Made up words? After Finux are you surprised?
on
Anathem
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· Score: 1
Neal lost a lot of cred from me when he used Finux because he, "Didn't want to deal with Linux fanatics complaining that he got some detail wrong." So... rather than deal with a few fanatics, he decides to get it wrong for everyone? EPIC FAIL.
His gift is prose. Not story, not structure, not idea, but prose. He is very talented in that area. That singular talent is almost -- but not quite -- enough to carry him. Not quite.
The first time I picked up Cryptonomicon I kept saying "WOW, this is really well written"... I actually carried it over to a friend and had him read a passage just to share the imagery... but at about 150 pages I put it down and really never had much desire to finish. I've read the first 100 or so pages of several of his books. I finally went back and re-read Cryptonomicon because I wanted to suggest it to a friend. I read it, wondered why, and loaned my copy to my friend. He gave it back a little while later saying he stopped reading half way through.
I can think of no other author who combines so much talent to create such... not unreadable, but un-readworth, books. I liked Snow Crash well enough. I actually finished it in one go without even having to convince myself I should. Not exactly high praise... "This book was worth finishing." It's sad that such an obviously talented author can't write a book that is worth reading all the way through. Editing would only help if Neal actually had a full story to tell. I suspect that's why he doesn't get edited down: the editors realize his books are read for the prose and editing would only reduce without giving any compensation.
That's what I always wonder when someone tells me, "You need a degree to get into this industry."
Maybe it's true now, or was true in the 1980s, or maybe it's specific to the midwest. It wasn't true for me in the 90s in California or my father in the 60s on the East Coast. It may or may not be true today.
My own experience: I started as a sw. dev. in a small shop in California about 15 years ago. I incurred some debt that is about the same as a student loan I guess. I continued working. I'll have my debt paid off in another year, at which point I'll be debt free for the first time since I was 19. My income is in the upper end of the income curve for my job title and I work for a fairly large (publicly traded) software company. I've been told I'm next in line to take over for my boss when he retires...so I haven't topped out yet.
I think a lot of college grads my age -- and a lot of/.ers -- can say about the same thing. The difference, as far as I know, is that the debt I'm talking about is my mortgage. The ones who can honestly say they'll be debt free soon are mostly renting their homes.
I'm not saying it's the easy road but I have enjoyed it. I'm not saying it's the end of the road either.. I'm planning to get a few more degrees but on different terms and for very different reasons than would've applied when I was 17.
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Neal lost a lot of cred from me when he used Finux because he, "Didn't want to deal with Linux fanatics complaining that he got some detail wrong." So... rather than deal with a few fanatics, he decides to get it wrong for everyone? EPIC FAIL.
His gift is prose. Not story, not structure, not idea, but prose. He is very talented in that area. That singular talent is almost -- but not quite -- enough to carry him. Not quite.
The first time I picked up Cryptonomicon I kept saying "WOW, this is really well written"... I actually carried it over to a friend and had him read a passage just to share the imagery... but at about 150 pages I put it down and really never had much desire to finish. I've read the first 100 or so pages of several of his books. I finally went back and re-read Cryptonomicon because I wanted to suggest it to a friend. I read it, wondered why, and loaned my copy to my friend. He gave it back a little while later saying he stopped reading half way through.
I can think of no other author who combines so much talent to create such... not unreadable, but un-readworth, books. I liked Snow Crash well enough. I actually finished it in one go without even having to convince myself I should. Not exactly high praise... "This book was worth finishing." It's sad that such an obviously talented author can't write a book that is worth reading all the way through. Editing would only help if Neal actually had a full story to tell. I suspect that's why he doesn't get edited down: the editors realize his books are read for the prose and editing would only reduce without giving any compensation.
So much promise, undelivered.
When did you form your opinion?
That's what I always wonder when someone tells me, "You need a degree to get into this industry."
Maybe it's true now, or was true in the 1980s, or maybe it's specific to the midwest. It wasn't true for me in the 90s in California or my father in the 60s on the East Coast. It may or may not be true today.
My own experience: I started as a sw. dev. in a small shop in California about 15 years ago. I incurred some debt that is about the same as a student loan I guess. I continued working. I'll have my debt paid off in another year, at which point I'll be debt free for the first time since I was 19. My income is in the upper end of the income curve for my job title and I work for a fairly large (publicly traded) software company. I've been told I'm next in line to take over for my boss when he retires...so I haven't topped out yet.
I think a lot of college grads my age -- and a lot of /.ers -- can say about the same thing. The difference, as far as I know, is that the debt I'm talking about is my mortgage. The ones who can honestly say they'll be debt free soon are mostly renting their homes.
I'm not saying it's the easy road but I have enjoyed it. I'm not saying it's the end of the road either.. I'm planning to get a few more degrees but on different terms and for very different reasons than would've applied when I was 17.