2011 Newsies Awards

Posted on December 29, 2011

The inaugural year of this blog is coming to a close and I felt that I should do the obligatory “end of the year” post. I have always had an issue with “Best of [year]” posts because while it makes sense for things like movies and video games, it doesn’t make sense for things like TV shows, podcasts and software where they span/change over multiple years. Therefore, my spin on this concept is little different, and rather than naming what was the pure “best” of the year, I limited the qualified properties to things that I discovered in 2011. So you may see things on this list that did not come out in 2011, but instead are things that I first used/watched/absorbed in 2011. I dub these my “2011 Newsies Awards”, which is also an homage to my all-time guilty pleasure movie Newsies.

TV Show – Breaking Bad

Although Breaking Bad premiered three years ago, I never watched a minute of it until this year. I have seen every episode and have no doubt that is the best show on television. Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul deserve every award they have already received, and I think it will be a travesty if Paul doesn’t win another Emmy this year. He was so amazing in season five. Although this show probably isn’t for everyone, if you have ever considered watching it, you will not be let down.

Runners-Up:

  • Game of Thrones – I never read the books and was hesitant to dive into what I thought was a lot more magic/sci-fi than it was; my mind was blown. Definitely a great, but at times confusing story.
  • Shameless – A hilarious dark comedy about a rag-tag bunch of siblings who try to survive growing up in Chicago despite their alcoholic father’s constant hindering.

Did Not Qualify (DNQ):

  • Friday Night Lights – Worthy of a mention for it’s brilliant final season. One of the most underrated TV shows of the last five years. As more people discover this on Netflix I expect it’s place in TV lore to grow.

Movie – The Hangover 2

A tough category as I saw very few movies that actually came out in 2011. I loved the follow-up to the now legendary 2009 comedy, and even thought as I walked out of the theatre thinking that it was as good as the original, upon my (recent) 2nd viewing, directly after re-watching the original, I realize that it’s not nearly as good, but still funny.

Runners-Up:

  • Up in the Air – Oscar nominee from 2009 was another one I wish I had seen sooner. Vera Farmiga was very good and seemed so much more grown-up than in The Departed.
  • Body of Lies – This 2008 Ridley Scott action movie is obviously not new, but I wish I had seen it sooner. I thought it was a very good conspiracy/action/political thriller. I like DiCaprio and Crowe very much.

iPhone App – Tweetbot

Released in April by a company known for making unique and beautiful applications, Tweetbot is the best Twitter client on any platform. If I could find a way to use it on my Mac I would. The rumors of an iPad version have me salivating, but in the meantime, it’s not only my pick for 2011, but it’s my #1 iPhone app.

Runners-Up:

  • Instacast – I spend enough time listening to podcasts that I found it worthwhile to invest in a standalone podcast player as opposed to dealing with the annoying built-in app. Instacast was the 2nd one I tried and I find it to be nearly perfect. Downcast has emerged as a favorite of many, but I remain loyal.
  • Due – Although it was released in 2010, I didn’t purchase Due until January. It has become invaluable in reminding me to do things, and it’s auto-snooze is a must have feature. I use it for very specific scenarios, mostly when I need to remember to something when I get home from work, but because it will nag you until you change the due time or mark it complete, it’s hard to miss.

iPad App – HBO Go

Because I just got an iPad this year, all the apps are new to me this year. HBO Go allows you to stream pretty much any episode from any season of any HBO show. The quality on the iPad is great, and although you can’t connect it to your TV it’s still nice.

Runners-Up:

  • Reeder – The iPad version of one of my favorite iPhone and Mac apps, Reeder is the best Google Reader fronted out there. The iPad version has button placement that I don’t really agree with, but it’s still worth it.
  • Flipboard – Heralded as one of the great examples of how an “out of the box” app can make the iPad revolutionary. I don’t use it all that often, mostly because I forget about it, but when I remember I like it a lot.

Mac App – Keyboard Maestro

A very nerdy application that automates tasks on a Mac by executing keyboard combinations and other tasks. It has become an integral part of my blogging workflow and does all kinds of little tasks that now take 1 keystroke instead of 10. I am constantly trying to think of creative and new ways to take advantage of this.

