Fast lane/slow lane
So this week, I finally got a cable modem, and for the first time in my life I have a high-speed web connection at home. It's nice. If you are trudging along at 56k, I say, "Call Earthlink! It's cheaper than you think!" Hehe, that was an unintentional rhyme. Maybe I should go into advertising.
Also this week, I got this little cell phone/ laptop connection gadget thingy, so now I can even get online when I'm someplace with no electricity and no internet connection. But don't get jealous! It runs like a 14.4. modem. (56k sounds pretty damn speedy now, huh?) I suppose if I'm lost in the wilderness and I really need to check my work email, it could be good to have around, but I won't be using it on a regular basis.
For love of Google
I liked the title of this NY Times article, Is Google God? I wouldn't say Google answers my prayers, but I turn to it for help several times a day. It's always there for me whenever I have a question, and it usually offers an unbiased, fact-based answer. That's more than I can say for organized religion.
Robot art
I've been painting lots of robots. I think it's because they're unemotional and bring me some sort of stability in an otherwise insane world. The other day I unintentionally painted one that looked like a futuristic cave painting. I kind of liked it, so I was thinking maybe I should do a whole series of robots inspired by cave art. I did a search on Google to see if anyone else was doing this kind of thing (I have a Google addiction; see above). I found a few cool things. First of all, the cave paintings at Lascaux in France were apparently discovered by a dog named Robot in 1940. I think that's a sign that I should move forward with my robot cave painting idea. I also found this site, which doesn't have any robots (or dogs), but is useful if you want to get a bit lost in a dark Flash environment.
Sunday, June 29, 2003
Thursday, June 19, 2003
When good 3D goes bad...
Earlier today I went to see Ghosts of the Abyss, James Cameron's 3D Imax documentary about the Titanic. It was only about an hour long and I stupidly went into it expecting about an hour of cool 3D shots of the sunken ship. But way too much of the movie was just the crew sitting around on the boat, or shots of Bill Paxton offering insightful comments like, "It's so creepy," as he peered out the porthole at something amazing. I wanted to shout "Turn the camera around!! Show us what he's looking at!!" There were a few good 3D sections, but most of the underwater photography was done with these tiny submersibles that weren't even equipped with 3D cameras. I guess it might be worth seeing if you're obsessed with the Titanic, but as a 3D movie it felt like a rip-off. I'm glad it was only an hour long.
Earlier today I went to see Ghosts of the Abyss, James Cameron's 3D Imax documentary about the Titanic. It was only about an hour long and I stupidly went into it expecting about an hour of cool 3D shots of the sunken ship. But way too much of the movie was just the crew sitting around on the boat, or shots of Bill Paxton offering insightful comments like, "It's so creepy," as he peered out the porthole at something amazing. I wanted to shout "Turn the camera around!! Show us what he's looking at!!" There were a few good 3D sections, but most of the underwater photography was done with these tiny submersibles that weren't even equipped with 3D cameras. I guess it might be worth seeing if you're obsessed with the Titanic, but as a 3D movie it felt like a rip-off. I'm glad it was only an hour long.
Wednesday, June 18, 2003
Why I need a digital camera
If I had one, I could have taken a picture of the giant vending machine I used yesterday in DC. I stepped out of a cab in my sister's neighborhood, and there it was in front of me, this big, square, employee-less store from the future. Normal vending machines don't thrill me like this, because I can live without soda and junk food. But the giant, super-miracle vending machine carries stuff like milk and eggs and Tropicana Pure Premium orange juice with no pulp, my favorite beverage in the world. I got to buy a half-gallon of O.J. from a freaking vending machine and it was cheaper than it is at my stores in Brooklyn. Oh, and when I walked around this miracle machine I discovered that the other side is an automated DVD rental store. I searched around online a bit and couldn't find any pictures, but here's a CNN transcript that mentions it, just so you know I wasn't dreaming...
A favor
Does anybody want to send me to space?
If I had one, I could have taken a picture of the giant vending machine I used yesterday in DC. I stepped out of a cab in my sister's neighborhood, and there it was in front of me, this big, square, employee-less store from the future. Normal vending machines don't thrill me like this, because I can live without soda and junk food. But the giant, super-miracle vending machine carries stuff like milk and eggs and Tropicana Pure Premium orange juice with no pulp, my favorite beverage in the world. I got to buy a half-gallon of O.J. from a freaking vending machine and it was cheaper than it is at my stores in Brooklyn. Oh, and when I walked around this miracle machine I discovered that the other side is an automated DVD rental store. I searched around online a bit and couldn't find any pictures, but here's a CNN transcript that mentions it, just so you know I wasn't dreaming...
A favor
Does anybody want to send me to space?
Saturday, June 14, 2003
Unbrand America
Adbusters has a new campaign. I agree with what they are saying (and I like the NY Times ad), but I think I might have liked the concept even more if they had narrowed the focus. It's both anti-consumerism and anti-Bush, and while I realize it's easy to tie those things together, I think the campaign might have been stronger if they just chose one.
The anti-consumerism side makes me think of William Gibson's book Pattern Recognition. I can't remember if I've written about it here before, but it has some great stuff about being sensitive to logos. I paid full price for the hardcover at Barnes and Noble (something I don't usually do) and I thought it was worth every penny. Plus, it has a pretty cover and looks nice on my shelf...
Adbusters has a new campaign. I agree with what they are saying (and I like the NY Times ad), but I think I might have liked the concept even more if they had narrowed the focus. It's both anti-consumerism and anti-Bush, and while I realize it's easy to tie those things together, I think the campaign might have been stronger if they just chose one.
The anti-consumerism side makes me think of William Gibson's book Pattern Recognition. I can't remember if I've written about it here before, but it has some great stuff about being sensitive to logos. I paid full price for the hardcover at Barnes and Noble (something I don't usually do) and I thought it was worth every penny. Plus, it has a pretty cover and looks nice on my shelf...
Friday, June 13, 2003
Astrobots
Why are you reading my site when you could be here reading a weblog by two Lego people about their trip to Mars? My favorite quote: "I'm in space. Yaaaaaaaay!"
Why are you reading my site when you could be here reading a weblog by two Lego people about their trip to Mars? My favorite quote: "I'm in space. Yaaaaaaaay!"
Tuesday, June 10, 2003
No comment
Should I be disgruntled because my comments are gone? The way this site is set up, my comments are hosted in a different place than the rest of the blog, and sometimes they don't load. Maybe if we all clap really loud they'll come back to life.
I wanted to do an update, but the only on-topic thing I read today was this PCWorld article about a futuristic hotel room. I don't really like hotels, so I wasn't that interested, but right now I wouldn't mind sitting in a Jacuzzi watching tv.
Since I don't have a Jacuzzi and there's nothing good on tv, I am reading a new book: The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein. I saw something somewhere that referred to it as one of the best sci-fi novels of all time. I wonder if I'll agree.
Should I be disgruntled because my comments are gone? The way this site is set up, my comments are hosted in a different place than the rest of the blog, and sometimes they don't load. Maybe if we all clap really loud they'll come back to life.
I wanted to do an update, but the only on-topic thing I read today was this PCWorld article about a futuristic hotel room. I don't really like hotels, so I wasn't that interested, but right now I wouldn't mind sitting in a Jacuzzi watching tv.
Since I don't have a Jacuzzi and there's nothing good on tv, I am reading a new book: The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein. I saw something somewhere that referred to it as one of the best sci-fi novels of all time. I wonder if I'll agree.
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