Dark Knight Coverage

Even if you haven't yet had the chance to see The Dark Knight in theaters, you can check out the coverage of it on PCitylive.com. I haven't seen it yet myself, but I have read the novel, my review can be found here. And here is a direct link to the film review.

If you have seen it or read it, where's your review?

Oh, and did you hear about Christian Bale being arrested for assault?

More Free Sounds From Nine Inch Nails

NIN has done it again, the new release "The Slip" is available for free download here.
They say,

as a thank you to our fans for your continued support, we are giving away the new nine inch nails album one hundred percent free, exclusively via nin.com.

Awesome, and there are file format choices! Like M4a! w00t

Video on Flickr? Do you care?

Yes, it's true, the rumors many have attempted to squash have turned out to be fact. But do we care? The masses already use YouTube, but I guess that's a different group the the majority of flickr users. YouTubers probably still use photobucket or something. I'm sure many flickr users will put it to good use, I just won't be one of them.

I don't record many videos anyway, but occasionally I record one via my point and shoot and upload it on Vimeo, which was created for just that. I like vimeo, I like that it's not what everyone is using, that's it's not overridden with commercials and movie clips. I like that it still feels homegrown in many ways that the people that created it really care about it and use it (not to say that those behind flickr don't). Oh and I love that it's not owned by yahoo.

How about you? Do you make videos and put them online?

For more info on Flickr video see their faq.

Serious Competition for Picnik?

The buzz on the web today is all about Photoshop Express, Adobe's new and completely free online version of Photoshop. Don't get too excited, it's far from the real deal, but it does let you crop, sharpen, remove red-eye, and add basic effects to your photos, things the average, everyday digicam user wants yet can't justify paying for Photoshop to have.

I've actually been using the site Picnik, for simple editing and touch-ups like this for some time. I do have Photoshop on my desktop computer, but Picnik is great for simple, quick editing when I don't want to wait for Photoshop to load, and it can be used on any computer with the internet. While there are other sites out there as well, I don't think any has been on the same level as Picnik as of yet. Photoshop Express might be able to beat it, but not as it is now.

Right now, Photoshop Express lacks several things that Picnik has, like the ability to add text or shapes to photos for example, and I'm very surprised that I'm not finding a "resize" function anywhere, that's one of the main things that I use Picnik for. Photoshop Express also lacks Flickr integration, it has Picasa, Facebook, and Photobucket, but no Flickr, supposedly it's coming. Picnik has those plus Flickr, Myspace, and Webshots, it also allows you to get a photo from your webcam directly or from a website. Photoshop Express does however, have some things Picnik does not, like photo storage and galleries. That may make the difference for some users, but not for me, that's what I use Flickr for. Oh and Picnik not only has Flickr integrated, but is integrated into Flickr itself, check out those buttons above your photos.

I'll still check it out, and will continue to do so, as I know it will change a lot from it's current "beta," but Photoshop Express is going to have to kick it up a notch before they can steal me away from Picnik.

Oh and if I see one more post about Muxtape, I'm going to scream! That's right, no link, I will not succumb to it's plea for the attention of the masses, you (and you, and you, and you, and you) have already done that enough for all of us. And it doesn't even work in my browser, just so you know.

Grammar and Music

Would you believe that yesterday was National Grammar Day and I'm just now finding out about it. What luck.

I am in need of some new instrumental type music to listen to, any recommendations would be great. I prefer instrumental (or just very little singing) music on the rock/experimental side or what I think is called downtempo, a few examples of what I already listen to: Unwed Sailor, Sigur Rós, Foxhole, Questions in Dialect, Jack or Jive, Dntel, Air, Bell Orchestre, Prhizzm, Caribou, Boards of Canada, Explosions in the Sky. You get the picture. If you have any recommendations please comment. If you want to recommend something completely different that's good too, I'll try anything once.

Edit to add something I just found through Google News, Patrick Swayze was diagnosed with cancer and told he has only a few weeks to live.

Ah the Irony

At 2:06 a.m. Friday the Emergency Operations Center closed due to severe flooding.

Linkage

In lieu of a regular post, seeing as my life is quite hectic right now, I thought I would post a few links to things I have been meaning to post about, some old, some newish.

Caring for Your Introvert: Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I am for the most part what one would call introverted. This is a good piece to read if you know any introverts and still an interesting read if you are one yourself. I don't like the title of it though, I don't think we need to be "cared for;" it would be better titled "Understanding Your Introvert," or "How to Act (and Not to Act) Around Introverts."

What Would Jesus Buy?: Trailer for a Morgan Spurlock (of "Supersize Me") film on consumerism. I have not yet seen it, but looks very um...interesting. Check it out.

Super Mario Galaxy in Amsterdam: This site is not in English, but it's the pictures that are great. It's the celebration of the release of Super Mario Galaxy in Amsterdam. The first pic is awesome.

