iConsume You

Hats For Sale

2011-12-18T17:22:00.001-08:00

Nexus S Acquired!

2011-04-20T18:29:00.001-07:00

The Nexus S is a beautiful phone. I'm actually posting this from my new mobile device as i ride the bus! Perhaps I will blog more often now!

The Cockpit of the Bullpiece

2011-03-07T20:40:00.000-08:00

You know it's been a good night when the growler hooks are full of growlers.

Brainstorming

2011-02-28T19:45:00.000-08:00

How do you brainstorm ideas?

Do you stick to pen and paper?

Do you use the internets?

Music? Are you listening to music when you brainstorm or do you demand silence?

What are you thinking about?

Oscars 2011 Winners List

2011-02-28T04:59:00.000-08:00

1. Best Picture: "The King's Speech."
2. Actor: Colin Firth, "The King's Speech."
3. Actress: Natalie Portman, "Black Swan."
4. Supporting Actor: Christian Bale, "The Fighter."
5. Supporting Actress: Melissa Leo, "The Fighter."
6. Directing: Tom Hooper, "The King's Speech."
7. Foreign Language Film: "In a Better World," Denmark.
8. Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin, "The Social Network."
9. Original Screenplay: David Seidler, "The King's Speech."
10. Animated Feature Film: "Toy Story 3."
11. Art Direction: "Alice in Wonderland."
12. Cinematography: "Inception."
13. Sound Mixing: "Inception."
14. Sound Editing: "Inception."
15. Original Score: "The Social Network," Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.
16. Original Song: "We Belong Together" from "Toy Story 3," Randy Newman.
17. Costume Design: "Alice in Wonderland."
18. Documentary Feature: "Inside Job."
19. Documentary (short subject): "Strangers No More."
20. Film Editing: "The Social Network."
21. Makeup: "The Wolfman."
22. Animated Short Film: "The Lost Thing."
23. Live Action Short Film: "God of Love."
24. Visual Effects: "Inception."

Watching Real-Time Revolutions Using Social Media

2011-02-20T21:14:00.000-08:00

So much is going on right now. Revolutions are sweeping the middle-east as Egyptians celebrate their freedom from a 30 year dictatorship. It blows my mind that through the power of social media, we are able to watch real-time revolutions take place complete with blogs, video phone uploads to youtube, photographs and audio testimonials. All this content is floating around the internet, segmented here and there. How is all of this data being orgainzed?

That's right, Twitter.

If you follow the hashtag #feb17 be prepare to enter a rabbit hole of real time media showing camera phone content being uploaded by Libyan citizens.

You can follow #bahrain to track happenings in Bahrain.

Social media is literally revolutionizing societies in several different ways. Digital content combined with the power of facebook and twitter has played a crucial role for the Egyptian citizens overthrowing Mubarak. An Egyptian couple even named their baby Facebook. We are now living in a digital age where social media is allowing whispers of revolution pass through thin air into mobile devices allowing for communities to form which would not be possible just 5 years ago.

This is definitely something to keep an eye on if you're into world politics.

Album of the Week: Röyksopp - Junior

2010-10-12T06:11:00.000-07:00

Brought to you by Grooveshark

BLOCKBUSTER'S Demise: The Death of Old Media?

2010-09-26T18:30:00.000-07:00

When was the last time you rented a video game from Blockbuster? What was the last film you rented there? I have fond memories of paying $100 deposit so that I could rent an N64 game console from BLOCKBUSTER. How many times have you strolled up and down the isles of BLOCKBUSTER VIDEO waiting for a loved one to JUST PICK A FUCKING MOVIE ALREADY!? er...you know what I mean. BLOCKBUSTER VIDEO is one of those stores where no matter which one you're in, it always felt as comforting as all the other BLOCKBUSTER VIDEOS. For over 20 years, BLOCKBUSTER VIDEO has maintained a relationship with its customers that helped entertain a majority of North Americans.

Blockbuster's story is an interesting one which I read about in a Newsweek article called The Rise and Fall of Blockbuster . Troubled by millions of dollars of debt since the 90's, this entertainment giant's story is about to come to an end as its debt reaches $1 Billion dollars (yes that's BILLION with a B). Over the past year, Blockbuster has been closing several stores as they're in dire need of financial capital. Unfortunately Blockbuster simply cannot keep it's head above water. Forced by the New York Stock Exchange, Blockbuster was delisted in July 2010. Huffington Post's article "Blockbuster Bankrupt: Video Chain Files for Bankruptcy" blames Redbox, iTunes and Netflix for crushing the Blockbuster dream. There's one major force that the article neglected to mention.

