Consider a future device for individual use, which is a sort of mechanized private file and library.
It needs a name, and, to coin one at random, "memex" will do.
A memex is a device in which an individual stores all his books, records, and communications, and which is
mechanized so that it may be consulted with exceeding speed and flexibility. It is an enlarged intimate supplement to his memory.
Hyperlinks (In no Particular Order)
braeunig.us:A resource on astrodynamics and general rocketry, courtesy of Robert A. Braeunig.
landchad.net:An excellent guide for both laymen and tech enthusiasts alike on how to host various servers and technologies over the Internet.
based.cooking:A cooking website with user submitted recipes that has minimal web bloat.
wiki.installgentoo.com: A wiki for technology and other tangentially related topics. Lots of tutorials and some good information.
vapormemory.com:A collection/archive of experimental electronic music of various genres, namely vaporwave. Unfortunately, this site does not seem like it gets updated anymore. And shutup, I know vaporwave is a stupid musical fad.
gutenberg.org:A collection of over 60,000 free e-books including some rather niche works I enjoy.
learnccp.com:A tutorial for using the C++ programming language. (Used this to learn C++ as a teenager)
lodev.org/cgtutor:Various tutorials and explanations of old school graphics techniques.
bookofsand.net/hypertext:An imaginative "retelling" of one of Jorge Luis Borges' short story of the same name.
libraryofbabel.info:A recreation of an "infinite" library of infinite permutations of the latin alphabet, based on the popular short story of the same name by Jorge Luis Borges.
wiki.archlinux.org:A wiki for archlinux, my linux distribution of choice. Useful information, not only for archlinux, but linux users in general.
neocities.org/browse:A website where you can host your own static websites for free and browse others' creations. As the name implies, the "new" geocities.
sites.lainx.org:A revival of a list of links provided by 4chan's /g/ board. Way more comprehensive and organized than my memex hyperlinks and even coincidentally contains some of the same links.
thejatakatales.com:This is a collection of Buddhist stories which are about the previous lives of the Buddha (Jataka Tales) translated by Tim Bewer for completion and readability. Unfortunately, I cannot attest to the quality of them, but he claims it to be accurate.
Recommended Books from my Library (In no Particular Order)
Neuromancer by William Gibson: A definitive work of early cyberpunk; an excellent and uniquely told story.
Confessions of a Mask by Yukio Mishima (Kimatake Hiraoka): Mishima's masterwork, the book is about a homosexual sadist and his experience as an outsider in Japan.
The prose is beautiful, as expected from a Mishima work. Perhaps my favorite book of all time and it holds immense sentimental value.
A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr.: One of the two novels that Miller wrote in his lifetime, the book is about an abbey of Catholic monks who preserve long forgotten scientific
knowledge after a nuclear war devastates Earth. The book takes place over a period of hundreds of years and asks important questions about technology and religion.
Collected Fictions by Jorge Luis Borges: Borges is a beloved writer around the world, and for good reason, his short stories are some of the most pleasurable and imaginative
works of fiction ever written. It is for this reason that I wholeheartedly recommend this comprehensive compilation of his stories.
Growth of the Soil by Knut Hamsun: This book follows the life of Isak, a man from Norway who carves his own path in the Norwegian wilderness. You watch as Isak works the ground and goes
from a humble farmer living his life in the country, to holder of a very valuable parcel of land threatened by development and the encroaching modern world.
In Northern Mists: Arctic Exploration in Early Times by Fridtjof Nansen: More of a scholarly work for those curious about the history of arctic settlement and exploration rather than a
liesurely read.
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad: A classic piece of literature about a man on a boat and the darkness inside of us all. A short but dense read.
Blood of Brothers: Life and War in Nicaragua by Stephen Kinzer: A piece told from the perspective of a journalist who covered stories in Nicaragua before and during the Nicaraguan revolution.
it is a good overview of the situation which takes a somewhat unbiased look at the turbulent history of this troubled central American country.
A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies by Bartolomé de las Casas: This is a book about attrocities committed against the native peoples of the Americas by Spanish conquistadors and settlers.
Not for the faint of heart. It should be noted that some of the accounts are of dubious accuracy, especially in regards to numbers, but nonetheless,
there is validity or at least some evidence that these acts were committed. Interesting from both a historical and cultural perspective. I recommend
the penguin classics edition.
The Travels of Marco Polo by Rustichello da Pisa: An account of Marco Polo's travels, probably romanticized in some ways or outright inaccurate, but perhaps an interesting look into
the European view of the east.
The Tartar Steppe by Dino Buzzati: A novel about an up and coming military officer recently graduated from the academy. He gets stationed in a remote
border fortification in the mountains. It is an allegory about a life wasted waiting for change.
The Song of Roland Translated by W.S. Merwin: About the Frankish military leader Roland, part of a literary cycle called The Matter of France, not unlike
The Matter of Britain, except centering around Charlemagne and his knights.
Hacking: The Art of Exploitation by Jon Erickson: I have yet to finish this one myself; it has a brief introduction to programming and details some of the aspects of how processors and computers work.
The book goes into how to exploit some of these features and also has chapters on cryptology and networking. Honestly, probably better for someone already interested in computers than a complete beginner, but still a solid
book.
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez: A work of magical realism about a family of eccentrics who live in the
the fictional Colombian town of Macondo. Lots of drama and whimsy.
The Voyage of St. Brendan translated by John J. O'Meara: Medieval and bizarre.
The Arabian Nights translated by Hussain Haddawy: A newer translation which is based on the original manuscript. This is a timeless classic; what has not already been said about it?