Murphee K dot com http://www.murpheek.com Murphee K dot com - Officious Website Subscribe with My Yahoo!Subscribe with NewsGatorSubscribe with My AOLSubscribe with BloglinesSubscribe with NetvibesSubscribe with GoogleSubscribe with Pageflakes Playing with new toys http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=148 One of the toys I recently got is a new keyboard:  a Roland Fantom X6.  It is not a keyboard for coding.

This was similar to the keyboard that was lent to me while I was in a band in Houston.  I played both keyboard and guitar for that band and, while it was fun, it was not easy.

So now this totals five instruments (drums, 2 guitars, 1 keyboard, 1 laptop) played by three people in MPK.  Chris was able to make his synth laptop going during the last show, and over the past several weeks, we've been practicing.

The next two shows will reveal how well we've been incorporating the new toys.  Details for these two weekend shows -- Sunday, May 31 @ 1982 Bar and Friday, June 5 @ Tim and Terry's -- can be found on our shows page.  And one of them is $FREE!!

As usual, we'll try to live webcast the shows, but I don't know if Tim and Terry's have wifi.  Maybe someone can let me know?  Hope to see you online!

Photo by: west.m

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]]> Man, the things we could do with two extra arms! While typing! 2009-05-23T14:55:53-06:00 A dark and stormy Sunday night http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=147 So, ho-kay, we have a show this Sunday, March 29, with practice space neighbors Nomenclature -- cool guys whom we first met during one fateful night.

It was a dark and stormy night...erm, I mean, it was a very cold night, and we happened to have arrived at our practice space while they were already in full practice swing.  So we proceeded to set up our gear, tuned our guitars, connected all our instruments, and started producing feedback on our amps for our first song.  And as Chris, Ronnie, and I hit our first chord...

ZAP!

The fuse blew out.

We all went outside and it became apparent from the darkness that the entire side of the building's electricity was shorted.  This of course affected Nomenclature too.  And that is how we first met.

So this coming Sunday at ~9pm, we get the see perhaps the logical conslusion to that story when we play at 1982 with the aforementioned Nomenclature and The Butterfly Theory.  We'll try to live webcast this for our out-of-towne friends.

Now onto a totally unrelated subject...

This week I downloaded IE8, and it broke Murphee K dot com for a while.  (Sorta like a zapped fuse box?)  But thankfully, I was using conditional comments in choosing the correct CSS file, so fixing it was easy.  I placed the conditional comment I used to fix the bug below, but I'm not 100% sure if this is the right usage for IE8.  I do know, however, that it works:
<!--[if IE 8.000]>
 <link href="ie8only.css" rel="stylesheet">
<![endif]-->
But still, please use with caution.

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]]> GP totally forced a metaphor there...seriously, comparing IE8 to a blown out fuse? tsk tsk. 2009-03-22T13:06:56-06:00 No need for the next times http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=146 Thanks for coming out last night you sexy people! And thanks to all the bands for playing so well.  I hope we all play again together soon.

Typically, I post a "things we need to do NEXT TIME" list after a show, but I don't think I need to this time.  The reason is, we've done last night the things we usually do for the show, but this time with more! Chris had a new bass setup, Ronnie played well despite his midterms, and we played a new song with a sampler! (Although I learned afterwards that I could possibly adjust the tempo in the sample in real time.) We didn't do a light show or bubbles this time (sorry to the dudes who were expecting it), but that's because we were experimenting with effects and samples.  My pedal count increased dramatically while we were working on new songs, so I may have to practice with them along with the light show floor buttons.  And I think I may need to practice jumping up and down in practice; I severely messed up a couple of measures while moving around.  Crap, I think I'm making a NEXT TIME list after saying I won't!

I better stop.

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]]> GP cuts off the keyboard but not the internal nagging 2009-02-26T22:37:14-06:00 Debuting something new this Wed at 1982 http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=145 So, ho-kay, here's what's been up since last we talked:

We have a show this Wednesday, February 25th at 1982 w/ Bo Coker, The Crash Moderns, Say When, Shotgun Diplomacy, and Call it Conflict.  We're playing around 9 or so, so come early!  We might also live webcast this show, depending on my laptop.  So maybe.

We've been working on three new songs!  One of those ("Nasaan Ka Ba") is a new "old" song I first wrote years ago but never played out in public.  The lyrics are written entirely in Tagalog -- which I'm currently fine-tuning -- and we're gonna debut it for the show on Wednesday.

