Cheese Dreams

Raarr! I LOVE being a cop in the motorcycle display team!

2009-06-27T09:31:00.004+01:00

What a great photo! From Photo Cliches.

It's all malarky

2009-04-07T05:22:00.011+01:00

Or that's what this internet cafe manager thinks of Apple Mac fans. I don't mind agreeing. "Like bloody born again Christians, they are!" He's pushing 55, and has one sort of squished eye from a car crash in '99. I like him. We've been puzzling how to get him more custom. The kids aren't filling the place and nor are the tourists.

It might be the nasty mural that covers all the walls. On a yellow background is an Earth spinning with coloured ribbons radiating out, and between the ribbons are what I can only describe as "travel highlights". I am sat in front of an inaccurate interpretation of the pyramids, my neighbouring computer user has a partial vista of Stonehenge in front of him. It's pretty horrible.

If I were a brooding Counterstrike player, I think I'd go to the cafe with the blacked out backroom with cammo netting on the ceiling, not this place. It resembles a nursery, or a classroom for special needs.

Not that I suggested this to the manager.

Anyway, this is a half hearted update from Australia. We've had rain and flooding up the New South Wales coast. Small town Bellingen was entirely cut off, with all roads in and out submerged (pictured, left).

However, Australia has an excellent volunteer service called the State Emergency Services, and these brave souls don yellow vests and lift grannies out of submerged homes and search for missing people. Possibly due to this large community effort only one fatality occured.

At their best the Aussies are very community spirited, that's when they aren't making dubious laws to curb the motorbike gangs, the "bikies".

I love it that newsreaders and journalists have unquestioningly accepted the term "bikie".It's just not a scary word, bikie, it sounds like something small and potentially cute.

I narrowly missed by a couple of hours, witnessing a bikie being offed by a rival gang at Sydney airport. About a week later, that bikie's brother was then also shot. I'm not sure what to make of it. It's like a low rent Sopranos, but where everyone looks like Vin Diesel with oiled pecs and 6-packs.

I'm headed to Byron to sample a little of the Blues and Roots festival this easter weekend, but will be in Sydney later this month. Any Sydney-siders I didn't catch up with yet, shout and I'll see you on the way back.

Fringe is back with bonus Wirespotting

2009-02-03T11:28:00.007Z

More Wire actors in the last Fringe, episode twelve. Not only is Lieutenant Daniels a regular as an almost identical character Agent Phillip Broyles, but this week Union Man Frank Sobodka appears as the most unlikely of characters, a skilled programmer who writes virii! Also, Marlo's muscle and Snoop's partner Chris Partlow is a hacker in the very same episode!

Here also are a couple of screen grabs from an earlier Fringe episode. I'm always interested in the craft of storytelling, especially the smaller details, how a moment was put together or communicated. In the scene below FBI agent Olivia Dunham returns home after a disturbing scene where she believes has seen her supposedly dead lover John Scott. Back at home she has a new email that appears to be from him.

If you look carefully at the text in the email, no normal font would have a wrongly sized "E". The ill fitting "E" was an effect to subtly add some unease and a sense of "wrongness" to the email. Nice!

Showjumping rabbits

2009-01-23T09:04:00.002Z

This has made me very happy. Thanks Scott. Can't embed this clip but here's the link. http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=cNPOdffkkLo

Morning messages

2009-01-20T10:39:00.002Z

My Thunderbird client offers me a button to restore natural order...

..and my favourite spammer apologises for the 'enconvienice' of a massage.

...another spam special from an email entitled "Be 9 inches in 2009". I like to think some poor, underpaid graphic designer was tasked with making something creative to illustrate their 'product' and came up with this bizarre creation.

Stop Skype starting on Mac login + kill caps lock + VLC screengrab shortcut

2008-12-30T13:58:00.008Z

Apologies for not coming up with some more amusing anecdotes in my first post after Christmas, but I'm having a writers block. I do however have a rather lovely iPod touch (called Treacle), which I am experimenting with, and hope to give some feedback on in the near future. Any recommendations for apps, for video editors or just general geeks, would be appreciated in the comments.

