Hello, world. I’m MacDara Conroy, and this is my blog.


Date: January 2010

Confessions of a Book Pirate

"In truth, I think it is clear that morally, the act of pirating a product is, in fact, the moral equivalent of stealing... although that nagging question of what the person who has been stolen from is missing still lingers." This here is the kicker; the spectre that looms over all forms of electronic copying. And the reason why the question still lingers is because 'piracy' is just as easily compared to the second-hand marketplace as it is to outright stealing -- and nobody would call someone who buys second-hand books or music a thief, would they? [c/o Kottke] #link

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Serendipity Killed the Cat

For Dave Pell, 'controlled serendipity' is more like an uncontrollable addiction. In my view, guess it depends on whether those doing it are doing it for others or themselves; the difference is significant. #link

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‘Controlled Serendipity’ Liberates the Web

Someone at the NYT discovers link-blogging, even though hundreds if not thousands of people have been doing it for YEARS! Everything said here, everything quoted by others, it can all be said of blogging in general -- or at least blogging as it was a decade ago [c/o LinkMachineGo]. #link

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How to use a semicolon

I may have blogged this before, but it's worth posting again. Indeed, the 'divine semi-colon' is nothing to be feared. #link

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The 24-Hour Cycle at Clean Rite Laundromat

I love stories like this. Is there anything like it outside of the US? It's such a contrast to my local laundrette, where I've never met another soul (apart from the guy who takes in the binliner full of clothes). #link

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Your pal, John K.

A fan of John Kricfalusi (of Ren & Stimpy fame) wrote to the man himself, and received a more than generous reply. This is for all of us who are too scared to say hi to our heroes (although I've shaken the hand of mine, and he complimented my shirt). #link

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Jonathan Lethem on the streets of Brooklyn

An interview with the author of The Fortress of Solitude upon the release of his latest, Chronic City. According to Lethem, the Brooklyn he loves is marked by "a definitive incompleteness". Couldn't the same be said for any city-with-a-soul? #link

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The Weird Book Room

Just goes to show there's a market for just about everything, however small that market might be. #link

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Omphaloskepsis for the nation

The Irish blogosphere gets itself in a tizzy about the 'death of blogging'. Blah blah blah, whatever. If the only thing you care about when you blog is doing it for other people, then you're doing it wrong. End of story. Next! #link

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Wall of Knowledge

Isn't this more or less what Trinity's Long Room would look like if you turned the shelves by 90 degrees? #link

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