The Guild issue #2 is out now

Comics, News, Web Series,

Web series-turned-comic book The Guild is back with issue numero dos today.  Go ahead and preview it at Dark Horse Comics.  You can buy it there for $3.50.  Missed out on issue #1?  Download it from the App Store for a mere 99 cents here!  Here’s the synopsis for the latest issue:

Since discovering role-playing games, Cyd Sherman spends more and more time in-game as the healer Codex. As her boyfriend ignores her in favor of his fledgling band and her therapist questions whether or not she has “real” friends, Cyd decides to form her own group within the game after meeting Clara, who teaches her about reputation points, and Zaboo, who introduces her to “friending” within the game.

[Via ComicsAlliance]

Kid Cudi decides to make next album a sequel, changes its title

Music, News, , ,

Cudder and the Revolution of Evolution is no more.  Sadly.  What an awesome title, right?  In an unsurprising move, rapper Kid Cudi recently had a change of heart and decided to take a whole new direction with the album.  It will be called Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager.  He made the announcement on his blog:

i started making this project like a collab album, filled with fun and upbeat records that for the most part left you with jack shit when you were finished listening. i took a step back, went on tour, and realized im where im at because of the type of songs i write. every time i read a comment from someone saying ive touched their lives in some way is what made me want to stop fucking around and continue pouring my life into my music.  MOTM2 is dark by nature and instead of bringing you into my dreams like my first album, im bringing you into my reality.  good and bad. it will explain more of who iam aswell as pushing the envelope musically. this project will focus on many dark, fun, and ignorant moments in my life since ive been kid cudi in a exciting and cinematic nature continuing the MOTM theme.

Right off the bat, I’m not diggin’ the name change since the first title was so awesome; it just rolls off the tongue, you know?  Hopefully he’ll save it for album #3.  Anyway, making his sophomore album a sequel to Man on the Moon makes sense due to its content.  The first album brought us inside Cudi’s dreams and nightmares.  MOTM2 will venture us into his “reality.”  If it’s anything like the first go-around, which it promises to exceed, expect greatness.

[Via DatNewCudi; KidCudiBlog]

Apple reports 2010 Q2 earnings: $3.07b profit, Macs up 33%, iPods down 1%, iPhones up 131%

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As another quarter of the year flies by, Apple posts its positive earnings.  Check it: Apple posted revenue of $3.07 billion profit on $13.5 billion in revenue.  (Compare this to one year ago, Apple posted revenue of $9.08 billion on $1.62 billion in revenue.)  Says Steve Jobs: “We’re thrilled to report our best non-holiday quarter ever, with revenues up 49 percent and profits up 90 percent.”

Here’s a breakdown of each product category.  Apple sold 2.94 million Macs during the quarter (representing a 33 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter); 8.75 million iPhones (representing a 131 percent unit growth); 10.89 million iPods (representing a 1 percent unit decline).  Since the iPad was just released into the market, it’s too early to tally those numbers.  But overall, Apple has done it yet again!  Money in the bank, ya’ll.  Jobs looks to the future: “We’ve launched our revolutionary new iPad and users are loving it, and we have several more extraordinary products in the pipeline for this year.”  Cough–iPhone 4–cough.

The stock market responded graciously to the earnings announcement.  Apple stock (APPL) closed at an all-time high of 259.22, jumping nearly six percent from the previous day.

[Via Apple]

The next iPhone is leaked into the wild

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The fellas at Gizmodo have got their hands on the fourth-generation iPhone, confirming Engadget’s initial report on the device being leaked into the wild.  The new iPhone is thinner and a bit heavier than its 3GS predecessor (it measures 4.50 by 2.31 by 0.37 inches and weighs 140 grams, three more than the 3GS) and everything is more squared off.  The aesthetics of the device go in a different direction with the new model.  The back is entirely flat and is composed of either glass or ceramic.  Also there’s an aluminium border that runs completely around the exterior.  The silent switch, power, and volume buttons are placed in their familiar positions but are now metallic.  Notice I said volume buttons; the single rocker has been replaced with two separate buttons for volume up and down.  Giz theorizes that this will likely result in one of the two buttons being designated as a shutter button for the camera.  The SIM slot is now a MicroSIM slot and its been moved from the bottom to the left side of the phone.  There’s also a second mic located at the top next to the headphone port, likely for noise cancellation purposes.  The display is slightly smaller than the 3GS’s, but its resolution is much greater.  Though Giz cannot determine its exact resolution, they would not be surprised if it sported a 960×640 screen that’s been sitting in the rumor box.  On the back there’s an upgraded camera with a larger lens plus flash.  On the front next to the earport there’s a *front-facing camera*.  Get ready for on-the-go video Skype calls!  Some other nuggets of information: its got a 16% larger battery and the internal components have been miniturized.

