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Beerfest Asia 2010: The Killer Queen Show

2010-06-20T02:04:00.003+08:00

Because Wendy is such a mega QUEEN fan, we had to stay till the stroke of midnight to catch the “THE KILLER QUEEN SHOW” at Beerfest Asia 2010. And who am I to be complaining... I love "Bohemian Rhapsody" done live anythime! “THE KILLER QUEEN SHOW” was an act that showcased the music of the greatest rock band of the twentieth century and pays homage to the most charismatic and flamboyant front man of all, Freddie Mercury.

Dragged along by Wendy, plonking ourselves just a row behind the first. Can you spot me snapping away with my camera lifted high in the centre?

It was in fact a little eerie to witness how alike the band members were to the real Queen's musical legacy, energy, iconic performances and insane wardrobe!

Brisbane actor and musician Johnny Blunt, bared an uncanny resemblance to Freddie Mercury. I wouldn't say he was as suave, but he was very close!

As far as Queen music goes, there's nothing not to like. The crowd was clapping in uni-sense to "Radio Gaga", punching fists to "We Will Rock You" and with lifted hands (holding on to unknown strangers) singing aloud to “We Are The Champions”! That's the kind of magic of Queen!

The Killer Queen sings "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" (Pardon the loud bass again!)

It would have been awesome to have ever caught Freddie Mercury live. And just like Micheal Jackson... I wouldn't want to give up on a chance to catch Madonna or U2...

Read:
Beerfest Asia 2010: Beer of the World Unite!
Beerfest Asia 2010: Hell's Belles AC/DC Tribute

More Beerfest Asia 2010 Pictures

Beerfest Asia 2010: Hell's Belles AC/DC Tribute

2010-06-19T14:09:00.004+08:00

For the same entrance ticket price of S$27 to Beerfest Asia 2010, you not only get 2 free beers but also 2 nightly live tribute concerts to AC/DC, Queen or U2. They may be tribute performances, but they were REALLY good (at least for the two I caught). I'd call that great value for money!

World famous Hell’s Belles is the premier all female AC/DC tribute act. They are wicked, fierce and totally hard core! June would have totally loved them with the guitar and hair! I've personally never been a AC/DC fan and only know a couple of their more noticeable tunes... like 'You Shook Me' and 'Highway to Hell'... No thanks to 'Iron Man 2'. AC/DC appeared too evil to me in my younger days.

Both musicians playing Brian Johnson and Angus Young were absolutely spot on! Just that they are GIRLS!

Playing ALL AC/DC, ALL the time, ALL over the globe, spanning ALL the pure rock brilliance of AC/DC’s career (from “High Voltage” to “Back and Black” and beyond), Hell’s Belles do justice to the Aussie legends with patented Hell’s Belles devotion, precision, and fury.

Endorsed by Angus Young himself (Blender Magazine; 2003), Hell’s Belles are the closest one can get without actually moving to Australia or joining AC/DC’s road crew.

Hell’s Belles Live - Pardon the overpowering bass... it was really loud!

Hell’s Belles Live

Read:
Beerfest Asia 2010: Beer of the World Unite!

More Beerfest Asia 2010 Pictures

Beerfest Asia 2010: Beer of the World Unite!

2010-06-19T01:38:00.007+08:00

When Erika mentioned about Beerfest Asia 2010, I had the impression that she was talking about Oktoberfest, the Munich Beer Festival brought into Singapore. And then I realised it was a another money making Beer Festival bringing in both exhibitors and beer lovers from around the region to sample up to 250 different beers! The 4 day festival was into its second year running and was packed with live stage performances, giant screen broadcast of 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa and outdoor bazaars. I couldn't resist the opportunity to check out rare finds in the malted barley catalog. I was even serious enough to download an iPhone app on beer with a hope to learn a thing or two.

The festival venue, Singapore Flyer was jam packed with folks from around the Shenton and Marina Bay office vicinity, many in their shirt and pants attire.

Currency of the venue - Chips! My ticket price of S$27 entitles 2 free beers redeemable at offering outlets

Two huge outdoor screens where erected on both wings of the venue for live soccer... best watched with beer! I was enjoying my sausage and wedges platter while checking out the different beers people are consuming.

This picture was taken moments before Germany hit a miss fire at a penalty shot against Serbia! Total embarrassment sending the crowd crazy!

And then it was time to check out the BEERS!

Wendy bought a bottle of Dead Frog's Nutty Flavored beer on the far left. Had a roasted nut taste which was refreshingly flavorful

The chips currency concept was fabulous. They take your money in exchange for chips totally useless outside of the festival. You lose 20% of your chips value if you make a cash refund. So either way, the organisers win. We had to 'da bao' (take home) beer at the end of the night!!! I got myself a bottle of Remus on the far left

Australian Beer

Wendy couldn't resist getting a bottle of Satan's Gold while I had to try the award winning Pink Elephant - Deliruim Octurnum. Both Belgium brewed beer

Prices for beer were cheap ranging from below S$10 to S$20. I loved the variety offered. There were lots to sample and probably a good opportunity to pick up more beer to go (the next time round)!

Read:
Beerfest Asia 2010: Hell's Belles AC/DC Tribute
Beerfest Asia 2010: The Killer Queen Show

More Beerfest Asia 2010 Pictures

CommunicAsia Broadcast Asia 2010

2010-06-18T00:02:00.003+08:00

CommunicAsia, Broadcast Asia and Enterprise IT were back again this year covering 8 halls after a poor showing in 2009 due to the recession. I had to miss the show last year due to an unusually hectic work week. 3D Television was the obvious exhibit this year and there were numerous smaller innovations worth the visit. A couple of big names such as Nokia, Sony Ericsson and Microsoft have pulled out of the show chosing to run their own showcase separately out of the Expo venue. Exhibitors were also more cautioned about throwing away freebies with fewer gimmicky stage performances.

Free International SKYPE Calls to anywhere around the world at the SKYPE Booth!

You'd sell your identity for a 1/4 cup of SKYPE Slurpee! We were more then happy to exchange our business cards for it!

NTT DoCoMo's Chocolate Phone. All phones at the NTT DoCoMo booth were available only in Japan

Samsung Mobile's coolest gadget - Samsung Galaxy Beam, Smart Projector On Phone. Pico Projector (9 Lumen Brightness, capable to project on screens from 5" - 50". Runs on Android OS 2.1

More prominent solar panels exhibits in the move to a greener future

Always a delight to check out the latest Arriflex film camera at the Cine Equipment Booth

Jack & Ray from EIC compares for free acoustics gigs at the Panasonic Booth

3D Television or projection (with or without 3D Glasses) were the obvious overkill this year. Panasonic had a stage with roller bladders zipping around to give greater dynamism to demo their 3D screens

At the AV8 Booth testing out their Stereoscopic 3D Effect. The 3D effect was truly impressive!