Runners-Up:

  • Reeder – Officially released in June after a lengthy beta period, it’s possible that this app doesn’t actually qualify, but I love it so much as a native front-end to Google Reader that I couldn’t leave it off. I use the version on my iPhone more, but this is application is still amazing.
  • OmniFocus – I finally took the plunge and bought OmniFocus this year to handle all of my task management. So far I have been very happy with my decision and have benefited from the “upgrade” from Things.app and the lack of no over-the-air sync.

Gadget – iPad

I didn’t buy an iPad in 2010 and wasn’t planning to buy one in 2011, but after my wife decided she wanted the 3G version, I ended up with her WiFi one. Although I still have difficulty at times finding a way to get extensive use out of it, it does serve several use cases very well. It has been useful when traveling, that is for sure.

Runners-Up:

  • Belkin CarAudio Connect AUX with Bluetooth – I replaced the auxiliary cable from my iPhone to my car radio with this device. So far I have loved it, and while it has some minor annoyances with resuming playback when re-connecting, it’s still 1000x more convenient than having to plug/unplug a cable constantly, and be tethered to the radio all the time.
  • Samson Meteor Mic – This is the microphone that I use to record the Hippo Podamus. It’s small, but solid, and the audio quality is pretty good. It seems like a great “entry-level” mic.

Website – Grantland.com

As much as I expressed my disappointment with Bill Simmons’ new venture on a recent podcast, I still spend a lot of time reading it and overall it has been good. There are more mediocre stories than great or bad ones, but the rate of return could still be better. I still enjoy Simmons’ columns as much as anyone anywhere though.

Runners-Up:

  • Marco.org – Home to software developer Marco Arment, who I was aware of prior to 2011, but didn’t know much about. I thoroughly enjoy his blog posts and unfiltered take on technology.
  • 52 Tiger – TUAW writer Dave Caolo’s musings about technology, Apple, iOS and productivity. Always finding useful apps and ideas from this guy.

Podcast – Solid Verbal

I discovered this just weeks before the 2011 college football season started, but it has easy cracked the top 3 podcasts on my iPhone. Dan and Ty put out 2-3 shows a week, one overall preview, one overall review and sometimes one about a specific game. These guys are funny and know their college football and it seems like the best way to get a complete picture of the week before and the week ahead.

Runners-Up:

  • Mac Power Users – I had a revelation in the summer that most of the podcasts I listened to were just people yammering. I decided I wanted to find podcasts that were more about getting useful information. This podcast ended up being exactly what I was looking for, covering all kinds of extremely geeky Mac tips, tricks and applications. I have learned some completely new things, but often just learn little ways to make the tools I use better.
  • Jalen Rose Podcast – One of the new podcasts created as a part of the Grantland.com network, it’s hosts are Dave Jacoby and former NBA player Jalen Rose. Rose is very open about how sports and athletes work, and is very knowledgable about current sports. It’s definitely an interesting take.

Episode #31: The Random Show

Posted on December 27, 2011

We talk about a variety of topics this week without a set agenda. We start with HBO’s new series Luck, then run through Alan Sepinwall’s list of best new shows. Then we talk about the Derrick Rose extension and the upcoming NBA season. Then we discuss New Year’s and our past and future plans and then New Year’s resolutions. We close it out with some talk about “New Year’s Day” bowls happening on January 2nd this year. And we close with some really quick talk about Modern Warfare 3.

Guest: Chris (http://twitter.com/cmwilliams51)

Running Time: About 35 minutes

Download: Direct

Subscribe: iTunes | RSS Feed

Episode Links:

Theme music by FantomenK

Top Five Christmas Movies

Posted on December 25, 2011

1. It’s A Wonderful Life

Spoiler-Free Synopsis: A down-on-his-luck man get’s a glimpse of what the world would have been like if he hadn’t been born.

The holiday movie of the last few generations and the King until about 8 years ago or so. So much so that it was usually shown about a dozen times per holiday season, until NBC bought the exclusive rights. Now it pops up once or twice per year. It’s still a classic, and still my favorite. It’s been spoofed, mocked and re-imagined so many times over the years that people have lost count. It’s also nearly impossible not to get choked up at the end.

Because of it’s significance as one of the all-time holiday classics, this one is probably must see, but I suspect many younger people would leave disappointed. Still must see in my opinion.

2. Bad Santa

Spoiler-Free Synopsis: Two thieves befriend a loserish kid while working as a mall Santa Claus and elf before attempting a Christmas Eve robbery

Although I could never make it #1, if nothing else because it’s so offensive, Bad Santa is the only movie on this list that I could watch any time of the year. Billy Bob Thornton plays a raunchy, trashy guy like no one else can. The swearing, puking, pants-peeing and drunkenness bring out the holiday cheer in everyone! It’s also John Ritter’s last movie and has a great performance by the late Bernie Mac.

