Tuesday, April 30, 2013

It’s convention season! The Steampunk Empire Symposium just wrapped up, and the Steampunk World’s Fair is fast approaching.




Steampunk Art Supplies. Does what it says on the tin!



The Kickstarter project for A Study in Emerald has been funded, so keep an eye out for some spooky steampunk goodness.

Monday, April 29, 2013

Today's food for thought: Is Doctor Who a statement about post-imperial Britain? Some think so!

Friday, April 26, 2013

Happy Friday, and thank God April is almost over, because it has been one meat grinder of a month.




Folderol turned 13 last week, I think, and has broken out of its surly preteen sulk to offer a massive links from others Friday! Many thanks to everyone who has sent in links, emails, and been a supporter since 2000. (Eeep.)



From Julie:




  • “A British man who spent four years designing and building an enormous diesel-powered hexapod robot admits it has no purpose.” I love people like this so much.



From Tim in Sussex, whom I am guessing works with Julie: Canes were the muscle cars of the 19th century. Pimp my walk, indeed!



From Cassandra:







From Zazoo: “Mysterious Bronze Age structure discovered underneath an ancient lake!”



Have a spiffy weekend, everyone! Thanks again. See you next week.

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Hi there. Not dead, not abandoning the weblog, just busy with assorted life stuff. Back soon!

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Tuesday, April 16, 2013


It's National Library Week, so here's a minute-long look at what I work with every day. (Paper cutouts and classical music are optional.)

Monday, April 15, 2013

Friday, April 12, 2013

Happy Friday!




From Julie: An amazing archaeological dig is going on in the middle of London, discovering Roman constructions.



Also from Julie: a different dig in South Africa is going much further back in human history.



From Cassandra: The power of talking to your baby! Just imagine!



From the good people who bring you Retronaut: Behold Anywhen, a site you can curate yourself.



Have a spiffy weekend, everyone! See you next week.

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Oh, Thursdays. It usually rains (which is not a bad thing) and I work weird hours (also usually not a bad thing) and it’s the day for library-related posts on Folderol (which can be inspiring or depressing, depending on what’s going on in libraryland).




For instance, I discovered a wonderful thing to do with our barcode scanners.



The United Nations has a page full of resources; there is some great stuff there for researchers.



Going electronic? Want to know what to do with all those books? Consider the expanding world of book insulation! With proper methods and precautions, you can use this for an entire house!

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Today marks the beginning of the Action Auction here in town! Get those bids in! (This is a scaled-down version of the Auction. It used to run ten days and take over one’s life.)




Elsewhere around the world…



Skis plus snowmobiles equal Arctic Man in Alaska.



In Washington, meanwhile, they’re celebrating daffodils with parades and queens and all sorts of crazy shenanigans.



In Arkansas, the Scottish Festival begins.



In Texas, Galveston’s FeatherFest takes wing.



In South Carolina, it’s all about the grits.



And in Cambridge, the spring literary festival takes place this weekend. Festival season has begun!

Friday, April 05, 2013

Happy Friday!




From Bunny: The members of the Cincinnati Reds have some weird choices in the music played when they come to bat. I love this sort of thing.



From Nicole: Kentucky libraries may be in serious pain if this decision holds.



From Cassandra: Amazing views of our solar system.



From Zazoo: “Call from any pay phone in Manhattan to hear what that block was like 20 years before!”



From They Might Be Giants, who now have a Tumblr: A wacky leaflet that could just maybe save your life.



Have a spiffy weekend, everyone! I discovered that RapGenius is also doing poetry, so I’ll be reading the annotated version of The Wasteland. See you next week.

Thursday, April 04, 2013

How much do you know about cereal? Mental Floss has a video quiz, and you can click on the answer (in the video) to be taken to the next video! Neat technology.




Kate Beaton supports Project Bookmark, and you should, too – if you donate today, you’ll be put in the drawing for her Hark, a Vagrant! book. I have the book and can guarantee it is great.



In Secret Door, you open a door and are taken to…somewhere on the globe. Sometimes you’re told where you are, more or less, and sometimes you have to guess. I ended up in a weird store in Sussex, with a Dalek and old suits. Then I clicked the door again and ended up in Antarctica, I think. Good for deductive reasoning!

Wednesday, April 03, 2013

If you can, take a moment today to honor Jane Henson, who has just died, and for being part of the joy of the Muppets.

Tuesday, April 02, 2013

Hello! The drawing for Vintage Tomorrows will be held either tonight or tomorrow, and will be posted sometime this week. Then it’s a break from giveaways for a short while. Thanks to everyone who participated, and there will be more in the future!



So while we were occupied with book-wrangling, a lot happened in the steampunk world. For instance, the papal conclave was held, and Business Insider (!) did a story on the “steampunk contraption” used by the conclave in selecting a new pope.


Jim Butcher, author of The Dresden Files series, signed on for a new series in the world of steampunk.


Armor Games came out with Steampunk Tower, another fun (and free!) steampunk-themed game. I got to Level 4 before falling apart, strategy-wise.


Have you seen the Cryptohistorians yet? They are all sorts of awesome, and deserve huge amounts of attention.


Gears and Steam moved from LiveJournal to Tumblr. And speaking of Tumblr, the beautiful Nowhereland posts gorgeous Art Deco images, and also photographs such as this beauty from the 1880s and this rebel from the 1890s. It’s definitely worth a look!

Monday, April 01, 2013

Today, being April 1st, is a day to be very wary of the internet.




The Guardian is compiling a best-of web pranks page – not sure if this study on mobile usability is there yet, but it should be. (Hint: cats are involved.)



Metafilter, as usual, is great on this day. Welcome to Metafiltrest! (And check the drop-down menu at the top for some variations.)



The annual Peeps diorama contest has ended, and the entries just get better every year.