Sunday Contingency

So True

2010-12-24T11:54:00.000-05:00

This pretty much sums it up for me:

Cinema 2010

2010-12-24T09:15:00.000-05:00

There are so many movies I have yet to see.

Cinema 2010 by Kees van Dijkhuizen

SlideIT

2010-12-15T20:19:00.000-05:00

These are my extemporaneous thoughts on the Android keyboard replacement SlideIT(demo version) from Dasur Ltd. This was written as a test, using SlideIT on my mobile and only slightly edited. Note I currently use ShapeWriter for my keyboard and will be comparing the two.

It looks almost like the stock keyboard. The color is different, but I like the return to the larger keys. There is a switch for touch vs slide typing too. And a key for voice input! But I hit it too often trying to hit the adjacent comma key. Punctuation is more difficult to get to than in ShapeWriter. It has an alt key to access numbers and symbols on another keyboard, as in the st stock keyboard. Also it lacks ShapeWriter's capitalization toggle key, which I find invaluable. The capitalize key uses a long press instead double press. (I had to look that up to figure it out.)

Oh cool. There are short cuts. Slide the acronym for a phrase, say "ATM", and it will bring up ATM in green in the suggestions pane. Press it and it will automatically fill in the phrase, in this case "at the moment." Short cuts can be edited and you can add your own.

The slide mechanism seems to be less forgiving than ShapeWriter's. There have been so many times with ShapeWriter where I "shaped" a word and ShapeWriter got it correct when I know I barely spelled it. SlideIT throws up many more "??" saying it doesn't know what you are trying to type. ShapeWriter appears to guess more words and display more suggestions in my opinion.

Speaking of the suggestion pane, it is much thinner than ShapeWriter's. But they had to get space for larger keys from somewhere I suppose.

SlideIT does have function keys for cut, copy, and paste in the numbers/symbols keyboard instead of ShapeWriter's shape gestures.

The slide gestures disappear as you type, after an adjustable delay. This can come in handy typing especially long words. When slide typing only the first letter of the word is highlighted however. I find it much more helpful when all the letters are highlighted.

Oh another find. In the numbers and symbols keyboard there is a toggle to change the lower two rows of symbols. It includes the usual punctuation but adds a few math symbols, some super script numbers and fractions, trademark and similar symbols. There are also arrow keys. A thumb tack switch to prevent the keyboard from returning to letter mode is useful too.

In landscape mode and in the alt keyboard there is a G key that brings up a graffiti mode. Unfortunately it only supports numbers and some punctuation.

I think that covers most of it. I believe SlideIT is a valid choice for slide-type replacement keyboard for Android devices. I absolutely love the short cut function. The larger key size is more pleasing to the eye, and a tap/slide switch is a feature I wish ShapeWriter had. Another point in SlideIT's favour: its size. It is half the size of ShapeWriter and a quarter of that of Swype, the leading continuous touch keyboard on the market.

That said, I still think ShapeWriter writes better, which is the whole point. Whether that stems mostly from familiarity or not I can't say for sure yet. After using the demo for just a few minutes I like it much better than Swype. I could see using SlideIT for my primary keyboard if I didn't have one for free already. Unfortunately, Nuance(the speech software firm) bought ShapeWriter and took it off the market for now, so I can't recommend it. SlideIT seems like a viable alternative and if circumstances were different I would buy it, and still may yet.

Last Minutes with ODEN

2010-11-19T19:28:00.000-05:00

Vimeo Festival Best Video winner. I advise having a tissue ready.

Last Minutes with ODEN from phos pictures on Vimeo.

Star Wars + Pin-ups + Iphones

2010-11-13T08:27:00.000-05:00

Available at Society6 if you are so inclined.

[via everythinginthesky]

Mob, by Tom Scott

2010-11-12T19:11:00.002-05:00

Tom Scott @ Ignite London

ASIWYFA & Test

2010-10-08T15:47:00.000-04:00

Just some random music, and also a test to see how this shows up in other places.

And So I Watch You From Afar- "If It Ain't Broke, Break It"

A Tumbling We Will Go

2010-09-17T21:08:00.000-04:00

For some reason* I've rebooted my Tumblr account.

contingency.tumblr.com

*More on that later. Maybe.

Vacation

2010-07-29T00:15:00.002-04:00

To anyone who still reads this thing:

I'll be going on vacation tomorrow. I'm going to be blogging parts of my trip at Contingency, Live.

