UFO Sighting...

Last week when reviewing news of the strange we came across this picture:

Supposedly, this is a picture of a UFO in the Netherlands (hello friends in the Low Countries!) We at State Controlled Media were born skeptical so we put this image through our spectral analyzer. WE were astounded by what we saw!

Clearly, after enhancement and compensating for temporal distortions, it is the USS Enterprise!

Compare it to a recent promotional poster:

HMMMM?

Fear not earthlings. it is but the United Federation of Planets.

Even my PC is opinionated ...

While Researching some Doctor Who info we found this photo on CRACKED.com. We loved it. Thank you CRACKED!

While Trying to hyperlink this picture to the CRACKED site our Organization (DAY JOB) blocked it. Happens all the time. It gives us reasons like: Streaming video, Sports, Gaming, Nudity but we found this amusing. Have a look:

The Reason CRACKED is blocked is because it is Tasteless... Everyone is a critic.

Passing of a legend...

Ray Harryhausen (June 29, 1920-May 7, 2013)

We at SCM Geek Would like to take a moment to mark the passing of one of the true Hollywood Icons. Ray Harryhausen was an innovator and perfected the stop motion animation for movie monsters and special effects. Most people of a certain age would immediately recognize the monsters her created. Unfortunately, most of the movies he worked on were not very good. Bad acting, script and production means if you wish to see some of the classic effects you have to watch some bad movie.

 Ray Harryhausen’s last Movie was Clash of the Titans,

we don’t know why he decided to retire after that movie but our best guess is that after creating the perfect movie and the advent of CGI he decided he could do no more.

So, here is to you Mr. Harryhausen!

If you wish to appreciate his work go rent Clash of the Titans (not the garbage remake) and watch clips of his other movies on YouTube (Maybe Mighty Joe Young if you can find it.)



Dr Who the Greatest Sci-Fi Show ever...

 

Why Dr Who is the best Sci-fi show ever. It is hard for me to write this as I almost don't believe it myself. However, when I take a hard look at the facts I cannot deny. Lets do this empirically, I will list out the main competitors for Dr. Who and why they are great show and Why the Dr is better.

 

1. Star Trek-
   
   I had to start here as it is the biggest contender. It has the most fans and movie spin-offs. The various serials had a whopping 725 episodes. Though the show and movies had fallen out of favor in the early 2000's it has come roaring back with the latest movie re-boot. It has always had some of the better effects on TV and TOS had some of the best writing on any show ever. It pushed social boundaries and made the viewer question society. The hallmark of truly great science fiction.

Why The Doctor is better: Dr WHO has produced 757 episodes since it debuted in 1963. save for a brief period of time in the late 90's and early 2000's it has been on television contentiously. It has produced movies, books and radio programs continuously to this day! That's right RADIO DRAMAS. Granted its special effects have lacked (including the re-boot) but it is on a minor network, has never had the backing of a major studio and frankly it has never needed it. The Doctor has given us some of the best moral quandaries ever laid out in media. And the meatiest subject the Trek always talks about but never really addresses is sacrificing others for the greater good. Dr who goes out of its way to get you to care about characters only to kill them later. The Dr. always finds him self in a position of having to choose one life over many for the greater good. It is a choice often brought up in Trek and then they find a way out of it. And we have to watch the Dr Die. Yeah we all know that he will regenerate and go on but a piece of him that you loved is gone forever. I watched the Dr. die and each time I knew the show was going to continue but it still sucked. The Dr Tackles the hard issues in a way Trek

could never and has never done. And its still getting better and more viewers without a major US release.

2. Stargate SG1
   
    
   
    
    

This long running show has a wealth of fantastic back story and a great premise. It was quirky and fun. That’s about it.

Why The Doctor is better: Seriously it was a great show and fun to watch But it can't hold a candle to to Trek Let alone the DR.

