From the “video,” I noticed at least the use of HTML 5 video, canvas and geo-location features. There may also be some persistence of data. This definitely illustrates some new ways that websites will be engaging visitors in the future, allowing a more personalized multimedia experience.

I was surprised at the smooth integration of elements between technologies and how great the drawn images actually looked.

Google is a big proponent of HTML5, especially for video and rich graphics in the browser. To show off what HTML5 can do, Google Chrome teamed up with the Arcade Fire and director Chris Milk to create a custom interactive video for their song, We Used To Wait. The experience is called The Wilderness Downtown and is best viewed in Chrome

I definitely encourage people to fire up Chrome and take a look.

Source Techcrunch (via Digg)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/08/30/xbox-live-gold-price-increasing-as-of-november-1-in-us-uk-cana/

The change takes effect in November.

So, I guess if you want in on the cheap, stock up on those existing cards now before the price goes up.

Well, this is sad and unexpected: Microsoft’s Major Nelson just announced that Xbox Live Gold will be getting more expensive in the US, UK, Canada, and Mexico starting November 1. A single month will go from $7.99 to $9.99, three months will go from $19.99 to $24.99, and the yearly sub will now be $59.99, up from $49.99.

Interestingly, if I reverse the logic, the calculation falls 7 days short.

But, this calculator, also says 10,000 days.

So, I guess I’ve lived “approximately” 10,000 days

How To Solve Flickering Background Images

If you’re using CSS sprites as background images for links or buttons, you’ll notice that the image will flicker briefly in Internet Explorer 6. The reason is because IE6 doesn’t properly cache the background image and reloads it every time. You can fix this with a single line of JavaScript that forces IE6 to cache the image.

1. <!–[if lte IE 6]>
2. <link type=”text/css” rel=”stylesheet” href=”css/ie6.css” />
3. <script type=”text/javascript”> document.execCommand(“BackgroundImageCache”,false,true); </script>
4. <![endif]–>

Source: virtuosimedia.com and Adobe.com

PNG-Transparency for Windows IE 5.5 & 6

This is a JQuery script that fixes missing PNG-Transparency support in Windows Internet Explorer 5.5 & 6 without corrupting other functionality.

Source: andreaseberhard.de

After being abused by AT&T for over ten years, I finally gathered up the courage to pack up my things and leave. It was an abusive relationship, one that I will not recount fondly.

And, who did I run to on the rebound? Verizon. It shouldn’t take a Jedi Mind Trick to convince you that Verizon is getting some very sexy phones packed with Google’s Android OS. The target of my new-found affection is the Droid X (seen below).

And, apparently I’m not the only person who has my eye on this little number, as my order has been in queue for a while now and it still not scheduled to ship for another week and a half! Holy backorder, Batman. I’m sure I will have something more to say when I finally get my hands on this little black beauty. The suspense is killing me.

“Ricky was a young boy, He had a heart of stone.
Lived 9 to 5 and worked his fingers to the bone.
Just barely got out of school, came from the edge of town.
Fought like a switchblade so no one could take him down.
He had no money, oooh no good at home.
He walked the streets a soldier and he fought the world alone
And now it’s

18 and life You got it
18 and life you know
Your crime is time and it’s
18 and life to go…”

From the start of the hiring process all the way through my orientation day, I was under the impression I was being hired as a C++ maintenance developer – which I can do but don’t particularly enjoy.

Fortunately, for me, I was assigned to another team that better fit my skill set and my preference for web application development (which I made painfully obvious during the job interviews).

I took a gamble on a job in a tough market and luckily got placed doing exactly what I was looking for – high-profile web application development that challenges me constantly, allows me to use my existing skills, and grows my skill set.

Let’s hope it lasts.

Recently, I accepted a consultant position with CGI Federal in Lebanon, VA.  I will most likely be doing software maintenance (in C++) at first.  As one may expect, I am a bit nervous and extremely excited.

Commuting to the job would be ridiculously expensive and painful; so, I had to recently do another expensive and painful thing – find an apartment.  Apparently, the apartment opportunities in the Lebanon / Abingdon Virginia area aren’t all that great.  Either the apartments smell like run down veterinary clinics or they are rent controlled by the Virginia Housing Authority and cost twice as much as they should for people in my newfound income bracket. To make a long story shorter, I found a place after over a week of searching through a lot of crappy places.  My new place is a bit smaller than I wanted but it is almost new, clean, and fairly inexpensive with community pool, gym, and laundry.  I got the last available apartment in the complex.

Hopefully, I can get everything moved soon and reset life back to a slower setting for a while.

Selected by the Department of Computer and Information Sciences faculty, the Outstanding Student Awards are based on the students’ academic achievements, participation in professional activities, and their professional and leadership potential. The awards are given each spring to students in each of the following levels: sophomore, junior, senior and graduate. There is also a special award, Outstanding Computer Science Award, given to a graduating senior, including those who may have already graduated this current academic year. This year’s winners are:

Jordan Black – Outstanding Computer Science Student
Preston Moore – Outstanding Sophomore
Dana Campbell – Outstanding Junior
Olivia Colgrove – Outstanding Senior
Albert Holtsclaw – Outstanding Graduate Student

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