45 Million, Really?

I've seen videos similar to Her Morning Elegance, in fact, there was a recent Amazon Kindle commercial using the same technique (below).  



I do not understand how the Oren Lavie video has 45 million views. It was not any more impressive than other stop motion videos I have seen. The semi-2D aspect of this video was not a new concept either. I have never heard of this band, and after looking at their YouTube page, here, you will notice that their next "top video" has fewer than 500,000 views. The related videos were generally unpopular as well. The only popular video recommended after the viewing of this video was Sara Bareilles' Love Song. I am not saying I didn't enjoy the video, but sometimes video virility doesn't make much sense.  

It Wouldn't Be a Music Video Without a Ball Gag

Welp, I've got to be honest, I was not expecting to receive this video. I wouldn't say it's inappropriate, but it was real fuckin' weird. From black leather orchestras to old men with ball gags to a robot with the lead singer's face on the screen, this video had it all. Kanal von Augustschram, or just August Schram, eventually changed into full-drag and soon after, the song broke down into an electro-dance groove. The video was a phenomenal culmination of (some) beautiful people, great costumes, some pretty good editing, and a little bit of computer graphics. All in all, I give it an 8.5 out of 10. It appeals to the level of weirdness I live in, and was a pretty good performance minus all of the flashiness. 

Thank god you didn't ask us to recreate this or something. 

90 Years of TIME

Just something cool I found, it's worth a watch. TIME magazine was an important news outlet, and one of the first of its kind (one of the first profitable magazines). Our class teaches the development of art and technology, however, it is society that changes these things, not the other way around. People are what drive everything, and these cover photos show the people who drove us the farthest. 

Piracy Redux

Welp, I took the walk across the river in 40 degree weather to the art festival and Piracy Redux show. It was definitely worth it. Lots of cool art from independent vendors along with a separate show (the Piracy Redux) on the second floor of the Curtis Hixon Park gardens. Each of these separate exhibits was stored in trailer pods, and the entrances of each were covered by cloth. It was very creepy to walk into the pods, but each exhibit was very cool, nonetheless. I put together a little collage of some of the pictures I took. 

Keeping the Hard Drives Intact

The Computer History Museum is certainly something else. Filled from wall-to-wall with antique computing devices, this museum is certainly something that should be relished in Triumph of the Nerds. The museum has a wide range of computers, including things like the IBM, or Big Blue, 1401 mainframe computers of the 1960s and the Colossus WWII decoder. Robert Garner and his group of computer friends take care of the museum and all of its wonders, including the strange smells that come with it. I'd rather not attach pictures of each machine in this Californian museum, so if you'd like to take a look at the article click here. 

I am most impressed by the tape-reader machines and vacuum tube mainframe computers. To imagine that the machines I am working on descended from those old guys is phenomenal. The care and restoration processes that the workers at the museum go through shows how difficult it must have been when these machines were actually being used. It has always been a dream of mine to take an old school Apple (back when they had the Macintosh rainbow logo), knock out the screen, and replace it with a new monitor linked to a hidden Mac Mini or laptop with the latest operating system and graphics. I've always liked the look of those older desktop computers, and honestly, I don't need the added space of a flat-screen monitor, my desk is too big already. Also, something about typing on those old keyboards that clicked loudly brings back memories of elementary school. 

This is a nice panorama of one of the rooms in the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California (not too far from Cupertino, the headquarters of Apple).