As for the other two new songs, Chris and I are working on their lyrics since their music is done.  Personally, I like how the new songs turned out as they are indicative of the direction we're going as a three piece.  The plan is to include these new songs when we record in the studio in late March.

I, uh, I re-wrote the Chorus to "A Stubborn Star Story" for, like, the 31st time?  But!!  This is not as bad as you think:  I last re-wrote the song in late 2003!  And I think it now sounds a lot better than ever before.

One of my flickr pics was exhibited at the new Water exhibit at the Science Museum of Minnesota.  I visited it recently to make sure they weren't pulling my leg.  ;)

[Update] Chris wrote a nifty new bio!  Click here to check it out!

So, yeah, progress on different fronts.  And btw, if I mess up this Wednesday while singing that one song with the weird sounding lyrics, don't laugh, I must've forgotten the lyrics!  Then afterwards, come say hi and laugh with me, ok?!

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]]> New 'old' is the new new 2009-02-22T16:50:50-06:00 A Kung Fu recap http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=144 If you caught the show this past Tuesday night, thanks for coming!  I try to write these recaps relatively close after the show, typically the day after, but weeknight shows mean that I have to get up early the next morning.  So after a recovery period -- one that I think at least two of us needed -- here we are.

First, the live webcast.  After months of toying around with air cards, cell phones, and their associated data plans, it turns out that what I had already in the beginning when I first started doing this -- a network card connected to 1982's free wifi -- was best.  Any bands that want to do live webcasts from 1982 can easily do it with just an old laptop, wifi access, and at least a webcam.  Now, I could comment on other venues' "webcast potential", but dang dudes, we gotta play out in venues other than 1982 to do that!  (Note to self:  start playing in other venues!)

Next, the bands.  I wanna say congrats to Paxico via Mexico for a successful first show!  (Or was it their first show?  I'm not sure.)  My first show was at...umm, I think...oh man, on an open mic night!  And at the same venue!  Except it was still called Common Grounds, and the attendance was much MUCH less.  :'(

I also want to send some mad propers to The Kung Fu Girls -- I really enjoyed the vocal mix when I was listening at the back.  I hope they enjoy their stay here in Florida...they must be at Pembroke Pines (or beyond) as I write this.  It's rare for touring bands to go all the way to South Florida, so I wish them well.  And I finally am glad to see Sweet City Action's set.  They, are, hmm, um, how you say, quite interesting?  It's hard to pinpoint their style of music, and I mean that as a compliment.  For one thing, they play their instruments really well; I had the same feeling of amazement afterwards when I see Select Start...it must be the violins.

As for us, we'll be concentrating on new stuff and continue tightening our set.  No shows planned yet, but you can subscribe to our Shows Listings RSS feed for that.  See you all next time!
]]> GP reminds you to vote, especially you FLORIDIANS. 2008-10-23T19:41:28-06:00 Playing with The Kung Fu Girls this Tuesday! http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=143 So, I cancelled by EVDO card.  And I cancelled it 31 days after activating the data plan, which is one day beyond the 30 days during which I can cancel it without getting hit by an early termination fee.  Hence, I had to pay the fee even though I didn't know about the limit.  Apparently, despite buying the card from eBay (which circumvented Sprint's factories), the 30-day limit still applied because they (Sprint) had to set up a new phone line for the service.  And, supposedly, if they set up a new line, there was a 2-year agreement that I implicitly agreed to, which is TOTAL BS.  I've had it with Sprint, but I'm sure the other companies are just as bad, or worse.  If anyone knows of any existing class action lawsuits involving this, I would seriously like to know.

ANYWAY.  Onto something less depressing...

Without the EVDO card, this means that this Tuesday, October 21, when we play with The Kung Fu Girls, Sweet City Action, and Paxico via Mexico at 1982 Bar, I may or may not be able to webcast the live show like usual.  I would have to rely on the free wifi at 1982 which, to me, still has the best upload speed, which is what ultimately led me to cancel my EVDO service.  You see, the last time we broadcasted, I had numerous technical problems with the card.  And even if I were able to connect to ustream's servers, the upload speed on it was still crap.  (I tested it in my apartment afterwards, and it was just shoddy.) Long story short, I had to get rid of the card; it was just not worth it.

