Nineteen*7

The original Back to the Future teaser trailer. As always, alot of love for Michael J Fox but in the past few days the internet has exploded with two separate videos relating to both Fox and BTTF. One is a recreation of the above trailer for the SPIKE SCREAM 2010 awards. The second is EWs reunions edition, which features reunions for Back to the Future, Lord of the Rings, Scream and so on. Videos follow;

Nineteen*6

My much anticipated IKEA excursion last weekend was met with unrivaled failure! I could never have anticipated that it would turn out to be so unnecessarily pointless to make the trip, however we did all enjoy our $1.00 hotdogs.

I went in search of several things; plain black frames (for my degrees), a possible sofa bed (for my new place), a desk chair and l also wished to peruse the kitchen tables for possibilities for future investments.

Well..

Plain Black Frames

I honestly feel as though IKEA should invest in something other than these new fangled frames which are at the very least twice as thick as ordinary picture frames. Also I believe that it is a bit much for a department store such as IKEA to ONLY have this particular style of frame available. FAIL.

Sofa Bed

Choice words I would use to describe the selection; overpriced, hard, uncomfortable, ugly ugly ugly. FAIL.

Desk Chair

I had high hopes for some majestic choices from IKEA for this particular item but was left wanting. With a surprisingly small range to choose from I immediately assumed that I would not find anything suitable to my wishes and needs. Once I had discounted those without armrests or high backs I was left with 3 possible options. One had such a high, straight back whose headrest loomed far above my head I assumed it must be meant for giants. One other had the strangest hard plastic arms so I didn't even give it a go. The remaining chair looked much like you ordinary unassuming office chair - black, leather, a little uglier than most but hopeful. One of the single most uncomfortable office chairs in the world. FAIL.

Kitchen Table

I did not mind what I saw initially but on closer inspection at the couple that suited my needs I found that their tops were already marked like nothing else, simple from people looking at them. I'm not in the market for a glorified cheap office desk so I looked at some others. There were actually some quite decent tables there but I must say there was only one or two that I would actually half consider when the time comes. And honestly, I'll most likely not think to go to IKEA for a table when the time comes regardless of whether or not the stock has changed. FAIL.

Overall, my trip would have been far more successful had I been seeking a work desk or a desk lamp or something kitchen related. I did manage to secure a rather large handful of pencils though, so the trip was not a complete waste.

Nineteen*5

Nineteen*4

And we've missed you Zeke.

Nineteen*3

29. (PROGRESS!) Watch all Star Trek films.

As I pack all my dvd's to move I've come to the conclusion that I needed a list to refer to for my Star Trek watching progress. It's something that is going to take a while, my being such a massive Star Wars fan and all. But I'm curious - this year I finally watched Wrath of Khan and thought it was fan-bloody-tastic. A shame that half the effects were CG and compared to the miniatures in the film, have no aged as well.
My progress thus far;

• Star Trek: The Motion Picture
• Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan
• Star Trek: The Search for Spock
• Star Trek: The Voyage Home
• Star Trek: The Final Frontier
• Star Trek: The Undiscovered Country
• Star Trek: Generations
• Star Trek: First Contact
• Star Trek: Insurrection
• Star Trek: Nemesis
• Star Trek

Impressive I know. it took me ages to get to this point! I saw a fair bit of Star Trek The Next Generation on random times on tv, as well as Star Trek Enterprise (which I am currently contemplating investing in). Something about the over technical focus on talking rather than doing threw me off. I really enjoyed Enterprise however, perhaps it was Scott Bakula and next generation had Patrick Stewart. But after seeing JJ Abrams revamp of the series - it raised my interest in watching the entire series and I would hate to be an elitist ignoring Trek whilst loving Wars. I won't get into Trek to the same extent (reading the books etc) although I may yet invest in Star Trek Online, I rather enjoyed my limited trial run!

It's a bit sad; I picked up Nemesis in first year of uni, Generations not too long after (due to my Boston Legal craze and my wish to see Shatner in the Star Trek Universe). I then picked up Star Trek earlier this year. So basically I have only seen a single film that I do not own. But I'll get there! I'm particularly looking forward to seeing the Borg-related adventures of the Next Generation crew - I have heard alot.

Nerd.

