So there is news circling the interwebs of a prototype iPhone. It was found in a bar, and Gizmodo (a technology website) bought it for over $5,000. They disected it, and took several pictures. Apple recently sent them a letter where they demanded the iPhone back. Gizmodo is going to send it back, but the damage has already been done. Apple is super secretive about their products, and I'm pretty sure the guy who left this behind at the bar will be fired. However, Gizmodo asked for him not to be fired if they return the phone. How horrible of a feeling would that be.... losing Apple's prototype? Steve Jobs would be one of the scariest bosses to work for under this scenario. I mean, he makes the company super secretive, and then you forget the prototype at a bar! Products have been leaked in the past through case manufacturers, but there has never been a leak as significant as this one. Apparently, the phone was working before it was sold. The conclusion was that Apple remotely disabled it (which is scary in itself.... can they disable our phones/macs?). I may digress, but I kind of hate what Apple has become. They have turned Microsoft into the underdogs which I usually root for. Apple seems to have become the evil corporation that they didn't want to be.
I haven't really paid attention to iPhone news, because there is no such device for Verizon. However, this is one of the first iPhone stories I have followed. The only reason is because I hope an iPhone will be coming for my carrier in June. The contract is up, and I really want one.
UPDATE: Here is a link I found explaining part of the story
http://gizmodo.com/5520438/how-apple-lost-the-next-iphone
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
LTU sign
I am sitting in the Arts and Science building's parking lot at the moment. One thing I notice is that the LTU sign is using the old logo. I wonder if the school will ever change it to the newer logo. Speaking of that, I am actually a fan of the old logo. I don't like how the new one drops the word "university." I think the new logo looks more "trendy," which may work for some people. However, I like the old logo's style. It has more of a classical look to it. The sticker on my car, the patch on my laptop bag, and even some of my LTU related mail has the old logo. I just seem to like it. What are your thoughts? Which one do you like better?
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Coco's back!
Everyone knows by now (or should know) that Jay Leno returned to the Tonight Show after the olympics, and it kicked Conan O'Brien off the air. Recently, Conan has started touring America. He is putting on a show called "Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television Tour." It won't be coming to Michigan, but I am still with Coco. The big news came last week when Conan revealed the home for his new show... TBS. Yes, the cable network TBS. I am very happy that he will be returning to the air. I do feel sorry for the people without cable, as this is not a major network TV channel. The irony out of this news, is that Conan will be bumping the George Lopez show from 11pm to midnight. Apparently, this is something that George Lopez supported. TBS said the show will begin in November. I kind of get their reasoning on not starting him in September, the month that NBC specified he could return to a competing station. TBS will have MLB playoff games, and it probably would interfere with the new Conan O'Brien show.
So, I will be tuning to TBS this fall to see Coco's glorious return. I'm with Coco, and Coco's with TBS.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Red Wings Playoffs 2010
The Red Wings begin their playoff run tonight at 10pm. They will be facing the Phoenix Coyotes in this first round. I'm excited for the series to begin, but I'm also nervous. The Wings haven't been so great this past season. They have gotten better since the Olympic break, but they were pretty terrible before it. The major component of this team is that of the rookie goalie, Jimmy Howard. He has played the majority of the games since the break, and he is doing pretty well. He will be the Red Wings' starting goalie for this series, which is his first time playing in a playoff game.
I have been an Wings fan pretty much all my life, but I really got into following them when they won the cup again in 1998. I have followed the regular season ever since. This past season has really been different for me, because I barely watched any of the games. I was just too busy with school and work. Watching games was not a priority of mine when I did get free time. The very few games I did watch resulted in the Red Wings losing in overtime shootouts. I think that not watching the wings games has carried over into the playoffs for me. I mean, I will try to watch them. This is really odd for me, because I normally go all out during the playoffs. My Pacifica usually has red wing flags, I usually wear my jersey, and my mood is usually much more energetic. This isn't the case right now. Usually, I am going crazy for the opening game. Today, not so much. I hope this lack of enthusiasm goes away quickly.
