At previous Hackdays/BarCamps I’ve gotten involved in making ‘funny’ videos, but nothing as elaborate (or professional looking) as what these guys have done. Tom Scott and Matt Grey challenged each other to getting in the most camera shots on the news as possible:

[Watch on MissGeeky.com]

Brilliant!

When young Alec of Kerry is taken prisoner for a crime he didn’t commit, he is certain that his life is at an end. But one thing he never expected was his cellmate. Spy, rogue, thief, and noble, Seregil of Rhiminee is many things-none of them predictable. And when he offers to take on Alec as his apprentice, things may never be the same for either of them. Soon Alec is traveling roads he never knew existed, toward a war he never suspected was brewing. Before long he and Seregil are embroiled in a sinister plot that runs deeper than either can imagine, and that may cost them far more than their lives if they fail. But fortune is as unpredictable as Alec’s new mentor, and this time there just might be…Luck in the Shadows.

I read this book and it’s two sequels ages ago, back when I was still in high school. I loved the story, but never got around to re-reading it. This year though the writer is releasing two more books in The Nightrunner series, and I knew I should pick the first ones up and delve back into that world.

The main thing I love in this book are the characters; Alec and Seregil are both likable and easy to root for characters. It only takes a couple of pages, and you’re already invested and caring for these characters. The loyalty and friendship that slowly forms between them is amazing to read; they are not many writers I’ve seen that are able to pull this off. I also liked that they weren’t your typical heroes; Seregil is a spy/thief and takes Alec on as his apprentice. Most of the book shows Alec’s introduction to this world of intrigue which he never knew about, and the not always “honest” way of making a living.

The world that Flewelling built here is also pretty interesting. There’s sorcery and prophecy, but never falling in the familiar cliches that other fantasy books often do. The wizards here have power, but aren’t all too powerful, and the main characters clearly don’t rely always on magic to save their skins. Besides that, Skala (the main country where it takes place) has a rich backstory, with history and politics going back centuries.

The books after this one venture into slightly more mature themes, and not everyone might be comfortable with that. If that doesn’t bother you at all though, I’d highly recommend this book. It’s a great read, and one of my all-time favourites.

Luck In The Shadows is Part One of The Nightrunner Series by Lynn Flewelling – £5.99 on Amazon.co.uk, $7.50 on Amazon.com

Episode 125: *riiiiiiing*

Great animation about waking up in the morning and getting annoyed by your alarm:

[Watch on MissGeeky.com]

Via /Film

I’ve added yet another new recurring topic Me Wantz, where I’ll post stuff that I want to have. I came across a lot of things that didn’t easily fit within any of the other categories I already had. These posts will be pretty short, just showing what it is I want to share with you all and (if available) where you can get it.

I got a Starbuck’s mug for Cristiano this Christmas, and this toaster fits right with it:

The Battlestar Galactica LED Chrome Toaster is made exclusively for Comic-Con 2009, and will light up while toasting your favorite snacks. It will burn an image of Cylon on one side of your toast, and the phrase “Frak Off” on the other. It’s available in a special edition limited run of only 2,000 units in the NBC Store for $90.00.

I’m pretty much addicted to both Carcassonne and Settlers of Catan these days, so imagine my delight when I found out both of them are (soon to be) available on the Nintendo DS (discovered via Twitter while checking out the ‘tag’ carcassonne). I’m not sure how I missed this, but the Catan version has been available since this May!

The Nintendo DS version of Catan was developed in collaboration with Klaus Teuber. Besides the Basic Game, it also contains scenarios from the Seafarers expansion (among others, Greater Catan) that offer additional adventures and challenges. The Basic game presents a varied Campaign with eight different computer opponents. You can also play against up to 4 others over the wireless Nintendo WiFi connection. Here’s the trailer of the game:

From what I can find, I think it’s only available in Germany, but the NDS cartridge contains the English as well as the German language version. So far, I haven’t found an actual store that sells this game though; apparently it’s not as popular as I imagined it could be. If anybody finds out where you can get Catan for DS, please let me know.

The Carcassonne game for the Nintendo DS will be coming out this September. It’s already listed on Play.com for £24.99, so that will at least be available here in the UK (no idea about the US though).

Carcassonne for Nintendo DS will contain the main game including the River expansion. In multiplayer mode, both Single-Card Play and Multi-Card Play will be available for Nintendo DS owners and their friends via the wifi connection. The adaptation is true to the original, but with three added new locations: the Asian, Arabic, and Nordic worlds. I’m curious to see how this looks; I can imagine the gameplay will be exactly the same, it’s just different “themes” basically in which you can play in.

The above screenshot is from the Xbox Live version, so I’m assuming we’ll get a smaller trimmed down version of that. Still, I think it could look pretty sweet, and it’s definitely the type of game I’d love for on my DS.

Anybody know of any other Nintendo DS boardgame versions?

