Editorial – September 2025: The World Is Run By Templates.
Hello everyone
Templates. A few decades ago, I wondered why some towns and cities in the UK took on a particular road junction regime and such. I mean, it didn’t look tested and clearly having problems as related in the media. That is, until I discovered it was based on something that was used abroad so obviously had its testing there with its own road code. No doubt, various town/city councillors went on junkets to look at them and think they could be easily adapted to use in the UK. What it doesn’t take into account is local conditions where it is adapted to and whether the local inhabitants will recognise and learn to use it. That’s not to say we didn’t already have our own junctions already. I’m using the road junction example, but really it extends beyond that into all manner of templates used by local councils and government. It isn’t like things we do here aren’t adopted by other countries but there’s no way to see how this divides up and how or who it started with. These must work to some extent or it wouldn’t be employed over the decades but no one considers local conditions and adaptability.
The thing is from this it’s cutting down on unique solutions by people there. Obviously, these aren’t perfect. Putting a by-pass tunnel under Stonehenge seemeds an odd choice when you consider that there might be a chance of disturbing ancient relics there and at least it’s been abandoned for now. Putting bypasses around villages so lorries don’t damage roads seems all right until shops lose casual trade as cars also don’t pass through. There must be similar problems in different countries which ends up becoming a balancing act of decisions. A lot of the time, the argument is to do nothing than risk changes that go too far. I suspect, really, no one has come up with a satisfactory solution that can work for all. Its probably seen as a safe choice to use something that has already worked elsewhere.
Templates aren’t just dependent on transportation but not applied to other problems. Plastic pollution is damaging our oceans as they are seen by companies and commonfolk, that’s us by the way. as a dumping ground where most rubbish will appear at some time or other. The media press jumps when a tin can is photographed on a sea floor but where there’s one, there must be many more we haven’t seen yet. Ultimately, as we have seen, this micro-plastic has gotten into our food chain, so we are contaminating and probably killing ourselves. Any country cutting down on this waste in a practical safe way is going to see their template being copied by other countries. Which ever company does it is also likely to make a lot of money so why are they ignoring it? It would certainly be good PR and a template worth sharing.
It isn’t like it isn’t impossible. Many countries are turning to renewable power resources like wind and tide. Coal, oil and natural gas won’t last forever and can hardly be left for a future generation to resolve. It’s far better to adapt now while there are still reserves. A lot of products actually use them rather than as fuel. Its all based on a workable template.
The real problem for mains power is it can’t be stored but has to be used. It might not be windy all the time but even a light breeze will still get some vane rotation. Choosing tides has to be a lot more selective. Apart from looking after the habitat, there are a lot of places close to shore that could be taken advantage of. Both are successful templates. Oh, that and sunlight but the rare earth elements used in solar panels have their own limits and, as pointed out earlier, nowhere to store the energy outside of sharing with the national grid.
Efficient recycling has to be done. Computers and anything with a CPU, which is in most everyday things, contain a lot of rare earth elements that can be recycled but just gets dumped. Considering how expensive these elements are and a limited choice of which country supplies them, this is a missed opportunity. Considering that computer bits can be melted and the different melting points of the various elements, you would wonder why it’s been ignored and just junked. At least on the printer front, companies have moved to eco-tanks and reduce the amount of plastic used and brought the price of ink way, way down. The printers might be a little more expensive but you get your cost back by not buying ink cartridges. The bonus is these printers last longer, rarely get a dry nozzle if used at least once a month and clear easily through the cycle. I’ve had my eco-tank printer some 4 years now and other than a droopy control panel which I might have caused myself is still printing. I’ve more than made back my investment.
The point of this editorial is some templates are worth more than others and the same with reviews. I approve of shopping websites figuring out and removing fake reviews or even incentive reviews but they are still important when it comes to evaluating what others have said to help you make a decision to buy something. I don’t know about you, but I tend to be extra cautious when no one has made a review on anything simply because it leaves me with nothing to even consider as an evaluation.
Blimey. I’ve done a review without touching on more serious world problems.
Thank you, take care, good night and wait until next month.
Geoff Willmetts
editor: www.SFCrowsnest.info
A Zen thought: Length has nothing to do with quality.
What Qualities Does A Geek Have: To look at everything.
The Reveal: One thing they never show in the alien spacecraft is the film crew also each being attacked by the facehuggers.
Computer Observation: I love Windows 11 restoring open Internet pages when rebooted. Its not totally perfect because turning on Norton isn’t quite perfect. It can look like an age to complete although it actually already done. Sometimes, it won’t even appear. Rather than reboot, close that link and try another link because its more likely the link wasn’t restored correctly.
Computer Observation: Something that made my heart jump on Outlook this past Friday was all my emails vanishing under a family tag and no way to return it the way it was. Looking up solutions on google wasn’t helpful. In the end, I applied the old-fashioned way and closed the window and reloaded it which worked and everything back to normal. Even so, there should be solutions on any Internet page to resolve these problems simply.
Observation: There is one leading problem with the 1960s TV series, ‘The Prisoner’. Why go and see your secret service boss to resign when you can post a letter? At least it would give you a little more time to go off on your holidays.
Observation: There’s an interesting flaw with the man-apes in the opening of ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’. Considering how little food they had to eat, I’m surprised none of them had scurvy. All right, we might be seeing events in their dry season and lacking crops. However, when you see their gnashers, teeth to those who don’t know, it looks like they were built to eat meat, just that forgot how.
