Pick of the week: Memeoirs.com

I'm not sure about you, but I suspect that I've written what amounts to several tens of thousands of emails in my life. That's a pretty remarkable amount, all things considered, and I imagine that set end to end, all of these messages would be several hundred pages of text. And there are times when I think that in the future, we will all be remembering that quaint technology called "email" and laugh. I say remembering because for all intents and purposes, all that text resides on someone else's computers and hard drives and no actual archive of this information exists. Until now, that is. Welcome to Memeoirs.

Memeoirs offers a very original service: they will compile all of your email into a book format. Yes, a real, paper-based book, that you can read at will, as often as you like. Now, before you laugh this idea off as being a little silly, let me ask you what you believe is the lifespan of digital data? Do you think that in a hundred years, that digital data will still be around. For all the advantages of the digital information format, with its ease of copying and other features, it still remains fairly fragile. That data is dependant on some mechanism to be interpreted. Paper does not.

The pricing model is based on the total number of pages requested as well as the option of printing a soft versus hard cover book. The process is fairly simple: pick an email address, pick a date and time period, and Memeoirs does the rest. The archiving process is quick, private and effective; Memeoirs strives to make sure that the printed content contains only emails of value. Account activation emails and spam are automatically filtered out and only your actual communications remain.

A fantastic idea in the digital age; old school archiving! Head on over and take a look! You might find a great gift idea in the making!

Book review: Posters of the Canadian Pacific

Not too long ago, I got a fantastic deal on a book whose topic is one that has long been a favourite of mine: Art Deco travel posters. And one of the great leaders in this field was the Canadian Pacific. Hence the book, Posters of the Canadian Pacific, a treasure trove of some of the most beautiful posters developed during this fascinating period.

I happened upon a french copy of the book, but that is of little consequence (as I speak and read french) as the art works are essentially the same in both languages. I have always really enjoyed the Art Deco movement and these images always invoke that feeling for me.

If you enjoy vintage travel images, this is the book to look at. I am sure you will find it enjoyable and its a great reference book for graphic designers trying to inject a little retro into their projects. A lot of inspiration in this volume, both for traveling and for art.

Book review: Complete Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook

Being a preparedness freak (very distinct from what most people term "survivalist"), I was ecstatic when my wife got me a copy of The Complete Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook. In essence, the book is a collection of all of the Complete Worst-Case books and a CD that contains a web-version of the same books and some pretty nice wallpapers.

If you have anyone on your shopping list that loves to know what to do in the oddest  situations, this is the book for them:

• Need to know how to handle a stampede of rhinoceros?
• Need to know how to escape a sinking vehicle?
• Need to know how to jump with two people and one parachute?

The book boasts more than 500 pages and although some of the situations are a little unlikely, most of the advice provided is pretty well thought out. Well worth owning and a great conversation starter with guests.

Have fun and survive!

Book review: Egypt's Sunken Treasures

Browsing through books at discount prices, one often finds some rather interesting discoveries, including this fascinating book, Egypt's Sunken Treasures, which details the discoveries made by French underwater archeologist Franck Goddio, founder of the European Institute of Underwater Archeology.

With some pretty remarkable photographs of the excavation process, as well as the numerous finds which includes statues, stone tablets, jewelery and architectural elements, the book also dwells on the interactions between the cities of Alexandria, Heraklion and Canopus and ancient Greeks, and the influences they had on each other. A great book to add to you collection and especially worthwhile for anyone interested in ancient history.

The book is available in several languages and makes an excellent gift.

Kolo Albums

As my wife has been working on completing a wedding album for Gen & Dave, customers that she photographed in July, she discovered a fantastic manufacturer called Kolo, who specialize in high-quality albums and scrapbooks of all types. I was very impressed by both the designs available as well as the overall material quality:

A lot of selection available and as you can imagine, a fairly premium price, but you are paying for quality:

Have a look at their website or visit Omer DeSerres art stores, who are a licensed distributor.

Where to get ebooks?

Since I've received my Kobo as a gift, I've been searching high and low for free sources of ePub format ebooks. I have managed to find several interesting sites that provide high-quality public domain work, including:

• http://www.epubbooks.com/
• http://www.web-books.com/
• http://manybooks.net/

And of course, a great source of reading material, who is slowly providing ePub versions of their online library:

• http://www.gutenberg.org/

Enjoy many great books of the past; anyway, most of them are better than what has been written in the last 100 years!

