Category: News

Steve Jobs’ original intention for Pixar

When Steve Jobs bought Pixar from Lucasfilm in 1986, he had no intention of doing animation – he wanted it to make high end computers. Imagine what a different world we’d be in if Pixar was a hardware manufacturer instead of a movie powerhouse…

Jobs focused Pixar almost exclusively on developing and selling the Pixar Image Computer (PIC), which debuted a mere three months after Jobs bought the company. (The product was in development beforehand, but Jobs shut down virtually every Pixar project but this one when he took over.)

The PIC was very clearly a Job-esque product, right down to its clean, gunmetal grey cubical design that is eerily reminiscent of the original NeXT PCs Jobs also developed. The PIC originally cost $170,000 when it debuted in 1987. Later versions of the PIC retailed for a mere $30,000, though that price could jump tenfold if you included the world’s first RAID system, which offered a then-radical 3GiB storage capacity. The intended markets for the device weren’t movie studios, but aerospace and medical organizations that relied on highly detailed 3D modelling.

To little surprise, the PIC was a total commercial flop, selling less than 500 units during its entire production life. Fortunately, the aforementioned John Lasseter developed a few promotional computer animations to demonstrate the power of the product. Principal among these was the famous Luxo Jr. short, which gave Pixar its mascot and wowed animation festival observers who saw it. This led to Pixar creating computer-animated commercials, which in turn led to a three-picture deal with Disney to produce some straight-to-video computer-animated movies.

The first of those films was a little classic called Toy Story, which proved too good not to put into theaters. The rest, as they say is, history. (Or, for bemused Apple critics who note that Pixar’s marketing arm outperformed its manufacturing division, history repeating itself.)

Gasp! Jessica Lowndes

Paul Wilson for the conservative media watchdog group Newsbusters is pretty upset over someone wishing they were gay:

Jessica Lowndes, an actress on the CW show ”90210,” is trying to break into the music world – by releasing a song where she ridiculously poses as a straight woman wishing she were gay.

Lowndes released a single with the catchy title ”I Wish I Was Gay,” about a woman reacting to being cheated on by her boyfriend. Lowdnes repeats the words ”I wish I was gay,” and expresses a desire to ”escape those boys.” The song also bizarrely suggests that lesbians are more faithful than straight guys, a claim even gay site Queerty mocked.

The music video features a provocatively dressed Lowndes teasing a man and flirting with her backup dancers before confronting him with his infidelity, shaving his legs and smearing his face with lipstick.

Lowndes’ single is part of a larger trend of gay themes being used in contemporary music. The Huffington Post notes that “gay themes are quickly becoming a ubiquitous element of contemporary pop music.”

Female musicians in particular are promoting homosexuality and bisexual behavior. Pop star Lady Gaga is notorious for her advocacy of homosexuality, and included homosexual themes in songs such as ”Born This Way.” Singer Katy Perry explored bisexual themes with her 2008 song ”I Kissed a Girl.” X Factor competitor Simone Battle recently released a song and music video titled “He Likes Boys,” which expressed a girl’s unrequited desire for gay guys.

While the trend of increasing homosexuality in pop songs is certainly worrisome, Lowndes’ latest propaganda effort would probably draw more of a following if her singing were competent. After listening to Lowndes’ lesbian fantasy, most listeners would probably echo the sentiments of one reviewer, who declared: ”I wish I was deaf.”

Noodle Ring tells you how much to make for how many are eating

Click the dial to how many people are eating and it shows you the amount of noodles to make???? What sorcery is this!? I must get one of these! I am constantly making the wrong amounts of spaghettizez…

Idk what I’m more fascinated by: the fact that theres a product sales place called JosephJoseph or that they sell this simple but wonderful item.

Plus, I really like the camera shutter slash futuristic electronic door opening. If I bought this product I would constantly look through it and pretend my spaghetti was James Bond while humming the tune and splashing tomato sauce on it at the appropriate musical cue. I also think it goes without saying that I’d have to to put my d#ck through it so I could see how many people it feeds. Naturally.