So guys!  Try to tune in this Tuesday at the usual channels, and if the live stream is down, you know why.  If you're in town, come party with us, karate sytle!!
]]> GP texts you too much 2008-10-19T18:35:52-06:00 Punk/funk/rock 'n roll show this Thursday! http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=142 Guys!  I haven't posted since the last show coz we've been busy rehearsing some new material lately.  We can't wait to show them to you!  On one of them, however, well...you see...it's like...well, ho-kay, lyrics typically come last, and normally once the melody is set, the lyrics flow out.  I guess I can attribute a little of this to rust?  I mean, I haven't written lyrics since, um, 2004?  DUDES, HAS IT BEEN THAT LONG?!?!  Jebus.

Speaking of expunging rustiness, we have a show for you that will eviscerate any memories of that last show's crappy webcast!  I finally decided to keep an EVDO card, and hopefully it will make the webcast smoother.  If it goes well then maybe I can start webcasting other things, so let me know how it turns out, ok?!?!  I'll try to drop in once in a while and chat with y'all.

The show's gonna be this Thursday, Oct 2 at good ol' 1982 Bar.  Playing with us will be Mystery Machine, Sleepwalk Capsules, and The Love Drags.  We've never played with these guys before so let's show them some love!!

As usual, you can view the live webcast on Thursday night by clicking here or here at murphee dash k dot com.
]]> GP wrote 50 stanzas and crossed out 49 of them 2008-09-27T19:52:36-06:00 Ska show synopsis http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=141 First of all, to those of you who caught the show on the live webcast: OUR BAD!!  We somehow missed the power supply for the camera, so we ended up using the backup (a low-quality webcam/mic).  This backup plus the non-3G internet connection equals:  hella shitty webcast!

We'll do better next time; I've already set in motion a way into using an EVDO card for the webcast, which I've used before as a trial run, and it turned out to be the best option possible (while also being fairly reliable).  Sure there's free wifi in 1982, but what of the times when we don't play in 1982.  WHAT THEN, INTERNETS?!?

So, ho-kay, if you saw the show through the shitty webcast, you probably missed how lively Royal City Riot were, or how awesome The Set-Back were, or how good Chupaskabra sounded, or how energetic The Duppies were.  (Angry Banana had to stay put in Louisiana coz of the hurricane.)  Every band we played with that night were sooo good, and the crowd too!  And the latter was clearly evident in how soaked in sweat the floor was afterwards.  It felt bittersweet to leave that cauldron of happiness that night, but then my aching neck was saying otherwise.

Much love to everyone who managed to catch us live; don't start a mini-riot next time, ok guys?!?!  Also: if you have taken pictures of us, please let me know!  Or maybe you can post it on your flickr account and you can lead me to them!

Or maybe, just for fun, comment "macaroni" on this post.  That's all.  No questions asked.
]]> GP's been watching Me and You and Everyone We Know by Miranda July over and over 2008-09-01T20:28:58-06:00 Six bands on Saturday, early show! http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=140 I am totally stoked about this Saturday's show coz (1) it's on the first weekend of the new school year, (2) it's after the first football game of the year, and (3) ska ska ska!  Man!!

Given the sure awesomeness of this show, we're gonna eschew with our TODO list's usual practicality.  Instead, we're gonna keep it simple:
  • Guys!  Let's, um, let's try to be awesome?
  • And, yeah, don't forget:  let's poison out the suck!
  • However, if we do suck, that's ok!  If we perform the same suckiness again two measures later, no one will notice :P
So come out come out this Saturday, August 30th at 1982 to see Royal City Riot, The Set-back, then us, Angry Banana, Chupaskabra, and The Duppies.  It's an early show so be there around 7 (bands start at 7:40).  Or, if you're out-of-towne, you can watch the live webcast at our usual pages.

Bring your dancing shoes!!
]]> Google did not return any results for 'poison out the suck'. THAT'S THE LAST TIME I WILL MAKE UP MY OWN SUCKY SLANG, GOOGLE. 2008-08-26T10:05:37-06:00 The Accidents http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=139 So, ho-kay, two out of three of us have been in not-too-terrible but nevertheless bad accidents lately.  One of them isn't me.  GUESS WHO'S DUE FOR A TRIP TO THE EMERGENCY ROOM.  :0

Who you turn to during such moments of crappy karma are...your family?  OK OK OK, that, my friends, is a totally crappy segue to my mentioning that we're playing a show this Saturday, August 2nd, at Melbourne.  Chris, Ronnie, and I will ride to Wickham Park to play in an open air pavilion at an event -- dubbed 'Random Acts of Music' -- starting at 3 in the afternoon in front of mostly friends and family.  (See?  Now the segue is finally making sense!)  And to complete the set, my sister's band The Ridicules is playing too!  So come see us play, it'll be a cozy affair!  A cozy punk rock affair?

