Wider-Angle.com

You’re doing it wrong.

2009-05-15T23:22:00.001+10:00

First, you’re pointing it in a questionable direction.
Second, what is that black excuse for glass doing there?!

Pull focus!!!

2009-03-20T19:31:00.001+10:00

Wow. Some guy is gonna get a hard hit over the back of the head.

One of Nine’s HD Control rooms

2009-03-04T10:06:00.001+10:00

I want.

ABC Colour Bars

2009-01-14T20:35:00.001+10:00

Just before they cut to a news update on ABC HD.

Why Mr. T?

2009-01-10T12:43:00.001+10:00

Snickers was one thing, but infomercials??? He’s wearing an apron!

Whoa. The end of the world?

2009-01-10T01:16:00.001+10:00

Okay, maybe a bit far, but as of right now (and ten minutes ago). Nothing from Microsoft online is working. I mean, nothing. Okay, so NineMSN works, but that’s Australia. Xbox Live is down, as is Windows Live (Mail, Messenger and Mesh), Microsoft.com, Xbox.com, Zune.net, MSN.com. ARGH! What is happening???
This is really strange and also worrying. Someone trip over a cord somewhere?
COME BACK MICROSOFT.

Update: 1.17am, everything is back to normal (went down at 1am btw). Scary.

WHOA! Go Channel Seven!

2009-01-08T02:09:00.001+10:00

Yay! Seven is doing something good in digital TV. For the first time tonight, when whoever controls the local ‘7 Toowoomba’ watermark went home for the evening (as they always do) and it crossed over to the state (maybe national?) watermark, it was very pleasing what I saw!

Look! It’s not even the HD channel! But it’s the 7 logo (with added ‘digital’ text) outside of the 4:3 safe area. YAY!!! It’s where it should be for 16:9, and in fact where it should be for all digital TV.
Well done Seven!

O/T: How lame are those infomercials? Ah…

Room for Improvement, fake video chat?

2009-01-08T01:35:00.001+10:00

An old show, featuring a particularly annoying carpenter that some genius decided would make a brilliant host for way too many shows. Anyway, up late, I notice that the brilliant heavily-advertised Moterolla mobile phones used in it, aren’t actually doing a video call. Nope. A nice camera angle added in by the editor shows all. It’s just a video clip being played back. Proof included filename and timecode. Tut tut Channel Seven.

Did they really think nobody would notice? Geez…

Update: Apparently, neither of the main guys can sing or dance either, as demonstrated [below] at one of their birthday parties, which for some reason, made it to national television.

Mind the interlacing.

Frasier

2008-11-30T00:11:00.000+10:00

Watching Frasier isn’t exactly going to give you a degree psychiatry (or whatever the qualification is), but it certainly does give an insight on the human psyche. For instance, people who insult you – they are either insecure or jealous (I suppose the two overlap a bit). This is incredibly notable when they begin to insult ~~your incredibly awesome notebook~~ the stuff you have or suggesting that someone is way better at ~~video editing~~ something you know is your area of talent, even though you know they’re not (as you can see from their ~~entries into competitions~~ work).
What really points out that you are not the one at fault, is when individually they act really nice to you. It’s quite entertaining when you address comments you’ve heard and they feebly stumble to avoid it.

See, once you know all of this, it makes you laugh when people start going on behind your back at you, because it really just shows how sad and pathetic they actually are. Even if you can’t see the funny side, rest assured that already at whatever age you are – you have already accomplished more than them, will accomplish more and they at their highest point will no doubt be working for you.

Kudos to the writers of Frasier.

YouTube has gone widescreen!

2008-11-25T15:02:00.001+10:00

I Googled it – but nobody else seems to have noticed yet…?

Maybe I’m the first!

Movie Props

2008-11-16T16:06:00.001+10:00

Note the repeated text.

Oops, Seinfield

2008-11-16T14:28:00.001+10:00

Perhaps something that happened during the HD transfer? Forgot to key it back out.

Ah, good old Apple

2008-11-16T13:40:00.001+10:00

Tried running in compatibility mode too, no luck.

Animates in nicely, completely fails in placement.

Windows 7

2008-10-29T17:20:00.001+10:00

I’m not gonna write another article (as in, loads of people have written loads of articles) on Windows 7. But I’ll link you to the keynote that introduced it. Dunno how long it’ll be up.
Get it here.

Ah… Don’t you love ‘the arts’ department…

2008-10-14T16:22:00.001+10:00

Okay, so with this new system we have at our school all the teachers get a new notebook. For whatever reason – Education Queensland has the option to get a MacBook (it’s probably some contract they have with Apple). So of course, most of the art department got them (total of six in the school, out of eighty-something). Now, unless they install Windows XP on it – they won’t be able to get on the network (Windows Server 2003) or use any of our software (funnily enough, that means the art staff don’t get to use Photoshop). So they will install XP.

