PlasticBoy

Americans: Fatter and drunker than ever.

The Gamers, a movie about role-players.

Woohoo! Boston bans smoking.

It’s raining gaming goodness on me today. I got into the Star Wars Galaxies beta test, and the new official Neverwinter Nights adventure just came out. Unfortunately, I have no time to enjoy it.

Stereolab’s Mary Hansen Dead at 36.

Will Linux Superdesktops Storm the Mainstream?
“Perr said Linux has gotten a boost from an unexpected source. ‘Microsoft has been a tremendous help to the Linux desktop,’ he told NewsFactor. Specifically, Perr said, the software giant’s new licensing policy has been a big factor driving companies to consider Linux. ‘People are extremely upset,’ he noted. Gordon agreed with that assessment. ‘I’ve been saying since we [were] founded that we were one major Microsoft upgrade away from a major paradigm shift.’”

Jury Service, a novella by Charlie Stross and Cory Doctorow.

Sony dumps Microsoft for StarOffice
“‘The way Microsoft took over this market in the first place was by taking over the consumer end and letting consumers sway the business market,’ Phipps said. ‘We’re on something of the same path. Increased consumer acceptance of StarOffice is definitely going to have some sway with business buyers. And when corporate customers look at StarOffice, they’re going to see it’s cheaper and the licensing terms are much easier to manage.’”

Downloaders get bills from Danish anti-piracy group.
I find this story pretty ironic. The only reason I download stuff from P2P networks is that record companies refuse to sell it to me in a format I can use (e.g. MP3, Ogg Vorbis). If I got a bill like this I’d pay it with a note that said: “This has been great. Can we do it again next month?” The only problem, of course, is the outrageous prices: $2.67 a song.

Red Hat Chief: Where is the Rage?