Hey, let's end this on a semi-positive note!  It looks like some of my flickr adventures have finally paid off:  Schmap, a publisher of free digital travel guides, have put out their newest Schmap Orlando Guide, and they have decided that one of my pictures should adorn the Downtown Disney Marketplace.  You can see how my picture of a LEGO dinosaur was included here (and if you don't have an iPhone, like me, you can see how it would look like here), which then conveniently links to my original, CC-licensed flickr page here.

Hooray for doing something long enough that eventually somebody would take notice!
]]> GP wears seatbelts and avoids jump ropes 2008-07-30T20:03:06-06:00 New bio and pics and EPK http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=138 Guys!  I finally buckled down and wrote a bio for the band.  You can check it out in the bio page or in our new Electronic Press Kit.  There are also *GASP* new pictures of us on there?!?!

Speaking of new pictures, I've also updated the cover and article scans from the last post with the original jpgs.  So now you can read the full text with either glee or utter disdain.  Either way, thanks Zak!

So, ho-kay, why I set up the sonicbids account is that there are some shows we want to play in that only consider bands who submit EPKs.  Call me cheap, but paying friggin' 10 bucks for a chance to play a show -- and a REMOTE chance at that -- seems a bit much.  But then again, I can understand why that's the case for certain events.  BUT BUT then again, call me cheap, but paying for ANYTHING seems wrong.  I grew up on Super Mario Brothers, and dammit, when I hit bricks I expect gold coins to pop out.
]]> GP picks up your tab. 2008-07-13T17:17:30-06:00 On the cover and a new home page http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=137 [Update 07/12/2008]  Cover and article scans were replaced with the original jpgs!

If you happen to stroll through the UF campus this week, go pick up a copy of The Student Beat to catch a glimpse of three familiar dudes on the cover.  I wanted to link to the article, but the googles didn't turn up anything.  So I had to scan the article, but I had to cut it off coz the paper was too wide.  You can view the scan of the article here.  Here's my favorite line from the article:
After a handful of bassists and several drummers moved on, the current trio is more like Murphee K 4.6.  And it's just now being released without any bugs or glitches.
A programming joke!  Hah!

In website news, I've re-coded Murphee dash K dot com to show the latest photo and latest comic on the home page.  There were other backend upgrades like ensuring that each thumbnail image get rendered in smaller download sizes, but I won't get into that.  The main obstacle with putting the latest photo on the home page was keeping the resulting download size small, and I did that by first saving the large, original picture into a cache so that it doesn't overload flickr's servers, and then rendering that picture into a smaller picture by a small ASP.NET function, and oh look I just broke my promise of not talking about it.  I should just stop.
]]> We have an affinity for transition lenses. 2008-07-05T21:36:58-06:00 Tonight's a no-show http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=136 Guys!  I'm sorry to say that because the two touring bands couldn't make it to Florida, we had to cancel tonight's show at the Kickstand.  But no worries!  We'll play there in the future.
]]> GP enjoys the break 2008-06-29T13:38:17-06:00 Rigging the bubble machine http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=135 Apart from playing with two really good bands (have fun with the rest of the tour, The Menzingers and The Leftovers!), there were several things at the show worth mentioning that you may have missed if you opted to go to the two house shows that were apparently happening on the same night:
  • turning on the Magicpix mode on the camcorder (aka. "awesome mode") made the webcast a lot brighter
  • setup was much quicker, I actually timed it (yeah yeah, it's nerdy, whatevs)
  • rigging the bubble machine made it easier to turn on during the guitar solo
And we actually did all the things listed on our previous TODO list!  The result?  One of the best shows we've ever had...too bad we can't provide evidence as I've neglected to check the sound on the web stream.  Guess that goes on the next TODO list:
  • check the sound levels on the webstream while enabling Magicpix on the camcorder
  • rig the bubble machine further so that the ON button could be pressed even easier
Thanks for coming and enjoying the show everyone; we'd love to see you enjoy yourselves again.  The next opportunity for that is this Sunday at The Kickstand with touring bands Geoff and Barghetto.  And oh, it's only a $5 (donation) to get in.  BYOB!