Bake a Book: Gizmodo post about book technology (yes BOOK technology) with thermo-reactive ink. Basically, the pages are blank until you bake the book in the oven, then words show up.

50 Years of Lego: So I missed posting about the birthday of the Lego brick, but here's the timeline (also Gizmodo).

Polaroid to Nix Polaroids. What?: Yep, no more instant photos (aka Polaroids!) from Polaroid. Next thing we know Aunt Jemima will quit making syrup, rain will stop being wet, and we'll here that the John Montagu (look him up if you must) never ate sandwiches.

Defend Your Coffee Habbit: I must have at least 2 cups of coffee every afternoon, if I do not you do not want to be around me. I've used each of these defenses at least once.

Bradley Hathaway Interview: A wonderful interview with Bradley Hathaway from HM Magazine. The best parts are what he says about love, both God's love and romantic love. If you don't know who Bradley Hathaway is, educate yourself, you won't be disappointed.

And I'll end with a quote:

“American movies have been using satire for years to take the edge off sex and violence. Occasionally, perhaps sex and violence should be treated with the seriousness they deserve.” - Roger Ebert

What's Wrong?

Well, I haven't been feeling well. It's hard to explain but my legs hurt all the time and I have what the doctor called "tremors" in my arm. I went straight to the doctor after school Wednesday, my doctor sent me to a neurologist, the neurologist talked to my doctor and they wanted to admit me to the hospital for testing, but I said I didn't want that. The compromise is outpatient tests, so I've had a lot of blood drawn, yesterday I had an EEG, and today I'm having an MRI, but I won't know anything from them until Monday.
I don't want to miss too much school, I'm hoping to be able to go back Monday for one class but Tuesday I have 4 classes and it's just really hard to sit still for very long (not that standing or moving is much better).

In other news, I wasn't expecting Romney to drop out and I'm surprised (maybe even glad) at how well Huckabee is doing now. Should I speculate on who should team up together? McCain and Romney? No, they are at each other's throats and aside from that I still don't think they would make a good combination. Huckabee and Romney? I could live with that; it could work. McCain and Huckabee? This is my favorite combination, I would love to see them run together. What about Giuliani? I would only be in favor of Giuliani as VP if it was with someone very conservative, like Huckabee, McCain and Giuliani would be too left of right for me.

To Boost the Economy

If/Whenever we really get that $800 $600 President Bush is handing out, what will mine go toward?

A Failure to Communicate

I posted this as a comment, but I felt the need to make it a post of its own as well.

Wow, all of a sudden 4 new comments on a post that’s 3 weeks old, and all from Ron Paul supporters. (I only approved 2 as the other 2 were just links telling me to “look at this,” if you aren’t a bait and switch don’t dress up like one).

First, don’t assume I’m not educating myself (reference: “No one can understand how his plan works by listening to a small sound bite.” What are you talking about?). Just because I’m leaning a different way than you doesn’t necessarily mean that I haven't done the research or that I’m leaning the wrong way and I’m not going to tell you that you are either. From these last two posts I gather that both of you are making your decision based on your personal ideals which may be very different from mine.

Please, if you want to share your opinion on why you’re voting for a certain candidate, do so. Tell me why, tell me what your requirements are and how you believe he will fulfill them. Don’t tell me to research it, I already am.

Honestly, I have 2 days until I vote in the primary and I’m still uncertain who I’m going to vote for. FairTax is the main fault I find with Huckabee, because I don’t think it’s fair in the least. Doesn’t Paul support it as well?

To give a little more insight into how I choose who to vote for, I’ll say this: I don’t. I don’t choose who to vote for so much as I choose who not to vote for; I pick the lesser of the evils. Romney still has a chance to get my vote, if it weren’t for his stance on abortion ("against abortion except"), he would have it.

I welcome all opinions on this post, but please give specific support that is to the point.

Ah, I see now. I've been linked to by a Ron Paul advocate blog.

Giuliani, Live

Candidate for the Republican Presidential nomination, Rudy Giuliani spoke on my college's campus today. Notice how I had to preface that with "Candidate for the Republican Presidential nomination," that's because I talked to someone today who didn't know who he was; of all the Republican candidates Giuliani is probably the most widely recognized name, yet people still don't know who he is. Pay attention!



I took advantage of my college newspaper ("Gull's Cry") press pass and skipped the very long line waiting to get in the conference room.

I actually recorded (video) the first 8 minutes of his speech (I need a higher capacity memory card) and I'm waiting for it to upload right now. Uploading to vimeo takes way too long, they need to work on that. Okay the video will be here later, so keep an eye on this post if you're interested.



More pictures on my Flickr page.


I wore my Huckabee sticker, but no one aside from those I was with saw it because I kept my jacket on. Disappointing I know.

McCoffee

You may have already heard about McDonald's move to be Starbucks prime competition, but I'm going to talk about it anyway. McDonald's plans to open coffee bars, "McCafe"s in their US restaurants this year, but will it be successful?

