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Edit HD with the new Playstation

Sony announced the much anticipated Playstation 3 at E3 this week. Besides the 2 HDTV outputs, Blue-Ray DVD recorder, up to 7 bluetooth and PSP controllers support, Sony also said they:

Will offer a high definition camera as a peripheral to the PS3, allowing players to use the game machine as a makeshift video phone or let them broadcast their own programming, whether live or from the machine's detachable 2.5-inch hard drive.

That is SO COOL! Folks, just get yourself a Sony Playstation 3, and HD Camera, and a BIG internet connection, and you are broadcasting LIVE to the world! Oh man. Everyone will have their own TV station soon. Maybe we will all get so sick of each other, that we will actually go outside and try to improve the environment. Nah!

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My Powerbook after drinking beer

Last Friday I was VJing for the Jamparty. Great Party btw. Everyone had a great time. In any case, all night people kept putting their drinks next to my laptop. I constantly asked people not to, but of course it doesn't help. The whole night went great up until the last song when the barman was cleaning the empty glasses, and you guessed it spilled a beer all over my powerbook!

AGHHHHHHHHHHH! Quickly I rememberd a post on a forum somewhere of what to do when someone spills liquid on your laptop.

  1. Quickly turn the laptop over and pull out the battery. Don't worry about shutting down. You have seconds o remove all power to the laptop. Don't waste time saving documents!
  2. Then begin to dry the laptop completely. Get as much water (or in my case beer) as you can.
  3. Then let it sit in a dry place, open for 2 days. This is to make sure all the moisture is dried out, and that when you turn it back on, the electrics won't fry. Make sure to keep the battery out during this time.

So this afternoon I powered up my laptop and prayed! The keyboard is a little sticky, and it smells a bit like the laptop has a hangover (old beer smell). But it's powered up and working. The only real damage besides a feeeeeew keys sticking is the display. It looks like the crystals don't like beer, and some areas of the display are brighter than others. Displays are expensive things to replace on laptops, but at least it less than the laptop, (but not by much). If I had lost my laptop, I had a backup from last week, so not to much damage would be caused there. Remember to BACKUP your work!

So my laptop is now a drunk on beer. Man. I hope you never have this, but if you do, you know what to do.

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Star Wars to become new TV series

To help us fans in the wake after Star Wars, Episode III "Revenge of the Sith", George Lucas is coming out with an 3-D animated TV series of "Clone Wars". It will then be followed by a Live-action series featuring six Star Wars film characters. I really hope that Harrison Ford gets in on this. Gabe & I agree that's the key ingredient in the first 3 films that is missing up till now. Sorry, but Jar-Jar doesn't fill Han Solo's boots. Read more: BBC news article

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Big News from Adobe

Adobe has been really busy this past month. The big news is that Adobe has bought Macromedia. For those of you who don't know, that means the company that makes Photoshop (and lots of other imaging apps) has bought the company that makes Flash. It will be very interesting to see what they will do with the products in the coming year. I'm a big fan of both Macromedia's software and Adobe's software, but these kind of changes are always a little scary to hear. The applications I know and love, and use every day for business, may not be around after a shake up like this. To read more check out Adobe's press release.

More big news from Adobe is the release of a new version of it's Creative Suite of Applications. This includes upgrades to Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, GoLive and Acrobat. There are some really cool features that have been added to this upgrade, especially to the Photoshop. And to see some of these new features in action with video, goto the NAPP's website.

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Why does being clumsy have to be painful?

They don't really have a cure for clumsiness. Just plenty of things to make you clumsy. I blame it on Earth Day. The earth was harmonizing WAY to much and threw me off balance. Well maybe I should back up. Last friday I went for a bachelor party for Tamara's cousin Jan Paul.

The guys had the bright idea of going to play paint-ball. Sure no problem. We were having fun at the paintball hall shooting each-other with paint, it does hurt yes. It was kind of artistic in a way seeing how the paint would explode on the clothes in a Pollock sort of way. In any case, everything was fine until I slipped. It was rather slippery at the hall, everyone slipped at least once. I just happened to land on my ankle and then I heard a Snap Crackle Pop! Ouch!

I was down. Mark (one of our friends) came over to help me and Jan Paul shot him in the next as he was seeing if I was alright. Bastard.