So, some Mac tips that I've discovered with this abundance of free time.

Tiny thing this, but it's not in the Skype preferences, and if Mac has the equivalent of a preferences menu of apps to start at login, I haven't found it.

Ctrl+click the Skype icon in the dock and uncheck the "Open at login".

Kill the Mac caps lock key

It just gets in the way, does anyone ever need it? Again, there is no hidden trick for fixing this, it's in the preferences.

However, if you're a sloppy typist like me, this simple remedy will make life minutely more pleasing. Which is always a good thing. System preferences -> Keyboard and Mouse -> Modifier keys and make Caps lock Key "No Action"

Screengrabs from VLC on a Windows machine

Came across this one when reminded that a plain PrntScrn (sp?) then opened in Photoshop, does that odd thing where the VLC window won't get saved to the clipboard. I don't really understand technically why that happens, but anyway.

In VLC Preferences -> General video settings -> Video snapshot directory (put something sensible in here so you can find your snapshots when captured. You can also change the type of files saved.

You can also pull stills transparently whilst watching the video using a shortcut. The default Windows shortcut is Ctrl+Alt+S. On Mac it's Alt+Cmd+s, which didn't work for me (why not? reserved for a system function?) until I changed it in the preferences. Do this by: Preferences -> Interface -> Hotkeys settings, Check the “Advanced options” box and scroll down to “Take video snapshot” and change it to any key you fancy.

"Interactive video object manipulation" from Adobe

2008-12-05T18:03:00.004Z

I've struggled with the After Effects interface, as a novice user, to motion track objects in footage. It's fiddly and time consuming. This video shows a demo of software to get similar results, but much more quickly and with an incredibly easy interface. Reminds me of the usability of simple 3d modeller Sketchup which was bought by Google. This example is not for pro compositors who will rarely need default effects offered (such as "fun" speech bubbles) but is interesting as it may lead to new interface options which might get rolled out into existing produts like AE.

Interactive Video Object Manipulation from Dan Goldman on Vimeo.

An aside, video nerds, that intro footage with the man by the bridge has horrible over-noise-reduced audio. Ambient noise must have been terrible during the filming. You can hear how the vocals were filtered within an inch of their lives by his "metallic" voice.

iPod Mini battery replacement

2008-11-24T21:09:00.004Z

I'm a huge fan of re-using and recycling, and try and do my best to avoid wanton consumerism. I'm not always successful. However since my beloved ipod mini (2nd gen) had been suffering aged battery complex, and giving me a mere hour or so of playing time I decided to pop a new battery in myself. This has the added bonus of getting to see what's in that almost hermetically sealed case, and as every good geek knows, it's always fun to handle a little hardware once in a while.

Here are some pics of a naked, green ipod mini, during the operation, and afterwards. Thankfully, she made a full recovery. Click the image to see it large..

The batteries cost between about 4 and 10 quid on ebay, depending on the battery mAh (Milliamp Hour - how much charge it holds). Another great thing is that the batteries you can buy now are actually better and longer lasting than the ones that were included. I bought a 750mAh battery, the original is suspected to be about 450mAh.

You get two tiny screwdrivers in the kit with which to butcher your ipod open, and the process takes a few minutes.

My next project, when that tiny little hard drive begins to fail will be to convert my mini from the current microdrive into a solid state flash drive player. That shit is coooool.

Is it standing up on two legs.. and.. holding a spoon?

2008-11-20T23:10:00.004Z

That's Stewie, he passed away earlier this year, but what a brilliant animal! Anteater girl has a flickr account and loads of other Anteater As Pet YouTube videos like Stewie runs!, Stewie and his squeaky ball!, Stewie walks on two legs! and Anteaters are on my sofa! (with a Wet Wet Wet soundtrack).

