I had the most amazing theater experience yesterday, it will be unrivaled for a while I think.
Yesterday, I went to Lincoln Square Cinemas, a very good theater in Bellevue, Washington. I was with my friend Cam and we had some time to kill, so we decided to go to the movies. 3 of them, to be exact. Now the first two weren't cinematic masterpieces, but they were still good, they were 'Sunshine Cleaning and 'Taken'. The last one, 'I Love You, Man' was a masterpiece though. I thought it was great and if you want a review from me you can find it at www.whitworthian.com, it will be up in about a week or so.
The movies were great, but I was hit with a cinematic twist: Lincoln Square has gone High-Def. That's right, there are no longer film projectors there, it's all digital, high definition. This is a huge improvement to the movie going experience. The cinematic experience now once again trumps any home theater, thanks to its crystal clear, high definition projections on giant screens. This means that there will be minimal projection problems at all. It will be consistently clean and clear of any sort of film deterioration. It also means that you won't see any "Cigarette Burns" in the corner of frames before a reel needs to be changed. I'm a little sad that it doesn’t feel like Film any more, we really can't even say we're going out for a film any more, really we're going out for a Digital High Definition Presentation. Doesn't really roll of the tongue any more. But either way it does look amazing, and hopefully people can find the shekels to participate in the film community and enjoy a good film.
On that note I would like to say that seeing a movie is really best in a room crammed with people. 'I Love You, Man' was in a sold out screen, it was packed full of people ready for a good film. And boy did they have a good time. The movie was hilarious and tasteful, the audience truly appreciated it. There was an energy in the room that really made the night memorable. I felt a connection between all of us, with the sole intention of seeing a great comedy. And it was easily a successful night, for the film, the theater, and us, the audience.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Oh Life...
It's funny, how your perspective on life can change quickly.
This blog post is about how I might change my major, and how my outlook on my future has drastically changed in a about a week's time.
I was having a nice conversation with one of my friends at the gloriousness that is Diddiers about a week ago and we were talking about what I was passionate about. For awhile now I have been concentrating my studies on theology because it is something that I have been curious and interested in for quite some time now. I have definitely learned a lot since I started college but that night I really pondered about what I was going to do with what I was learning. And I realized, I don't want to do anything that comes with a theology major. I don't want to be a pastor of any flavor, I don't want to go into any ministry. Not that I don't think it's important, I just don't feel like being an evangelistic, fellowship leading person. I discovered the theology I was learning was really for my own sake, things that I wanted to learn, just for my own satisfaction. And I saw that I really have gotten a good fill of theology. So I took a critical look at what I was doing here at Whitworth, and I did a course correction, literally.
First of all, I dropped Hebrew. Were at the point now in class where we are really criticizing the text and being very technical about the translation of the Biblical Hebrew, which for me was too much and was something I did not want. I've found that in my studies that Theology was turning into something technical, something that it should never be.
Now, I am looking into what other things I have a passion for. And something I have a day in, day out passion for is the arts. I love books, movies, music and art. So I'm looking into pursuing a major in English now. I'm still not sure if I will, but it looks promising. I never thought I would be a person who would change their major, but here I am. I don't know exactly how this is all going to pan out for me, but I think that is the exciting part. I think my favorite part about all of this is that there is something new in my life that I know God will guide me through. I have something huge in my life that I can only get through sanely with my faith in God. The times certainly are exciting, here in good ol' Spokane.
This blog post is about how I might change my major, and how my outlook on my future has drastically changed in a about a week's time.
I was having a nice conversation with one of my friends at the gloriousness that is Diddiers about a week ago and we were talking about what I was passionate about. For awhile now I have been concentrating my studies on theology because it is something that I have been curious and interested in for quite some time now. I have definitely learned a lot since I started college but that night I really pondered about what I was going to do with what I was learning. And I realized, I don't want to do anything that comes with a theology major. I don't want to be a pastor of any flavor, I don't want to go into any ministry. Not that I don't think it's important, I just don't feel like being an evangelistic, fellowship leading person. I discovered the theology I was learning was really for my own sake, things that I wanted to learn, just for my own satisfaction. And I saw that I really have gotten a good fill of theology. So I took a critical look at what I was doing here at Whitworth, and I did a course correction, literally.