Piracy

What happened? Did consumers stop watching films? Was Blockbuster's model antiquated after so many years of success? Did competition drive Blockbuster into the ground? Obviously there are several answers to why Blockbuster failed, but I'm guessing that Blockbuster ignored the trends of consumers turning to the internet for access to the same content for better rates or even for free. Mix that in with the rise of illegal downloading services like Napster, Kazaa, Bearshare and todays torrent sites like piratebay.org , Torrentz, and Mininova. As these websites started popping up anti-piracy groups like RIAA and MPAA started suing piracy websites in the interests of keeping copyrighted content off of the internet, limiting free access by the average internet user. Prosecuting these websites to force them to shut down is quite a profitable industry. As the RIAA won victory over victory, random people were being summoned to court facing charges of copyright infringement and ordered to pay up to $9,250 per song!!! (Read more here.) Did suing random grandparents and children honestly make a difference in pirating? I would say that scaring the public by litigating everyone and anyone was a failure, however the RIAA has gained some wealth over the years.

The Pirate Bay's defeat came on April 17, 2009 after losing a court case vs the Entertainment Industry. All four defendants Peter Sunde, Fredrik Neij, Gottfrid Svartholm, and Carl Lundström were charged with "assisting in making copyright content available" via The Pirate Bay. Each had to spend 1 year in prison and was ordered to pay $905,000 in damages. A year later, thepiratebay.org is stronger than ever with over 4,300,000 users and still serving over 1 million pieces of content ranging from television shows, films, software, games, music and several other types of media (reference). SO what's changed? Absolutely nothing. Every day people are still using torrent sites as well as "illegal" websites that stream television shows as well as movies for free. They used to be fringe websites that popped up here or there, but now all you need to google is "WATCH" and NAME OF TELEVISION SHOW and you will be presented with a menu of options for streaming your favorite content "illegally". Does the Entertainment industry intend on shutting down every website that steams their copyrighted content?

No, they can't afford it.

Keep an eye on copyright laws changing over the years. I live in Canada, where are copyright laws are insane according to Michael Geist a law professor at the University of Ottawa where he holds the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law. Net Neutrality will be a hot topic over the next 5 years as it has been for several years already. This is where the "illegal" tv and film streaming sites will die. Torrent sites will also be impacted by anti net neutrality laws that govern each country. Imagine being slapped with a $9,000 fine for streaming television shows to your computer?

I have to admit, I have a guilty conscious now when "trying before buying". I've started to pay for my content via several channels:

iTunes -At 99 cents per song I pay for music that I want to exist in my iTunes collection. This is music that i will cycle on and off of my iPhone forever...so it has to be top notch.

Grooveshark - You can listen to almost any song, album, artist, even genre within seconds using Grooveshark's search engine. It costs $3.00 per month to use all features of this great site. You're able to create playlists of music that you did not purchase and play it from any computer or mobile device over the web. It's almost like having on-demand radio only you pay a tiny fee every month which goes back into the music industry.

Netflix - My new favorite website. Netflix's library offers over 100,000 TV and Film streaming to any device of your choosing. I've used Netflix on my laptop, iphone and even my Playstation 3. Sign up is breaze and they even offer you 30 days for free! Netflix will learn the types of films and shows you enjoy and offer recommendations based off of your viewing habits. All this could be yours for $7.99 per month UNLIMITED ACCESS.

Others

Maple Leaf TV - Access all Toronto Maple Leaf games from any computer live streaming over the web. Access tonnes of highlights and information about the team. This service is a bit pricy, but all things considered, $59.95 may be worth having access to EVERY Leafs game in HD, that is unless you're a Habs or Sens fan (booooo).

Gamefly - Video game rental service that ships video games to you in the mail. Keep the game as long as you want, even forever if you're willing to pay a bit more to own it. Once you are done playing the game, mail it back and Gamefly will mail you the next game on your waiting list. This is a great option if you're the type to play a game and then trade it in at your local EB or Gamestop.

Steam - Offers digital downloads of computer games on demand. Steam games are generally cheaper than the physical versions of the game found in your local computer shop.

Face it, we're all media whores, afraid of boredom but willing to pay what we deem fit. Stop pirating and start giving back via some of these web services.

