Cory Doctorow at 7:06 pm • 
• 
Shan sez, "Our guide/map of SF is printed on a single sheet of A3 Tyvek, and is then folded up according to a technique originally developed at Tokyo University for satellite solar panels. The bistable nature of the fold means that it can be fully opened or closed in one smooth motion, and that there is no way to fold it 'wrong.'
The places we included are a mix of overlooked gems, classic restaurants, and other things like hidden parks, games played across the city, and interesting shops and markets.
We just launched our project on Kickstarter yesterday evening, and as of today we're almost 10% funded!"
TOC Guide to SF
(Thanks, Shan!)
The
San Francisco Chronicle loves the stage adaptation of my novel
Little Brother, and brings the welcome news that its run has been
extended by two weeks!
— Cory
•
The
next installment of San Francisco's SF in SF reading series, on Jan 28, features Ryan Boudinot (Blueprints of the Afterlife) and Ayize Jama-Everett (The Liminal People). Organizer Rina Wiseman writes, "it's Debut Novel Drink Night! Join us for an SF in SF Sling...we can't tell you what's in it til you get here!" Free admission (suggested $5-$10 donation). Doors open 6PM. 582 Market Street @ 2nd and Montgomery.
— Cory
•
Cory Doctorow at 9:53 am • •
There's a new stage adaptation of my novel Little Brother opening in San Francisco. Charlie Jane Anders from IO9 got to go to the preview and loved it, which is incredibly heartening, since I won't get to see it!
So I'll just say that the version I saw was powerful and brilliant, and the cast was note-perfect, especially Daniel Petzold as Marcus Yallow. (The other two castmembers, Marissa Keltie and Cory Censoprano, have a harder task in some ways, since they play a variety of roles throughout the show. And they're both great as well.) The stage play uses a lot of pre-recorded video and some very clever sets to create a lot of different settings, as well as giving a primer in topics like the futility of using data-mining to catch terrorists.
Cory Doctorow’s Little Brother becomes a must-see stage play
Cory Doctorow at 11:51 am • •
Rick Prelinger sez, "Here's a little holiday gift from Prelinger Archives. It's the work of accomplished amateur filmmaker (and expert tinkerer) Tullio Pellegrini, who combined a 16mm Bell & Howell Cinemascope lens with the wonders of Kodachrome and made this homage to the city of San Francisco. You'll see Playland, our oceanside amusement park which was closed in 1972, very rare footage of the SkyTram (an extinct ride over Seal Rocks and Sutro Baths), and a brakescreeching ride down the Crookedest Street in the World. Happy Holidays!"
San Francisco 1955 in Cinemascope, captured by amateur filmmaker
Cory Doctorow at 10:20 am • •
Keyan sez, "FOGcon is a new literary-themed SF/F con in the tradition of Wiscon and Readercon, but based in San Francisco Bay Area. It was held for the first time in 2011. This year (2012) it'll be from March 30-April 1, 2012, at the Walnut Creek Marriott. The theme is 'The Body', with two wonderful Honored Guests, writer Nalo Hopkinson and writer and artist Shelley Jackson. It's a great con with a warm and friendly ambiance, a manageable size, and intelligent programming. And it's less than an hour from down-town San Francisco."
FOGcon
Cory Doctorow at 6:22 am • •
FirstSecond has just re-released Derek Kirk Kim's
Same Difference, his Ignatz, Harvey and Eisner award-winning indie comic from his early career. The FirstSecond edition is absolutely gorgeous, with a transparent plastic dustjacket printed with bug-eyed goldfish that swim through the cover-art.
Same Difference is the story of Korean-American 20-something slackers in San Francisco who wrestle with the stereotypes and ambitions that they feel guide their lives. It has the feel of vintage Douglas Coupland, a drifting ennui shot through with moments of human warmth and connection. And though it's a quick read, it leaves a lasting emotional coal smouldering in its wake.
Same Difference
Read the rest
Cory Doctorow at 8:42 am • •
Hank sez, "The San Francisco Examiner reported in March 1937 that private investigator Edwin Atherton, hired by the city to investigate police graft, delivered a list of 135 long-term brothels, called 'resorts,' to the Grand Jury investigation police corruption, finding bordellos in neighborhoods from South of Market to North Beach."