Anyways, off to the hospital to get checked. The guys said it was just a sprain, but I thought it was a little more serious. I've sprained before, and this hurt way more. Maybe I was just getting old, but I wanted to make sure. That and the fact that it looked like my foot had swallowed a tennis ball. They really aren't kidding when they say waiting rooms are they? Luckily it wasn't to busy. After a while the doctor comes and feels my foot (ok dirty minds switch to off please), and tells me to go have an x-ray. Huh? Oh no. X-ray means more waiting and possible longer wait for healing.

Why is it that whenever you have an x-ray done of a potential fracture or break they seem to want to put your limb in a position that normally would be uncomfortable, but with an injury is excruciating? And then I had the fortune of getting some intern who wanted to tell me all about all the various things that could have gone wrong in my foot while I have to hold my foot in this position as the pain is flowing through my body. Could I get the lesson afterwards?

X-ray done and the intern wants to show more of his knowledge to me by saying he thinks it's broken, but not to trust him because he is still studying. Great. Time for another wait.

Thankfully by this time Tamara came to relieve the guys from Gabe watch duty so they could continue with their evening. And I could be in pain shamelessly. So we waited for the doctor again.

Another doctor comes now and begins to ask me when the last time I ate or drank was. Well I did have half a beer after the accident, but I puked everything right back out moments later, along with some chicken nuggets and eggrolls we had for lunch. Graphic enough for ya? Wait, what does what I had to eat have to do with my foot? Then the doctor proceeds to tell me I need surgery, and he needs to know for the anesthesiologist when I last ate. Surgery?! What do mean surgery. Yeah, just a few screws in your foot and you'll have to stay overnight. Me not Happy. Tamara not happy either at the prospect of another 1.5 hour roundtrip home to get my stuff to spend the night at the hospital.

After a while the doctor comes back and apologizes for being a little overzealous. It turns out he mailed his supervisor for a second opinion, and he said a cast would do fine. Thank god for e-mail! So no surgery, just a cast. Thank goodness. Gabe more relaxed at that prospect.

So I got a cast as seen here. And Tamara took me home,

Where I know have to sit on the couch for a week until I get a new cast. But this time I get to choose a pretty color! Thanks to everyone who has called and e-mailed me to get better. The funniest is this MMS I got from Murque.

Thanks. So if I didn't show up to an appointment, it's because I am here, on the couch, with my laptop. Thank god for Skype & Wifi!

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Send a prayr for Gijs

I just received an e-mail that one of my vlogging students, Gijs just had a very bad accident. He's apparently broken a lot of bones in his body, but luckily there seems to be no brain damage or damage to his nervous system. I'm asking all the gabe.nl viewers to go over to his vlog and post a comment to wish him well. I'll have an update as soon as I know more about his situation.

Get better Gijs,
-Gabe

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Trent Reznor's Garageband Experiment

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Trent Reznor's Garageband Experiment

Those of you who are rockers from the early 90's will appreciate this. Nine Inch Nails' front man Trent Reznor has done something really cool. Forget the U2 iPod, Trent has uploaded an entire Garageband project of his latest single.

If you have the program Garageband from Apple you can download the 70mb file and mix and play with the entire song! This gets me thinking about the whole idea of exchanging music mixes and mash-ups. It's so cool what Trent has done this, and I'm looking forward to what other artists will do. I can't wait until filmmakers start posting their Final Cut Pro projects to be re-edited. Video is the next step.

Click here to go download the Garageband project.

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HKU TV IS ONLINE!

After 8 weeks of hard work, my students have produced the first version of HKU TV. I am so proud!

I have been teaching my students at the Utrecht College of Arts (HKU), how to vlog. There are some very impressive videos that have been posted. Please drop by and leave a comment for them so that they are inspired to add more. Stay tuned for more information on HKU TV as next year I hope I'll be  expanding this to other faculties in the HKU.

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Karaoke webcam. It's just wrong

Well, with today's technology Playback in your own home is a piece of cake. Sure it always was with a record player you say. But sharing these embarrassing moments with the entire world? No I'm sorry that's thanks to the internet.

What am I talking about? Check here

Scary... Just scary...

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