FAQ - A Sword and Laser Primer for New Members

[Nick]

Since I keep seeing a couple of questions asked over and over again in the forums I thought a quick FAQ would be in order. If you can think of a few more questions I'm missing let me know.

If you have not yet done so, please say hi to the group and introduce yourself in the Introduction and Welcome Thread

Also, a lot of this information is now available on the Sword and Laser Wiki. If information isn't there that you think should be then register for a account and add it.

Rank and put your suggestions for upcoming books on these listopia lists. Please don't suggest books that the club has already read. Further into the FAQ a link to the S&L "read" bookshelf is given.

Sword List aka Fantasy:
http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/20...

Laser List aka Scifi:
http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/20...

Forum Conduct

We are here to discuss books and all things sword-y and laser-y. We are here for diverse views to be expressed and conversation to flow from that. We are not here to have flame wars. You may not insult other forum posters in your posts. If you disagree with something someone has posted, by all means argue thoroughly and powerfully against *what* they said, but do not personally attack *them*. We want discussion, passionate discussion. But two people hurling insults back and forth is not a discussion. Threads that derail into flame wars will be closed.

If someone posts something that you don't just disagree with, but that is actually illegal, grossly offensive, etc., message forum mods Jlawrence and Becca about it, we'll take care of it. (Also message them if a thread is just in the wrong section.)

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Question Index (sorry but there is no way to do anchor jumps in goodreads)

• When should I start reading a book?

• What happened to the S&L(Sword and Laser) Video Youtube show?

• Where do I get the Sword and Laser podcasts?

• What does it mean to "Lem" a book?

• What does "dead-tree edition" mean?

• People tell me to add "spoiler" tags so I won't ruin surprises for other members about a book. How do I add spoiler tags?

• I want to suggest a book for the club to read. How do I know what the club has already read?

• I want to make a forum post. How do I know if someone has already started a thread with the topic I wish to post about?

• How do I put my new topic under a specific folder/Sub-forum?

• How else can I format my posts?

• I'd like to promote on the Sword and Laser forum the book I just wrote. Anything I should know about before posting?

• Tip for Audible audio book listeners using the mobile apps.

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When should I start reading a book?

A new book selection will be announced several weeks ahead of the official start date. You can begin reading whenever you want but keep in mind that you will have a full month from the official start time to complete the book so don't feel rushed to finish when a new selection is announced.

What happened to the S&L(Sword and Laser) Video Youtube show?

The video show has been discontinued from "Geek & Sundry".

Where do I get the Sword and Laser podcasts?

http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/sw...
or grab it off of
http://www.swordandlaser.com/

What does it mean to "Lem" a book?

The term "Lem" means to not finish a book and abandon it. This term comes from when Sword and Laser were reading Stanisław Lem's Memoirs Found in a Bathtub. Veronica couldn't make it through the book so just gave up reading it.

What does "dead-tree edition" mean?

"dead-tree edition" is used when referring to physical books (you know, like made with paper) instead of ebooks(kindle, nook, iBooks). usage: I prefer ebooks to the dead-tree editions.

People tell me to add "spoiler" tags so I won't ruin surprises for other members about a book. How do I add spoiler tags?

This:
<spoiler>Bracket the spoilers like this when typing your post.</spoiler>

will create this

(view spoiler)[Bracket the spoilers like this when typing your post. (hide spoiler)]

I want to suggest a book for the club to read. How do I know what the club has already read?

The club has a shelf on the group page for "read" books. Every book the club has read is listed there.
http://www.goodreads.com/group/booksh...

I want to make a forum post. How do I know if someone has already started a thread with the topic I wish to post about?

First go to the main goodreads group page.
http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/4...

Use the search discussion posts. You might still miss if there is a thread already out there but do a quick search before you create a new thread anyways.

link to picture

How do I put my new topic under a specific folder/Sub-forum?

When you create your post you can choose the topic from a dropdown list of folders/sub-forums.
link to image

If you want to post in the "General" folder simply select the top option of the dropdown list with the text "select ...".

How else can I format my posts?

The formatting tips when you click the "(some html is ok)" link above the box where you are typing your post are as follows.

Formatting Tips
Goodreads allows some html formatting.
•well formed web urls automatically get turned into links
•link: <a href="http://www.goodreads.com" >my link text</a>

•link to book: use the "add book/author" link or [book:Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone|6149138]

• link to author:
use the "add book/author" link or [author:J.K. Rowling|1077326]

• image: <img src="http://www.goodreads.com/image..." width="40" height="100" alt="description"/> (Width must be 0-400, Height must be 0-1000, alt is a description of the image. All three are optional, but recommended.)

•bold text: <b>...</b>
•italic text: <i>...</i>
•underline text: <u>...</u>
•strike text: <s>...</s>
•indent text: <pre>...</pre>
•blockquote: <blockquote>...</blockquote>
•paragraph: <p>...</p>
•spoiler: <spoiler>...</spoiler>
•Note: tags must be properly nested, example:
OK   <i><b>test</b></i>
Not OK  <i><b>test</i></b>

I'd like to promote on the Sword and Laser forum the book I just wrote. Anything I should know about before posting?