In future news, we've gotten word that we'll be on the cover of the Student Beat!  I'm gonna grab, like, 20 copies!  From what I've seen, it looks like the headline will be, "Murphee K is back", which implies that Murphee K has gotten anywhere other than Houston, TX?!?  :0

[Update: The Student Beat issue will be out on Monday, June 30th, not June 23rd.  A LITTLE BIRD TOLD ME THIS.]
]]> GP pressed the NO button on the bubble machine 2008-06-22T21:12:03-06:00 After the benefit show http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=134 Wednesday's benefit show was, um...kinda weird?  I mean, not that the bands were weird, no, I meant that the atmosphere -- however you want to define it -- was a little different than I was accustomed to.  Nevertheless, I wanted to thank you for coming out to see us, The Rochevanies, Max's Birthday, and Rubber Tramps; I think we raised a lot of money for Conscious Alliance that night.  Go team us!!

And special thanks and mad propers should rapidly be ClickOnce-deployed to Vilma for setting up the show and for baking the yummy cookies.  The same should go to Grooveshark for sponsoring the show, although it's hard to extend that appreciation without the free cookies.  (If you have desserts, gratitudes are easy to dispatch.)

I would be remiss in this synopsis if I didn't go over how we did on our previous TODO list.  Being remiss sucks!  And we should know:  we have a friggin' TODO list!  Anyway, we did everything in our previous list except for the sound check, which is typically reserved for the first band.  Since we would most likely play first on our next show, I think putting that task at the top of our next TODO list serves as a cool segue, albeit flimsy, into listing them as follows:
  • Do a sound check and play a song to test if we can hear each other
  • Place the laptop behind the sound board
  • Cut down the setup time even more
Speaking of setup time, you can view our entire set -- including our extended setup, set, and equipment breakdown -- by clicking here (set starts at the 31:59 mark).
]]> GP plays some more Mario 3 2008-06-07T22:31:32-06:00 Murphee DASH K dot com / Benefit show at 1982 http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=133 So, ho-kay, tomorrow night (June 4th), we are playing at a benefit show for Conscious Alliance -- which I will broadcast starting at around 9pm Eastern Daylight Time either here, here, or in the ustream site here.  And with quite an interesting lineup:  The Rochevanies, then us, then Max's Birthday, and then Rubber Tramps.  We've never played in such an eclectic mix before, which is pretty cool; although, come to think of it, they're probably saying the same thing about us!  They're probably thinking, "Murphee K?!?  Who are these jerks?!?!  And also, why does it say mur 'PHEEK' dot com on the browser address bar?!?"

OK OK OK, speaking of that, I went ahead and made this website officially reachable via "murphee DASH k dot com".

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee~!

Ahem. 

So I went to Grooveshark to check out both the sponsor of this show and to check out Grooveshark lite (which, as a co-worker swears by, was written in flex), and, yeah, I admit it has a nice interface.  I won't pretend to know how they got all those artists behind that shiny glass pane, but before I give them all the props in the world, I'll ask, "Guys, where's the new Mates of State album?"

MAN, I haven't even gotten to the important part!  So, ho-kay, this show will benefit Conscious Alliance, which currently needs funds for delivering natural food products to remote locations in the U.S. 

Everyone!  Gas is hella friggin' expensive, so let's help them out by telling your friends to go to this show!  And tell them this: as an extra incentive, there will be FREE COOKIES at the show courtesy of Grooveshark!  Man!  Tell 'em that for a measly 7 bucks they'd be (1) feeling good by contributing to a cause and (2) feeling good by eating some tasty, flat baked dessert!  But certainly don't mention they'd be (3) feeling good by watching us -- I mean, seriously, look at us.  :P
]]> GP redirects to MPK 2008-06-03T21:06:27-06:00 In which I tripped and totally messed up the song http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=132 So, ho-kay, for this past Wednesday's show, we decided to cover I'm The One by The Descendents, except this time, unbeknownst to the rest of MPK, I decided that I wanted to jump around (like, a LOT) during the song.  This resulted in me falling on my back against the drum set during the first verse which was, as someone later described, a "total Kurt Cobain move" (click here):
But the cool thing is that we kept playing while I was falling down, which made it seem like nothing happened at all.  But then, I lost track of where I was amid the chagrin of my tripping, and consequently throughout the song, I thought we were farther along.  And that's why I stopped playing; I thought the Bridge was the Outro...guess I should have kept playing.

ANYWAY.

Mad props to Branden of Gnarly By Nature!!  I laughed out loud when I first saw this after the show.

More shows (with less falling?) are being awesomized at the moment.
]]> GP DID just see that, along with the rest of the Internets, FOREVER :0 2008-05-17T21:29:59-06:00 OK OK OK OK OK http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=131 Last time we played a show, we listed a bunch of "next time" line items we promised we would do for the next show.  Last night, we were able to put some of that into practice.  We (1) cut down the setup time for the light show, (2) were able to get the rust off, (3) actually friggin' pressed RECORD on the live stream this time (view the last 30 minutes of this 60-minute video here), and (4) turned off the lights so that the stobe lights would be more effective.

