It's past time to cut through this fucking buillshit.

[tzikeh]

I have stayed out of the OTW insanity since it began. I didn't even know how to begin to talk about it, and I didn't want to wade in while things were shaking out, and I didn't want to read things that were going to make me angry, because I knew it would just cause me impotent rage, since there was nothing I would be able to do.



I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH PEOPLE WHO DON'T LIKE/DON'T WANT TO PARTICIPATE IN THE OTW IF THEIR PHILOSOPHIES ARE IN DIRECT CONFLICT (bolded now for those who fail at reading comprehension and think I'm defending OTW, instead of what I'm actually doing, which is bitching about people who hide their identities so that they can say nasty things about OTW), but I am so done with people who are against the OTW with absolutely no facts to back up their opposition. They are the Teabagging Party when it comes to OTW: frothing at the mouth with blind hatred, but they have absolutely no fucking facts and they just believe whatever their mental, seething leaders say without bothering with critical thought, or fact-finding of their own.

In case anyone reading this thinks that I'm somehow part of the OTW "machine," let me be crystal clear. I have no part in OTW. I'm not on the board, I'm not a beta-tester, I'm not a coder, I'm not part of the PR department, I'm not anything at all when it comes to the project. But I am DONE with this fucking insane bullshit Teabagger-mentality ignorance that has spread through some sections of fandom that are just spoiling for a fight with the OTW, because they've heard from someone who knows someone who said something they didn't like.

I have fucking HAD IT.

Whiny, shitty fucks who bitch about the OTW, but create sock-puppet accounts to do it so no one who knows them will know it was *them*, can shove it up their own asses. Cowards. Bullies. Those of you who have a beef with the OTW and have created sock-puppet accounts just to write about it? Show your faces, you craven pieces of shit. How dare you hide so that nobody who knows you finds out what you think. Afraid of conflict with people you know? Coward. You want to dish it out while not having to own it. Put up or shut up.

Comments

[thebratqueen.livejournal.com]

You know, every time shit like this happens it makes me want to donate more money to OTW. *makes mental note to do that later when not on the Pre*

[melina123.livejournal.com]

Love my Palm Pre :) Maybe somebody will make us an A03 app for it!

[thebratqueen.livejournal.com]

That would indeed be very shiny!

[amalthia]

i'm trying to learn how to code so I can create an application that'll create epub and mobipocket files on the fly with the OTW software....but um I'm still a noobie!

[melina123.livejournal.com]

I bet if you were to volunteer, you could work directly with the AO3 coders on this. As a Kindle user, I'd love nothing more than to see mobipocket files created directly from AO3. While a separate application would be cool, seeing it integrated directly into the archive would be even better.

[amalthia]

I have the sony prs and originally I thought to try and create LRF files but now sony is discontinuing that format so it's epub and mobipocket. I've installed everything I need on my computer to start but now I just have to go through the tutorials and learn the syntax and get some of hte basics so I know what questions to ask and I'm learning as much as possible as to how epub is packaged. it would be nice to be able to hit a button on the story and have a options box open asking for your margins, font size, and etc before it creates the mobi/epub file. And I'm guessing if this is done right there will be an option for authors to opt out or opt-in (which if it were up to me would not be there!) but I know many authors are alarmed at the idea of their stories leaving the net whether it be by printing or saving to an e-ink device.

I didn't want to volunteer until Summer break because I'm in grad school and my adviser told me these two classes I'm taking this Spring are time intensive and to be prepared to work my butt off. :(

[lexin.livejournal.com]

LRF files but now sony is discontinuing that format

Or what? [Kicks Sony] I have the PRS 505 and I wondered what had happened to LRF files from Fictionwise.

[amalthia]

Well the PRS-505 supports LRF but the newest PRS-900? does not. :( at the Sony ebook store all the titles have been switched over to epub which btw is a very unhappy thing for me because I hate the way epub is displayed on the device, whoever thought numbers on the side margin would be a good idea should be shot! And then fired! I mean I'm not sure how big the books are that person is reading? but if you get up to page 3000 the numbers overlap the text in the most annoying way possible.

[melina123.livejournal.com]

IMO, additional permission isn't needed -- it's common knowledge that people save stories onto their hard drives and/or print them. This is simply something an author has no control over once they post to Ao3, LJ, or anywhere else. Even if an author "opts out," they can't stop me from simply copying and pasting their story into my .html template and converting it for my Kindle (for which there are instructions on kindledfans and elsewhere), any more than they can stop me from printing, or saving to my hard drive. It seems to me such an opt-out could do more harm than good by creating a very false sense of security. I don't see that making conversion easy makes things different, as long as the end user understands they absolutely cannot repost the .mobi or .epub files elsewhere without the author's permission, any more than they can repost the story in html.

That aside, I would be happy to act as a tester for you for any Mobipocket files on whatever you end up doing. I have a template I use with some very simple css that formats stories for Kindle pretty nicely. I'm sure we could round up some other helpers at kindledfans as well.

[amalthia]

well I know this, but I swear I've seen authors ask people to not print their fics....and etc. So it does appear that some authors still try to control access to their fics even when it's futile if you plan on sharing it with anyone. Kind of reminds me of DRM. And yes reposting an author's work without permission should be a given.

Not having a Kindle myself I'm rather in the dark as to how the mobipocket files I'm creating at the Ebook Library actually look on the device. If you ever want to stop by and try out one of the newly posted fics that are mobi I'd appreciate it.

I hadn't heard of the community kindlefans! I'm heading right over there to check it out. :)

[melina123.livejournal.com]

And btw, some time ago I sent the A03 folks info about how the GPL mobiperl scripts could be used as part of a conversion process and tested it on a file from AO3. If you'd like I'd be happy to forward that info to you.

[amalthia]

I'd love to be able to see the script! Not sure how much it would help with my limited knowledge but I figured it would be a good start. :)

my email is amalthia at gmail.com

[cereta.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I think I'm going to toss $20 their way next paycheck. Already a member, of course, but every little bit helps.

[thebratqueen.livejournal.com]

Exactly. I tossed $25 in earlier today. I'm not saying everyone has to do it, just that I personally get more inspired to do so when I see people copping an entitled attitude, yanno?

[cereta.livejournal.com]

I have, personally, donated at least once just because Laura Hale was being an idiot. I can't do that every time she's an idiot, of course, of course, or I'd go broke, but I figured at $1 a pop, my $20 covered a few months, easily.

[thebratqueen.livejournal.com]

Ha!

It really is a lot like politics, isn't it? The other party does something to piss you off, so out comes the checkbook (so to speak).

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

It really is a lot like politics, isn't it?

Especially since the people who are against OTW / AO3 / etc. for no other reason than that they are against it are very much the fannish equivalent of Teabaggers.

*Sigh* I understand the several rational arguments against the OTW. I understand why there are people who are philosophically opposed to it. I just... the ones who are against it and don't like it because... because... HATE! RAGE! BAD THINGS EXIST AND ARE BAD! I DON'T LIKE YOUR FACE! SOCIALISM! ASTOLAT WASN'T BORN HERE! THE OTW WILL DECIDE WHICH FANFICTION LIVES AND WHICH DIES!

...

[thebratqueen.livejournal.com]

To say nothing of OTW's death panels.

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

:D That's what the THE OTW WILL DECIDE WHICH FANFICTION LIVES AND WHICH DIES! was alluding to, yah. Lest we forget that the OTW controls all the OXYGEN as well.