A Reading Retreat Like No Other: Garden Library
source: freshome.com

A Facebook Life
source: TechCrunch

Interesting article, but Facebook has only been around (mainstream) for 7 years, not really a single lifetime of datapoints yet. More a conglomeration of how people along the different points of their lives are using the service at this time. But still interesting.

Life is a game. This is your strategy guide
source: Oliveremberton.com

Similar to the above. Nicely done.

BATMAN EVOLUTION - YouTube

A huge Marvel Legends collection
source: Marvelous News

Todd McFarlane On the Chances Of More Spawn Action Figures & Animated Series
source: Comicbook.com

Interesting article about action figures in general.

All the studios and the Marvel heroes they own in one handy graph
source: i09

What if Doctor Whoť Was an American Show?

Pretty good list/photos.

A Valentine's Day musical double-header from CDZA: History of Men, and Women, Moving On
source: Boing Boing

Snow Day: The Musical
source: Neatorama

Draw a Straight Line or a Skyline With These Famous City Rulers
source: Gizmodo

This would be a really neat sort of thing to design for the 3D Printer too.

The True Size of Africa
source: The Red Ferret Journal

World Premiere of First Guardians of the Galaxy Trailer
source: YouTube

Netflix Introduces New Browse Endlessly Plan
source: The Onion

Click above. Funny video.

Funko - Legacy Rocketeer Movie Figures
source: TheFwoosh.com

Given that I just started to make a custom one, I'm a little bummed, but given the quality of their Game of Thrones figures, I'm sure they'll be great and I'll get a few.

A Sliding Stool That Expands To Accommodate an Extra Person
source: Gizmodo

Air Force researchers test mild electric shocks as a caffeine substitute
source: The Verge

That's a little nuts. Just get some sleep already. Plenty of people will still be there to bomb in the morning.

Mario Seinfeld - A Parody About Nothing
source: YouTube

Really well done mashup.

Say hello to Project Tango!
source: YouTube

Interesting small scale room-sized mapping technology.

Jerry Seinfeld Performs Standup on New Jimmy Fallon Tonight Show
source: YouTube

Brian Williams Raps "Rapper's Delight"
source: YouTube

M3Ds Micro 3D Printer
source: fabbaloo

Only 4x4x4 inch prints, but $199-$350 makes it a very friendly hobbiest price point.

Cogi Voice Recorder: Save All of The Highlights, None of The Noise
source: makeuseof

Interesting, an audio recorder with a tap to add to highlight button.

4 Reasons Why Blogging Beginners Should Be In The WordPress Community
source: makeuseof

Vonnegut's The Shapes of Stories: All Stories Ever Told Can Be Described in These 8 Simple Graphs
source: neatorama

Raul Gutierrez: Constructing Childhood
source: YouTube

Smartwatches

After using Galaxy Gear the last few days.

Really wish Gear's notification system ran like Pebble. ie: The notifications came up in a small font showing: app source, subject and first couple sentences, instead of the 2 to 3 or so taps you have to do now to view a notification. I also wish that I could just continue to scroll down to see recent notifications instead of having each type bottle up in it's own app category.

It would be great if you could just double tap Gear's screen to turn the screen on.

I wish I could email and tweet the Gear's camera's pictures directly from the watch.

Those are probably the big 3 things that if it did those, I'd wear it during the day instead of just the evening after work. The Pebble is just so much better at notifications and as a "watch" that it's still my goto 9 to 5. :(

Galaxy Gear and the Pebble

Today was my first full day with the Galaxy Gear. So at work today I wore both the Pebble and the Galaxy Gear and had them (watch)face off.

Putting them head to head, I've decided that I'll probably continue to wear the Pebble during the work day. The Pebble is just better at passive quick glance notifications. It displays more information at once, and doesn't require the multiple clicks and swipes to read a notification that the Gear does. The low power screen of the Pebble also allows it to always be on so you can glance down and see the time and temperature without the wrist flicking you need to do with the Gear to turn on it's always off power conserving screen.

However, after work will likely be a different story, I'll probably switch to the Gear. The Gear's camera is great for snapping quick cat pics and I think after hours the quick camera access, the Gear's slickest feature over the Pebble, will be a lot of fun.

