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January 2015

I'm getting tired of the word "yiff" so I made up a new word for yiff, niff.

September 2014 Newsbytes archive

Your rating: None Average: 3.2 (5 votes)

Contributors this month included bastett, crossaffliction, dronon, earthfurst, Fred, GreenReaper, InkyCrow, Patch Packrat, Poetigress and Rakuen Growlithe.

Sofawolf gets a mention in 'Publisher's Weekly' spotlight on author M.C.A. Hogarth

Your rating: None Average: 4.6 (5 votes)

flightofthegodkingriffin.jpgMainstream outlet Publisher's Weekly ran a recent spotlight on author M.C.A. Hogarth that includes a nod to furry small press SofaWolf and the novel Flight of the Godkin Griffin.

In 2004, she offered “Flight of the Godkin Griffin,” a sword and sorcery fantasy diary, directly to her audience via LiveJournal, then a popular social blogging platform. (Hogarth still actively connects with fans there, at haikujaguar.livejournal.com.) Each entry ended with a question about a minor thing that could happen next, and readers who donated could vote and have an effect on the upcoming scenes. Years later, once prior publication on the Web no longer necessarily jeopardized a project’s print prospects, Hogarth sold this piece to the small press Sofawolf as a two-volume novel. Although Hogarth may have chosen to blaze the self-publishing path as a response to a traditional publishing industry that did not want her on her terms, she’s well-suited to a flexible, entrepreneurial approach to authorship, combining perfectionism with drive and marketing and management skills honed in the corporate world. “Self-publishing is more agile,” she says. “You can put things out faster, make decisions faster. It’s very rewarding for people like me, who write quickly and respond to change very quickly. There’s no set path anymore, even if you are traditionally publishing. You have to find weird opportunities and try them.”

Publisher's Weekly has been published continuously since 1872 and bills itself as the "International News Magazine of Book Publishing and Bookselling," with a circulation of over 25,000 publishers, librarians, booksellers and literary agents.

Review: 'Alpha and Omega: The Legend of the Saw Tooth Cave'

Your rating: None Average: 4 (9 votes)

Alpha and Omega: The Legend of the Saw Tooth Cave When I finally saw the plot synopsis and the box art for Alpha and Omega: The Legend of the Saw Tooth Cave, I was actually pretty upset. I feared that they just no longer care for the original characters of the very first movie.

The box art only featured the wolf puppies and I kept thinking negative things like: "Are they heading in a direction that I don't want them to go?"

I was scared about this movie. I just didn't bother posting a preview here, probably because of that. But you know what? My fears weren't completely true. They actually shown Kate and Humphrey and they had real roles. However, the focus was still often on the pups. There was also a white wolf called Daria often along with the pup Runt. These two were the main focus.

Some amount of spoiler is to be expected!

Which furry art/story community improved the most over 2014?

Fur Affinity
18% (17 votes)
Inkbunny
24% (22 votes)
SoFurry
16% (15 votes)
VCL
4% (4 votes)
Weasyl
37% (34 votes)
Votes: 92

Obituary: Remembering Christine Cavanaugh

Your rating: None Average: 4.6 (10 votes)

bunnie2_0.jpgIt is with great sadness that I must report on the passing of one of the giants of the voice-acting world.

Christine Cavanaugh passed away on December 22, 2014 at the young age of 51.  She is perhaps best-remembered as the voice actress of (in no particular order) Babe, Dexter (Dexter's Lab), Bunnie Rabbot (Sonic the Hedgehog), Chuckie Finster (Rugrats), Oblina (Aaahh!!! Real Monsters) and Goslyn Mallard (Darkwing Duck, Raw Toonage).

While her voiceography is not as long as other veteran voice actors and actresses, she more than made up for it with quality acting and defining fan-favourite characters, bringing them memorable personalities that lasted long after their shows completed their runs.

October 2014 Newsbytes archive

Your rating: None Average: 4.2 (9 votes)

Contributors this month include dronon, Echte Sinte, Fred, GreenReaper, InkyCrow, mwalimu, Patch Packrat, Rakuen Growlithe and RingtailedFox.

Opinion: The top ten movies of 2014

Your rating: None Average: 2.6 (12 votes)

top10.jpg
It’s surprising how important this top ten list is to me. I’m already thinking about possibilities for 2015; it’s going to be a fun year. Or really disappointing. One or the other.

But enough about next year - here’s ten movies from 2014 I liked.

Armello: Promising furry fantasy game in early access release

Your rating: None Average: 4.8 (8 votes)

ThaneLeague of Geeks' flagship game shows a great deal of promise as it goes out to early access. Armello is a video game which bases itself in board game principals where four heroes, a wolf, rat, rabbit and bear, compete for their clans to secure the throne.

The goal is to gain more prestige points than your opponents by the time the king dies of his illness, or to smite him yourself. The game has three methods of doing this, and takes familiar elements and mixes them in ways that work extremely well. The fact that the characters are anthropomorphic is icing on the cake of a solid game.

Upcoming furry comics for February 2015 (Previews and Marvel Previews)

Your rating: None Average: 3.7 (6 votes)

Rocket Raccoon and Squirrel Girl have ongoing comic book series. That is all.

Comparison of furry website HTTPS configurations

Your rating: None Average: 3.6 (7 votes)

Security is necessary for one's own protection, both offline (to protect one's physical safety and possessions) and online (protecting identity, money and, as the our digital and real lives become more integrated, even physical possessions). Our own behaviours and security systems need to work together to be effective. It's no good having the latest burglar alarm, strong locks on your doors and a security gate if one leaves the door wide open. Similarly, it's great to lock the door each time one goes out - but if that door is secured solely by a latch, it won't be effective. As I've given some basic guidelines on how to stay safe online, I'm now comparing how furry sites are helping their users stay safe.

Update (Jan 28): All Weasyl servers now receive an A grade, however the server configuration is still not consistent.