The New Digs

Computer digs, I mean. I’ve had my new laptop for over a month now, so I think it’s fair to say that I can judge it properly. It’s…well, you know what, this will probably be easier in list form, because lists just make everything better.

Pros

---Boots up like hella fast; I have to give Windows 8 credit for that

---I can finally copy links from the address bar in Chrome again; seriously, that was driving me nuts

---Um…the cat seems to enjoy licking it…not really sure what to make of this

Cons

---Windows 8 (technically 8.1, but that really isn’t better)

---I have to use the FN key if I want to use F7, which as you probably all know, is the spell check/thesaurus button; and you know what, this might be a small thing, but it’s a pain in the freaking ass

---I can’t just find a program, right click, and put it on the desk top; I have to manually create an icon just so I have easy access to it on the desk top; italicized because SERIOUSLY WHY IS THAT A THING?

---Of course, you can’t just find a program anyway, as there’s no Programs button in the start menu; you’re just supposed to start typing what you want and pray that the right thing comes up (and that it’s not under some stupid name you don’t recognize)

---Seriously, I hate the Start menu; it’s blocky and colorful and I want things in neat, list-like rows

---Oh, and here’s a switch as I’ll actually be complaining about something other than Windows 8, but rather Toshiba as they’re the ones who made this thing; I couldn’t scroll using the touch panel; do you have any idea how annoying that is? It took me a week to figure out how to fix it (Toshiba’s help site was exactly no help); until then, I had to use the arrow keys or manually scroll like an animal!

---Windows 8. I just don’t think I can explain in words how unintuitive it is; for a tablet or a touchscreen, yeah, maybe it would work; but I don’t frigging have one of those, do I, Windows 8? DO I?

---All the apps stupid Windows 8 tries to shove down my throat; you know what, Windows 8? I don’t need a “Food and Drink” app. I don’t need your stupid “Mail”. What I need is to be able to find my copy of Microsoft Word and Paint for all my Spamfiles pictures. But do you make them easy to find? Or do you give me the stupidest bass-ackwards interface that someone thought up after huffing lead based paint?

---Windows 8. Go die in a fire.

Okay, so there are way more Cons than Pros, mostly because of Windows f*****g 8 being a piece of garbage. I know shouldn’t complain about something that was basically free but…man, I wish I could have picked it out myself.

If you’re in the market for a new computer/laptop, for the love of all that is holy, wait until the next version of Windows comes out because it can’t be as bad as this monstrosity. If your computer dies early, you’re better off getting an old one with Windows 7 than suffering with 8.

Seriously, Windows 8. Hate you.

Stranded

AKA: Things To Do After the Car Breaks Down at the Gas Station and You’re Waiting for Triple A

Secret Origins: W

I’m sure this won’t be another rehash of U, like the letter V was. Or maybe it will as I’m already rehashing the opening statement.

The alphabet gif has a short lineage for W. See, it turns out, most other languages just used U/V for W. In Etruscan, a version of it was figure 8 they used for the F sound. It was the Germanic languages that used two U’s, or W, to signify the sound for V. It didn’t become “wah” until later, again in Germanic writings (where they also kind of used a P like symbol for the W sound).

So, in neater, list format:

Etruscan:

F = V sound (it’s a soft F, so basically a V)

8 = HF sound (this would be a F like we know it)

V = U (makes the U sound; there is no W sound at all)

Ancient Latin:

F = F (really only used for F as they didn’t use a V sound)

Y = U/W (It looks like a Y, but it’s really a V and it makes the U sound; still no W sound)

Roman Latin:

F = F (again, just F)

V = U (the sound)

VV = UU (started by Germanic languages for the V sound they had; later, it started to be wah instead of vah)

Modern Latin:

F = F

U = U

V = V

W = W

           

Sources

Alphabet Gif

Omniglot

Ancient Scripts

Mysterious Etruscans

Medieval Writing

March Goals

Oh, man, February just…just sucked, for way too many people. It’s been a long time since I’ve been this relieved for a new month to dawn. I just wish February would take this m@&#$&%^#*@%g snow with it.

February Goals

1. Try to find enough time to do those frigging edits on REMEMBER.

Unfortunately, no, I was no able to. This month was just a mess and I really didn’t have that much free time because it was either work lots of hours at a low paying job or starve. I am so bummed about this that I’m going to have to use a sad face emoticon. : (

2. Get caught up on everything I fell behind on without a computer.

Well, I was at least able to do this. Small victories, I guess.

3. Don’t starve to death. Maybe.

I’m still here, so I guess this was a success. I just wish it felt like it. I’ve been so busy working that I don’t have enough time to write and that just sucks.

Sigh. I really hope March is better. I mean, it can’t be worse, right?

Right??

March Goals

1. Find enough time to do some writing/editing! Please, pretty please. Maybe I’ll win the lottery and then not have to worry about money anymore.

2. All the snow has caused some water damage, so I will be spending some time trying to mitigate that. Man, how I wish I didn’t have to make this a goal. Didn’t this blog used to be about writing?

3. Get all my A-to-Z Challenge posts ready for posting! They’re all written, so it’s just setting them up. I’m actually kind of excited for this one.

Okay, so that’s the plan. What are you up to this month? Need any snow? Because I have lots of extra.