I don't tend to get as many emails, texts or notifications in the evening, so a few extra swipes on the Gear, shouldn't be a big deal. Also, I think I'll more likely use the Gear's alarms and timers, one of it's nicer features, in the evening, when cooking or to remember to take the laundry out etc., more so than during the work day where alarms are more meeting based and less impromptu, which the Pebble handles well.

The Gear and Pebble are both nice devices. So far, having both of them is like comparing a Kindle (Pebble) to an iPad (Gear). Different strengths and weaknesses to both. Neither are bad, but despite their similar shapes, they aren't really the same thing either.

Three Decades of Science Team Heroes

I just picked up 70s Battle of the Planet team leader, Mark, off eBay. The 7" scale figure is from the early aughts, limited articulation, but a nice sculpt.

At right is a 3" figure from when I was a kid of the 80s Voltron Leader: Kieth, pilot of the Black Lion.

And up top is of course is a recent Figarts 6" release of the 90s Red Ranger from the Power Rangers.

Three decades of color coded, science team heroes.

Batter Up!

I picked up a Casey Jones figure last weekend. It'll probably be one of the last TMNT figures I'll get for awhile, unless they make a proper size Krang or propper height Foot Soldiers, as I've picked up most of the core characters over the last year.

Casey is a pretty good redesign, even if he's traded his simpler Jason Vorees hockey mask for a "Misfits Tee" painted one.

Seemed a no brainer to do a Casey pic along side Young Justice's Sportsmaster.

Neat figures.

Marty McFly - In Progress

Someone uploaded a Mary McFly model to Thingiverse. So I gave a try printing it last week. As you can see below, there was alot of support generated, so it took a little time to peel it all off.

Overall, I'm pleased with how it's coming out, I'll probably take another pass with the dremel to it, to sand it a little further, but with a nice paint job, I think it'll end up turning out pretty nice.

There was also a Doc Brown on the site (which I've printed but not peeled the support away from yet). And a Delorean, that will probably eventually bring this whole little display together.

Cool stuff.

The Rocketeer - in progress

Finally found a second AIM agent in stores today, so I went about starting a Rocketeer custom figure.

I bought the casted helmet and rocketpack for about $10 off ebay.

I popped off the AIM agent's head and cut away his belt. But there should be very little else I need to do to the figure. The collar isn't entirely canon to the figure, but I think once the figure is painted it will look great.

The belt is from the 6" Black Series Star Wars Han. While that figure does come with a 2nd white Storm Trooper belt too, I'm not ready to part my Han figure from this more classic style accessory, so I'll probably keep a look out for a clearance or on-sale 2nd Han to grab another belt from just for The Rocketeer.

Basically, just waiting for an evening where I feel like painting it at this point.

Comedian Speaks for Canada: 'Keep Bieber'
source: Mashable

Chess 2 impressions: An enchanting new twist on an ancient game
source: arstechnica

Valley of the Blahs: How Justin Bieber's Troubles Exposed Twitter's Achilles' Heel - NYTimes.com
source:

It feels as if we’re all trying to be a cheeky guest on a late-night show, a reality show contestant or a toddler with a tiara on Twitter — delivering the performance of a lifetime, via a hot, rapid-fire string of commentary, GIFs or responses that help us stand out from the crowd. We’re sold on the idea that if we’re good enough, it could be our ticket to success, landing us a fleeting spot in a round-up on BuzzFeed or The Huffington Post, or at best, a writing gig. But more often than not, it translates to standing on a collective soapbox, elbowing each other for room, in the hopes of being credited with delivering the cleverest one-liner or reaction. Much of that ensues in hilarity. Perhaps an equal amount ensues in exhaustion.

How do Trees Survive Winter?
source: YouTube

Congrats, Millennials. Now It's Your Turn to Be Vilified
source: Wired.com

My prediction? Hold fast, millennials. This current wave of punditry will peak and then start declining six years from now. In 2020, about half of you will have turned 30. You’ll no longer be young—and therefore no longer scary—and today’s rhetoric about your entitlement and narcissism will evaporate. You’ll be in charge. I can’t imagine what you’re going to say about the kids being born today.