This prototype model of the next iPhone unfortunately cannot boot up iPhone OS 4.  That means there’s no way of finding out its storage capacity, how high-rez the screen actually is, and other secrets hidden within OS 4 built for this device (iChat, anyone?).  Do you need proof that this is the real deal?  Head over to Gizmodo and read their exhaustive breakdown for proof.  Until the final model is (likely) revealed this June at WWDC, bask in the photos and video (after the break) Giz has provided with the world.  iPhone HD, you are so close yet so far away…

[Via Gizmodo]

Continue reading The next iPhone is leaked into the wild →

Kid Cudi college concert @ Bucknell University [video + pictures]

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On April 9 Kid Cudi visited Bucknell University in Pennsylvania, another stop on his nationwide college tour.  I was there, so naturally I took videos and pictures to share with you.  Cudder knows how to put on a concert.  He really draws in the entire crowd and interacts with some of them.  He feels the music when he’s performing and you can tell; that’s a special quality only few artists have.  If you get the opportunity to see him live, don’t miss out.

Cudi performed 17 songs total, including tracks from his debut album Man on the Moon: The End of Day and his mixtape A Kid Named Cudi.  He also performed Groovin’, an unreleased track he said we’ll find on his next album tentatively titled Cudder and the Revolution of Evolution.

The video below is Part 1 of 3; look after the break for Parts 2 & 3.  Or you can visit my YouTube page.  While you’re there, check out my coverage from this year’s Consumer Electronics Show at Las Vegas.  In June I’ll be traveling to Los Angeles to cover E3, the biggest video games trade show in the world, so be on the lookout for that.

1 2 3

Continue reading Kid Cudi college concert @ Bucknell University →

DJ transforms Nike running shoes into musical instruments

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DJ Daito Manabe was hired by Nike to create this viral video to promote Nike’s new Free Run+ running shoes.  Daito and crew effectively turned the shoes into controllers and used them to create slick beats and alter sounds by tapping, bending, and twisting them in all sorts of ways.  How’d they do it?  In an interview Daito said “he used flex sensors and accelerometers to make the shoes interactive.  He then processed the control signal and converted it to sound using the modular visual programming environment Max/MSP and Ableton’s Max for Live.”  The result is what you see in the video above.  Freakin’ awesome.

[Via CreateDigitalMusic; Engadget]

Time traveler spotted in 1940 museum photograph

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There!  Do you see him?  I know what you’re thinking, but this 1940 photograph has not been tampered with.   Those funky glasses, the graphic tee, the portable camera, and look at his hair!  All signs point to this man being a time traveler making a pit stop somewhere in 1940s America.

Thanks to a lengthy breakdown of the photo, it has been deduced that it is likely authentic.  Bummer, I know.  The outfit: Being used as we are to our contemporary fashion, we look at the man and assume he’s wearing a stamped T-shirt, something that would be indeed out of place (or time). But if you look carefully, you can see that he’s actually wearing (or could as well be wearing) a sweatshirt. And sweatshirts with bordered emblems were not uncommon in the 1940s – in fact you can find those in other photos from the same exhibit.  The glasses: …similar sunglasses used by actress Barbara Stanwyck on the movie “Double Indemnity”, made in 1944.  Or they are motorcycle goggles.  The camera: …despite some comments about the camera lens being too big for the time, too compact, it looks like a Kodak Folding Pocket model, available since the beginning of the 20th century.

The conclusion?  There’s nothing that can be seen that is actually out of place or time.  Despite all of this intriguing fact-checking, I’m still on to you, time traveler!  Share your theories in the comments below.

[Via Forgetomori; BoingBoing]

There’s something wrong with Fergie Olver

Hilarity, Video, , ,

Here’s a compilation of clips from an old ’70s Canadian game show called Just Like Mom.  It was hosted by husband and wife team Fergie Olver and Catherine Swift.  Anyone who watched this show must’ve noticed Fergie Olver’s pedophile tendencies.  Right?  Right!?  Kudos to YouTuber Haggardmike for putting this together and exposing this creepy, disturbing man.

Note: After a flurry of incoming comments and spam consisting of borderline inappropriate conversation, commenting on this post has been disabled. However, it is encouraged that you share your opinions surrounding this video over at the page it’s hosted on at YouTube.

[Via @undeadproducer]

Octopus steals diver’s camera, makes directorial debut

nature, Video, ,

New Zealander Victor Huang was free diving, recording the deep ocean blue with his brand new underwater camera, when all of a sudden an octopus showed up.  The shine of the camera caught its eye and it immediately went for it.  Its death grip becoming too strong for Huang to handle, the octopus snatched it away and forced Huang to chase after it.  Distracting it with a speargun, Huang eventually mangaged to get his camera back.  And the best part of the story?  The entire adventure was caught on camera!  Oh, and the fact that Huang was holding his breath the entire time.  There’s that, too.

[Via AnimalsDontThink; Gizmodo]