Catching Up

I updated most of the links on the left today as many sites have changed addresses and there were a number of sites I've been meaning to add. Let me know if you see any broken links.

Posting will most likely be sporadic for the next week or so as I will be on vaction and far too busy wrapping presents and whatnot to blog. Before the holiday merriment begins, a few things I've been meaning to get to:

* Cartoonist Dash Shaw (Goddess Head, Love Eats Brains) has updated his Web Site with lots of lovely comics and other nice art work to look at. Please do check it out.

* Video game hater Roger Ebert has been getting a flurry of responses to his comments about games not being art. You can read them here. Some folks are thoughtful and articulate. Others are full of crap. You decide which is which.

* The New Yorker takes a tour of the virtual Big Apple in "True Crime: New York City."

* An excerpt from Jeet Heer's lovely essay on Krazy Kat creator George Herriman and the question of his ethnicity has now been posted online.

* Finally, I had the good fortune last Monday to talk to Heather Chaplin and Aaron Ruby, co-authors of the excellent book "Smartbomb: The Quest for Art, Entertainment and Big Bucks in the Videogame Revolution." It's a smart, extremely well-written look at where the game industry is right now and how poised it is to become THE dominant entertainment medium of the future.

My interview with Heather and Aaron won't actually run until next month, but until then, please take the time to head to your local store and check this book out. If you're at all interested in the medium, it's well worth your time. (And note to comics fans: there's a Scott McCloud reference!) The authors have also started a blog, and already have put up some great posts, including one on the Xbox 360 launch.

That's all for now folks. Have a great weekend.