Unfortunately, (4) produced a live stream that was a bit too dark to view.  This looks like another episode of the NEXT TIMES:
  • Bring all extension cables
  • Use BRIGHTER lights next time - ixnay on the ack-blay ight-lay
  • Bring earplugs
  • Turn off the metronome and set the levels on the looper and amp, and
  • Actually do a stage sound check before doing a sound check against the board
The show turned out to be a coming-out party for Gnarly By Nature, who played with energy and happiness.  Roaring Twenties played great; they seem to be a tight-knit group.  And good to see Jon of Jon Doesn't Count again.  Hrm, we should play an acoustic show sometime, like, at a house party? WHATEVER HAPPENED TO HOUSE PARTIES?!?!

Thank you guys, I had a blast.
]]> GP congratulates Ronnie for an awesome first show 2008-05-15T20:41:50-06:00 MPK and Gnarly glows in the dark tomorrow night http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=130 So, ho-kay, last time I checked there is a show tomorrow night at 9pm Eastern in 1982 w/ Jacksonville band Gnarly By Nature.  And we still plan on making new drummer Ronnie's first show with MPK a memorable one.  Unfortunately, for reasons I'm not going to get into -- reasons that can be scoured easily from the Interwebs -- there is a very good chance that Pendleton won't make it to this show.  Yeah yeah yeah, it's probably bad "marketing" to tell this up front.  Whatevs!  I just hope that they could watch us live so that they would be only "sorta" missing out on the live music, the lights, the loopers, the bubbles, and hopefully, the seizures.

Oh, dude, Chris, if you're reading this, don't forget to bring the helicopters this time.  WTF MAN I SHOULD JUST TXT YOU.

Watch the live stream tomorrow night at 9pm Eastern Daylight Time (GMT-4) by clicking here or here.

[Update: Pendleton did cancel, but no worries chaps!  Roaring Twenties and Jon Doesn't Count are now added to the bill!  Friggin' yeah!]
]]> GP will forget the silly strings and knows it 2008-05-13T10:01:29-06:00 How I won an award / show on May 14th! http://www.murpheek.com/archive.asp?NewsID=129 Disclaimer: whatever I say here is my opinion and should not be construed as a press release by my employer :)

I work for a company that participates in the NAB Show, an annual show held by the National Association of Broadcasters.  So, every first quarter of every year, there is a massive push by all the companies to come up with innovative ideas to demo at the show.

This year, I was tasked with developing an AWESOME chat application (emphasis: mine...and yours when you finally see it) that integrates with the shows and commercials that you see on your television.  (Read the real press release here.)  Now, what's interesting about this application was that it was conceived one late afternoon while chatting with the Vice President and General Manager of the company, basically just rambling about the cool things we could do in our industry.  It turns out, a co-worker of mine had a similar idea, and so lots of his ideas were integrated into this application.   This application, which I will call FanChat, because that's what it's called, was developed mainly by me but backed by years of experience by my unnamed co-worker.

Fast forward through all the patent filing, the designing, the end-to-end prototyping, the burnt midnight oils, and a last-minute push after being pulled off the project to work on another critical application, an early version of FanChat was unveiled at the NAB show, with much anticipation -- and some anxiety -- on my part.  That anxiety would soon be quelled first by relief and then elation.

Long story short, I won an award.

Well, not me, but my AWESOME chat application won a BroadcastEngineering Pick Hit award.  My reaction was best summed up by my unnamed co-worker: "we did it, we actually did it!!"  Yeah, I couldn't believe it either.

ANYHOO, between the days in which I was coding up this AWESOME chat application, I managed to find a new drummer for MPK.  Yay!  His name is Ronnie, and I really enjoy his enthusiasm.  That is all the compliments that you're getting for now, buddy.  TOUGH LOVE.

Also, we have a show on May 14th at 1982 w/ UK band Pendleton.  This will be broadcasted LIVE ON THE INTERNETS like last time (erm, hopefully, assuming my laptop doesn't burn out).  Guys in Pendleton: tell your UK friends to come watch and/or chat!  And then maybe, JUST MAYBE, we can finally come to an agreement around the spelling for colour/color.

More details to follow as always.
]]> GP assures you: IT REALLY IS AN AWESOME CHAT APPLICATION 2008-04-24T20:22:49-06:00