Sony's 3D equipment offerings

Toying with Sony's mobile sound recording devices - PCM-D50 and PCM-M10P

Checking out MediaCorp's state-of-art High Definition (HD) OB Trailer

Totally wicked patch panel at the back of the OB Trailer

Console panels inside the trailer

OB Trailer is equipped with 9 HD Cameras, a 4 Mix / Effect Video Switcher and is wired to handle additional 3 HD Cameras and 2 additional remote control cameras

Kenny testing out the Canon 5D Mark II mounted on the DOP HDSLR Pro Kit. For about S$1,500 (excluding add-ons) the 5D Mark II is transformed into a HD Camera which was used professionally to shoot the season finale of "House"

Huawei's iPad look alike prototype. They were extremely sticky with photos on this product. Is it any surprise that Chinese will make a iPad copy? \

Read:
CommunicAsia Broadcast Asia 2008
CommunicAsia 2007

More CommunicAsia Broadcast Asia 2010 Pictures

Singapore Arts Festival 2010 Round Up

2010-06-06T20:34:00.004+08:00

Having had a weak Arts Festival season last year, I was determined to set aside more time this year to enjoy the 2010 offerings. However, unlike previous years I was excited in only a handful of performances, which was actually perfect because its been harder to coordinate time with friends for the events. It also felt that budget for the festival seemed to have shrunk this year. I have to point it again to the unappealing closing ceremony... but all in all, it was a good festival.

1 Festival Opening Event - "Invitation to Dream - A Fire Garden Installation" Compagnie Carabosse (France)
1 Interactive Performance - "Cargo Kuala Lumpur - Singapore" Hebbel am Ufer / Berlin (Swiss / Germany)
1 Symphony Orchestra Concert - "The Carnival Of Animals and Peter & The Wolf" Kamchàtka Theatre Company (Spain)
1 Outreach Performance - "The Hood" La Passionata Svironi (Israel)
1 Walkabout Tour - Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall Backstage Tour - Singapore Arts Festival (Singapore)

Read:
Wishing I had more time at the festivals
Singapore Arts Festival 2008 Opening Celebration - Water Fools
The 2007 Arts Festival Round Up

Marina at Keppel Bay

2010-06-05T16:05:00.004+08:00

Marina at Keppel Bay

It was quite a chore hunting down where to eat at Vivo City after "The Hood" performance. The place was jam packed with people and I was kindda in the mood for some pasta... I took the opportunity to suggest checking out Marina at Keppel Bay. According to Celeste, this place has been around for at least 2 years! Wendy never knew it even existed and I only heard about it from Anne late last year. Obvious proof we're not in loop for the high and fine.

Having thought that this was a place for atas fine dining, I was surprised to find that TCC The Coffee Connoisseur has an outlet there. I was quite certain I could afford a pasta there with my 15% TCC VIP membership. Celeste pointed out another outlet, Privé Bakery which we could consider for drinks. She raved about their milkshakes.

The bridge from Telok Blangah Road into the marina

Just a stone's throw away from hustling Vivo City was a serene berth for private yachts. Specially designed with yachting and yacht owners in mind, Marina at Keppel Bay aims to help in the growth of Singapore's yachting community in advancing knowledge, enjoyment and participation in yachting and nautical arts. I've had my taste of the high life last year on a private yacht for a dinner celebration. I was on the verge of puking like the Merlion while still trying to look cool with motion-sickness. The high life at sea is not for me.

We were happy to discover that the very small and cozy TCC was having a 1 for 1 main course promotion till 25 July! Sweet! Celeste and I both ordered a Seafood Aglio Olio while Wendy dove straight into 3 deserts!

Wendy could not resist the platter of Wagyu mini burgers at Privé Bakery!

And before we could end off the night, Celeste and Wendy had to head for MILKSHAKE at Privé Bakery. I am often baffled by how much sugar these girls can consume. The Kahlúa Milkshake Wendy ordered was delicious and went around S$10. I was perfectly happy with my brew of refreshing TWC Vanilla Bourbon that went for S$4.50. Very decent for the ambiance next to the berth.

Singapore Arts Festival 2010 - The Hood

2010-06-05T02:33:00.004+08:00

There was no way in a ZILLION years anyone could make me attend the Mega Line Dance closing event for Singapore Arts Festival 2010; so I planned to watch a last free performance; The Hood by an Israelian company, La Passionata Svironi.

Winner of the Bat-Yam Street Festival, Israel 09, La Passionata Svironi has created a new genre of miniature and interactive theatre. Greeted first by a song and dance ensemble by the performers dressed in black and white faux-1950s 'Plesentville' outfits, singing tunefully about how they were all such good backstabbing neighbours, inviting us into their homes.

Each home (a charming little wendy-house with removable tops with holes you can stick your head and/or hands into) has a different story and character... one was the home of a pregnant lady, one sleeps around with the neighbour, one a weird celebrity psycho and another a bookworm (which was the house that we visited).

As such every house had their own puppets and props. Small groups of audiences were 'chosen' to put their heads inside seven miniature houses created by Svironi Michal and her team.

We waited patiently for about an hour before most of the kids had their turn and insisted on checking out the house of the bookworm. Audrey, the performer for the house was very animated and we could hear her enthusiasm from where we stood. We quickly understood why this was the home of the bookworm when we stuck our heads into the house and discovered a book-like arrangement with pages to display characters from. Celeste decided to role act with Audrey while Wendy and I enjoyed the show. Wendy had the additional task of providing music through a wind-up device on the side of the house.

Our story was about very sweet candy girl who couldn't find a mate and decided to put her dating profile on Facebook. Her date found her so sweet... he ate her!!!

It may appear childish, but it was very good fun. Celeste was great at the role play! Quite unfortunately, we could only visit 1 house as the crowd grew and being miniature, only 3 - 4 audiences (per house) can participate at one go. We were down a house as has a technical issue and everyone want a piece of the juicy in-house story.

Read:
Singapore Arts Festival 2010 - The Carnival Of Animals and Peter & The Wolf
Singapore Arts Festival 2010 - Cargo Kuala Lumpur - Singapore
Singapore Arts Festival 2010 - Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall Backstage Tour
Wishing I had more time at the festivals
Singapore Arts Festival 2008 Opening Celebration - Water Fools
The 2007 Arts Festival Round Up

Gaming can make a better world

2010-06-03T13:09:00.005+08:00

Terence and I constantly debate on the effects the internet, television, social media and gaming have on the effects of people (or young people). Over the years, the media has evolved to reflect more of the realities of life. In a good way, we have a lot more choices to engage in issues that interest us. At the same time, materials have also become more violent, crude, intense, graphic... a real in reel situation? Or is the real world bleeding because people have become so desensitized that nothing really surprise them anymore.

To me, the media works like a double edge sword. It can build or break. Call me optimistic, but as much of how much bad can come out of it, I've also seen a whole lot of good. If St. Paul was alive today, he will certainly be harnessing the powers of new media technologies. But one thing for sure, at least for the next couple of generations, this is going to linger around... perhaps in different forms.

Game designer, Jane McGonigal tries to uncover really interesting questions like;
"Why doesn't the real world work more like an online game?"
"What if we could harness this gamer power to solve real-world problems?"

Gaming statistics are staggering. We are talking millions of online gamers daily... billions of hours over a period of time... billions of dollars involved... We develop emotions, a culture, an industry... an addiction...

In the best-designed games, our human experience is optimized: We have important work to do, we're surrounded by potential collaborators, and we learn quickly and in a low-risk environment.

Her talk is both hopeful and insightful on the negative that gaming always reflect.

"Instead of providing gamers with better and more immersive alternatives to reality, I want all of us to be become responsible for providing the world with a better and more immersive reality." - Jane McGonigal

Read:
Video Games Category
Technology Category
Social Media Revolution
Social Networking: Understanding Communication Changes

STC TOB 2010 Picture Montage

2010-06-02T02:34:00.003+08:00

Capturing the moments of our first diocese wide "Introduction to the Theology of the Body" at STC. We've been blessed through and through.

