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10/13/08 08:25:47 pm

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I kind of skipped the month of September for content updates, in favor of working on my new site design.  So today I bring you two Soul Eater skins, and an original wallpaper based on the new layout art, which is in the Gallery, rather than the Wallpaper page, because I'm planning on moving the wallpapers elsewhere... eventually.  I set up the new Gallery to hold wallpaper sized versions of my work, but it doesn't seem to be quite what I wanted after all...  Anyway, I'm never quite sure what sizes to make wallpapers these days, so if you'd like a size that isn't available, email me and I'll see if I can accommodate you. :]

Started watching Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, which I had heard good things about, but avoided because I'm not a big fan of the mech genre of anime.  It has been surprisingly good however, with quick pacing and laudable character development.  Yay!

Vista, Comic Con, jQuery

08/02/08 04:48:02 pm

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I might've made this post last weekend, but my draft of it was sitting in an unsaved window when Vista decided to reboot itself in the middle of the night for updates. It's a new computer, so I hadn't turned that setting off yet, but it's always been something I hate about Windows - don't turn off my computer without my say-so.

On that note though, having had this computer for about a month now, I don't see what all the negative fuss about Vista is for. I can't name anything specific to complain about, and certain tasks are easier than they were in XP. I can understand that perhaps people were hoping for some innovation from Microsoft (...wait, really?), and this "Midori" project sounds interesting (if anything ever comes of it), but it seems like if you were fine with XP, you should be fine with Vista; it's just another iteration in Windows.

Anyway, on to whatever my original topic was... Ah yes, Comic Con. It came to town last weekend, as it does every year around that time, and it feels like the internet has descended upon San Diego. All the niche-popularity webcomic authors, media companies hawking sci-fi entertainment, anime product retailers passing out cat ears, and dorks dressed up as MySpace.com (true story) flood into our little downtown enclave... which isn't so little, really, but feels moreso when there are an additional 125,000 people in town.

Myself and Rirath attended the con on Sunday morning, browsed the expo floor for a few hours, and saw John Cho and Kal Penn (of Harold and Kumar fame) on a panel, where they were quite amusing. Neil Patrick Harris was supposed to be there too, but apparently skipped town to go direct a play in London, boo :P

Commentators are starting to wonder whether the "comic" is going out of "Comic Con," to which I must say, "you're only just starting to think that?" Last year was the first time I went, but it had the same feeling as this year, where the TV, movie and video game attractions seem bigger, louder and better than the comparatively plain comic book booths. Personally I can't say I'm opposed to this though; digital media is of greater interest to me. If the comic guys pull out of Comic Con, I'm sure they'll be missed... but not by everyone.

In other news, I'm working on some website development (...for this site, I mean), so I may not be updating with much content for awhile... but hang in there. I've adopted, and am really enjoying writing in jQuery. Javascript is such a cumbersome language that I'm usually reluctant to use, but jQuery makes it make sense. Why put up with some convoluted method of DOM selection in plain JS, when jQ makes use of the CSS selectors we already know? It's intuitive, which JS never has been for me before.

A Few Things

06/14/08 09:19:38 pm

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First we'll talk skins, since that's probably what most of you here are interested in. The skin seen below is in progress... and the balance slider has it in for me. I can't seem to find any functionality in Winamp's MAKI language that'll let me control the pan value... so I can't have it mimic the volume slider and update the animated layer frame as it goes... If anyone knows better, let me know. Otherwise I'll probably have to redo that area (put something different there, or change the slider design).

Second, most of my day at work yesterday was wasted when we had to clean up the database after an SQL injection attack inserted a few thousand lines linking to a malicious Javascript file. Apparently hundreds of sites running MSSQL were hit around the same time. Ugh.

Finally, a bit of anime. I haven't been watching much lately for two key reasons. One is that I have simply chosen to spend my limited free time on other activities (most prominently, more gaming), but the other is that there hasn't been much to trumpet in recent series, it seems. But lately we've been starved for some short, enjoyable video content to watch with meals or while relaxing. So we picked out two to try: Soul Eater and Baccano.

Soul Eater, with 51 supposed episodes, may be pushing the envelope on my tolerance for long series (I know I've watched hundreds of One Piece, Inuyasha and Naruto episodes, but if anything they prove my point: 50 episodes is the approximate maximum for consistently decent quality, I think), but it has been enjoyable thus far. The characters and plot are kinda cookie-cutter: students at shinigami academy - including the archetypical bookworm, headstrong boy, loudmouth, pushover, and perfectionist - must fight together as partners against various evil things and collect souls to become the big cheese. *shrug* Nothing really to complain about, just nothing stellar about it either, I guess.

