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May 2009

A Quick Note on the New Site Design

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

I was never fully happy with how the site looked previously - I tried to stick with greys and it simply didn't work (I still think the title logo was nice though). To try and rectify the problems with the old design (namely that i'd painted myself into a corner with the colour scheme), I've decided to go for something completely different. Right now it looks a little... corporate, but it should liven up as I get a feel for the new colours.

I've been taking a lot of pointers from design website Abduzeedo, and I highly recommend anyone looking for a little inspiration go there right now - they have some amazing and beautiful stuff new every day.

Transformers Accessory Overload!

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Man, they are just pumping these out! I particularly like the Blaster/Laptop that functions as a USB Hub. Want want want - anyone making christmas lists yet? BigBadToyStore.com 

 

More Site Changes

Sunday, May 24, 2009

I'm playing with CSS again... sorry. Another week or so, and I reckon I'll be happy with it. Let me know if you see something you like, 'cause I'll probably just rush through and miss stuff that works well.

Worlds Greatest USB Stick

Saturday, May 23, 2009

This is the finest peripheral i've ever seen. The only downside is that it has apparently sold out before release. I'll be all over eBay - what do you reckon - £100? £150? Worth every penny.

 

BigBadToyStore.com, via Engadget.

Prepare Your Child for a Lifetime of SF

Monday, May 04, 2009

So I'll assume that after reading my previous article “How to Get Your Girlfriend to Want to WANT to Watch SciFi” you've already conquered that hurdle, and are now moving on with your family. Next up for SF assimilation is your unwitting offspring – they'll thank you for it when they're older.

There's only one thing you need to bear in mind when choosing TV for your spawn to watch:

Sound.

Wait, I'll say it again:

SOUND.

No matter how developed the urchin is, he or she will be instantly attracted by good sound design and great theme songs. To this end, here's three ways to get things off to a good start, catering for the most 'antsy-in-the-pantsy' child you could present:

1. Star Wars

You should probably stick to the first one (IV: A New Hope), as the other 'episodes' have a lot more graphic stuff, that you might not like your beautiful young person imitating – notably, Salacious Crumb happily picking away at C3PO's eyes... I still wake up at night, terrified that my son will have found his way into our room, cackling quietly... Of course, if your child is a little older, you can provide some more of Ben Burtt's (Star Wars sound designer) work in the Indiana Jones films and Willow. On a side note, it can be fun to stand by the TV and read the 'crawler' whilst pointing to the words – gotta get that literacy education in where you can.

2. Haim Saban & Shuki Levy

These guys are the unsung legends of eighties and nineties kids TV, moving between writing music and producing shows. Depending on your taste, and quite how much violence you're prepared for your child to see, there's a lot to choose from:

Attack of the Killer Tomatoes (the animated series, not the weird Troma film)

Dino-Riders

He-Man

Inspector Gadget

Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors

MASK

Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers (and its spin-offs)

Samurai Pizza Cats

Ulysses 31

The Real Ghostbusters

StarCom

Mysterious Cities of Gold

Saban has made himself a bona fide, honest-to-god BILLIONAIRE from these and other shows, and as much as it's popular to hate on big business... well, I think he deserves most of that cash. Many of these are available cheaply on DVD – go get 'em.

3. Transformers: The Movie

No, silly! Not Michael Bay's boring 2007 Transformers – the awesome eighties Transformers, complete with ecological messages, Frank Welker and Stadium Rock soundtrack! Nothing will bring a tear to your eye quite like hearing your kid sing along to Lion's version of the theme song:

“TRANSFORMERRRRRRRRS!

[in robot voice] ROBOTS IN DISGUISE!”

...yes. My two year old boy does the robot voice. Envy me.