Thanks guys for the great journey and whatever lies ahead!

Read:
Southern Ridges Night Trail
TOB Picnic @ HortPark
What's the scoop?
Live Out Love: Let's Talk About Sex

Southern Ridges Night Trail

2010-05-30T02:32:00.008+08:00

National Parks Southern Ridges Trails Map

Part two of the HortPark Picnic was the Southern Ridges Night Trail. The trek was delayed due to a passing rain cloud. We had to amuse ourselves while we waited... so we tried in vein to do a community group jump... or sort of...

Fortunately, it cleared up enough for us to make our way about 9-kilometres from HortPark all the way to Marang Trail, mostly connected by nature pathways and bridges.

The 1st highlight on the trail is Alexandra Arch. 80m in length with a unique architecture which resemble an opened leaf, with its curved deck intersecting an arch that is tilted at a 70-degree angle. Like Henderson Waves, Alexandra Arch is lit up by LED lights at night, displaying varying shades from the colour spectrum of dusk to complement the nature settings of the forested hill parks nearby.

Walking through the Elevated Walkway in Forest Walk

We proceeded into Forest Walk on an elevated metal bridge which provides a good experience of walking through the secondary forest of Telok Blangah Hill at eye-level with the forest canopy. The Elevated Walkway is an excellent platform for spotting birds, dragonflies and butterflies. I'll bring my Bushnell Binos the next time round. Unlike the HSBC Tree Top bridge which is a free-standing suspension bridge, this bridge is like a smaller version of the Tree Top Walk in Valley of the Giants; Pemberton, Western Australia. It is also possible to take the multiple stairways down to the grounds of the forest. The dense secondary forest found here, the adinandra belukar, is home to Singapore’s rich biodiversity. The Dillenia, also referred to as the “rojak” tree, is one of several native trees that are prominent here.

We trekked up toward Terrace Garden at Telok Blangah Hill Park. This is a familiar childhood place where the Fairways kids used to trespass Alkaff Mansion before it was renovated and transformed into a posh restaurant. The place remained largely unchanged to how I knew it since I was young.

Architecture and mood lighting of Henderson Wave Bridge

Another beautiful pedestrian bridge 36m above Henderson Road is the Henderson Waves. Also the highest pedestrian bridge in Singapore, the 274 metre-long bridge spans Henderson Road to connect Mount Faber Park to Telok Blangah Hill Park. Unique to this bridge is its artistic, distinctive wave-like structure consisting of a series of undulating curved “ribs”. These “ribs” also double up as alcoves providing shelter to the public. Slats of yellow bakau wood, an all-weather timber found in South-East Asia are used in the decking.

We held on as if we were in a storm on the Noah's Ark!

And then it was the clear after the storm

Night view from Henderson Wave

We took the trail on a loop around the peak of Mount Faber Hill for a bird's eye view of the city scape. At the top of the mount is also Jewel Box.

Night View from Mount Faber

The last bit of the trail was both adventurous and traumatic. We were "guided" by Andrew to trek down Marang Trail in complete darkness! The dirt trails and steps were uneven with occasional pot holes we had to be very careful of. As stated in the NParks website:

"The Marang Trail is deliberately unlit Mount Faber Park after dark to minimize disturbance to nocturnal life in the forest. Do bring along a torch and take extra precautions if you wish to walk on this trail after dark."

Andrew... what were you thinking! We resorted to using our handphones as torch light! We were thankful no one twisted their ankles or fell into the dense forest!

Ending off the night was an ice Teh-O and Ayam Penyet at Seah Imm as we continued to comment on how Andrew could have killed us in the forest!

Read:
TOB Picnic @ HortPark
Marina Bay Helix Bridge Launch
HSBC TreeTop Walk
Pulau Ubin "Amazing Race" Reccee
Reflections @ Bukit Chandu & Kent Ridge Park
Sungei Buloh Wetlands Reserve

More Southern Ridges Night Trail Pictures

TOB Picnic @ HortPark

2010-05-29T01:14:00.004+08:00

The idea came about during supper at the prata store around Blair Road. Glori and Viki were arguing about a miss note at a P&W session and how the sound stood out like a sore thumb to the music teacher. I agreed, commenting how that would appear to Herbert (the landscape artist) like a flower grown wrongly in the garden! That comment apparently got the gang bursting out in laughter. Herbert may be a landscape artist, but he has never visited HortPark nor the Singapore Botanic Gardens!

It was Andrew's idea, and he figured that it would be great for the extended participants of STC TOB (and especially for Herbert) to hang out at HortPark for a picnic. We picked the Vesak Day public holiday. The last picnic I had was at Shakespeare in the Park with Singapore Repertory Theatre's "Much Ado About Nothing" held at Fort Canning Green. Gosh that was almost a year a go! There's something about Singaporeans that don't appreciate picnics enough.

One of the coolest thing was that my ENTIRE TOB group made an effort to turn up for the outing. We had to take a group shot for being so complete! You gals RAWK!

Our picnic spot at the far end of Hort Park, under a shady angsana tree

Glorious food galore!

Frances prepared lots of food! They were all sooooo good! Agnes baked Lavender & Cinnamon cake! And I supplied my fav River Gum Red Wine

And a couple of rounds of frisbee

I can't think of how blessed we've been with putting everything together for this TOB. I am constantly amazed at how the beauty of TOB continues to grow in my life.

Read:
What's the scoop?
Live Out Love: Let's Talk About Sex
The Goonies ARE good enough
Of picnic, of wine, of stars, of friends, of Shakespeare...

More TOB Picnic @ HortPark Pictures

Pixar's Art of Toy Story 3

2010-05-27T00:04:00.013+08:00

I don't frequent Bras Basha as much compared to my film school days. But when I do pop down I always like to pay a visit to Basheer Bookstore. They stock up a fantastic collection of Art, Animation, Photography, Typography, Architecture, Graphics, Computer etc. books... I used to pick up my Cinefex magazine here, then the prices got really ridiculous and worked out to be cheaper to purchase it direct online! Cinefex is incidentally still my favourite industry magazine and the only one I am still subscribing to. My favourite section at Basheer are the shelves of making-of and animation books. Books that go in depth at what happens behind the scenes. You already know how big a Toy Story fan I am, so when I laid my hands on Pixar's "Art of Toy Story 3" coffee table book, I was thrilled! I already own the special edition "Toy Story: The Art & Making of the Animated Film" book (with an ultra cool hologram front cover) and thought this will add nicely to my making-of books collection.

Sketches from Toy Story 2

Storyboard sequence

Clay models of characters

As usual, this is a fantastic behind the scenes book filled will tons of concept artwork and storyboards. Hard covered with a total of over 170 coloured pages. But till I watch the movie (scheduled to be released in June) I will not read the contents which will give away too much of the story's plot. I am pretty sure I will catch TS3 more then once, so it will give me some time to catch up on the book's content to better appreciate the film.