Nineteen*2

An amazing artwork Geometric Death Frequency-141 shows liquid splashing in a 6m x 15m invisible cube. The work was created through the use of automated robots, the structure so complex that there was no other feasible approach.

Federico Diaz: Geometric Death Frequency-141 from federico diaz on Vimeo.

Federico Diaz: Geometric Death Frequency-141 from federico diaz on Vimeo.

The system used the robots to place the balls one-by-one, slowly building the artwork. The robotic arms would retrieve the black ball, use the dual glue dispenser to place glue on the balls and then proceed to place them in their designated position. Repeat. For 420,000 balls. Federico Díaz used CAD software to simulate liquid until he decided on the suitable frozen shape.

Nineteen*1

Ninteen*0

Illustrates my previous point pretty well I'd say. Thankyou to the dear internet for plastering the new suit everywhere, it's a definite step up from the matrix-esque suit.

Eighteen*9

To follow up on my previous posts (two) on my macbook doing its very best to plummet into a swan dive and splatter itself across the pavement.I called up Apple Support who were all-round pretty unhelpful. After I described the issue, including the conclusion that I had arrived on and directing them to the documentation that I had found they essentially told me what I had resolved to do prior to calling which was visit a Apple Repair Center. So off I went, dropped the computer off and 3 days late my macbook was returned to me fully functional, although covered with grubby fingerprints which the service repair officer clearly felt did not require cleaning up.

Nonetheless the repair was free-of-charge due to an agreement between Apple and NVIDIA regarding the graphics card in this particular model of MBP. I was given an invoice for my records and I must say; had the nvidia agreement not covered the cost(s) of the repair I would have simply invested in a new laptop rather than suffer the repair costs.

Without going into specifics; the repair would have cost me a little over $2000, the macbook having only cost me $2449. No wonder nvidia decided to cover the repair costs - noone would bother repairing their computer at this cost and would no doubt seriously consider heading away from the Macbook Pro towards a computer with an alternative brand of graphics card. Personally I am a fan of NVIDIA, I have always found their performance superior to others like ATI. It was lucky that I pursued this straight-away as I now (as of Friday) have a 'full-time' job which requires that I have a personal laptop that I may work from.

So folks, a word of caution to those of you running a Macbook Pro manufactured between May 2007 and September 2008 with a NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT graphics processor - if you do have an issue with the graphics performance, it is covered under this agreement for 4 years from the purchase date.

Eighteen*8

 The third episode of the final season of Smallville has been titled 'Supergirl' - it feels obvious what it is all about. Laura Vandervoort reprises her role as Kara Zor-El aka Kara Kent aka Linda Danvers aka Supergirl and is apparently there 'to shake things up' for the current heroes of Earth. She is forced to adapt her brunette disguise in public as she makes a grand flying entrance, all a lead up to the greater effect of Superman.

I feel as though she will become a shining example that the world needs and wants these heroes, not those that are hidden in the shadows. Why? Well some of these hidden vigilantes are misrepresented by their need for secrecy and deception (notably Green Arrow) and would benefit from a public outing. Mind you, I think for Smallville that isn't something that will eventuate in the series with the exception of Clark donning the cape. Some promo shots of the Supergirl outfit have debuted online - it was described as a step forward from Clark's current 'Blur' costume but not quite a finished product. No insignia, belt or cape. The rest is all there. I'm quite a fan, although I will admit it feels strange without the cape but that is something they need to save for Superman.

Seeing this hammers home that it is the Smallville equivalent of the Supergirl costume, reinforcing the thought that the Superman Returns supersuit will be sadly out of place in this universe. I really feel that the Smallville supersuit should be plainer, more along the lines of the classic Christopher Reeve suit (without the 's' texture). Mind you, just because the suit has appeared does not mean that will be the one he will wear. It's assumed, but you can't take it all for granted.

Supergirl's outfit appears much as it does in the classic comics (and tv series), the modern suit only differing in the colour of the skirt (blue).

Eighteen*7

Looks pretty swish.

Very excited for Robert Knepper. Of what I wasn't able to avoid of Prison Break he was definitely the highlight of an otherwise lackluster show. Likewise with the final season of Heroes.

So seeing what he does to the Stargate Universe (Universe =p). I'd bet that it will be fantastic.