Anyways, I'm just ranting now about how I wish I was able to watch more games.
LET'S GO WINGS!
I have been an Wings fan pretty much all my life, but I really got into following them when they won the cup again in 1998. I have followed the regular season ever since. This past season has really been different for me, because I barely watched any of the games. I was just too busy with school and work. Watching games was not a priority of mine when I did get free time. The very few games I did watch resulted in the Red Wings losing in overtime shootouts. I think that not watching the wings games has carried over into the playoffs for me. I mean, I will try to watch them. This is really odd for me, because I normally go all out during the playoffs. My Pacifica usually has red wing flags, I usually wear my jersey, and my mood is usually much more energetic. This isn't the case right now. Usually, I am going crazy for the opening game. Today, not so much. I hope this lack of enthusiasm goes away quickly.
Anyways, I'm just ranting now about how I wish I was able to watch more games.
LET'S GO WINGS!
Saturday, April 10, 2010
The Hi-Lifter
For my video editing class I have now worked on two projects involving segments from a story I wrote with a friend when I was in 9th grade. I have to say, it has been really cool watching my story come to life. The first project was an audio project. I wrote a small 3 minute script that condensed the opening of the story. The project I'm working on now, which is my final project, is a video of a 5 minute script I wrote. The hardest part of these projects has been trying to adapt a story formatted as a novel into a script. Some of the translation is lost, because everything is visual. For example, if I want to explain something in the story all I would have to do is write about it. In the script I have to take that explanation and make it something visual, or something explained by a character.
So what exactly is the story about?
The story is called "The H-Lifter," and it was written by myself and a friend (Max Mianecki). Max started writing the story when we were in 8th grade, but abandoned it after a few chapters. I loved what he had written, and I begged him for about a year to keep working on it. He eventually started another story called Demon's Crux, which he still is working on to this day. I eventually asked him for permission to continue the story, because I had so many great ideas which I ran by him when he was first working on it. He gave me permission to continue the story, which was only 26 pages when he gave up on it.
The story takes place in a star system much like our own, but there are several inhabitable planets. It starts on the planet of Ganymede 4 where the main character, Gim Pyzack, is running down a dirt road in a thunderstorm. He is an archeologist who is supposed to be meeting a client, to help in his latest dig, at the Kor spaceport. He comes to find out that the client is a woman, and is the feared bounty hunter/mercenary Marean "Blue Star" MacBeth. She has been hired to act as Gim's bodyguard. He is very confused at this, but does not refuse. Gim and Marean are picked up by a geologist named Roget. They spend the entire night driving to a mountainous region of the planet. A few more characters are introduced along the way, but for the most part these three are the main characters. They meet at a camp located at the base of Mt. Schorman. This is Gim's new assignment which is being funded by the Ganymede Federation, the government of the Ganymede planets. After a few days of digging, they realize why Marean has been hired. A ruthless gang of space pirates, known as the Black Wolves, attack the camp. During a battle, Gim manages to find a secret passage into the mountain. His group follows him into it, with Marean being the last one to enter. Gim is astonished to find an ancient shrine. The Shrine is also a technological wonder. It is later revealed to be of Makellion origin. The Makellions were a religious group that once dominated the Ganymede planets. Although they are considered an "ancient civilization", they were technologically advanced. They faded into obscurity after centuries of civil war between two rival religious groups.
The Black Wolves find the passage, and Gim's group tries to set up a defense position inside the shrine. However, something incredible happens. The shrine comes to life, and lights up. They realize they are standing in a room with windows, and can see the innards of the mountain through them. Then, the mountain is engulfed with a blue light. The room they are standing in begins to violently shake. The peak of the mountain begins to fall apart. The room begins to ascend. They don't realize it at the time, but they are in an ancient Makellion spaceship. It takes off into the atmosphere, and completely destroys the mountain.
