I've moved (again)

My new blog at Vox

See you there!

It worked.

Heh heh, it worked. Either that, or it's a coincidence. Either way, I got the invite to switch over to the new Blogger.

Doesn't seem as good as Vox, although I like the easy configurability of the blog template. It's a little more flexible than Vox in terms of allowing you to decide the order of your sidebar modules. However, unlike Vox, the new Blogger doesn't allow easy access to Flickr (since that's owned by Google's rival, Yahoo!). I also like Vox's integration of Amazon and collections, which spares me having to use All Consuming's painful interface.

In a nutshell, Vox seems to be emphasizing interoperability, whereas Blogger is hampered by the fact that it is caught in the Google vs Yahoo! war. Then again, one wonders how SixApart (Vox's parent) has managed to stay independent for so long. I guess Blogger was (at the time) more user-friendly and trendy than LiveJournal. Hence, Vox.

Think I'll stick with Vox. It also seems to make formatting posts with inline photos easier, which makes the layout look better.

Only downside of Vox is the requirement that viewers register with Vox before they can post comments. It's a drag and a deterrent to people commenting. I know they are trying to pull people in and build a 'community' (i.e. accumulate registrations and eyeballs to make their business metrics look better), but it's a pain. Blogger at least allows anonymous comments.

New Blogger?

Been thinking of restarting my blogging, but I'm wondering how I can go about being offered an upgrade to the new improved Blogger. I figure that maybe I've been inactive for too long, so a post here might jog things.

In the meantime, I'm also trying out Vox, but I won't link to what I've done there yet 'cuz it's still in beta. So far, it does seem like a better platform, but that's why I want to try comparing it with the new Blogger.

Oh well, see what happens...

Great start

OK, so I completely failed to keep up the schedule I promised, but just wanted to say...

WHAT A GREAT START TO THE SEASON!

5-1 over Fulham, so unless Chelsea go rampant in the 2nd half against City, we'll be top of the table tomorrow. I don't want to say "I told you so", but if you go back and read my long post about Ruud's departure, I did say that United's attack will be much more fluid and unpredictable, and hence better!

Just hope that we're able to weather the 3-match bans for Rooney and Scholesy. Fortunately, Charlton and Watford shouldn't be too difficult, and Carrick should be back by the time we play his former team, Spurs.

GLORY, GLORY MAN UNITED!

---

Player ratings :
VDS - 7. Not much to do, but dealt with what he could. Goal wasn't his fault.
G Nev - 7. Supported on the overlap well.
Rio - 7. Not tested. Goal wasn't his fault.
Wes - 8. Excellent in 2nd half, when he took Gaz's place on the right.
Evra - 8. Really showing his class. Those who judged him on last season have to reconsider.
O'Shea - 7. OK. Did his job and kept it simple. Combined well with Scholesy.
Scholes - 9. My MOTM. The time off has really made a difference. Orchestrated the team.
Ronaldo - 8. Should've had two. Showboated towards the end.
Giggsy - 7. Stupid yellow card. But otherwise worked hard as always. Doesn't look old.
Rooney - 9. Always dangerous. Came close to a hat-trick. We'll miss him.
Saha - 8. His movement was a big reason why we were flowing. Good that he scored.
Silvestre (for Gaz) - 6. OK. Wasn't as impressive as Wes in the centre.
Park (for Giggs) - 7. Typically hardworking when he came on.
Ole (for Saha) - 6. Looked a step behind the pace. Hopefully gets it back with more games.

Technorati Tags: football, manutd

I've got a good excuse

OK, I know that Wed/Thu is the slot for an Apple update, but I'VE GOT A GOOD EXCUSE. Besides, there's probably going to be a boatload of stuff to write about next week after WWDC, so I'm saving my energy...

Went to watch Pirates : Dead Man's Chest tonight...boy, it was a long movie. Entertaining set-pieces, but way too many talky bits in-between. Will put up a more detailed review this weekend, hopefully alongside more detailed thoughts on Superman Returns.

BTW how do I go about telling Golden Village that one of the subwoofers in Hall 1 of GV Marina is busted? It was clipping badly whenever there were huge explosions or crashes...really irritating.

WARNING! THERE ARE PIRATES SPOILERS IN THE COMMENTS!

Technorati Tags: personal

The Joker!

According to an official press release from Warner, the next Batman movie will be titled THE DARK KNIGHT. Production starts in early 2007, presumably for a Summer 2008 opening.

Wow. Really love that title. It just promises so much to the fanboy (me!), and it has the confidence not to have to scream BATMAN! at you.