Well deserving of it’s R-rating, this one is not for kids. But if you like raunchy comedies, this is as good of Christmas movie as you can get. Not worth watching on cable, definitely Netflix or borrow from someone.

3. A Christmas Story

Spoiler-Free Synopsis: A man retells the story of his Christmas quest for a BB gun in 1940s.

If It’s A Wonderful Life is the holiday movie of the last generation, A Christmas Story is the movie for the current generation. Part of this has to do with TNT’s decision to run this movie for 24 straight hours every Christmas. The amount of things I saw in stores this year related to this movie was very surprising. The leg lamp and the bunny suit have become iconic parts of Christmas, and more kids know about sticking your tongue to cold things because of this movie. The fact that this movie is 28 years old, but only seems to be gaining steam still blows my mind

I thought it was impossible for people between the ages of 15-55 to have not seen this movie, but I was recently proved wrong. A must watch for anyone who celebrates Christmas. Because of TNT’s 24-hour marathon, anyone with cable should have no problem seeing it.

4. The Family Man

Spoiler-Free Synopsis: A wealthy, successful man gets dropped in an alternate universe where he is married to an old girlfriend he always regretted leaving.

A controversial pick undoubtedly, and also a re-imagining of It’s A Wonderful Life, The Family Man is another movie that I have seen 10 times for sure. Of course it’s cheesy, and Nicholas Cage isn’t Jimmy Stewart, but I still enjoy it. It aims to deliver a message about what is really important in life and whether or not money is the answer to lifelong happiness, but not in a deep way.

Pops up on TV here and there. Enough funny moments in my mind to be worth your time, including his fictitious daughter figuring out that something isn’t right with her dad.

5. Home Alone

Spoiler-Free Synopsis: A boy is accidentally left home alone when his family goes to France for Christmas, and he must fend off cat burglars intent on robbing his parents’ lavish home.

Macaulay Culkin deserves a lot more credit for this command performance than he ever receives. He was not even 10 years old when this movie was filmed and he just owns it. The funniest thing about Home Alone, for me, is that this is where I first met Joe Pesci. I knew nothing about him before this, and looking back, it’s so weird to think of him in this movie. I enjoy this movie for personal nostalgia as much as anything, and like I have said about The Goonies not being good upon first viewing as an adult, I am sure this movie would be the same.

There’s enough of a feel-good story in this one to make worthwhile to show kids nowadays. Also, it doesn’t feel all that dated. The fact that internet and cellphones would have made the plot easier to fix, it’s so implausible already that it doesn’t really matter.

Honorable Mentions

National Lampoons Christmas Vacation – Funny, but overrated. The Christmas lights remain iconic, but much of this movie could be ignored.

The Santa Clause – Tim Allen at the peak of his popularity. This one is a clever, original story that has it’s moments, but wouldn’t be on my list of must see.

Home Alone 2: Lost In New York – Included only because my sister insists it’s a package deal with the original. Blatant cookie cutter move from the first one, where Kevin basically learns the same lessons again.

How The Grinch Stole Christmas (the original) – Must see for anyone who grew up with Dr. Seuss. I have to be in the right mood for this one.

First Modern Warfare 3 DLC Drops January 24 On Xbox

Richard Mitchell of Joystiq on Modern Warfare 3 DLC:

Speaking on the Call of Duty Elite program, “Roll Call,” Infinity Ward community guru Robert Bowling revealed that the first batch of Modern Warfare 3 DLC will be available next month. Specifically, Bowling announced that the “full season of content for Modern Warfare 3 kicks off for Elite subscribers January 24th on Xbox Live.” As usual, expect the DLC to remain exclusive to Xbox for some time before launching on PS3 and PC.

The question is, how/when will people who didn’t buy the premium version of Elite get this? I am hoping I can buy it day one without having to have the Premium version of Elite. Time will tell.

(Click to view source article)

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Apply College Football Playoff Ideas To Past Seasons

Seth from mgoblog on college football:

Math says if you found the best team in a 120-team league after 12-13 games of unbalanced schedules, you just got lucky. What we’re shooting for here is something where only the homeriest homer of Domer will be claiming their team got duked. The last team in should have an ironclad case, were they to emerge victorious, to be the No. 1 overall team, but the first team out should not have a very good case to be given that chance.

