Internet barrier

This topic has been brought up time and time again, the wall we deal with when conversing over the internet. So much can be lost in a message whether it be on an instant chat messenger or email. Instant messaging atleast has a factor of time within it, while email losses even that. We draw conclusions when a response takes longer, this we cannot easily draw conclusions from during email because we are not sure when the recipient will look at the mail sent.

I use AIM often but it bothers me in terms of the way messages can be interpreted. There is so much that goes into communication and it can warp the intent of the message. A very simple example is sarcasm, it can be much harder to interpret sarcasm when we are only working with words. We do not have the rest of the message being sent, such as tone of voice and facial expressions.

I feel it is much easier to have miscommunication in this format then face to face. Telephone is a middle ground where we do not get the visual but we atleast have the audio to interpret tone and intent within the message. I personally have had much higher miscommunication through instant messenger than any other communication format. Does anyone else feel the same way?

3-D

We have seen a huge rise in 3D films recently, Avatar of course but other titles as well. Though some of them are not nearly up to the bar that Avatar has set, 3D technology is growing in popularity. Is this going to be a new industry standard for blockbuster films? I think so, there are so many films coming out now in 3D and the box office is showing that the audience want more.

The 3D technology I do not picture working across all genres of film, dramas I don't really see 3D tech working well with this genre and I don't think we will see a change to 3D within this genre. For action block busters and animated films, I feel this will continue to grow in popularity.

There are also the 3D televisions on the rise but I personally do not see them taking over the market. It is an interesting idea but it is way too early at least for me to predict if 3D television is going to be the new standard. I think there is a lot of possibilities with this technology and it seems that this will continue to grow in popularity. People are already growing accustomed to going to the theater and grabbing their 3D glasses on the way in.

Miyazaki Rocks

I just watched Miyazaki's newest film Ponyo which recently came to dvd. Another great one from the creator in my opinion. His films are really fantastic for anyone that is not familiar with his work. Hayao Miyazaki creates feature length japanese anime films, in some ways I can think of his films as Japan's Disney though a few of his are meant for a bit of an older audience.

Miyazaki's films have grown in popularity over in the United States considerably. The films have been re-dubbed in english by big name actors such as Liam Neeson and Billy Bob Thorton. These imported films are not even always realized they originated in Japan. I have met a few people as well as myself that had seen at least one of his films when they were little and had no idea that they were created by the japanese creator.

His films are really works of art and should be experienced, his stories are beautiful, truly unique and imaginative. Miyazaki himself believes deeply in the conservation of our planet, it plays a theme in many if not all his films. It is done in a way that does not belittle or villainies the human race, but shows the connection between human and nature is a strong one. Cannot recommend his films enough.

Distractions

I am sitting here trying to think of what to write about for my blog but keep getting distracted by surfing around the internet. I figured I might as well talk about how distracting media can be when trying to focus on work. I have the TV on and surfing around on the internet.

Media is all around me and it can have a major impact on focus. The TV is often on for background noise while working which I guess for me keeps the work from feeling too formal and isolating. It is easy to space out and get distracted on the internet with so many sites that we program into our routine for when we log on. We all have our rituals when we open the internet browser. Often it may even fall into a certain order of the sites we visit, prioritizing what we are most interested in seeing first. Which often seems to be facebook for many people. Thats a bit of a generalization but it often is near the top of the list for many people.

I am curious if anyone else gets as distracted as me through media technology, whatever it may be. The internet is at the top of my list, what about you? Any particular sites that draw your attention away from the task at hand?

The iPad hits shelves

The iPad hit shelves and it has been selling fast. Apple had estimated around 300,000 iPads to be sold on April 3rd. Will this momentum keep on going or is it slowly going to die down? I really don't know but I am interested in what people think of their new iPads.

I am wondering if the sales are because it is the next new shiny product to own or if there is some functionality that the buyer did not find else where. There is the book store app which is new for the iPad and it has been estimated that over 250,000 e-books have been sold through the app already. The keyboard is another function that I can see being a unique selling point, yes you can use your laptop but this is a more compact way of allowing for fluid typing that is similar to using a computer.

I have not used one yet so I can only speculate, the question I am asking is what is driving these sales? Is it the phenomenal advertising tactics by apple or does the product speak for itself? I am sure it could be a mix of the two but I wonder what is the dominant factor in generating sales. Anyone have a clue? I don't.

info taken from http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/04/apple-tops-300000-ipad-sales-in-one-day.ars

The phenomena called Troll 2

Troll 2 is known for being one of the strangest and most awesomely terrible movies of all time. If you haven't seen it you should atleast check out scenes of it from youtube. Me and my friends have been renting terrible movies for a very long time now and this among one of the most ridiculous.

What is so interesting about this one in particular is the pop cultural phenomena that this movie has sparked. It has grown increasingly in popularity by word of mouth of how hilarious this film is. In it's day now it is by far more popular than it ever has been. The popularity has merited a new documentary coming out about the growing popularity of this movie and what the people that were involved with making it are up to now. I find it amazing how this film was such a huge flop only to increasingly grow in popularity over the years. People just love laughing at this movie which I completely understand as watching movies like this has been such a huge tradition with my friends for a long time.

It is amazing to see one of the starring actors and what he is doing now, he is now a dentist and his experience with the movie had seemed to have been forgotten. Now 20 years later he has become a huge cult icon all of a sudden because of peoples love for this movie.

Here is the trailer for the new documentary...
http://www.aintitcool.com/node/44444

I also highly recommend checking out clips of Troll 2 on youtube if you aren't familiar with the movie.