Updates made to Woody for Toy Story 3

Flip book video from http://parkablogs.com/node/3846

Read:
Pixar: 20 Years of Animation Exhibition
Toy Story 3: Spanish Buzz dances with Jessie
Toy Story 3D
The TOYS Will Be BACK!
Toy Story's Ultimate Buzz Lightyear

Disclaimer: Pictures and video are courtesy of Parka Blog

Singapore Arts Festival 2010 - The Carnival Of Animals and Peter & The Wolf

2010-05-22T23:02:00.004+08:00

Unlike the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall, I've been to the Esplanade - Theatres on the Bay countless times. In fact, I was one of the invited guests to sit in for an audio test of the movie "Hamlet" at the concert hall (renowned for its state-of-the-art acoustics) even before the Esplanade's official launch in 2005. I am familiar with the place that house the library@esplanade and had always known it to be prim and proper.

Of recent years, I've noticed more experimental and controversial artworks and music pieces being displayed and performed. I like the variety and fact these various art forms have an opportunity to be experienced by the wider audience in a non intimidating way. But of all the concerts I've attended... nothing comes close to Kamchàtka Theatre Company and Singapore Festival Orchestra's "The Carnival of Animals and Peter & The Wolf" in terms of truly breaking every orchestrate rule in the book.

Actor climbs along the concert hall's partitions with the orchestra stage in a mess!

With a double-bill kids / animal themed concert, you'd be expecting a 'wild' time. But who would expect the entire Esplanade Concert Hall to be covered in complete mess of newspaper and cardboard boxes. I walked toward my seat and discovered it covered by a piece newspaper! I thought WTH and laughed out loud!

There was juggling on stage and numerous funny characters working out the crowd

Kids (and kids at heart) were literally going wild tossing around trash, making newspaper balls and attempting to hit one of the wondering actors. Wendy was one of them...

Camille Saint-Saens’ renowned musical suite, "The Carnival of The Animals" was Led by Director Adrian Schvarzstein of the Kamchàtka Theatre Company. The musicians of the SFO were literally carried onto stage. And in the casual mood of the show, they were dressed in singlets, shorts and flip flops! Totally not what you'd expect in an orchestra performance.

"The Carnival of The Animals" - Lions

"The Carnival of The Animals" - Swans

"The Carnival of The Animals" was delightful with a smorgasbord of classical music, juggling, acrobats, lighting effects, and funny performances.

The Singapore Festival Orchestra continues to provide live music accompaniment to the amazing animated film version of Sergei Prokofiev’s "Peter & The Wolf", directed by Suzie Templeton and produced by Breakthru Films, which won an Oscar in 2008 for the category of Best Short Film (Animated).

It is not everyday you get a chance to experience the Esplanade in such mess for art!

And it flowed out to the hall ways!

Read:
Singapore Arts Festival 2010 - Cargo Kuala Lumpur - Singapore
Singapore Arts Festival 2010 - Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall Backstage Tour
Wishing I had more time at the festivals
Singapore Arts Festival 2008 Opening Celebration - Water Fools
The 2007 Arts Festival Round Up

More Singapore Arts Festival 2010 - The Carnival Of Animals and Peter & The Wolf Pictures

Singapore Arts Festival 2010 - Cargo Kuala Lumpur - Singapore

2010-05-18T02:36:00.005+08:00

You should know by now that I am a sucker for bus tours. So when I read of "Cargo Kuala Lumpur - Singapore" (an interactive performance at the Singapore Arts Festival 2010), I had to get a ticket for the ride! This was better! It was a Truck Tour! It was a road trip - Reel on Real!

"Cargo Kuala Lumpur – Singapore" is a site-specific performance by the Swiss-German theatre collective Rimini Protokoll and produced by Hebbel am Ufer / Berlin. The makers wanted to observe and analyse contemporary society, preferring to work with ‘real people’ instead of actors to investigate little-known and much ignored aspects of their work and lives.

A left hand drive truck was specially converted with 1 way glass panels on 1 side of the container

The interior is equipped with collapsible seats, air-conditioning, sound and projection system

The audience took on the role of 'cargo' and is placed where freight used to once sit. In this story, we are art pieces being transported! We had no control, we were just being moved.
There's no break during the 2 hrs ride. All bladders must be emptied for best enjoyment.

In the cabin are two Malaysian truck drivers, Ramachandran (Rama) and Ravindran (Ravi)taking the audience on a simulated journey from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore. A live camera feed the audience conversations that happen in the front seats as Rama and Ravi share there experiences of work, family and hopes for the future.

As the truck starts to drive through lesser known streets of Singapore, their stories and music synchronises with gas stations, truck parking areas, shipping companies and motorways in a trip that feels just like a 3D-road movie.

You can't get a more true to life experience of the 2 truck drivers in similar comfort and safety. Juxtaposing the themes of ride, you are forced to reflect on issues like
- Sacrifices. Having to work away from home, the loneliness faced, the uncertainty of the journey.

The truck steadily ascends a huge, spiral carpark to the tune of Johann Strauss II’s The Blue Danube Waltz. It felt like a never ending climb. Then at the highest deck the speakers begin playing "Bengawan Solo", live by a solitary songstress.

At a container labyrinth a commentator cycles beside the truck methodically listing the attributes of the containers that pass us by. The environment is harsh, dark and damp. The wandering stray dogs reinforce this notion of a vast post-apocalyptic wasteland.

- Migrant workers living conditions.

Outside the foreign worker dormitories along Teban Gardens

The stars for the night

For the fact that we were on the road for real, there were little hiccups like traffic junctions to a short jam that made the experience less then perfect. Still the ride leaves one thinking long after everything is over.

An excellent review of the ride can be found on the SFA 2010 Independent Blog. Strongly recommend to read it.

Read:
Singapore Arts Festival 2010 - Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall Backstage Tour
Wishing I had more time at the festivals
Singapore Arts Festival 2008 Opening Celebration - Water Fools
The 2007 Arts Festival Round Up
War On Wheels Bus Tour 2009: The Battle Box (Part 3)
War On Wheels Bus Tour 2009: The Sook Ching Massacre (Part 2)
War On Wheels Bus Tour 2009: Singapore Under the Gun (Part 1)
Kill Bill @ Halloween
When All Hell Break Loose

More Singapore Arts Festival 2010 - Cargo Kuala Lumpur - Singapore Pictures

Singapore Arts Festival 2010 Opening - Invitation to Dream

2010-05-16T15:17:00.004+08:00

The opening and closing ceremonies for the annual Singapore Arts Festival for the past number of years have been most impressive. The festival organisers brought in quality acts, all of which were artistically imaginative and thought provoking. I've since made it a point to make time for the festival. And for the record, there is no way in hell that I will be attending this year's closing - Mega Line Dance! Like seriously!!!

Burning up the scenes this year is "Invitation to Dream - A Fire Garden Installation" by internationally renowned French fire alchemist Compagnie Carabosse. The historic expanse of Esplanade Park and Empress Place Precinct is transformed into a fiery glowing wonderland. Towering sculptures of metal, clay pots, fire curtains, blazing garlands and intricate patterns of flame carve out intimate spaces of warmth.