First of all, I dropped Hebrew. Were at the point now in class where we are really criticizing the text and being very technical about the translation of the Biblical Hebrew, which for me was too much and was something I did not want. I've found that in my studies that Theology was turning into something technical, something that it should never be.
Now, I am looking into what other things I have a passion for. And something I have a day in, day out passion for is the arts. I love books, movies, music and art. So I'm looking into pursuing a major in English now. I'm still not sure if I will, but it looks promising. I never thought I would be a person who would change their major, but here I am. I don't know exactly how this is all going to pan out for me, but I think that is the exciting part. I think my favorite part about all of this is that there is something new in my life that I know God will guide me through. I have something huge in my life that I can only get through sanely with my faith in God. The times certainly are exciting, here in good ol' Spokane.
Friday, January 23, 2009
Ultimate Showdown: iTunes VS. Zune
Ok, the gloves are off, I'm going after iTunes once and for all. Too many people think that it is the bee's knees and it is my duty as a pseudo-audiophile and overall Windows defender to proclaim that the Zune software is much better. Get over iTunes, come to Zune. Lose the zero and get with the hero.
iTunes is an inefficient music manager in comparison to the Zune software. If your using a Mac then this entire argument is irrelevant because your not on an OS with the capability for Zune. But to all of you Windows users, I want to educate you.
I will show all the features that Zune triumphs in over iTunes.
1. Album info retrieval
iTunes will only grab full details of an Album if it has an Internet connection at the same time it is ripping a CD for you. If you don't have a connection during a rip, you can only manually update the album info. The album art it grabs might be very low resolution and could look terrible on your computer. Zune will grab the album info any time it sees that the album info is insufficient. For all the albums I have ripped, I have never manually typed any info, or personally looked on the Internet for album art. iTunes sometimes doesn't even have the album art so you will be stuck to look for it on your own. It is a very painful and boring process.
2. Zune Social
A part of Zune's software is Social, where you can have other friends, and see what music they listen to. You can also make new friends that have similar music interests as you. When you play a popular band it will give you an artistic display of the band as a screensaver and show you statistics of how popular it is among the Zune community, it will show you most popular song, how many times the band has been played that day and so on. If you have a Windows Live ID (The same one you use for Xbox Live, Windows Messenger or Hotmail) then any other Zune users that are your friends in that list of programs are automatically added to your friends list in Social. If you use Windows Live Messenger, when playing a song it can show to everyone on Messenger what you are listening to. iTunes literally has nothing that can do this.
Mixview
Mixview allows you to view an Artist, and it will show you in an ascetically pleasing manner the bands that have influenced that band, or bands that have been influenced. It will show you the top listener of that artist in that Zune community. iTunes has a similar feature called Genius, but it isn't as comprehensive as Zune, and when I tried to test it, iTunes kept on crashing on me.
Organization
The organization on the Zune software is streamlined for complete efficiency. By comparison, iTunes is a clunkier jukebox. Zune will organize your music by Artist, Album, and Song, just like iTunes. But when you go to a certain artist, it will show all the albums for that artists, using the cover art to organize it, something iTunes can't do. When you are looking at a particular artist, you can see in your social what other friends of yours that also listens to that artist, something iTunes is incapable of doing.
There are weaknesses of the Zune in comparison to iTunes, but these weaknesses are irrelevant due to what they are.
Store
iTunes has a much stronger market for digital downloading. However, both stores pale in comparison to a CD's quality AND versatility.
Radio
Zune offers no Internet radio stations, where iTunes does. But if you enjoy good quality music, listening to these stations will not satisfy you because they are not at a lossless quality like CDs are.
There you have it, Zune is by far the better music jukebox and if anyone thinks other wise I encourage them to show me why.
iTunes is an inefficient music manager in comparison to the Zune software. If your using a Mac then this entire argument is irrelevant because your not on an OS with the capability for Zune. But to all of you Windows users, I want to educate you.
I will show all the features that Zune triumphs in over iTunes.
1. Album info retrieval
iTunes will only grab full details of an Album if it has an Internet connection at the same time it is ripping a CD for you. If you don't have a connection during a rip, you can only manually update the album info. The album art it grabs might be very low resolution and could look terrible on your computer. Zune will grab the album info any time it sees that the album info is insufficient. For all the albums I have ripped, I have never manually typed any info, or personally looked on the Internet for album art. iTunes sometimes doesn't even have the album art so you will be stuck to look for it on your own. It is a very painful and boring process.
