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Ian Malcolm

@ianmalcolm.bsky.social

1.5K followers 570 following 6.9K posts

Melbourne-based writer, editor and proofreader for books, publications and web. Game designer from Star Wars on NES to Need For Speed: Shift on iOS, with dozens of titles in between. Bass, uke and low whistle player. Unrepentant folkie.

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Ian Malcolm @ianmalcolm.bsky.social · May 11

May 4th was a week ago, but as I've just joined Bluesky here's a little #StarWars gaming history for the three people possibly interested - an interview I did with Jack Yarwood at @timeextension.com last year, about developing #NES Star Wars for Lucasfilm.

www.timeextension.com/features/fla...

Flashback: How An Australian Developer Helped Lucasfilm Make Its First Star Wars Game

"It was pre-Special Editions. Pre-prequels." - When people talk about the history of Star Wars games, Star Wars (1991) for the Nintendo Entertainment System ...

www.timeextension.com

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Ian Malcolm @ianmalcolm.bsky.social · 15h

Popped into a local op shop during lunch for a quick browse, and thought I'd come up empty-handed for a change, til I spotted this on a bottom shelf on the way out.

Mine for the princely sum of $4 - appears to be brand spanking new/unread too - bonus!
#IainMBanks #TheCulture #books 💙📚

'Matter' (a Culture novel) by Iain M. Banks. Cover illustration shows a humanoid figure in part-silhouette with flowing cloak or long coat, on the orange-tinged surface of a planet.

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Ian Malcolm @ianmalcolm.bsky.social · 17h

Probably for most of them to not be raking it in on the side from multiple rental properties they also own.

And also probably worried it'll be a vote-loser, despite the fact most people who own their home will be fine with it, along with millions of would-be home owning voters...

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Ian Malcolm @ianmalcolm.bsky.social · 18h

And with every first home buyer bonus, since all first home buyers have the same increase in available funds, it just drives prices up even further.

Really it’s a government funded seller’s bonus, which does nothing to increase affordability. They know what really needs to be done, but don’t do it.

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Ian Malcolm @ianmalcolm.bsky.social · 18h

And where the “knowledge” has maybe a 30% chance of even being correct… 🤷‍♂️

Ian Malcolm @ianmalcolm.bsky.social · 21h

I broadly feel the same about almost any song by the Grateful Dead.

(I've finally reached a point where I genuinely appreciate the Dead originals, but still often prefer the covers.)

Ian Malcolm @ianmalcolm.bsky.social · 1d

Christ on a bike, was it written by a foetus? 🧐

I was going to ask what it was called, as it sounded quite up my alley, until you got to that detail, which is so wrong-headed on so many levels I don’t think I could get past it. 🙄🤷‍♂️

Ian Malcolm @ianmalcolm.bsky.social · 1d

Same!

Ian Malcolm @ianmalcolm.bsky.social · 1d

PS And no need to attribute - really it's just my distillation of similar things I've seen others note in the past!

Ian Malcolm @ianmalcolm.bsky.social · 1d

Heya, tbh I haven't cos I try not to do LinkedIn - I log in there maybe two or three times a year at most.

Feel free to paraphrase/rewrite for your own purposes, if you want to improve it and/or post on there - annoying GenAI techbros is a fine goal, so go for it. 👍

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Reposted by Ian Malcolm

Ian Malcolm @ianmalcolm.bsky.social · 3d

No-one commissioning an actual human artist considers themself to be the “artist” of the final work, no matter how much detail they might include in the brief.

Claiming to be “the artist” when it’s machine-generated prompt-slop is no different.

You’re not the artist, you’re the client.

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Ian Malcolm @ianmalcolm.bsky.social · 1d

Not even looked at news today. Sometimes just need a day off for mental wellbeing...

I did browse straight to Bird of the Year though. Tawny Frogmouth for me. If it doesn't get up this time, AND also comes second yet again, I will have to assume The Gruniard is in thrall to Big Any Other Bird. 🤔

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