"Please consider the environment before printing my email"?

2008-11-17T13:34:00.006Z

Don't tell me what to consider, you smug, mung-beany-tree-hugger (I am in fact, a smug, mung-beany-tree-hugger myself, so am qualified to accuse others of this).

I might create a new, more useful signature in the same style.

YouTube to create an "Actually Good" tab

2008-11-14T20:01:00.002Z

YouTube Contest Challenges Users To Make A 'Good' Video

Great e-cards, and other (zombie?) recommendations

2008-11-01T12:08:00.008Z

Web

Does anyone send e-cards anymore? Even typing "e-cards" feels slightly shameful, out of date, is it the "e" hyphen....? Anyway, although this takes any pleasant surprise out of any future "digital salutations" I'll send to you, I enjoy someecards so much I thought I'd share it.

Books

Just finished Brave New World (read BNW online if you're that way inclined) by Aldous Huxley. This is an awesome book, which I would shout about more but for the disgusted cries of "What? You've only just read it..!?" that are hailing down on me.
Next.

Film

Revisited Cronenberg's Scanners (was gifted the trilogy and more cult DVD goodness by the lovely people at Sci-Fi London, they keep on giving!) which I had forgotten about bar the exploding head scene which, nerdy child that I was, I freeze framed on my VHS to find the spot where the real guy is switched for the pumpkin head of gore.

Needless to say, there are plenty more goodies in this movie, the freaky, 80's synth sound design, grimacingly tense telepath mind battles, some great stunts (when the school bus busts slo-mo into the record store!) and the ever eerie Michael Ironside playing the Bad Scanner Darryl Revok. Gripping!

For more gore check out an ace short Zombie film, made by our beer crazed Dutch neighbours, Zombeer! It was produced by a very cool friend of mine, and the film was one of six official nominations for the Shocking Shorts Awards, organised by Sci-Fi Channel and NBC/Universal.
Zombeer on Vimeo
Zombeer at Myspace

Dead Set the E4, Halloween Zombie 5 parter. I am just getting to watch on download (no TV and Channel 4 On Demand does not respect the Mac. Arse). Episode One was great. There is a little aside by a housemate in the fictional Big Brother house,"That's the public for you, they're animals" as outside, the eager BB fans are ripping each other apart in zombie fervour. Dead Set at PirateBay

Music

Something sweetly 90's about 4AD's release from Deerhunter "Microcastle". Swirly guitars, echoey fx'd vocals. Pleasing.

Fleet Foxes sound like a sentimental, harmonious, sixties memory that none of us are old enough to remember, but by God, weren't we having a good time?

Johnny Flynn is barely 25, and strangely is related to one of Robson and Jerome.. but he makes nice jangly folk pop. A bit like a boy Laura Marling. Cardigan Kids.

WIRESPOTTING - LATE UPDATE!!

I am about 2 weeks late on this nugget but it's Bubbles! Everyones favourite, lovable junkie becomes someone (er, not watched them yet) in Heroes!!

Have you seen this cat?

2008-10-23T18:12:00.004+01:00

..found by always try to go with something else

Radiohead - 15 Step Overdub

2008-10-16T19:41:00.001+01:00

"Shreds" style overdub. Funny!

"Near a tree by a river, there's a hole in the ground.."

2008-10-12T22:31:00.004+01:00

Finally made it to the arts/media monthly event which this month presented 80's pop star Nik Kershaw and Bond composer David Arnold. Nik Kershaw is looking a little bit Gary Glitter with his tinted specs and Goatee, but does look pretty spry, and was sporting a quite tidy, super-short, mohican style hair-do. Funniest moment was a weak knee'd middle aged woman asked Nik if "he worked out".

I tried to hold my crappy N70 steady at full zoom for a video of "Wouldn't it be good" acoustic" but failed miserably and was also thwarted by a moving person in front of me obscuring my frame. I like Kershaw songs, they have really tricky chords, especially when played on a banjo.

