Downcasting C# Generics...
This is one of the things that becomes stickier and more annoying due to my near constant jumping back and forth between Python (web apps and one-off data wrangling scripts) and C# (the current big project). But, it's bugged me for a while... It would be nice to have an easier way to handle the many situations of having on hand a List<DerivedClass> and needing to make use of that as a IList<BaseClass>. I realize that it's the sort of magic meta-programming often frowned upon in strongly-typed languages but I would be so happy if Generic Collections could provide even just IEnumerable<BaseType> for the base-chain and interfaces...
The End of Pirates of the EST, For Now
I've finished serializing what I've written for Pirates of the Eastern Standard Tribe. I apologize for being "late" posting this week's finale, but to make up for it I've made my RSS feed a bit nicer to read in most readers... Anyway, I'd love feedback on Pirates if anyone has some. I think it turned out well enough. I'm worried that it ends a bit anti-climatically considering I used the "real" climax as the opening and the "twist" climax (which I don't think is much of a twist), and then butchered it down into a surprising two lines. On the other hand, I think I told the full story I set out to, which can sometimes be rare for me. It does have a clear beginning, middle and end; even if I'm not certain about the placement of the elements, and perhaps it needs a bit more in the way of "middle parts". But I am happy with it. It's been several years in the writing, and I'm glad to have finished it. Again, I'd love comments, criticism, questions, what have you...
Because I'm feeling rather magnanimous, here's a teaser of my most recently begun work (this is about half-way through the current sequence):
A simple movement of your sword brings it across his shins, involuntarily dropping him to his knees. He has enough time and movement to swing a gun out his working armâs pocket. He fires swiftly for a conventional. His bullets are nothing. It is just about effortless, that magnetic mantra, your will over the very substance of the bullets. The bullets ricochet uselessly into the ceiling. He needs to reload. His hand is trembling. You save him the trouble by removing his ...