2. Zune Social
A part of Zune's software is Social, where you can have other friends, and see what music they listen to. You can also make new friends that have similar music interests as you. When you play a popular band it will give you an artistic display of the band as a screensaver and show you statistics of how popular it is among the Zune community, it will show you most popular song, how many times the band has been played that day and so on. If you have a Windows Live ID (The same one you use for Xbox Live, Windows Messenger or Hotmail) then any other Zune users that are your friends in that list of programs are automatically added to your friends list in Social. If you use Windows Live Messenger, when playing a song it can show to everyone on Messenger what you are listening to. iTunes literally has nothing that can do this.
Mixview
Mixview allows you to view an Artist, and it will show you in an ascetically pleasing manner the bands that have influenced that band, or bands that have been influenced. It will show you the top listener of that artist in that Zune community. iTunes has a similar feature called Genius, but it isn't as comprehensive as Zune, and when I tried to test it, iTunes kept on crashing on me.
Organization
The organization on the Zune software is streamlined for complete efficiency. By comparison, iTunes is a clunkier jukebox. Zune will organize your music by Artist, Album, and Song, just like iTunes. But when you go to a certain artist, it will show all the albums for that artists, using the cover art to organize it, something iTunes can't do. When you are looking at a particular artist, you can see in your social what other friends of yours that also listens to that artist, something iTunes is incapable of doing.
There are weaknesses of the Zune in comparison to iTunes, but these weaknesses are irrelevant due to what they are.
Store
iTunes has a much stronger market for digital downloading. However, both stores pale in comparison to a CD's quality AND versatility.
Radio
Zune offers no Internet radio stations, where iTunes does. But if you enjoy good quality music, listening to these stations will not satisfy you because they are not at a lossless quality like CDs are.
There you have it, Zune is by far the better music jukebox and if anyone thinks other wise I encourage them to show me why.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Steven Sigberg
I just watched Schindler's List for the first time tonight. So in honor of a wonderful movie, I would like to point out, once again that
Steven Spielberg is the greatest director of all time.
And let me just make an addendum as to why I think that.
He makes films that become the mother of all films that are in that categorical class of movie. For example, I am willing to say that Schindler's List is the mother of all Holocaust movies. Not to say that all Holocaust films stem from this one, but this is the best Holocaust movie that has been made. Now granted that is arguable. But from what I've seen, this is by far the best one that has been made.
Let's go through his career and see what else he has done.
1. Jaws
Mother of all Shark movies. Considering the competition (Deep Blue Sea, Jaws sequels) this should be a no brainer.
2. Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Ok, not quite the mother of all Sci-Fi films, but you have to admit that this film really goes against the curve of most films, and at the end you know you liked it but you just can't say what about it you liked, which is the beauty of a sci-fi.
3. Indiana Jones Trilogy (4th one too if your not the most picky moviegoer in history)
These movies are just pure fun. They are adventurous and thrilling and at the end you always want more, making them the best adventure films.
4. E.T.
The mother of all family films. I believe this to be the best example of Spielberg's genre defining films. I don't think any other movie can pose a threat to this one, easily the greatest family film of all time.
5. Saving Private Ryan
There are a lot of war films out there. But if you tell me that after the first 15 minutes that you aren't impressed then, I don't really know what I would say back to you. Because I believe it to be the best war sequence out there. And as for best War film ever? I don't know if I can say that I've found it because there are A LOT of war movies out there. But this one definitely gives the others a run for their money.
Another thing I like about Spielberg is his coverage of a subject or genre. He's covered man eating creatures several times (Jaws, Jurassic Park, The Lost World, those ants in Indy 4) He's done POW films (Schindler's List in the west, Empire of the Sun in the East) He's done sci-fi (Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T. Minority Report, AI, War of the Worlds)
I just can't get over saying it. I love the work of Steven Spielberg and his work will always impress me
Steven Spielberg is the greatest director of all time.
And let me just make an addendum as to why I think that.
He makes films that become the mother of all films that are in that categorical class of movie. For example, I am willing to say that Schindler's List is the mother of all Holocaust movies. Not to say that all Holocaust films stem from this one, but this is the best Holocaust movie that has been made. Now granted that is arguable. But from what I've seen, this is by far the best one that has been made.