David Arnold was really entertaining and told extended Hollywood-dirt stories about some of his adventures. He's surprisingly normal for a man with such a fine hollywood profile.

This weekend I have also discovered Radio Reverb, Brighton's local community station. You can listen to it on analog at 97.2FM or live from the stream. DJ Lamp is very good and plays all kinds of music for his show Eclectic Chair, and also the 2 hour weekly show Simple Folk has some brilliant live sessions - check their archives.

I learned to speak to an Octopus

2008-10-12T11:20:00.004+01:00

At an older address, I used to get Scientologist DVDs in the post for someone who'd long left, so I've watched one, or as much of it as I could tolerate. I'd also purposely leave the bizzarre magazine in the shared loo, although no one ever mentioned it. Anyway, this film is an accurate parody, including the abundance of shiny, shiny gold graphics. Funny!

Say Hebbo! from Torvakian on Vimeo.

The internet is for bunny videos

2008-10-06T22:17:00.003+01:00

I love the music in this one, and this rabbit, young Billy, is real star material.

If you didn't know, that leaping is called a binky, and is a rabbit's way to express happiness.

TV roundup and WIRESPOTTING special

2008-10-05T18:07:00.009+01:00

It's the new "Fall" season and I've been sampling some of the new shows and the new seasons of old favourites. I really do value tips regarding what's out there, so if you're onto something you think I might enjoy, please do drop me note!

Also included in this blog is WIRESPOTTING in celebration of a large number of ex-The Wire actors getting work.

Season 4: It's always sunny in Philadelphia

More madness from the four friends (and Danny Devito) who run a failing Irish bar. Looks to continue in the same rapid fire, absurd and occasionally offensive fashion. If in doubt, grab these episode to check it out, but have patience as it is a grower: 3.1 The Gang Finds a Dumpster Baby or 2.3 Dennis and Dee Go On Welfare.

Season 1: True Blood

Steamy!! It's all about sex this one, but what fun. Our heroine, post Buffy telepath, Sookie is romancing with sullen Bill the "Only Vampire in the Village". Deaths and murders in the small Southern town continue to test Sookie's faith in Bill, whilst (bizarrely, Aussie ex-Home and Away star) Jason, Sookie's brother keeps having BDSM-style sex with women who end up dead. It's picking up a little speed now after an underwhelming pilot. Love the True Blood titles, by the excellent Digital Kitchen who also created the classic Six Feet Under titles.

WIRESPOTTING: Weary union man Frank Sobotka reappears as weary cop Andy Bellefleur!

Season 1: Fringe

This show looks promising, and JJ Abrahms has stated that it shouldn't be quite as frustrating and fickle as Lost or Alias. Cute, crap actor Joshua Jackson (Pacey from Dawson's Creek) is the genius playboy son of a mad scientist. He and his father (actor John Noble who adds refreshing comedy senility) are recruited to aid a (rather serious) female FBI agent to solve cases on the "Fringe" of science. It's very X Files, and I mean, very X Files but this isn't a bad thing. Does anyone remember 2005's speedily cancelled Threshold, same pretext although less about aliens being the baddies and more likely some sinister company. It is however rather good. They don't spare the blood and guts and seem to knowingly bandy around the silliest pseudoscience which is a good laugh. Lets hope that they don't go too far seeking The Truth as the X Files did. Monster of the week is good enough!

WIRESPOTTING: "Black Skeletor" - Lt Cedric Daniels reprises the suited boss role as Agent Phillip Broyles! Same Same!

Season 4: Prison Break

That wikipedia link kindly explains

This article is about a television series. For the act of escaping prison, see prison escape.