Unfortunately for us, it rained cats and dogs on Sunday night. The accompanying performances around the grounds were canceled :(

Two captivating ‘Méli Mélo’ – tall metal rings resembling Ferris Wheels carrying firepots – slowly spin within each other, casting a hypnotic effect on the eyes

The rain actually provided a sizzling effect on the flames. Trust me... it was very mesmerizing

The ‘forest’ of glowing sleeveless vests seemingly suspended in mid-air were not lit due to the rain. I believe it would have been a pretty 'ghostly' sight

They were inter-spaced with flaming charcoal balls hanging from trees

Relaxing swings, hanging garlands of firepots and huge ‘fairy fireballs’ – metallic spherical frames studded with firepots – beckon visitors at the Esplanade Park. A starry ceiling of fiery bulbs lines pathways, with surreal sounds from overhead radios for soothing company. Tall fire stovepipes stand guard in one alley, gently billowing fire and smoke from their tops like a forest of glowing gothic candles.

You will get a far better spell bounding effect from the video clip. It was all very pretty

We ended the night with dinner at Siam Reap II overlooking the fiery reflections on the Singapore River and a chilly quiet atmosphere. There was rain... but it was all very good.

Read:
Singapore Arts Festival 2010 - Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall Backstage Tour
Wishing I had more time at the festivals
Singapore Arts Festival 2008 Opening Celebration - Water Fools
The 2007 Arts Festival Round Up
Dreams in Flight @ Singapore Arts Festival's Opening
Arts Festival Closing - Tao by Dulsori

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Treasury of the World: Jewelled Arts of India in the Age of the Mughals

2010-05-16T12:26:00.005+08:00

After the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall Backstage Tour and a cup of latte later, we decided to pay a visit to the Asian Civilisation Museum. Of all the museums in Singapore, I know of many Singaporeans who have never step foot into this one. This museum showcases a permanent display of artifacts highlighting the integrated perspective of pan-Asian cultures and civilisations. And of all the museums, I find that on the couple of occasions I visit this place, I seem to pick up something new. The displays are always familiar, but each time I see them with different lenses and understand better the cultures, believes and themes that flow behind them.

On display now till 27 June 2010 is a special exhibit on the Jewelled Arts of India in the Age of the Mughals. I have little interest in jewelery, but I have absolutely nothing against looking at pretty things. The 'Treasury of the World' exhibit features a dazzling array of 402 exquisite jewelled works of art from Mughal India, from The al-Sabah Collection in Kuwait. And since I am cultivating my interest in the Indian culture (don't ask me why), I thought the exhibit was a good experience.

The Mughal empire, rulers of India (1526–1858) were one of the wealthiest, most powerful dynasties the world has ever known. They maintained a court that was renowned for its wealth, high culture, and love of precious objects, all of which were epitomized in the jeweled arts of the period.

This travelling exhibition showcases jeweled items of personal adornment, princely weapons, carved jade and crystal bowls set with precious stones, spinels ("balas rubies") inscribed with the titles of their imperial owners, and other art-historically important pieces representing the period of several imperial reigns, as well as the sumptuous and refined courts of the Deccan, in the southern part of India.

Turban ornament, probably second half 17th century
India, probably Deccan (Hyderabad?)
Fabricated from gold; with champlevé and overpainted enamels; worked in kundan technique and set with emeralds and diamonds; H. 6 7/8 in. (17.3 cm), W. 2 1/8 in. (5.3 cm), Thickness (including plume holder) 5/8 in. (1.3 cm)
The al-Sabah Collection, Kuwait National Museum

Box, later 16th–early 17th century
India, Deccan, or Mughal
Carved from rock crystal; inlaid with gold in kundan technique and set with rubies and emeralds; the interior fabricated from gold and silver; H. 2 1/4 in. (5.7 cm), Diam. 2 in. (5.1 cm)
The al-Sabah Collection, Kuwait National Museum

This is actually a pair of ear plugs!!!

Cup, later 16th–early 17th century
India, Deccan, or Mughal
Carved from rock crystal; inlaid with gold in kundan technique and set with rubies, emeralds, and dark sapphire-blue glass; the stones underlain (toward the interior) with painted miniature faces and with kingfisher feathers; H. 1 7/8 in. (4.8 cm), Diam. 3 3/8 in. (8.5 cm)
The al-Sabah Collection, Kuwait National Museum

Miniature books

Pendant, later 16th–first quarter 17th century
India, probably Deccan
Fabricated from gold, front, head, and neck worked in kundan technique and set with rubies, emeralds, diamonds, and rock crystal; back engraved and inlaid with niello; with pendant pearls; H. (excluding pendant elements) 3 in. (7.6 cm), W. 2 1/4 in. (5.5 cm), Thickness 1 1/8 in. (2.9 cm)
The al-Sabah Collection, Kuwait National Museum

Dagger and scabbard, ca. 1615–20
India, Mughal
Blade of jawhar steel (later repolished), hatched and overlaid with gold; iron hilt, as well as locket, chape, and front of scabbard, overlaid with gold, worked in kundan technique, set with precious stones, engraved and chiseled; scabbard wood covered on the back with gold sheet hammered in relief; hilt and scabbard set with a total of 1,685 rubies, 271 natural unpolished diamonds, 62 emeralds, 321 pieces of transparent emerald-green glass, 39 pieces of transparent dark middle blue glass, nine pieces of ivory and six layered agates (grand total of 2.393 "stones," to which another 26, now missing, must be added, for an original total of 2,419); L. (of dagger) 13 1/8 in. (33.3 cm), L. (in scabbard) 13 7/8 in. (35.2 cm), W. 4 5/8 in. (11.7 cm)
The al-Sabah Collection, Kuwait National Museum

And to amuse the kids, there was a corner for colouring and stamps. And judging from the above artwork, it seems that "Avatar" has invaded the minds of young children!

The pieces on show have one of the finest craftsmanship I've ever seen, but the display lack character and failed to allow each artifact to tell it's unique story. I left the exhibit wondering about the people that once enjoyed these pieces. Their stories of romance, betrayal, jealously or comfort...

Read:
Museums and Exhibits
Vatican Collections

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Singapore Arts Festival 2010 - Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall Backstage Tour

2010-05-16T00:50:00.006+08:00

Just in case you don't already know, it wasn't until recent years that I started to take a liking to opera and classical music. It was thus perfectly normal that I hardly step foot into one of Singapore's oldest iconic building, the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall. If I could recall, my last performance (or only performance) there was to catch The Dim Sum Dollies' "Little Shop Of Horrors". It was a birthday treat to Sr. Wendy by the Princesses, and we found out that she has a rock star nephew - Dave Tan from local band, Electrico.

Standing nearly 150 years on the grounds of Singapore’s Civic District, the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall will soon close its doors in June 2010 for an extensive two-and-half year renovation, before reopening in 2013. It was the most appropriate opportunity for The Singapore Arts Festival 2010 to speak of the building's history, grandeur and memories in a series of backstage tours.

The hour and a half tour started in the scotching sun at the fountain where the smaller black Sir Stamford Raffles stands. Interestingly, I learnt many things about building which I never knew.

- The building was constrcuted as a Town Hall in 1862 but in memory of the late Queen Victoria (1901) converted to Victoria Memorial Hall and underwent renovations to turn it into a theatre. The makeover project was completed in 1909.

- John Bennet, architect of the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall also built other iconic buildings around Singapore - Raffles Lighthouse and detailed work on Saint Andrew's Cathedral.

- The building survived the air raids of World War II. Many concert goers were captured during a performance to be prisoners of war. As numerous were themselves musicians, they played for the Japanese during the period of Japaneses Occupation.

- The bronze Sir Stamford Raffles statue originally sat on the fields of the Padang. During soccer games, excited spectators will disrespectfully climb all over 'the founder of Singapore' for a better view. It was moved to the front of the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall in 1962.