Well, that's basically how the story begins. The Ganymede Federation targets them as criminals, and the Black Wolves continue to chase them. It's revealed that they are after the spaceship, which Marean dubs "The Hi-Lifter." The rest of the story revolves around the Hi-Lifter, and its many secrets. Without revealing too much, it seems that the Hi-Lifter isn't just a space ship. It is something much more. Gim becomes aware of this when his parents are murdered by the hands of the Black Wolves.
So what exactly is the story about?
The story is called "The H-Lifter," and it was written by myself and a friend (Max Mianecki). Max started writing the story when we were in 8th grade, but abandoned it after a few chapters. I loved what he had written, and I begged him for about a year to keep working on it. He eventually started another story called Demon's Crux, which he still is working on to this day. I eventually asked him for permission to continue the story, because I had so many great ideas which I ran by him when he was first working on it. He gave me permission to continue the story, which was only 26 pages when he gave up on it.
The story takes place in a star system much like our own, but there are several inhabitable planets. It starts on the planet of Ganymede 4 where the main character, Gim Pyzack, is running down a dirt road in a thunderstorm. He is an archeologist who is supposed to be meeting a client, to help in his latest dig, at the Kor spaceport. He comes to find out that the client is a woman, and is the feared bounty hunter/mercenary Marean "Blue Star" MacBeth. She has been hired to act as Gim's bodyguard. He is very confused at this, but does not refuse. Gim and Marean are picked up by a geologist named Roget. They spend the entire night driving to a mountainous region of the planet. A few more characters are introduced along the way, but for the most part these three are the main characters. They meet at a camp located at the base of Mt. Schorman. This is Gim's new assignment which is being funded by the Ganymede Federation, the government of the Ganymede planets. After a few days of digging, they realize why Marean has been hired. A ruthless gang of space pirates, known as the Black Wolves, attack the camp. During a battle, Gim manages to find a secret passage into the mountain. His group follows him into it, with Marean being the last one to enter. Gim is astonished to find an ancient shrine. The Shrine is also a technological wonder. It is later revealed to be of Makellion origin. The Makellions were a religious group that once dominated the Ganymede planets. Although they are considered an "ancient civilization", they were technologically advanced. They faded into obscurity after centuries of civil war between two rival religious groups.
The Black Wolves find the passage, and Gim's group tries to set up a defense position inside the shrine. However, something incredible happens. The shrine comes to life, and lights up. They realize they are standing in a room with windows, and can see the innards of the mountain through them. Then, the mountain is engulfed with a blue light. The room they are standing in begins to violently shake. The peak of the mountain begins to fall apart. The room begins to ascend. They don't realize it at the time, but they are in an ancient Makellion spaceship. It takes off into the atmosphere, and completely destroys the mountain.
Well, that's basically how the story begins. The Ganymede Federation targets them as criminals, and the Black Wolves continue to chase them. It's revealed that they are after the spaceship, which Marean dubs "The Hi-Lifter." The rest of the story revolves around the Hi-Lifter, and its many secrets. Without revealing too much, it seems that the Hi-Lifter isn't just a space ship. It is something much more. Gim becomes aware of this when his parents are murdered by the hands of the Black Wolves.
Friday, April 9, 2010
It's almost here....
I seriously can't wait until the semester is over. This semester has been one of my favorites, because the majority of my classes involve what I'm actually going to school for. However, I still can't wait to be free from the work. The majority of my homework/studying/stress comes from my Problems in International Politics class, which is the only non-Media Comm. class I have this semster. I have done great on all the tests so far, mostly because of studying habbits. I read the book, highlight things, and write notes in the margins (because the tests are open book and open note). The tests for this class are notoriously hard, but I have manged to pull off a 19 out of 20, and a 20 out of 20 so far. There is one more test left. The majority of the points in that class stem from the the two papers. I got an A on my midterm, but I worked to my fullest potential on it. Good grades like that are hard to repeat, and I am hoping for the best on my final paper. I have started the final, because I just want to get it out of the way. For the past month it has been like a violent storm that looms in the distance ready to sweep in. I have started the paper to get it out of the way, and focus on my other finals. The other finals involve shooting and editing a 3-7 minute scripted video in Video Editing, Writing a drama script in Advanced Writing for TV, a yet to be determined Camera for Broadcast project, and a test in News Discovery/Radio reporting. I also have a portfolio to put together to receive credit for my Quest project.
