Wednesday, April 6, 2005

Andrew Denton interview with Michael Stipe

Andrew Denton interviewed Michael Stipe of R.E.M. on Enough Rope on Monday night. It was a cool interview.

The transcript of the interview can be found at:
http://www.abc.net.au/tv/enoughrope/transcripts/s1338339.htm

Tuesday, April 5, 2005

Special preview of The Interpreter + Q+A with Sydney Pollack - 12 April

Popcorn Taxi presents a special preview of The Interpreter + Q&A with acclaimed director/ producer Sydney Pollack

"Popcorn Taxi is proud to announce a special preview of the outstanding new thriller THE INTERPRETER starring NICOLE KIDMAN and SEAN PENN. After the screening join Academy Award winning director SYDNEY POLLACK for an exclusive interview and audience Q&A (live via phone direct from Berlin), with ABC Radio National's JULIE RIGG.

THE INTERPRETER is set against the high stakes background of geo-politics and counter-terrorism in the tension filled atmosphere of the United Nations. The film has NICOLE KIDMAN as an interpreter unwittingly caught up in an assassination plot. SEAN PENN is a government agent assigned to protect her - but is she telling all she knows?

For director POLLACK whose credits include the Oscar winning OUT OF AFRICA (1985) and TOOTSIE (1982), the film is a welcome return to a genre he has excelled in with films like ABSENCE OF MALICE (1981), THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR (1975) and THE FIRM (1993). THE INTERPRETER is the first movie ever to be allowed to shoot inside the UN itself. It features a fast-paced, politically sophisticated screenplay that daringly provokes controversial questions about current US foreign policy. It's also a ripping yarn and a touching human story."

THIS PROGRAM IS YET TO BE RATED
(T.B.A.)

Time: 7.30pm
Date: Tuesday, March 12th, 2005
Where: Valhalla Cinema
Address: 166 Glebe Point Road, Glebe
Entry: $15 / $13 Conc.

NOTE: Advance bookings will NOT be available for this session. Cash sales only.
All tickets will be sold on a first come basis from 6:00pm at the cinema on the night.

W: http://www.popcorntaxi.com.au/Events.asp?Event_ID=376

Search-engine savvy librarian shares some of her expertise

Article where Mary Ellen Bates talks about the values of the librarian/ info professional and some of the things Google doesn't search. Plus you can't talk to Google, like you can to a librarian.

W: http://www.longmontfyi.com/Local-Story.asp?ID=1137

AGIdeas Design Conference - 26, 27, 28 April in Melbourne

The AGIdeas International Design Forum will include the following speakers:

Adam Elliot, David Webster from IDEO, USA, David Carson, USA, Philip Brophy, Paul Cohen - Mother, UK, Garth Walker, South Africa, Jennifer Sterling, USA, Shiego Fukuda, Japan, Vince Frost, Australia and many others.

Sounds like a really interesting line-up.

Details:
Hamer Hall The Arts Centre
100 St Kilda Road
26, 27, 28 April
9:30am - 5:30pm

http://www.agideas.net/about/

Article on Neil Perry

Article on Neil Perry in the SMH titled 'Heat of the son'. Also has a recipe for chocolate cake, how to fry an egg, and his top 5 cookbooks.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/Good-Living/Heat-of-the-son/2005/04/04/1112489409330.html

Saturday, April 2, 2005

60 minutes story on Google

The article talks about some of the applications and search tools Google are developing.

W: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/12/30/60minutes/main664063.shtml

Monday, March 28, 2005

RealAge.com

You can do an online questionaire to find out if your calendar age matches your 'RealAge' which is calculated from your medical history, the amount you exercise and lifestyle factors etc. It's a free test. There are other tips on the site to help you lower your 'RealAge' and to live longer.

W: http://www.realage.com

Sun Microsystems: Blog Heaven

Article on Technologyreview.com about more companies encouraging their employees to blog as a way to swap ideas with programmers, and get suggestions and feedback from customers etc.

