The Future of Cinema [||,] 3D?
While the rebirth of 3D Cinema happened in the 80′s with films such as Captain Eo and Jaws the movement started decades early in what is referred to as the Golden Age of 3D in the 50′s. However, looking at the box office nowadays would have you believe that a “rebirth of the rebirth” is going on. While it is understandable why the movie industry is looking for anything they can to get us all out of our living rooms and away from our home theater setups, we have to ask ourselves: “Is this really the future of cinema?”
Unfortunately as consumers, we may not have much say in the matter. As I stated earlier, the reason for this “rebirth of the rebirth” is fairly obvious. Movie studios have been losing more and more money each year as they are pitted against the latest home theater systems. With 5.1 surround sound and massive Flat Screen TV’s becoming the norm and even projection screens being very affordable, 3D is something the local movie theater can offer that most consumers can’t duplicate in their livings rooms [||,] yet.
The offerings are bound to get better and better as the various 3D technologies mature. The current technologies being Real D 3D, Dolby 3D, XpanD 3D, MasterImage 3D, and IMAX 3D. It’s not clear to the average consumer which of these, if any, is any better than the others.
I have recently been researching the possibility of duplicating the 3D experience in my own living room. I have a DLP projection screen setup, which is supposedly capable of producing pretty decent 3D results. In the coming months I will probably delve deeper into this and report back my findings. For now though my suggestion is to put on your dorky 3D glasses, go see Avatar again while its still in the theaters and get ready for the next Pixar movie (Toy Story 3) in 3D. Its bound to be a long strange 3-Dimensional trip.
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iPhone OS 4.0 Announced
Innovation of any kind by any company is a good thing for all of us. So even if you are one of the unlucky few that do not possess an iPhone [||,] keep reading.
Today Apple announced the newest version of the operating system that runs our precious iPhone’s, version 4.0 coming this summer. Here is a rundown of the new features to be included:
- Multitasking
- iBooks (like the iPad only smaller)
- Game Center (Social gaming, like Xbox Live but for iPhone)
- Merged Email Boxes and threaded messages
- App Folders
- Custom Wallpaper
- Tap to focus Video and 5x Zoom
- Playlist creation and nesting
There are more features but these are the ones most of us will be interested in. The 3G and 2nd Gen iPhones will run most of these except multitasking, however the 3Gs and 3rd Gen iPod touch will work with all of these features. Another bit of exciting news for those who already possess or have their eyes on an iPad; the features that the iPad doesn’t have, namely multitasking, are coming to the iPad in the fall.
This announcement, while not unexpected is very good news for us all. For one thing it crosses off one of the gripes that geeks such as myself have had with the iPhone and iPad, no multitasking. It also goes to show that Apple is not sitting idly by counting their cash. With continued pressure on Google, Microsoft and other manufacturers of smartphones and tablets they are proving once and for all that they are the leaders of innovation and provide a user experience that others are striving to duplicate.
That being said, I am grateful for competing platforms such as Google: Android, as without them many of the most exciting innovations we have seen recently may not have come to fruition.
For details and photos about the Apple Live event, check out Ars Technica’s liveblog coverage at the link below.
http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/04/iphone-os-4-special-event-cupertino-liveblog.ars
For detailed information about the features themselves, visit the official Apple site.
What is Pause|| Comma, ?
Welcome to Pause|| Comma, It seems blog topics have been rolling around in my head for years now. I have watched on the periphery as internet trends come and go so forgive me if I am a tad late to the party.
Bloggers can be a strange sort, so what makes me think I can join this illustrious group?
It helps that I happen to be very opinionated about various topics and like to think (as most bloggers do) that I have something worthwhile to say. Having an inflated ego that makes me think people will actually care about what I have to say doesn’t hurt either. Being “strange” myself also seems to put me in line to embark on this endeavor.
So who am I and what am I about?
I am an Art Director and Web Designer living in Phoenix Arizona. Being in my mid-thirties and growing up in the 80′s has given me a love, even obsession with all things technology and media related. Since my first Sony Walkman and my FM Radio watch I have been fascinated with the way people interact with technology and how it enhances our lives. As a young boy I built cities from my Lego blocks, imagined new worlds from reading Science Fiction and Fantasy novels, and pretended to be a mighty Paladin while playing Dungeons & Dragons.
If you were to look at all the things I am interested in you would quickly come to the conclusion that I am a huge geek, however grounded in reality I may be. I often communicate through cultural references from music, films, television, games, and books. I drink in the world around me and cannot bare to be left behind when it comes to those things that make the American cultural experience what it is.
So welcome friends and fellow bloggers. I hope to add something to the ever growing world we are creating here and if nothing else [||,] have fun along the way.