This innovative, compact spaghetti measure provides an adjustable portion guide for 1-4 servings. Simply slide the small lever around the side of the disc, opening the camera-style aperture to the required portion size. Made from high quality polypropylene, its available in a variety of colours.

You know it’s a UK product cuz of the way they spelled “colors”. Psh. Damn You K’ers for your superior noodle preparing technology…

UPDATE: It took me years into my adult life to work up the chemistry skills to boil water in order to make noodles so I havent made it to making my own rice at home yet, but I imagine the same problem would persist. So while I can’t claim I have this issue yet, the following is still lulzy. A viewer sent me this:

Frank Miller on Occupy: Spoiled Anarchist Babies

Dayum… This blog post by comic book legend Frank Miller pretty much nails it. Which means of course that his body of work, long respected by the masses will now suddenly become lame, uninspired, hacky, and a list of other bullshit history-revising adjectives that hippies use to smear people and their livlihood once they find out that they don’t agree with them politically on something – even one issue.

Everybody’s been too damn polite about this nonsense:

The “Occupy” movement, whether displaying itself on Wall Street or in the streets of Oakland (which has, with unspeakable cowardice, embraced it) is anything but an exercise of our blessed First Amendment. “Occupy” is nothing but a pack of louts, thieves, and rapists, an unruly mob, fed by Woodstock-era nostalgia and putrid false righteousness. These clowns can do nothing but harm America.

“Occupy” is nothing short of a clumsy, poorly-expressed attempt at anarchy, to the extent that the “movement” – HAH! Some “movement”, except if the word “bowel” is attached – is anything more than an ugly fashion statement by a bunch of iPhone, iPad wielding spoiled brats who should stop getting in the way of working people and find jobs for themselves.

This is no popular uprising. This is garbage. And goodness knows they’re spewing their garbage – both politically and physically – every which way they can find.

Wake up, pond scum. America is at war against a ruthless enemy.

Maybe, between bouts of self-pity and all the other tasty tidbits of narcissism you’ve been served up in your sheltered, comfy little worlds, you’ve heard terms like al-Qaeda and Islamicism.

And this enemy of mine — not of yours, apparently – must be getting a dark chuckle, if not an outright horselaugh – out of your vain, childish, self-destructive spectacle.

In the name of decency, go home to your parents, you losers. Go back to your mommas’ basements and play with your Lords Of Warcraft.

Or better yet, enlist for the real thing. Maybe our military could whip some of you into shape

They might not let you babies keep your iPhones, though. Try to soldier on.

Schmucks.

FM

The problem of course is that the few Occupiers (and most of its supporters) who are not pond scum criminals still aren’t bright enough to not get offended at someone like Miller calling out the pond scum criminals. The facts bear Miller out: there are rapes and crime and mass disorganization in the Occupy protests. Just because you support it’s Anarchists for Big Government brand of philosophy doesn’t mean the movement isn’t infested with vermin that is perfectly legitimate to call out.

As one of the commenters notes:

Only 14% of the 1% are actually financial institutions on Wall Street. The majority of the 1% are lawyers and doctors.
Do you know where the largest collection of lawyers in the U.S. is?
Washington DC
Do you know what the richest area in the US is?
Washington DC

I could get behind a movemnet if it truly was protesting the actual causes of this “income inequality” they speak about, but the fact is they should be protesting Washington DC, but then that would make Obama look bad now wouldn’t it?

The politician who has recived more money from Wall Street than any other politician?
Barack Obama

Look up the ties between General Electric, the largest corporation on the planet (besides the US Government) and Barack Obama.
G.E. paid no federal income taxes last year, why?

If these Occupy morons had any semblance of intelligence, they would be protesting Washington DC and Barack Obama, but they don’t beause they are simple tools of the DNC and their reelection strategy.

Seriously, 30 minutes on google and anyone can look this up, they should use their $400 iPhones to do so.

