guild is taking Season 4 in a new direction - and interacting with the fans in a whole new way.

There be spoilers ahead, mateys!
Cyd Sherman has a new job! Yes, our sometime Guild Leader has taken a step into the world of work and is now the social media hub of Cheesybeards. And not content with just playing out this new storyline as part of the weekly series, there is a new website, Facebook page and Twitter account for Cheesybeards. There is even a Yelp entry for Cheesybeards!

 A C health rating is a good thing??

More interestingly still - Cyd's struggle to get bums on seats in Cheesybeards is being played out through these different websites right now. The Yelp entry above is from a not-very-satisfied customer how mentions the C health rating. 'Ollie C' (who must be Cyd since Ollie has never even turned his computer on) replies: "We worked really hard to get that C rating :("

And dealing with difficult customers has driven Cyd to complain about them on Twitter already:

I wonder who would ring from Brazil.....?

 Having fun with Cyd

 A quick look at Facebook, twitter and Yelp shows that fans are already enjoying dipping into the world of Cheesybeards and are being rewarded with replies. If you fancy doing your own Yelp review about the spicy wenches or asking about the cute redhead in the back office (which seems to be popular) then why not give it a go? Who knows how long Cyd will have this job...?

Season 4 Outlook: Epic with a side of gAArlic fries (or garrrrrrrrrrlic fries?)
This expansion of The Guild 'verse is a welcome new sideline but only part of what is going on this Season. Many fans are already saying this is their new favourite and it's hard not to agree (although I hate to pick a favourite). There are many other storylines going on - Zaboo vs his mum, Tink and Clara vs enterprise, Codex vs ho-baggertry - and plenty more. Who knows what will happen? And will we ever find out what 'incident' took the 'Sea's Bounty' off the menu?

The most tantalising part of the Cheesybeard's menu

Happy Blogaversary: Part 1. In the Beginning...

Two years of fun and frolics on the last geek bus home.
Doesn't time fly? Seems like only yesterday I watched Firefly for the first time and was consumed with the thought that I was missing out on the awesome. From my first post, "numfar, do the dance of shame..." to yesterday's technobabble, I've racked up 317 posts covering subjects as diverse as blog layouts, Captain Kirk, Star Wait, a whole slew of Whedony-related ramblings, sci-fi plus, of course, The Guild and Felicia Day.

Felicia was one of first people to comment here (although I didn't even realise it was her...). To all the people who have read and commented I offer a huge - THANK YOU! Blogging is a lonely sport when no one reads or comments. I'm always happy when lurkers decloak and say something. These days I'm all over the web and I talk to people on Twitter, Friendfeed and Facebook daily (and now Google Buzz?). I still enjoy reading and responding to comments here, though (hint, hint).

Speaking of Twitter...
I asked people on Twitter what they wanted from this two-year extravaganza post and it was unanimous - you want to see more of the silly searches that people use. I can't blame you - they are hilarious.... I did this once before and it proved very popular. BUT! Before that here's a few scintillating facts from Google Analytics about this blog:

People from all over the world ride the last geek bus:

Posts about The Guild seem to be the most popular:

Searches for naughty things are also popular:

And now here's some lists of random searches that have brought people to my little blog.

Totally Random:

• 2 horse 1 speedo
• a geek catches a sexy fairy comic
• autobus erotic scene
• blogspot boypants
• bookends sex store
• bus station geeks
• bus-do you wanna f*ck
• harrison ford chest Indiana
• galactica chest hair
• velour fetish (12 searches for this!!!)

Searches that piqued my interest

• gorgeous tiny chicken machine show nathan fillion
• casting call for pj haarsma the softwire
• channel 7 news felicia becker
• compilation of fan-created applications to the evil league of evil
• delicia fay +interview
• unicow costume (4 searches)
• how to make a vork avatar costume
• good questions to ask for an interview for guild

Searches where I think they got an answer

• chick from the guild legend of neil dr horrible 
• do i have to watch webisodes before bsg premiere?
• does felicia day sing 'do you want to date my avatar'
• who plays riley on the guild?
• who plays zaboo in the guild
• sean becker fired (17 searches and lots more combos for this!)

You want to what my who-now?

• do you wont to dat mi avatr
• do you want to sate my avatar
• do you want to dave my avatar
• do you wanna date my avbatar
• do you wanna date my avitar

All about Felicia:

• felicia day ticklish
• felicia day save my soul
• felicia day makes my heart ache
• felicia day librarian
• felicia day kim evey monkey sock
• felicia day is egotistical
• fanfiction codex zaboo

There were also all manner of searches with the word 'erotic' in them that I'm not going to share. Just know that I would think twice about tagging any posts with that word again (and I totally blame Zoe Winters, because it is actually her fault...).


In Part 2 I'm going to recap some of my most memorable posts and adventures  - so if you have a favourite please let me know and I'll include it!

Haiku for Kiko: Let's get that GTCMS DVD!

(screenshot of the Crackle.com home page showing lots of content from webseries to classic series to movies)

I love Crackle.com!

Over the last several months I have been (fairly gently) pulling the pigtails of Chad, the Crackle community manager who tweets as @CrackleDotCom. I've been asking two things: when will the Crackle content be available in Canada and I am pleased to hear that things are progrssing on that score. But there is a much more pressing issue: WHEN CAN WE GET A GORGEOUS TINY CHICKEN MACHINE SHOW DVD?