Let's go through his career and see what else he has done.
1. Jaws
Mother of all Shark movies. Considering the competition (Deep Blue Sea, Jaws sequels) this should be a no brainer.
2. Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Ok, not quite the mother of all Sci-Fi films, but you have to admit that this film really goes against the curve of most films, and at the end you know you liked it but you just can't say what about it you liked, which is the beauty of a sci-fi.
3. Indiana Jones Trilogy (4th one too if your not the most picky moviegoer in history)
These movies are just pure fun. They are adventurous and thrilling and at the end you always want more, making them the best adventure films.
4. E.T.
The mother of all family films. I believe this to be the best example of Spielberg's genre defining films. I don't think any other movie can pose a threat to this one, easily the greatest family film of all time.
5. Saving Private Ryan
There are a lot of war films out there. But if you tell me that after the first 15 minutes that you aren't impressed then, I don't really know what I would say back to you. Because I believe it to be the best war sequence out there. And as for best War film ever? I don't know if I can say that I've found it because there are A LOT of war movies out there. But this one definitely gives the others a run for their money.
Another thing I like about Spielberg is his coverage of a subject or genre. He's covered man eating creatures several times (Jaws, Jurassic Park, The Lost World, those ants in Indy 4) He's done POW films (Schindler's List in the west, Empire of the Sun in the East) He's done sci-fi (Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T. Minority Report, AI, War of the Worlds)
I just can't get over saying it. I love the work of Steven Spielberg and his work will always impress me
Monday, December 29, 2008
Things that are bugging me...
I'm a Beatles fan, who isn't? I even enjoy all four Beatles' solo careers. To have a favorite Beatle is a difficult articulation of music and personality, and it changes all the time. Lately, I've appreciated John Lennon a lot lately. So does the charitable foundation One Laptop Per Child, an organization that wants to give a laptop to every child in a third world country. Honestly, I think money for laptops is kind of foolish since it can be spent on clean water and food. Yet, One Laptop Per Child will raise it's money any way it can. So they spent a boatload of money on this new ad
Yes, that is John Lennon asking you to buy a laptop for a poor child.
You might ask me-
"But Ryan, John Lennon has been dead for 28 years! How can this be?!"
Well, the answer is quite simple, they used a computer to catalog how John Lennon's voice sounds, then they used a computer to manipulate a video of John Lennon, a la Forrest Gump and they created a dialogue for him, asking for your donation.
Now I have a few problems with this:
1. It's one thing to use John Lennon as a cameo when he's been dead for quite some time like in Forrest Gump, it's another thing to use him as your spokesman.
2. If John Lennon was alive, how would you know that he would be a spokesman for your charity? He was a generous guy, but he didn't put his stamp of approval on every charity.
3. John Lennon doesn't even know what a laptop is.
4. John Lennon is Dead. Please get over it people, it's been 28 years, One Laptop Per Child needs to work on finding living spokespeople, it is much more convincing, believe me.
Oh, and one more thing.
While i was enjoying a nice Christmas day last week, my uncle was gifted an MP3 Player, and to the delight of my cousins they exclaimed,
"Dad got an iPod! hooray!"
OK, I added the hooray, but they were very excited. But there was just one problem
It wasn't an iPod, it was an MP3 player, a Sansa to be exact.
It grieves me to think that iPod is now synonymous with MP3 player, because frankly, they suck.
There are much better MP3 players out there, one in particular, and one I desperately want is the Zune 120, a far superior piece of technology.
Don't believe me? Listen to CNET, the authority on technology today.
I really hope we don't call MP3 players iPods like we call Kleenex for tissues. So next time your in the market for an MP3 player next holiday season, use your brain, and don't be another cow in the herd, think for yourself, and don't listen to dead rock stars tell you about laptops.
Until Next Time...
Yes, that is John Lennon asking you to buy a laptop for a poor child.
You might ask me-
"But Ryan, John Lennon has been dead for 28 years! How can this be?!"
Well, the answer is quite simple, they used a computer to catalog how John Lennon's voice sounds, then they used a computer to manipulate a video of John Lennon, a la Forrest Gump and they created a dialogue for him, asking for your donation.
Now I have a few problems with this:
1. It's one thing to use John Lennon as a cameo when he's been dead for quite some time like in Forrest Gump, it's another thing to use him as your spokesman.