Mitchell on Language

2010-06-10T15:43:00.006-04:00

I'm generally a descriptivist regarding language, but the misuse and mangling of proverbs is still a bugaboo in my mind. Though I admit I am often guilty of the later of his examples.

Also, the proof of the pudding is in the eating.

In the Worst Way

2010-06-09T19:52:00.003-04:00

Friday Cat Blogging

2010-05-07T22:17:00.001-04:00

Pants, a popular cat bed.

Machete

2010-05-06T08:29:00.004-04:00

One of the best parts of the double feature film package of Grindhouse was the fake trailers for other B movies. One of those trailers, for Machete, has been in full production since last summer.(Trivia: Robert Rodriguez wrote the original script as a vehicle for Danny Trejo in 1993.)

Here's the "Illegal" trailer for the full film. It's pretty much My Shit is Fucked Up So I Got to Shoot/Slice You: It's Straight-Up Dawg Time*, the Movie.

Youtube - Illegal Machete Movie Trailer

Shoes

2010-04-29T13:43:00.000-04:00

There was talk on Twitter this week about shoes and the appropriate number there of to own. So here's a picture of some shoes. Minus my work and snow boots. Also not included are my brown leather slip-ons and my clogs, both of which are buried somewhere at the bottom of one of the closets.

Obviously I need more and newer shoes.

Bounce

2010-04-27T20:38:00.003-04:00

Gravité from Renaud Hallée on Vimeo.

Yum

2010-04-22T20:20:00.002-04:00

BBQ chicken bacon quesadilla.

Friday Cat Blogging

2010-04-16T11:09:00.002-04:00

Evidently this is still a thing on the internet? OK!

Youtube - Griffin on the sidewalk

Beer Cup

2010-04-11T09:00:00.001-04:00

The 2010 World Beer Cup has just wrapped up. Out of the 642 breweries entering 3330 beers in the contest, five Indiana brewers have won seven medals. A hearty congratulations and raise of the glass to this year's Hoosier winners, listed below.

Three Floyds Brewing Co.
Behemoth: Gold, Imperial Red Ale (32 Entries)

Sun King Brewing Co.
Sunlight Cream Ale: Silver, Golden or Blonde Ale (50 Entries)
Dominator Dopplebock: Bronze, German-Style Doppelbock or Eisbock (43 Entries)

Upland Brewing Co.
Upland Oktoberfest: Silver, American-Style Amber Lager (24 Entries)
Helios Pale Ale: Bronze, English-Style Summer Ale (24 Entries)

Crown Brewing Co.
Industrial Porter: Bronze, Brown Porter (37 Entries)

Rock Bottom Brewery – Indianapolis
Subzero: Bronze, Old Ale (15 Entries)

Matchbox 178

2010-04-06T22:44:00.004-04:00

Pavel Fuksa made 178 matchbox covers for the Navigators video of "My Place." Outstanding.

Youtube:Navigators - "My Place"

[via Drawn!]

Top 5

2010-04-01T16:51:00.000-04:00

My Top 5 Artists (Week Ending 2010-3-28)

via Last.fm Tumblr on 3/31/10

Imported from Last.fm Tumblr by JoeLaz

MOON8

2010-04-01T11:28:00.000-04:00

Have you ever wondered what Dark Side of the Moon would sound like if Pink Floyd had written it for NES, instead of for a rock band?

Now you don't have to wonder anymore:
MOON8

Baroque Obama

2010-04-01T10:17:00.003-04:00

Image by Dan Brady, text by Farktoid. I just completed the macro(context).
[via Horkblog.]

There Is No Profit Step

2010-03-13T09:36:00.005-05:00

[via Reddit]

Roger Ebert Starts Subscription Service

2010-03-10T12:01:00.001-05:00

If you didn’t see it last week, Roger Ebert has started a subscription service, The Ebert Club, to try to make a little money off of this here internet. For $5 a year it seems reasonable, though if you are considering going to Ebertfest it is a must. Ebert Club members will get advance notice of ticket sales and Ebert will host a member only meet-and-greet at the festival.

Wired Reread

2010-03-09T23:11:00.001-05:00

Recommended reading: Wired Reread, a look back at the Wired Magazine of the mid-to-late 1990s. It affords a view of where the tech world was then — often humorous in hindsight — and possibly insightful comparisons to the present.