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DorkCast Episode #21 - NegroFormers

Posted by Jeff in General Edition on 15-07-2009

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We get together for our tech/movie/gadgets segment where we discuss the Transformers film, the iPhone as a sound recording device and a host of other things that we can’t quite remember. But it’s still fun, promise.

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DorkCast Episode #20 - House Husbands of Chicago

Posted by Jeff in General Edition on 02-07-2009

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We get together for the first time in a long time. Lots of scheduling conflicts along the way but we’re finally back! We just kind of shoot the breeze about some of the tech/dork stories we missed while we were gone.

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DorkCast: Episode #19: I’m Entitled to It!

Posted by Jeff in General Edition on 26-04-2009

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TECH

Blue Ray in every home? Severe price drop this holiday

Blu-ray in every home? Backers aim for $99 players - Ars Technica

More brands and no name manufacturers will be hitting the Blue Ray hardware market, hoping to expand the market penetration and increase Blue Ray disc sales over the holidays. Experts say cheap hardware will not have the same impact cheap dvd players had in supplanting VHS players, because of increasing competition from digital downloads, digital streaming and upscaled DVDs.

TECH

Time Warner Cable backs down on data caps; bandwidth costs scrutinized

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/04/the-price-gouging-premiums-of-time-warner-cables-data-caps.ars

Time Warner Cable, stung by online criticism of its paltry traffic caps (in tests, these have ranged form 5GB/month to 40GB/month) and ludicrous pricing schemes, has taken to the ‘Net to defend its sullied honor.

Time Warner Cable COO Landel Hobbs wrote earlier this week of the need for people to pay for the bandwidth they consume. “When you go to lunch with a friend, do you split the bill in half if he gets the steak and you have a salad?”

TWC’s steak/salad analogy breaks down when it’s crafted more accurately. The real question is whether you would even have lunch with a friend at a restaurant that charged $45 for a salad and $200 for a steak. Certainly, in a free market, most people would go elsewhere. That base rate works out to a truly jaw-dropping $6 per GB per month, and it’s so far out of line with competitors’ plans as to shock even the most cynical heart. AT&T DSL comes to 9 cents per GB per month, Verizon’s FIOS 11 to 36 cents per month (10Mbps - 50Mbps respectively). Comcast is 17 cents to 56 cents per GB (6MBps - 50MBps).

The issue is blocking competitive video and charging 1,000 percent and higher markups on bandwidth. ISPs just want a huge cut of the video download market.

TECH

Apple to get 15” OLED screens from LG this summer?

Apple and LG have a new contract (a 5 year deal) to purchase screens and Apple has paid $500 Million up front…very uncharacteristic and unusual practice…and unnecessary since Apple already gets 70% of their screens from them.

TECH

Chicago gets First Solar Powered EV Charging Station; Suck it San Francisco!

http://gas2.org/2009/04/09/chicago-gets-first-solar-powered-ev-charging-station/

The Windy City just unveiled the first solar-powered electric vehicle charging station during the IOC tour.

TV

GI JOE: Resolute……not your father’s GI JOE, but he’d like it now!

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=&search_query=GI+Joe+Resolute&aq=f

Aimed for adults, Written by Warren Ellis, Animation based on Dave Johnson’s art from the comic book 100 Bullets

MOVIES

BIG MAN JAPAN, a Japanese Superhero/Monster movie coming to the US

http://io9.com/5221979/the-weirdest-monster-from-japans-new-giant+superhero-movie

A middle-aged slacker living in a rundown, graffiti-ridden slum, Daisato’s job involves being shocked by bolts of electricity that transform him into a stocky, stick-wielding giant several stories high who is entrusted with defending Japan from a host of bizarre monsters. But while his predecessors were national heroes, he is a pariah among the citizens he protects, who bitterly complain about the noise and destruction of property he causes. And Daisato has his own problems –an agent insistent on branding him with sponsor advertisements, an Alzheimer-afflicted grandfather who transforms into a giant in dirty underwear, and a family who is embarrassed by his often cowardly exploits. A wickedly deadpan spin on the giant Japanese superhero, BIG MAN JAPAN is an outrageous portrait of a pathetic but truly unique hero

TV

Caprica, BDG prequel, released on DVD, iTunes, Apple TV and XBox 360 this week

Takes place 58 years before the destruction of life on Caprica, during the decadent peak of their society and monotheistic terrorism. Tells the story of 2 men whose common pain and loss of loved ones combined with unique resources they bring to the table the seeds of mankind’s near extinction.

GAMES

http://kotaku.com/5220616/left-4-dead-survival-pack-april-21

Valve breathes new life into Left 4 Dead with Left 4 Dead Survival Pack April 21.

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DorkCast Episode #18: I’m a Blanket

Posted by Jeff in General Edition on 09-04-2009

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AppleInsider — Price Hike Hits the iTunes Store

New Study says Personal Internet use in workplace is positive

Scarpar off-road powerboard.

The AP’s Desperate Attemt to Outlaw Search Engine Links And the more accurate link at the Huffington Post

Boxee Gains an App Store

Star Trek Sneak Explodes in Giant Trekgasm

We also had a brief discussion about Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles and Dollhouse. If you’re not watching either show ask yourself “Why not?” Seriously, BSG is over and you need new Science Fiction.

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