Digital distribution is here to stay. We have so many different devices with digital shops demanding money now. iTunes, Xbox Live, PS3 Store, Netflix, and Steam are just a few examples of digital outlets nipping away at our wallets. How can you say no to such low prices to have on-demand service. DVDs won't be around forever, other than the onces collecting dust on your shelves. Perhaps this reality has finally sunk in with the BLOCKBUSTER investors and this is why we are witnessing the death of a multi million dollar video chain.

Good bye late fees, hello on-demand media.

Ted Stevens DEAD: Former Senator Reportedly Killed In Alaska Plane Crash

2010-08-10T14:25:00.001-07:00

Just for today: The internet IS a series of tubes. RIP Ted Stevens
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Link IS sexy! - Secret Hidden Triforce in O'Dell Park

2010-08-02T20:58:00.000-07:00

I snapped this over the weekend while biking through O'Dell Park.

(love the Triforce)

Flickr Photo

July 17th Sunset in Fredericton

2010-07-16T19:11:00.000-07:00

Can someone please remind me to post more photos to my blog? Thanks.

NIGHT DAISY!

The Sloth - BBC Earth

2010-06-28T21:04:00.000-07:00

I've always wanted to pet a sloth ... until now...

Discarded Comfort Project

2010-06-24T17:26:00.000-07:00

How often do you purchase a cup of coffee "to-go" on the way to work? I pay $2 per coffee about 4 times a week. That's 16 cups of coffee per month or 192 cups of coffee per year. A majority of coffee cups are made out of recycled paper along with a plastic lid, sometimes there's a anti-burning sleeve attached. So I'm creating about 400 pieces of garbage per year because I'm too freakin lazy to boil some water, grind coffee beans and combine them into my french press. My lethargy costs at least $400 / year and is a danger to the environment.

I'm just one case here. For some, this is a daily ritual and just to make matters worse, a lot of you sit anywhere from 2 - 10 minutes idle in a drive thru conga line of caffeine craving zombies who should not be operating heavy machinery.

Just to reiterate - millions of Canadians pay $2 per day for the luxury of not having to get out of their car to obtain their first coffee of the day. They pay $2 for a double double which gives them instant gratification and then this comfort is discarded. Where do these temporary vessels of bliss end up?

Everywhere.

I've decided to take things up a notch with my coffee cup photos. Some of these photos tell a story. Often times I will run into piles of discarded coffee cups outside construction sites. Obviously a group of workers gathered on their coffee break and discussed sports, politics and whatnot while sipping on their comforting cup o'joe.

Once in while I will snap a shot of a discarded coffee cup that looks as if someone had either forgotten it, or purposely placed the piece of trash on display as if it were a piece of art...

My project will record the locations of my coffee cup discoveries using a gps iphone app and hopefully we can find where most of this trash ends up. The other concern is which brands of coffee cups will I find most often? I am still figuring out how to carry this project out in a scientific manner since I can't snap a shot of EVERY coffee cup ... or can I?

Chaf

Plug the Freakin Hole British Petroleum (BP)

2010-05-27T17:59:00.000-07:00

Seriously, it's been 5 weeks now guys. And by "guys", I mean the smartest and most creative engineers from around the world. I hope BP is prepared to cough up a few BILLION for this disaster.

3D TV is NOT the future

2010-03-15T19:52:00.000-07:00

When did this hype start about 3D TV "revolutionizing television"? This idea seems to be a desperate attempt to pull people off of their computers and back into their living rooms as television consumption has been on the decline. Do we really need to see 3 dimensional Mr. Clean advertisements? Just imagine Mr clean starts mopping your floor in front of your very eyes!

I'm a bit skeptical of 3D TV being safe for your vision considering that I get crazy headaches after watching 3d films at the theater. What if children wore these glasses every day for 5 hours for 2 years straight? I'm sure this would give them super vision in the future. Perhaps I am a hipocrite since I'm a big fan of video games, however I would certainly draw the line at putting 3D glasses on in my living room to enjoy a film or video game.

I don't buy it. Is anyone seriously thinking about buying a 3d tv as soon as it comes out? MEH.

Happy New Year 2010 - Yup, this happened - Kathy Griffin Drops the F BomB live on CNN

2009-12-31T23:18:00.000-08:00

Oh, you're terrible Kathy Griffin.