"According to Phipps and Schwartz (from Sun Microsystems), not only do Sun’s blogs show customers that the company is paying attention to their concerns, but they have also become a major channel for communicating with programmers outside the company who write crucial third-party applications that run on Sun’s hardware and operating systems.

More than 1,000 of Sun’s 32,000 employees blog about their work (most at blogs.sun.com)..."

W: http://www.technologyreview.com/articles/05/04/issue/brief_sun.asp

Sunday, March 27, 2005

NSW KM Forum: Taking it to the People: Applying KM in Telstra - April 7

Taking it to the People: Applying KM in Telstra

WHY: Knowledge Management practitioners must convey their ideas in
simple, direct and comprehensible ways to get the support of
management and staff. Tonight's session looks at ways that KM tools
and techniques can be packaged for greater use and effectiveness -
using Telstra as an example.

WHO: Alister Webb currently works in Telstra's Consumer & Marketing
Division, developing KM techniques and helping his colleagues apply
them. Alistair has a background in IT project management and web
design and has also been a screenwriter and music journalist.

WHEN: 5.30pm for 6pm, Thursday 7th April

WHERE: Standards Australia, 286 Sussex Street, Sydney NSW 2000 Call
James Digges 0414 191 009 for after hours entry to the building

HOW MUCH: Free

Details of each month's meeting are also available on the forum's wiki
site at http://www.nsw-km-forum.org.au/wiki.pl?NextMeeting

Your body as a conduit for data

Article in the SMH titled: 'Undery my skin' about NTT, a Japanese communications company who have developed a technology called RedTacton, "which it claims can send data over the skin's surface at speeds of up to 2mbps – equivalent to a fast broadband data connection.

Using RedTacton-enabled devices, music from an MP3 player in your pocket would pass through your clothing and shoot over your body to headphones in your ears. Instead of fiddling with a cable to connect your digital camera to your computer, you could transfer pictures by touching the PC while the camera is around your neck. And since data can pass from one body to another, you could also exchange electronic business cards by shaking hands, trade music files by dancing cheek to cheek, or swap phone numbers just by kissing..."

W: http://www.smh.com.au/news/Icon/Under-my-skin/2005/03/25/1111692610620.html

Firm develops PDF tracking tool

SMH article about a company called Remote Approach http://www.remoteapproach.com/ who have developed a way of tagging and tracking PDF documents so that file activity is reported.

"This allows our clients to see whether their documents are being read - not just downloaded - and if they are being forwarded and distributed through channels like email and peer to peer," the release said.

W: http://www.smh.com.au/news/Breaking/Firm-develops-PDF-tracking-tool/2005/03/25/1111692617609.html

Bargains galore as house prices plunge

"A report by Home Price Guide exclusively for The Sun-Herald reveals the price of hundreds of properties across Sydney on sale since before September have dropped by as much as 40 per cent...

"Expectations of further increases in interest rates are undermining demand," said CPM Research chief executive John Wakefield..."

W: http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Bargains-galore-as-house-prices-plunge/2005/03/26/1111692684868.html

Saturday, March 26, 2005

John Pawson is named Architect of the Year by Blueprint magazine

Article in the Guardian titled: 'Minimalist outsider wins architect award'

"John Pawson, the British architect whose minimalist designs include a Trappist monastery and Calvin Klein's flagship store, has been named architect of the year by Blueprint magazine.

Pawson was considered an outsider on a short list that included OMA, the company led by the legendary Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas, and EMBT, which designed the new Scottish parliament building in Edinburgh..."

W: http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/news/story/0,11711,1445668,00.html

Bottled water found to be money down the drain

Article in 'The Australian' online reports that Australians now spend $525 million a year on bottled water.

"But is it any better for your health than what comes out of the tap for free? Not according to a chemical analysis commissioned by The Weekend Australian and undertaken by experts from the University of Technology, Sydney.

