Friday, September 29, 2006
Da Colbert Code - Colbert Report Predicts the Oscars (2006)
Six months late, but watch it anyway - truly worth it!
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Copyright Protection for Sri Lankan Artistes
Sept 25 (LBO) – Sri Lankan song writers and other artistes are hoping a new licensing and royalty scheme being drawn up will help protect their creative work and prop up earnings.
Local artistes have banded together to form 'collective societies', on the lines of similar groups in the United Kingdom, to represent the rights of Sri Lankan artists.
These societies will issue licenses for copyright material and collect royalties, monitor the broadcasting and use of copyright material, as well as resolving infringement issues.
"Any television or radio station or broadcaster wanting to use the creative material for commercial purposes, will have to apply for a licence and pay a tariff for each broadcast.
A fee structure is currently being thrashed out, but suggested rates are 100 rupees per song, per year for broadcast on television and 20 rupees for radio broadcasts."Read more at LBO
I can't wait to see how this will work..........Sudoku Slam
Here's a treat for Sudoku lovers.
Minor warning - seriously addictive stuff. Not a good idea to start a game at work!
Minor warning - seriously addictive stuff. Not a good idea to start a game at work!
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
'Lost': The Ultimate Viewer's Guide (Season 3)
It will be a few more months before I see the first episode of Lost 3 but this article gives me something to look forward to!
(Pictures from ABC LOST Season 2)
(Pictures from ABC LOST Season 2)
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Monday, September 25, 2006
ViewSonic's "FutureProof" LCD Telly
Available in 37"/42"and features include ATSC digital tuners, HDMI, S-video, Component, and VGA inputs, 8-millisecond response, 1000:1 contrast ratio etc.The tv's are priced as follows:
37-inch N3751w ($999)
42-inch N4251w ($1499)
Good thing it's "FutureProof" because even at that price, it will take me at least a couple of years to get one.
(Via Engadget)
CIMA Mind Challenge - Knowledge of Pinocchio Proves Invaluable
This year's CIMA Mind Challenge was broadcast on ETV during the weekend (first on Saturday and repeated on Sunday). The format had changed from the previous one held last year, with the organisers' insisting this year would be a lot more "interesting and interactive".
In the first elimination round all teams (there were about 22) were given a series of questions ranging from finance (What is a Sen) to movies (What type of gun does Dirty Harry use?) and the remaining eight were asked predominantly finance-related questions.
The final round had Wisdom pitted against Amba Research and Wisdom appeared to be the better team. It progressed to a tie and the team captains were given three questions to decide upon a winner.
1st Q was regarding the CFA - Wisdom missed out on the answer which was very unfortunate - the correct A was February 22, 2002 and Wisdom stated February 15, 2002 <oww..that must have hurt>
2nd Q was about the Football WC - both contestants could not answer.
3rd Q was about a children's story character whose nose grows when he lies - BUZZZZZZZZ went Amba Research and pat came the answer - Pinocchio - and the AR was crowned the winner.
I could hardly believe it and googled for more info but it turns out there is nothing about it on the web - very weird. It's almost as if the entire event never took place.
In the first elimination round all teams (there were about 22) were given a series of questions ranging from finance (What is a Sen) to movies (What type of gun does Dirty Harry use?) and the remaining eight were asked predominantly finance-related questions.
The final round had Wisdom pitted against Amba Research and Wisdom appeared to be the better team. It progressed to a tie and the team captains were given three questions to decide upon a winner.
1st Q was regarding the CFA - Wisdom missed out on the answer which was very unfortunate - the correct A was February 22, 2002 and Wisdom stated February 15, 2002 <oww..that must have hurt>
2nd Q was about the Football WC - both contestants could not answer.
3rd Q was about a children's story character whose nose grows when he lies - BUZZZZZZZZ went Amba Research and pat came the answer - Pinocchio - and the AR was crowned the winner.
I could hardly believe it and googled for more info but it turns out there is nothing about it on the web - very weird. It's almost as if the entire event never took place.
Verbal Bust Up of the Week (September 17 - 22)
It appears our resident Marxist party is a little annoyed these days.
