LookIt

Making books difficult to review

Bruce Schneier just reviewed a book he read in April. The delay was because of the format of the book: it was electronically published on the Kindle. The note near the end of the review doesn't bode well for non-fiction books on Kindles, iPads, and so on.

Two sadly-related articles

...from a year ago, and from today.

A term we could use in English: "limbo level"

From World Wide Words, a great weekly publication about English words:

This week a jury of journalists and young people organised by the Langenscheidt publishing house chose Germany’s Youth Word of the Year: niveaulimbo. This is a newish slang term, roughly meaning “limbo level”, for the ever-decreasing quality of TV programs or the decline in the value of conversation at parties.

The intersection of poorly-thought-out web design and politics

Will Durst: "The only time I believe in US exceptionalism is when confronted by alphabetized country lists on scroll down menus."