A sketch of 221B

I came upon this sketch the other day, by Russell Stutler, an American artist living in Tokyo. After reading all 60 Sherlock Holmes stories twice, while taking notes on any item of note listed amongst the texts, he designed and drew this fantastic representation of Holmes's fictional residence:

I just wanted to share this fantastic art work with you. Enjoy!

Update on the Kobo eReader

I am very happy to report that my wonderful wife, for our second anniversary, decided to get me my own Kobo and I thought that I would point out my experiences so far. The device is well packaged and comes with a single accessory, a USB cable (standard mini USB cable in white). The device is cradled in a combination of foam and cardboard, with a screen protecting membrane installed on the face.

I removed the device from the package, removed the USB cable and plugged the device into my wife iMac. It took a moment and the device mounted in the Finder. At that point, I discovered that the device contained a folder with both the Windows and Apple version of the Kobo Desktop software. I quickly installed the Apple version and looked over the functionality. Well, let me say, this version of the application lacks a little "polish".

After determining that I was unable to view the 100 free included books in the application, nor could I remove them, I ejected the device (which should be done with any USB data device) and looked it over. The free books were there and I took a few moments to open a few and browse, as well as to check the various features of the Kobo. At least the device itself is fantastic: easy to read screen, great format, light weight, easy to hold and with a secure feeling in hand.

I decided to install the Windows version of the application on my netbook and see if this version was a little more complete. Alas, it is the very same application. Feeling somewhat disappointed, I logged on to the Kobobooks website, created an account, and started exploring what was available. According to the site, I can add books to a personalized section labelled My Library, which would sync them to my Kobo Desktop software, which I would then use to transfer the books to my Kobo. Sounds simple enough, I thought. I looked through the free section and  discovered that they were the very same books that I already had loaded on the device I had in my hand. I wasn't up to purchasing a new book, so I decided to determine if I could add books I currently had, many of which are in PDF format. I was aware that the device supported PDF display, but I was curious to see how well it would work. Since the device was available as a data drive, I dragged over a PDF file, ejected the drive and powered up the device.

The PDF file was available within the Document section of the device, and loaded up quickly and with great resolution. Basic PDF display commands were available, including the all important resize, which worked quite well. But that is when my troubles began. I decided to remove the PDF file from the device, first by connecting the Kobo back to the computer, letting the device mount and deleting the file from the drive. Several folders were now being displayed in the Kobo, including the PDF file I had dragged over.

The Kobo supports ePub and PDF formats at the moment, although the maker has hinted at further support down the road with firmware upgrades to the device. I have been downloading ePub files left, right and center to test with the device, since finding some advice online about using another application to send books to the device, called Calibre, which has been working a lot better for me than the Kobo Desktop.

I've been enjoying the device tremendously though; who could have thought that I would be able to carry hundreds of books in such a small and convenient device. I will post more concerning my experiences with this great device as I learn more about it from regular use. I can tell you that within a couple days of receiving it, I've already re-read The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, The Most Dangerous Game and I am quarter of the way through The Count of Monte Cristo.

Book review: Just A Geek by Wil Wheaton

I've been a Star Trek fan since I was a young boy and that has not stopped since. I watched STNG with my father and saw every episode and although the writing sometimes left a little to desire, the show was still great. One of the main cast, young ensign Wesley Crusher, played at the time by a young Wil Wheaton, was not a favourite character, but I quickly recognized that writing had more to do with it than the actor's intrinsic skill.


Cut to several years later, and Wil Wheaton has discovered an additional talent, writing. I have just had the pleasure of listening to an audiobook version of one of his books, Just a Geek. Unlike most Hollywood actirs, Wheaton has a decidedly honest and interesting point of view on an industry that he decided to leave behind, a situation that caused him his fair share of heartache, as he poignantly describes in the book.

I highly encourage any Star Trek fan to read the book, for a candid and interesting peak into the lives of people who helped the story to come to life. I also highly encourage anyone to read this book, if only to learn that some actors are far more complex, interesting, genuine and honest people than what we may have come to believe.

