david gilbert

We had about 18 inches of snow over the last few days. During the storm there was a lull. So I though, "Hey, why not build an igloo?". So I did. Of course the lull then turned into a blizzard.

In total it took 7 hours. The snow wasn't solid enough to carve blocks, so I used a plastic bin as a form to make the blocks. You need to really pack the snow in to ensure the blocks are nice and solid. Each block weighed around 20 pounds. The entire structure is nice and solid -- tough enough that I could easily sit on top of it.

Read more...

Nobody disses Star Wars. Well not episodes 4-6 anyway. The other episodes though are totally up for grabs. Especially Phantom Menace (except *the* fight scene). In an epic 90 minute dissertation RedLetterMedia completely assesses, analyzes, and trashes Phantom Menace in a beautiful, prosaic fashion. Get over the voice, it eventually matches the assessment, and matches the assessment perfectly. Well worth watching.

Armed with $500 and access to a studio full of equipment, Federico Alvarez a commercial director from Montevideo ("Uruguay... small country between Argentina and Brasil") created "Ataque de Panico!" (Panic Attack), an amazing robot invasion of Montevideo. And then landed a $30 million contract with Ghost House Pictures. Apparently the trailer was based on this work, also good, but not quite the same level of drama.

Now the $500 might be a little mis-leading (pro-bono actors, access to equipment, no charge for post-production time, etc) but still. Awesome.

One day Casey Pugh woke up and decided to re-create Star Wars. 15 seconds at a time. Thus was born Star Wars Uncut. So far there are 402 scenes completed, and 190 free to be claimed. 1529 are already claimed, which means someone is currently working on them -- they get released if there is no activity.

So what does a movie built 15 seconds at a time by 402 different people, from across the world look like? Damn amazing is what. Here's the trailer.

Of course if that's not your thing, there's always the ascii version. Another outstanding feat of fanboi dedication.

Speaks for itself. In the same classic league as Facts about Kenya.

The RepRap is a 3D printer. That means it can construct three-dimensional objects. The machines have been available for a while now, but typically run around the $30,000 mark; well beyond typical house-hold means.

In contrast the RepRap is $500, and the plans are free, licensed under the GNU GPL. What's even cooler is that once you have your first RepRap, you can use it to create others (well 60% of the new machine). RepRap begat RepRap...

Read more...

Quirky is a 'crowd-sourced' manufacturing site. What that means is that if you have an idea for a cool new thing, you can register it with Quirky, get some feedback and ideas on how to implement and manufacture it. Once that's done, you set a target sales price. Based on the selling price you now need a number of people to commit to buying your shiny new thing. Once critical mass has been reached, the thing gets manufactured. Those who commited to buying early on get free shipping; those who want one after have to pay shipping. It's a really neat idea.

Personally I'm waiting to get a Note Tracking Mouse Pad. Hey, for $10 what's to loose?

The XX, a group of very talented 19 year olds from London. Excellent sound, a kind of modernized retro-80's sound. Check them out.

After the Olympus EP-1 advertisement, I came across the Japanese band, Sour, with their song Hibi no Neiro. Song has a certain rustic charm about it, but the video is very creative, and must have taken a lot of planning. Great job!

This advertisement from Olympus for their new, small, DSLR-style camera is pretty cool, and surprisingly engaging.

Song by Michael Kadelbach is available for free.
Read more...