50% Elite Squad
Brutal, action heavy, Brazilian cop film with a pointless voiceover. Lacks flair, overdoes the violence and is never quite sure where its morals lie.
Las Vegas Star Trek exhibit closing after 10 year run
Thousands of fans of the “Star Trek” movie and television franchise are converging on Las Vegas to send off the 10-year-old attraction …
cisco kid :: Oct.21.2008 :: General :: No Comments »
Apple users rage over missing FireWire
Apple customers unhappy that the company dropped FireWire from its newest notebooks are venting their frustrations on the company's support forum in several hundred messages.
Within minutes of Apple CEO Steve Jobs wrapping up a launch event in Cupertino, users started several threads on the company's support forum blasting the omission of a FireWire port on the new MacBook laptop.
[ For more on Apple's most recent MacBooks, check out Tom Yager's Ahead of the Curve blog. ]
"Apple really screwed up with no FireWire port," said Russ Tolman , who inaugurated a thread that by Thursday had collected more than 200 messages and been viewed over 5,000 times.
"No MacBook with [FireWire] — no new MacBook for me," added Simon Meyer in a message posted today.
The two new MacBook configurations, which are priced at $1,299 and $1,599, include a pair of USB 2.0 ports, as did earlier models, but lack the FireWire 400 port their predecessors boasted.
FireWire is Apple's name for the IEEE 1394 interface and data transfer specification. Ironically, Apple has been one of the biggest boosters of the spec and was one of the primary drivers of the technology when it began development in the late 1980s.
Apple first added FireWire to its computers in early 1999, when Jobs — who had returned three years earlier to the company he co-founded — unveiled the technology at a MacWorld Conference and Expo. "Think of FireWire as USB, but rather than running at 12 megabits-per-second it's running at 400 megabits-per-second," said Jobs then. "And it's already an industry standard."
Many of the users who posted messages this week said that they were photographers, videographers, or musicians who relied on FireWire to connect hardware ranging from cameras to drum kits. Others were disappointed that the new MacBooks could not be connected to their current FireWire external hard drives.
Several mentioned that FireWire's disappearance meant that the new MacBooks could not be connected to other Macs using Target Disk Mode (TDM), a procedure that's often used as a last resort to retrieve files from a dead system. TDM is also used by Apple's Migration Assistant, a utility that copies files and settings from one Mac to another.
Although the upper-end MacBook Pro — which Apple also revamped and relaunched Tuesday — includes a FireWire 800 port, users bemoaned the FireWire loss on the more affordable MacBook models.
"Dropping FireWire from the MacBook only serves to force people into buying the MacBook Pro," said a user identified as "miniconvert" yesterday. "I don't need a backlit keyboard, 15" screen or any of the other small things the Pro model provides. I'm perfectly happy sacrificing a little bit in speed to save a lot of cash. I need FireWire so I can take videos of my kid off my SD camcorder and then upload to YouTube, put on a DVD or what ever I'd like to do."
Others pointed out that the previous-generation MacBook, which Apple is still selling at a reduced price of $999, includes a FireWire port.
Other threads about FireWire going missing tallied several hundred more messages, where some users called on Apple to publicly declare its intentions or rethink its decision. "The MacBook Pro has FireWire 800," said Ross Corsair , who said he uses Macs in his small video production business. "But that costs $1,000 more. And will FireWire 800 exist next year on any Apple computers? I was going to purchase a new Apple laptop this week. I won't be now."
Apple has ditched technologies before, most notably when it was one of the first computer makers to abandon the 3.5-in. floppy drive in favor of an internal CD-ROM drive.
Apple did not respond to a request for comment on users' reactions to the disappearance of FireWire from the new MacBook laptops.
Computerworld is an InfoWorld affiliate.
cisco kid :: Oct.20.2008 :: General :: No Comments »
2008 Action Movies
Action movie fans are going to love 2008. Big action films set to hit theaters in 2008 include Bond 22, Iron Man, Speed Racer, Prince Caspian, Cloverfield, The Dark Knight, Star Trek, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Incredible Hulk, Get Smart, Wanted, Hancock, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, The Mummy Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.
Coming Attractions: Choose Connor
Choose Connor, the taut political drama that stars Steven Weber, Alex Linz, and Escher Holloway, gained notice and generated buzz at numerous film festivals earlier this year. It has also been favorably compared to such films as the critcally acclaimed 2007 film Michael Clayton. Heady stuff for 21-year old writer and director Luke Eberl. The film opens October 10.
cisco kid :: Oct.19.2008 :: General :: No Comments »
2 Sizzling Quantum of Solace Clips!
Here are some early glimpses of all the action the new 007 film has to offer.
Ghost in the Shell
Espionage, action and a futuristic bad guy… what more could you ask from an Anime film? Get the full review of Ghost in the Shell.
Associate General Counsel / Browndorf PEM / Newport Beach, CA
Browndorf PEM/Newport Beach, CA
Emerging Southern California Hedge Fund seeks film finance and development lawyer with 5-7 years experience to work as in-house counsel in position of Associate General Counsel. Salary is commensurate with experience and profit sharing bonuses are available.
