Steampunk Challenge is on, Greater Victoria Public Library

The Greater Victoria Public Library has issued a Steampunk Challenge, an online scavenger hunt designed to test your information literacy skills. It's for middle and high school students, but looks like a lot of fun, so anyone into Steampunk and puzzles ought to give it a try.

Cool your ears on my entry in the Jazzy/Chillout Remix contest

I completed an entry in an audio remix contest sponsored by SoundtrackLoops.com. The contest is titled the Jazzy/Chillout Remix Contest. My entry, Jazzy Chillout - (Trance Doctor Remix), can be found here. This is not a popularity-based contest, so judges are involved. Three winners will be chosen. The contest closes June 30, 2012 at midnight Central Standard Time US.

Canada, land of heritage cultureless opportunities

Vancouver Sun journalist Stephen Hume has written a scathing piece, "Moving historic artifacts to Quebec 'stupid, insensitive'" about Prime Minister Harper's Conservative government's insensitive and economically unjustified cut to the National Archival Development Program and the warehousing of countless artifacts from their local communities to a warehouse in Gatineau, Quebec.

Smoking out the wrong stuff at Library and Archives Canada

Ian Milligan, writing for ActiveHistory.ca back on May 22, 2012, provided a great overview of the immediate and coming cuts to Library and Archives Canada programs and services, including the elimination of the National Archival Development Program (NADP) and the axing of the interlibrary lending (ILL) service. He called his essay "The Smokescreen of ‘Modernization’ at Library and Archives Canada".

J.L. Granatstein in Globe & Mail on Library and Archives Canada's decimation

Historian J.L. Granatstein has written a most excellent rant against the ongoing decimation of Library and Archives Canada under the direction of the Librarian and Archivist of Canada, whom it seems, would rather carry out the wishes of his politician master the Hon. James Moore rather than do the honourable thing and resign. Take a look at Granatstein's indictment of the radical changes at LAC in the Globe & Mail (June 12, 2012) titled "Who will preserve the past for future generations?" Sadly, one of the cuts Granatstein missed was the elimination of the National Archival Development Program (NADP). Granatstein is the author of Who Killed Canadian History?, so perhaps a sequel might be Who Killed the Library and Archives Canada?

LinkedIn security breach (June 7, 2012), change your password

In case you have not heard or been informed, as I was not, LinkedIn.com has had a security breach and 6.4 million member passwords were stolen. The theft was publicized on Thursday, June 7, 2012. As of June 10, 2012, all LinkedIn has done is to post a notice on its site that you should reset your password. In my case, the site remembered I was logged in from a previous visit and did not automatically log me out. I'm not sure whether that's a plus or a minus.

Uploaded "What Tribe R U?" excerpt to SoundCloud

Didn't allow myself enough time to finish this track and enter it in an electronic music contest that closed on June 5, 2012. This excerpt from "What Tribe R U?" on SoundCloud is about the middle two minutes. The total track length is around four and half minutes. Crank up the volume and your bass setting to feel the groove.