Back in the USA, our survivors are now a sort of super investigative group seeking some more bogus technology belonging to The Company called Scylla. Mildly more engaging than Season 3 (which, WIRESPOTTING! contained "Bunny" Colvin as top-con Lechero!) . Ex-FBI agent Alexander Mahone (actor William Fitchner) has become my favourite. Nice to see him brefly in The Dark Knight as "Bank Manager", Oh come on, he's great, someone give that man some more roles!

Season 4: Entourage

More throwaway silliness from Vincent Chase, his friends, and the inimitable Ari Gold. Vince is reduced to Sweet Sixteen party appearances whilst E is finding his Indie script may just be the next blockbuster, but without Vince.

Season 3: Heroes

Anyone who hasn't moved on from the dogs dinner of Season 2 will be following the new season wondering if they can put things right in season 3. I'm not convinced that it will happen that easily. Angry-future-Peter keeps skulking around (he needs to die, him and that rubbish scar included as a device so we don't get confused which Peter he is), Mohinder Suresh has become Jeff Goldblum in The Fly, and the most unlikely, Sylar apparently reinvented as a good guy overnight. Nikki/Jessica's actress has been written back in after her character's death last season as a clone. What? A clone? Is this the best you could come up with? It seems Heroes can do whatever it likes (like Lost) and no-one questions it, or expects it to make any sense. Ah well, Clare is still cool, and we saw a glimpse of her in the future looking all cat suity and bad ass. This season is airing both in the US and on BBC iPlayer.

WIRESPOTTING Hardened criminal Marlo Stanfield reappears as hardened criminal with added super powers, Benjamin 'Knox' Washington!

Feed me, Seymour.

2008-10-05T17:34:00.002+01:00

Actually they are the suckers that line the arms of a squid, helping it to grasp its prey. Photo artificially coloured from an electron microscope. More at the Ars Technica article about a Science visualisation prize

Fun at Flash on the Beach and Rob Chui's trailer

2008-10-01T10:21:00.013+01:00

I've been thoroughly enjoying sessions at this year's Flash on the Beach conference. I took the liberty of converting Rob Chui's trailer to flash for this page. Taken from Chui's The Ronin homepage where the QT took a long time to load. Turn up the volume!

Flash on the Beach trailer - Rob Chui

Monday's highlight was James Paterson who makes wonky flash animations like this cloudy land or more commercial work, a series of adverts for a sandwich company. This one is called "Button Popping contest". All spots in the Mr Sub series here.

Some older work which I liked.. Captain Q-tip boot.

Monday was also Chris Orwig, on The Art and Craft of Photographic Impact. Really inspiring.

Tuesday was Hoss Gifford on Abstract narrative. He made a cool gadget for the Edinburgh fringe festival called fringe magnets. This is as it appears, with the letters you're given you can re-arrange the letters and send to a friend, the interesting part is that the act of arranging the letters is recorded, so the friend recieves your note and can view the way you created it.

Robert Hodgin was the final session on Tuesday (web or vimeo). He writes code in a language called Processing which creates visualisations. Solar (music by Goldfrapp) with lyrics from flight404 on Vimeo (HD available from that page). This was a pre-rendered sequence but for an energy drink company Hodgin and a programmer collaborator created this amazing visualisation engine that runs real time. Do view that last link, it'll blow you away!

Ant and Dec have the largest foreheads

2008-09-30T12:48:00.002+01:00

2008-09-26T16:20:00.003+01:00

This one minute film is almost a time-lapse, lets call it a time-lurch. The Bench in question is in a small park that my flat looks out on.

I filmed the bench on a Saturday at midday for about four hours. It's a fun snapshot of some of the personalities who stopped by in the park.

I like the larger man in the blue shirt who can't quite find a comfy spot and seems to get pestered repeatedly by insects.

The music is a traditional fiddle tune Sally Ann, as played by Dirk Powell.

Video fans may note this stream is hosted by blip.tv a small New York start-up offering a service specialising in episodic video hosting. The layout and organisation of the site will mostly suit podcasts and serials, which may deter the more casual publisher that would currently use youtube.

