A Summer Of Movies I Am Looking Forward To
I’m quite a big film and TV person, I can often be found quoting random film quotes in any given sentence. Whilst I have stopped buying DVD’s (I already own over 400), I have been lucky enough to see many new films via the medium of the internet. With new releases come trailers for other films, a judging by some of the small clips on YouTube, we have some pretty decent films being released this summer.
Below are a few that will definitely get me into the cinema to view:
1. Funny People
IMDB Synopsis – George is a very successful stand up comedian who learns that he has an untreatable blood disorder and is given less than a year to live. Ira is a struggling up-and-coming stand up comedian who works at a deli and has yet to figure out his onstage persona. One night, these two perform at the same club and George takes notice of Ira. George hires Ira to be his semi-personal assistant as well as his friend.
2. The Brothers Bloom
IMDB Synopsis – The Brothers Bloom are the best con men in the world, swindling millionaires with complex scenarios of lust and intrigue. Now they’ve decided to take on one last job – showing a beautiful and eccentric heiress the time of her life with a romantic adventure that takes them around the world.
3. Public Enemies
IMDB Synopsis – The Feds try to take down notorious American gangsters John Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson and Pretty Boy Floyd during a booming crime wave in the 1930s.
Yes there are only three listed here, it would make the page load slower than a granny running a marathon if I listed any more. I also forgot to mention I am going to see Transformers on Saturday! I loved the first and will be sure to enjoy the sequel.
What do you make of the films? What do you want to see?
Why I Won’t Be Getting An iPhone 3GS…Yet
If you are an iPhone owner or someone who keeps their ear to the tech news ground, you will be aware that today is the day you can upgrade your iPhone or iPod Touch to run the iPhone 3.0 firmware. This update brings with it copy and paste, landscape keypad entry and a whole lot more. You don’t need anything to enjoy the update, plugging in your iPhone and firing up iTunes will do the job.
Whilst Apple is flaunting this new software, they are showcasing a new design of the iPhone, the subtly named iPhone 3GS (the “S” apparently being for “speed”). This model is apparently twice as fast than my existing 3G model and offers faster browsing speeds. Coupled with a compass application and video support, many have swapped in their old models, paid a £200 premium and plumped for the new and shiny device.
On top of the fact I can’t really afford to stump up the £200 for an upgrade, the feature set isn’t all that revolutionary. A lot of the applications that can be downloaded will be able to provide the features that the 3GS banks on but of course this is somewhat reliant on jailbreaking the device.
My current plan is one year into it’s contract, I am guessing that by the time this is eligible for an upgrade, the 3GS will be free to upgrade to, it will have had a good few firmware updates by that time meaning I will get a fast, fully functional phone without having to shell out a penny.
Sometime, I guess, it pays to wait.
My Samsung NC-10 Netbook
Last week I decided to invest in a new laptop, mainly because the screen on the one I already has was swinging by it’s hinges. The decision, as with any electronic device I buy, was never going to be an easy one. The first question I set myself was, can I justify purchasing a Macbook? Then after that, was whether I should go for the all out powerhouse or get something that is portable and can boast exceptional battery life.
The post title says it all really, I went the route of battery life and portability, taking the plunge into the netbook market and getting a Samsung NC-10. These models are really quite cheap but now tend to offer a very clever set of credentials. My netbook comes with an Intel Atom 1.6Ghz processor, 2GB RAM (standard is 1GB), 160GB Hard Drive, Integrated Webcam and Microphone with a Windows XP installation. With all this, I am able to exactly what I need to; surf the web, write emails and also update this blog.
Perhaps the best feature of the NC-10 is that is offers on average 6 hours battery life. My previous laptop at best could muster a paltry hour without charge, something that has seen me carry my laptop everywhere I go just because I can.
For those of you who have expressed an interest in this make and model of netbook, please see this as a wholehearted testimonial, for the money it’s hands down one of the top purchases I have made in a long time. Katie is so impressed, she has lined up the pink version for her next laptop replacement.
Tropical Wings
The sun was out, we were well rested, all we needed to do was to think of something that we could do allow us to continue enjoying the beautiful weather. Showers were taken, clothes were quickly put on and the decision was made to make a 3 mile pilgrimage to the World of Wildlife; Tropical Wings. For those not in the know, Tropical Wings is one of the UK’s largest tropical butterfly houses, that also keeps wallabies, lemurs, meerkats and a large collection of birds and insects.
We walked around the various enclosures, taking photos when we could. We spent a good few minutes talking to a Myna Bird who was intent on saying “Oh Wow!!” every few seconds. As we moved on, we looked at Kookaburra’s, Bird’s of Prey and monkeys.
One of our particular favourites was the Otter enclosure, where a family of Otter’s were taking turns at dunking their family member under the water. This was next to the Meerkat pen where Alexander Orlov and his folk were digging holes and looking out for any potential danger.
We spent roughly over an hour at Tropical Wings, leaving to grab a spot of lunch at one of our favourite local restaurants; The Old Windmill, in South Hanningfield. After that, it was a short trip to the supermarket for the necessities and then home to enjoy the sun on our sun loungers in the garden.
Steps were taken to minimise burning and on the whole we did well except I may have the beginning of a burnt snozzle. If you wish to view some of the pictures from our day out, they are embedded below for your viewing pleasure.
Surround Sound
The lack of updates can simply be put down to the fact I have been completely immersed in Dolby Pro Logic II goodness courtesy of my new Samsung Cinema System.
I had taken payment for various projects I had been associated with and most of it was sitting pretty in my PayPal account. With that in mind and the notion that I would be able to find exactly what I was after, it was a simple journey to eBay to find a system that would be able to interface with my Sky+ box, my Xbox 360 and whatever fantastic device I would want to throw at it in the coming months.
My search was simple, the cinema system had to have at least one Optical Input. This little connection allows all of my devices to send over 5.1 goodness from my games, films and TV shows.
Whilst it was easy to find the systems with the input I wanted, I wanted to have the “Tallboy” speakers so they would not need mounting and they would project sound from behind my sofas. After a few hours of searching, I found what I thought maybe the ideal product and waited for the closing time so I could make a well aimed and timely bid. Because eBay doesn’t have the best review system for the electronics, I always default to what TestFreaks to see what the Average Joe has to say about products I intend to buy. Because they have user reviews (the cinema system coming in at an average of 8.9 out of 10) and in most cases a “Freak Grade”, you are able to get a real idea of whether what you are buying is worth the money or not. In my case, a review of 8.9 was enough to seal the deal, if you look to the right, I won the auction and the system I invested in can be seen in all it’s glory.
Other than that, life moves on ever faster. At work my workload gets every greater yet the size of our team gets smaller, since one of my co-workers became pregnant, our office sits at a lowly figure of 6. When I first started, there were 11 people, most of them useless but it shows what the average business is dealing with currently.
My ankle has healed quite nicely but it is still achy, mainly from having it cast at such an obscure angle. I’ve found small runs are easing the tenderness but other remedies such as Bavarian Root, Ground Cat Hair and an obscene amount of Calpol have also helped.
The weather has been simply stunning, allowing the average British citizen to go topless and turn a beetroot red. Katie and I used the lovely weather to our advantage and enjoyed our first BBQ in our new house, carefully cooking the meat using a gas canister that was lacking it’s main constituent.
And as Summer continues to come upon us, it’s soon to be eleven months since Katie and I got married and my search for a paper wedding anniversary present starts. If anyone can usher me in the right direction, I would be in your debt.