The analysis showed that the best-selling bottled water, Mount Franklin, was no cleaner than the cheapest brand. And none of the three bottled waters tested were any better for you than tap water from three capital cities - Melbourne, which reputedly has the nation's cleanest supplies, Sydney, and Adelaide, widely regarded as having the murkiest. Yet "premium" bottled water such as Mount Franklin sells in supermarkets for about $1.60 a litre - 209,333 per cent more than tap water, which in Melbourne costs 0.075 of a cent per litre..."

Article at: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,12657970%5E23289,00.html

Friday, March 25, 2005

Digital-video capture experimenting

Opened the DVD maker out of the box today. Had a play and tried to capture some footage from a video tape, dvd and a hi-8 tape. It worked! Still playing with the audio though as it seems to come through a bit crackly sounding from the video tape. Played with some settings and tried some different software and then it seemed a bit better. Tried to capture it to a new external hard-drive. But the hard-drive died after 20 minutes of operation. Will have to see about getting it looked at or replaced.

Tidied up a bit. Didn't venture too far out today. Figured not much would be open as it's Good Friday today. Got some fish and chips takeaway tonight for dinner. Good stodge food!

Freebie press pick-ups

Picked up quite a few freebie mags from Birdland (record store) and other places in the last week.



Came across 'Last' featuring Vanessa Mae on the cover. Tagline says it covers: sport, sex, style, substance.

W: http://www.last.net.au



Also managed to get a copy of the first issue of 'Mean' at the Semi-Permanent conference when the speakers handed some out after their talk. It's a publication coming out of Auckland, New Zealand. You can view the artwork at their website:

W: http://www.meanmeanmean.com

Some other publications in record stores etc at the moment are:
Lucky no. 16, Stu Rock issue, Halt magazine no. 9, Out4Fame no. 31, Artlook no.9 march issue (Canberra art magazine), and Cyclic Defrost.

Eye 4 fashion - Hamish Ta-me - 12 May

The fashion world isn't all gloss and glamour. Just ask Hamish Ta-me, one of Sydney's busiest fashion photographers, whose candid and behind the scenes pictures put the champagne sipping industry in a whole new light. Hamish presents an entertaining slideshow of catwalk capers and carryings on.

When: Thursday 12 May, 6.30 pm (drinks in the Galleries from 6 pm)
Where: Metcalfe Auditorium, State Library of NSW
Cost: $13.50
Info and Bookings: http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/whatson/events.cfm

Eye 4 Rock Stars - Tony Mott, photographer - 7 & 14 April

Tony Mott, Australia's only rock and roll photographer, has captured the likes of the Rolling Stones, U2, Madonna and Nick Cave. A regular fixture at live acts and music festivals, Tony has achieved his own legendary status within the Australian music industry. He presents more than 100 fascinating pictures and shares amusing anecdotes from behind the lens.

When: Thursday 7 April and 14 April, 6.30 pm - 8 pm
Where: Metcalfe Auditorium, Macquarie Street Wing, State Library of NSW
Cost: $13.50
Inifo and bookings: http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/whatson/events.cfm

Greek Festival of Sydney

It's on 20 March - 27 April 2005. For more details, check out:
W: http://www.greekfestivalofsydney.com.au

Thursday, March 24, 2005

Emerging Art, Contempo event, AGNSW. 7 April 2005

EXHIBITION VIEWING
Emerging Art Contempo

Thursday, Thursday 7th April 6.30-8.30pm
Esa Jaske Gallery, 27-39 Abercrombie St, Chippendale

"Esa Jaske Gallery, a newly established contemporary art gallery, has invited Contempo to an evening of lively discussion and thought provoking art, offering you a chance to delve into Sydney's young emerging art scene. Covering Installation, photography and mixed media, you’ll get an insiders view of what's on offer in the broader spectrum of Sydney's contemporary artists.

The exhibitions on show are Aaron Seeto: solo exhibition, and a group exhibition by Alice McAuliffe, Lydia Rodrigues, Jessica Olivieri and Christopher Hanrahan. Wine and finger food will be served.

$25 Members and guests
Book online or call 02 92251878.