Note: The audiobook version of this book is read by Wil Wheaton himself, which probably serves to make this version even better, as he adds details that are not in the written version of the book.

Book review: The Wedding Photographer's Planner

As my wife's photo studio, Photo Pulse, offers wedding photography, she continues to research the topic in order to remain on top in this very competitive field. Not very long ago, she came home with a great book by Kenny Kim, called The Wedding Photographer's Planner. I have had the opportunity to read this excellent book from cover to cover and can easily recommend it to any professional wedding photographer, as well as anyone interested in moving into this field.

The book is well broken down, the photography is both beautiful and original and the reference sections alone are worth the price of the book. Although some of the chapters concentrate on the proper use of equipment, rarely an issue for most professionals, the bulk of the book concentrates on the elements that are particular to wedding photos.

Kim offers some interesting ideas and suggestions and includes many tips derived from years of experience in the field. This information is worth its weight in gold, in my opinion and can only be a benefit to anyone involved in weddings.

A great addition to our (and perhaps your) photography reference library.

Pick of the week: Bookshelf Porn

If you like books, chances are you'll absolutely love this week's Pick of the week: Bookshelf Porn. An archive of bookshelf photos that will completely astound you. But reader beware, for book lovers only! There's not much more to say about it!

You've been warned!

Book review: Geek Dad by Ken Denmead

Today is my second Father's Day and an awesome day it has been. I called my own father in the morning to wish him a happy Father's Day and I was then surprised by my wife and son (well, I admit it, mostly my wife) with a great gift, a book I had looked at on my last trip to Chapter's, Geek Dad.

Geek Dad was the brainchild of Wired editor Chris Anderson and was originally a blog, still in operation today. Click here to view the Geek Dad blog. Eventually, Ken Denmead joined as a contributor and was eventually chosen to take over as editor in chief of the blog, which has become since then, an integral part of Wired.com.

It was during this time that Ken decided to write a book on a rather specific topic related to geeky fathers. The result was Geek Dad: Awesomely Geeky Projects and Activities for Dads and Kids. The book encompasses almost 30 projects that fathers and kids will enjoy together while tapping into the infinite possibilities of their imagination.

I've had a chance to read through the book completely and can tell you that I am looking forward to incorporating some of these activities with my boy. He's perhaps a little young at the moment, but now that I've been exposed to some of these projects, I can help to "prepare" the terrain, so to speak.

Some of my favourites so far have included:

- Parenting using Role Playing Games

- See the world from the sky

- And for older kids, a Wi-Fi signal booster for getting connectivity while "in the field"

There are some truly entertaining projects in this book, many of which will lead to hours of thought provoking conversations with your children. If you know a geek father, this is the book to get them. I can tell you with absolute certainty that they'll thank you for it. And so will the kids!

Book review: Mechanika by Doug Chiang

Every time I'm around Chapter's, I can't help but step in and take a look around. And I'm not the only one with this problem, my wife seems to be afflicted by the same issue. I had been looking at an art instruction book the last couple times I was there, and finally, I caved and decided to buy it, if only to support the artist that wrote it.

The book is called Mechanika: Creating the Art of Science Fiction, by Doug Chiang. For those who may not know who the author is, let me tell you that he has won an Academy Award for his work, which has included Star Wars 1 and 2, Beowulf, Polar Express and many others, as well as authoring several books, including the one reviewed.

One of the reasons I had looked at this book in the first place was the fantastic marker techniques used and clearly explained by the author. There are very few books detailing the use of markers in drawing, and even fewer detailing them so well. Furthermore, the author's easy going manner, great skill ad clear explanations and reasoning make this book an excellent reference for any type of artist.

If you enjoy drawing and the subject matter, science fiction, appeals to you, take a look at this great book and get inspired to draw the world in your mind.

Update on Blurb

I just wanted to update you on some personal experience with the Blurb book publishing service. After careful consideration, my wife decided to create a book of black and white architecture images she has taken in the Ottawa and National Capital region. She easily downloaded and installed the Blurb book creation software, BookSmart. After a few evenings of tinkering with the various settings offered in the application, she published her book, and ordered a copy for herself.