The entire article is completely worth your time. Seth looks back at all 14 years of the BCS and figures out which systems best me the situation for that year (current BCS, plus one, 6-team playoff, 10-team playoff). Very interesting look that determines no system is perfect but that a 6-team one (which mgoblog has proposed in the past).

It’s pretty much a guarantee the system will change significantly in the next five years. My guess is that a “plus one”, which is really just a four-team playoff, is the mostly likely solution. From Seth’s piece though, it seems like that will create just as many arguments.

(Click to view source article)

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Don’t Expect HBO Go Without A Subscription Any Time Soon

Paris Lemon writing to HBO:

I’d gladly pay you upwards of $19.99 a month for direct access to HBO Go without a cable subscription. Netflix charges $7.99 a month for their streaming service right now, but thanks to your original programming, you’re worth a lot more. But Netflix original programming is coming soon, so your premium buffer won’t last forever. The time to strike is now.

$19.99 per month isn’t all that much. DirecTV charges $15/month for HBO with their service and I assume HBO gets a big chunk of that.

If you could remove your lips from the cable company teet for a minute, you’d find hundreds of thousands — and likely millions — of customers happy to pay a premium for access to HBO Go without the cable requirement right now. That number is only going to grow. And fast.

That seems to make sense, but it’s easier said than done. While they cut out the middle man, leading to more revenue, their overhead would increase mightily if there is more data to transfer directly to users. Also, I am guessing that even if they can break contracts with cable companies, they would lose money on that side, where a majority of their subscribers would still lie.

I think the idea of HBO or ESPN being available without a cable subscription is still just a pipe dream. I am guessing that neither of those networks are in a position yet where they can increase overall profits by doing this. Five years from now, that might be different.

(Click to view source article)

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1991 In Film

Posted on December 22, 2011

My decision to reach back 20 years meant I needed to cover 1991 before 2011 ended. This year was tough because I was a little to young to appreciate a lot of movies. Be sure to check out previous looks at 1993, 1995, 1997 and 2000

Best of the Best

If these are on, life stops

  1. Doc Hollywood – Very likely my favorite non-Back to the Future Michael J. Fox movie this is a solid, funny movie with a pretty good cast. I’d watch it anytime, and even though I have it #1 here, I don’t know if it cracks my top 20 all-time, and maybe that’s underrating it.
  2. JFK – I love historical fiction, and although this is based on a true story, a lot of it is likely made up. Really cool twists and turns and an absolutely monster cast of cameos. This is a long one, so it’s hard to watch with commercials.
  3. The Silence of the Lambs – Still regularly quoted, still immensely scary, Anthony Hopkins is amazing as Hannibal Lecter. Pretty pointless to watch on regular cable so it’s not on all that often.
  4. White Fang – Based on a classic novel, so hopefully that excuses the cheesiness. I don’t know why, but I just really like this movie.
  5. The Rocketeer – No excuse for cheesiness here, just good old fashioned period piece about a guy with a jetpack battling Nazi movie stars. Wasn’t this a Disney movie?

Favorites

These are movies that I like and still watch if the opportunity arises.

  • Backdraft – Would have been #6 on the above list if it had got to 6. Great movie and decent cast, plus it’s in Chicago, but it’s hard to put a movie that high when a non-Alec Baldwin is the lead.
  • The Commitments – About a guy in Dublin who is forming a soul band. Tremendous soundtrack, and the right amount of humor. Takes a special kind of person to like this movie, but those that do cherish it.
  • Don’t Tell Mom The Babysitter’s Dead – Barely escaped the “guilty pleasure” section, almost exclusively for two reasons, Christina Applegate in the the peak of “Married with Children” avoiding typecasting as an airhead and a small role by Josh Charles of Sports Night and The Good Wife.
  • Father of the Bride – Steve Martin when he was still churning out good movies. Martin Short when people still knew who he was.

Guilty Pleasures

  • My Girl – Like the next movie on this list, one that people around my age almost certainly loved. An at his peak Macaulay Culkin, a still relevant Dan Aykroyd and Jamie Lee Curtis and an impossible to love nobody named Anna Chlumsky.
  • Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze – If you were a boy born between 1980 and 1985, it’s almost impossible for you to not like this movie, possibly even more than the original.
  • What About Bob? – Bill Murray as only Bill Murray can do. Richard Dreyfus showing us why late 80s/early 90s fashion will never come back.

