XR #79 If you're looking for the latest PDF version of my print zine, you'll have to go to my new Website: https://sites.google.com/site/rayxzone/ . You have the option of viewing the issue online or downloading it to read later. Why a new site? Simple. It's easier to use than the other one I had; I don't have to use Sea Monkey Composer and play around with HTML just to upload and archive issues. Older issues of the Ray X X-Rayer are still available at http://xrayer.com . At some point I might combine both sites into one, using the xrayer.com URL to re-direct to the new site. Saving time by using a Google site means more time to research and create new articles.
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BANG! That sound? Me slamming my fist down on my desk while trying to print out the last issue of my print zine. With the Rube Goldberg interface of computers and the Web, you would think publishing online would be a bigger chore than printing out a few paper copies. Wrong. Thanks, Hewlett Packard. Before purchasing a HP inkjet printer I had other three other such printers, an Epson and a couple of Applewriters. I had some problems with those units but nothing like this HP. The last issue of my print zine had a number of images. I tried to render them with decent quality but failed -- actually, the printer failed. There's nothing I enjoy more than grayscale images coming out with streaks, especially color streaks. Like a little light pink with that B&W photo? Double-sided printing is supposed to save paper, i.e., each side of a sheet is used. 8 pages are printed with 4 sheets. But you won't save paper if the printer keeps getting hung up, printing out of sequence. S...
17 Years Later: Dead In Winter I know the correct phrase is "dead of winter" -- meaning the midpoint of the season when the greatest misery is suffered -- but today dead in winter is a more apt term. Today is February 2, Groundhog Day. Of course a major storm has hit this area, the northeastern corner of New York State, AKA the tundra. Most places are closed; nowhere to go. If it's not massive amounts of snow, the deep freeze temps confine one to his warm den. Back in February 1994 I started my zine, Ray X X-Rayer , to have something to do during the long bitterly-cold nights. I don't have the eXact date when I conceived the first issue so I've decided to celebrate the birthday of RX XR on Groundhog Day. And why not? It's a goofy day that uses myth to predict the future, the great unknown, in this case how long winter will last. I already know the answer. This is indeed the middle of winter. Some of the worse snowstorms hit in March. April can see mo...
Xmas Elf Mind Control I was thinking about writing on this topic during the holiday season but I was too filled with the Christmas spirit. (And if you believe that last statement, I have some real estate on the planet Krypton to sell to you.) Apparently Santa by himself doesn't cut it with the kids anymore when parents try to keep their little bastards in line. Thus this product was created: Year after year, children and adults alike are baffled by the mystery of how Santa really knows who’s been naughty or nice. After much urging by the elves and Mrs. Claus, Santa has allowed his biggest secret to be revealed in The Elf on the Shelf: A Christmas Tradition. Touted as “The best thing since The Night Before Christmas” this gift set includes a light skin, blue eyed North Pole pixie-elf, hardbound children’s book and keepsake box. Children can register their elf online and receive a special response from Santa. That's the manufacturer's statement which can be found at Amazon.c...
Blackhawk Versus The Deadly Flying Disc Back in the old days kids used to flock to the local cinema for the matinee serials featuring their favorite heroes. Each segment would end with a cliffhanger, for example, the hero is trapped inside a car that suddenly explodes. Is our hero dead? Nope. When the fan returned to the theatre the following week, he would see the exploding car but this time an extra preceding scene would be included showing the hero leaping to safety before the car burst into flames and flew over a cliff. An example of this hokum is the serial, Blackhawk: Fearless Champion of Justice, from 1952. Blackhawk was a popular character featured in Quality Comics during World War II who led his international team of brave aviators in strikes against the Nazis. After World War II Blackhawk relocated his base of operations from Europe to the USA where he continued to battle enemies of justice and freedom. In this serial he's fighting a spy ring trying to get its hand...