new dad, loving husband, enjoys photography, technology, movies, etc.
{ Monthly Archives }
David Hobby released eight DVDs of Strobist lighting know-how yesterday. Having been to the his Phoenix workshop I couldn’t resist. I ordered mine as soon as I found out. If you have any interest in photography beyond the point-and-shoot, seriously consider this set. It’s cheaper than one of his workshops and contains far more information than just a workshop. Check out Duncan Davidson’s write-up on the DVD set for more information.
Heard this on TWiT. The Godfather Trilogy is getting the treatment and being restored to 4k. And, 4k is four times the resolution of 1080p HD video. That’s plenty of resolution to spare for a Blu-ray release.
For all three films, there are now new 4K preservation negatives, separation masters from which new printing elements can be derived, and backup data tapes.
Looks like I’ll be using SmugMug for video of our new little girl. Thanks to a recent flash update, they now offer H.264 up to 1280×720p. Now I just have to buy the camcorder.
I have to admit, I was a little bummed at the news that Ars Technica was being purchased by Condé Nast Publications. I’m a fan of Ars and read it nearly daily. That said, once I read the NYTimes piece about the deal, I was at ease about the whole thing.
After talking to people at Wired.com and Reddit, he and his partners decided that the Condé Nast way left them the best chance of developing what had been a hobby on steroids into a business.
Then I skimmed Ars Technica’s article on the topic, which made me really happy for them. Emphasis theirs.
Ars Technica will now grow with the tools and resources of Condé Nast’s WIRED Digital unit. WIRED Digital oversees the business operations of not only WIRED.com, but also Reddit, WebMonkey, HotWired, and other technology destinations. Ars Technica will remain an independent publication, with the same editorial leadership in place.
Good luck to the Ars Technica team.
Some interesting things have been going on around the web this week.
Wired (Conde Nast) bought Ars Technica (which rocks btw).
The NYTimes wrote up Yelp, a site that I really dig (my Yelp reviews).
Google Reader just got better for the iPhone.
Grand Theft Auto IV broke a bunch of records, including Guinness World Records’ Highest Revenue Generated by an Entertainment Product in 24 Hours. Booya! It sold 3.6 million units for $310 million in that time. That’s nuts.
Nintendo Wii continues to outsell every other game system available.
Mahalo has a free GTA4 walkthrough with video I can’t seem to get to play despite folowing the instructions at the top of the page.
And finally, here’s a review that only gives GTA4 an A-. I’m guessing this rating is more fitting. Playing through the first 20% I wouldn’t call it a perfect 10. It close, but again, it isn’t perfect. I’m hoping to get a chance to read it soon, but I’m a little busy these days. 
Well, the big news item of my life is, I’m a Dad! Jenny gave birth to our baby daughter on 5/13. If you haven’t been following along on her blog, you should. It’s also where I’ve been spending most of my blogging time lately. So, go check it out.
Enjoy!
CNN has an Oprah.com article up about parents creating children who value material things more the people (or tomorrow’s CEOs) (Mom’s gift to kids: ‘No!’). Being an Oprah piece it was geared towards Moms, but this applies just as much to Dads. The piece also assumes the type of parents who care about their kids and want to do what’s right. Unfortunately, there are people with children who just aren’t capable of being parents. This article isn’t for them.
Parents, Rabbi Shmuley says, need to realize that discipline is love. “‘No’ is just as loving as saying ‘yes,’” he says.
The article focuses on why parents don’t say “no” and why they spoil their kids with gifts. Some parents are too tired (or lazy) to discipline their children. Or they may feel guilty about not spending enough quality time with them, so they make up for it with gifts.
Dr. Robin Smith says Rebecca is trying to make up for her perceived inadequacy as a single working mom by showering Brandon and Stephanie with gifts. This places so much emphasis on material goods that the children are learning to define themselves by material things.
By discipline I’ll assume he means setting rules & boundaries, saying no when those are broken, and being consistent with the follow through. As a parent-to-be I’ve heard this is tough. The more rules you set, the harder it is to enforce them all the time, and the more time you’ll spend disciplining your children. The soundest advice I’ve heard on the matter is to pick a few rules & boundaries that you think are the most important and enforce those consistently.
Thoughts? Feel free to share them in the comments.
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