Interesting Bits

You gotta check out this guys work – it’s pretty amazing! How he does it below…

For example, this one is “Tornado made of steel wool, cotton, ground parsley and moss”

My work involves the construction of small-scale meticulously detailed models using various materials and objects to create emotive landscapes. Every aspect from the construction to the lighting of the final model is painstakingly pre-planned using methods which force the viewers perspective when photographed from a specific angle. Using a mixture of photographic techniques such as scale, depth of field, white balance and lighting I am able to drastically alter the appearance of my materials. For images documenting how these works are made see my facebook fan page Matthew Albanese.

via Strange Worlds on the Behance Network.

Very Neat (via Behance Network…)

Facebook’s virtual currency, “Facebook Credits,” is getting very close to its full launch: a post on the Facebook developer blog explains some of the full terms of the system and what developers can expect as the currency continues to roll out slowly.

We might use it as a billing system for our new App – as well as iPhone Appstore sales – this should cover nearly all the market.

It might be a way around the Android billing problem too – as an Australian iPhone development company, we can’t develop for Android yet and get paid – so it will have to be a free app on Android and upgrade via Facebook or iPhone!

(Credit: Facebook)

via Facebook to developers: Get ready for Credits | The Social – CNET News.

Wow… Just WOW!

…. but if the basic product isn\'t compelling, adding more features won’t save it. By focusing on only a few core features in the first version, you are forced to find the true essence and value of the product. Put another way, if your product is great, it doesn’t need to be good.

via Paul Buchheit: If your product is Great, it doesn\’t need to be Good..

The Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 AF-S sets a new standard in ultra-ultra wide angle lenses. It is the best on the planet, and by a large margin. The 14-24mm is significantly sharper than any fixed or zoom ultrawide from Canon or Nikon, and that includes Canon and Nikon’s 14mm, 18mm and ultra-wide zoom lenses.

The 14-24mm does things no lens before has done. It is sharper wide-open at 14mm in the far corners than a fixed 14mm f/2.8 is stopped down at f/5.6! For sharpness, the 14-24mm is blazingly sharp and devoid of any coma or softness at every aperture, everywhere in the full film and FX Digital field.

Full review at Ken Rockwell

Gyrofocus, voted ‘World’s most beautiful object’ 2008–2009 in Pulchra competition.

The Gyrofocus, designed by the award-winning contemporary fireplace maker Focus, has been named as the World’s Most Beautiful Object for the 2008-2009 Pulchra design competition.

The suspended fireplace achieved the highest number of votes in the inaugural year of the ten-year design competition. Over a year, 74,425 participants voted by Internet for the 10 most beautiful objects among 100 selected by a jury of experts in design and architecture.

The fireplace created by Dominique Imbert in 1968 came out as the voters’ top choice.

The black fireplace is made of 4mm-thick steel, has a diameter of 1.25m and a weight of 97kg. It rotates 360° so it can be easily directed to face different parts of the room. The length of the flue and other adaptations are produced to requirements

Even the digital paperboy is late sometimes, this notice on my Kindle tells the story… must have been the snowstorm

We normally get the NYT delivered in the early evening here in Australia.

C-SPAN Radio for iPhone app streams audio in background while other apps are in use

The latest version of the C-SPAN Radio app (v.1.1, free) for Apple’s iPhone and iPod touch now offers "Background Play."

Upon running the app, users are asked if they’d like to "play stream in background?"

If you answer "yes," the app’s "Background Play" will use "Mobile Safari to play the station’s stream so you can use other apps at the same time."

The free C-SPAN Radio app for Apple’s iPhone and iPod touch is available via Apple’s App Store here.

via MacDailyNews.

UPDATE- obviously the warning is now withdrawn, I’m going to leave the warning text up below for future interest.

THERE IS A MARINE TSUNAMI WARNING CURRENT FOR QUEENSLAND.Marine Warning: Point Danger to Port Clinton, Moreton Bay, Hervey BayIDY68027 Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology
MEDIA: No use of the Standard Emergency Warning Signal (SEWS)TOP PRIORITY FOR IMMEDIATE AND FREQUENT BROADCAST

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TSUNAMI WARNING NUMBER 11 FOR QUEENSLAND Issued by the Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Centre (JATWC) at5:41 AM EST on Sunday 28 February 2010

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TSUNAMI THREAT TO THE MARINE ENVIRONMENT

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SUMMARY:Tsunami warning for the marine environment for QUEENSLAND.Threatened areas extend from Point Danger to St Lawrence, including Moreton Bay and Hervey Bay.Possibility of dangerous waves, strong ocean currents and foreshore flooding throughout the day from 08:15 am (EST) Sunday.

Sea level observations HAVE confirmed a tsunami has been generated.For further details visit the Bureau web site www.bom.gov.au.Next update due by 7:11 AM EST on Sunday 28 February 2010

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DETAILS:Tsunami waves are more powerful than the same size beach waves, with the first wave not always the largest. First tsunami effects are expected as follows:

Coolangatta from 08:15 am (EST) Sunday
Maroochydore from 09:00 am (EST) Sunday
Brisbane from 09:15 am (EST) Sunday
Hervey Bay from 09:45 am (EST) Sunday

Check that your neighbours have received this advice.Boats in harbours, estuaries or shallow coastal water should return to shore.Secure your boat and move away from the waterfront. Vessels already at sea should stay offshore in deep water until further advised.Do not go to the coast to watch the tsunami, as there is the possibility of dangerous, localised flooding of the immediate foreshore.

via Land and Marine Tsunami Warning – Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Centre (JATWC).