So I messed around with the iPad some more. I recorded things and I blogged. I also did a bit of editing.

Here’s a link to a video of the class I gave to my Music Programming students today – recorded on a Flip camera, and edited on the iPad. It’s nothing special, but it’s probably not something I would have done had I not been using different equipment than usual.

Above is another video experiment. Not a very good one, I’ll admit, but it’s something I can perhaps improve of.

Note to self: do video recordings in daylight. Grainy is not a good look. Also – get longer arms.

Halfway through my first day using the iPad as my sole computer and seeing how that affects what I do and how I do it. Right now, I’m typing on the screen rather than using the Bluetooth keyboard, which is not ideal, but not a problem particularly.

I was concerned that there might be things that I would have to stop doing until I’m back on the laptop – but it hadn’t occurred to me that there might be things that I would start doing as well. But it immediately turns out that there are.

Jake and I went and saw this film at the Flatpack Festival. If you get a chance – definitely go and see it.

Photo by rockcreek

I don’t own a television set, and while I do watch the odd show, it’s usually at a rate of about one or two programmes per week, give or take – and never on any particular schedule.*

If I have a bit of downtime, and my brain isn’t up to much, I’ll head to iPlayer for a panel show comedy of some kind, or a light and fluffy documentary programme like that Wonders of the Solar System thing I enjoyed half an hour of over the weekend.

But I love great television. Especially well-written television. I’m a huge Joss Whedon fan, I’m blown away by pretty much anything that Jane Espenson turns her hand to (with the possible exception of Andy Barker, PI) and I think Aaron Sorkin‘s a bit of a genius. I think the medium is capable of some fantastic long-arc storytelling, and some of it is easily the equal of some of the best cinema out there. Often it’s even better.

My problem is one of time. But I have an idea that provides me with a very simple solution to that…

It’s basically just a list
“No, I haven’t seen that TV series yet. It’s on my Retirement Pile…”

The Retirement Pile is something I invented to stop myself feeling like I was missing out by not watching all the great TV series that all my friends are raving about.

Of course it’s important that I watch Battlestar Galactica, Lost, The Wire, Breaking Bad and Mad Men. I love a really good TV series, and I can marathon a box set like it’s going out of fashion. Your recommendations and enthusiasms are much appreciated.

It’s just not important that I watch them right now. I have other things I’m doing at the moment. But one day, I’ll be retired, and think how many great shows I’ll get to sit down and watch. I’m really looking forward to it.

If you have any shows you’d recommend to me (or films for that matter), I’d love to hear them. And I will definitely check them out and no doubt enjoy them.

I’m just massively procrastinating about it – in an organised fashion.

*The glaring exception to this is Supernatural. Bobbie and I watch it together every week that it’s on – and not because it’s good. It’s a guilty pleasure. I mean – it’s The Dukes of Hazzard with ghosts. What’s not to like?

“It’s good to come home now and then, eh bro.. eat some ice creams, do some bombs.”

I had a bit of a celebratory weekend. To kick off, it was Clutch’s stag party, which pretty much involved a bunch of really great people – many of whom I hadn’t met before – drinking a fair bit, joking around and talking nonsense. Today it was Stef Lewandowski’s 30th birthday, and that was celebrated as a lunchtime roast at Stef’s house with a few friends.

Amogst a bunch of diverse, talented and interesting guests, Birmingham pro-blogger Pete Ashton from Created In Birmingham was in attendance. Stef had just been given seed funding for a brand new venture, and I had just come into possession of a decent video camera — so the idea was hatched to have Pete interview Stef, capture it on video and upload it to the internet. So here it is.

I suspect more of this sort of thing will start to happen now that the the Birmingham blog scene seems to have discovered online video.

Some other videos were captured this weekend, most of which are not suitable for public consumption (mostly because I’m still learning how to drive the machinery) and many of which are simply glimpses of an event that you had to have been there to make any sense of what is said.

But a couple of the videos are worth a look. Particularly this one – in which Pete Ashton explains why he plucked his eyebrows with a pair of pliers live on the internet.

You can see the original internet event itself.

On a technical note: Video sharing services online tend to significantly downgrade the quality of the image, which is disappointing when you have a cool new toy, but as far as I can tell, it’s easier than uploading and embedding the mp4 / mov files themselves. But I’d appreciate any advice on that.

I’m using MPEG Streamclip to convert the original .MOD files off the camera – and Quicktime Pro to top and tail the videos.