Five business days after her order, a very well packaged book arrived from Blurb. Having the physical specimen in hand allowed me to determine that the overall quality was excellent. Although my wife had selected a lower quality paper to reduce the final product cost, the quality of the paper that was used was excellent. The print reproductions were excellent, but my wife also determined that the picture quality might be better if she had used better source material during the creation process. This was to be an experiment in the process of creating and ordering a book from Blurb, and not a final product.

From what I have been able to observe about the process, I can safely say that I highly recommend the use of Blurb for the creation of any book idea you might have. You will get a fantastic product that you will be proud of!

Pick of the week: Scribd

If you've never heard of Scribd, prepare yourself for a little bit of information overload. Scribd is currently the largest social publishing company in the world. More than 60 million people visit each month and can discover and share original writings and documents with each other. In existence since 2007, Scribd has quickly garnered attention for their great interface, excellent search and upload tools, and of course, the quality and sheer quantity of the content hosted.

It's also worth mentioning that I've found Scribd invaluable for finding several out of date, out of print books, perfectly scanned and available for free. In my opinion, if a tool or site can help you find something that no one else has been able to, there must be some value to it! Head on over and take a look, I'm sure that like me, you will be completely amazed and will quickly bookmark this fantastic site.

Book review: Pocket Ref

For fans of Mythbusters, the little black book aptly called Pocket Ref is perhaps the most used tool on the show.

Pocket Ref is a book published by Sequoia Publishing, and is now in its third edition, which is a testament to its continued usefulness. It contains reference information of all types, as well as tables, charts and guides on such varied subjects as automotive repair, carpentry, construction, chemistry, physics, computers, physical, chemical, and mathematical constants, electronics, money and measurement conversions, first aid, glues, solvents, paints, and finishes, hardware, mining, milling, and aggregate, plumbing, zip codes, rope, cable, and knots, steel and metals, surveying and mapping, geology and mineralogy and much more.

Some of the information I've found in it so far has been simply mind-blowing! As the publisher indicates, they have made every attempt to avoid any errors, and I can appreciate how difficult it would be to complete this task with any degree of success. The book has been in print since 1989, and as mentioned above, is currently in its third edition (and according to my copy, the 24th printing!). The latest edition was released in 2002, and I would imagine that any errors that were discovered have been reported and corrected since then in subsequent printing runs. I have found a few omissions (specifically area codes for the Montreal and Toronto area, but the base ones listed are correct), and a decidedly USA-centric base of knowledge, as exposed by details such as the fact that most measurements are imperial unless specified, or that listed military ranks are in fact US Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. But in no way does this reduce the value of this book.

As the name implies, Pocket Ref is a pocket-sized book and can truly be carried with you all the time, and its priced low enough to make it an excellent gift for any person on your list. It is also possible to order copies with custom covers, making this an excellent business gift for prospective customers. Trust me, they will remember you forever if you give them one of these with your business contact information printed on the cover. This book is easily one of the three books I would choose to take with me to a deserted island, and might even make my number one pick, if I was thinking rationally!! Get your own copy now, you will definitely not regret it.

Pick of the week: Blurb

I've been working on a book project for several years now, a cookbook by yours truly! I have been working on this project for almost ten years now, and although I have about two hundred and fifty pages written so far, I have very few corresponding images. Since I have an interest in photography and have the studio equipment to take the pictures I need, I know that it is just a question of time to get them done. Although I have to admit that the photography is the most time consuming aspect of this endeavour, the part that had me scratching my head the most was the actual publishing. I didn't relish going through a traditional publisher, who would most likely heavily edit my work, and have me rewrite the whole thing five times before going to print. And that got me thinking...

Self-publishing has become a big business now, and with the savvy demonstrated by many online entrepreneurs, and it has allowed many first time writers to publish bookstore quality hard copies of their work, in quantities that are within the realm of affordability. One such business is Blurb; their fantastic site allows you to order your own book, with numerous options and in quantities from one to as many as you'd like!

After registration, and a download of their book making software, BookSmart, both Mac and PC users can easily create their book from a selection of book formats, review and edit to their heart's content, and then upload the final product when ready to order hard copies.

The printing and shipping takes around seven to ten business days, and Blurb will also print books with custom branding or no branding, for those who prefer that option. All in all, a very smooth and easy process, with numerous positive reviews and a great finished product. Take a look for yourself.

Thanks to Blurb for the use of the book images.