The Joker will be played by Heath Ledger. It's a surprising choice, but I'm glad they didn't go with somebody obvious like Crispin Glover. My own choice was Paul Bettany (Master & Commander, Wimbledon), 'cuz of his pale and lanky look, but Ledger promises a Joker that won't be the usual fey, campy villain, and should at least pose a credible physical threat when he inevitably goes toe-to-toe with Christian Bale. It's definitely in keeping with the tone set in the first one.

And phew, I managed to get through this without a single Brokeback joke!

Technorati Tags: comics, movies, popculture

Schumi sets up sprint finish

"It's in our hands now! All you've got to do now, Michael, is win the remaining races and you can be world champion!"
Chris Dyer, Schumi's race engineer

Chris Dyer's words, broadcast to the world over Ferrari's pit radio while Schumi was still on his victory lap following the 2006 German GP, make bringing the WDC back to Maranello sound easier than it probably will be.

Then again, anyone who had seen the almost casual way that the Ferraris dominated the German Grand Prix might be tempted to believe that it really will be that easy. Especially if Renault continue to struggle as they did here.

Conventional wisdom is that the advantage always lies with the team that has the points already in hand. Certainly, it's better to be eleven points ahead of your opponent, as Renault are now.

But the fact is, thanks to the gap between 2nd and 3rd being the same as between 1st and 2nd - 2 points - Schumi can actually win the WDC by finishing second in the remaining races, provided the podium's top step isn't occupied by Alonso.

Some will inevitably point to the FIA's pre-race banning of Renault's mass dampeners as yet another example of a pro-Ferrari bias. But if Renault's cars really depend that much on the dampeners for speed, then they'd made a fatal miscalculation. And I can't believe that those dampeners alone could have made the difference. By the last twenty laps, the Ferraris were cruising around 1-2 seconds slower than everyone else - clearly, they had speed in reserve.

I've also seen suggestions that Renault are suffering from Michelin losing interest in tyre development, since they'll be out of F1 next year. But then why were Renault the only Michelin team that deproved significantly? What about Kimi, whose McLaren clearly had made a leap forward in performance and, for once, managed to last till the end?

Those who point to Massa's clear deference to Schumi in the WDC chase, including an obvious backing-off when Schumi emerged from the pitlane side-by-side, also need to look at Fisichella's driving in this race. When Alonso took his late detour into the gravel, Fisi clearly was in no hurry to take advantage, instead holding off Button while giving Alonso room to collect himself. It's not team orders, it's teamwork.

Yes, I'm a Ferrari fan. Yes, I'm saying that there should be no excuses, and that it is the brilliance of Schumi and Ferrari that has brought them not just back into the title chase, but arguably in control of it.

But I'm also an F1 fan, and for that, I'm glad that we now have a glorious sprint to the finish to admire. I hope Alonso and Renault come back, to battle Schumi tooth and nail in the final races.

The perfect ending? Schumi winning in the final race, capping this magnificent comeback, then riding off into the sunset on his doubtlessly-prancing horse. And then the Iceman cometh to Maranello.

Sports Update 01/06
(can anyone suggest a name for this weekly update?)

Technorati Tags: F1, ferrari

More regular updates

BTW starting this week I'm going to try an experiment. While still blogging whenever the whim strikes me, I'm also going to attempt three regular topical updates per week. These could be longer pieces (like the Ruud one, earlier), going more in-depth, or simply a collection of relevant links/tidbits. Or both.

So what are the three topics? Well, taking a cue from the sub-title of this blog, the regular updates are going to be as follows:

Mon/Tue - Sports...usually United, but also some F1
Wed/Thu - Apple-related stuff, or tech in general.
Sat/Sun - Pop Culture...reviews or whatever.

I've given myself a two-day window for each update. If this works out, I might add other topics (such as Lakers, when the season starts).

Of course, Ryan thingys will continue, as and when he does something especially cute or significant.

Wish me luck...

Carrick's Stats

I mentioned Carrick's tackling stats in my earlier post. Someone on RedCafe.net had pulled out the Opta stats from SkySports, comparing Carrick to Chelsea's midfielders, and come up with this:

Essien: 106 tackles, 69% success
Lampard: 100 tackles, 73% success
Makalele: 97 tackles, 69% success
Carrick: 135 tackes, 74% success

The stats are for last season. I don't think the number of tackles is necessarily representative, because it doesn't take into account games played. But the percentage is interesting, as is the sheer number. At least it suggests that Carrick does get stuck in.

Incidentally, he also outpassed all three Chelsea players, with an 80% pass completion rate.

Just to be clear - I'm not suggesting that Carrick is better than the three Chelski lads, just based on stats. But frankly I'd take him over Makalele (old) or Essien (irritating).

