Epic Stargate Vista... Created out of Lego?

By a 15 year old no less. Color me deeply impressed. I admit to being a fan of the Lego blocks when I was a kid, but suffice to say anything on this kind of scale was simply beyond my reach. Granted there appears to far more interesting and unusual blocks to build with these days, back in my day we had rectangular blocks and square blocks. Ah well, anyway take a gander at what Sven Junga has created ... and be amazed:

And if that's not impressive enough for you, here is a close up of the ship:

Apple: Bullshiting the Masses (again)

I couldn't help myself when I saw this article on Ars Technica this morning, I had to find out what garbage Apple were shoveling this time. As amusing as the actual article was, the real fun begins when you start reading through the comments. Of special note is a particular member (I wont use the name here, but I'm sure you can figure it out) who clearly worships at the alter of Jobs, at the exclusion of all others, and is the pinnacle of the Apple fan boy (perhaps in dire need of an iMaxiPad).

Apparently net-books are a dying breed and the iPad is the gadget that people really want - even if they don't know it!

The absolute best comment was made by Ally: the comment was pretty detailed, but this little gem shows up towards the end:

"What Apple is brilliant at is packaging stuff which in fact is less than the competition as if it were more."

I couldn't have summed up Mac any better myself - QFT my friend, QFT!

On a related note, this thread in the 'Battlefront' forum also sums up quite nicely who truly retarded Mac fanboys can be - check it out and enjoy!

It should go without saying at this point, but let me just clarify that I do, in fact, despise all things Apple and have been a PC geek for entire computing life. I have no interest in your opinion if you happen to like Mac products, because your obviously an idiot!

The Three Types of Knowledge

My attention was drawn to this article this afternoon, having been recommended by a friend. It is without doubt one of the best written articles I've read in a long time. The basic premise is that a lot of people feel like they don't deserve the praise they receive in their professional lives, generally because they don't think they have enough experience to warrant it.

The author (Steve Schwartz) then explains in great detail why he feels that this phenomenon is so commonplace. Among his explanation (it is a fairly long read) he cites the 3 types of knowledge, which is what this rather long winded introduction has been leading up to.

1. The shit you know
2. The shit you know you don't know
3. The shit you don't know that you don't know 

(Number 3, he claims, is the most dangerous and the largest segment of all knowledge)

I just really loved these 3 points. The funniest thing about this shit is that the more you look at it, the more you find that it is, in fact, the fucking truth. I strongly recommend you read through the entire article, Steve sums all this stuff up in a far superior manner and adds a lot more insight than I have referenced here.

John McClane: System Admin

Perhaps my favorite XKCD ever - well maybe not, but certainly in the top 10. Anyway todays strip entitled 'Devotion to Duty' is one that I found especially amusing, and since this is my blog, I figured I'd go ahead and post it here. Enjoy!

 

Jack Sparrow and Avatars lack of BAFTA's

Just glancing through some of the weekend news that gathered over on SciFi Wire and two items literally screamed for my attention.

The first of which is that Johnny Depp is once again fully committed to the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie (On Stranger Tides). Why is this a good thing? Especially in the aftermath of Worlds End, which sqaundered a terrific plot device with those pieces of eight. Well the good news is that Orlando Blooms character will not be returning, and I for one was getting tired of that character anyway. Granted we have to balance that with a distinct lack of Keira Knightly, but to be honest her character was begining to grate a little too. Furthermore could anyone actually have stomached a plot that featured Elizabeth and Will with a child (and you know that's where it was heading)?

Anyway Johnny is in, Orlando is out - good news all round. Of course I still think it would have been nice if they ditched the Pirates title and went with a new series such as "Captain Jack Sparrow: On Stranger Tides," but alas it was not to be.

The second thing that grabbed my attention was that Avatar did not sweep the board at the BAFTA's. Finally someone has to sense to see that this movie is not the be all and end all of movie making, and Jim Cameron does not actually shit solid gold. Never the less it did win a couple of awards, but thankfully they were among the less prestigious (Visual Effects and Production Design). Instead the Hurt Locker brought in most of the big awards and even Up in the Air (which I really enjoyed) was able to snag one for Best Screenplay (adapted).

For a complete listing of BAFTA nominees and winners, check  out IMDB.

The Losers = A Winner

I haven't been this excited to see a movie based solely on its trailer since Iron Man 2. I hear this one is based on a comic or something, but I don't know any specifics. Hell all I know (after watching the trailer) is that I want to see it. Sadly have to wait until June, but on the bright side it gets realeased back to back with The A-Team which also looks like more Awesome than you can shake a stick at.

Are you sold? Comedy, action, guns, explosions, gratuitous sex scene... and Michael Bay is nowhere in sight, couldn't be better. Oh and that IS Zoe Saldana - I honestly didn't recognize her (of course the only time I have seen her before is Star Trek so that could potentially be a factor there).

Civ 5

I stumbled across this a couple of days ago, but playing a game of Civ 4 made think of it again. I can't imagine for a second that anyone has not heard of Sid Meier's Civilization games, but just in case... The Civ games are classic turn based strategy affairs that require you to lead your chosen Civ to glory, by crushing the opposition (or through diplomacy if your into that kind of thing). In case you haven't clicked on that link yet here is a teaser for your viewing pleasure:

Well after years of Civ 4 and two expansions we finally have a glimpse of Civ 5 and it looks fucking glorious. Hex tiles look so much nicer than a traditional square grid. As one of the comments on Kotaku pointed out Civ is starting to look a lot like Settlers of Catan which can only be a good thing.

The Nostalgia Factor

I came across a really excellent online store a while back called 80's Tees. I could spend a ton of money here if I wasn't such a cheapskate. Anyway while I'm on the subject of Dolph and Chuck just thought I'd through these out there.

  You owe it to yourself to pick up at least one of these fantastic T-shirts that simply scream to all those around you "Yeah, I remember the 80's"

Dolph Trumps Chuck

After watching this video there can be no doubt in my mind that Dolph Lundgren tops Chuck Norris on the awesome scale!

In this video, Lundgren marches on stage with a torch, breaks into a song and dance number, breaks 3 boards and smashes 5 blocks of ice. Oh, and just to add a touch of class he wears a damn tuxedo the whole time. Dolph Lundgren is now officially the Master of the Universe

I found this priceless vid over on Topless Robot - your one stop shop for nerd news, humor and self-loathing. Check it out.

Starcraft 2 and Battle.net

Arstechnica have posted a fairly comprehensive feature on their experience in the closed beta. Personally I am rather excited about this game, Starcraft 2 has been a long time coming and judging by the content I am seeing here, it looks like it will live up to the expectations.

Also of interest is the little bit of info we got on the new Battle.net. Solid info on this has been scarce, so it's nice to see anything at this point. From what I can glean from this article it seems like it should deliver. Though I am rather conflicted about having another 'Steam' running in my system tray, but it's swings ans roundabouts really.

Hopefully more beta spots will open up over the next couple of months, I'd really like to test the game out a bit before the release (which to my knowledge still hasn't been dated).