Friday, May 27, 2011
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Monday, May 23, 2011
The XBOX 360 or The PS3, Which One Do I Buy
Firstly, I'm a gamer and have both systems. This casual post is for those who are considing buying one or the other because you can't have both. I'll provide a brief overview of both and then make recommendations.
The PS3
The big differentiator with Sony's PS3 is that it has a built in Blu-Ray player. While this may not be the main reason you would buy one it has been a very nice feature we have used over and over again. When I bought the PS3 I already had a 360. I didn't plan to use the PS3 as an entertainment system. It was purchased to play games only. With Sony's slick interface and tight integration with other services they offer the PS3 became our main entertainment device. While both system's support NetFlix and HuluPlus one can use it for far more than playing games.
Something else I like about the PS3 is the home network integration. Out of the box the PS3 can connect to your PC and where you can stream music from along with view slide shows of pictures and videos. Aside from these features Sony has built in optical audio out and provides great audio connectivity to a surrond sound system or stereo.
Now for the games. Sony had a rough start with only a few must play games. That time has long past. Most AAA Title games are coming to the PS3 and are highly optimized to take advantage of Sony's multiple processors. Developers struggled with the platform in the early days but now things are looking good and in some cases games look better on the PS3.
Some other niceity's of the PS3 is the free access to the PSN network and the ability to copy and back up saved game data and move it to another PS3 via a flash or USB drive. The 360 doesn't povide that feature unless you copy your gamer profile with the save data. Microsoft makes it very painful to move data from one XBOX to another.
So what about who should buy what? I think for the casual gamer who's going to play "some" games the PS3 is the way to go. The game library is strong and the system has enough value added features to make the total package a nice addition to an entertainment center. Finally, The PS3's Industrial Design is a sexy box. It's nice to look at. The 360, not so much.
I forgot to mention that the PS3 is very quite both while watching movies and playing games. Not so on the 360. It's very loud and is very distracting. One can install games on the 360 to alieviate this problem but it's a hassle to do this with every game you play.
The XBOX 360
Microsoft has had a lead on Sony in terms of number of units in the market place for awhile. There are tons of games for the 360 and some, not all, look alot better on the 360. That's partially because the 360 does antialiasing better than the PS3. Additionally the 360 has a larger library of games and has, hands down, the best online network albeit for a price. XBOX Live is the Microsoft online community that allows players to engage in several multiplayer games along with chat and video chat. Sony offers the same features but the vast majority of online players are either playing on a PC or an XBOX 360.
Microsoft has invested heavily in bringin content to the 360 in an attempt to make it the number one living room appliance. One can use NetFlix, Hulu Plus, thier own Zune Theatre along with live streaming music. They also have excellent integration with FaceBook and Twitter. Sony has an anemic implimentation of FaceBook and offer no Twitter connectivity.
So who should buy a 360? I would suggest the best buyer is the enthusiast or hardcore gamer. This is simply because of the superior XBOX Live service. Additionally Microsoft has an edge on Exclusive titles available only for the 360. Sony offers exclusives too but in many cases the exclusives from Microsoft are better.
It shoudl be noted that the 360 doesn't have a Blu-Ray player and at times games come on multiple disks. The recently released LA Noire for example is 3 or 4 disks and on the PS3 one plays with only one BluRay disk.
There's alot more that can be said about each box. This is intended to be a casual comparison. Search the net for more detailed information.
Now the question you may ask is, "Since you have both the 360 and PS3 but could only have one or the other, what would you pick? My answer is the PS3. The most recent reason is the release of Portal 2. Sony and Valve software came to an agreement whereby gamers who purchase a copy of the PS3 version of Portal 2 get a free copy of the game to play on their PC or Macintosh. A deal like this will never come about with Microsoft. They have a closed system when it comes to content and are not flexible enough to offer the value of a deal like Valve's and Sony's.
The XBOX 360 is a closed system where Sony's is much more open and this again is why I prefer the PS3 to the 360.