Colgate 360 Actiflex Review

2009-12-27T20:06:00.000-08:00

Approximately 74% of all Christmas stockings contain a stick of deodorant, toothpaste, floss and a toothbrush. OK, well that number may not be accurate, however I'm sure that most of us got a toothbrush for Christmas so I'm wondering, which toothbrush dominated Christmas stockings of 2009?

This year Santa stuffed a Colgate 360 Actiflex toothbrush in my stocking. Boy was I excited. :| Seriously though, I love getting brand new toothbrushes. Every Christmas eve I daydream of how the toothbrush has evolved since last Christmas because you can only make limited changes to a toothbrush's design.

I was hoping that this years model had some sort of bluetooth capabilities such as synchronization with your iphone. Imagine Jay-Z 's freshest track bompin' away as you clean 5 hour old spinach from between your lateral incisor and left canine? The benefits are 2 fold. You would brush longer than 20 seconds plus you could really bang out a nice lil cardio session.

Come on, if we've invented roll-on butter, then why can't we have bluetooth toothbrushes?

I took my new Colgate 360 Actiflex for a test brush yesterday and I have to say say that I'm not really that impressed. The extremely thin neck worries me because I'm an aggressive brusher. What happens if the neck splits and shoots down my gullet? It also feels like there are not enough bristles which are spaced quite far from one another. I've seen cat toothbrushes with more bristles. We're not brushing lightbulbs people, give me some bloody bristles!!!

I don't get this gimmick that the bristles swivel around your teeth to get the junk trapped between your teeth. If you're supposed to floss anyhow, then what's the point? Is this toothbrush designed for those busy business types who don't have time to floss? Does this product discourage us from flossing? Dentists, you should be pissed.

The website says that the Colgate 360 Actiflex reduces oral malodor over three times better than the leading manual and battery powered toothbrushes to provide up to 10 hours of longer-lasting fresher breath. That's impressive ! (PS don't google oral malodor) I think the evolution in toothbrushes is at the back side of this tooth brush. The back feels like you're licking one of those fat green caterpillars . It feels weird when it rubs up against my inner cheek. I suppose this scrapes floating plaque off of your cheek?

So now I have to be concerned with having a clean inner cheek? Have there been tv advertisements discussing this health issue? Have I missed something? OH GOD...I haven't been brushing my inner cheeks.

It appears that there are few people talking about this toothbrush on Twitter, probably because there is no bluetooth iphone synch capabilities. I must admit though, the Colgate Actiflex 360 website is pretty slick. I'm not a fan of Colgate asserting that we need to be concerned about brushing the bacteria off of our cheek since 80% of oral bacteria does not exist on the teeth. I suppose if you're one of those "tongue brusher types" you will absolutely fall in love with the rubber tongue file...until it rips open all of your oral herpies...er...cankers.

Overall, it's a toothbrush. It does what it's supposed to do, however I may stick with my Oral B toothbrush and use the Colgate 360 Actiflex when travelling.

Chaf

PS, this commercial is hilarious.

Ridiculous Infomercial for the Colgate Wisp - The top video clips of the week are here

2009-12-20T16:28:00.000-08:00

I will also start posting iphone shots of random discarded coffee cups.

No I'm not crazy.

I may also post some of my photos once in a while.

Back at it

2009-12-20T16:14:00.000-08:00

OK, so I've had writers block for about a year now. I think this began when I started working in the social media world...how ironic. I suffer from TMI syndrome as most of us do. So many things to read during the day: personal emails, tweets,work emails,tweets, blogs,tweets, digg articles, and don't forget...tweets. Then there are: huffingtonpost comments to leave, facebook comments to leave, tweets, del.icio.us bookmarks ARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHH!

Perhaps I've been afraid to be scrutinized by my peers. Perhaps I'm just lazy. Or perhaps I just had nothing exciting to say. Well I've decided to start blogging again. I'm sure this blog will be as random as my last 2 (http://chafsdigitalbrain.blogspot.com/ and http://blogs.ci-fi.net/chaf ) however there's a twist. I've decided to review as many purchased products as possible. I'm not much of a consumer whore to be honest, so I will even blog about everyday products like toothbrushes and toiletbowl cleaner. I won't blog about EVERYTHING I buy however I will do my best to keep it realz.

Expect the following: product reviews, podcast postings, political rants, kitten videos, silly and dark humor, questions, polls, surveys, and opinions.

This experiment is to find out who's really listening out there.

You know who you are.

Chaf