Observation: Going back to 1970’, UFO’ TV series and I was pondering. On Moonbase, the ladies wore stylish purple wigs that were described in the first novelisation as being anti-static. OK, it does make sense to stop the women’s hair looking all frizzled and up in the air all the time. It would have been havoc for the make-up people and would have taken more explanations than the wigs as well as a bit of smiling. So, the real thought was why didn’t the men wear purple wigs? Considering they had short hair, one could also presume a touch of hairspray would have dealt with any static problems.
Observation: I always find it odd that the Cambridge Dictionary adds new words to its dictionary. 600 this year. When I used to look up spellings, I used Chambers 21st Century Dictionary. As a writer, there is a need to use recognisable words most of the time and not have the reader having to stop to look a word up and lose concentration. Do that too often and the reader is more likely to put the book down and not pick it up again. It doesn’t mean that the odd rare word can’t be used but its meaning can usually be inferred from how it is used. The problem with these new words is they can also become incredibly dated unless the entire population accepts them in every day conversation and not just by a small minority.
Is It Just Me? I’m always puzzled why men shave their heads in the summer months thinking it will keep them cool – not the Fonzy cool – when really having hair will serve that purpose by dispersing heat and stop frying their brains.
Is It Just Me Or Am I Being Cynical? Granted many lotteries are made to provide money for charity and are supposed to be literally paid for by the small change of people entering. The reality is many people put in a lot more than loose change each week. There might also be applause for the few out of millions that win but what about the many who literally lose a lot of money on a weekly basis?
Feeling Stressed: There might still be a tomorrow.
Submissions:-
If you think having free books to review isn’t enough, how about reading them months ahead of everyone? I mean real months. Beats a time machine.
I’m also on a recruitment drive at the moment. There might not be enough review books at the moment but I would rather have people trained up and ready to go than have none waiting in the wings. We can adapt to those who want ebook formats as well as paper.
I did think that having a lot of text about submitting material to SFCrowsnest would attract those with a compulsion to read and understand things the geek way. The main problem with the Internet is that it tends to encourage less reading, so time to take a different approach. The original notes will be left on July2009 editorial although the links aren’t likely to work.
With your cover email, tell me something about yourself so I don’t work in a vacuum. The boss in the tower, also called Stephen Hunt, describes me as a ‘Dutch Uncle’ in that I’m good with advice and can explain when I see something that is wrong. Egos should be left at the door as I’m only interested in your talent and how to improve it.
Reviews:-
I always have a clarion call for new reviewers and if you have the yen to learn, you’ll quickly get the ropes if you’re never done it before but you must show me a sample, especially if you can follow my guidelines. We can usually get paper-based books in the UK but if you live abroad, then you might have to stick with ebooks. If you’ve picked a book we haven’t reviewed, then it stands a better chance of being used so use the SFC search engine to see first but I need to see how you would write for us.
The obvious qualification is a desire to read regularly and like to tell others about the book without giving away too many spoilers. The benefit is access to free books for the price of a review.
I want to give you the opportunity to get things right so look up the Review Guidelines link: https://www.sfcrowsnest.info/so-you-want-to-write-reviews-for-sfcrowsnest-what-you-need-to-know-by-geoff-willmetts/
Fiction:-
Although we can’t pay for submissions, what we do make up for is exposure. Only the Sci-Fi Channel gets more hits than us so it’s worthwhile getting us on your writer’s CV. Please avoid samplings from book’s you might be writing or have had in print elsewhere as I do check. New original work is best and whether I accept or reject, you will be told of any problems I see so you look your best and a grammar check that is equal to the pro-world. Even the boss finds me scarily accurate.
Flash or One-Page Fiction:-
Speaks for itself. The shortest fiction possible is also the toughest to write as no word must be wasted.
Link here for details: https://www.sfcrowsnest.info/one-page-stories-or-flash-fiction-submissions-instructions-by-gf-willmetts/
Short Stories:-
The definition of a short story is anything up to 30 pages and then it becomes a novella. Bear in mind you want other people to read it on-line, stay somewhere between 5-20 pages. At least digitally, you don’t have to go double-line as HTML will do that automatically but think about being concise. If you want to send an attachment with these, then ask first and send as a TXT file as it removes most tetchy virus codes.
Look up the Short Stories Link by linking here: https://www.sfcrowsnest.info/so-you-really-want-to-write-an-sf-story-an-update-by-gf-willmetts/
Finally:-
The worse problem I see any samples is poor grammar. Although I don’t want you to think I seek perfection, the less work I have to do, the easier it is to focus on other problems you might have. It will also serve you in good stead if you ever approach paper-based publishers because they will send back any bad grammar samples because it’s not worth their time.
Good grammar is the tool of any writer. Don’t just depend on what you remember doing at school. There are plenty of decent grammar books out there, so remind yourself of the rules. If you think there are far too many to remember, get the major ones right before moving to the next so it becomes second nature.
This link, www.sfcrowsnest.info/the-guide-to-better-grammar-from-the-harrowed-hand-of-gf-willmetts/ will show you the common problems.
To submit, use our email address by joining the spaces as shown here: letters @ SFcrowsnest.info and use the subject matter as to what you’re submitting.
If you have any pastimes that can be used to pass the time in captivity, let me know and we’ll see if it can be turned into an article.
Comments directly to reviews should still work as before.
Good luck
Geoff