- Probably the longest standing ticket booth in Singapore.
You chose your seats from this light box.

Going behind the scenes

A brief overview of what went on in the Projection Room. Does anyone have any idea why the light in the room blue?

We were told by Tour Guide, Rita; to stick our heads out of the projection room window and take a deep breath of HISTORY. I replied, "Sure! OK, I'll do it!"
The classic red chairs will disappear when the renovation completes.

The props room

The waiting room

It was here that we were told numerous 'friendly' stories about the wondering lady spirit and the door of makeup room 13 that never opens!

The most bizarre story had to be the one on National Day 2008. All 4 clock faces on the tower display time in sync. However, that faithful day, all 4 clock faces were showing different times! A day later, without any human intervention, the timing miraculously were in sync and accurate again!

Wendy and I deduced that this is not a suitable place for Sharon to visit!

We were literally under the stage. An unused trap door. It got abandoned after years of being too cranky

The backstage exit where performers zip away if they want to escape from crazy fans

The guided tours end 12 June 2010. A worthy experience of a slice of old Singapore history cause who knows what the new renovation will bring.

PS. Discovered a write up on the same tour from one of the guys in my guided tour. I appeared in 2 of his pictures. Fortunately in a distance and not very recognizable! He has a strange sense of humour.

Read:
Wishing I had more time at the festivals
Singapore Arts Festival 2008 Opening Celebration - Water Fools
The 2007 Arts Festival Round Up

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Adobe CS5 Launch Singapore

2010-05-13T02:10:00.005+08:00

About a year and half later of Adobe CS4's release, Adobe is again enticing us to UPGRADE. Nothing is wrong with your previous versions but they are OLDER! And OLDER (in software developer's eyes) is not COOL! We've gone down the same exact path with Microsoft and Apple... so there's nothing new here. They throw in a couple of new improvements and make you fork out that hard earned cash for it.

It was a huge launch covering 2 ballrooms at Suntec. Adobe flew in Evangelists Terry White for Photoshop and InDesign, Greg Rewis for Web Applications, and Jason Levine for Video Production. I must admit these guys were very animated and entertaining.

For what its worth there are numerous very impressive updates in this version. I actually had the privilege to check a couple of sneaks at the Adobe Photoshop World 2009 with Russell Brown, so I wasn't falling off my seat.

Starting with Photoshop:
1) Content Aware Fill
Lasso > Content Aware Fill > Edit > Fill > Delete (unwanted sections)
There is no doubt that Content Aware Fill is the most jaw dropping feature. Major time saver when it comes to real photo editing work.

2) HDR
Image > Adjustment > HDR Toning
More control over HDR images.
One of these days, I must go out and do a photography exercise on HDR (just for fun).

3) Mini Bridge

4) Fish Eye Lens

5) CS Review

6) Bristle Brush
Only works with a tablet and something I really want to try with my Wacom that's way under used!

InDesign:
1) Gab Tool
Hold Shift Key individually adjusts size of the pictures. Command key expand or decreases gab.

2) Corner Rounding
Select Yellow Holders on picture. Shift Key adjust corners individually.

3) Picture Captioning
Right Click on picture > Caption Settings > Generate Live Captions

4) Interactive Web Functions

5) EPub
Publish books directly to iTunes Store

Greg Rewis filling us in on the new feature for Creative Suite Web Premium

Jason Levine on Video Production

Premiere Pro:
1) 64bit & Mecury
The biggest difference in both Premiere Pro and Affect Effects (both Adobe's video production softwares) lie in its upgrade to support 64bit native capability. Coupled with the new Mercury Playback Engine, we can expect much much faster rendering speeds. Using memory directly off your RAM. The demo was performed on a Nvidia GPU Quadro FX 4800 / FX 5800 series card.

2) 1080P Native DSLR Editing

3) Playback never stops

4) Replay Resolutions of 1/2 or 1/4 with pause in full

5) XMP Meta Data

Affect Effects:
To me there is just 1 kick-ass update - Rotoscoping. This function totally changes the career and life of a Rotoscope Artist.

Most importantly, the speed with 64bit drastically changes the way an effects or video editor will work. That alone is a worthy upgrade with a hefty cost on hardware upgrade!

The last part of the program was a features showdown between the 3 evangelists. And of cause the Flash on iPhone issue had to be addressed. They lovingly termed Apple "a certain fruit company" and showcased Flash integration. It was obvious the animosity between the companies in a very political way.

For those who missed the launch event, Adobe put together a very nice CS5 Launch Event highlights video channel on Adobe TV. The materials featured are short and very informative.

Read:
The Apple Flash War: Steve Jobs' Thoughts on Flash
Adobe Photoshop World 2009
Adobe CS4 Launch Singapore
Adobe CS3 Launch
Adobe Max 2006 Beyond Boundaries Conference
Adobe and Macromedia as ONE!

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I found WALTER (the curious colossal bunny)

2010-05-12T01:29:00.003+08:00

WALTER spotted on the roof of 8Q SAM

Celeste and I were having dinner and coffee at TCC causally browsing through magazines and coming across an article on WALTER...

WALTER is Dawn Ng's pet project involving guerilla installations of a curious colossal bunny who pops up across Singapore’s standard landscape of flats and heartland enclaves. By using Walter to create and photograph scenarios packed with surprise and wonder, Dawn draws attention to commonly overlooked and over familiar spaces across our landscape, while dodging cops and people with no sense of humour. WALTER is a celebration of our ordinary by helping us look at this city as children again.

Dawn explained that rabbits have always been a part of folk tales and myths. Citing one example as Lewis Carroll’s cult novel Alice in Wonderland where a white rabbit leads Alice down to a hole, she said that rabbits exude a magical aura that “make you see the world a little bit differently and… tell a story”.

“If I were to extract Walter from all these photographs, you wouldn’t have taken a second look at all these places in Singapore,” said Dawn. “It would be so ordinary that it would be invisible to you… it’s when you put something so strange and incongruent that you re-evaluate and you look harder at something cos’ something is not supposed to be there, but it is.”

Photographs of WALTER sightings can be found at ToysREvil and Youth.SG

Toy Story 3: Spanish Buzz dances with Jessie

2010-05-09T01:11:00.002+08:00

Now I'm really looking forward to catching this one. Spanish Buzz dancing with Jessie!

Tony and Cheryl from 'Dancing with the Stars' breaks down the moves for the animators

Gipsy Kings performs "You've Got A Friend In Me" on 'Dancing With The Stars'

Read:
Pixar: 20 Years of Animation Exhibition
Toy Story 3D
The TOYS Will Be BACK!
Toy Story's Ultimate Buzz Lightyear

Pixar: 20 Years of Animation Exhibition

2010-05-08T00:29:00.005+08:00

With the lead from "Monster's Inc." Sullivan and Mike

I've been an animation fan all my life. Everything from Disney to Looney Tunes to the Muppets. They were an integral part of my childhood and a major source to things I deem creative and humorous. Then came the emergence of 3D animation. It all started out with the good ole flying 3D Logos! But the the moment "Toy Story" by Pixar was release in 1995, I was a FAN. I was doing my 3D animation major then and that film seriously sealed the mark on 3D character animation.