List of Shame

Movies that I have not seen

  • City Slickers – Never a big Billy Crystal guy, but this one is supposed to be good.
  • The Doors – Mostly makes this list because we own it and I’ve never seen it.
  • Hot Shots! – Not a big Sheen guy either, but this was supposedly a good spoof movie when those were still good.
  • The Last Boy Scout – Just appealing because it’s, a near-his-peak Bruce Willis, a relatively unknown Damon Wayans and Tony Scott directing.
  • Necessary Roughness – On my DVR. Probably not missing much here, but feel the need to call it out.
  • New Jack City – Wesley Snipes made a lot of cheesy but good action movies in the early 90s. Plus it has Ice T and a cool name.
  • Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves – Although this movie was somewhat panned, I still love Robin Hood and probably should have seen it by now.
  • Terminator 2: Judgement Day – Just recently saw the original. No excuse for not immediately following it up with the sequel. Easily the most shameful of 1991.

Other Films of Note

Films that jumped out at me or have significance that I haven’t seen or don’t have particularly strong feelings for

  • The Adams Family – Made a lot of money bringing back a classic TV show. Enough so that they made a sequel.
  • Beauty and the Beast – The Disney moneymaker of the year. Still a favorite amongst women around my age.
  • Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey – Listed because of my hatred for Keanu and the fact that I have never seen either Bill and Ted movie.
  • Boyz n the Hood – Saw it. Didn’t love it.
  • Bugsy – Warren Beatty, Annette Bening, Harvey Keitel, Ben Kingsley and Barry Levinson directing. It won a Golden Globe.
  • Cape Fear – Scorsese and De Niro. Probably enough said. Not my thing.
  • Drop Dead Fred – Phoebe Cates while she was still relevant. I remember people my age liking this but I never saw it.
  • Hook – Discarded as a result of my disdain for Robin Williams. Another one people my age loved.
  • The Man in the Moon – Literally Reese Witherspoon’s first movie.
  • Nothing But Trouble – Never heard of this one, but it had Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd and John Candy at the tail end of their primes, and a somewhat young Demi Moore right around hers. Something seems out of place.
  • Point Break – Another Keanu movie. Another skip.
  • Suburban Commando – Hilarious that people that Hulk Hogan could succeed as an actor.

Can’t Find A Place For Path and Stamped

Stephen Hackett:

Path, I already have apps to share photos and status updates with online friends. Twitter and Instagram beat you to the punch for how I share things online. I’m not on Facebook; I am not looking for what seems like a more private version of the network.

Stamped, I know most the cool places of Memphis I like to visit. Knowing cool areas in other cities isn’t super useful for me. And while it’s interesting to see what online people are reading or listening to, this information also isn’t super useful — not to mention, it can be acquired via Twitter fairly easily in most cases.

I was working on a post regarding this exact thing, but I guess there isn’t much point since Stephen nailed it. I have been struggling to find a place for both of these applications in my workflow but have just totally failed. They are nice looking, but I just can’t see how they make sense, for the exact reasons above.

Path doesn’t seem to make sense with Twitter, Facebook and Foursquare. And most of what people talk about on Stamped seem to be restaurants in cities I don’t live in.

(Click to view source article)

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DirecTV TiVo Severely Limited

Richard Lawler of Engadget on DirecTV Tivo:

On the downside however, there’s no mention of the new TiVo Premiere UI or internet streaming, and it does not support other add-ons like 3D, whole home DVR, apps, or DirecTV’s iPad app.

Hard to get excited after that. Whole Home DVR and the iPad app are two almost indispensable features in my mind. Not sure who the target market is here, especially since I think TiVo as a brand isn’t what it used to be.

(Click to view source article)

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How is Modern Warfare 3 Match Bonus Calculated?

If you have ever been curious how match bonus is calculated in Modern Warfare 3, this enterprising young turk has figured it out. There does seem to be an error in the 2nd equation, as he has “maxmatchLength” in both the numerator and denominator, which will cancel itself out.

I have tested this though, and it seems accurate for 6v6 games, but not for Ground War. So I am thinking that maximum match length does factor in some how perhaps.

What this essentially says though, is that match bonus is simply a product of player rank, match length and whether your team wins or loses. How well a player plays doesn’t seem to factor in at all. Also, there seems to be a bonus for making games last longer too.

(Click to view source article)

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