Author Archives: John Bell

TANSTAAFI

Posted on May 8, 2015 by John Bell

(… as a Free Internet)   Hey, the Internet is “free”.  I can publish any stupid web page I like, say anything I want on my blog, or as comments on other peoples’ blogs, or … But I didn’t mean it … Continue reading →

Posted in about hacking | Tagged | 1 Comment

Building The Perfect Beast

Posted on December 8, 2014 by John Bell

Imagine you are a moderately-successful but unknown pipe organ builder in early 18th-century Leipzig, with far more ego than brains, and a mouth bigger than both.  One evening, you go to a neighboring parish to listen to a recital by … Continue reading →

Posted in about hacking, geeky friends | 1 Comment

Fighting Back

Posted on February 11, 2014 by John Bell

Today I am participating in “The Day We Fight Back“.  Maybe all of three people will see it here.  That’s fine; I didn’t do it because I thought I would drive gazillions of eyeballs to their site from mine, nor … Continue reading →

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Science Fiction Will Save the World

Posted on June 17, 2013 by John Bell

Let me tell you a little story. Nearly seventy years ago, two erstwhile allies, at the end of a planet-spanning war, found themselves bitter rivals, and entered into a struggle to see which could develop the military and economic means … Continue reading →

Posted in about living, about writing | 1 Comment

‘That Wascally Wabbit’

Posted on June 16, 2013 by John Bell

Well, this hasn’t turned out as well as I hoped… I mentioned that I succumbed to the temptation to follow the White Rabbit down the hole, and re-created my blog (for the third try) using a hand-rolled WordPress instance.  I … Continue reading →

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Please Pardon Our Dust….

Posted on June 4, 2013 by John Bell

  While things are still under construction, here’s a de rigueur cat picture –  

Posted in about living, administrivia, big ideas | Leave a comment

Third Time’s The Charm

Posted on June 3, 2013 by John Bell

I saw a white rabbit in a finely tailored waistcoat yesterday, jumping down a hole.  I looked in, took a deep breath, and jumped after him…. This is the third instance of my blog.  I had started about five years … Continue reading →

Posted in administrivia, backstory | 1 Comment