This is the website of Abulsme Noibatno Itramne (also known as Sam Minter). Posts here are rare these days. For current stuff, follow me on Mastodon

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Tron

Original Release: 1982 Jul 9
Watched: 2010 Sep 12 to 2010 Sep 13
Queue: Sam’s
Format: DVD

So, I’ve recently moved from going through my queue in the order things were originally added to the queue, to picking randomly what will be next. But I make exceptions when there is a particular reason to watch something sooner rather than many years in the future. In this case of course Tron: Legacy is due to come out this December, so to prepare we all had to watch Tron. I think I last saw Tron in the theaters when it first came out. Most likely with my dad.[[[ jml]

V ?

That last bit was Alex. He liked Tron.

Anyway, Tron. This is of course one of those classic geek movies. At the time it seemed like it was just so cool visually. Watching it now, it just looks so cheap and basic. There was of course actually not that much CGI in the movie. Wikipedia says less than 20 minutes. The rest is just made to look like what people thought CGI should look like. And Sark? What’s up with the paper things on his head? It looks like something somebody’s first grader cut out or something. Of course, this was great at the time I guess. But it just shows how fast these kinds of things move. It will be interesting to see what they do with the new movie.

Then of course there is the actual plot, which honestly just doesn’t make much sense. Well, I mean, OK, if you back up a bit from it, it is just your standard quest thing once you get into it. They are on a quest into the enemy’s territory to destroy him with an object that he is vulnerable. Hmmm, Tron as Frodo?

Bottom line, it was fun to watch in a nostalgic kind of way, or to prep for watching the new movie. But I’m not sure it really holds up as a stand alone movie. It just sort of seems dated and quaint.

Puzzle the Seventh


Burn Everything!

In the latest Curmudgeon’s Corner…

Sam and Ivan talk about:

  • Internet Balkanization
  • Service Lockin
  • Censorship
  • Software Licences
  • Oil Spill Update
  • Koran Burning

Just click to listen now:

[wpaudio url=”http://www.abulsme.com/CurmudgeonsCorner/CC20100913.mp3″ text=”Recorded 13 Sep 2010″]

or

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14244.4458 Days

As of right now, 16 Sep 2010 at 07:39 UTC (12:39 AM Pacific, 3:39 AM Eastern) I am exactly 14244.4458 days old, which is also of course exactly 39 years. Ouch. Those are getting to be big numbers. :-)

Calculation below:

  • Born: 16 Sep 1971 at 20:58 UTC (1:58 PM Pacific, 3:58 PM Central, 4:58 PM Eastern)
  • Julian Born: 2441211.37361
  • 1 year = 365.242199 days
  • 39 years = 14244.4458 days
  • Julian 39 Year Birthday = 2455455.81941
  • 39 Year Birthday = 16 Sep 2010 at 07:39 UTC (12:39 AM Pacific, 2:39 AM Central, 3:39 AM Eastern)

Happy Birthday Alex!!!

Alex is now officially one year old! Woo! Happy Birthday Alex!

Alex Birthday Calculation

Non-geeks might just say Alex’s birthday is September 12th and be done with it, but of course I can’t do that, I have to be a bit more specific. So here is the calculation…
  • Date and time Alex was born: 12 Sep 2009 at 16:39 UTC (9:39 AM Pacific, 12:39 PM Eastern)
  • Converting to a Julian date using a Julian Date Calculator gives: 2455087.19375
  • Adding 1 year (365.242199 days) gives the Julian Date when Alex is exactly 1 year old: 2455452.435949
  • Converting back to a normal date using the same Julian Date Calculator gives:
  • 12 Sep 2009 at 22:27 UTC (3:27 PM Pacific, 6:27 PM Eastern)

Hey look, that is later today!

Specifically, that will be exactly 12 hours from the time of this post. I’m sure I’ll make another post in 12 hours when Alex *actually* hits the milestone, but consider this an early preview. At 3:27 PM Pacific, 6:27 PM Eastern, Alex will be one year old. Gulp, our little boy is just a few hours away from being a whole year old! Unbelievable. It can’t possibly have been that long…

View of a Staycation through a Sleep Lens

Dots are individual daily readings of the percent of time I spent asleep in the prior 7 days. The red line is a smoothed trend line (even though the points themselves are already smoothed by virtue of being over 7 days). I was on a “staycation” August 19th through 31st. The increase in time spent asleep is clearly visible.

Puzzles the Fifth and Sixth

Taken 2010 Sep 10 22:55 UTC

Stick that Thing in your Pocket

In the latest Curmudgeon’s Corner…

Sam and Ivan (and Alex) talk about:

  • Facebook Interactions
  • Dumb Phones
  • Smartphone Distractions
  • Mormon Bubbling
  • WTC Construction
  • Ratings Agencies
  • Note Taking Apps

Just click to listen now:

[wpaudio url=”http://www.abulsme.com/CurmudgeonsCorner/CC20100906.mp3″ text=”Recorded 6 Sep 2010″]

or

1-Click Subscribe in iTunes

View Podcast in iTunes

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Whoa How did that happen?

Hey, look, after several days of pre-scheduling posts at regular intervals, it appears I am all caught up on both posting pictures and posting my little blurbs about things I have watched and such. Woo! Now I won’t know what to do with myself. I’ll have to start thinking of other things to post perhaps. Or maybe I just need to take more pictures or watch more stuff. Of course, I still need to catch up on the monthly Alex videos. And there is a Curmudgeon’s Corner that is recorded but not yet posted. So look for those soon. But for now, I’m all caught up. Woo! Woo!