Evil Geniuses

by Dale Farris, President, Golden Triangle PC Club
May 2000

In 1999, Author "Illiad," otherwise known as J.D. Frazer, struck a nerve in the high-tech world with his first humorous comic strip collection, "User Friendly," that told the story of Columbia Internet, "the friendliest, hardest-working, and most neurotic little Internet Service Provider in the world." Now, "Illiad" follows up his successful venture with this sequel that continues the tale of Columbia Internet.

Take three techs, two sales reps, a designer, two executives, a couple administrative staff, mix in a mischievous artificial intelligence, and a "dust puppy" born from the innards of a server, and put them all together in a crowded little office. What comes out of this eclectic mix is a unique, off-beat and very funny comic strip that will appeal to anyone involved in today's high-tech industry.

Concepts and hot topics conveyed in the drawings include open source coding, rifts between technical and non-technical staff, dealing with the stubbornly pc illiterate, Quake III gaming, web site surfing, and the Internet, all drawn and noted in an irreverent, highly humorous manner that pokes fun at all these cutting edge issues.

What Dilbert is to those laboring in the cube farm, "Dust Puppy" (one of the many clever characters in "Evil Geniuses") is to those active in the world of open source, high-tech IPO's, and the ephemeral world of Internet Service Providers.

Computer aficionados will certainly get a kick out of these very amusing comics that build on the huge success of "User Friendly," continuing the Columbia Internet story into the year 2000. Frazer's unique concept is now carried in over 150 university and non-profit newspapers globally, driven by the success of access to the strip over the Internet, accessible at this web site:

http://www.userfriendly.org

Anybody whose interests lie with computers or the Internet will find these hilarious musings on this quirky business very amusing and entertaining.

About the Author

J.D. "Illiad" Frazer is the creator of "User Friendly," the comic strip, as well as all of the madness that exists within that weird universe. He is an avid science fiction and technology fan, although he notes the two can occasionally be mutually exclusive. While not cartooning, participating in the "UFie" community, or gaming, he writes, reads, and plays with his dog Raine, cats Champ and Pixie, and his ferrets Dudley and Pandemonium. He wants to be a Sith Lord when he grows up, mainly because they get all the really cool light sabers.

Target Readers

This collection of comics is highly specialized and tailor-made for anyone working in computers or on the Internet.

With this venture, the O'Reilly publishing firm, famous for their emphasis on a common-sense approach to explaining very technical material, depth of detail, and focus on the practical, has released something very different, yet still of great value to computer folks, albeit in a quite odd sort of way. Their always nice RepKover binding, a durable and flexible lay-flat binding, again shines here. You can lay the book flat for ease of access to both pages, with no fear of the book always closing on you just as you get to the next funny strip.

Book Contents

136 pages; preface; acknowledgments; cover colophon; introduction

Author

J.D. Frazer (aka "Illiad")

ISBN

April 2000
1-56592-861-X

List Price

$12.95

Publisher

Contact: Lisa Mann
1-707-829-0515, ext 230
O'Reilly & Associates, Inc.
101 Morris Street
Sebastopol, California 95472
1-800-998-9938
1-707-820-0515
FAX 1-707-829-0104
www.oreilly.com