(I haven't really had a break from school since summer of 2007 when I finished Specs Howard. I usually take classes in the summer, but I still consider it a break due to the reduced amount of classes I take. )
So here are my plans for the first week of summer break. I plan to hang out with as many friends as possible. I plan to party. I plan to play computer games. I plan to watch TV. I plan to do many things that I haven't done since the fall when I fully dedicated my time to school.
I also plan on visiting the UP again this summer, and perhaps go to Toronto. I used to go to Toronto every summer, but I haven't since I finished high school in '06. The other thing I plan to be doing this summer is reading. I will be taking a literature class, and a Special Topics Apple Pro Certification class. They will both involve reading, which is something that I dislike.
Summer will soon be here.
(I haven't really had a break from school since summer of 2007 when I finished Specs Howard. I usually take classes in the summer, but I still consider it a break due to the reduced amount of classes I take. )
So here are my plans for the first week of summer break. I plan to hang out with as many friends as possible. I plan to party. I plan to play computer games. I plan to watch TV. I plan to do many things that I haven't done since the fall when I fully dedicated my time to school.
I also plan on visiting the UP again this summer, and perhaps go to Toronto. I used to go to Toronto every summer, but I haven't since I finished high school in '06. The other thing I plan to be doing this summer is reading. I will be taking a literature class, and a Special Topics Apple Pro Certification class. They will both involve reading, which is something that I dislike.
Summer will soon be here.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Mobile Suit Gundam
I used to be really big into Anime. I have faded away from it over the years, but there is still one show that I absolutely love. The original Mobile Suit Gundam. This anime came out in Japan in the late 70s, and it revolutionized their industry. This was also the first mainstream anime to feature a "robot" that wasn't super powerful, and it helped to launch the "Real Robot" genre of anime. Up until this point in time, Japan's anime with "robots" was generally considered to be part of the "Super Robot" genre. This genre featured robots that were unstoppable, had crazy powers, and they seemed to border on the edge of fantasy. Gundam, and the "real robot" genre, features robots (in the case of Gundam they are humanoid weapons that are controled by pilots) that are the opposite of the "Super Robot" Genre. The "robots" in Mobile Suit Gundam are called "Mobile Suits." Mobile suits were made for warfare, are piloted by humans, and are not indestructible like the robots in the other genre.
Ok with that out of the way, let's talk about Mobile Suit Gundam. The animation is garbage compared to today's standards. However, when watching this anime you need to put that aside. Mobile Suit Gundam is about the story, and action. It takes place in the year 0079 of the Universal Century (UC). AD was replaced with the UC timeline when outer space became colonized. According to the anime, more than half of mankind live in the space colonies orbiting Earth. The focus of the show is the war between the Earth Federation and the Principality of Zeon. The Zeon, who reside in the space colonies farthest from the Earth, launch a war of independance against the Earth Federation. They believe that the colonies shouldn't be controlled by a government based on Earth. The story of Mobile Suit Gundam begins years after the war started. The Zeon are winning, and half of Earth's population have been killed. The Zeon are winning the war not by numbers of soldiers they have (which is small compared to the Earth Federation), but by the technology they use. The Zeon have developed large human-like Mobile Suits called Zakus that are piloted by their soldiers. The Zeon's Zaku is the reason why they are winning the war.
The show starts on a shot of a large white space cruiser docking in a colony's space port. It is the White Base. Basically, it is a topic secret ship that is docking in a colony to pick up prototype Mobile Suits developed by the Earth Federation. However, the White Base was followed by a Zeon space cruiser. To make a long story short, the Zeon launch a sneak attack on the colony with their Zakus. They destroy most of the prototype mobile suits that the Earth Federation have built. The civilians living on the colony are evacuated to the White Base. One of the civillians, Amuro Ray, manages to climb aboard a prototype Mobile Suit.... The Gundam. The Gundam's power and armor is far superior to the Zakus, and it can easily destroy them.