So there is absolutely no point, other than the teachers wanting a pretty brand on their computer, of getting them. Also, seeing as they cost $600 more than the Lenovo notebooks with the same hardware – the kids are missing out on that. They shouldn’t be allowed to do that.

Louis Theroux and the Nazis

2008-10-13T23:20:00.001+10:00

I always like Louis Theroux’s documentaries.

One thing - this guy (Tom Metzger) is screwed up, really, disturbingly screwed up:

…and this guy on the left, is the crazy-nazi-dude’s agent. He reminds me of Bebe Glazer off Frasier.

This is just sick. It’s so sad to see these little girls signing about killing the “ape-like” [black people].

Channel Seven on-air graphics update

2008-10-13T23:02:00.001+10:00

Just noticed this starting at 10.30pm tonight (mind you, I only just flipped over to Seven).

Here’s a classification screen

‘Available in widescreen’ super

Home and Away ad

‘Out of the Question’ superbar

And I’m too lazy to upload some video clips, so you can just watch Channel Seven if you really want to see it.

Lady Ga-ga

2008-09-28T22:44:00.001+10:00

I just saw ‘Lady Ga-ga’ on Rove.

Ga-ga is right. First of all, I’ll just say it’s good to know that she wasn’t lipsyncing. Though, the problem with that – is she was out of tune!!! Mostly at the start. I’m betting she uses one of those auto-tune facillities to record her album, though most ‘artists’ do that now anyway.
Her microphone didn’t do her any good either. Yes it had flashing lights, which is a good start – but the quality was terrible! I bet the audio guys at Rove tried to get her to change it.

Well, at least it’s not as bad as TGS’s website

2008-09-28T16:29:00.001+10:00

So I was poking around. The people at Toowoomba Grammar should really learn how to make the background image not repeat, as well as the virtues of not centering things.

Channel Nine and the Olympics

2008-08-03T22:40:00.001+10:00

Here's something that I've been thinking about. When Channel Nine hosts the 2012 Olympics (and I suppose the 2010 Winter Olympics, they can do a lot with the graphics. As in, with their disc/circle theme and the Olympic logo. Seven has done a good job with the 08.08.08 transitioning to the Olympic rings. It'll be interesting to see how Nine does theirs. Should be good, should be good.

Why Macs will never reign in business

2008-07-05T12:24:00.001+10:00

1. PC's (the hardware platform) are cheaper. Way cheaper. There is no good return on buying the more expensive Apple Macs.

2. Microsoft has brilliant licensing deals setup, and they are here to stay. You know I can get Vista Business for $55 (upgrade mind you) and Office 2007 Enterprise for $25? It's insane. Apple won't license it's software (as such) because it could lead to cheap clones of their systems.

3. Almost all businesses have their structure based around a Windows platform (even if their server(s) is/are Linux-based, the clients are mostly - if not all - running Windows). The cost, to change over would be enormous.

4. MCP's are everywhere - in every field too. The closest actual Apple store is in Sydney (only a 20-something-hour drive from here). Where as there are two MCPs within ten minutes of where I'm writing this. Certified support is always at hand.
(Also, there are no Apple dealers where I am living either - the only place that sold them, Myer, recently stopped stocking them. They still sell iPods of course)

More to come if I can be bothered.

Dell Competition

2008-07-04T16:55:00.001+10:00

Click here - Dell 'dfleXion'
Win Dell stuff

2008-07-03T16:07:00.001+10:00

How about starting a [Microsoft] geek religion?
Bill Gates is God.
Steve Jobs is Satan.
Followers must pray towards the holy land of Redmond each patch Tuesday.
More to come.

Microsoft can't be trusted

2008-06-25T19:28:00.001+10:00

So here I am, trying to enter a competition (click 'Special Offers') I found by looking at a Microsoft Australia Windows Vista advertisement that I found out about here. I click on 'Enter Now', try to sign in with my Live account - but wait! Microsoft Australia's SSL certificate has apparently been revoked because they are apparently, not Microsoft! Ouch.
Some pictures if you don't believe me, and no, it's not Norton 360.

UPDATE: Ah. It's working now. Ignore this post. Oh wait, you've already read it.

Buy a Zune, get rid of noise pollution.

2008-06-23T23:48:00.001+10:00

Quick parents, get your children a Zune! We are sick of hearing the 'schkkkkkkkkk-digga-dum-sckkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk-kkkkkkk-chaaaa-schkkk- (continues)' of heavy metal music coming from your child's miniature iPod or phone speakers. If you get your child a Zune they can share their 'music' wirelessly around to their 'peeps' so that those of us with an actual taste of music can stop thinking about ramming those iPod or phone speakers up the up the listeners left nostril and needing severe trauma counseling from assault to the ears.
Kill noise pollution, kill your heavy metal loving child, or, alternatively buy a Zune for them. Your choice.