During a speech on September 19th, Somawansa Amarasinghe referred to the SLFP as a whore. He used a longer term ("members of the world's oldest profession") but essentially he called the party a whore.
In response, Maithripala Sirisena issued a series of barbs that included a very emphatic "BAMBUWA". (Read the full story at Lanka Newspapers )
Good stuff....but not as great as the CMC guti bata huvamaruva (exchange of blows) :
During a speech on September 19th, Somawansa Amarasinghe referred to the SLFP as a whore. He used a longer term ("members of the world's oldest profession") but essentially he called the party a whore.
In response, Maithripala Sirisena issued a series of barbs that included a very emphatic "BAMBUWA". (Read the full story at Lanka Newspapers )
Good stuff....but not as great as the CMC guti bata huvamaruva (exchange of blows) :
Friday, September 22, 2006
Starlets with Munchee
The National Film Corporation and Ministry of Education have joined forces to educate schoolchildren on cinema. The first such programme - called "Starlets with Munchee" - will be held on the 27th of September at the BMICH and will feature 20 songs performed by 350 selected schoolchildren.
The programme also provides students with opportunities to produce short films for competitions.
Well done, NFC and MoE!
(Via Daily News)
The programme also provides students with opportunities to produce short films for competitions.
Well done, NFC and MoE!
(Via Daily News)
Thursday, September 21, 2006
50 Dark Movies, Hidden In a Painting
Here's a marketing campaign that is truly awesome - M&M is going to release a dark chocolate variety and to promote it, has created a large painting which has 50 hidden "dark" movie titles in it. Each movie title is represented by a visual riddle and you have to click on the image you believe represent the title and type in your answer.
Getting all 50 is quite a challenge but several people at Digg have managed to get them all.
I got around 30 before I had to pause the game and get back to work ;) Will be trying it later of course - I shall not rest until I find all 50!
UPDATE: I managed to get all 50 titles in 30 minutes and 22 seconds. I am losing my grip for sure :(
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Dr. Seuss School of Unorthodox Taxidermy
These stunning pieces are a part of Dr. Seuss's three-dimensional works of art. The price range is from $ 1,695 to $ 8,380 (set of four) and so far three sculptures (including the Two Horned Drouberhannis) have been sold out.
"Seuss embarked on an ingenious project in the early 1930s as he evolved from two-dimensional artworks to three-dimensional sculptures.
What was most unusual for these mixed-media sculptures was the use of real animal parts including beaks, antlers and horns from deceased Forest Park Zoo animals where Seuss’s father was superintendent. Unorthodox Collection of Taxidermy was born in a cramped New York apartment and included a menagerie of inventive creatures with names like the “Two Horned Drouberhannis,” “Andulovian Grackler,” and “Semi-Normal Green-Lidded Fawn.”
Shortly after Seuss created this unique collection of artworks, Look Magazine dubbed Seuss “The World’s Most Eminent Authority on Unheard-Of Animals.” To this day, Seuss’s Unorthodox Collection of Taxidermy remains as some of the finest examples of his inventive and multi-dimensional creativity."
(Via Boing Boing)
"Seuss embarked on an ingenious project in the early 1930s as he evolved from two-dimensional artworks to three-dimensional sculptures.What was most unusual for these mixed-media sculptures was the use of real animal parts including beaks, antlers and horns from deceased Forest Park Zoo animals where Seuss’s father was superintendent. Unorthodox Collection of Taxidermy was born in a cramped New York apartment and included a menagerie of inventive creatures with names like the “Two Horned Drouberhannis,” “Andulovian Grackler,” and “Semi-Normal Green-Lidded Fawn.”
Shortly after Seuss created this unique collection of artworks, Look Magazine dubbed Seuss “The World’s Most Eminent Authority on Unheard-Of Animals.” To this day, Seuss’s Unorthodox Collection of Taxidermy remains as some of the finest examples of his inventive and multi-dimensional creativity."
(Via Boing Boing)
Monday, September 18, 2006
I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker - Sandi Thom
I first saw Sandi Thom on CNN back in April Her story was really interesting - she landed a deal at Sony after performing live on the Internet from her living room.
