the ronster - what a dick

I Really Want a Projector
- 20 Jul 2011
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I used to (actually still do) own a Home Cinema projector. It cost me a bloody fortune, but it was great. Unfortunately, it was also Standard Definition, and in these days of HD it just won't cut it.

So, I'm saving for a new one. I need 4 things, I've decided.

Projector: Optoma HD200X - really well reviewed, 1080p projector.

To attach this to the ceiling I'll need a mount. Ebay is full of these things, but I'll need to do a bit of maths before I commit to one.

I'll also need a screen, funnily enough. I don't want to be messing around with manual screens, trying to get the picture to line up with it each time, so it'll have to be electric. 100 inches diagonal is what I'm looking for. Like this:

(download)

Click here to download:
i-really-want-a-projector-zfpxzdyCBHGjaDGwBrAx.zip (65 KB)

To get from the amp to the projector I'll need a long HDMI cable, and to split the HDMI signal between the TV and the Projector I'll need, well, an HDMI splitter. So, these things.

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Click here to download:
i-really-want-a-projector-mjGcooAbDhggFIeynFob.zip (38 KB)

All of this comes to about £725... and of course I'm not working at the minute.

So, when you've finished laughing... the plan is to try and get there by selling stuff I have that I no longer want or need. I did this before and managed to buy a really decent TV, so here goes again.

My listings on Ebay are here - mainly a lot of old video games and other nerdaphanelia. But I'll be listing more stuff soon. I'll probably be listing some Wii/Xbox 360 games and some DVDs very soon too. I may even go insane and start selling some rare signed books...

And look, a ticker to keep track of how well/badly I'm doing at all this! As you can see, I'm not even 10% of the way there yet... but I'm pretty determined. I just have to persuade the wife that it's not a terrible idea.
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Protest of Gay Therapy seminar
- 15 Jun 2011
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Earlier I popped down to the Belvoir Park Church of Ireland which is hosting a seminar focused on helping those who are gay change their orientation.

Here's a link to the story on UTV. Oh, and here is the BBC's coverage too.

Rather than argue whether or not I agree with this, I'll just state that I don't even think it's biologically possible if you look at the masses of scientific evidence that being homosexual isn't a choice, but a genetic state of being that's decided long before you are even aware of your own existence...

But I digress: I mainly went to take some pictures. Behold!

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protest-of-gay-therapy-seminar-zDEcqIdxjrbjtIiultoA.zip (25.47 MB)

Update: here is UTV's piece on it from tonight's news:
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Belfast Skate Park
- 10 Jun 2011
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Found myself with 20 minutes to spare earlier, so I swung by the new skate park to see what was happening there. Thought I might grab a few photos as there hoardes of skaters and rollerbladers there.

The level of ability there was actually pretty impressive, and the atmosphere was nice and convivial. Bit light on ladies, but that's skating for you.

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belfast-skate-park-spxGJHqtxAjyzGCrtogw.zip (36.68 MB)
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Green Lantern
- 26 May 2011
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So the new trailer for Green Lantern is up.

Look, I like how it looks, but part of me thinks that this trailer smacks of some sort of desperation, as if they aren't sure that the movie itself will be easy enough for the masses to follow.

I'm actually inclined to think that Green Lantern as a character/universe is probably a bit too cosmic for most people. Your average super-hero movie has to include a lot of grounding in some sort of reality to give people who are new to it something to work with, but all I've seen of this flick has led me to believe that the vast majority of the story and action happens in space.

None of this bothers me of course, but audiences can be easily turned off by a movie that doesn't give them a lot to relate to.
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Donegall Place
- 22 May 2011
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royal-avenue-lmuIEbtlCfHIiEhvECAs.zip (8.93 MB)

Am I the last person to notice these things on Royal Avenue Donegall Place?

They're pretty imposing, and each one has the name of a different ship which was built in Belfast on it.

Anyone know anything more about them? It would be nice if the posts are parts of ships or something, but I suppose that would be hoping for too much.