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Friday, May 20, 2011
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Friday, May 13, 2011
What is Psychorealism? (short)
"Psychorealism"
Chris Landreth uses standard CGI animation in his work, with the added element of what Chris calls Psychorealism. This often puts a surrealist styling into his work, notably The End, Bingo, and Ryan. For instance, in Ryan, as people get distraught, their faces distort. At one time in the interview Ryan gets so upset he literally flies apart.
Psychorealism is a style first put to words by Chris Landreth to refer to what Karan Singh described as, "the glorious complexity of the human psyche depicted through the visual medium of art and animation." [1]
[edit]
via en.wikipedia.org
What is Psychorealism?
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Chris Landreth Born 1961
Hartford, CTOccupation director, animator, writer Chris Landreth (born 1961) is an American animator working in Canada, best known for his work on the 2004 film, Ryan. He has made many CGI animated films since the mid-90s, including The End, Bingo, The Listener, Caustic Sky: A Portrait of Regional Acid Deposition, and Data Driven The Story Of Franz K.
Contents
[hide][edit] Biography
After being an engineer for years, Chris quit and began a second career as an animator. He received a BS(1984) in General Engineering and a MS(1986) degree in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics at the University of Illinois. Three years following, he experimented in fluid mechanics research, until he made baby steps into the world of computer animation. Afterwards in 1994, he was hired to define, test, and sometimes even abuse computer graphics software products. Such products include "movie Grade" software, not limited to but including programs, such as Maya, from the Toronto-based animation firm, Alias (formerly Alias|wavefront, now owned by Autodesk).
This resulted in the productions of The End and Bingo. The End was nominated in 1996 for an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. Afterward, he met Ryan Larkin, a renowned animator in the 60s and 70s, who had recently fallen in a spiral of excessive drinking, cocaine abuse, and homelessness. This resulted in the 2004 production of Ryan, which won an Oscar the same year.
Landreth's 2009 film The Spine won the Best of the Festival award at the Melbourne International Animation Festival. Produced by the National Film Board of Canada in association with Copperheart Animation and C.O.R.E., The Spine depicts a man who's physically and figuratively spineless and the breakdown of his marriage.[1]
Landreth is currently working on a feature length adaptation of Hans Rodionoff, Enrique Breccia and Keith Giffen’s graphic-novel biography of H.P. Lovecraft.[2]
His films: Ryan and The Spine were included in the Animation Show of Shows.
[edit] "Psychorealism"
Chris Landreth uses standard CGI animation in his work, with the added element of what Chris calls Psychorealism. This often puts a surrealist styling into his work, notably The End, Bingo, and Ryan. For instance, in Ryan, as people get distraught, their faces distort. At one time in the interview Ryan gets so upset he literally flies apart.
Psychorealism is a style first put to words by Chris Landreth to refer to what Karan Singh described as, "the glorious complexity of the human psyche depicted through the visual medium of art and animation." [1]
[edit] Sources
[edit] References
- ^ Dixon, Guy (Jul. 03, 2009). "Landreth's Spine named best of fest at Melbourne". Globe and Mail. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/movies/landreths-spine-named-best-of-fest-at-melbourne/article1201607/. Retrieved 2009-07-06.
- ^ Wilner, Norman (Jun 12, 2009). "Spine-tingling short". Now Magazine. http://www.nowtoronto.com/daily/story.cfm?content=169908.
[edit] External links
- Watch Ryan at NFB.ca
- Psychorealism (Computer Graphics World, July 2004)
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Landreth"Categories: Canadian animators | 1961 births | Living people | Directors of Best Animated Short Academy Award winners | American animators | People from Hartford, Connecticut | University of Illinois alumni | American engineers | Directors of Genie Award winners for Best Animated Short | Computer animation peopleHidden categories: Articles with hCards
via en.wikipedia.org
Ryan (2004) - (A Must See!)
via imdb.com
All time favorite piece by Chris Landreth. It has alot of heart. Very personal story told via what he calls Psycorealism. I'll post a Wiki on that. Also, if you ever thought Paint Effects was a "toy" think again. One of the best use cases. Thanks for your inspiration Chris.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Monday, May 9, 2011
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