Hermione and the Library that is Google

I saw an article recently that asked why, especially in the later books, Harry, Hermione and Ron didn't just "google" stuff to find out what was going on. For example, when they needed to know about the Deathly Hallows, why not just search "Deathly Hallows" on the internet.

The article pointed out that the later novels were written well after the internet matured into the world-dominating form it now takes so it would make sense that Harry would use it. Even more importantly, it would make sense that Hermione would use it as a back up to the Library.

It's a funny question and one that is, at first at least, interesting. But the simple answer to it is provided in the books themselves: the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy.

There is no way the Ministry of Magic would allow information about the magical world to end up on the web. There are probably Ministry staff members who are paid to search the internet and remove any such information or, better still, someone who won a magical award for services to the community for coming up with a web-scouring spell that monitors the web and instantly removes any web entries that breach the Statute.

I know, a bit of a "straw man" when the question can be answered so easily but interesting none-the-less.

In related news, a colleague at work recently visited the Wiarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando. He reports that the Butter Beer is delicious and the memorabilia available in the shops is not as outrageously priced as I feared. A wand, complete with case like the boxes in Olivander's, was just thirty bucks. A quidditch jersey like Harry wore in the films was just twenty five. And a Gyffindor scarf, machine made but similar to the one my sister handmade for me, was forty five. Probably nowhere near as nice and warm but still...

Rowling's website and the Christian influence

I visited Joanne Rowling's website today for the first time ever. Strange, isn't it? Here I am, a huge fan of Rowling's works, and I never bothered to visit her own Harry-Potter website.

To be honest, I was disappointed. There wasn't much there and what there was turned out to be pretty dated. I had thought there might be links to interviews she's done and things like that but no such luck. I even tried to do the quiz but you have to have a student ID and I can't figure out how to get one.

Oh well. You can't have everything.

I also tried to search the web for any sign that J.K. has commented on the issue of whether or not (and how) the early films might have influenced her writing of the later books. No luck. Just about every hit I got when I typed into Google "Rowling, influence, films, novels" or something like that seemed to be a discussion of the Christian community's response to her works.

And, to be honest, I am NOT interested in reading about that. I guess I have to do some research on my own.