http://cdm.link/2017/05/etc-video-synth-love-child-tumblr-ms-paint/
Via an invited international group, we had people who were as handy with a Max patch as they were with a needle and thread, who could sing and write code, who could parlay research knowledge into on-the-spot experimentation.
Great take on why Ghost in the Shell movie misses
Masamune Shirow created an interesting set of complex characters in Appleseed and Ghost in the Shell. I appreciated the thought he put into constructing a world that involved deeper questions about life. Read through the Appleseed manga, I was struck with the themes of humanity, struggle, political positioning and the theme of a digital soul. Example of some dialog:
Deunan: “Still, I like the way they’re picking a fight with Olympus and both Americas straight on. You gotta give ’em credit for balls.”
Briareos: “All the third world countries are like that. What they don’t have is money. This whole OP could be an Aegis-backed diplomatic ploy.”
I highly recommend the great write-up on the recent Ghost in the Shell movie. I haven’t seen it yet, and after reading this excellent review, I’m not sure I will.
Apparently, “you can’t lead” with philosophy in Hollywood….But I’m not sure Sanders understands how or why these moments became so iconic. His interpretation of the original film—which was slower, indeed almost glacial in places—centers on explosive energy and plumes of broken glass; it’s Daft Punk gone the way of the Boondock Saints. Consequently, Sanders’ rebooted version of Ghost in the Shell is a peculiar hodgepodge of original scenes and lines, sutured together without much rhythm. We get the hacked garbage collector without the poignancy of his subsequent revelations, while the water fight that Sanders mentions is almost caricatured. And Mira Killian has none of Motoko Kusanagi’s restraint as she beats her quarry without compassion.
As the action gets more frenetic, the thoughtful theme of humans merging with machines becomes blander. –Cassandra Shaw
Microbroadcasting: find unused FM radio frequencies
You can broadcast your own (small) AM or FM radio station, as long as it doesn’t access licensed broadcast frequencies.
Part 15 regulations govern all the many varieties of low-power RF transmitters in use today, including “cordless phones, baby monitors, garage door openers…”J. Hale, Go Beyond Now
Find unused Radio Frequencies with RadioLocator.com. Here is an example of what I found locally to me:
The FCC also offers the option to search for unused frequencies on their Low Power FM (LPFM) page. Note: the FCC isn’t accepting low power FM applications now, so you have to stick to broadcasting your own signal for yourself.
How Much Does It Cost To Run A Serverless API on AWS?
If you do it right, AWS can be an excellent low-cost option to host a service. This guy figured out how to rock a nice, quick web service using AWS. The breakdown is costs is surprising. Cheggitout:
…the total AWS charges for the month of November add up to $11.12. This is the total bill for processing the 2.1 million API requests and all of the infrastructure necessary to support them.
The above costs power the service TimerCheck.io.
Repetitive patterns of white and gold in Banana Republic’s window display.
Miranda July’s Honest and silly book website
Penelope Trunk told me about an amazing website Miranda July created for her book.
It starts like this:
and keeps:
going:
I clicked through at least 20 “pages” of her site. I never do that. I’m a skimmer. I browse through a site and skim for the stuff I think I want, then perhaps bookmark it and never go back.
There is something (visceral | curious | engaging) about seeing someone’s handwriting and dirty dishes right next to each other.
I’ll admit, I’m a judger. Visiting someone’s website, I want to nitpick it. I want to find the outdated portions and secretly judge people deep down for not having an amazing proofreading staff. AH HA! You forgot to spell Guns n Roses correctly! Ha!
Actually, that isn’t true. I don’t want artists and writers to have a proofreader. I want them. I want to engage with another human being and learn about them. I want to see their silly imperfect handwritten letters and be reminded I’m imperfect and interesting. You should see my wife’s cursive lower-case letter ‘a’. It is adorable. When she writes an ‘a’, it looks like Jigglypuff ate too much and decided to go to sleep in a coma of cuteness. I mistake her letter a for o. ALL. THE. TIME. And it is adorable and human. Her letters remind me that I am adorable and human and slowly gaining weight like Jigglepuff. (JP, if you are reading this: lay off the puffs, puff.)
I want to see their silly imperfect handwritten letters and be reminded I’m imperfect and interesting.
I’m excited. I think we need more Web Brutalism. We need more top-of-the-fridge whiteboards websites. We need more people being people- softer, rounder, real-er people.