Jupiter Ascending (2015)

Jupiter Ascending

Despite the number of negative reviews from critics and poor box office performance is sure to become a cult classic.  The main reason I chose this film is because it is written, directed and produced by the Wachowski's that directed and wrote The Matrix and it's sequels.

The first 30 minutes or so are confusing, starting with a flashback to the circumstances of the main character's birth, before showing the present, where Jupiter Jones (Mila Kunis) is working as a cleaner in a hotel.  The plot jarringly jumps to the planet Jupiter without explanation with characters plotting.  The visuals are great, as are the alien characters such as the dragon-like henchmen.

The 'henchmen'

With some impressive CGI and live-actions mash-ups, sometimes the film suffers from information overload as there is so  much going on in some exterior (and some interior) shots.Despite this it is fun, and definitely worth a watch.

See the trailer here:

Watching TV Online with Chromebook

This list is deprecated now as most (if not all) video services can be used on a Chromebook.

One of the things you might want to know when getting a Chromebook is which streaming video sites you can use.

Below I am keeping a list.  Please let me know if you find any more that do / do not.

NETFLIX        YES  
LOVEFILM       NO   UK ONLY
BBC IPLAYER    YES  UK ONLY
ITV PLAYER     YES  UK ONLY
4OD            YES  UK ONLY
DEMAND 5       YES  UK ONLY
SKY GO         NO   UK ONLY
NOW TV         NO   UK ONLY
HULU           

This is not an exhaustive list.  I will update if anything changes.

Google Docs most needed feature?

This is now available on Google Docs

I added a word to my custom dictionary whilst using Google Docs accidentally.  Guess what?  From what I can tell, you can not edit the custom dictionary to remove words that you have added by accident.

This is a really big problem when Google Docs is being used for academic work (such as when I use it for my Open University TMAs).

Imagine running a spell check and it coming up without errors, but you have previously added an incorrect word to the dictionary - it is likely that you would type this word incorrectly again too.

Google, please get your act together and sort out a way of doing this.  I may have to move back to Libre Office on my Ubuntu machine until this is sorted out - although I would rather use my Chromebook!

Make your own 3D passive gaming glasses

If you have a 3D TV with gaming mode, you can set the TV to show 2-player games full-screen.  That is, player one will see only their section full screen, and player 2 the same.  Unfortunately, it means buying extra glasses for ~£30 each.

However, if you have a passive 3D TV, you can make your own glasses.  Simply buy some cheap (around £1 each from the cinema) passive 3D glasses.  You can now remove the LEFT lens from one and the RIGHT lens from the other, and put the lenses back in the other pair, so you have one air with two LEFT and one pair with two RIGHT lenses,

Now when you initiate the 2-player gaming mode, player one wears the glasses with the two LEFT lenses and player two wears the glasses with TWO right lenses.

Tried on a passive Phlips 47PFL6907T/12 television.  Please let me know in the comments if it works for you and what TV you tried it with.

Chromebook Shortcut

By Simon King

I just find a brilliant shortcut on a Chromebook.  If you go to:

chrome://flags/

in the browser.  look for "enable three finger tap as middle mouse button".  Now when you are browsing a website and want to open a page in another tab, just tap three of your fingers on to the track pad.

Searching PDFs

I just found an easier way to search through multiple PDF files on Windows using Adobe Reader.

This is especially useful when I am doing an End of Module assignment on my Science course where I have to use multiple books to answer questions.

Start by making sure that all of the PDF files that you want to search are in a separate folder/directory.

Now open up one of them.

Go to Edit -> Advanced Search

Now select "All PDF Documents in" then click on "Browse for Location..." and search for the folder where the files are.

Now type the word or phrase that you are looking for and then click "Search".

You will then see a list of results.  Click on the different files (books) and then it wil show you a list of all the instances in that book.  If you click on any of the results, the book is then opened up in that location.

Kindle prices!

I  was just looking at reading the Ladies No.1 Detective agency series on my Kindle but couldn't believe the price.  It costs £4.99 on Kindle or £3.99 for a paperback - with free delivery.

Is it just me, or is this taking the piss?  I know it isn't Amazon's fault, but the publisher's, as they set the price.

Didn't they learn anything from the illegal downloading of music?  People will download illegally if you don't give them an easy and reasonably priced download service.  Music is available through iTunes and Amazon as well as many others and is reasonably priced compared to CDs - and now people use these services to purchase from.

The same thing is happening with movies - although perhaps starting to get better with streaming movie services such as LoveFilm.