Two weekends ago I went to OpenTech, an informal, low cost, one-day conference on slightly different approaches to technology, democracy and community. One of the highlights of that day was hearing the talk of Sir Bonar Neville-Kingdom, her Majesty’s most senior civil servant concerned with information and communications technologies (or ‘ICTs’). Here he speaks about about the benefits of how government uses Opentech and ICTs to provide Intercept Modernisation, Personalised Services, and Safeguarding your Identity:

Click to play

Episode 122: *blue*

Synesthesia is one of those psychological puzzles that amazes me. If you’ve never heard of it before, it’s a “condition” some people have where one type of stimulation evokes the sensation of another. For instance when hearing sounds, you “see” colours.

[Watch on MissGeeky.com]

This might actually be a good year for sci-fi. I had heard about NBC’s new show Day One, but it sounded a little bit similar to Jericho. A global disaster, a group of people banding struggling to survive together; it didn’t seem that interesting. But now the first trailer has come out, and it’s got me intrigued.

Here’s the description from NBC:

In the aftermath of a global event that devastates the world’s infrastructures, a small band of survivors strives to rebuild society and unravel the mysteries of why the event took place and what the future has in store. Told from the point of view of an eclectic group of neighbors in a Van Nuys, California apartment building, this journey of survival will show us that hope is found in the smallest of victories and heroes are born every day.

And the trailer:

[Watch on MissGeeky.com]

I’m not too sure about the CGI (but maybe a higher res video would show it better), but the story has got me curious. It’s an alien attack, right? Those weird pillar thingies can’t be man-made. Plus what’s with the whole “I chose each and every one of you”; there’s definitely something more behind that. It somehow seems very reminiscent to The Stand, a Stephen King mini-series from a couple of years ago.

What do you think? Worth watching?

District 9: An extraterrestrial race forced to live in slum-like conditions in Johannesburg, South Africa suddenly find a “kindred spirit” in a government agent from MNU that is exposed to their mysterious biotechnology. Release Date: August 2009 (US)

Spread: Set in present Los Angeles, Spread is an iconic look at the lure of sex, money, and access that Hollywood offers to the beautiful people, and the karmic price that Nikki must ultimately pay to live that lifestyle. Release Date: August 2009 (US)

Brothers: In a small, snowy Pennsylvania town, a young man (Jake Gyllenhaal) comforts his older brother’s wife (Natalie Portman) and children after her husband (Tobey Maguire) goes missing in Afghanistan. Release Date: December 2009 (US)

Ong Bak 2: A young Thai boxer learns the skills and inner meaning of martial arts. I still haven’t seen the first movie, but I’ve heard a lot of people say it’s pretty badass. Judging by this trailer, I guess this movie will be as awesome too. Release Date: October 2009 (US)

Alvin and The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel: In the sequel, David Seville (Jason Lee) sends Alvin (Justin Long), Simon (Matthew Gray Gubler), and Theodore (Jesse McCartney) off to school, saying “it’s good for them.” Little did he know, the Chipmunks feel like “Chipmunks Out of Water” because of all the (human) kids around. Release Date: December 2009 (UK, US)

The Collector: Desperate to repay his debt to his ex-wife, an ex-con plots a heist at his new employer’s country home, unaware that a second criminal has also targeted the property, and rigged it with a series of deadly traps. Release Date: July 2009 (US)

Funny People: When seasoned comedian George Simmons learns of his terminal health condition, his desire to form a genuine friendship causes him to take a relatively green performer under his wing as his opening act. There have been quite a couple of trailers released for this movie, but this is the first red band trailer. Release Date: 31 July 2009 (US), 28 August 2009 (UK)

Big Fan: Paul Aufiero, a 35-year-old parking garage attendant from Staten Island and hardcore New York Giants football fan, struggles to deal with the consequences when he is beaten up by his favorite player. Release Date: August 2009 (US limited)

Giallo: A psychotic killer stalks the streets, kidnapping and murdering beautiful women. An enigmatic police inspector (Adrien Brody) works against the clock to find him, before the latest missing girl becomes his next victim. Release Date: unknown

Trailers courtesy of FirstShowing and Film School Rejects

Again another event I’ve been meaning to blog about for ages, but just never got around to. A couple of months ago I got to go to the launch party of the Digital Artist Awards, a brand new competition for anyone with a passion for digital art and design.

These awards revolve around all things digital, and aims to inspire, recognise and reward the highest standards of digital art across a range of genres and categories from concept art, illustration, architectural visualisation, and animation to character design and videogame art. From what I can gather these are the first real awards to celebrate digital design as an art form.

If interested you can still submit your work until the 31st of August, but check out all the rules first. There are thirteen categories to choose from, and and you can enter a total of 5 submissions across all of them. Here’s a list of the thirteen categories: Graphic Design, Animation, Motion Broadcast, Web & Interactive Design, 2D Illustration, 3D Illustration, Character Design, Concept Art, Product Visualisation, Games Design, Architectural Visualisation, Visual Effects (short form), Stars of Tomorrow (sponsored by Intel).

Digital Artist Awards – Deadline 31st of August