I acidentally found some photos of their office from 2007 showing the scale of the operation.

Their site is simple and uncluttered, and has optional opt-in advertising revenue. Most importantly - you can upload, and download a variety of different file formats. That means I can offer you a link to my original hi res file and additionally any other ipod / iphone / alternative device versions that I see fit.

DOWNLOAD (640x360: The Bench [Format: h264 mov - Size: 89 MB - Running Time: 1 min.]

Blip are also hosting Michael Moore's new feature length documentary, Slacker Uprising which is being released online instead of in theaters. The movie, which debuts Tuesday, is also going to be available for download on iTunes and on Amazon.

Ubisoft "Armored Core For Answer" trailer

2008-09-22T07:38:00.004+01:00

An amazing CG trailer for this Ubisoft Xbox 360/PS3 game Armored Core for Answer. Very cinematic. Do get the HD version and watch, link below.

Shame about the VO

"Thanks for joining our side. You're our last hope"

"You hired me for a job, I won't let you down"
DOWNLOAD (1280x720): Armored Core For Answer Trailer in HD. [Format: MPEG-4 - Size: 75 MB - Running Time: 3 min.]
WATCH (LO RES): Armored Core: for Answer in finestra. [Format: Flash Video]

Merchandising madness: The Buffy Ouija Board?

2008-09-18T10:12:00.002+01:00

Love the * disclaimer at the bottom.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer "Conversations with Dead People" Board

What is more conducive to speaking to the spirits than a game board based on the world of Buffy the Vampire Slayer? In the tradition of the Sunnydale Hellmouth, through which countless entities gained entry, let voices from the other side move the planchette along the board, choosing letters and numbers to answer your queries. Follow in the footsteps of Willow and hone your witchy skills, learning to communicate with the beyond!*

*Game board for entertainment purposes only.

New house, Duke of York membership and a bluegrass festival

2008-09-12T14:05:00.008+01:00

I have just moved house, to a lovely flat with a sea view and a splendid new flatmate Juan. He runs an excellent small start up, Fatdrop which provides lovely web software to record labels small and large, so they can release, and track the success of, promos via the web.

I not only inherited the room in this flat from a friend, but was gifted with his Duke of York Picturehouse membership. Since then I have seen the excellent Hellboy 2. Luke Goss is (again) a convincing, pale, whispering bad guy with shaolin moves. (an aside, look at the horror of Luke Goss post-Bros' bad, bad long hair here and here!) Also saw dark, Icelandic thriller Jar City, a good if depressing drama about a genetic database unraveling family secrets from the past.

At home, I've enjoyed Heartworn Highways a 1981 documentary about the "Outlaw" country music scene in it's fledgling years. The documentary is unusual as it's mostly a relatively un-edited sequence of scenes with different artists talking and then performing in informal environments. A very intimate snapshot of a time and place. It includes priceless footage of a young Steve Earl (see the previous blog post for video of Steve Earl) and also Townes Van Zandt. More in detail at Puremusic.com.

Away from home I enjoyed Didmarton Bluegrass festival in Gloucestershire, picking up new music such as the Growling Old Men, The Slowdown Boys, Gypsy Fire and Monroe's Revenge.

Reading Fairyland by Paul McAuley a near-future sci-fi novel about cloning, GM/Nanotech (lite). Although it had a promising all-action start, it became confused and muddy after the first part of the three act novel.

I bought this one as it's in a series of Modern Classics by Gollancz Future Classics series which had included the unmissable Hyperion by Dan Simmons and Revelation Space by Alastair Reynolds.

They also have awesome covers without a teardrop space ship in sight!

"Using high tech printing processing including glow-in-the-dark, reflective and 'furry' textures, these are truly out of this world covers."

Fairyland was too sprawling and ill paced to be what I'd call a Future Classic. For the dedicated only.

Finally, here is Mr Van Zandt from Heartworn Highways performing the first song he wrote "Waitin' Around To Die".