GPF News Archive

Greetings, Faulties! Let me begin by apologizing (once again) for the news page being so quiet lately. I could say there hasn't been much going on, but there's actually been a lot going on behind the scenes. For one, I've had to update virtually every page on the site, making minor changes to fit better with the Keenspot automation scheme. (Seems I was one of the few lonely mavericks who played by my own rules, even when everyone else's rules were easier to follow. :) I also made a few changes to make updating easier for me, but you probably won't be able to see a single one.

Anyhow, there's been a number of things happening here behind the scenes at GPF, but unfortunately there's not much to say about them. The biggest news is that production is gearing up for the second GPF book, soon to be released by Plan Nine Publishing. The second book will be in the same format as the first book, compiling our second year's worth of strip into one volume. (That's November 1999 through October 2000, for those who didn't know.) As I type this, the cover is already on the drawing table, about halfway done in the drawing stage (about 25-33% overall). The special story will be a whopping twelve pages this time, and will be a semi-sequel to the current "Secret Agent Geek" story line, centering on Fooker and Fred. I feel that, overall, this volume will be much better than the last, since the art and stories have improved, and I know what's going on this time around. :) I've already handed well over half of the strips to David Allen (who absolutely loved the ending to "Secret Agent Geek" but is sworn to secrecy), and he's hoping to have the book ready to sell by this fall. I'm not 100% sure it's going to happen that soon, but I'm doing everything I can to try. As always, I'll keep you informed as things happen.

I've also been slowly and surely tweaking parts of the site in serious need of updating. For one, I've beefed up the Secondary Characters page in our Cast section, and intend to completely rewrite the rest of the cast pages as soon as I can. The book subsite has been overhauled as well, improving the FAQ and adding new features, like a behind the scenes portion with rejected covers and the official Book Bug Hunt where we're keeping track (with your help, of course) of errors in the book (which we'll fix in the second edition). Some sections are still being developed, but for the most part it is open for business. I'll also be attacking those pesky things that still haven't reopened since our move, like "Fook Invaders" and the background image download page.

Another big item to mention is all those years of computer use are catching up with me. As I type this, I'm currently wearing a wrist brace on my left hand, which unfortunately is also my drawing hand. It appears carpal tunnel syndrome (or, at least, repetitive stress syndrome) has settled in. So far, it hasn't affected my drawing to any extent, but I can feel it deep in there when I'm done. Since my drawing schedule is only going to increase because of the book, hopefully the brace will strengthen it enough to work itself out.

I've received a number of submissions for Apocalypse Pete's Exciting Online Adventure!'s "Hall o' Fame" lately, and just to let you know, those submissions are not being ignored. To make a long story short, my current ISP, InfiNet, is getting out of the ISP business and has handed us off to Earthlink / Mindspring. Ever since the announcement, I've been locked out of my old website and can't update it. Since the APEOA! Hall o' Fame is still a manual process, I can't update that either. We're looking at our options (stay with the new ISP, ditch them for a cable modem, etc.), but we probably won't have a solution for a while. I've strongly considered moving APEOA! here to the GPF site long before this problem arose, and now I'm getting even closer to doing it....

There still isn't any news about selling the Fred T-shirt online yet. Sorry, gang. David Allen and I have talked since he returned from Comic-Con, but not about the shirts. I will try and talk to him about this ASAP.

GPF had another banner month in July, breaking once again the one million page views mark. We dished out 1,198,059 pages to 61,651 unique sites, munching up over 55GB of bandwidth. Our top days were July 4th and 5th, where all those brand new readers first exposed at Dragon*Con were logging in to find out what we're about. Thanks for helping our numbers soar, gang! :D

Keenspot goings-on: The Keenspot Bikeeni Summer 2000 special is still in full swing, with lots of new pictures for you to oggle at. All six of the main GPF cast have dared to bare, as well as the mysterious Mischief, the Gamester's female lackey. Also burning up our bandwidth is the Keenonball Run, Curtis Berry's entry to the ever-growing list of Keenspot Mini-Series events. (Curtis is the brains behind the hilarious Life at Bayside.) Rumor has it hoards of Keenspot characters are racing from Bayside to Las Vegas for a chance to win "twenty large ones" (whatever that may be). The rumor mill also churns that two GPF regulars are in for the ride... but that's something will just have to wait about and see. :)

Miscellaneous news from the grab-bag: Check out the Dragon*Con Special Report for news and pictures from our Atlanta excursion (our first convention!). Make sure to sign up for the Plan Nine mailing list to pick up special discounts and exclusive deals on Plan Nine titles (including GPF books and (potentially) other merchandise). As always, feel free to let me know what you think of the site and the strip either through the GPF Message Boards, or drop be a line.

Wow! That was actually more news that I thought. But that's all there is. So, until next time, keep logging on! :)