---

Football fans tend to poo-poo any reference to statistics, in contrast to the obsession with stats in American sports. But the fact is that teams are starting to pay attention (Opta, and that other proprietary service that charts how far players run, etc.).

At the very least, stats are a great conversation-starter when it comes to sports!

Technorati Tags: football, manutd

iTunes Stats (30 July 2006)

For those not interested in the previous entry on football...

My Current iTunes Library Stats
13794 items, 39.9 days, 66.97 GB
1972 artists, 884 albums

Painstakingly genre-ized, rated and smart-playlisted.
Favourites in 256kbps, with the rest mostly 160kbps or higher.

Think I need a bigger iPod...

Current track : 'Everything Counts' by Depeche Mode.

Technorati Tags: itunes, mac, ipod

Ruud and United

WARNING : THIS IS A VERY LONG ENTRY!

So what do I think of Ruud leaving?

It's undeniable that he has been a great servant to United. His goalscoring record speaks for itself, and he's by far the best striker we've had in the 20+ years I've been a supporter. His passion for the club was genuine, at least until his frustrations became evident last season.

Indeed, it's the end of an era for United. But what kind of era?

One Premiership. One FA Cup. One League Cup - that's what United have won in the five years Ruud has been with us. It's a haul that pales in comparison with the rest of Fergie's reign.

I'm not saying it's Ruud's fault. There are many reasons for our current barren stretch - failure to replace Keano, the dawn of the Roman empire down in London, Fergie's own waning powers and, ironically, failure to provide enough service to Ruud.

But the fact is that, during this period, the team was largely built around Ruud. And while Ruud did everything that was asked of him, by scoring boatloads of goals, the reality is that the plan didn't work. Apart from Ruud's first season, when enough of the Treble team was still around, the constant complaint about United in recent years has been our predictability and lack of flair. And that, unfortunately, stems from the fact that our tactics have been largely one-dimensional during this period : create opportunities for Ruud.

Then comes Rooney - mercurial, unpredictable, brilliant. A force of nature. His astonishing hattrick debut against Galatasaray suggested that Ruud and Rooney could be an unstoppable partnership, but it never really developed after that, not least due to injuries that prevented them from playing consistently together.

Rooney plays best with the ball ahead of him, charging towards the opposition. It's the same for most of our present attackers - Ronaldo, Saha, Giggsy, Scholes, Park. That's why our best period in the last couple of years was when Saha and Rooney were in the team.

That's also the period when Ruud was dropped, marking the beginning of the end of the Ruud Era. Because Ruud is at his best with the ball behind him (or rather, coming towards him).

Looking back at United's history, especially during the Fergie years, we have never flourished when depending on one striker to do the scoring. Look at the Choccy years, for example. Dwight Yorke might seem to be the exception, in that he scored a spectacular number of goals during the Treble year, but Andy Cole and Solksjaer weren't far behind him, and in fact the whole team couldn't stop scoring during that unique year.

Most importantly, our team always been at its best when playing fast-paced attacking football. Unfortunately, that isn't really Ruud's game. But it is Rooney's. And Ronaldo's. And Saha's.

So what do I think of Ruud leaving?

Thank you, Ruud, for giving your best to United. Enjoy yourself in Madrid. Say hello to Becks and family.

But I think we might just turn out to be a better team now...

---

Some other United loose ends:

- Did Fergie freeze out Ruud? Yes, but I think he ultimately had reason to do so. I was amazed by the revelation (sort of confirmed by Ruud) that he had sought a transfer before the 2005 cup final against Arse. I can't understand why. However, even if it was just some kind of frustration following his long injury that season, I can see Fergie seeing it as a sign of the end - who asks to leave United?

- What about Ronaldo? Looks like he's staying for now. I think the restlessness during the World Cup was due to external influences (Figo, Real - connect the dots), exacerbated by the usual OTT reaction of the Brit press after Rooney's sending off. He's clearly immature, and hopefully he grows up this year - otherwise I wouldn't be sad to see him off as well. Don't forget that he was in brilliant form towards the end of last season, playing together with Rooney and Saha.

- Where are our strikers? Rooney, Saha, Ole, Smithy, Rossi - not too bad. I can see Ole and Smithy becoming a solid backup partnership. Ole is going to surprise people who have written him off, Smithy will be back in his natural position. But I think we might still have a big signing coming up - Tevez or Torres.

- And Carrick? Good signing. He uses the ball intelligently and can initiate our attack. His tackling stats are better than you'd think. He's definitely not a Keano replacement, but there isn't one.

