Sunday, February 11, 2018

John Perry Barlow, Internet Pioneer, 1947-2018: Balazs on Books

~Most Men Are Cowards, But Are Too Cowardly To Admit It

16 signs of the Modern Coward

John Perry Barlow, Internet Pioneer, 1947-2018



RIP John Perry Barlow, 1947-2018

John Perry Barlow, the prolific Grateful Dead lyricist who collaborated with Bob Weir from 1971-1995, visionary internet pioneer, political activist, co-founder of the Electronic Frontier Foundation and author of many thoughtful essays including the widely read “A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace“, sadly passed away in his sleep on February 6, 2018 at the age of 70. Friends, family and fans have taken to social media to express their sadness at the loss of such an incredible man.

Remembering John Perry Barlow, co-founder of Freedom of the Press

 
Feb 8
Replying to @jenist
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Reporters  Ren LaForme and Kristen Hare published an article about how journalists can use a variety of websites to add visuals to their work for free.

Ten female photojournalists who have won a World Press Photo Award share the stories behind their photographs


British public nominates The Haçienda, the legendary '80s Factory Records nightclub, in a new set of heritage sites.

Seth Godin's latest book production is a pro bono effort to publish Catherine Hoke's A SECOND CHANCE, available February 26, through Amazon only, with a donated first printing of 20,000 copies. Hoke is the founder of Defy Ventures, a nonprofit that has reduced recidivism among former prison inmates from 75 percent to less than 6 percent, by teaching entrepreneurship and character development, and providing mentoring and business support. As Godin writes, "It's a book about second chances, forgiveness, responsibility, opportunity and love. And it applies to everyone I've ever met, not just those that are in prison." Proceeds benefit Defy Ventures, and the book features a foreword by Sheryl Sandberg. A preview, featuring many additional endorsements, is posted here

(Credit: Orlando Sierra/AFP/Getty Images)

A protestor lies on the street in front of police officers during a demonstration against the contested re-election of President Hernandez in Honduras (Credit: Getty Images

‘I couldn’t believe it’: Tofte photographer stumbles on rare lynx sighting Duluth News Tribune 

Famous Readers’ Borrowing Records: Taking a peek at records from a private New York library, which show, for instance, when Alexander Hamilton checked out Goethe.
V

ia LLRX – Need some free images for your academic work / poster / presentation / website? Look no further – Ned Potter is an Academic Liaison Librarian at the University of York and a trainer in library marketing, and presentation skills. In this article he recommends best sites for high quality, free, and public domain images.



“According to experts, feeding birds is probably the most common way in which people interact with wild animals today [this statement alone should get your attention!]. More than 50 million Americans engage in the practice, collectively undertaking an unwitting experiment on a vast scale. Is what we’re doing good or bad for birds? Recently, researchers at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology sought to answer this question, analyzing nearly three decades’ worth of data from a winter-long survey called Project FeederWatch. Preliminary results suggest the species visiting our feeders the most are faring exceptionally well in an age when one-third of the continent’s birds need urgent conservation. Still, what are the consequences of skewing the odds in favor of the small subset of species inclined to eat at feeders…”


Roaring jackets

 In 1923, the Hungarian columnist and cultural critic Béla Balázs wrote: “Those who rightfully possess a library know that books have not only readable content, but their own palpable atmosphere as well, their own mood, their own visible aura; their typography, binding, and cover are their physiognomy, and form a face that warms the heart.”

Balázs’ words ring through the pages of TASCHEN’s recent publication The Book Cover in the Weimar Republic, a vast collection of dust jackets and book covers produced in Berlin between 1919 and 1933. Berlin then was as much of a creative hub as it is again today. As the epicenter of the Golden Twenties heyday, it attracted artists, scholars, singers, and dancers. English writers such as W. H. Auden, Stephen Spender and Christopher Isherwood came to spend time in the city. Movie makers tackled controversial themes. And in the world of the printed page, bold publishers put out some of the most outstanding and forward-thinking book designs in history.

Long before computers existed to help out designers, the work for these covers was all done by sheer manual craft. Letters were drawn by hand before they were cast in lead, collages were assembled with scissors and glue, lithograph illustrations were laboriously inserted amid the already lengthy printing process, and embossing plates were carefully filed down. What these designers created, with what we now consider fairly primitive techniques, is simply breathtaking. Their work fuses references to the important stylistic movements of the time such as Expressionism, Realism, New Objectivity, Constructivism with a book art that is quite unique and individualistic.

Of course, the jackets cannot be separated from their texts—the stories around which they’re wrapped, and to which they draw our attention. So the covers of this collection also testify to the breadth and variety of intellect that Weimar culture fostered, brimming with original perspectives and an openness to any and all issues, from the debates surrounding socialism to women’s liberation and youth issues, from politically engaged travel journalism to the “Jewish question,” from architecture to urban planning to film.

We need only glance at the biographies of the authors, publishers, and book designers of Weimar to understand the irretrievable spirit of this age. After January 30, 1933, vast swathes of this culture was trampled and burned. Its creators were persecuted, driven out of the country, or sent to their death. The Book Cover in the Weimar Republic is a monument to their work and a monument to the sense of what was possible in the better Germany that existed between 1918 and 1933