I found a new Webcomic
Thursday, August 31, 2006 »
It's called xkcd.
Here are some to get you started:
Irony
M.C. Hammer Slide
Katamari
Hitler
Zeppelin
Here's my favorite:
And this is just in a league of its own:
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Websites as graphs
Sunday, August 27, 2006 »
I just came across this Websites as graphs applet, which is pretty cool. You just feed it a URL and it generates a branching diagram based on the HTML code on that single page. At first I just liked the way the diagrams sort of erupt out of a single point, but it's actually sort of interesting to look these abstract representations and try to guess at what each cluster could be. (I wonder if all Eric Meyer sees when he's browsing the Web is these charts, like in The Matrix.)
There's also a whole collection of these graphs on flickr, and I even went ahead and uploaded my own chart1, annotated with what each cluster represents from the actual page. (You'll probably only appreciate that last part if you're either a) a crazy Web-head, or b) the Webmaster of metaly.org.)
Finally, I'm sure everyone in the CSS camp appreciates that table tags show up in red.
1 My first flickr photo! I'm really not getting a lot of use out of my account.
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NOW! Conan VS Bear gallery
Sunday, August 27, 2006 »
I just put a bunch of my old Conan O'Brien vs. Bear sketches into the gallery. These are some of my favorites of the commissions I was doing for the site around this time last year. There's even one ("astronaut") that was never used on the site.
Was there ever like some rare, limited edition of something referred to as the "astronaut" version? For some reason it has that ring to it.
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B-b-u-u-y-y t-t-h-h-i-i-s-s c-c-a-a-r-r
Saturday, August 26, 2006 »
The news is a few months old, but while browsing around yesterday I learned about this cool ad campaign consisting of images on the inside of subway tunnels, like a zoetrope:
About 9:15 a.m., Metro officials flipped the switch to turn on the advertising displays, which can be seen in the tunnels between the Metro Center and Gallery Place-Chinatown stations, and between Gallery Place and Judiciary Square on the Red Line traveling toward Glenmont. The advertising displays are a series of lighted, static images that appear to move, like so many flip cards, as the train rolls by.
Several other articles about similar campaigns in other subway systems quoted riders who were upset that advertisers were using the tunnels in that way, but something like that doesn't bother me at all. Sure, I dislike intrusive ads and product placement, but I usually forgive advertisers who can come up with creative, unusual campaigns.
These pardonable campaigns do not include the humongous bomber that occasionally flies over my Gamespot account, however.
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Whoa dude!
Wednesday, August 23, 2006 »
Via ThinkSecret: Mac OS X 10.5 has ADJUSTABLE GRID SPACING!! I couldn't believe this wasn't an option when I made the jump from OS 9.whatever to 10.1. I am sold immediately!
Also, the return of those spring-loaded tab folders sort of! I wonder what percentage is of missing OS 9 features that have slowly migrated back to OS X.
This post is dedicated to Mr. Ken Jung ♥
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WWDC '06
Wednesday, August 9, 2006 »
So Steve Jobs gave his WWDC '06 keynote on Monday, the servers (or my connection) calmed down enough for me to watch it yesterday, and now I'm finally getting around to posting a few thoughts/reactions to it today.
Mac Pro - Hooh. I told myself I'd hold off on buying a new Mac tower until the Intel models arrived, and here they are it is. As usual, really expensive, but that quad 2.66GHz isn't looking too bad, especially considering I'm typing this on my dual 450MHz G4 I got in 2001. Plus, with all the buzz about Cider and now Parallels Desktop with 3D acceleration, I wonder if buying a loaded Mac Pro could save me the headache (both financial and physical) of upgrading my PC.
Leopard stuff:
Time Machine - HAHAHA LOOK AT THAT INTERFACE
Spaces looks really slick and is probably the new feature I've been most excited about since Jaguar's new glass interface widgets (and that was a stupid thing to be excited about).
iChat - HAHAHA MORE GOOFINESS AND I DON'T OWN AN ISIGHT
Dashboard - The new Website widgets are pretty unexpected and cool. Looking forward to experimenting around with them.