Amuro manages to help the White Base escape from the colony, and over time becomes a member of the Earth Federation. Many of the civillians are forced to help man the White Base until it can return to Jaburo, the Earth Federation's HQ in South America. However, by this point they all have forged a strong bond with the ship. Many of them stay to fight in the war.
The show focuses on the White Base and their fight to survive. The Zeon know about the ship, and repeatedly attack it in an attempt to stop the Gundam. Later on in the series the Earth Federation gives the White Base new orders, and designates them as a decoy ship. They do this, because they know the Zeon try to attack the ship at every chance they get. They plan to use this to their advantage, so they can occupy the Zeons while they amass their forces in space.
The show doesn't sound like much while typing this, but it has an amazing story. The writing is amazing, and evolves over the course of the show. For example, the Zeon first start off as just some generic "bad guys." The home colony of the Zeon is revealed about halfway through the series, as well as their leaders. The Zeon are lead by a man named Duke Degwin Zabi. He is the father to four children who are all rivals with each other when it comes to who will be the successor to his throne. Eventually the his eldest son, Gihren Zabi, assassinates him and turns the Zeon into an all-out dictatorship.
Mobile Suit Gundam is my favorite Anime of all time followed by its sequel, Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam. Zeta Gundam takes place years after the Zeon war for independence, and flips the idea of good vs. bad around. This time the Earth Federation are seen as the bad guys who are fighting the good guys of the Anti-Earth Union Group. Zeta Gundam brings back a lot of the characters from first series. The main character of Mobile Suit Gundam even teams up with his former rival in this series.
The story of Gundam finally ends in a movie released in 1988. However, there have been a number of spin-offs since then. Many of them take place between the events of Mobile Suit Gundam and Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam. The more recent Gundam series (such as Gundam Wing, Gundam SEED, and Gundam 00) take place in an alternate universe where the UC timeline doesn't exist.
Anyways, I probably wrote too much about... but I just love this show. If you like Anime, I highly recommend you check it out. You may also be able to guess where my internet nickname, J_Zabi, comes from. I use this name for everything from website screen names, to the nicknames in video games.
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Fox 2 tour
I went to Fox 2 news on Saturday morning with my class, News Discovery and Radio Reporting (taught by Ken Rogulski). Professor Rogulski set up a tour of the facility with Roop Raj. Were were to meet at LTU...
Rogulski pulls up with his truck, the "News Cruiser" with WJR logos all over it. He is being followed by an LTU security vehicle. Apparently, they thought that he did not belong on the campus (Oh crap! The Media is here!). Anyway, he explained to the Security guy that he was a professor. It was quite a funny way to start the morning off seeing your professor getting tailgated by the LTU security van.
This was my first time at Fox 2, and it looked really nice. The tour was really tailored to reporting and story writing. It's interesting to me, but I really wanted to learn more about the technical aspect of doing the news. I spent the last 15 minutes of the newscast in the control room. It was amazing to see this control room. Everything looked so modern. Instead of having multiple monitors, there were around 5 flat screen TVs. These TVs had video feed from multiple sources, such as the cameras and graphics. The director that morning, Donnie Hopps, was one of my former instructors from Specs Howard. When I went to that school, he directed news in the morning and taught in the afternoon. He always had stories about directing at Fox 2, and it was nice to finally see him directing in person. One of the funnier things I witnessed in the control room was when the producer got mad, because the lower thirds graphic was wrong. Jay Towers was reporting from an Apple store on the iPad launch, and the graphic said "I-Pad" instead of "iPad."
I was also interested in the camera system they had. The cameras are all robotic, and they are operated by a person in the back of the studio. Roop was in the studio talking to us about reporting, but I was more interested on how the cameras worked. He also told us that news stations are creating automated control rooms where only one person is necessary. The person sits in front of a computer and has access to pretty much every piece of equipment. The one drawback is it is harder to fix a problem if something goes wrong, because there is only one person. He said there is a control room being built at Fox 2 that will be automated like the one he described.
