Let me tell you about the world’s most powerful internet company, and how it looks for them to be headquartered in Portland. No, there isn’t a massive company moving to Portland.
But in William Hertling’s new book Avogadro Corp, it’s already based here.
Avogadro Corp: The Singularity Is Closer Than It Appears is a new techno-thriller published this month by fellow Portlander and coffee-fanatic, William Hertling. It plays out the scenario of some fairly benign advancements in email technology that slowly lead to the surprise arrival of the first Artificial Intelligence. And with all good thrillers, the results are slightly less than ideal.
But the fact that this is a really fun and fast-paced read is only part of why you should be excited about it. Not only is it a perfect winter book for you techie computer types, but it’s a fictional world where Portland is the hub for the most exciting advancements in technology happening around the world. That right there is an exciting dream to have.
And that’s not all. The book is also jam packed with great references to deep Portland culture, like the coffee snobbery of going to Extracto in NEPO, and Portlandia-type references that fill the book with mini easter eggs for those that already call Portland our home. And since it’s set in the wintery Portland months, you can follow along with the rain drops on your window as they land on the windows of our protagonist’s office.
But wait, there’s more. You can even use Google maps to track their action as they navigate the massive Avogadro campus using Will’s own Google doc he created when writing the book, to help keep the fictional world true to life.
But we’re not done. And after you buy it at Amazon for only FOUR DOLLARS, you can put it on your Kindle, or Nook, or pretty much any type of eReader you can imagine, because it’s available in printed book form, ePUB format, and Kindle book format. All for rock bottom prices. You really have no excuse not to pick up a copy and support a local author for the price of a cup of coffee…
And if you act now, William will throw in the chance to win a FREE KINDLE FIRE. We’re not making this stuff up folks. As a way to thank people for spreading the word, William is giving away a Free Kindle Fire, and several Amazon gift cards to people who share the book socially, and help get the word out.
But act now. A deal like this won’t last forever (actually, the contest runs through December 31, 2011). So hurry. It makes a great gift for whatever holiday you happen to celebrate.
Or if you’re an atheist, just buy it to pass the time while everyone else is celebrating.
Get the full details on Avogadro Corp and links to buy it at William’s blog.
[Editor’s note: Thanks to Jason Glaspey for submitting this guest post. I would have written it, but I can’t read.]
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[…] few of you may have read my review of William Hertlings’ Avogadro Corp on Silicon Florist earlier this year, and if so, you’ll know I’m a fan of the book. I’ve also had […]
Amber: Glad to hear you enjoyed it!
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Just picked up this book (well, ordered) from Amazon, and it’s a fantastic read. It’s even better that it’s placed in Portland, OR! I highly suggest it.
This sounds cool. But just so ya know, atheists don’t necessarily abstain. The celebration was there first, not the made-up myths that co-opted it. It’s not theirs.
We celebrate the coming of the new year, the solstice, or just family, friends, and merriment. Just because we don’t celebrate a bunch of made-up silliness doesn’t mean we don’t have fun at this time of year!
We already have a few behemoth internet companies. Maybe not in Portland. Facebook and Google to name two. All those wonderful datacenters. They may not employee 10,000 but they will employ a few dozen security guards earning big bucks. A few dollars above minimum wage. They will also employee a few server admins very skilled at being able to unplug and plug in servers and operation of power buttons. I think Oregon is all set. The only thing we need now is more data centers.
Very well written review! I thoroughly enjoyed this book – once you start it, you will not be able to put it down… and the references to Portland DO make it a fun read for us insiders.
If you do pick up a copy, and you should, make sure to review it on amazon, or wherever you do such things (goodread.com)
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