Yes, please put your post in the "Author Promo (Share Your Stuff!)" Folder/Sub-Forum.

Some general tips:
•If you participate in the forums and build a reputation in this group, you are much more likely to be taken seriously and have group members read your book or at the very least a sample of your book.
•Don't rate your own book as 5 stars. You are biased and your review won't be taken seriously.

Tip for Audible audio book listeners using the mobile apps.

This is more of a general "did you know" for those who use Audible on their mobile devices but if you find the narration too slow you can speed it up on most devices.

Android App

http://audible.custhelp.com/app/answe...

iPhone & iPod Touch App

http://audible.custhelp.com/app/answe...

Note: Narration speed adjustment is only available for files downloaded within the application. Titles synced via iTunes using a computer will not allow you to adjust the playback speed using the application. If you would like to adjust the playback speed of Audible titles that were synced via iTunes you can use the native iPod player built in to your device. Click here for more information on playing your Audible titles using the built in iPod player on your device.

[[deleted user]]

Good idea.






No one's gonna read it though :P

[Michelle]

Ala wrote: "Good idea.

No one's gonna read it though :P"

I'm new 'round here and I just read it :)

[[deleted user]]

You don't have to lie to kick it.

<.<

[Napoez3]

Nick wrote: "Any way to get the video show as a video podcast?

No you can't get this as a downloadable podcast. Part of the agreement that Sword and Laser has with YouTube is that they can't copy the video or audio to another format and make it available for download."

With some google pawa, you can find a way to download audio from YouTube ;)

[aldenoneil]

Anybody know of a good way to get YouTube on PS3 besides the browser? I don't think YouTube's big on releasing apps for many streaming boxes (at least none of the ones I own), and that's lamer than hell. Thought maybe someone would have a workaround.

[Jacy]

My husband says that due to the current PS3 firmware, the browser is the only way that he knows of. Sony restricts the programs they allow on the PS3.

[Veronica, Supreme Sword]

Nick I love you so hard right now.

[Jane]

Great thread nick, Im a newish member and this thread will be useful to me thankyou :)

[Pavlina]

Thank you very much for this information, it answered some questions, I had! :) So thank you, Nick! :)

[Anne]

Yay, Nick! Hopefully this will save us from a bunch of redundant threads.

[[deleted user]]

This is really useful (especially the start date thing!), so thanks :)

[Neko]

Awesome. Thank you for this..Most helpful :)

[Tassie Dave, S&L Historian]

Great job Nick :-)

Nick wrote: "The club has a shelf on the group page for "read" books. Every book the club has read is listed there"

1 book is missing from the shelf.
Neuromancer by William Gibson

and 2 books on there we didn't read for the S&L Bookclub.
Freedom (TM) by Daniel Suarez
The Gathering Storm by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson

[Nick]

Veronica wrote: "Nick I love you so hard right now."

Well I'm grinning like a Cheshire cat. This should be the basis for a Sword and Laser achievement "Get some Veronica love". We only have one other achievement I know of "Fallen Angel - Borrow a book from the San Francisco public library" or something like that. :-)

http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/780553-s-l-podcast-89-what-kind-of-fantasy-again#comment_44462648

[Nick]

Added two new questions. One on how to add spoiler tags and one on how to choose a topic folder/sub-forum.

[Sean]

Anne wrote: "Yay, Nick! Hopefully this will save us from a bunch of redundant threads."

You must be new to the whole "Internet" thing. You know that giant Wheel of Time FAQ that's out there? We started it in rec.arts.sf.written.robert-jordan because we were tired of newbies popping up and saying, "Hey, I just read book five and I think I think Sammael killed Asmodean." The only difference it made was giving us an excuse to flog the newbs.

[Kris]

Great Job Nick...might want to add go to the new members thread and intro your self....

[Brad Theado]

This is great. Now if there was a way to put this up front where new people saw it, that would really help as this will get buried in time.

[Nick]

Brad T. wrote: "This is great. Now if there was a way to put this up front where new people saw it, that would really help as this will get buried in time."

Looks like its been pinned to the top of the General Forums like the "Introduce Yourself" thread.

[Nick]

Added a "Question Index" and a couple of new questions/answers. Took Kris's advice and added a line at the beginning suggesting new members go and introduce themselves in the welcome thread.

[Tamahome]

That's it, Nick. We're switching to Old Man's War.

[Amanda]

Lots of handy info!

[Leesa]

Thanks for putting this together!

[Uriah]

I think you have officially just reduced the amount of time I would have had to lurk before becoming more active. Thanks and great work!

[Rod]

Nick, thanks for compiling such a useful resource. You 're the awesome sauce!

[Anne]

Sean wrote: "Anne wrote: "Yay, Nick! Hopefully this will save us from a bunch of redundant threads."

