Warning: this article contains spoilers from Star Trek: Nemesis, Star Trek: Voyager, and some minor spoilers from Star Trek Destiny.
I recently finished this 3-part Star Trek series by David Mack, which converges stories from Star Trek The Next Generation, DS9, Voyager, and Enterprise. Macks' story blends these timelines together naturally, truly fabricating the continuity of the Trek universe. Of particular interest to me was how this explores the events after Star Trek: Nemesis and the fall of Praetor Shinzon. Captain Janeway's actions destroying the Borg's transwarp hub in Endgame have lead the Borg to reevaluate the Federation and conclude that it is too large of a threat and must be completely destroyed, rather than assimilated. They send a massive fleet of thousands of cubes to destroy every Federation planet.
Amidst this backdrop, the novel delves into the psyche of many major characters, including Captain Jean-Luc Picard. Jean-Luc and Beverly Crusher have recently been married, Picard having finally decided to step out of his self-imposed emotional isolation. Mack explores the continuing effect of the deaths of Robert and René, his brother and nephew, years earlier. This traumatic event forced Picard to begin re-evaluating his relationships and his deep feelings for Beverly. Distraught and drowning in dispair of the inescapable nature of the Borg invasion, Jean-Luc begins to lose hope for the future. Beverly finds him on the holodeck, walking through his family's vineyard in France, and stopping to contemplate the ruins of his family home, and the memory of Robert and René. Mack's vivid imagery of Picard continues as he finds himself sitting on the floor of his (and Beverly's) quarters, clutching his Ressikan flute in his hands. I felt the scenes in episodes after The Inner Light which portrayed Picard's relationship to his flute to be some of the most powerful revelations of his character, and how much emotion and significance living that other life meant to him. Mack fleshes this out further, tying the emotional scares of his assimilation in as well.
Destiny also explores the relationship between Will Riker and Deanna Troi, having now been married and living aboard the Titan, Riker's own command. They have been struggling to start a family, the stress of which has driven them apart. Throughout the series, Mack reveals how incredibly deep theirImzadibond truly is. Riker also struggles with intertwining his personal life and his command, while living with the consequences of impossible choices.
Worf, now the first officer of the Enterprise, continues to struggle with the loss of his wife, Jadzia. This plays out as he is forced to confront his feelings by Ezri Dax, who perhaps knows him best. The reader also sees Ezri emerge a leader, captain of the Aventine, wise beyond her years.
Surprisingly, Mack elevates the significance of Columbia NX-02, the sister ship to Enterprise, and in particular its captain, Erika Hernandez. Her character comes to life as the ever-curious scientist and explorer, which embodies the foundational message of the Federation and Star Trek in general. Her destiny pushes her into the midst of the conflict and towards a shocking revelation.
Star Trek Destiny reaffirmed the importance of the depth of characters, and David Mack did not disappoint in continuing to deepen and enhance these and many others. This book series provides a satisfying conclusion to the events of The Next Generation and Voyager, and an inner look into the history and consciousness of the Borg. Weaving together a story lines from across series, time, and space, this series must be considered a jewel on the Star Trek tapestry.
It was definitely a heartfelt ending. I was skeptical to say the least of Matt Smith being able to fill David Tennant's shoes as The Doctor, but he has really done a superb job, especially with the 2nd half of the season. He brings a totally new element to The Doctor that is really rich and vibrant. He is perhaps more serious than Tennant's Doctor, but the important similarity they share is the grave importance and emotion they pour out for those they care about. Matt Smith's concern for Amy bears striking resemblence to David Tennant's concern for Rose. In my opinion, this strong character development is the core of the show and the real reason I enjoy watching it.
I was also very impressed by how well they bought things together from the rest of the season. Everything was very tightly integrated and well coordinated. For example, when The Doctor appears to Amy during the angels episode and she has her eyes shut, he tells her it's very important that she try and remember him. I was confused by this part in the original episode, just brushing it off at the time. Now, however, I see it in a new light of how seriously The Doctor meant all of those words. I am glad the writers took the time to integrate and weave the storyline so well. I am also very excited to see where The Doctor's relationship with River Song goes and what else we will learn about their relationship in Season 6.
Here are a few more of my favorite scenes (thanks to Sonic Biro for the screencaps):
I have to admit, I wasn't very excited about the return of Eureka this season. Don't get me wrong, I think it is a great scifi show and really some of the best content on TV. I just wasn't in a rush or overly excited to start in on this new season. Well, it didn't take more than 5 minutes to pull me back in. Syfy, I sincerely hope you give this show many more seasons of episodes because the writers have really outdone themselves this time.