Mail - Stationery looks like something I'll never use, but it would be great to have notes and to-do items1 integrated with my mail client. No really, it would.
Lastly, the new black chrome logo is super hot. SUPER HOT!!!!
Addendum: I was just browsing through Apple's Leopard sneak peak area again and JUST LOOK AT THIS COLOSSAL TRANSPARENT PNG I AM HOTLINKING. Once IE7 Final is released and PNG becomes widespread the Web is going to become a crazy, crazy place.
1 One of the to-do items in the demo is "check out the latest Tom Petty single." Anyone who takes the time to type stuff like that into their to-do list program probably requires more of an industrial-grade productivity manager.
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Jinx
Sunday, August 6, 2006 »
I think this is a lot better without the context:
KiyreEatsTrees: you never know when you might want to break up with someone and not have to wait 7-10 business days
AmericanQuixote: FUCK YOU.
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2D Forever
Sunday, August 6, 2006 »
Last night as I was trying to turn off the computer to go to sleep (that's when it always happens), I stumbled across 2D Forever, an art site by Tom Waterhouse. He's got a lot of great stuff in all manner of styles, and it's even better if you're a fan of old, 2D (for the most part) videogames. I probably looked through two-thirds of the gallery before I was able to tear myself away. (Literally!!!!!) Another nice thing is that he offers prints of everything on the site. I think I might have to order a few once my next paycheck comes in.
I recommend you just browse through the entire site, but here are a few highlights:
Thirteen
Bombermen
Rather Rosé
Power Whore
More 70's Funk
Keeping Up Appearances
Japanese Prints
And of course... "Where Is Ryu?"
Where is Ryu as his admirers chant his name? Already seeking the next challenge, ceremony means nothing to him. THE FIGHT IS ALL.
Got a little carried away there.
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YES NO YYYYYEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSS
Saturday, August 5, 2006 »
I came across this torrent of Even Stephven clips from the Daily Show. Even Stephven was probably my favorite Daily Show segment, just narrowly edging out Slimming Down with Steve. This torrent has seven clips, including one where Ed Helms filled in for Steve Carell after he left the show. (That almost fooled me since Ed Helms is half Steve Carell anyway.) They files are of varying quality, but they're a great look back at some classic Steve Carell moments. And yes, the Patients' Bill of Rights and the infamous hua-hua guy are both in there.
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lol xbox big
Friday, August 4, 2006 »
I have to apologize because this is so geeky and more suitable for tossing into my temp directory, but I am so proud of my Xbox Astaroth and his 360-styled adversary that I just had to show them off here.
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My one PlayStation 3 question
Thursday, August 3, 2006 »
Yeah yeah everyone hates Sony and Ken Kutaragi forever for going completely nuts with the PS3. $600 is way too much for what they're putting out at launch. BUT, I've had this one question in my head since E3 and I haven't been able to find any answer to it. I'd really like to know because it could potentially get me really excited about the PS3.
Here are the facts:
1. PlayStation 3 will be backwards compatible with both PS1 and PS2 games.1
2. PlayStation 3 games will not be region-locked.2
So, my question: Does that carry over to PS1 and PS2 games as well? For $600, do you get a PS3, plus an all-region PS1/PS2 as well? Will people be able to go import-crazy with their PS3 right out of the box?
I'd really like to know.
1 From what I understand, the PS3 will actually include the PS2 chipset initially, until Sony can perfect their software emulator. That suggests almost total compatibility with older games (or at least all PS2 games and all PS1 games that worked on the PS2).
2 The exact details about this are still sort of hazy. Will PS3s really play games from any region, with no exceptions? Will developers or publishers be able to lock their own titles for a specific region? I'm disappointed there hasn't been more discussion or information clarifying this.