The song is pretty good with meaningful lyrics - for a change - and cool musical arrangement. After years of enduring over-exposed nuts jobs who can't sing (Britney Spears) Sandi Thom is a welcome change.
Sri Lankan Music - Newbies vs Golden Oldies
Daily News Feature Section (September 16 2006)
A small article about a "3-in-1" concert by Amila Perera, Malith Perera and Shihan Mihiranga appears towards the bottom of the page. It's also on the Daily News website - that's where I found this funny photo - check out where Malith's left hand is placed ;)
On the exact same page of the newspaper (top right hand corner), Chamikara Weerasinghe has written a Features editorial that effectively lambastes these guys. (Unfortunately the editorial is not available on the web and I could not find a link to it. )
In it, Weerasinghe comments on how new, younger singers including those labelled "superstars by a private tv channel" (oh what a hint, that is) are stealing the spotlight away from veteran musicians who have spent many years of their lives building careers.
The bitter truth is that everyone gets replaced, eventually. Showbiz is no different - in fact, it's probably the most unforgiving towards the older generation. The younger audience is not going to listen to music it cannot identify itself with and right now, the oldies show no signs of coming up with radical material. For all it's muck, the super stars did bring something new and exciting to the local music scene.
One cannot just write them off simply because the veterans feel like they are losing their grip. I was surprised the editorial so blatantly supported such views. Slamming the door shut on emerging talent is just a very "Sri Lankan" thing to do - if artistes want their music to be appreciated and remembered long after they are gone, new talent must be found and groomed to ensure their legacy lasts forever.
A small article about a "3-in-1" concert by Amila Perera, Malith Perera and Shihan Mihiranga appears towards the bottom of the page. It's also on the Daily News website - that's where I found this funny photo - check out where Malith's left hand is placed ;)On the exact same page of the newspaper (top right hand corner), Chamikara Weerasinghe has written a Features editorial that effectively lambastes these guys. (Unfortunately the editorial is not available on the web and I could not find a link to it. )
In it, Weerasinghe comments on how new, younger singers including those labelled "superstars by a private tv channel" (oh what a hint, that is) are stealing the spotlight away from veteran musicians who have spent many years of their lives building careers.
The bitter truth is that everyone gets replaced, eventually. Showbiz is no different - in fact, it's probably the most unforgiving towards the older generation. The younger audience is not going to listen to music it cannot identify itself with and right now, the oldies show no signs of coming up with radical material. For all it's muck, the super stars did bring something new and exciting to the local music scene.
One cannot just write them off simply because the veterans feel like they are losing their grip. I was surprised the editorial so blatantly supported such views. Slamming the door shut on emerging talent is just a very "Sri Lankan" thing to do - if artistes want their music to be appreciated and remembered long after they are gone, new talent must be found and groomed to ensure their legacy lasts forever.
Malaysia to Issue `Visas on Arrival` to Lankans
"The government of Malaysia has announced a new scheme where Sri Lankans will be issued `visas on arrival`. Such visas will be valid for 30 days and will be issued for tourist purpose only with no extensions allowed.
Visitors who produce a confirmed return ticket would be eligible for a visa on arrival, only if they enter Malaysia through Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Penang International Airport, Senai International Airport, Kuching International Airport, Kota Kinabalu International Airport and Sultan Abu Bakar Complex or Tanjung Kupang, Johor, High Commissioner for Malaysia, Ms. Nazirah Hussain told the Annual General Meeting of the Sri Lanka-Malaysia Business Council last Friday.
`Visitors will be charged a fee of RM 100 for each application under the visa on arrival scheme and will be subject to the approval of the immigration authorities, on arrival,` she noted. The present scheme of obtaining visas prior to departure from Sri Lanka, will also continue, she added." (via AP)
After Hong Kong stopped issuing visas on arrival to Sri Lankans, I was starting to feel unwanted. Like really unwanted. But now it turns out that Malaysia is lightening up somewhat - good for them!
Seriously though, this is great news for people who want to spend one or two days whilst in transit in KL.