Digital books are so much easier to pirate - they are tiny files, much less than 1mb - although I won't download these books illegally myself, you can imagine why people will and do.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/No-Ladies-Detective-Agency/dp/034911675X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1324321125&sr=8-1

Email to Sony Playstation.

Hello

To whoever it may concern.  I am no longer going to be a customer of Sony but I wanted to at least let you know why.  I hope this email gets to somebody who actually cares that I will no longer be a customer.

Either way,  I have always been a huge fan of Sony, being one of the first people to not only buy new hardware but also peripherals for my PS 1,2,3, PSP and would have been soon to purchase Vita.

Even after the hacking earlier this year I was beginning to forgive Sony for the downtime and losing my data (even though I believed the "compensation" to be insulting).

What has really disappointed me is the decision to only allow DLC to be used on two devices.  Having a PSP and a PS3 and then was son going to buy Vita, and probably a Xpreia Play I wouldn't be allowed to share content with all of these devices.

You seem to be going after people pirating, which is of course a good thing, but then are making it so darn hard to buy content legally that I am just going to give up with gaming on my PS3 completely.  I am seriously considering buying an X-Box or even not bother gaming anymore.

Of course you've done the calculations and it is probably cheaper to annoy some games, but then be able to sell more content to other people that it is worth it, but I am no longer prepared to be in this ecosystem.

I do not expect a reply.  However, if you do reply please do not send an automated response.  If a person isn't going to reply I would rather you didn't bother replying at all.

Disappointed.

Simon King. (PSN id Mozart321)

Children of Men

I watched Children of Men mainly (just) because I had heard from Wikipedia that it was filmed partly in Woolwich.

For the first twenty minutes or so it was a bit of a struggle but after that it started getting very good.

This is a film set in the near future,18 years since the last woman to carry a baby to term.

I loved some of the action set-pieces which were made to look like they were filmed in one shot, from a single camera.  However, I have since read that it is mainly a camera trick and edited footage.  However, it is still very impressive.

Setting up Ubuntu 10.10 Netbook Remix on NC10

I have tried various flavours of Linux in the past including some previous Ubuntu release.  However, I have never been honestly ready to ditch Windows.

This has now changed with Ubuntu 10.10 netbook remix.  It is still not perfect by any means. Fox example, setting up the brightness controls was a bit of a pain, but with a bit of jiggery pokery got it working OK.

There was no problem with the wifi drivers, which I expected to go wrong.

I plugged in my 3G (Huawei E160e) broadband dongle from Orange and it worked 'straight out of the box'.

The next thing I did was think about which programs I use mostly on Windows and decided to see if I can find Linux versions of them.  The following is a list of my findings:

Google Chrome:  Available on Ubuntu, appears to be more or less the same as the Windows version.
Tweet Deck:  Again, no real problems getting it to run
Microsoft Office:  - I decided to go with OpenOffice.Org (which comes as a default anyway).  I have used OpenOffice.Org on Windows before many times - and frankly is easier to use than the Office 2007 I was using with the bizarre lack of menus.
Thunderbird: I just used the installer application to install Thunderbird for my email, and again it is very similiar to the Windows version.

Next I need to try and find myself some decent web editing software.  I currently use Microsoft Expression as I get it free as part of the DreamSpark student deals.  I think Kompozer currently looks like the best bet - unless someone can advise me otherwise?

Richard Herring's How Not to Grow Up

I read Richard Herring's latest e-book on my Kindle when I went on holiday at Christmas.
I have enjoyed listening to his various podcasts for the last few years.  The only disappointment is that Andrew Collins wasn't even mentioned!
As you would expect the book is very funny - but also appears to be very honest and in some ways has far too much honesty!
You can get the first chapter for free from Amazon.

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure of The Speckled Band

This story is very good.   Holmes and Watson are visited by a woman who suspects that her step-father killed her sister but with no apparent evidence.  Holmes, however, always finds some.

You can read the story on either of the sites below:

Download from Gutenberg (free)
Download from Amazon (free)

Doctor Who's Anniversary 47th 23/11/2010

Tomorrow is Doctor Who's 47th anniversary of the first episode.
In honour of this I went to my brother's house where we enjoyed watching the first episode as a celebration.
And what an episode it is. One of the best episodes of the program still after all of this time.
When watching it we couldn't help but desperately wanting Ian to come back.  If not now, then certainly for the 50th anniversary.  Barbara and Ian still among the best companions ever.
Strange how neither of us voted for Susan though...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jaec2_3shv0

DS9: Favo(u)r the Bold / Sacrifice of Angels

DS9 is one of the best sci-fi series' of all time.
I am enjoying re-watching the series, for the first time since the original airing.  This episode aired 13 years ago.  Needless to say, I didn't remember any of it from the first time around.