1st trailer for superhero comedy series Caper (from Felicia Day's studio)
source: Blastr

Cake mix cookies
source: Instructables

- 1/2 cup vegetable oil - 2 eggs - one 15 oz box cake mix Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes at 350 F.

STAR WARS/NFL Mash-up

There are 32 of these, and some like this Tauntauns one are really good.

Jerry Seinfeld and George Costanza Reunite for Super Bowl
source: Mashable

Nice. All in character. A fantastic 6 minute episode.

3D print Honda Concept cars
source: Fabbaloo

Very cool to see a major corp releasing stl files as advertising.

Bruce Sterling on making the Internet safe for freedom and art
source: Boing Boing

Another great Bruce Sterling video, 23 minutes, of get off my lawn style brilliance.

Honest Trailers, Thor the Dark World
source: LikeCool

Funny.

New Keurig Cold machine could let you make Coke at home
source: The Verge

Y\'know, pop is incredibly cheap, so it\'s hard to imagine a device like this being remotely economical to use, but it is an intriguing.

Grown up versions of 90s cartoon characters
source: Mashable

Some interesting drawings here. There\'s also a Dexters Lab and some others.

Intricate Architectural Office Supplies Put a Skyline On Your Desk
source: Gizmodo

Interesting idea. Could be a cool 3D printing project too.

HOWTO make an intercom out of obsolete corded phones
source: Boing Boing

tTis looks crazy easy to do, basically splice a couple of wars with a 9volt battery and a 300 ohm resistor. Very cool.

Let’s face it: social TV is dead
source: Gigoam

Here’s another important point social TV failed to anticipate: In the age of binge-watching and serialized storytelling, discovery matters less and less. Sure, I may want to find a new show every now and then — but the commitment of time spent per show is so high that I don’t need to look for new content for weeks once I’ve settled on a few favorites.

Lego Dog

A little bit back I saw a Lego dog on Thingiverse. I've tried 3D printing a few lego things in the past, but not with great results.

I printed this with support and had to slice away a fair amount of it with an Xacto blade but this little dog came out ok and the 3D banding makes good as fur.

I placed the little Lego dog next to Jennifer's Lord of the Rings Lego sets. I don't think there was a dog in Lord of Rings, but with all that walking, there should have been don't you think?

You want to go for a walk boy? Do you want to go for a walk to Mordor? Who wants to walk to Mordor? That's a good dog!

Paintbrush holder

Saw this great little paintbrush holder show up on Thingiverse. Printed it a week or so a go.

Nice design, simple, neat, useful.

Superbowl Sunday

Victor Stone was a promising High School Football star before a tragic accident left him near death. His father, a S.T.A.R. Labs scientist, rebuilt him and he became Titan and Justice Leaguer: Cyborg.

Michael Jon Carter citizen of the 25th century was a star quarterback for the University of Gotham, before a gambling on his own games ended his college career. Carter would later travel back in time to the 20th Century with stolen future tech from the Metropolis Space Museum, redeeming himself as the present day hero Booster Gold!

Superbowl Sunday and the above was basically an excuse to print a football on the 3D printer.

I had the brown filament and two former football star action figures, and found the model on Thingiverse, so why not?

Amy and Rory

I finished printing the second cinderblock wall this afternoon. Decided to take a quick shot of Amy and Rory, which I picked up for cheap in the same eBay auction a week or two ago.

I don't have a Matt Smith 11th Doctor yet but I've had the Tardis f

Hydra Agents

I had a mPerks reward that was 2 cents shy of earning a $5 reward coupon, so I swung by Meijer yesterday. I found a second Hydra Agent.

Love these army builder figures. You have to have at least two. I mean they're henchmen, not henchman right?

Anyway, I also worked on designing/building another taller cinderblock wall with the 3D printer. This one is about 7" tall. Ok for a direct on pic, or downshot. Not so great for an upshot though. The print died about 1.5 hours in, but I had enough wall to glue to some foamcore. It works well enough for a photo backdrop.

Earlier in the week I had picked up the first Hydra agent along with an AIM agent.

A few weeks ago I bought a helmet and rocketpack casting of the Rocketeer off eBay. Once I find another AIM agent I intend to use one of them as a base to make a Rocketeer custom figure. The loose fitting costume and the double breasted suit of the AIM figure, should work perfectly for the Rocketer.