Visitors who produce a confirmed return ticket would be eligible for a visa on arrival, only if they enter Malaysia through Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Penang International Airport, Senai International Airport, Kuching International Airport, Kota Kinabalu International Airport and Sultan Abu Bakar Complex or Tanjung Kupang, Johor, High Commissioner for Malaysia, Ms. Nazirah Hussain told the Annual General Meeting of the Sri Lanka-Malaysia Business Council last Friday.
`Visitors will be charged a fee of RM 100 for each application under the visa on arrival scheme and will be subject to the approval of the immigration authorities, on arrival,` she noted. The present scheme of obtaining visas prior to departure from Sri Lanka, will also continue, she added." (via AP)
After Hong Kong stopped issuing visas on arrival to Sri Lankans, I was starting to feel unwanted. Like really unwanted. But now it turns out that Malaysia is lightening up somewhat - good for them!
Seriously though, this is great news for people who want to spend one or two days whilst in transit in KL.
Sri Lanka Enters Latest US Worst Offenders List
"The United States on Friday classified six Asian countries as religious freedom violators, aside from China, Myanmar, North Korea and Vietnam already blacklisted as worst offenders in the region.
Afghanistan, Brunei, India, Laos, Pakistan and Sri Lanka were included in a `significant` list of violators of religious freedom in the US State Department`s annual International Religious Freedom Report 2006."
From The Daily Mirror (September 18 2006) via Lanka Newspapers
It's heartening to note that a country headed by a guy who dismisses evolution as "just a theory", uses the Bible as his guidebook and authorises secret prison cells outside the US, takes the time to compile such a list.
In all the years I have lived in Sri Lanka, I have never once personally encountered a single case of "a violation of religious freedom". What is a "violation of religious freedom" in the first place? To find out more, I visited the US Department of State site which had this to say: (random extracts)
"On July 16, 2005, in Pulasthigama, Polonnaruwa the Holy Cross Roman Catholic Church was attacked during the night and set on fire. The central crucifix, holy altar, sacrificial items, and other valuable items were destroyed because the church was almost completely burnt down. One of the caretakers was stabbed with a knife by the attackers.
On December 20, 2005, in Lunugala (Uva Province), a group of Buddhists told a Christian family's pastor that a deceased Christian man could not be buried in the local cemetery. The National Christian Evangelical Alliance of Sri Lanka intervened on the family's behalf, after which the burial was permitted.
On February 6, 2006, a man arrived at the Dutch Reformed Church in Galle looking for the pastor in charge, who was not there at the time. The assailant then told the pastor's wife that if the pastor visited the neighboring town of Hikkaduwa, people would kill him. The man also made derogatory and obscene statements about Jesus Christ and Christians.
On April 23, 2006, a Methodist Church in Pilyandala re-opened for the first time since 2003, when threats from Buddhist monks caused the church to close. At the re-opening, the same group of monks led a mob who let air out of congregants' tires, pushed over motorcycles, and damaged vehicles. The congregants continued to face threats, and on April 30 burning tires were placed on the road outside the church. A court hearing was scheduled for June 16.
In 2003 Brother Manoharan, a member of the Ceylon Pentecostal Mission, was arrested in connection with the death of an eleven year-old girl. The young girl, who had been sick, was prayed for by Brother Manoharan. He, along with the victim's parents, were taken into police custody on charges of "culpable homicide," tantamount to manslaughter. The three were released on bail on June 2, 2006, and a hearing was set for July 28, 2006."
These are only a few of the examples of "violations" given on the site. In each case, the victim turns out to be a Christian and the perpetrators' are almost always Buddhist. No surprises there! I didn't expect to find anything vice-versa on that list - really, I didn't.
The best of course, was reserved for last on the massive article which concluded with the eloquent yet much used sentence:
" The U.S. government is a strong supporter of the peace process launched by the Government, and the U.S. embassy encourages the interfaith efforts by religious leaders to promote a peaceful resolution of the conflict."
Afghanistan, Brunei, India, Laos, Pakistan and Sri Lanka were included in a `significant` list of violators of religious freedom in the US State Department`s annual International Religious Freedom Report 2006."
From The Daily Mirror (September 18 2006) via Lanka Newspapers
It's heartening to note that a country headed by a guy who dismisses evolution as "just a theory", uses the Bible as his guidebook and authorises secret prison cells outside the US, takes the time to compile such a list.