These 2 episodes are the last of a six part story during the programs' sixth series., and regards the retaking of deep space nine by Sisko and 600 Federation starships against several thousand Dominion/Cardassian ships.
Just before going in to battle, Julian and O'Brien recite the third part of "The Charge of the Light Brigade" by Lord Tennyson.  Garak asks how the poem ends, and is told "You dont want to know."  I have reproduced the whole poem below so that you can see why.

Odo's relationship with the "female" changeling is never more annoying.  Odo is so obviously being manipulated and he knows it and I don't buy that his character would fall for it.

However, Garak's relationship with Ziyal is sweet.  Especially in the closing chapter of the episode When Ziyal... erm... Look at the title of the second episode.

The Charge of the Light Brigade

Lord Tennyson

1. Half a league, half a league,  Half a league onward, All in the valley of Death  Rode the six hundred. "Forward, the Light Brigade! "Charge for the guns!" he said: Into the valley of Death  Rode the six hundred. 2. "Forward, the Light Brigade!" Was there a man dismay'd? Not tho' the soldier knew  Someone had blunder'd: Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die: Into the valley of Death  Rode the six hundred. 3. Cannon to right of them, Cannon to left of them, Cannon in front of them  Volley'd and thunder'd; Storm'd at with shot and shell, Boldly they rode and well, Into the jaws of Death, Into the mouth of Hell  Rode the six hundred. 4. Flash'd all their sabres bare, Flash'd as they turn'd in air, Sabring the gunners there, Charging an army, while  All the world wonder'd: Plunged in the battery-smoke Right thro' the line they broke; Cossack and Russian Reel'd from the sabre stroke  Shatter'd and sunder'd. Then they rode back, but not  Not the six hundred. 5. Cannon to right of them, Cannon to left of them, Cannon behind them  Volley'd and thunder'd; Storm'd at with shot and shell, While horse and hero fell, They that had fought so well Came thro' the jaws of Death Back from the mouth of Hell, All that was left of them,  Left of six hundred. 6. When can their glory fade? O the wild charge they made!  All the world wondered. Honor the charge they made, Honor the Light Brigade,  Noble six hundred.

Free Kindle Books (classics)

I recently got a Kindle 3G and love it.

If you, like me, are disappointed with the selection of free classics books directly from Amazon, use the Kindle browser to go to m.gutenberg.com

Here you can browser the many (free) titles available which have been translated by volunteers and download directly to your Kindle by clicking the relevant link!

If you want to legally download free George Orwell books for Kindle, follow this link if you live in Australia.  If you live anywhere else in the world you will have to buy them from Amazon or wait util the copyright is exhausted.

Copying from DVD to IPod?

I wanted to back up all my (sad I'm sure) Doctor Who DVD's to my iPod so I could watch them during my lunch break at work.  This is what I used: (on Windows 7 professional)

HANDBRAKE
DVD43 (as in DVD for free)

PLEASE do not use this for copying DVDs that you do not own.  I do not know the legal stance of backing up your own DVDs on to iPod to watch but cannot imagine anybody taking anybody else to court for doing so.  Why should you buy another copy of content you already own - it might  not even be available on iTunes.  If anybody knows differently (from a UK perspective) please let me know and I will change this post.

STEP ONE
Download a nd install the two above programs.(obviously)

STEP TWO
Make sure DVD43 is running (it should run in your task bar automatically - you should see a yellow face if it is)

STEP THREE
Put your DVD in the drive and the face should turn in to a yellow devil face while it is.. ahem.. working and then should turn into a green smiley face when ready.

STEP FOUR
Now run Handbrake and select the drive with the DVD in under "SOURCE"

STEP FIVE
Select the iPod preset on the right hand side of the screen

STEP SIX
Go to title and select the one for the correct length of the video you are converting - my series 27 Doctor Who DVDs show as around 44/45 minutes each and are usually in broadcast order on the DVDs.  When you have selected the first episode click the "add to queue" button and then do the same for each subsequent episode. [If it were a film you would just choose the longest title usually]

STEP SEVEN
Now press the START button.  It may take some time but when Handbrake is finished the titles should appear on your desktop for you to drag in to iTunes and Sync

Please let me know if this is helpful.  It is the first blog post I have written.

Thanks