ipad

So it's  finally dropped and it's hot. Once my amazing 12inch powerbook finally breaks (6 years and running) I might think about getting one.

It's becoming almost an echo on the internet of Apple Fan boys who want to buy the pad but already have everything else Apple has setup for us. I mean with a desktop, laptop, and iphone I just don't have a place for the pad in my life right now. Maybe sometime in the future it will be different but my laptop has been so sturdy and solid for it's life that I can't part with it. Like a trusted horse it's held it's own and remained relevant for exactly the tasks an ipad would be used for.

Either way the pad is beautiful. Looking forward to future iterations where we can see a camera, lower price point, more storage. I always like to buy on the 2-4th gen of an apple product so they can work any kinks out on gen 1 & 2.

Really fascinating to watch the stock ride this ipad ride. it was up near 210 a share before the announcement and at the end of trading on the week it had dipped all the way down to 192! In general it's been a wild right for the stock in the last 52 weeks. I think the range on it is somewhere around 52-210 a share! Wild ride but if you get on and off at the right stops a lot of profit to be had.

Field Update

Hugo just chimed in from the field

"lots of shooting going on, really long days. Just spent 30 minutes up in the airplane"

So lots of exciting footage coming in. We have a great chance to work with the Park's annual wolf wranglers who come in every winter with Helicopters and round up the wolves to study them.

Hugo and John have access to an airplane which flies with the Wranglers helicopter as they do their thing.

Lots of exciting footage to come...

The Tallest Man on Earth

Great band I've really gotten into lately

The Tallest Man on Earth

Veridian Dynamic - Life. Better

Another Round of Shooting

Sent out all my equipment this morning for another round of shooting in Algonquin Park.

 Key pieces of the story for our upcoming documentary "Eastern Wolves" will be captured over the next few weeks as we get a chance to work with the Wolf Wranglers and one of the park's phd candidate wolf researchers, John Benson.For more information about Algonquin's wolves go here

These guys herd the wolf packs onto frozen lakes in the winter with helicopter then shoot nets from the helicopters, leap out, and wrestle the wolves until they can get them sedated or banded. Once that is done they gather a whole wealth of scientific information which is helping our understanding of the Wolves during the winter and how we can help them. Exciting stuff!

Social Media Gaming

It really struck me this morning how far entrenched social media gaming has become when I got a status update that my Aunt was playing a facebook farming game.

I would generally consider my Aunt to be a non-gamer but there she was, giving fertilizer to her friends to help build their gardens. It really took me back for a moment. Had she found this game on her own? Who brought her into it? What are her thoughts on it? I'm looking forward to speaking with her in detail about what appealed to her enough to give it a try.

I understand the appeal of these games but I suppose my own background making games and immersing myself in the culture has made me too critical of them to really play them for fun.

I know I can't have the same expectations from a facebook game that I do for a triple AAA 360/PS3 title but I think that some amazing games can and will be made on the platform. It's not always about great graphics. Strong stories and game designs may be able to flourish in the coming years on this platform and within web 2.0 and cloud computing frameworks.  I hope that this new market will be able to support more independent developers) as they figure out the monetization system for these game better.

~T

Funny Classic Wrestler shot

The artist behind the Punch-Out!! custom action figures is back with another set - the cast of Pro Wrestling for the NES. Not included: the "Outlaw Choke" wrench the Amazon used to beat Fighter Hayabusa senseless.

See Full post here - http://kotaku.com/5445840/a-winner-is-these-custom-nes-pro-wrestling-figures/gallery/

Apple Tablet

Seems like everywhere I turn there are rumors growing about Apple's tablet. I have to admit that I actually give credence to these rumors as it seems like Apple has been lining up it's ducks with the publishing and television industries.  Also new patents have been coming to light that although they have been filed for a while add legitimacy to this rumor. Anyone following the CES shoe this month also can't help but notice how many tablet devices are pouring out from the competition. Seems like they are taking the market for the device seriously.

I expect the stock to climb above 250 a share once this announcement comes out bolstered by strong iphone sales and the inevitable new iteration of the device and massive expansion for their sales into China and abroad in new markets.

I envision an 11 inch screen tablet device with a camera in it that and a new itunes area specifically built around publishing print content and distribution services. Also the App store will bend to the tablet and users are going to be in for a whole new type of interaction with their applications and home computer. If you have a macbook and a iphone will you need a tablet? No, of course not. The tablet won't be doing anything revolutionary but what it will do it's going to do very very well.

Gizmodo


http://gizmodo.com/5434566/the-exhaustive-guide-to-apple-tablet-rumors?skyline=true&s=x

~T

HDMI HD Video passthrough with Blackmagic video cards

I've been looking into this passthrough card for my mac tower, The Black Magic Intensity.

- 2 HDMI and it's only $180. Seems like the most affordable option for HD video

http://www.blackmagic-design.com/products/intensity/

Vagrant Story Coming to PSN!

If you've never played Vagrant Story for the original Playstation you don't know what you're missing. The game is hard to describe since there has never really been a game quite like it before or since.

Destructoid just dropped the bomb that Sony is finally getting their act together and releasing it on PSN. Aside from a few notable titles on PS3 this is one of the first times I've actually felt inclined to get a PS3....ohhh sweetness check out the article here

Destructoid Spills the beans on Vagrant Story on PSN