(Front page of GorgeousTiny.com showing some of the wacky world of Kiko and chums)

Chad has taken everything in good humour and it is a pleasure to spar with him on twitter. Yesterday he was promoting the Crackle Facebook Group and promised a haiku when they got past 3000 members. after a little glitch where I couldn't access the site I squeaked in as member 2998. A success for everyone because now more people will hear about the new movies and other content that is being added monthly on Crackle.

Make the Sad Panda Happy Again

After reading Chad's celebratory haiku I was inspired to write my own:

(Obviously the '@' in '@kimevey' is silent. Everyone knows that).

And so the #haikuforkiko campaign was born. It is so logical. Kiko is Japanese. Haiku is Japanese. We need the GTCMS DVDs!

Milk the Cash-Cownicorn!

Crackle are on the up-and-up with all the new content and new original webseries like The Bannen Way. Now is the perfect time for them to plunder their back catalogue and give us what we want - access to the the GTCMS videos with oodles of extras. I want to hear from Lick Poop and Unicow and Panda and Cownicorn and - most of all - from Kiko herself! Imagine Kiko doing a voiceover to one of the episodes?!? That would be meta-morphing-power-rangers-tastic!

(Kiko and friends, taken from ComedyCentric.com interview with Adam Arkin)

Slaughter the Cash Unicow!

I missed the wonderful Kim Evey doing her Kiko impression at the Knights of The Guild anniversary party last week (sad face) but I'm hoping Kenny will keep that part in when he edits that massive video into chunks for us to watch (I'll be sure to let you know when that is up - I can't wait!). When I interviewed Sean Becker (Director of The Guild and Cownicorn on GTCMS) he said that he had lots of stories to tell about GTCMS, and these stories need to be shared. I want to see the set, listen to the behind the scenes shenanigans and watch them over and over and over again in a disturbingly obsessive way until my family is forced to intervene. CRACKLE OWES US THAT MUCH!

Haikus for Kiko

What say you? Do you want the GTCMS DVDs? Of course you do. You are a sensible, well-rounded person just like me. And what better way to achieve this goal than to give something back to Crackle first. We give them something, they give us something in return. You've seen my haiku attempts - now you can try. Send them to @CrackleDotCom and hashtag them #haikuforkiko. Or add one to the Crackle Facebook page. Only polite, though, please. Kiko is always to being polite and we should follow her most honorable example.

It could work!

Now, as my lovely friend @DougLuberts might say: let's spin the wheel of fun!

Podcast-tastic! Knights of the Guild and Turning Left...

Firstly, "thank you"s (and you can correct the grammar at will for that) go to:

Kenny and Jenni for inviting me to take part in the new "Knights of The Guild" podcast which is now out. We spoke last Sunday and it was great to actually talk to people I have been conversing with on Twitter and The Guild Chat for a long time! Also on the podcast is a roundup of what's been happening for Guild cast and crew and a great interview with Jared Hoy, chief lighting technician for The Guild.

And more thanks....

...to all those who have tuned into the "Turning Left at Albuquerque" audiobook podcasts so far. We released Chapter 4 today, with Chapter 5 out on Monday. We are going to be releasing chapters every Monday and Friday and after every 5 chapters we'll do an omnibus. So next Friday chapters 1-5 will be out - neat, huh? :)

We have a Facebook group for the podcast so please join if you are on Facebook. And you can subscribe and never miss an episode in iTunes or any other podcatcher via a link on the Podbean site. I hope you're enjoying them. We're certainly having fun creating them, and having Lord Poncenby and BREW onboard gives us an extra dimension!

Vork+Speedos= The madness must STOP!

The Superbowl

Apparently there was some sort of sporting event going on in America yesterday. Something that seemed to be little more than an excuse for broadcasting porn and other inappropriate content to swathes of the US and beyond.

First, the pr0n

Comcast outdid themselves by managing to beam highly inappropriate content to their users. If you want to know more about this (you know, in the interest of science) then you can find out more and maybe give a Digg, too, if you feel the need.

Even more inappropriate

Disturbing as that might have been for the viewers, it was almost certainly broadcast in error. However, there was something FAR MORE disturbing broadcast during the Superbowl. Brace yourselves, folks. Someone who has previously kept themselves thankfully buttoned-down in some rather fetching smart/casual combinations has now jumped the shark, dress-sense-wise. It pains me to say this but live-action sequences of VORK IN A SPEEDO were broadcast in full-colour to millions of viewers:

It gets worse...

And if that was not bad enough, there is now a Facebook widget-thingy that lets you send Vork to each other. The madness must STOP! Felicia has inadvertently ensured that every single person who has friended her on Facebook will now send her one (as of about 2 hours ago she had been sent 25) but please - think before you send! Is this what we want cluttering up the information superhighway? Really?? Won't someone think of the children.....?!?

P.S.

Dear Jeff,

It's not you, it's me. Really, you are a fine example of manliness, really you are. It's just...well, you know...well...Gee, did I mention I think you are a fantastic actor and totally outdo Sandeep in every scene?!

P.P.S.

Dear Sandeep,

Hey, as the founder member of the 'Zombie Zaboo' group on The Guild community site you know how much respect I have for you. I even said nice thing about you on the effinfunny website. I really think it's the combination and chemistry between you and Jeff that makes every scene you do together awesomesauce and you are totally great as an actor. I was just trying to make Jeff feel a bit better about everyone hating on his near-nakedness. You understand these  things....

Dr Horrible's Sing Along-Blog - now on MySpace!

And Facebook, too...
In addition to being able to catch up with any breaking news about Dr Horrible on the new fansite you can now get friendly on MySpace and Facebook. This is a great way to find out what's going on and meet up with other fans. See you there!