The Geek Tree, 2010 Edition
The Geek Tree returned in 2010, but not in its standard format. In an effort to conserve space, and to avoid having rampant two-year-olds Godzilla the ornaments, I combined the Geek Tree with the Family Tree.
Launching Picture of the Day
"Picture of the Day" has been one of the most popular memes among my photography geek friends for the last year or so. The idea is that you take a picture a day, and then post it for the world to see, usually on Flickr or Facebook. Different people approach the project in different ways -- some take a picture and post it on the same day, some take a series of shots, and then post one a day.
I'm shooting for the former approach. I think it's more creative and challenging, and more likely to get me back into that "camera's eye" mindset. That said, I'm not going to be a slave to the format; if I have a couple of good shots I may run them over successive days.
My goals for this project are twofold. I want to learn more about my camera, the Nikon D60. It's a digital SLR that we bought a few years back, and it can do far, far more than I've done with it. The same goes for my new iPhone 4, which has a decent camera built in, and the advantage of being with me where ever I go.
Tron Messenger Bags
MAKE Magazine's online blog has a great "how-to" post about handcrafting Tron-inspired messenger bags, complete with glowing neon stripes. Seems like a great project for the holiday break...
Tron: Cupcakes
Last week my wife surprised me with a Tron-inspired birthday party (my birthday's December 17, the same day that Tron: Legacy was released). As part of that, she asked the good folks at Cupcake Ladies to create Tron cup cakes.
Which they did. The photo at left was taken by my friend Jason Alley (view the full-size photo on Flickr) and yes, the cupcakes did taste as good as they look.
The cupcakes made my day, and were the perfect prelude to heading to King of Prussia to watch Tron: Legacy in IMAX 3D with my friends. It was a good movie -- I describe it as pure, distilled 1980s wrapped in glass. My 12-year-old self loved the film. My 39-year-old self was happily distracted by the beer sampler I drank at Rock Bottom Brewery before the movie.
Off the Bookshelf: Evolutionary Void, Realms of Cthulhu, iPad Book Readers
After a long hiatus because of too much to do at work, I've finally gotten back to reading fiction ... because of work. Specifically because of the iPad I'm trying out at my day job.
I work at a college, and we're piloting the iPad to see how tablets might be integrated into the academic environment. Part of that is trying out the different e-reading software out there, and that gave me the perfect excuse to get a new book. Or rather two new books: The Evolutionary Void by Peter F. Hamilton and Realms of Cthulhu, published by Reality Blurs.
Summon WebScryer: 2010 in Review
My "Summon WebScryer" column for Knights of the Dinner Table kept rolling along in 2010, continuing a run that began in 2000. Some months it's a struggle to come up with ideas, other times the stars align and the column writes itself, but it's always fascinating to see how folks are using technology to promote, enhance and collaborate on their games.
Here's the big list of columns from 2010.