The Left Lane
Here, kitty kitty

The latest in commercial software is CyberPounce, a program aimed at one member of the household that's usually kept far, far from the keyboard: the cat.

Los Angeles-based Double Twenty Productions produces the software ($14.95 on CD) featuring 11 virtual kitty toys, including a squeaky white mouse, a frog that zaps its tongue at a buzzing fly, a flapping bird and a bubble-blowing fish, all designed to flash across the screen and catch the kitty's roving eye.

Designer Matt Wolf said the idea for CyberPounce came to him while house-sitting for a friend whose bored cats showed an unquenchable desire to paw at the cursor on a home computer. When Wolf downloaded some kitten sound files and played them, the cats came barreling into the room to look for the kitten. "I'm going to design something for this audience," he said.

Find more information at www.cyberpounce.com/

Da word is out.

Issue 2 of Hybolics ($9.95) is on bookstands at all Native Books locations and soon at other stores.

The second installment of Lee Tonouchi's pidgin chronicles features works by Lee Cataluna, Chris McKinney, Ian McMillan, Eric Chock and Rob Wilson, among others.

The official launching of Issue 2 is slated for 7:30 p.m. July 16 at Kumu Kahua Theatre downtown. Admission to the lit performance is free.

Mail-order a copy of the journal by sending a check for $9.95 plus $9.95 for shipping and handling to Hybolics, P.O. Box 3016, 'Aiea, HI 96701.