Cars

I actually started this comic over a month ago, right after the event in question happened. I was right in the middle of making all the stick figures for it when my computer crapped out on me. And, well…you know the rest.

Let me set the scene: I’ve mentioned previously that my mom had laser eye surgery (no, no, I know what you’re thinking and let me stop you; she does not get laser vision, which I think makes the thing poorly named). About a month after each eye was done, she had to go back to the eye doctor for a follow up just to make sure everything was healed up well. Because she needs to have her eyes dilated, she can’t drive herself home, so of course I’m the one who has to go with her and get her driving criticized loudly and frequently because it’s not like I have feelings, and you know what, I don’t think I’m that terrible, but god forbid she stop cringing every time I hit the gas or get within fifty yards of the car in front of me. Um. But that’s a story for another day.

Anyway, we had to stop for gas on the way up there…

Keep in mind, this was before eight feet of snow was dumped on the area. In fact, it was the first actual snow storm of the season. And it happened right after the car’s battery died (it just needed a jump, but she’s probably going to have to get a new one sometime soon).

Language of Confusion: SMRT

Today’s theme is looking at words that mean intelligent (and if you don’t get the reference in the title, tsk tsk).

Smart

Smart has two meanings, being intelligent and a pain. The latter is hardly used these days, which is ironic as it was the original meaning to the intelligent smart. It first showed up in Old English as smeortan, to be painful, coming from the Proto Germanic smarta and Proto Indo European smerd, pain. Apparently, in the early fourteenth century, people who were “cutting with words” (i.e. inflicting pain) were smart, sort of like someone who’s a smartass, and from there it morphed into quick witted and clever, and somewhere over the centuries the pain definition went into the sidelines.

Intelligent

Intelligent first showed up in the early sixteenth century, while intelligence showed up over a century earlier, from the Old French intelligence and classical Latin intelligentia, which of course is just intelligence. It’s the present participle of intelligere, understand, which itself is a mix of the prefix inter- (meaning “between” in this case) and legere, read (and the origin word for lecture). So…someone who’s intelligent reads between the lines?

Clever

Clever showed up in the late sixteenth century meaning handy or dexterous, which I can see as being smart. It comes from either the East Anglian (an English dialect) cliver, expert at seizing, the East Frisian (a German dialect) klüfer, skillful, or the Norwegian (please tell me you know what this one is) klover, also skillful (but more commonly cloven, as in hooves). So this is definitely another no-one-knows one.

Genius

Genius first showed up in the late fourteenth century, but like the other words here it didn’t have the meaning we know. It comes from classical Latin (the word is the impossible-to-pronounce genius) and basically meant a guardian deity, but also things like generative power and talent. It wasn’t until the mid-seventeenth century that it took on the current definition. A genius, someone born as a kind of deity...it kind of makes sense. Certainly a lot more than clever up there. Jeesh.

Sources  

Online Etymology Dictionary

Google Translate

Omniglot

University of Texas at Austin Linguistic Research Center

Tony Jebson’s page on the Origins of Old English

University of Texas at San Antonio’s page on Proto Indo European language

Coloring Outside the Lines

Okay, I’m finally getting to this. It’s always been delayed by other things getting in the way, or computers breaking, or just plain laziness. But now. It’s finally time. Unless right after I type this, something else catastrophic happens, and honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised.

I do a lot of things during my editing process. I use CTRL+F to hunt down overused word (manage, 42 times…I cut it down to six, because that’s how many times it wasn’t extraneous). I do a read aloud to make sure it reads okay when it’s not just my internal monologue. I also do a color partition to break apart the entire MS by what each part does. I got the idea from another blogger several years ago (unfortunately I can’t remember which one…I think it was an agent blog, though) and adapted it for my own process. It helps a lot because I’m looking at the blog in chunks that I can make sure fit together, as well as do what they’re supposed to.

Here’s an overview of the completely colorized draft.

Aw, I took this on my old computer...now I'm getting all teary-eyed...

And long distance is all you’re getting because it’s still in the rough stage and anything closer might burn your eyes out.

Now, as to how I divide things:

Yellow, the most common color, is for action and description. It either describes what’s happening, or the setting.

Purple is also common. I use it for dialogue. Not much more to say about that. If it’s in quotes, it’s in purple.

Gray is more common than I’d like, as it’s either memories, the protagonist talking to herself, or just plain telling.

Red is for external conflict, basically any action that the protagonist has to directly deal with.

Blue is the opposite of red in that it’s for internal conflict, things like emotions and problems that needed to be dealt with mentally before they’re dealt with physical.

Green is the last color I use. It highlights action and decisions resulting from conflict. So after most red or blue pieces, there will be a green spot (not always, as sometimes problems are not resolved directly).

When I’ve finished coloring everything, I look at it from a distance…well, from a really small zoom scale like the pic above. Too much of one color is generally a bad thing. If it’s all purple, the reader will get lost in all the dialogue. A lot of purple is just description or things happening that don’t incite conflict. Grey should only appear in small bits, as it’s telling-heavy and that’s just dull to read. And of course, ending chapters in red and blue, unresolved conflict, is a good way to hook readers.

So, at long last, this is it. What do you think of my color partitions? Any suggestions? Do you think it would work with your editing process?