UPDATE: Via @theeadversary, here are some of the details regarding the project.

(also, cheers to Daithi for correcting the street-name - don't know what I was thinking.)
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Clingo Car Mount
- 20 May 2011
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I don't normally bother recommending a product, but I LOVE this thing. If you're looking for a really good car-mount for your phone, check it out.

The green pad is perpetually sticky, and it grips like hell, but at the same time devices peel off it with little effort and zero residue. It works best when your phone doesn't have a slide-off battery cover. My iPhone 4 sticks really well to it, as does the wife's 3GS in a back-cover.

Also, they produce a vent-mount version. Don't buy it. It's fiddly to fit (if it DOES fit) and I couldn't get the one I had to sit with any degree of stability.

You can get the windscreen mount Clingo on the likes of Amazon for around £12-13. Easily worth it.

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Click here to download:
Clingo_Car_Mount.zip (4.11 MB)
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Straw Dogs
- 18 May 2011
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Finally there is a trailer for the remake of 1971's classic siege movie Straw Dogs.

First, however, the original

Isn't that great? Doesn't that just drip menace and foreboding?

And now, the remake

Eh... There's lots of loud noises!

I can't really talk about what makes Straw Dogs so powerful without spoiling an awful lot of it, but it's safe to say that a lot of what made Peckinpah's film such an incendiary bit of celluloid will be excised.

This is probably because modern audiences aren't too keen on mixing a bit of difficult drama into what is ostensibly a straight-down-the-line genre flick. Rather than explore the interesting elements of David and Amy's relationship, the complicated dynamic between Amy and her past and the ironic heroism of the finale, it'll likely jettison these issues and make a movie that doesn't challenge the viewer.

Ultimately though, this makes better business sense. People don't like to leave the cinema feeling uneasy - they like a catharsis. However, Peckinpah, and others like him, knew that what audiences wanted and what they needed were two different things.

Straw Dogs was an incredibly controversial movie when it was released. It was banned in various cut versions for years, which only added to its reputation. This is why it's being remade - purely so the producers can have 'based on the BANNED original' above the title.

But mark my words - the last thing they want is for this movie to generate anything other than cash.

On a side note, Straw Dogs is also one of my favourite iconic movie posters:

But I also just found this amazing bit of concept art by a guy called Josh Eckert that successfully conveys the entire tone of the movie. Brilliant stuff, which I had a full-size poster of it!
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Comply or Die - Shanghaied
- 16 May 2011
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Comply or Die are Belfast's premier merchants of doomy punk rock. They terrify and energise in equal amounts live, and their recorded output is usually of a couple of different colours. Earlier this year they released a split cassette with fellow doom-sayers The Slomatics, in which they showcased Vermin from their 2nd album DEPTHS which is due in August.

<a href="http://complyordie.bandcamp.com/track/comply-or-die-vermin">Comply Or Die - Vermin by Comply Or Die</a>

Well, that may be too much for some of you - but there's another side to Comply or Die, and that's their more rockular tendencies.

Shanghaied is available here for nowt, and it's a slice of bouncy-bounce rock-a-long that won't quit. I've enjoyed this one live for a good while now, and I'm glad it's now been recorded.

<a href="http://complyordie.bandcamp.com/track/shanghaied-2">Shanghaied by Comply Or Die</a>

So that's Comply or Die - I love them, and so should you.

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comply-or-die-shanghaied-lEwcjjBqgqlqHCwwgnHJ.zip (4.05 MB)
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Our Valued Customers
- 16 May 2011
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From the brilliant Our Valued Customers blog. Precisely the attitude I despise in 'fanboys'. No-one owes you anything, and they owe your childhood even less.

Pretty much every day that blog makes me laugh. Bookmark it - that's an order.
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Stevie Mac Loves Brian Cox
- 15 May 2011
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Stevie's done it again. The boy manages to make me smile with so little effort.
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