Linux Users AGM, Rocknerd, Gaming Toxicity

Tuesday was the annual general meeting of Linux Users Victoria. I had previously announced that I would be stepping down as president after four years in the position, feeling uneasy about the idea of staying on the same leadership role for too many years. Looking back, it was a good four years. The organisation has grown in numbers, has new regional chapters, and is in a very good financial position. All the normal operations (monthly speakers, beginners workshops, annual picnic, software freedom day, website, equipment, library) were covered, along with special events and issues (mininconferences and install-fests, policy development). I've accepted a nomination to continue on the committee to help with continuity, but it does feel personally like the end of an era. I am pretty sure that xanni_au is going to do as a great job as the incoming president as he has both experience and ability. I've mentioned it on the website 'blog, but it really is quite an honour to be involved in Linux Users Victoria; Linux is transformative operating system and application suite that embodies technical excellence and the high ethical principles of transparency through free and open-source licensing. Linux has changed the world and being part of that is really quite a wonderful experience through LUV. There's still more to come, and locally Software Freedom Day on September 20 at Electron Workshop.

A German home improvement company has run a pro-goth advertisement that's thoroughly charming (Youtube). In the past they've also used Blixa Bargeld so obviously they're trying to corner the market in German gothic home improvement, which is not a small market. Apropos, we'll be attending Nick Cave's a special session at the Astor, which itself will be undergoing some significant changes. Looking forward to seeing Pop Will Eat Itself this Sunday with our special VIP passes. Appropriately, I have reviewed their latest album and have just finished Jeremy Beadle's relevant book which does very well at reviewing the history of popular music with a special emphasis on sampling and pop's reconstruction and self-referentiality, and ultimately the decline of the pop single (nicely expressed in a single image over time, hat-tip reddragdiva), also noted by Spin). Even as I write this I'm watching the Joy Division documentary, which rather brilliantly contextualises the desolate Manchester environment of the mid-late 70s and early 80s, skilfully representing the band as the ambient sound of the time and place in dystopian science fiction style.

Initialy due to a random Internet search I ended up in an discussion with Frank Trollman et. al., over certain aspects of RuneQuest etc. Whilst a google search suggests that said person has ended up being banned from most gaming forums on the planet, and there is interesting discussion of particular RPGs, a more pertinent issue is how many gamers go out of their way to belittle their own participants, active or potential. One wonders how the hobby is supposed to expand and become a successful and lasting culture in such circumstances; it is almost a an aggressive parody of the anti-social intellectual that gamers have been historically painted. On rpg.net, Marisa Kirisame raises the issue that such toxic behaviour is due to the intellectual and even emotional investment required in RPGs, leading to a situation where criticisms of games feel like personal attacks and quickly degenerate into such personal flame wars (arguably the same emotional investment also exists in affiliations to political ideologies, which may indeed be analogous). This aside to more practical gaming issues, run a delightful and action-packed episode of Pendragon last night covering the battles of King Mark's invasion of Logres. It involved an sea battle in the mouth of the River Ex, simultaneous on the other side of Logres with a destruction of Mark's 'Infernal Engine' (read: 'anachronistic cannon') by an shapeshifting witch in the style of The Loaded Dog. Toxic online gaming conversations are not a particularly effective challenge to the delights of enjoyable actual play among friends.