2. If John Lennon was alive, how would you know that he would be a spokesman for your charity? He was a generous guy, but he didn't put his stamp of approval on every charity.
3. John Lennon doesn't even know what a laptop is.
4. John Lennon is Dead. Please get over it people, it's been 28 years, One Laptop Per Child needs to work on finding living spokespeople, it is much more convincing, believe me.
Oh, and one more thing.
While i was enjoying a nice Christmas day last week, my uncle was gifted an MP3 Player, and to the delight of my cousins they exclaimed,
"Dad got an iPod! hooray!"
OK, I added the hooray, but they were very excited. But there was just one problem
It wasn't an iPod, it was an MP3 player, a Sansa to be exact.
It grieves me to think that iPod is now synonymous with MP3 player, because frankly, they suck.
There are much better MP3 players out there, one in particular, and one I desperately want is the Zune 120, a far superior piece of technology.
Don't believe me? Listen to CNET, the authority on technology today.
I really hope we don't call MP3 players iPods like we call Kleenex for tissues. So next time your in the market for an MP3 player next holiday season, use your brain, and don't be another cow in the herd, think for yourself, and don't listen to dead rock stars tell you about laptops.
Until Next Time...
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Post-Election Awesomness
Hello Friends.
It's November 5th, and I am sure everyone in the world right now is either totally excited or totally pissed. But I don't want to go in to why, but what we have accomplished from yesterday.
Holograms
Oh, I'm sorry, were you expecting something else?
Holograms
Yes. Holograms. They are real. Well not completely. But just watch this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=js6b31_p5cc
CNN now has a hologram beamed correspondance. Granted, the real life anchormen can't actually see the hologram we are seeing, but the audience sees them, and that works for me. I think it is a huge step in terms of telecommunication. And yet another reason why George Lucas is one of the greatest innovaters of all time.
Now when it comes down to the actual big news of President-Elect Barack Obama. If you are a person who voted for John McCain and you are complaining on your Facebook status that basically says:
"NO! Our Country is screwed! We need to pray for God to help America because now we desperatly need it!"
You need to take a breather and realize two things
1. God is not a Republican (Or a Democrat)
2. Complaining is counterproductive.
Listen to John McCain. Any failure that happened in the Election is his, not yours and there is nothing anyone can do to reverse what has happened. What we all need to do is forget about parties, beliefs or faiths and think about one thing. We need to unite for the commonwealth of America. You can disagree with Obama, and you can be active about what you believe. But don't make a complaint about the President-Elect, it will get you nowhere, because he is the President-Elect and that is final. If you have a problem with things that can change, contact your Senator or a State Representative, that is what they are here for. And if that doesn't help go get your Bobby Mcferrin on!
But I really don't care about the whole McCain-Obama thing. Holograms Rule!
Lates
It's November 5th, and I am sure everyone in the world right now is either totally excited or totally pissed. But I don't want to go in to why, but what we have accomplished from yesterday.
Holograms
Oh, I'm sorry, were you expecting something else?
Holograms
Yes. Holograms. They are real. Well not completely. But just watch this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=js6b31_p5cc
CNN now has a hologram beamed correspondance. Granted, the real life anchormen can't actually see the hologram we are seeing, but the audience sees them, and that works for me. I think it is a huge step in terms of telecommunication. And yet another reason why George Lucas is one of the greatest innovaters of all time.
Now when it comes down to the actual big news of President-Elect Barack Obama. If you are a person who voted for John McCain and you are complaining on your Facebook status that basically says:
"NO! Our Country is screwed! We need to pray for God to help America because now we desperatly need it!"
You need to take a breather and realize two things
1. God is not a Republican (Or a Democrat)
2. Complaining is counterproductive.
Listen to John McCain. Any failure that happened in the Election is his, not yours and there is nothing anyone can do to reverse what has happened. What we all need to do is forget about parties, beliefs or faiths and think about one thing. We need to unite for the commonwealth of America. You can disagree with Obama, and you can be active about what you believe. But don't make a complaint about the President-Elect, it will get you nowhere, because he is the President-Elect and that is final. If you have a problem with things that can change, contact your Senator or a State Representative, that is what they are here for. And if that doesn't help go get your Bobby Mcferrin on!
But I really don't care about the whole McCain-Obama thing. Holograms Rule!
Lates
Monday, November 3, 2008
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