The Logical Lizard

A while back, when I asked my personal tech guru what new software and networking developments I should be aware of, he recommended that I take a look at Ning. I was impressed. Combining a widget-based structure reminiscent of Wordpress, with social networking (a bit like a grown-up version of Facebook), an easy-to-use blogging platform, photo and video sharing, and many other options, it’s a great choice for the savvy person looking to create an online community.

Whether it began as a kid's name, a peace off, or something else entirely, Ning is cool.

Being a devoted and near lifelong fan of Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, the first thing I thought of, obviously, was a ningy, which Douglas Adams described as “a triangular rubber coin 6,800 miles along each side.” The ningy was used, briefly, in one of his original radio episodes to make fun of money and galactic currencies. No, unfortunately, the Ning social networking service doesn’t have anything to with HHG, at least not that I’m aware of, but it did remind me of Neuromancer author William Gibson—another visionary science fiction writer.

Kathryn Bigelow’s Wild Palms (1993), a puzzling, intriguing, and very thinly-veiled poke at scientology and the extremely weird L. Ron Hubbard, includes a short but delightful cameo by Gibson, playing himself. At a chic party, Kim Cattrall introduces Gibson as “the man who coined the word ‘cyberspace,’” to which he sardonically replies: “And they won’t let me forget it.” And they haven’t.

In addition to his almost prescient science fiction novels, set in a future that seems to be literally around the corner, Gibson made a remarkable prediction during the early days of the Internet. He realized that when information becomes freely and readily available to anyone, at any time, the value of that information is determined by how reliable it is. In other words, can you believe what you read in Wikipedia?

I once had the pleasure of socializing with Mr. Gibson at a party in New York. Packed with beautiful and overly accomplished people, it was actually quite a bit like the party in Wild Palms. He is a very charming man, tall and perhaps slightly awkward physically, but friendly, sincere, and encouraging. I insisted on ordering a drink for him, as a “thank you” for giving the world such a great read with Neuromancer—still easily my favorite Gibson work.

I suppose once you’ve made spot-on predictions about what could be, or will be—with no mirrors attached—everyone then relentlessly asks for more and better predictions. It must get very tiresome. I hate to be predictable, so instead of asking him to reveal a glimpse of possible futures I bent Mr. Gibson’s ear with tales of my own writing and science work. He seemed relieved not to have to produce another virtual rabbit out of the hat. Or maybe I was just a little giddy on vodka and the company of a favorite science fiction writer. It matters not; it was a fine evening.

The extremely brilliant and very nice Mr. William Gibson. Photo by Fred Armitage/Courtesy of Wikipedia Commons. I guess the wicked Wiki is good for something after all.

So, I was reminded of the fascinating William Gibson today because I became interested in the meaning of the word Ning. Wikipedia claims it is Chinese for “peace,” but that comes to you from an “informational site” compiled by anyone who has an opinion and spare time on their hands. I do not consider it the most reliable of resources. WikiAnswers states with great authority that Ning means “peaceful” in Chinese. Gili’s blog at avirtualexit.com delved considerably deeper and came up with a link to, of all things, a website that helps people name babies. Do parents really need help with such tasks? I thought we all had a few favorite names tucked away in case somebody accidentally gets knocked up (mine are Rachel, Dawn, Sam, Zack, and Evelyn if anyone cares). Anyway, I digress. The baby name site—with the rather silly title of yeahbaby.com—and doubtless a repository of the most authoritative information available anywhere, has the following wisdom to dispense:

Baby names – the name Ning.
Baby names info for Ning:
• Gender: a boy or girl name
• Pronounciation: not available
We know of no common nicknames for the name Ning

What about Ningy?

Further research suggested that Ning is actually a Chinese surname. At that point I became bored and thought I might rather be re-reading Neuromancer or learning more about the real Ning and its alluring CEO, Ms. Gina Bianchini.

William Gibson was right. Our worlds are rife with cheap information. We can ferret out the most obscure and arcane details with just a few seconds of typing. But when almost anyone can put up a website on any subject, with no checks or balances, how do we acquire reliable information? I’ll take the Encyclopedia Britannica over Wikipedia any day. You get what you pay for.

In preparation for the launch of the new and improved TucsonCitizen.com site, our esteemed editors Mark Evans and Ryn Gargulinski invited the blogging contingent down to the TC.com offices for some hands-on interfacing this week. There isn’t much I enjoy more than spending time with some super-smart guys who know computer design and programming inside-out, so yesterday was a real treat for me.

Not only did I enjoyably go though the mutual friends and seen-you-before discussion with Mark, but I also had the pleasure of meeting the friendly and accomplished brainiacs who built the new TC.com site. As if that wasn’t enough entertainment for one afternoon, our tech and design experts unveiled the new site layout and gave us some helpful tips on how to make the most out of using it. I was highly impressed by the new concept and design, and after spending many years working as an art director in New York City I don’t say such things often.

Sky's the limit with the new TucsonCitizen.com. Check in with us Monday morning!

The tech team had an array of Macs set up for us, all networked and logged in to a demo version of the new site . . . and  . . . a projector displaying the entire operation on the office wall! In everyday life we usually don’t get to meet the ones who make things happen behind the scenes, and I was grateful for the opportunity.

A lot of people have worked very hard to make TucsonCitizen.com happen. Tune in on Monday morning and enjoy the fruits of their labors. From my end, I’m just thrilled to be part of it.