- Don't we need to replace Keano? No, actually, although I do hope we sign Mascherano or some other combative midfielder. But we've got the strongest defence we've had since the Great Dane left. VDS in goal, then pick from Rio, Heinze, Vidic, Gaz, Wes. Mikey isn't really that bad at fullback, and Evra might still develop after being thrown in the deep-end last year. And don't forget Pique.

Technorati Tags: football, manchester united, manutd

Rocky...4? 5? 7?

OK, so I've lost count of the number of Rockys they've made, but apparently so have the producers, because they're naming this new one Rocky Balboa instead. You can check out the trailer.

Interesting - Rocky does a Foreman-esque unretirement to fight the hot new thing, but the trailer focuses on the fact that Rocky is old and broken-down. I've heard good things about the script, so could it be that he actually loses? There's also a brief shot in the trailer of what looks like Paulie bending towards flowers on a coffin...hmmm.

I always preferred Stallone to Arnie, because the first two Rockys proved that he really had creative talent. Even III (Mr T) and IV (Drago) were pretty good escapist fun, in the context of their era.

---

Incidentally, I watched UFC 61 a few days ago. It was the first UFC show I watched from start to finish. Got a bit squeamish about the blood, but I like the fact that the ref steps in really quickly to stop the fight when serious head injury is threatened - even if the loser is able to stand up immediately afterwards.

I was never a boxing fan, but I can see why UFC is rapidly gaining popularity (and mainstream credibility) in the US. Because the fights are legit (as opposed to openly-fake wrestling and obviously-fixed boxing), it really grabs your attention quickly. And they do a good job of building up the fighters as real personalities.

It also made me realise what one of the big problems with WWE is nowadays. If you go back even just 3-5 years, WWE was on a high because wrestlers like Stone Cold and The Rock were like rockstars - their personalities spoke for themselves. Nowadays, the new 'superstars' WWE is trying to build up are more like 80s-style cartoon caricatures, with no real personality.

That's why I enjoy the new ECW on Sci-Fi, despite the negative reaction from ECW traditionalists. I was never an ECW fan in the first place, but I like the way that the new ECW cuts out the excessive showbiz (pyros, etc.) of the regular WWE shows. Of course, it also helps that they are giving a good slow build to the wrestler I think is the most promising new talent around today...

C.M. Punk!

Technorati Tags: ecw, movies, trailers, UFC, wrestling, wwe

Wanted: Remastered Musicals

I've recently been re-ripping my favorite CDs as 256kbps AACs. It's the highest resolution that is still sensible without eating up (too much) harddisk space, and the difference is (to my humble ears) clearly audible in comparison to the 160/192kbps bitrate versions that I had previously been using. In particular, bass and midrange clarity is vastly improved from the comparatively tinny-sounding lower bitrate versions. The recordings sound a lot fuller and deeper.

I was inspired to do this by an opinion piece in Hi-Fi Choice about using iPods as digital sources for audio systems. The argument was that a high-resolution digital rip (Apple Lossless or high-bitrate AAC), played back through an iPod's lineout into a good stereo amp should rival an entry-level (at least) CD seperate, because the all-digital format means that the compressed track is taken directly from the digital info on the CD and is potentially more 'accurate' than what the CD player might produce during playback.

I haven't really tested the hypothesis with my AACs and CDs head-to-head, because I don't have an iPod dock with a proper line-level output, but as I said above, there clearly is a qualitative difference between 256kbps and even 192kbps.

Anyway,in the course of all this re-ripping, I reached my collection of beloved musicals, and realised that some of the CDs are really pretty terrible in the first place. There really is room for 'archival' re-releases of remastered versions of some classics from the 1970s and 1980s, like EVITA and JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR. But searching on Amazon only uncovered a 2006 remaster of ASPECTS OF LOVE - an underappreciated musical, but not one of the greats by any stretch.

Surely there are enough fans out there to justify such remastered re-releases? Or even SACD versions? It's far more important to get high-quality releases of the original cast recordings out, rather than terrible revival cast recordings.

---

Done a bit more digging at Amazon...okay, there are a few remasters out there, but not enough. Also, while there are some recent re-releases of key stuff, a lot of it is highlights-only (bleah!), and it isn't clearly stated whether these are remastered at all.

Oh, come on - SACDs! Please!

Technorati Tags: audiophile, hi-fi, music, musicals, sacd

Look, up in the sky...

Just got back from seeing Superman Returns...

Wow. That was simply spectacular.

Bryan Singer really nailed the right mood for a Superman film - mythic, epic, and heartfelt. Just wish there was more Clark (Nette's observation), and more stuff back home on the farm. At times, Singer did threaten to overdo the Messianic analogy, although apart from a few too-obvious images (inevitable crucifixion pose, empty tomb), he just about managed to keep it under control.

