What follows is a list of ten of my favorite Youtube clips. It’s not a top 10 list, because I’d have trouble ranking them, and there are dozens of other videos that I love equally, if not more.
I realize that making a list like this is risky, as Youtube links tend to disappear faster than soap bubbles. Six months from now, half of these will probably be gone, and I’ll be set with the tedious task of finding replacements. But for now, click the link and enjoy these ten extraordinary clips.
“Bullshit, I’m gettin’ old. And it’s okay. Because thanks to our fear of death in this country I won’t have to die. I’ll pass away. Or I’ll expire, like a magazine subscription. If it happens in the hospital they’ll call it a terminal episode. The insurance company will refer to it as negative patient care outcome.” – George Carlin, “Doin it Again”, 1990
Well, here’s some depressing news to wake up to. George Carlin, one of my favorite comedians and
one of the great philosophers of our era, died of heart failure yesterday. He was 71.
Carlin was admitted to Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA after complaining of chest pain. He died later in the day.
He was famous for his tirades on humanity, religion, and modern language. His “Seven Dirty Words You Can’t Say on Television” (NSFW link, protect your co-workers by plugging in headphones) bit caused a ruckus with the FCC and led to a classic case of censorship. He left behind a legacy of media, including 14 HBO specials, four books, and 22 comedy albums. He also hosted the first episode of “Saturday Night Live” and played the narrator on “Shining Time Station”.
He was an established orator and I mourn his departure.
Here’s a little something extra to help digest the bad news. It’s one of my favorite bits of his.
To beat an old phrase to death, “It’s that time of year again.”
To coin one a friend of mine just used, “IGN has too much money.”
By all appearances , The Legend of Zelda movie could very well be real and forthcoming. The trailer shows off high production values, uses classic flashy editing tricks, promises a detailed storyline, and feeds us all the nerd-bait we can muster (I will admit, there’s something inspiring about Link adorning his green garbs like that).
But check your calenders, folks. And note the release date at the end of the video. In fact, watch it again and examine how silly the hat looks on Link. While some of us dream of Zelda hitting the big screen (and the rest of us don’t, because video game movies have a tendency to suck mightily), this, sadly (fortunately?) isn’t the real thing.
Like real life, April Fools Day is a holiday where the internet crowd loves to goof off. Some announce that they’re shutting down their websites for good, others pretend they’ve been hacked, while still others drum up crazy rumors and watch them spread through the pipelines. IGN, sparing no expense, has pulled the ultimate prank here. Not only did they deliver a fake Zelda movie trailer, they made it look real to boot, and obviously spent a ton of money and time. I’m amazed that something like this was created for only a single day of chain-yanking.
Watch. Enjoy. And remember: reality is always a fantasy on April 1.
The Nintendo DS is, without question, the best portable console currently available. Not only does it have a metric ton of good software in comparison to the PSP, it’s compact, innovative, and uniquely designed.
Yet still, you can’t help but feel that it’s capable of so much more. There are things the DS could do that’s regrettably absent out of the box. MP3 support? Video playback? Built in internet applications (Pictochat doesn’t count)? This thing was practically tailor-made to be a multimedia device.
That’s where homebrew comes in. For an admissible fee, you can make your DS do all the things it was meant to do. I’ve had my CycloDS Evolutionfor a couple of weeks now, and I gotta say, it’s been taking up an ungodly amount of my time. From playing Leisure Suit Larry to running NES ROMs to using my DS as an mp3 player for the car, I’ve gotten more entertainment out of $ 100 than is possible at that price. To show off all my favorite applications (and to give you a good idea of what homebrew is capable of) I’ve compiled a list of essential software. In no particular order:
Today, generations of gamers lost a true hero.
Gary Gygax, who co-created Dungeons & Dragons along with Dave Arenson in 1974, died in his home this morning. He was 69. He had been suffering from poor health for some time, and had endured a heart attack, multiple strokes, and an aneurysm.
Mr. Gygax’s D&D tabletop RPG has been enjoyed by millions worldwide over the years, and has found its way into TV shows, movies, and fantasy novels.
Quad’s Corner mourns his passing. He was a man of Epic Levels.
October is my favorite month out of the year. Not only does it contain the most awesome (and bizarre) of all holidays, it’s an excuse to veg out and watch horror movies for 31 days. Halloween is a special time where we put all our differences aside, watch D-grade slasher flicks, and dig through mixing bowls filled with candy. And that’s exactly what I intend to do. All bloody month long.
October is also significant for Quad’s Corner. On the 24th, it will be officially one year since I started this thing. Whether or not I do something big to celebrate is still a subject up for debate. I do know that I have a few Halloween-related things planned, so keep your hand dipped in this bucket of fake eyeballs and stay tuned!