Baccano, however, I am crazy for. The gore level was a bit higher than my usual taste, but the show's about mafia guys, assassins and otherwise shady characters... so it's not out of place. The story is told non-chronologically, mostly jumping around between a few years in the 1930s, and focusing on suspenseful incidents that intertwine its characters. This manner of presentation allows for numerous cliff-hangers - once you start watching, it's hard to turn it off. The characters are the main driving force of the story though, and I found myself endeared to and interested in all of them (even if they seriously creeped me out at times as well). The music is also catchy - try the opening for a taste.

And that's all for now. Hopefully the aforementioned skin will be done within a day or so...

The Usual Jabber

09/22/07 10:53:33 pm

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I think the best way to understand why a website is not updating - at least those sites which are run by just one or two people - is to start up your own site, run it for at least a year, and see for yourself the sorts of things that distract you. Even when we're fond of our sites, other things in life can push their priority lower and lower.

Lately a dip in my health took a hit at my energy, but other, more pleasant factors have been a welcome diversion too. It may also be relevant to note that I've pretty much stopped watching anime on a regular basis. I still like it, but the quality of recent series is failing to impress me, I suppose. I'm also turning more to gaming for my passive geek hobby instead. So it's possible there'll just be more game skins here too.

Thanks to all of you who have left a kind word here and there! My apologies for being a bit negligent of commentators and contacts. I can't promise I'll get any better ;)

Comic Con 2007

07/30/07 10:42:33 pm

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Despite having lived in San Diego for the last 4 years (of college), this is the first time I've been here during the summer, which meant I had the opportunity to attend Comic Con for the first time this past weekend. Myself and a friend trekked down to the convention center on Sunday morning, braving the crowds and approximately 5,000 Uchiha Itachis. Seriously, is Naruto the only thing you people ever watch?

Anyway, if you want cool SquareEnix figures, apparently the last day of the con is not the day for you (see photo). I didn't end up buying anything, but still got several "sampler" volumes of manga and other fun freebies from various booths. Seeing Lucy Lawless on a panel was surprisingly amusing (who knew Xena was actually quite the comedian). Got to play some games, see "exclusive" (I'll bet someone's already posted a cellphone recording on Youtube) TV show and movie previews, and just generally have a good time amongst a veritable throng of geeks (if you shout, "Hey look it's Dumbledore!" at the Gandalf cosplayers, apparently they get angry... try it, it's fun!).

A good time was had by all; time and location permitting, I'd love to go back again next year.

TV, Anime, Quantum Mechanics

03/14/07 05:22:06 pm

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So I ran out of unwatched episodes of Arrested Development on the DVDs my brother lent me. I am very out-of-touch with shows on TV; I don't have cable, but even when I did there wasn't much I wanted to watch anyhow. So when I watch such a show, it's usually something my brother recommended and/or lent me episodes of.

Anyway, Arrested Development - character-driven, cleverly written comedy. Unfortunately Fox has a penchant for canceling shows prematurely, so this one's already over. But if you've never seen it, give the reruns a shot.

It's been nice having something I actually want to watch... anime seems to be losing my attention lately. There just doesn't seem to be anything too special out there at the moment (and if you want to argue otherwise, you're free to leave comments).

The most recent anime I really liked were Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu (seriously, three u's) and Ouran High School Host Club. Both character-driven, both comedic but with a dramatic undertone, and Haruhi in particular was quite unique in its plot, narrative structure, and cast of characters. I think Hataraki Man deserves a mention for trying something different as well, but for the most part it fails the "enjoyment" test - I think the stake out episode was the only memorable one for me (all hail Nakai Kazuya). Wait, that reminds me - Noein was exceptional as well: ya got your mix of thought-provoking sci-fi, drama, action, Nakai Kazuya, and an interesting "gritty" looking animation style. Hey wait, weren't Noein and Haruhi somewhat of the same idea in different tellings? Someone's trying - consciously or not - to collapse parallel worlds to keep the one they like? There you have it, unique shows canceling each other out! I shall call it, The Theory of Unique Collapsability, and if I put it in a box with Schrodinger's Cat, it'll save both his lives!

ナルト疾風伝 - Naruto Shippuuden

02/16/07 09:53:36 pm

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Oh glorious day that the Naruto anime has returned from the murky and mundane abyss of fillers! Though admittedly the whole episode was deja vu due to my having seen this all in the manga already. I don't normally read manga; I like animation better, especially when it's an action anime like Naruto. However, out of curiosity I did seek out this first chapter after the time jump and read it through.

It's disappointing to me that Sasuke has not changed more in the time jump - wasn't he supposed to have been possessed by Orochimaru by now? Otherwise it was a pleasing double-length episode. Opening's kinda silly though, I think (does it feel good to be a gangsta, Naruto?).