Spacey was brilliant as Luthor, but the real star was Brandon Routh - simply scary how much he sounds and looks like Christopher Reeve. I'm really curious to hear his normal speaking voice, just to figure out how much effort it took to sound that way.

Bravo.

Technorati Tags: comics, movies

Magical...

Magical...
Originally uploaded by yellowhandman.

While I slowly sift through the hundreds (yes, 100s!) of photos from Ryan's 1st birthday party at Artz Pizza, I had to share this amazing photograph taken by his Auntie Sharon. Simply magic...

Ryan is ONE!

Haven't blogged in a long time, but this is a great way to resume...our Ryan turned ONE on 29 June!

There will be more photos of his big celebration at Artz, which was held on 1 July. But for now, enjoy these photos from the big day itself. There are also photos over on Auntie Trixia's Flickr.

Technorati Tags: baby, birthday, family, photos, ryan

Good Lordi!

Long before there was American-Singapore-Turkmenistan-Timbuktu Idol, there was...the Eurovision Song Contest. Since 1956, European countries would send their blandest, emptiest, most commercial pop groups to compete, in a great celebration of how letting the masses choose leads to...crap.

Like previous champions Abba (1974). Or Bucks Fizz (1981). Or (thought she was Canadian?) Celine Dion (1988).

The only real controversy was in 1998, when Israeli entrant Dana International - a transsexual - won.

Until now. Because this year's winners are - from Finland - LORDI!

As my wife said, it's a band of singing Uruk-hai...



Some background info : the song is titled Hard Rock Hallelujah, and the Finnish PM tried to get them banned before the competition, to avoid 'embarrassing' Finland. Truly, this is a great day for music, isn't it?

Technorati Tags: eurovision, humor, music, popculture

Starring Ian ("Gandalf") McKellen!

I recently bought the DVD of a classic 1978 production of Macbeth, starring Ian McKellen and Dame Judi Dench as the titular couple. Haven't watched it yet, but it was pretty funny seeing the back cover blurb, which mentions that "the porter" is played by "Ian McDiaiarmid (Star Wars : Return of the Jedi)" and Macduff is played by "Bob Peck (Jurassic Park)".

Fortunately, the blurb didn't see the need to explain who McKellen and Dame Judi are, but once again it brings to mind how painful it must be for these serious Shakespearean actors sometimes. Those who had already achieved acclaim as stage actors probably don't feel it so much, but it must still be rather frustrating to know that you will end up being remembered as Ian ("Gandalf", "Magneto") McKellen, Dame Judi ("M") Dench, Patrick ("Jean-Luc Picard", "Professor X") Stewart, Alec ("Obiwan Kenobi") Guinness or Ian ("Darth Sidious") McDiarmid.

Work is work, I guess...

---

Just started watching the DVD...it's one of those productions where the director - Trevor ("Cats", "Les Miserables") Nunn, no less - has 'reimagined' the setting. It takes place against a featureless darkness, and everyone is wearing an odd mishmash of costumes, that bring to mind Blake's 7 or Dr Who.

Maybe it isn't so bad to be Ian ("Gandalf", "Magneto") McKellen after all...at least you have a decent costume budget, and won't be embarrassed at how you looked 20 years later...

BTW the actor playing Malcolm looked really familiar, and after imdb'ing him, I figured out why : he's Roger Rees, who played Lord John Marbury in West Wing.

Technorati Tags: humor, movies, RSC, shakespeare

No hurry for HD

David Pogue has a really interesting review of Toshiba's HD-DVD player, that turns out more as a critique on why consumers (i.e. us) really don't need HD, in either HD-DVD or Blu-Ray.

Personally, I'm pissed/regretful that I bought my plasma before HDMI became standard, so I might end up locked-out of HD goodness if the studios insist on making HD-quality content only output through HDMI (and please forgive me if you don't understand what that meant - it took me awhile, too).

Bottom-line : I agree wholeheartedly with Pogue, even before seeing any HD-DVD or Blu-Ray content. Sure, it's going to look nicer, but not nice enough to make me want to replace by DVD collection and buy a new TV with HDMI.

TheDigitalBits is also doing ongoing coverage of their experiences with HD-DVD. Thus far, it's sounded decidedly underwhelming.

Technorati Tags: dvd, movies, HD, puppy, tech

First steps

This video was actually filmed a couple of weeks ago. He's a lot steadier now.

Ladies and Gentlemen, we present the Great Walking Ryan!




The YouTube page is here, in case the viewer above doesn't work for whatever reason.

Technorati Tags: photos, video, ryan