In all the years I have lived in Sri Lanka, I have never once personally encountered a single case of "a violation of religious freedom". What is a "violation of religious freedom" in the first place? To find out more, I visited the US Department of State site which had this to say: (random extracts)
"On July 16, 2005, in Pulasthigama, Polonnaruwa the Holy Cross Roman Catholic Church was attacked during the night and set on fire. The central crucifix, holy altar, sacrificial items, and other valuable items were destroyed because the church was almost completely burnt down. One of the caretakers was stabbed with a knife by the attackers.
On December 20, 2005, in Lunugala (Uva Province), a group of Buddhists told a Christian family's pastor that a deceased Christian man could not be buried in the local cemetery. The National Christian Evangelical Alliance of Sri Lanka intervened on the family's behalf, after which the burial was permitted.
On February 6, 2006, a man arrived at the Dutch Reformed Church in Galle looking for the pastor in charge, who was not there at the time. The assailant then told the pastor's wife that if the pastor visited the neighboring town of Hikkaduwa, people would kill him. The man also made derogatory and obscene statements about Jesus Christ and Christians.
On April 23, 2006, a Methodist Church in Pilyandala re-opened for the first time since 2003, when threats from Buddhist monks caused the church to close. At the re-opening, the same group of monks led a mob who let air out of congregants' tires, pushed over motorcycles, and damaged vehicles. The congregants continued to face threats, and on April 30 burning tires were placed on the road outside the church. A court hearing was scheduled for June 16.
In 2003 Brother Manoharan, a member of the Ceylon Pentecostal Mission, was arrested in connection with the death of an eleven year-old girl. The young girl, who had been sick, was prayed for by Brother Manoharan. He, along with the victim's parents, were taken into police custody on charges of "culpable homicide," tantamount to manslaughter. The three were released on bail on June 2, 2006, and a hearing was set for July 28, 2006."
These are only a few of the examples of "violations" given on the site. In each case, the victim turns out to be a Christian and the perpetrators' are almost always Buddhist. No surprises there! I didn't expect to find anything vice-versa on that list - really, I didn't.
The best of course, was reserved for last on the massive article which concluded with the eloquent yet much used sentence:
" The U.S. government is a strong supporter of the peace process launched by the Government, and the U.S. embassy encourages the interfaith efforts by religious leaders to promote a peaceful resolution of the conflict."
Friday, September 15, 2006
Site Pal - For Those With Extra Moolah
I finally caved and clicked on one of those annoying ads on Technorati featuring talking avatars and was led to SitePal.
So, are you looking for a way to make your web site/blog more fun/creepy? Like....adding an animated speaking character?!
SitePal is the place for you. You can select and customise the character of your choice (think Yahoo! Avatar but with more movement and voice). Basic features include following the cursor (try it out in the demo version) and advanced features include text-to-speech conversion etc.
Unfortunately, it's not free and costs quite a bundle. For a tiny flash animation that chats up your visitors, it's not all that worth it.
So, are you looking for a way to make your web site/blog more fun/creepy? Like....adding an animated speaking character?!
SitePal is the place for you. You can select and customise the character of your choice (think Yahoo! Avatar but with more movement and voice). Basic features include following the cursor (try it out in the demo version) and advanced features include text-to-speech conversion etc.
Unfortunately, it's not free and costs quite a bundle. For a tiny flash animation that chats up your visitors, it's not all that worth it.
Microsoft Launches the Zune
Wow - the 3 inch widescreen looks awesome!
Features include WiFi, 30GB of HDD, built-in FM and Zune-to-Zune sharing.
Still no mention of the price though - but that does not matter:
I want one!!
Via Engadget
Video demo of Zune song sharing via Digg
UPDATE 9/20 - Wal-Mart Leaks Zune Price: $ 284
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Sri Lanka's War of the Words
Sept 10, 2006 (AFP) - While Sri Lanka's government and Tamil rebels trade daily accusations of truce-breaking and threaten each other with all-out war, observers and reporters keen to understand what is really happening are forced to try and read between the lines.