While to know how much of a fan I am... I have quite a number of "Toy Story" merchandise and toys. I have the "Toy Story" DVD Box Set, T-shirts, bedsheets, crayons, notepads, straws, numerous Mr. Potato Heads, Slinky Dog and the original Buzz Lightyear.

In the years that follow, the Pixar team continuously produced top notched animated films with great plots and awesome characters. In fact, if you look around my room; you'd find a little something of the other films... "A Bug's Life" Dot figurine, a Nemo cushion, a Violet Incredibles T-shirt, a U-Command Wall-E Remote Control Toy.

Pixar: 20 Years of Animation at the Singapore Science Centre

After 20 years, Pixar decides to produce a traveling exhibition entitled 'Pixar: 20 Years of Animation' which takes one behind the scenes of the cutting-edge studio. The exhibition features over 300 sketches, paintings, sculptures and storyboards, going behind the scenes to reveal how Pixar’s much-loved characters and worlds are brought to life. In addition to these one-of-a-kind works by artists and sculptors, the exhibition includes spectacular immersive environments and interactive experiences developed by Pixar to
extend the magic of their films.

The Production Pipeline diagram

More importantly, we take a peek through the thought process of the creative team. Where they get their inspiration and how they develop their craft. To produce Pixar's 4th feature length film "Finding Nemo", the creative team spent 3 years diving to better understand the movement of our underwater creatures and their environment.

There were many gems at the exhibition which included;
1) Sitting through John Lasseter's first few animation shorts

2) The "Tin Toy" Baby clay model head and hand

3) The Toy Story 3D Zoetrope. This one alone is worth the ticket price for the exhibition!

4) Original artwork;

4a) Drawings for "For the Birds" animation short

4b) Drawings for "A Bug's Life"

4c) Drawings for "Toy Story"

4d) Drawings for "Ratatouille"

5) Watching "Toy Story" in 3D. I never fail to crack up at the Slinky Dog rescue scene!

The Takashima merchandise corner was a real let down. We did however pick up two goofy souvenir photos of ourselves for keepsake

Now in anticipantion of "Toy Story 3" scheduled to be released in June 2010.
Counting down...

Read:
Toy Story 3: Spanish Buzz dances with Jessie
Toy Story 3D
The TOYS Will Be BACK!
Toy Story's Ultimate Buzz Lightyear

More Pixar: 20 Years of Animation Exhibition Pictures

Chatterbox $25 Chicken Rice Experience

2010-05-02T23:43:00.003+08:00

Chatterbox Chicken Rice at the Mandarin Orchard Singapore goes way back all the way to the 60s era of good ole' Singapore local delights. It's been a loooooong time since I last had their atas 'famous' chicken rice. I recalled it being SGD$17. Then 3x the best plate of Boon Tong Kee chicken rice. I never picked up the courage or reason to visit again, simply cause I know I can get far greater tasting chicken rice somewhere else. The experience of Chatterbox Chicken Rice quickly faded.

At SGD$25 per serving - in my opinion the most ridiculously over-priced Hainanese Chicken Rice! I felt bad eating it.

I still cannot comprehend the insane price tag. More so I cannot understand why we had cabbage soup instead of the chicken stock soup. It felt kindda wrong.

Even the Hokkien Mee went at SGD$24!

In Ming's opinon, it was very average

And in closing... Chin Chow was SGD$8 a glass! INSANE!!! Find an excusable occasion, experience at least once... to pay exorbitantly for over-priced chicken rice. I think it will take years again before I will dare attempt another similar Chicken Rice feat. Hey Wendy, thanks for this crazy Chicken Rice experience!

G'day Mate, throw another shrimp on the barbie!

2010-05-02T18:11:00.003+08:00

Where do you bring a girl with the soul of ABBA on her significant 30th Birthday? Let's just say we found the most appropriate Retro Themed venue at Hotel Re! It screamed W-E-N-D-Y, from colours to concept to old school booth games! Imagine competing in a round of Pac Man on them!

Unfortunately the greater plan did not pull through and we decided to pick the great O' Aussie Outback. If there's anything this girl will enjoy, is a piece of bloody medium rare steak! As they do it in Ozzie Land, Outback Steakhouse at Millenia Walk is cozy with little pretense of needing to impress, the classic no-nonsense "lets get on with it" attitude. It was simply a fun get-together place.

To claim itself on being an outback steakhouse, the food tasted nothing Australian. Still the portions were generous and it tasted delicious (not in the authentic way)! It was unfortunate the service was horrible, and perhaps reflective of the Ozzie culture...

Black Pepper Steak

Bushman 'Shrooms - Mushrooms deep fried and served with spicy ranch dressing. The batter tasted like KFC and we rated it better then Seletar Airbase's mushrooms.

Pork Ribs on the Barbie

The Bloomin' Onion is a signature Outback item. It is a one pound onion cut to 'bloom' open, breaded, deep-fried and served with mayonnaise-horseradish sauce. However, we were told that the 'onions' were out of season and there were insufficient stock to be shipped into the country. We had instead the 'Tornado Onion'. Pretty much onion rings placed in a twirling manner to represent a 'tornado'... definitely lack the trill of the 'full bloom'.

We had a whole bunch of other stuff which included the Aussie Cheese Fries, Buffalo Style Chicken Wings, Alice Springs Chicken and Sizzling Sirloin... Everything would have tasted even better with beer. Why in the world did we settle for bottomless soft drinks?!?!

The Girl with the Turn Table Birthday Cake

2010-05-01T18:02:00.000+08:00

Spin it right... spin it good... spin it real good...

Don't we all love custom designed birthday cakes!

The Apple Flash War: Steve Jobs' Thoughts on Flash

2010-04-30T10:47:00.005+08:00

Apple products are very easy to get used to. For that I say that I've gotten very comfortable with my iPhone 3GS and had practically replaced it as my on-the-go music player, video player and gaming device. I run these days with no music till I get myself a decent enough sports band and my DS Lite still has its place for more serious gaming... like... The Legends of Zelda!

What I love about the iPhone is the fact that it provides one of the BEST mobile web browsing experience. EXCEPT for the fact that it DOES NOT SUPPORT FLASH!!! Damn Apple I really hated you when I wanted to catch the live streaming of the Oscars online. Guess what... the streaming was in FLASH!!! And tons of other stuff are on FLASH!!!

Here's the truth of the matter - 2 mega technological giants that can't seem to see eye to eye. Each protecting their own interest. In this instance, the ones that get the short end of the stick are the developers and the ones that suffer - the consumers. Steve, you're just being a big bully here.

Buzz Out Loud 1218 Steve Jobs Apple Adobe War | Music Codes
Rafe Needleman and Molly Wood of C|NET's BOL (Buzz Out Loud) Podcast shares their thoughts

Steve Jobs writes in length on his Thoughts on Flash:

Apple has a long relationship with Adobe. In fact, we met Adobe’s founders when they were in their proverbial garage. Apple was their first big customer, adopting their Postscript language for our new Laserwriter printer. Apple invested in Adobe and owned around 20% of the company for many years. The two companies worked closely together to pioneer desktop publishing and there were many good times. Since that golden era, the companies have grown apart. Apple went through its near death experience, and Adobe was drawn to the corporate market with their Acrobat products. Today the two companies still work together to serve their joint creative customers – Mac users buy around half of Adobe’s Creative Suite products – but beyond that there are few joint interests.

