Mike McMaster

Brum based slave to 4 cats. Stories in & 365tomorrows & The Book of 42

[Mike McMaster @MikeBham]

We've published an anthology! The first cohort of students to complete the Hull Uni Creative Writing online MA have put together a collection of work...and it is a real book! #writingcommunity

[VeryBritishProblems @SoVeryBritish]

A recent report says that voice notes are huge across the world… apart from in Britain.

Here’s my two cents (or pennies) on why I dislike voice notes:

1. I don’t want to have to put in earphones or find a quiet place when out and about, just for you to tell me “yes” or “no” about whether you’re free for a cup of tea next Wednesday.

2. While I’m watching telly, I want to be able to glance down at my phone and get the information I need in text form. I don’t want to have to turn the telly off and listen to your private podcast that’s just for me.

3. I don’t want to wade through three minutes of waffle and chit-chat I never asked for when a thumbs-up emoji will do.

4. It makes me feel like you expect a voice note back - and I’m not doing that.

5. I have no interest in tangents about how you’ve just seen an interesting pigeon on the pavement. I asked if you could give me a lift to the station, and 12 minutes in you’re talking about a pigeon and I’ve missed my train.

6. The convenience is all yours. It’s quick to send a voice note, but much slower for me to consume it. It’s bad manners.

I think that about covers it. Of course, if voice notes are a more accessible option for the sender (due to difficulty typing, vision impairment, language barriers, etc.), that’s completely understandable - a different kettle of fish! But if you just like waffling, I’d rather not be the waffle sounding board.

(Really I think I’m just jealous of people who are able to talk coherently for minutes at a time).

[PeteZach @oldyzach]

These are definitely the pixels I’d like to see today as if for the first time in my life.

[exQUIZitely 🕹️ @exQUIZitely]

I often think about the technical limitations that game designers of the 80s had to work with - both in terms of software and hardware.

The game that stands at the very top is Elite.

Think about this for a second: The core game code on the BBC Micro version occupied roughly 22 KB of memory. Now think about what Braben and Bell turned that into: a universe with eight galaxies, each containing 256 star systems (for a total of 2,048 planets/systems). Each system featured unique details: government type, economy, technology level, population, commodity prices, and even descriptive text (e.g., a planet known for "carnivorous arts graduates" or similar quirky combinations).

If you still need a bit more help to contextualize that, try this: Elite was smaller than many modern text files or desktop icons, yet it contained (and let you freely explore) a multi-galaxy-spanning universe that felt vast and limitless.

Oh, and by the way, the game also rendered 3D wireframe ships, stations, and planets in real time on a 2 MHz 6502 processor.

This is no slight on today’s game designers. They work with what they have, and that's okay. But when you think about the worlds that some programmers created with the tools they were given, it sometimes breaks my brain trying to understand how they did it.

Elite is a true masterpiece on so many levels. I played the C64 version back in the day, and even 40+ years later it still feels like one of the most incredible programming wonders ever.

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

45 years ago Today, the Sinclair ZX81 computer was launched with 1kB RAM

[Captain Dave @DaveWallsworth]

It’s now 40 years since this quite brilliant episode of Yes, Prime Minister was broadcast but somehow it still seems remarkably appropriate after all this time! One of the best comedy series ever and superbly acted.

[John Finnemore @JohnFinnemore]

Get dressed, ye merry gentlemen, let nothing ye dismay! For it is Christmas, Christmas, Christmas. Christmas, Christmas Day! It’s Christmas Christmas Christmas Christmas Christmas Christmas Day… It is Chri-hi-hi-hi-hi-hi-histmas day, Chrissymas Day, it is Chriiiiiiiistmas Day!

[John Finnemore @JohnFinnemore]

Once a year I return to this eerie and abandoned place, to pass on this important seasonal message from an old colleague:

[Pulp Librarian @PulpLibrarian]

All AI should be made to say "Bidi bidi bidi" before giving any answer, to remind people it's a machine generated response.

[Mike McMaster @MikeBham]

@CharlieFenton2 @jeremyjudkins_ Thanks @charliefenton2 Inam a bit out of date - I am old enough to have carried my organ Donor Card for many years!

[Mike McMaster @MikeBham]

@supersisi X-Wing.

[Mike McMaster @MikeBham]

@exquizitely It hurts to be you.

[Electra Rhodes - writes a bit/archaeologises a bit @electra_rhodes]

Sadmin after someone has died (Eng & Wales ed)
1. Cause of death cert to registrar
2. Register death - green form, death cert + copies, reg number
3. Gov 'Tell Us Once'
4. Bank, utilities etc
5. Will - solicitors
6. Value estate
7. Submit inheritance tax form
8. Apply for probate

[Mike McMaster @MikeBham]

@NJSimmondsbooks Trust the process. Always :-)

[Mike McMaster @MikeBham]

@GamewithDave X wing.

[Georgia Knight @Hadrians_Gate]

Time to travel beyond Hadrian's Gate!

Download this gritty, complex, fast-paced, adult #scifi series NOW

Episode 1 is ONLY 99p / 99c!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

"Hard to put down"
"Dark and powerful"
"Rocket-fuelled action”

#kindle #kindleunlimited #epic

https://t.co/jiI7clnxaG

[cinesthetic. @TheCinesthetic]

Margin Call (2011) thrives on razor-sharp writing and powerhouse performances, turning boardroom conversations into gripping, edge-of-your-seat drama.

[Mike McMaster @MikeBham]

@juliachance Great photos! We will miss your energy, enthusiasm and positive encouragement. Thank you for inviting City Pastors to Southside! God bless.

[Mike McMaster @MikeBham]

@gunsnrosesgirl3 “Greatest of all time”. Nope - just the greatest so far, or maybe the greatest in history. But all time? Nah - not buying this for a second!

[Mike McMaster @MikeBham]

@NJSimmondsbooks More. More pens. Pens = Friends.