Ye Classic SF

[kerravonsen]

I started off looking to see if "Flatland" was at Project Gutenberg (because someone on my flist mentioned it) and ended up burning for myself the Project Gutenberg Science Fiction Bookshelf CD! Nifty!

I also downloaded and burned the Project Gutenberg July 2006 DVD, but it isn't as convenient, since all the files are zipped, whereas the SF CD is all ready for browsing.

And, yes, "Flatland" is on the CD.

In other news, my sister-in-law helped me go furniture shopping. IKEA. I think I'm supposed to hang my head in shame for being so plebeian, but considering that a number of my bookshelves were bought from the Reject Shop, I don't really care. The actual item is still in S-I-L's car, since they were going to get a trolly to help carry it in, and since they haven't arrived, I'm hoping they'll do it tomorrow. So I'll hopefully be angsting over allan keys (how do you spell that thing?) tomorrow.

Comments

[reapermum.livejournal.com]

I'm supposed to hang my head in shame for being so plebeian,

Hold your head up, their furniture does it's job without being irritating. My house is lined with Billy bookshelves.

And they go together very easily, the allen key makes joining pieces a doddle.

[the-magician.livejournal.com]

hex keys (because it saves me saying Allen or Allan!)

I think all the Ikea stuff comes with the correct key in a sort of square Z shape so you get good leverage ... though I cheated last time as I had hex heads for my electric screwdriver and used those to put the stuff together ... you could also probably do with a small hammer to nail the back on some Ikea items (as it is often made up of thin pressed woodproduct held on with small pintacks ... having a few spare ones of those can be handy if you bend too many, but if you end up a couple short that's not a problem :-) )

[bktheirregular]

Yeah, in general, any Ikea project that needs an allen wrench comes with one packaged with the screws and bolts and such.

No shame in going the Ikea route, in my book, anyway. I'd be throwing stones in glass houses, anyway; everything in my apartment's from Ikea except for the fridge, the hot plate, the toaster oven, the microwave, and the clothes washer...

[kerravonsen]

(grin)

My stuff isn't half so coordinated... 8-P

[jhall1.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the link. There's some interesting stuff there.

[kerravonsen]

You're welcome!

I haven't explored it fully yet, though I noticed some H. Beam Piper which piqued my interest.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Hey, what's the name of that book I can't get any more where an alien and a human travel over a world with a wide-diameter equator to a flattened pole? Maybe it's there.

[kerravonsen]

Sounds like something that Hal Clement would have written.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

That's the author! And he's not there. Damn.

[kerravonsen]

He's still alive, so far as I know. I met him at the SF Worldcon in 1985. So his stuff would still be in copyright, and thus not under the purview of the Gutenberg Project.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

He died in 2003; not long enough ago. Recently I read the last book (Noise) he wrote, published just before he died, and found it hard going due to my lack of interest in the characters. Maybe he was getting a bit past it.

[kerravonsen]

Ah.

I never really thought that characterisation was his strong point. Oh, he had reasonably good characters, but not particularly memorable ones for me. I loved his world-building.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I'm usually happy with good science (and Clement delivers that). Maybe I just didn't like that world much. :-)

[jthijsen.livejournal.com]

The book is called Mission of Gravity and is currently available, but I already own it.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I found that out already, but I'm not sure I want to buy it from the UK or even US.

[jhall1.livejournal.com]

Are you thinking of Hal Clement's "Mission of Gravity"? I think all Clement's work is still in copyright. But "Mission of Gravity" was republished not long ago in a collection of Clement's stories set on the same planet, under the title "Heavy Planet" (2002, ISBN 0-7653-0368-X). Amazon ought to have it.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Ha! I already saw that on Amazon and wondered. Thanks.

[jthijsen.livejournal.com]

Ooh, ooh, ooh!!!! [drools]

And they have "Man of many minds" by E. Everett Evans! The only shamelessly sentimental space opera that I ever really liked! Oh boy, am I ever going to enjoy this!

[kerravonsen]

Yay! I am spreading joy!

I've never heard of E. Everett Evans. Looks like there's going to be some unknown gems to find. Goody!

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

OK, I have to download that. So many stories I love are no longer available.

[kerravonsen]

Enjoy.