I wanted to jot down some of our thoughts on Adobe’s Flash products so that customers and critics may better understand why we do not allow Flash on iPhones, iPods and iPads. Adobe has characterized our decision as being primarily business driven – they say we want to protect our App Store – but in reality it is based on technology issues. Adobe claims that we are a closed system, and that Flash is open, but in fact the opposite is true. Let me explain.

First, there’s “Open”.

Adobe’s Flash products are 100% proprietary. They are only available from Adobe, and Adobe has sole authority as to their future enhancement, pricing, etc. While Adobe’s Flash products are widely available, this does not mean they are open, since they are controlled entirely by Adobe and available only from Adobe. By almost any definition, Flash is a closed system.

Apple has many proprietary products too. Though the operating system for the iPhone, iPod and iPad is proprietary, we strongly believe that all standards pertaining to the web should be open. Rather than use Flash, Apple has adopted HTML5, CSS and JavaScript – all open standards. Apple’s mobile devices all ship with high performance, low power implementations of these open standards. HTML5, the new web standard that has been adopted by Apple, Google and many others, lets web developers create advanced graphics, typography, animations and transitions without relying on third party browser plug-ins (like Flash). HTML5 is completely open and controlled by a standards committee, of which Apple is a member.

Apple even creates open standards for the web. For example, Apple began with a small open source project and created WebKit, a complete open-source HTML5 rendering engine that is the heart of the Safari web browser used in all our products. WebKit has been widely adopted. Google uses it for Android’s browser, Palm uses it, Nokia uses it, and RIM (Blackberry) has announced they will use it too. Almost every smartphone web browser other than Microsoft’s uses WebKit. By making its WebKit technology open, Apple has set the standard for mobile web browsers.

Second, there’s the “full web”.

Adobe has repeatedly said that Apple mobile devices cannot access “the full web” because 75% of video on the web is in Flash. What they don’t say is that almost all this video is also available in a more modern format, H.264, and viewable on iPhones, iPods and iPads. YouTube, with an estimated 40% of the web’s video, shines in an app bundled on all Apple mobile devices, with the iPad offering perhaps the best YouTube discovery and viewing experience ever. Add to this video from Vimeo, Netflix, Facebook, ABC, CBS, CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, ESPN, NPR, Time, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Sports Illustrated, People, National Geographic, and many, many others. iPhone, iPod and iPad users aren’t missing much video.

Another Adobe claim is that Apple devices cannot play Flash games. This is true. Fortunately, there are over 50,000 games and entertainment titles on the App Store, and many of them are free. There are more games and entertainment titles available for iPhone, iPod and iPad than for any other platform in the world.

Third, there’s reliability, security and performance.

Symantec recently highlighted Flash for having one of the worst security records in 2009. We also know first hand that Flash is the number one reason Macs crash. We have been working with Adobe to fix these problems, but they have persisted for several years now. We don’t want to reduce the reliability and security of our iPhones, iPods and iPads by adding Flash.

In addition, Flash has not performed well on mobile devices. We have routinely asked Adobe to show us Flash performing well on a mobile device, any mobile device, for a few years now. We have never seen it. Adobe publicly said that Flash would ship on a smartphone in early 2009, then the second half of 2009, then the first half of 2010, and now they say the second half of 2010. We think it will eventually ship, but we’re glad we didn’t hold our breath. Who knows how it will perform?

Fourth, there’s battery life.

To achieve long battery life when playing video, mobile devices must decode the video in hardware; decoding it in software uses too much power. Many of the chips used in modern mobile devices contain a decoder called H.264 – an industry standard that is used in every Blu-ray DVD player and has been adopted by Apple, Google (YouTube), Vimeo, Netflix and many other companies.

Although Flash has recently added support for H.264, the video on almost all Flash websites currently requires an older generation decoder that is not implemented in mobile chips and must be run in software. The difference is striking: on an iPhone, for example, H.264 videos play for up to 10 hours, while videos decoded in software play for less than 5 hours before the battery is fully drained.

When websites re-encode their videos using H.264, they can offer them without using Flash at all. They play perfectly in browsers like Apple’s Safari and Google’s Chrome without any plugins whatsoever, and look great on iPhones, iPods and iPads.

Fifth, there’s Touch.

Flash was designed for PCs using mice, not for touch screens using fingers. For example, many Flash websites rely on “rollovers”, which pop up menus or other elements when the mouse arrow hovers over a specific spot. Apple’s revolutionary multi-touch interface doesn’t use a mouse, and there is no concept of a rollover. Most Flash websites will need to be rewritten to support touch-based devices. If developers need to rewrite their Flash websites, why not use modern technologies like HTML5, CSS and JavaScript?

Even if iPhones, iPods and iPads ran Flash, it would not solve the problem that most Flash websites need to be rewritten to support touch-based devices.

Sixth, the most important reason.

Besides the fact that Flash is closed and proprietary, has major technical drawbacks, and doesn’t support touch based devices, there is an even more important reason we do not allow Flash on iPhones, iPods and iPads. We have discussed the downsides of using Flash to play video and interactive content from websites, but Adobe also wants developers to adopt Flash to create apps that run on our mobile devices.

We know from painful experience that letting a third party layer of software come between the platform and the developer ultimately results in sub-standard apps and hinders the enhancement and progress of the platform. If developers grow dependent on third party development libraries and tools, they can only take advantage of platform enhancements if and when the third party chooses to adopt the new features. We cannot be at the mercy of a third party deciding if and when they will make our enhancements available to our developers.

This becomes even worse if the third party is supplying a cross platform development tool. The third party may not adopt enhancements from one platform unless they are available on all of their supported platforms. Hence developers only have access to the lowest common denominator set of features. Again, we cannot accept an outcome where developers are blocked from using our innovations and enhancements because they are not available on our competitor’s platforms.

Flash is a cross platform development tool. It is not Adobe’s goal to help developers write the best iPhone, iPod and iPad apps. It is their goal to help developers write cross platform apps. And Adobe has been painfully slow to adopt enhancements to Apple’s platforms. For example, although Mac OS X has been shipping for almost 10 years now, Adobe just adopted it fully (Cocoa) two weeks ago when they shipped CS5. Adobe was the last major third party developer to fully adopt Mac OS X.

Our motivation is simple – we want to provide the most advanced and innovative platform to our developers, and we want them to stand directly on the shoulders of this platform and create the best apps the world has ever seen. We want to continually enhance the platform so developers can create even more amazing, powerful, fun and useful applications. Everyone wins – we sell more devices because we have the best apps, developers reach a wider and wider audience and customer base, and users are continually delighted by the best and broadest selection of apps on any platform.

Conclusions.

Flash was created during the PC era – for PCs and mice. Flash is a successful business for Adobe, and we can understand why they want to push it beyond PCs. But the mobile era is about low power devices, touch interfaces and open web standards – all areas where Flash falls short.

The avalanche of media outlets offering their content for Apple’s mobile devices demonstrates that Flash is no longer necessary to watch video or consume any kind of web content. And the 200,000 apps on Apple’s App Store proves that Flash isn’t necessary for tens of thousands of developers to create graphically rich applications, including games.

New open standards created in the mobile era, such as HTML5, will win on mobile devices (and PCs too). Perhaps Adobe should focus more on creating great HTML5 tools for the future, and less on criticizing Apple for leaving the past behind.

Steve Jobs
April, 2010