Halb Mensch. Halb Ding.
The Blood Eagle was reportedly a method of torture and execution that is sometimes mentioned in Norse saga literature. It was performed by cutting the ribs of the victim by the spine, breaking the ribs so they resembled blood-stained wings, and pulling the lungs out. Salt was sprinkled in the wounds. #
Because it’s not enough to break the ribs and pull out the lungs, you need to sprinkle salt into the wound, otherwise you’re just being half-assed about your executions…
Aaaathank you (source).
PS: The tendency is to not capitalize ‘internet’, a small factoid I mention simply because I happen to know it. And because the philosophy of writing, I’ve been told, is: “Write what you know”. And I know that… So…
Metallica has a site on which you can buy copies of their live shows! That is wicked! More bands should do this, so that people can get a small ‘souvenir’ from the shows they went to see. Optimally, the shows should be free for people who have valid tickets.
Also, there’s a whole bunch of shows available for free download.
Well done.
we’re experiencing a few technical difficulties that are going to keep our audio engineer out of the studio this weekend and therefore cause a delay in making more shows available to you.
Losing the PA system 2 songs into the concert… Yeah, I think he’ll be pretty busy :D
I’m on my way out the door, but I need to show you this first. I wish I had some video from where we were standing, so you could see the band just enjoying the 50.000 people singing the guitar solo back to them.
I didn’t figure Black Hawk Down as a particularly influential or important movie when it came out. Competent, dashingly handsome and slightly odd in places; but influential? Yet watching the trailer for Call of Duty 4, which I’m sure will be a genuine hoot to play, I see how wrong I was.
Except… judging from the trailer, they made the classic computer game misstep of underestimating the importance of voice acting. Fair enough, I’ve never been in combat, especially with the US Airborne Cavalry (which I’m guessing is what the trailer is portraying), but I nonetheless call a fumbled ball on that gruff macho ‘Do this! Do that! I-eat-gravel-soup hut hut hut!’ order-barking voice of the squad leader (not to mention the ‘look at us, we can shine a red light in the face of a man sucking on a cigar; isn’t it wuuuunderbarrr?”).
The net effect is turning what could have been reasonable human-facsimile’s into cliché-ridden charicatures (at least judging from the trailer…)
We’ve got our feet planted firmly and decisively in Jutlandish ground (the part of Denmark that is often mistaken for the northern-most German garrison, but which is in fact mostly farmland and incidentally our respective birthplaces), for a week of vacation.
Yesterday’s Metallica concert was wicked! Armed with A-tickets — which basically translated into us being able to choose exactly where we wanted to stand — we were about 50 meters from the stage, just behind a safety barrier (so that even Rikke, who doesn’t quite tower the crowd, could see unimpaired), roughly center stage.
Not bad. In fact, not bad at all. No; it was good.
We’re off to Jutland tomorrow morning, first a short stop in Ã…rhus, to see Metallica play, and then up, up, up and away — to the Northern plains, where we will dwell for most of next week, before returning home for a few days and returning back to work.
And just as a reward for actually reading that little piece of non-information, I give you George Lucas wearing a ‘Han Shot First’ t-shirt.
Alright, so I’m a few days late, but it’s the thought that counts, right?
Well, I wasn’t actually going to say anything on the occasion, but now that I’m standing up, and you’re all looking at me (hi honey), I thought I might as well throw in my two cents on the film that is TRON.
Now, TRON was never the most popular kid on the block. Filled to the brim with snazzy effects, some damn nice Syd Mead’ian visual design and genuine glee. You know, that unique naive kind of glee that only comes in small doses, and only when doing science fiction films in the late 60’s, 70’s and early to mid-80’s. Yeah. That kind.
Anyway, while it certainly doesn’t hold up story-wise (or character-wise for that matter), TRON remains enthralling to me. Maybe because it contains a promise, that just beyond our reach; just behind that fluorescent screen of your CRT monitor, there’s a world unlike any you’ve ever seen. And there, amongst electrons drawing lines of light, on the vast slightly too colorful rolling bit-hills at the foot of the uplink tower; there even a poor mistreated game developer like me Flynn can be a hero.
And that is worth believing in!
Go TRON! Yay!
PS: And the poster is mucho mucho awesome as well, so…
I recently served as a “consultant’s consultant,” advising a world leader in his field on what to do about his website. In particular, this expert asked me whether he should start a weblog. I said no. #
And I say: Yes, by all means, go for it!
I don’t care what field you’re a ‘world leader’ in, I guarantee you, a lot of people out there want to hear your small, hastily written thoughts on whatever topic you might find interesting at any given moment. A hell of a lot more so, than they want to read your deeply serious, hoity toity, graph-ridden ‘article’, which while surely very interesting in its own right, is not where the connection between you and your audience will thrive.
This is because we are humans, and humans, while superficially interested in graphs, long paragraphs and high-concepts, are just hardwired towards seeking human contact. This is why we have idolization and fandom. It’s driven by our basic desire to follow the people we admire.
Translated to my personal sphere of idolization, you could say that while I would surely read a lengthy graph-ridden article by Joss Whedon on Equality now, but conversely, I would just as much like to read a three paragraph quickie on why science fiction movies largely disappoint.
Joss Whedon being a world leader in Whedonesque matters, is thus just as well off with going down either path, if the desired result is ‘attracting customers’.
The problem with Jakob Nielsen — or perhaps rather his audience as it were — is that his articles, top 10’s and ‘usability tests’ are outdated, largely irrelevant and when applicable, made up of nothing but easily thought up logical conclusions aimed at the dull gray ‘we want to be hip with the youngsters, yo’ corporate market, from which he makes his money.
So if you’re hip, down with the beat and ‘happenin’, save yourself the headache, use your brain, not useit.com, and the rest should come easily.
We can measure expertise as some combination of intelligence, education, experience, correct methodology, professionalism (say, avoiding profanities and politics), and willingness to be frank.
I don’t mean to be the ‘look at me, we’re revolutionary’-idiot with the sign around his neck, because, let’s face it, my content isn’t exactly revolutionary as such. But what a piece of elitist ego-stroking generalized no-sharp-edges PR-friendly bullshit.
Jakob Nielsen, there’s a telegraph for you; it reads: “2007 going well stop. Hope you are also well in 1997 stop. Please stop stop.”
More:
Should Bloggers Assume that Their Readers are Dumber than They Are?
Jakob Nielsen Sounds Off About Web 2.0… Again!
Despite the fact that most people will shrug and not really see the significance, I would just like to point out to the powers that be, most notably those of Burlyman Entertainment, that I am still waiting patiently for the previously announced (here) ‘The Art of The Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions’.
The first book is amazing, and I will be left quite sad if the follow-up never sees the light of day.
So to kick off our two week vacation (in which I’m doing nada, but for a single night with Metallica and some days back in Jutland), we went to see Transformers, more than a little worried that it would suck as much as it was hyped.
But you know what? It didn’t! In fact, it was fucking! AWESOME!
Mild spoilers!
Because WordPress chokes on the comments, I’m referring any further comments on my Die Hard 4.0 review to this entry.
You won’t read the following block of text; it is too dense, too long and too serious. Nonetheless, I bring this excerpt from Martin van Creveld’s The Blemish of Conquest, because the entire thing is a great read, and I in particularly thought the the summary worth reprinting.
The third of Dayan’s observations, and the most relevant to a comparison with the current war in Iraq, is that the Americans found themselves in the unfortunate position of beating down the weak. As Dayan wrote, “Any comparison between the two armies was astonishing. On the one hand there was the American army, complete with helicopters, an air force, armor, electronic communications, artillery, and mind-boggling riches; to say nothing of ammunition, fuel, spare parts, and equipment of all kinds. On the other there were the [North Vietnamese troops], who had been walking on foot for four months, carrying some artillery rounds on their backs and using a tin spoon to eat a little ground rice from a tin plate.“Continue reading ‘Martin van Creveld’s The Blemish of Conquest’
So Harry Potter 5 is almost upon us, and not that I have any particular Potter fetish (Rikke does though), but I can’t help but be disappointed by the ever more crappy posters being put out for these movies.
What in the hell is that? It’s a photo collage; that’s what it is. And it sucks!
Now this, on the other hand, is a poster. This poster, from the hands of Mr. Struzan himself, looks the way John Williams’ score sounds, and that is a good thing!
What is going on in the heads of these marketing people? Well I guess maybe they have better data than me, but really? Photo collages? The same thing happened to the new Star Wars trilogy as well as the DVD releases, all of which contain horrible photo collages with lightsaber lense flares and what have you.
All those stunning posters, and they have some hack apply lenseflares in Photoshop.
Man.
PS: Yes, you’re right, I should do a feature on the best posters ever created by mortal hands.
The new UNKLE album, War Stories, is coming, and Burn My Shadow is the track spearheading the album.
But, can anything ever really beat Never, Never Land?
PS: If you’re into UNKLE, get your hands on Edit Music for a Film and Do Androids Dream of Electric Beats.