Anyway, the trip was really nice. The next one we are going on is to WJR. It's going to be nice to finally see the place that Rogulski talks about pretty much every day.
Here is a pic I took from my DVR. You can see where we were watching the broadcast from, because two of us ended up in the shot. Rogulski walks behind them later on in this shot.
Rogulski pulls up with his truck, the "News Cruiser" with WJR logos all over it. He is being followed by an LTU security vehicle. Apparently, they thought that he did not belong on the campus (Oh crap! The Media is here!). Anyway, he explained to the Security guy that he was a professor. It was quite a funny way to start the morning off seeing your professor getting tailgated by the LTU security van.
This was my first time at Fox 2, and it looked really nice. The tour was really tailored to reporting and story writing. It's interesting to me, but I really wanted to learn more about the technical aspect of doing the news. I spent the last 15 minutes of the newscast in the control room. It was amazing to see this control room. Everything looked so modern. Instead of having multiple monitors, there were around 5 flat screen TVs. These TVs had video feed from multiple sources, such as the cameras and graphics. The director that morning, Donnie Hopps, was one of my former instructors from Specs Howard. When I went to that school, he directed news in the morning and taught in the afternoon. He always had stories about directing at Fox 2, and it was nice to finally see him directing in person. One of the funnier things I witnessed in the control room was when the producer got mad, because the lower thirds graphic was wrong. Jay Towers was reporting from an Apple store on the iPad launch, and the graphic said "I-Pad" instead of "iPad."
I was also interested in the camera system they had. The cameras are all robotic, and they are operated by a person in the back of the studio. Roop was in the studio talking to us about reporting, but I was more interested on how the cameras worked. He also told us that news stations are creating automated control rooms where only one person is necessary. The person sits in front of a computer and has access to pretty much every piece of equipment. The one drawback is it is harder to fix a problem if something goes wrong, because there is only one person. He said there is a control room being built at Fox 2 that will be automated like the one he described.
Anyway, the trip was really nice. The next one we are going on is to WJR. It's going to be nice to finally see the place that Rogulski talks about pretty much every day.
Here is a pic I took from my DVR. You can see where we were watching the broadcast from, because two of us ended up in the shot. Rogulski walks behind them later on in this shot.
April Fools...
In recent years the Internet has been the stage for April Fools Day pranks. Websites change their layout, add fake stories, and even add fake products. I have to admit, I am rarely every fooled. 2010 has changed that. I was pranked good.
My friend Kiel posted a link to a product on the ThinkGeek store. The product was a "Dharma Alarm Clock" inspired by the TV show LOST. It was amazing! It looked just like the computer in the hatch! I wanted it, even though it was $49.99. I quickly ran to grab my wallet, and get my debit card. I clicked "buy now," but only disappointment followed. The page refreshed with the message, "GOTCHA! April Fools."
I could not believe it....
I really wanted this alarm clock, and there was a period of sadness that overcame me. Then I went to talk to Kiel about it. Kiel recently got into Lost, and he has watched fives seasons of it in under three months. He told me he planned to buy it on Friday when he got paid. Kiel, who I thought had pranked me, didn't even know it was a prank! I told him to click "buy now." He replied with, "DAMN IT!!!"
We were both victims of April Fools Day.
My friend Kiel posted a link to a product on the ThinkGeek store. The product was a "Dharma Alarm Clock" inspired by the TV show LOST. It was amazing! It looked just like the computer in the hatch! I wanted it, even though it was $49.99. I quickly ran to grab my wallet, and get my debit card. I clicked "buy now," but only disappointment followed. The page refreshed with the message, "GOTCHA! April Fools."
I could not believe it....
I really wanted this alarm clock, and there was a period of sadness that overcame me. Then I went to talk to Kiel about it. Kiel recently got into Lost, and he has watched fives seasons of it in under three months. He told me he planned to buy it on Friday when he got paid. Kiel, who I thought had pranked me, didn't even know it was a prank! I told him to click "buy now." He replied with, "DAMN IT!!!"
We were both victims of April Fools Day.
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