Responsibilities include:
1. Structuring special purpose vehicles
2. Creating term sheets for various film financing structures and banking relationships
3. Creating attachment agreements and distribution agreements
4. Review of all financing agreements
5. Creation and maintenance of various corporate structures
The appropriate candidate will have an intimate understanding of soft money and tax credit financing structures and have structured and closed multiple transactions. Position requires an ability to work independently, ambitiously and cooperatively within an energetic and focused team of like-minded legal, financial and industry professionals. The appropriate candidate will successfully complete and negotiate all closing documents and lead all closings. Mention InhouseBlog.com's Job Board when applying.
cisco kid :: Oct.18.2008 :: General :: No Comments »
Borderline Personality Disorder: No Man Is an Island
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is one of the most damaging mental illnesses. By itself, this severe mental illness accounts for up to 10 percent of patients in psychiatric care and 20 percent of those who have to be hospitalized. The defining characteristic of BPD is a pervasive instability in the patient’s life, especially when it comes to interpersonal relationships. BPD patients also have difficulty controlling their impulses and regulating their emotions. Close relationships of patients are often tumultuous and compromised by highly unpredictable behavior that can leave others baffled, angry and frightened. This behavior exerts a tremendous toll not only on those afflicted with the illness, but also on their social network and the health care system. (A well known, if dramatized, example is the character Glenn Close played in the movie Fatal Attraction.) Surprisingly, despite the importance of this disorder, little is yet known about what brain mechanisms might underlie it. In a recent paper in the journal Science, Brooks King-Casas and colleagues at Baylor College of Medicine provide an illuminating look into the brain in people suffering from BPD. [More]
Madagascar 2 Demo available now on Xbox LIVE (Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa) 
Major Nelson reports that a demo for Madagascar 2 has appeared on the Xbox LIVE Marketplace, and is available in all Xbox LIVE Regions.
Your favorite characters are back in the Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa video game, based on the DreamWorks Animation movie! Join Alex, Marty, Melman, Gloria, those crafty penguins and their entire madcap Madagascar crew in an all-new action-packed journey to save the African savannah. With over 10 playable characters, 12 distinct levels, and 8 multiplayer mini-games, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa is guaranteed to deliver a diverse, fun and wacky adventure like never before!
cisco kid :: Oct.17.2008 :: General :: No Comments »
Coming Attractions: Choose Connor
Choose Connor, the taut political drama that stars Steven Weber, Alex Linz, and Escher Holloway, gained notice and generated buzz at numerous film festivals earlier this year. It has also been favorably compared to such films as the critcally acclaimed 2007 film Michael Clayton. Heady stuff for 21-year old writer and director Luke Eberl. The film opens October 10.
cisco kid :: Oct.16.2008 :: General :: No Comments »
Kung Fu Panda
Movie trailer, synopsis and info about the Paramount movie Kung Fu Panda (2008), starring Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Ian McShane, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, and Lucy Liu. Kung Fu Panda is rated PG, for sequences of martial arts action.
Madagascar 2 Demo available now on Xbox LIVE (Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa)
Major Nelson reports that a demo for Madagascar 2 has appeared on the Xbox LIVE Marketplace, and is available in all Xbox LIVE Regions.
Your favorite characters are back in the Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa video game, based on the DreamWorks Animation movie! Join Alex, Marty, Melman, Gloria, those crafty penguins and their entire madcap Madagascar crew in an all-new action-packed journey to save the African savannah. With over 10 playable characters, 12 distinct levels, and 8 multiplayer mini-games, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa is guaranteed to deliver a diverse, fun and wacky adventure like never before!
cisco kid :: Oct.15.2008 :: General :: No Comments »
Coming Attractions: Choose Connor
Choose Connor, the taut political drama that stars Steven Weber, Alex Linz, and Escher Holloway, gained notice and generated buzz at numerous film festivals earlier this year. It has also been favorably compared to such films as the critcally acclaimed 2007 film Michael Clayton. Heady stuff for 21-year old writer and director Luke Eberl. The film opens October 10.
Kung Fu Panda
Movie trailer, synopsis and info about the Paramount movie Kung Fu Panda (2008), starring Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Ian McShane, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, and Lucy Liu. Kung Fu Panda is rated PG, for sequences of martial arts action.
cisco kid :: Oct.14.2008 :: General :: No Comments »
Coming Attractions: The Secret Life of Bees
Based on the New York Times best-selling novel by Sue Monk Kidd, The Secret Life of Bees tells the touching story of 14-year old Lily Owens (Dakota Fanning). Haunted by the memory of her mother, Lily flees an abusive household with her friend Rosaleen (Jennifer Hudson) and takes refuge with the Boatwright sisters (Queen Latifah, Alicia Keys, and Sophie Okonedo). The film opens on October 17.
Hong Kong Action Flicks
Top Hong Kong Action Movies on DVD, from your About Guides Marcy Dermansky and Jurgen Fauth
2008 Action Movies
Action movie fans are going to love 2008. Big action films set to hit theaters in 2008 include Bond 22, Iron Man, Speed Racer, Prince Caspian, Cloverfield, The Dark Knight, Star Trek, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Incredible Hulk, Get Smart, Wanted, Hancock, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, The Mummy Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.
cisco kid :: Oct.13.2008 :: General :: No Comments »
Las Vegas Star Trek exhibit closing after 10 year run
Thousands of fans of the “Star Trek” movie and television franchise are converging on Las Vegas to send off the 10-year-old attraction …
cisco kid :: Oct.12.2008 :: General :: No Comments »