"Meet your new instructor."

I'm pleased and gratified to see that award-winning science fiction author N. K. Jemisin has been tapped to present a Masterclass course in writing science fiction.  Everything I know about Jemisin suggests that she is an excellent choice as an instructor, with a writing technique that combines superb creativity with rigorous research and consistency.

Sadly, though, I don't think I'll sign up.  It would be interesting, but ultimately I feel that the ship has sailed for me in terms of a possible writing career.  On the other hand, I did take that Chris Hadfield course in being an astronaut, so obviously practicality isn't the only consideration for things like this.

- Sid

Commander Hadfield has spoken - wear a mask!

Well, more accurately, his eyebrow has, but I think his position is clear.

- Sid

Virtual Dreams IV: IRL VR.

 

If you own an Oculus Quest 2 VR Headset, buy the Elite Head Strap upgrade.  Now.  

Right now. 

Are you still reading this? NOW.

No, seriously, the Oculus Elite head strap upgrade was worth every cent of the sixty-seven dollars that it costs on Amazon™.  It was a bit disconcerting to install - it's easy to imagine breaking a little plastic clip by accident and rendering the whole thing useless - but once in place, it's a huge improvement over the stock strap in terms of comfort and, more importantly, stability.  The elastic strap that shipped with the headset never really did a great job, but the ratcheted hard plastic Elite strap provides a much better fit and a better seal around the eyepiece to prevent light leaks, without being uncomfortable.  

For committed players, there's also a version with a secondary battery to extend usage time, but if you're that committed, you should probably look at catheter pricing as well, just in case.

- Sid