First off, season 4 debuts with a guest appearance by James Callis, best known as Dr. Gaius Baltar on Battlestar Galactica. Callis plays arguably the most sophisticated, complex, and conflicted personality on BSG - an acting talent he brings nicely to Eureka. He plays Dr. Grant, the founding father of Eureka and a brilliant scientist who along with Einstein created a wormhole generator.
The episode starts out with Carter, Allison, Fargo, Henry, and Jo getting sucked back in time to 1947. This is where we meet Dr. Grant. The whole episode through I just expected him to be a guest character who would be gone after they return to the future, but instead when everyone makes it home safely, they find Dr. Grant has joined them in 2010. His absence from history creates an alternate timeline, in which Jo and Zane never were together, Henry is married, Allison's son Kevin is very different, Fargo is GD Director, and Carter & Tess are still together. This creates a dichotomy: for some characters this alternate timeline is great, while for others it is a dark shadow of "home". Mixed up right in the center of this is Dr. Grant, which Callis has pulled off beautifully as a brilliant and mysterious man.
I'm very excited to see how Callis' character grows and affects Eureka, and if it ever becomes possible for them to "restore" the timeline. In my best case scenario, I think it would be good for them to continue in this timeline but have Jo and Zane start their relationship up (again) in this time. As I've said before, this show is amazing not for its "scientific" scifi but for its characters. They have been very richly developed from the very beginning, and events like Henry's relationship with Kim or Allison's relationship with Nathan Stark have really brought life to this show which is not seen elsewhere on TV. Adding this alternate reality twist along with the tremedous talent of James Callis bodes well for keeping up this tradition of incredible character development. Congrats to the writers and staff of Eureka, this is looking to be the absolute best season yet of this fantastic show!
Finally it is here. There has been a lot of negative reactions to Apple's new iPad. Remember the reaction to the first iPod or the iPhone? Many of the complaints are things that can (and hopefully will) be addressed with software updates. This is a major new product which means they can't have absolutely everything implemented at its inception. Here's my perspective on the iPad and why I believe this new device from Apple will once again revolutionize an industry.
I believe this Gizmodo post hits the nail on the head. The idea that a tablet should run a desktop operating system is fundamentally flawed. Why? Because creating a tablet that simply runs a desktop OS will be at best be clunky and won't capture the market. If someone wants to use a desktop environment, they will buy a laptop or netbook. The way to really make this tablet successful is to change the whole computing paradigm. This means creating a new interface for this "computer" - something easier and more intuitive to use. In Computer Science we often talk about abstraction - it is really the only way you can understand the inner workings of computers. As you move up from the lowest hardware level to complex chips and eventually the software bridge, you must abstract away the details. Moreover, an operating system does just that - it abstracts away a lot of the tasks necessary to make a computer function and thus makes them usable and actually enjoyable. The Apple iPad takes this abstraction one step further.
The iPad differs in a number of good ways from a traditional desktop OS:
Restricted Applications: This has been seen as a negative thing - and it is from the perspective of a power user. But for regular users this is actually a good thing. Having an approval process for applications means no malicious software (e.g. spyware, phishing software, or viruses) and also no buggy or inefficient software which will take over your system and drain your battery. This is not to say there aren't disadvantages to this (see below), but for average computer users the benefits greatly outweigh the downside
Abstracted Filesystem: This is one mentioned in the Gizmodo article and it really makes good sense - users don't like dealing with all the files and folders on their computer. Often they're not sure how to transfer files from one device to another, or even one folder to another. Finding files is yet another difficult, related task. The iPad does away with all this by abstracting the filesystem. Instead of folders where you keep your files, different types of files can just be accessed through their various applications. This innovation is really the shift which I think will make this the new 2.0 computer for the masses
Touch Interface: Yes, this has already been around in the iPhone and iPod Touch. However, having a large screen like this means that you can finally interact with the same content on your normal computer but instead the experience is more personal. Surfing the web via the touch interface creates a much more seamless experience than the traditional computer. This interface for most people is much more intuitive than a keyboard and mouse
A Content Store: Linux, Debian in particular, has had this concept for years. Provide a central repository from which you can download all your programs and keep them up to date. The numerous benefits of this system of management are now brought to the masses with a computing device which lets you download apps from one place rather than hunting the web for an executable and then running an installer. Moreover, the apps are kept up-to-date pretty much automatically. This same concept is applied to content - if you want to access a book, song, or video, simply browse the central repository. Granted, you can also add content externally but this integration is crucial for average users
Portability: You can say what you want about laptop or netbook portability, but having a device like this which you can easily slip in a backpack that weighs so little and gets 10 hours of battery life is incredible. 10 hours doing intensive work like video playback or web surfing!
Price: $499 for this device? For many users, having an ultra-portable device which does pretty much everything they need is well worth this price tag in comparison to a laptop. I'm glad the rumours were wrong on this front
iWork: Apple has sold the iPad with these new products. Creating a complete and customized (fully touchscreen oriented) office suite for this device is an important step to success. However, an even bigger factor is the price tag. $10 for a full-fledged word processing application and $30 for the whole suite? Compare that to Microsoft Office. Not only that but you can choose which productivity apps you actually use and just buy those.
Problems - there are a few issues which Apple should resolve to make this product live up to its full potential:
Restricted Applications: This is a good thing most of the time (see above), but maybe you want to run Firefox or a Google Voice app on your iPad. Some app rejections don't make sense from the standpoint I outlined above. Lifehacker has a simple solution to this problem: created a special "restricted apps" section of the App Store which you must explicitly enable and agree to. Here Apple can put apps that are more geared towards power users such as emulators, alternative browsers, etc. Average users won't care that they're using Safari, it will seem equivalent to any other browser and probably will perform faster on the iPad since Apple has spent so much time designing it. By offering a restricted section, Apple can satisfy the demands of some of their users while maintaining the ease of use for the rest.
Background Processes: Currently the iPad does not allow background apps. I don't see this being an issue for things like AIM or SMS messages, but I can see it being a problem if you want to listen to Pandora while typing a paper. Fortunately, this is solely a software problem and I believe Apple will introduce this functionality fairly shortly. I think a good way to do it is allow developers to apply for background enabling for specific apps. You don't need to run certain apps, like 3D games, in the background. Those will just hog memory and drain your battery. By selectively allowing apps to be backgrounded, Apple can keep their commitment to good battery life and a responsive system while making background-capable apps work well.
Flash: Many people complain about the lack of flash support. I, however, actually see it as a blessing. I have never enjoyed having to load a flash plugin in order to watch a video or interact with a page. I find it cumbersome and it often doesn't work that well under Linux (and Mac OS X). Flash should not be necessary for something like playing back a video, and Apple is helping to push Flash to the back of the bus and usher in a plugin-free HTML5 world for online video. Another area Flash is used - ads. Do you really want Flash ads on websites on your iPad? Advertisers can still provide very attractive ads without using Flash. Also, a lot of games online are written in Flash. However, Adobe has made it possible now to directly port a Flash game into an iPhone app so this shouldn't be an issue. Finally, there some websites which are made in Flash or have Flash components (e.g. Scribd). This is the only legitimate reason I can see for allowing Flash on the iPhone. Perhaps something like this Javascript Flash runtime? Oh and then there's Hulu, but we don't need Flash for that because an official Hulu app is coming soon.
On-Screen Keyboard: Many also claim that the keyboard is not innovative enough or will be hard to use. My opinion on the keyboard is this - Apple has obviously spent a lot of time developing this product. Steve Jobs was known to have rejected a number of prototypes because they weren't good enough. They must have designed this keyboard to work well enough to be usable - maybe not for typing dissertations but at least for average typing. Moreover, Jobs typed quickly and seemingly easily on the iPad during his keynote demonstration. I think this is a non-issue, especially with the nice, small keyboard-dock.
So where does this leave us? What will the iPad mean for the computer industry? The reason Steve Jobs said that the iPad is "the most important thing I've ever done" is because this is the computer reinvented for the masses; computers 2.0. Average users can now use a computer that is more intuitive and lets them simply access what they want. This is why he made that statement - the iPad has the potential to completely change the world of computers forever. Most people aren't power computer users, so for them the iPad is finally a perfect fit for their computing needs. Laptops and desktops are not going to disappear, they will still be prominent when more power is required and favored by power users, but this device and its successors will create a new, better computer experience for the average users.
What about print media? This is another reason why the iPad has so much potential for success. Yes, the Kindle is a good ebook reader. However, it does not have a color display and it does not display pictures and video and really interactive content like the iPad can. In order for newspapers and print media to see a resurgence, they must reinvent themselves with an updated format for the 21st century. Thia means new content and a more convenient format. What better way to do this than through the iPad. I also think the iPad will be revolutionary in education - imagine carrying just the iPad which has all your textbooks on it! And this isn't like carrying a laptop with PDFs - these textbooks will feel a lot like real textbooks in that you can flip through the pages.
The future for the iPad is bright - and I am really excited to see where this takes the computer industry. Granted, you won't see gcc on iPads around the world anytime soon, but for casual computer user, which makes up a large portion of the consumers, the iPad is a perfect fit.