You must be new to the whole "Internet" thing. You know that giant Wheel of Time FAQ that's out there? We st..."

I'm just a hopeless optimist.

[Micah]

Tamahome wrote: "That's it, Nick. We're switching to Old Man's War."

And so it begins.

Great Job Nick. Achievement unlocked.

(edit: I had to edit this short post 3 times for spelling and punctuation errors. I officially quit the internet)

[Pavlina]

You must be new to the whole "Internet" thing. You know that giant Wheel of Time FAQ that's out there? We st..."
.. So what if a person is exited that there is a part of the book he thinks is true.. Don't you just remember the feeling of reading a book and figuring something out that you thought no one else got, because you were just that smart! :) I know I did, after finishing game of thrones! And the NEED to discuss it with other people.. so there is a FAQ about the book.. but that would also be a spoiler sometimes.. :) Be more open to noobs... :) We enjoy reading as much as everyone else here!

[Vance]

It's the "Nicks" of the internet that make it usable for the rest of us. Thanks!!!

Edit to add: One helpful hint that I already saw asked and answered on another thread is that if you want to post to the "General" topic, you simply don't choose another category and it defaults to General.

[Warren]

That was great. I hope your getting paid in latinum.
I'm not sure that encouraging people to insert photos
(particularly large ones) is such a good idea.
Which is easy for me to say since
I'm also not sure how to added a photo.
So I just leave a link.
Less out of choice then ignorance.

[Nick]

Warren wrote: "That was great. I hope your getting paid in latinum.
I'm not sure that encoring people to insert photos
(particularly large ones) is such a good idea.
Which is easy for me to say since
I'm also no..."
Both images together were under 200k. Not sure I'd say that that made them large.

I'm linking to the images from my google plus account where I uploaded them. You create the images in the same manner you'd create a image tag in HTML. In fact it makes reference to that in the "How else can I format my posts?" question. :-)

[Warren]

Your images were not the one's I had in mind.
Yours were appropriate for the occasion.
I meant it as a more generic comment. On other sites, I found that teaching people how to post photos is sort of like teaching a two year old how to play peek-a-boo.
Your post was really is useful . Thanks

[Ryan]

Napoez3 wrote: "Nick wrote: "Any way to get the video show as a video podcast?

No you can't get this as a downloadable podcast. Part of the agreement that Sword and Laser has with YouTube is that they can't copy ..."

We love and support S & L's sponsors and thank youtube. Hypothetically, however, if you primarily consume these sorts of things on mobile devices rather than streaming them on your computer or (as I unfortunately tried) on a PS3 browser, you might - hypothetically - want to check out this totally unrelated one minute podcast that youtube should in no way hold against Tom & Veronica:

http://geekbeat.tv/how-to-download-an...

[Billy]

Thanks, great to have a beginners guide.

[Karey]

Very useful, thank you

[Nick]

Updated to include tip on changing the narrator speed on audible mobile apps.

[Micah]

Nick wrote: "Updated to include tip on changing the narrator speed on audible mobile apps."

you're a machine. and make the rest of us better people.

[Luis]

Thanks for the post, it was very helpful.

[Kris]

Nick....Damn

[Esther]

Fantastic

[Jason]

"Tom and Veronica were doing AN audio podcast for the club before the video show started."

Just pointing out a small typo in the section that introduces the audio podcast.

Great job though!

[Nick]

Jason wrote: ""Tom and Veronica were doing AN audio podcast for the club before the video show started."

Just pointing out a small typo in the section that introduces the audio podcast.

Great job though!"

Pfff... correct my indefinite article but you completely missed where I didn't hyphenate "dead-tree". :-)

[bolbo boggons]

Thanks for this!

[Duncan]

Nick wrote: "Now that there is a video show they are going to continue to do the audio podcast but only on the weeks with no video episodes. "

Darn, I just noticed this. I was hoping the audio podcast would continue to be weekly with video being a nice addition. I guess I kind of feel like the 2 shows are too bunched up now, with the video coming out on Friday and the audio podcast on Monday 3 days later.

Thanks for the faq, great work!

[Dannah]

I just want to say - as a very new member - this was the first thing I read on here and posted to. Thanks for this FAQ!

And as for Who killed Asmodean - Asmodean killed Asmodean through a freak Dr. Who time travel warp. It's a new Talent that was relearned after being thought dead for 100 years.

[Jennifer D]

Thanks for this, was super helpful for this new member :)

[Tiffany]

I really appreciate the FAQ. I am still wet behind the ears new. I haven't even listened to any of the podcasts yet.

One thing that I would really appreciate being explained is Sword vs Laser books. I think I get it, but I would appreciate an explanation.

[aldenoneil]

Tiffany wrote: "One thing that I would really appreciate being explained is Sword vs Laser boo..."

In general, sword = fantasy and laser = science fiction.

[Bryan]

Thank you the FAQ! I'm new to pretty much everything here...hopefully this will help me get back to regular reading instead of so much TV :)