Parts 1 and 2 are now live on Engadget.com. Check them out!
There will be at least one more part, possibly up to 4. Also I should have an update on the VCSp Rev 5.1’s soon.
Movie review – “Grindhouse” (and why it bombed)
Every so often a movie comes along that’s right up my alley (or at least seems so based on the previews) – Grindhouse was one such film. I really enjoy bad movies, and also the double feature atmosphere of the drive in is fun as well. (Not sure if a Grindhouse is exactly like a drive-in, but I found the presentation to be very drive-in like, personally.)
So what follows is my review of both the movies found in Grindhouse – Planet Terror and Death Proof – and also my speculation as to why it bombed.
Continue reading Movie review – “Grindhouse” (and why it bombed)
Ancient cave artifact found!
I was going through some files on the computer when I came across an old crappy scan of a photo. I then realized I probably still had the original Polaroid, dug through the filing cabinet, sure enough found it and rescanned using my ultra modern 2001 model Scanjet so it’d look slightly less crappy.
This is the original prototype Atari VCSp Revision 1, dating from March of 2000. As you can sort of see it was routed from clear acrylic, I painted it black later. The deal was the rear half was correct but the front was not quite right. Still I slapped it together just to see what it would be like, and this is the result. Note the very professional electric tape holding it together – my hot glue gun musta been in the shop that day.
At the time I was writing the script for “The Lizard of Death” so it wasn’t until a month later that I rerouted the front piece and finished the unit as we all know it today. Still, ah… those were good times! You can check out the story of the original portable project I ever did by clicking here.
Update on Site Update
Well we’re on the new server now and after erasing and reuploading WordPress it seems to be working again with the original database. I’m sure you wanted that much detail. Anyway, we’ll continue to make sure everything is up and running smoothly, but for now it seems OK.
Xbox 360 Laptop The Second
Behold my second and (unless someone gives me Miller Brewing company) last Xbox 360 Laptop!
Similar to the first model but redesigned in many ways. “Uses 60% Less Aluminum!”
For a full photo gallery and more info please see the article over on Engadget.com. The bonus with this project is that I’ve documented the construction in a fair amount of detail and will be doing a 3 part “How To” also on Engadget, as unsurprising as that may seem. It’ll include art files and diagrams, so you can take a crack at modding a 360 on your own!
Xbox 360 Laptop 2 – Article on Engadget.com
Enjoy the photos and imagine yourself playing 360 by the pool surrounded by supermodels, but don’t rush to send me emails offered to trade in 5 Game Gears for this thing as I do not plan to build any more of these on consignment. (I am selling Atari 2600 Rev 5.1’s though!) It just takes to darn long, and I don’t have enough limbs to build enough for the demand. Sometimes I wish I could fall prey to an experiment gone wrong and wake up with 4 extra, hopefully metallic, robotic arms, but that probably won’t happen anytime soon so I’m sorry… However if you are carrying out any dangerous experiments that might result in appendage appending let me know.
But fear not – I’ve got loads of other projects on my backburners so they’ll be plenty of new stuff to check out on benheck.com in the near future. As always, stay tuned!
Fun Xbox 360 Laptop 2 Videos:
Xbox Laptop 2 Video (iPod)
Xbox Laptop 2 Video (Large MP4)
Xbox Laptop 2 Video (Crummy vintage MPG)
PS360 Controller
UPDATE: Yippee, once again my site has been crashed! And that’s even before the new mod I have coming soon… As for the price of this mod, well, it’s a lot. When I do the second one it’ll be easier and I’ll have a better idea, but definately still hundreds of dollars at least. Plus I am kind of busy and won’t likely have time to do many more anyway. Sigh. Maybe I can do a How-To for Engadget on it?
Done on consignment, it’s quite obviously PS3 Sixaxis controller guts in the [much better shaped] Xbox 360 controller shell. Check out a video of this thing in action, and see below for more photos and details of how it was constructed.
Podcast Episode 17 – Hollywood and the Wii Get Both Barrels
If you’re a die-hard fan of either the studio system or Nintendo’s latest legal cash printer this might be a good podcast to skip. We’re covering Hollywood’s recent stupid trends (such as Jim Carrey-less sequels, super-late franchise sequels, Angelina Jolie) and then comment on why we think the Wii could ultimately be bad for gaming should it somehow take first place. Kind of an overly negative podcast in general, but isn’t it more fun to listen to people complain than it is to hear gushing praise?
Now, about the intro contest. There is a winner, but once again we ran out of time to get the intro done for this week’s episode. I blame ham ingestion. Fear not, for the winning intro involves Windows Vista and we actually plan to finally cover Vista in the next podcast as well. A double whammy of things people have been asking for! See you in 2 weeks…