Image courtesy of Apple.com
Another excellent episode of Sanctuary. I am continually impressed by the rich mythology of this show. After the exploration of the Ancients and their history in the Stargate franchise, I really began to appreciate how well those shows weaved their mythology together. However, I have been even more impressed with Sanctuary and Nikola Tesla in particular. His character always walks the line between good and bad - on the one hand he is the greatest mind alive and was vital in stopping the Kabal. On the other, he tends to wreak havoc from time to time as he seeks to restore the vampire race to greatness. Even this cannot truly be considered bad, since he simply seeks to preserve his race from extinction (again). Spoilers ahead.
This week's episode, Sleepers, revisits Tesla and his efforts to create a new race of vampires. This time, he succeeds but is perhaps too successful. These new vampires cannot see the bigger picture and only thirst for power. They kidnap Tesla and he must rely on Magnus to free him and bring the failsafe device. This was another highlight of the episode - seeing the relationship between Magnus and Tesla and how they know each other so well after all these years: Magnus knowing he would have a failsafe and where to look, Tesla knowing she would bring it, and the two of them coordinating almost without words to knock down the remaining vampires.
Tesla losing his powers was a shock and an interesting twist on the story. No longer can he simply do as he pleases. It will be interesting to see what his new powers entail. I hope they still include immortality because the trio of Magnus, Tesla, and Druitt make for some fantastic story arcs. I also enjoyed Magus's reaction to his loss - her concern for Tesla (because he is one of the remaining five) really weaves the rich mythology together with the personal character narratives of the show. Herein lies the strength of this series - not only does it have a rich mythology, but it blends the myth personally with the characters. I am very much looking forward to its return in 2010 and (from the preview) the return of Druitt.
What a fantastic episode of scifi. This week on Sanctuary brought a suspenseful and fast paced thriller to this already great series.
WARNING: the following review contains spoilers for the season 2 episode Veritas. After the nice character development for Henry last week, this episode was a refreshing fast-paced mystery. The episode started out perfectly finding the big guy dead and Will vowing to find the murderer. The thing that really struck me in this episode is how nothing was revealed to the audience until the very end. You didn't know who was in on it and what exactly was going on with Magnus. I suspected that a shape-shifter abnormal had replaced her but I was pleased and surprised to be wrong.
There are a couple parts of this episode that I really liked. First was the scenes in the big guy's tomb. The imagery with the light streaming in through the window works perfectly and really made both the moment and death of this character dramatic. You could really feel the sadness, confusion, and disbelief that Henry and Will were feeling. I also liked seeing some character growth for Kate and Magnus playing a totally different type of role. Overall a great entertaining episode!
Mark Knopfler's latest offering doesn't disappoint. Throughout both the Dire Straits years as well as his solo career, Mark has always shyed away from the pop sound in favor of rich imagery and sound. Get Lucky is no exception. Right from the title track, Mark's unique style of weaving a subdued yet powerful message - luck comes and goes. The track Early Bird pays tribute to Swing Low Sweet Chariot with it's melodic style. This fantastic album is definitely worth checking out! [Amazon]
If you follow any tech news sites, you've probably come across the Mono controversy. If not, let me give you a brief introduction. Microsoft built on top of the Java programming language syntax to create a new language called C#. C# fixed a bunch of the programs with Java (such as dynamic typing) while sticking with a consistent syntax based in C/C++. Microsoft integrated C# into .NET, which is their bundle of programming tools for developers. As you can imagine, .NET and C# compilers/runtime were only available for Windows. Enter the Mono Project, an open source implementation of a C# compiler and runtime for Linux and Mac OS X. This is great news - now you can run and develop C# applications on Linux and Mac OS X! However, Linux developers are concerned about Microsoft asserting some type of patent claim on C# and thus inhibiting the use of any Linux programs that use it. These fears were legitimate until a few weeks ago when it was announced that the ECMA/ISO parts of C# are covered under the Community Promise so that "anyone can implement and ship implementations of said standards without the fear of patent infringement allegations from Microsoft. Good news for the Mono community." (Source).
For this reason, I don't see why C# development on Linux and Mac OS X shouldn't continue. C# provides a vehicle for rapid application development in a modern environment that is totally different from the traditional C/C++ experience. Not only that, many great Linux C# applications, including MonoDevelop itself and Gnome Do, already exist. I think this article really sums up my feels on the use of C#. I'm excited to start working more with C# in MonoDevelop and hope to post a program or two written in C# in the coming months.
Finally it is here. There has been a lot of 
