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March 21, 2007
Viral Video
There's been a lot of discussion online (and in polls) about a "mash-up" of the Apple 1984 ad with a pro-Obama anti-Hillary message. The video is very well done, and people are trying to figure out who made it.
I first wish to emphasize that I am COMPLETELY netural for this stuff. I haven't made up my mind about anything, and even if I had - I won't be sharing that here. I'm not going to write about politics itself - but rather the process. It's kind of like a baseball journal that ignores the score and instead focuses on the pitch fingering.
Some people think this came out of the Obama camp, others think it came from Rove & Company. I don't believe it's either. One of the great things about technology is it opens up tools that used to only be available to Professionals to skilled amateurs.
Flat out, with a week or two I could've made that video. Not that I did, mind you, but it's not THAT hard. Let's look at a few things.
1. I am going to assume that the video was created on a Mac due to the source material of a Mac ad - meaning he/she was probably using "Final Cut Pro". The software, while geared for professionals (such as my brother-in-law), it is available for $1299 right now at the Apple Store. This is not cost prohibitive for the skilled hobbyist.
2. Adobe After Effects, which may be an even easier way to create the graphic effect, is available for $999 from Adobe. Once again, priced within range of the hobbyist.
3. If anyone doesn't believe there are amateurs with the skills or dedication to purchase software on this level, I will direct you to any Star Wars fan film or the recent Battlestar Galactica viewer created vids.
4. Any campaign that released a video without the FEC disclaimers and whatnot would be in for one HELL of a fine. And an avalanche of bad press. No campaign is going to risk that.
Just a few thoughts.
Posted by MikeSager at 3:38 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 8, 2007
UPDATED: I Knew It Was Coming...
...I read the spoilers. But. Damn. BSG - just when it seemed like you started to get slow. Wow. Just wow.
Update for the benefit of dense or surly former finance directors and people who don't watch television:
BSG = Battlestar Galactica.
Frakkin' toasters.
Posted by MikeSager at 9:33 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
March 7, 2007
New Music!!!
Alright, there've been quite a few albums that have caught my attention recently. And it seems to have been a while since I've written one of these, so I think it's about time for our conversation about albums commence.
First Up:
Ken Andrews - Secret of the Lost Satellite
I have never heard a record connected to Ken Andrews I didn't like. Except maybe the second BRMC record - never really got into that one. Anyways, here Ken teams up with Jordan from Blinker the Star and writes what is essentially the second Year of the Rabbit record. It has a bit more of the influence of On in here, but it's still more YOTR. This record and the Autolux record paint a pretty clear picture of the competing influences in Failure, and why it worked so well. Greg's artsy-ness combined with Ken's pop sensibilities created one of the greatest bands of the last 20 years. It's a shame they probably won't get back together, but I digress - this is a conversation about Ken's new album.
Standouts: Up and Down, Secret Things, China Dream
Arrah and the Ferns - Evan is a Vegan
A good friend of mine made me an ultra-awesome mix CD for my birthday, and two bands especially stood out. Arrah and the Ferns continue my tradition of liking indie bands with female singers. There's just something about this format that I really like.
Standouts: Skylark, Science Books
Menomena - Friend and Foe
That same mix CD introduced to Menomena, and inspired a debate whether or not the pronunciation of their name is like the Muppets song (and my ringtone). They've got this hard to describe style that evokes different groups at different times, though I keep coming back to the group Morphine. But then they'll turn around and remind me of The Shins, or Autolux, or even The Mars Volta. I just have no idea how to describe these guys other than to say they're awesome.
Standouts: Wet and Rustling, My My
Other albums I've been listening to recently: The Shins - Wincing the Night Away
Other albums I need to purchase and will shortly: The Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
Other albums I've recently rediscovered that are very old: Sneaker Pimps - Becoming X
Posted by MikeSager at 11:00 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
March 5, 2007
Vista Impressions
There's a lot of static electricity in my apartment. Like a LOT especially when I'm wearing my slippers. Electricity likes to find the shortest path to the ground. One of those paths, apparently, is via my computer keyboard.
Whoops.
All of a sudden, one day my computer refused to hibernate or standby reliably. My best guess at the time was that it was software related, but there was some fresh funkiness going on in general. You can see that a couple posts back. And I had a license of Vista I could use, for free. Vista Business. So I figured - what the hell, I'd install Vista on my laptop.
After some extensive backups to external harddrives and DVDs I formatted and reinstalled, wiping out my XP install and my Ubuntu install (which I never used). The Vista installation process was fairly smooth, though I must confess that this wasn't the first time I've installed Vista on a machine (Once at my last job I played with the Beta, and one of my coworkers at my current gig got a new machine on which I loaded Vista).
Technically my machine is barely spec for Aero - I have a 1.5 gig of RAM, but only 64 Meg of Video RAM. The perils of a year old laptop. But I guess the 3d accelerator that's part of my ATI video card is picking up a lot of slack - Aero actually runs VERY well on this machine. At least until the machine gets bogged down.
The improvements overall are worthwhile in many regards. This isn't yet a run out and buy it kind of OS, but it will be soon enough. The stability is there. Business (and I assume Ultimate) has a lot of the security features available out of the box that are only available in a server/domain environment. This is a welcome change. One of the really cool features is the way it handles laptops - it can identify what kind of network it's on and adjust security protocols accordingly. The burning functions are good - you can finally burn a DVD directly from the Windows interface. The Start Menu is much better arranged, and while the Cancel/Allow function is easily parodied, it does work.
The drawbacks I've encountered thus far: compatibility, and certain programs running slower on Vista than on XP. Many many programs that worked perfectly on XP - Zone Alarm, Symantec Antivirus Corporate - don't work at all on Vista. And iTunes has some serious issues in the way the program draws the interface (maybe THAT's why it was sucking so much memory...) The new Windows Firewall, while improved, is cumbersome and frankly sucks. But since I can't yet get ZoneAlarm, I'm waiting. Civ 4 and Dark Avatar both run on the system, but as you get further into the game the slower it gets.
So here's where I'm at. If you're buying a new machine for home use - why not? If you're an IT purchaser - hold out if you can, but it's not too difficult to get things working. Just make sure your Symantec license is at least 10.2 and you have a network firewall solution that doesn't require internal software firewalls. If you're upgrading - wait. There will be plenty of reasons to go up to Vista soon enough, and I do like the OS. But there is yet to be a compelling reason until the performance and compatibility issues are resolved.
Posted by MikeSager at 10:00 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 2, 2007
Grand Duchy of Fenwick
The Swiss invaded Liechtenstein!!!! Isn't that how World War I started? Who won?
Posted by MikeSager at 11:01 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Friday Dog Blogging
So his name is Julius. It was a tough decision, but it just kinda felt right.
He still hasn't quite figured out that the purpose of the morning walk is to hold him over for the day, not to chase cars and other dogs. But he'll learn. In the mean time, he's spending the day in the bathroom (with his toys, blanket, bed, food, etc.) because yesterday he left me a present in the bedroom. The joys of Dog-rearing.
Posted by MikeSager at 10:11 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack