11 October 2005
[newspapers] BBC News: How can papers afford to give away DVDs? … ‘The great DVD giveaway is just the latest instalment in Fleet Street’s endless turf war. “It’s digital bingo,” says Greenslade, referring to the period, 20 years ago, when tabloid editors employed prize-winning bingo games to woo new readers.’
[im] Meebo.com — firewall-bursting instant messenging from a website for AIM, MSN, Yahoo and GTalk. [via Waxy’s Links]
10 October 2005
[comics] Official Preview of All-Star Superman #1 …
![]() Morrison: ‘I just read – yesterday in fact – the story ‘Superman’s New Power’ which appeared in Superman #125 from November 1958. And guess what Superman’s new power was in the ‘conservative’ ’50s. That’s right – it’s a teeny-tiny little Superman who shoots out from the palm of the big Superman’s hand and does everything better than Superman himself, leaving the full-size Superman feeling redundant and worthless. Holy analysis, Batman! It’s mindbending, brilliant and eerie work. This is what it would be like if Charlie Kaufmann wrote and directed the Superman movie and it’s far from goofy or childish, it’s genuinely affecting and slightly disturbing to read Superman saying stuff like ‘Everyone’s impressed except ME! Don’t they understand how I feel — playing second fiddle to a miniature duplicate of myself…a sort of SUPER-IMP?’ And people think I’M weird? I %$%$^ wish I was weird like this! I wish pop comics today had the balls to be as poetic and poignant and truly ‘all-ages’ again, and a little less self-conscious. I feel a little ashamed for not even daring to think of a magnificent tiny Superman who makes the real Superman feel inadequate every time he springs from his hand.’ 9 October 2005
[comics] Doctor Doom’s Top 10 Euphemisms for Sex — from Mike Sterling’s Progressive Ruin … ’10. “Unleashing the Doombots”‘
8 October 2005
[games] Edward Castronova on ‘The Average Gamer‘: ‘The average age is 30. For the most part it’s a lower-middle-class phenomenon. If you’re too poor you can’t afford the online access. And these games require absolute top end. But people who are very successful in the real world don’t have the leisure. You need a mix of a lot of time, fairly advanced literacy, enough money to get the equipment and then you have to be, sort of, not very invested in the real world. It’s pathetic in a way. So I think the typical player might be, for example, a parts manager at an office-supply store.’ [thanks Phil]
7 October 2005
[comics] Challenging Graphic Novels for an 11 year-old? — Ask Mefi discuss Graphic Novels for Children.
[ebay] How to be an online auction professional — eBay guide from The Times. Worth Noting: ‘…Sunday evenings between 6pm and 10pm are our busiest times, so timing your auctions to end then should give you more bang for your buck.’
6 October 2005
[history] Heroic Relics — The Guardian on Nelson: ‘What kind of strange nation would revere, two centuries after his death, a 5ft 4in, one-eyed, one-armed reprobate who shamelessly abandoned his family and lived in a bizarre ménage? Good question. England, naturally.’
[comics] Battle Action — fan site for the classic war comic from the 70’s/80’s … ‘Gott in Himmel! Die you Britisher Pigs!!!’
[apple] Video iPod UK Launch at the BBC? — according to Radio 6: ‘Apple is set to unveil a new video iPod at the BBC Television Centre in London on October the 12th…’
5 October 2005
[bdj] The shape I’m in: Belle de Jour — Health and Fitness Q&A with Belle de Jour … ‘Q: Which alternative remedies do you swear by? A: I don’t go in for the ooey-wooey…’
4 October 2005
[politics] Steve Bell: ‘Dinner Dinner Dinner Dinner B.A.T.Bloke!’
[comics] General Zod – 2008 Presidential Candidate … ‘In 2008 I shall restore your dignity and make you servants worthy of my rule. This new government shall become a tool of my oppression. Instead of hidden agendas and waffling policies, I offer you direct candor and brutal certainty. I only ask for your tribute, your lives, and your vote.’ [via Linkbunnies]
3 October 2005
[comics] Page 227 from A History of Violence — a scan from John Wagner’s and Vince Locke’s comic from 1997. ‘… there does seem to be an elephant in the room that no one wants to talk about, in regards to the source material.’
[blogs] Eggbaconchipsandbeans Book Deal … great news from one of my favourite blogs … ‘This strange little site has morphed into a strange little book. Due out the middle of October and already being discounted by Amazon. Which may not bode well.’ [via Pete’s Linklog | EBCB on Amazon UK]
2 October 2005
[film] His ‘Secret’ Movie Trailer Is No Secret Anymore — NYT on the remixed Shining trailer … ‘The challenge? Take any movie and cut a new trailer for it — but in an entirely different genre. Only the sound and dialogue could be modified, not the visuals, he said. Mr. Ryang chose “The Shining,” Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 horror film starring Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall. In his hands, it became a saccharine comedy — about a writer struggling to find his muse and a boy lonely for a father. Gilding the lily, he even set it against “Solsbury Hill,” the way-too-overused Peter Gabriel song heard in comedies billed as life-changing experiences’
30 September 2005
[film] Shining Trailer — a new family film from Stanley Kubrick … ‘Sometimes… what we need the most is just around the corner.’
29 September 2005
[food] What’s the best way to cook a giant squid? — with apologies to Squid Lovers.
“Famed Fish Chef” Aldo Zilli: ‘You would boil it. You need the largest pot in the world. Boil it for 10 hours with lots of wine corks to tenderise the squid – and I don’t mean plastic corks, I mean cork corks – then leave it in the same water for five hours to cool down. Take it out, cut it up in small pieces – you’ll need a very, very, very sharp knife. Soak the tentacles separately in cold, salted water for a couple of hours, because that’s where the sand is. Boil those as well; red wine is a good source of tenderising, so use a couple of bottles of chianti and leave to rest in the juice. Take it out, cut it up, then sauté in garlic and chilli and serve with coriander and a nice sauvignon blanc.’
[comics] Tintin ventures into India’s rural markets — BBC News looks at the success of Tintin in India … ‘For the curious, Captain Haddock’s “blistering barnacles” translates unexpectedly as “bhadakte hue baingan” (literally, “angry aubergines”). “Thundering typhoons” comes out as “toofani lehren”.’
28 September 2005
[lists] McSweeney’s Internet Tendency: 7 Habits of Highly Successful People. [via Kottke’s Remaindered Links]
[blogs] Blogging vs. Dogging … ‘More people know what dogging is than blogging, according to a survey which suggests that Brits are not as tech-savvy as might be expected. Most metrosexuals will know that blogging about their podcasting is perhaps a bit passé, while flashmobbing is decidedly retro.’
27 September 2005
[ipod] The Guardian asks: Is it OK to have more than one iPod? … ‘Apple has to avoid giving the impression that its products are built to obsolesce, that anything you buy now, however pretty and functional it seems, will be superseded. (Consider Apple’s “clamshell” laptops, praised when released, but comical now. Even 2003’s iPod Mini seems like yesterday’s toy.) This is why reports that the Nano scratches easily are a potential PR disaster – especially for Apple, whose designs target an especially anally retentive, perfectionistic personality strain, exemplified by founder Steve Jobs.’
[tech] Mini-Microsoft — anonymous Microsoft insiders blog … ‘Let’s slim down Microsoft into a lean, mean, efficient customer pleasing profit making machine!’
26 September 2005
[tech] Skyfex Remote Assistant — useful remote desktop viewer for supporting Windows desktops over Broadband connections and behind firewalls. [via Yoz]
[comics] Daniel Clowes Interview — the interview is posted at Suicide Girls so NSFW … On David Boring: ‘I was kind of making fun of the fact that I was taking so long in between episodes. I had these absurd cliffhangers in between each episode. Like the first chapter ends with a bullet heading towards the reader. Then the next issue came out like eleven months later or something. It’s the world’s slowest bullet.’
25 September 2005
[comics] Dave’s Long Box: ‘I’m the Goddamn Batman.’
[tech] What to do when a PC goes Wrong — nice consumer guide from Technovia … ‘If the goods are over £100, always, always buy on credit card (NOT a debit card). This gives you additional rights, as the credit card company becomes equally responsible for faulty goods.’
24 September 2005
[tv] The TV Hit That No One Watches — the Guardian on Monk … ‘Working from a memorably high-concept tagline – “Obsessive. Compulsive. Detective” – the scriptwriters contrive all manner of amusing plot twists. Faced with a chaotic crime scene, Monk’s immediate instinct is to tidy it up. His fear of heights – his irrational terrors also include milk, crowds, needles, lifts and mushrooms – is no get-out when he has to investigate a murder on a ferris wheel. Or when he has to join the customary chase up a fire escape (after much torment, he pulls down his sleeves to protect his hands from the grimy rails). Part of the charm is how the series mines his condition for incidental humour rather than mocking it outright. Part of it is watching [Tony] Shalhoub, a consummate character actor, working with his co-stars…’
23 September 2005
[photo] Digital Camera Turns 30? Sort Of — MSNBC on the development of the Digital Camera … ‘[Steven] Sasson, now 55, never imagined as a relatively new Kodak hire in 1975 all the dazzling ingredients that have, in just a few years, put digital cameras in 50 percent of American households: fiber optics, the Internet, personal computers, home printers. His invention began with a 30-second conversation…’ [via Waxy’s Links]
21 September 2005
[film] Actress Mirren’s Queen unveiled — BBC News on Helen Mirren playing the Queen … ‘Mirren, 60, is pictured reading news of the death of Diana in the movie, which is called The Queen. Directed by Stephen Frears, it is set in the week following the crash which killed Diana and her lover Dodi Fayed in August 1997.’
20 September 2005
[comics] BeaucoupKevin: I’m the Goddamn Batman.
[comics] Welcome back, BD — the Guardian profiles Doonesbury and has rare interview with Garry Trudeau … ‘Would he go on drawing it to his dying day, or might there be a final strip, a final frame, The End? “As to when it all ends,” [Trudeau] said, “there are so many unforeseeable factors; health, energy, interest – it’s impossible to know.” But when the last Doonesbury cartoon appears, it will be the one of the great social and political records of the 20th and 21st centuries.’
19 September 2005
[comics] BY WIKIPEDIA BETRAYED! John Byrne vs. Wikipedia — Byrne deletes most of the content from his entry in Wikipedia. Hi-jinks ensue … ‘Byrne discovered [his Wikipedia Entry] the other week and immediately set about to “correct” things. Here’s the problem. Byrne didn’t just want to go through to clarify points or streamline the entry – he wanted to dismantle the entire page. He deleted everything except for the opening biographical paragraph and the bibliography. He deleted every bit of information regarding his career stages, his interactions with fans, pros, etc., claiming that the entire entry was fraught with inaccuracies and lies. Thing is, they weren’t.’ [via Metafilter]
[comics] On eBay: Watchmen Original Art – Page 24, Issue 6 … bidding is currently at £1,850. [thanks Stuart]
18 September 2005
[funny] British Comedians have their own version of the Aristocrats Joke — from b3ta.com … ‘A man walks into a talent agent’s office…’ [via Yoz]
[comics] Warren Ellis Is Going To Have Me Killed. Slowly. — scans and commentary on a small press comic from Ellis done in 1984 … ‘For the uniformed, I am Warren Ellis, a rather noisy 16-year-old fan…’ [via Progressive Ruin]
16 September 2005
[comics] Liberal Imagination — The Guardian on Liberality for All … ‘I ask [the writer of Liberality for All] whether he’s concerned about being interviewed by a liberal website like Guardian Unlimited? “You’re liberal? That’s not what I’d heard,” he says. “A friend of mine said you were like Fox News on the web. Maybe it was Sky News.” I suddenly imagine the sound of my editor-in-chief choking on her lunch.’ [via Venusberg]
15 September 2005
[apple] Stevie’s Little Wonder — Time Profiles Apple’s iPod Nano. ‘…it’s clear Jobs is just happy to be here. To paraphrase Lou Reed, his company was saved by rock ‘n’ roll. “What’s really been great for us is the iPod has been a chance to apply Apple’s incredibly innovative engineering in an area where we don’t have a 5%-operating-system-market-share glass ceiling,” Jobs says. “And look at what’s happened. That same innovation, that same engineering, that same talent applied where we don’t run up against the fact that Microsoft got this monopoly, and boom! We have 75% market share.”‘ [via Technovia]
[forensics] Television Shows Scramble Forensic Evidence — article on how forensically-aware criminals are trying to game scientists collecting evidence … ‘There is an increasing trend for criminals to use plastic gloves during break-ins and condoms during rapes to avoid leaving their DNA at the scene. Dostie describes a murder case in which the assailant tried to wash away his DNA using shampoo. Police in Manchester in the UK say that car thieves there have started to dump cigarette butts from bins in stolen cars before they abandon them. “Suddenly the police have 20 potential people in the car,” says Rutty.’ [via As Above]
14 September 2005
[cola] Label Watch: Diet Cola — analysis of the ingredients of the popular soft-drink.
13 September 2005
[tv] Warren Ellis on CSI: ‘[CSI] …has gotten genuinely odd in its old age. I saw a re-run from last season recently, and there’s a two-minute sequence of William Petersen sluicing blood off a body on a metal tray put to “Sfevn-G-Englar” by Sigur Ros. That’s all it is. Slowed down visuals of water washing blood off brushed steel. Twenty years ago, that would’ve been an art film. Now it’s a musical interlude in a major US network show.’
[comics] Excerpts from Alan Moore’s script for Big Numbers #3 … ‘PAGE 5, PANEL 1. Okay, now there are twelve panels on this page, with this first tier being a continuous background shot. I should point out before we get too far in that this page requires some technical information and possibly some visual reference that will have to wait until I can contact the guy I know who works in a Computer Shop.’
12 September 2005
[tv] The Church of Klugman — this blog wholeheartedly endorses worship of the star of Quincy, M.E. … ‘This is a brand new religion – a religion worshiping a man who is a legend, a myth, who brings a new social conscience to our troubled times.’ [via Progressive Ruin]
[ukblogs] Belle de Jour’s 100 Days Without Sex — can the soon-to-be published in paperback sex-blogger survive? … ‘I send him a photo of me that he took on our holiday. My top was a little tighter than I remember and I look very busty indeed. “WHORE!” “Excuse me?”, I type. “I spelled that wrong, didn’t I?” he writes. “The noise you do when someone looks great.” “Did you mean PHWOAR?,” I type.’
11 September 2005
[film] Interview with Dave McKean — Guardian Online interviews the comic creator and director of MirrorMask … ‘Q: Can you instantly tell if you’re watching computer generated images in a movie? A: Yes, although the integration is sometimes so clever it is hard to be sure. I think some images that are unashamed to look fabricated can be fascinating in their own right, especially as many make use of what computers can do very well, creating complexity, adding complex systems to manmade simple basic building blocks.’ [Related: MirrorMask Trailer]
9 September 2005
[film] Let’s Go To Birmingham — wonderful 1962 short film to download from the BFI … ‘Driver’s-eye view of the rail track on the London to Birmingham (via Leamington Spa) run of the Blue Pullman, to the accompaniment of Johann Strauss’s Perpetuum Mobile’ [via Peter Cooper]
8 September 2005
[comics] We3 — a collection of Morrison and Quitely’s latest comic is now available at Amazon.co.uk.
» We3 Preview … ‘They’re the ultimate cyborg assassins; armed with missiles, poison gas, state-of-the-art computer technology and unbreakable exo-skeletons. The government has spent millions to fuse the firepower of a battalion with the nervous systems of a dog named Bandit, a cat named Tinker, and a rabbit named Pirate. As part of a program to replace human soldiers with expendable animals, the U.S. government has transformed three ordinary pets into the ultimate killing machines. But now, those three animals have seized the chance to make a last, desperate run for ‘Home’. A run that will turn into a breathless hunt to the death against the might of the entire military/industrial complex.’
[comics] Uniquely Original — another Grant Morrison interview … On All-Star Superman: ‘I’m trying to think of it as the re-emergence of the original, pre-Crisis Superman but with 20 years of history we haven’t seen.’
7 September 2005
[music] A Lost Pop Symphony — long overview of the history of Brian Wilson’s Smile Album … ‘A contract signed with Warner Brothers in 1970 following the group’s departure from Capitol even included a clause that promised a finished Smile by 1973. When it failed to appear, the group was fined $50,000. Wilson had by then renounced the work as “inappropriate music” and derailed any attempt to revive it.’ [via Robot Wisdom]
6 September 2005
[comics] A Chat About Craft With Grant Morrison — yet another interview with GM … ‘If I’m feeling miserable, burned out and hermit-like, for instance, the bad feeling can turn up, as it did in JLA: WORLD WAR III, as something like the monstrous ‘Primordial Annihilator’, Mageddon. At which point I give myself a slap, send the Justice League in to solve the problem, and before you know it, they’ve won and I’m able to leave the house again with a smile on my face!’
[web] Dropload — useful website I use regularly to drop large files for collection by others avoiding delivery by email.
5 September 2005
[comics] Grant Morrison on All-Star Superman … ‘To me, he’s a big folk hero. He’s been around forever. He’s like Paul Bunyan or Johnny Appleseed and here I’m allowed to tell new stories of these amazing folk heroes. You’ve got to make Superman about a few things. It’s got to be about big emotions and big human feelings like death and loss and bereavement and grief and joy. Then you weave those weird sci-fi stories around those themes. I think those are the best Superman stories — the ones about human feelings but on a huge, cosmic, ridiculous, superhero canvas.’ [via plasticbag.org]
[mac] Blank Apple Keyboard! — yet another oddity on eBay … ‘This is an authentic screw-up by Apple – even their mistakes are aesthetically pleasing…’ [thanks Phil]
[drink] The 86 Rules of Boozing … ‘Unacceptable things to say after doing a shot: Great, now I’m going to get drunk. I hate shots. It’s coming back up.’
4 September 2005
[comics] All-Star Superman Scans — looks amazing and scores bonus-points for Grant Morrison guest-starring as Lex Luthor. [via Sore Eyes]
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