3. Firefly
   
   The MOST griping touching and beautifully done Sci-Fi Show EVER. It was amazing and each hour gripped you in its flawed characters, and humor and darkness. It made human choices that felt organic and not forced. Making choices that went against common sense.
   Why The Doctor is better: Firefly just wasn't on the air long enough. I would put its 14 episodes up against any 14 episodes you want to pick out of any other show and it would hold its own. However the Dr had some EPIC 14 episodes, so did Trek, Lost in Space, Buck Rodgers it goes on and on. The Dr is just better and has done it longer. And to truly be a contender you have to draw fans...something Firefly couldn't do.
4. Babylon 5
   
   An amazing show! This Show gave TNG a run for its money during the height of Trek popularity. It was one giant story that broke the mold of the stand-alone episodes that would pave the way for show like LOST. No show has ever done it better except-
   Why The Doctor is better: The Doctor is a story about a man roaming all of time and space. It could be considered one long biographical narrative. You may disagree but Seriously B5 was a great Niche show and had a great impact on Sci-fi but not the depth, longevity, fans, reach or quality of the Dr.
5. Battlestar Galatica
   
   Either you get this shows moral compass or you don't. It is not transcendent of is genre. Its characters make questionable choices for the sake of shocking the audience more than relevant story telling. It is a great show. But the mark of great Sci-fi has to push the boundaries of humanity in a way that explores depth of character not the abandonment of it. Watching it is torture sometimes, and I mean that in a good way. It is a great show but it doesn't rise to the level to be even considered a rival.
   Why The Doctor is better: See above
6. Farscape
   
   Possibly the best bad show ever. What makes it great is often overshadowed by some silly stuff (Puppets???) it has an edge on examining humanity other shows only wish it could do. The show could be gripping and fun and thoughtful all in the same moment. It truly was amazing.
   Why The Doctor is better: One you have seen Dr. who or at least heard of him. Dr. who does all the things Farscap does. Though Farscape is better at it its not that much better and the Doctor does puppets better (In the 60's).
7. All other shows.
   There have been some great ones. Dark Angel, the 4400, Eureka, Buck Rodgers, Flash Gordon, Twilight Zone, Quantum Leap, Lost, Sliders, The Outer Limits. I could go on and on. The all lacked something. Whether it is longevity or cultural significance or consistent story telling they all wore out there welcome.

Why Dr. Who is the best:

Its my daughters favorite show.

This video is for her:

What Kind of D&D Character are You?

Seriously, even if you have never had an interest in playing Dungeons and Dragons, or you are not sure what the game is, or you even think being associated with it is revolting you should go to this link:
http://www.easydamus.com/character.html It is possibly the best personality indicator I have ever seen. It takes a minute but it is worth it!

P.S. I love you Lenovo

Well, I got my lap-top. I know I told you I would give you a running update on progress but here is what happened. I was doing my initial research. I started at the top-of-the -line systems to see what the bar was. I looked at Alienware, Razer, Digital Storm, Heck just go here: http://computers.toptenreviews.com/gaming-laptops/.  I found an add for Lenovo the Chinese based manufacturing company that (I came to find out) is the largest computer distributor in the world. I had not heard of it until I watched the Super Bowl and found out they provide laptops to the NFL. I went to their website and they had just introduced the Y-500 series. This laptop can rival all of the top rigs I saw in the reviews. And it was cheaper. Still more than I could pay so I started to look around at what else they had when I found the introduction sale marked off the Y-500 substantially.  Still more than I wanted to pay. Then Lenovo had a "if you buy from the manufacture discount on top of that which put the rig under my max I wanted to pay. (it was still higher than the wife's) So, I have a rig that will work for some years to come. Check out DayZ mod and Feed The Beast Mod.

P.S. I hate you MacAfee...
P.P.S look for the follow-up post "I hate you Windows 8"

Adventures in Laptops...

I have decided it is time for a new laptop. And I figured the best place to chronicle the Quest for a new laptop is on SCM GEEK. First, the reasons behind the decision. The Official State Controlled Media Laptop is OK. It is 4 years old though and it is beginning to struggle. The Photo editing alone drags the system. And we have loads of Picture on it as well. AS music lovers our database is full. The hardware just doesn’t want to seem to keep up with the software. The memory is inadequate and the processor works in overtime. The hard drive is plenty big and the graphics card is adequate but it seems more than the processor can handle. If all I did was watch Netflix and Youtube it would be great. Facebook runs smooth. I use my laptop for many things and it has to be able to keep up.  So, To my loving wife you have read the reasons as stated to you now you can stop reading.

Is she gone?

Now the real reason. The @!(*$&$ thing won’t run Mincraft! The FPS hovers around 24 which is fine but the more you do in the game the FPS drops around 2.  Also I want to try out  DayZ when it comes out. And I know I can’t do it.  So I will be looking at a nice Gaming Laptop…What’s that Honey?

No, I said a multimedia laptop. I will be looking at several  manufacturers, doing a few reviews and hopefully find one on the cheap…CHEAP. Feedback is welcome.