PR Daily agrees the Occupy movement is a PR disaster:

Dorothy Crenshaw, CEO and creative director of Crenshaw Communications, praised OWS’s canny cultivation of the media and public sympathy. Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s evacuation of Zuccotti Park seems to have strengthened the movement, she suggests. But she sees risks in the protesters’ tactics of shutting down streets and subway stations.

She adds: “If they start to disrupt the commute or work schedule of so-called ‘regular people’—part of that huge 99 percent who are just trying to get through the workday and earn a living—I think they risk losing the very group that should be most sympathetic.”

The movement’s PR efforts drew derision from Fraser P. Seitel, managing partner of Emerald Partners and author of The Practice of Public Relations. OWS, he says, has “botched an opportunity to capture public opinion and achieve something. Americans, by every measure, distrust the politicians who run Washington and lead major institutions. So public opinion was ripe for the plucking.”

However, the movement blew it by having no overriding purpose, stated goals, or visible leadership, he says, and it is increasingly perceived as a bunch of publicity-hungry complainers intent on disrupting others who are making a living.

“Occupy Wall Street is right about one thing,” he says. “The whole world is watching. And it’s generally repulsed by what it’s seen.”

It Pays (literally) to look good

A 20 year study shows that good looking people get paid more:

In his book Beauty Pays, published by Princeton University Press, he claims good looking people enjoyed perks beyond their pay – such as party invites, business travel and office privileges – while less attractive workers are overlooked and can often be victims of discrimination.

Attractive people are more likely to be happier, earn more money, get a bank loan (with a lower interest rate) and marry equally good looking partners.

As a result, attractive employees are more productive, leading to higher sales and potentially higher profit for themselves or the company they work for.

Less cut and dried is what constitutes attractiveness. Far from being merely in the eye of the beholder, Professor Hamermesh points to a few subconscious factors – such as the symmetry of the face, facial expression and popularity factors (if the person looks like someone popular or famous).

iOS Updates Australian Voice Recognition. Podcasts still play at half speed

This is the biggest fail I’ve ever experienced with Apple. This is Microsoft Windows level of wait time for something that desperately needs attention.

iOS 5 for the iPad plays audio books and podcasts at half the speed with no way to change it. You’re supposed to have half, normal and 2x options.

FINALLY an update was released. and it addressed a bunch of bullshit that isn’t nearly as important. Thanks for that..

College is a scam for many

High schools teach useless bullshit and colleges are expensive scams on top of scams. The following online documentary College Conspiracy walks you through step by step how and why the rise of college tuition has happened and why its a propaganda laden scam.

Whenever the government subsidizes anything the price of those goods and services rise dramatically. Why? Take the case of higher education and teachers Unions. The Unions know that since the tax payer is going to be guaranteeing the student loans they can keep raising the fees as high as they want. Everything in America has suffered in regards to wage and profit increases except for higher education which is exceeding all measurements of inflation.

It is a destructive collusion between the Public Teachers Union and Big Government that enables the cost of education to rise.

Big Government’s goal is to control as much of education as possible so as to indoctrinate our children into the moral relativism of their culture of death. Have you ever wondered why 90% of all Public School Teachers are Liberal Democrats?

Is college worth the 400% markup? The average student loan is $25,000.

Students graduating from college last year walked away with more than a diploma, they also left with a record level of student loan debt.

College seniors who took out loans to fund their college education owed an average of $25,250, 5% more than the class of 2009 owed, according to a report from the Institute for College Access & Success’ Project on Student Debt.

Thanks to rising tuition and the weak economy, students were forced to rely more heavily on loans to pay for their college education. If it weren’t for a significant increase in federal grant aid, however, the increase in student loan debt could have been even higher, the Project on Student Debt said.

“Most students in the Class of 2010 started college before the recent economic downturn, but the economy soured while they were still in school, widening the gap between rising college costs and what students and their parents could afford,” the report stated.