As one commenter on Serious Eats mentions, they've had McCafes in Australia for a number of years. When I was in Australia in 2006 I happened to visit a McDonald's that had one. While it seemed strange to start with, I can definitely see how this could work, in Australia that is.

There, unlike in the US, they have a high concern as to what you put into your body. For example, all of those trans fat laws coming into effect in the states have been in place for years in Australia, their Big Macs are made with meat! Real meat! At first I didn't like the fries there at all because they we not greasy—soggy, greasy fries being something I was accustomed to at home. But after eating fast food in Australia (and New Zealand) I didn't feel gross or guilty for putting something ("something" because we don't know what it is most of the time) unhealthy into my body, because I hadn't.

Personally, I would consider fast food in Australia real food and nothing like the "mystery meat" we have here and that's why I think McCafes can work there. Not to say that they won't work here, I'm not going to make that prediction just yet, but I for one, will not be trying it. I would have to be pretty desperate to buy a specialty coffee drink from a place already considered hazardous to my health, and of which I question the ethics regularly (on an executive and mere associate level).

As a side-note, I don't care for Starbucks at all, but for other reasons.

What's your opinion on McDonald's having baristas? Do you think it will be a success? Will you try it yourself?

Words Cannot Explain

Photo: VanityFair

I cannot think of a proper adjective for Norman Mailer. He was one of my favorite authors and journalists; no one else comes close to his style of writing or living. He died Saturday of renal failure, he was 84.

Only $0.00!

I saw a commercial for The New York Times "Weekender" (Friday through Sunday) subscription and was interested. I checked the website, NYTimes.com/weekender, only to find that it's not available in my area. However, it let me check other offers that are available in my area and, wow, what a deal!



That's right, I can get Saturday and Sunday for only $0.00! That's cheaper than getting Sunday alone. If I click the "details" link, it tells me that it will be $0.00 per week for the first 12 weeks and afterward return to the regular price of, you guessed it, $0.00 per week!

I'm tempted to actually sign up for it and choose to pay by mail instead of credit card and see what happens, but I don't want to go through the trouble of being harassed by the bills I'm sure they'll send anyway. Unless, of course, they sent me a bill for $0.00.

"What Are You In For?" "Oh, You Know, Being A Dancing Zombie" "Me Too!"

Ever wonder what jail is like in the Philippines?

Over 1,500 inmates at the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center in Cebu, Philippines spend their time practicing a performance of Michael Jackson's "Thriller". Awesome.

In the News

I'm sure most people have heard about Michael Glatze, a gay-rights leader, coming out as straight recently. But maybe you haven't read his story on WorldNetDaily, he talks about working for magazines aimed at young gay Americans, the 16 years of his life he spent as a gay man, and how forming a relationship with God showed him the truth.
On speaking out on the gay-rights movement he says:

If I could take back some of the things I said, I would. Now I know that homosexuality is lust and pornography wrapped into one. I'll never let anybody try to convince me otherwise, no matter how slick their tongues or how sad their story. I have seen it. I know the truth.

Full article here, it's worth the read, really.

In lighter news, a dozen 7-Elevens across the nation have been converted to Kwik-E-Marts to promote The Simpsons Movie. dhepnar has some nice pictures from the one in Canada on Flickr, I especially like the "Thank you for loitering..." sign. A list of the altered stores can be found here. I really want to go to one, but the closest is 6 hours away. They are supposed to have special snack foods and Squishees (which I'm sure is just a regular ol' Slurpee in a different cup, unfortunately) at all 7-Eleven locations though. Actually, I don't even know where the nearest 7-Eleven is, I can't even find one near me on the locator on the site.

Edit: If you go here, this flickr user has collected links to photo sets from all the different Kwik-E-Marts. And there is also a Kwik-E-Mart group on Flickr (though it only has 24 members).

A Pizza And Porn

Today I received a message from a fellow flickr user requesting to use one of my photos (this photo) for an article he wrote for NowPublic.com. The article is about a new pizza place in Winnipeg that serves porn. That's right, pizza and porn. If I read correctly the place is even called Porno Pizza, and has pornographic images under the pizzas. Read it for yourself.

I declined the request, I just don't want my photos associated with something like that.

Blackberry Blackout

In my class this morning, Writing for Mass Communications, we watched several videos about the shooting at Virginia Tech. The first of which was from ABCnews and talked about schoolmates and teacher recognized that he was mentally disturbed. But at the beginning of the video it had the intro for everything in the episode with Charles Gibson commenting about the BlackBerry blackout. I really loved what he said and I can't find the clip online, but he basically said "People may actually have to talk to each other." So true, I was even just talking about emailing people for my story instead of talking to them in person. I don't own a BlackBerry though, and it probably wouldn't be healthy for me to.

Here's the full clip of the ABC news BlackBerry story.

Sidenote: David Muir is quite good-looking.