There was talk of a "stealth war" in December, and now Sri Lanka has reportedly gone to the "brink of full-scale war."
In those less than 10 months some 1,500 people have been killed despite assurances from both sides that they are continuing to "uphold" a ceasefire arranged by peace broker Norway in February 2002.
Reporters have struggled with synonyms and cliches.
"Tenuous", "crumbling", "collapsing," "faltering," "shaky" and "fragile" have been liberally used to describe the ceasefire.
For bureaucrats on both sides a return to "war" means going back to the pre-truce era when bombing economic targets and civilians was fair game.
However, the actual number of killings was far less then than it is now.
"We are not at war," says government defence spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella. "A low-intensity conflict maybe, but not war."
Former Swedish brigadier general Ulf Henricsson, who ended his term as a top peace monitor last month, said he could not decide if the country was at war or not.
However, he was certain that the truce was holding only on paper.
"It is a problem of a definition," he said when asked if Sri Lanka was at war. "A Stockholm peace institute had said that if more than 500 people are killed in a conflict during a year, then it is war."
LonelyGirl15 - Work of Fiction
During the past few months YouTube user LonelyGirl15 aka Bree, uploaded several clips of her "life", and soon her video blog became one of the most viewed/subscribed channels at the site. "
Now it turns out it was all a work of fiction created by three film makers and was exposed by the media, including Tom Foremski, earlier this week.
It turns out Matt Foremski - son of Tom - managed to track down Jessica Rose, the actress who plays Bree, using MySpace and Google cache (which stores deleted web pages). Even though the creators of LonelyGirl15 had taken careful measures to hide Jessica Rose's identity, a link at MySpace lead Matt to a deleted page in Google Cache and he nailed the story. Not bad for an 18 year old!
Read the articles at Wiki and BoingBoing.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Monday, September 11, 2006
The Shrimp Fucks the Cabbage
At Boing Boing, Xeni Jardin writes about finding badly translated signs in China:
"Last June I spent most of a two hour layover in Beijing on a wild taxi ride to stores near the airport, trying to find a charger for my camera battery. While running up the escalator in a department store I spotted some classic examples of Chinglish on the signs that indicated which departments were on each floor. My favorites were:
The term "Chinglish" generally refers to poor translations from Chinese to English. Humorous examples can be found on several web sites, which post photos of signs and printed materials found in China, or product packaging from China. Recently the Chinese government has begun a campaign to eliminate Chinglish." Read the complete post at Boing Boing
Smorgasbord offers an explanation:
"Following up on yesterday's post about China's crackdown on "Chingrish," or bad Chinese/English translations, BoingBoing reader Bin Sun points out the likely cause of the laff-worthy "X fucks Y" examples we've found:
"In one of the links referenced in your post, i found a sign that reads
"Last June I spent most of a two hour layover in Beijing on a wild taxi ride to stores near the airport, trying to find a charger for my camera battery. While running up the escalator in a department store I spotted some classic examples of Chinglish on the signs that indicated which departments were on each floor. My favorites were:
"Thing on bed"
"Take a picture - clap for the remembe"
and
"Fuck the fresh fruit and vegetable"
My friend Hutch was with me when I snapped this photo of an unfortunately-translated travel agency sign in Lhasa, Tibet. Hutch found some other translation beauties elsewhere along his travels in China, and says,
The term "Chinglish" generally refers to poor translations from Chinese to English. Humorous examples can be found on several web sites, which post photos of signs and printed materials found in China, or product packaging from China. Recently the Chinese government has begun a campaign to eliminate Chinglish." Read the complete post at Boing Boing
Smorgasbord offers an explanation:
"Following up on yesterday's post about China's crackdown on "Chingrish," or bad Chinese/English translations, BoingBoing reader Bin Sun points out the likely cause of the laff-worthy "X fucks Y" examples we've found:
"In one of the links referenced in your post, i found a sign that reads
THE SHRIMP FUCKS THE CABBAGE
In chinese, this actually translates to "Stir-fried Dried Shrimp with Pak Choy [Ed. Note: aka 'bok choy,' a leafy vegetable]". Link to image.