San Francisco Examiner lists 135 long-established house of prostitution
(Thanks, Hank!)
Dean Putney at 10:41 am • •
Rose Garrett over at The Bold Italic did some crackerjack investigative work on a little lounge nestled between the bars in the Lower Haight of San Francisco. The Peacock Lounge is almost always closed, only very rarely opened for private events. Rose's attempts to reach someone, anyone, associated with the venue go unanswered until its doors serendipitously open again to host a neighborhood meeting:
Nate also shared with me a detail that went a long way toward explaining why Peacock Lounge was such an enigma. He said the space was not, and was never meant to be, a bar or nightlife venue. It was owned and operated by Unity Masonic Hall, located upstairs, and its main use was as a private social hall for the Black Masons.
A The Bold Italic Mystery - Entering the Nest - Thanks, John!
Cory Doctorow at 1:58 pm • •
Here's a piece of hackerspace lore from earlier this summer. Rinpoche Fa Zang, a Buddhist monk, believed (incorrectly) that the rule of the San Francisco Noisebridge hackerspace was that "if the space was not being used, it could be used for anything." So he and his disciples rearranged the hackerspace into a shrine and began conducting services in it.
What followed was a gentle but insistent tug of war between a group of anti-authoritarian hackers and a monk, as documented by Danny O'Brien, one of the funniest people I know.
A few hours later, Fa Zang left me a voicemail. I have the MP3 if
anyone wants it. It is awesome, and here is the transcript:
"Sir,
This is Fa Zang (Rinpoche). You seem to have forgotten that this
country was found... to things written in the Constitution. Our
founding forefathers promised us we would have freedom of speech,
and freedom of religion. You remember the things that Thomas
Jefferson said, about tyranny and religion? If you don't you should
look it up. What you people are doing is completely erroneous, I
haven't held any ceremonies there, I've simply been paying homage to
the teachings I listen to there. And so you are breaking your own
by-laws and the constitutional rights of people who come there by
doing what you're doing. I think you should reconsider what you're
doing."
So there you go. As someone who is also a fan of the founding fathers and
...things written in the Constitution, I'm sensitive to issues regarding
religion, so I've been actively seeking out someone who is okay with the
meditating, and the incense, and the shrining, and the constantly bloody
moving of the tables and chairs. Let me know if you want to represent the
Rinpoche's position in this disagreement.
In the mean time, if you agree with what is smelling to me like consensus,
and if you see the Rinpoche in the road, or even in the space, can you ask
him to keep the ceremonial stuff to Macang Monastery, where he lives.
(via Oblomovka)
(Image: 2009 Bay Area Maker Faire, a Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike (2.0) image from mightyohm's photostream)
Cory Doctorow at 10:43 am • •
From the Boing Boing Flickr pool, a candid moment of a young man cutting his hair on a San Francisco fire-escape, by Erik Wilson.
Cory Doctorow at 10:03 am • •
NoiseBridge, the celebrated hackerspace in San Francisco's Mission district, is celebrating its third anniversary tonight with a Hacker Prom. There's a makeout room (featuring Makerbots), pre-spiked punch, and awkward prom photos. You're encouraged to bring a robot date. Oh, this does look fun!
The whole event is a fundraiser for NoiseTor, a part of the TOR anonymizing proxy system, which creates and manages Tor nodes for those without the time to set one up themselves.
(Thanks, Danny!)
Xeni Jardin at 3:20 pm • •
The "Occupy Wall Street" protests in New York City are inspiring similar demonstrations in other US cities. Above, in San Francisco on Thursday, protesters scuffle with a Charles Schwab employee at the door during a rally against corruption and fraud by American banking institutions.
Are there demonstrations in your area, Boing Boing readers? We're hearing of similar rumblings in Detroit, and other areas. Let us know what's happening where you are, in the comments.
(REUTERS/Stephen Lam)
Cory Doctorow at 4:26 pm • •
A broken-hearted person in Heather's neighbourhood is building a boat. He wants your help, your garage, and your company.
Cory Doctorow at 10:49 pm • •
Lamaline_5mg, the alleged "French woman" who cracked the BART Police Officers' Website Association site
claims to have no experience with hacking: "They had zero security." SFWeekly writes, "she figured out how to get into BART's website by a one-page PDF tutorial and googling 'site:bartpoa.com inurl:.asp?'"
