On Albumista: Robin Gibb Dies

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YouTube 7th birthday

YouTube is celebrating its seventh birthday, and as such, has revealed a fairly mindblowing statistic: YouTube users now upload 72 hours of video content to the site every minute. A year ago, that figure was "just" 48 hours every sixty seconds. Other interesting tidbits of note include the fact that 800,000,000 YouTube viewers watch over 3 billion hours of video each month, which equates to roughly 15 minutes per viewer. The site is, if you haven't noticed, a freaking juggernaut. Check the video after the break that celebrates seven years of YouTube, and feel free to leave your favorite YouTube videos in the comments.

Click to continue reading YouTube celebrates 7th birthday, users uploading 72 hours of video each minute


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iOS 6 FaceTime 3G

Since the introduction of FaceTime, users have been clamoring for a time when the technology would work over 3G. Since the debut of FaceTime as the major feature of the iPhone 4, it's been relegated to Wi-Fi-only staus, which meant that many on-the-go users never used it. However, a recent error message found by iDevice displays the message "Disabling 3G may end FaceTime."

With the next iPhone rumored to be LTE-enabled, it isn't hard to believe that FaceTime over 3G and/or LTE will be a feature of iOS 6. When FaceTime was first introduced, Steve Jobs noted that Apple needed "to work a little bit with the cellular providers to get [FaceTime] ready for the future."

Read More | iDevice

Before Watchmen

"I hope he looks at them with an open mind and a chance to understand this is a love letter to what he created, and more importantly that the strength of his work is allowing other people to grow and tell other stories which will hopefully inspire other creators along the way. In the way he was inspired by the creators when he was younger, we're hoping these ideas and these books are inspiring new people, so that we continue to grow the comics business as a whole."

- Dan DiDio on Alan Moore and Before Watchmen

Be sure to check out our other notable quotes!

[Artwork: Before Watchmen, not by Alan Moore and © DC Comics]

Read More | Dan DiDio

Mister MiracleAs you all know by now, Green Arrow has finally gotten his own series. Only they’ve had to shorten it to just Arrow for reasons known only to Television Network Naming Executives.

Maybe that’s the secret to getting comic books on television though. Dropping the first part of their name must make them more dynamic and appealing.

Green Arrow sounds sort of old-fashioned and comic booky. But Arrow is hip and full of power and urgency.

With that in mind, I’d like to propose my own list of 10 classic DC characters that could easily be on TV with new dynamic - and shortened - names:

10. Twins

9. Miracle


Dinosaur ComicsTopatoCo, the terrific indie publisher and central shipping hub for a lot of great books (and other stuff), was founded “by maverick cowboy cyber cartoonist Jeffrey Rowland.”

They're expanding a bit and have an opening for a long term position in "Print Tech/Customer Service at our warehouse in Easthampton, MA."

Read More | TopatoCo

Black WidowAnother sad week as noted comic book artist Ernie Chan passes away. As always, Mark Evanier has the best obituary, if ever an obit can be categorized that way.

Amanda Marcotte takes a look at The Avengers movie, specifically the male reviewers and their reactions to The Black Widow.

Another good catch by Daniel Best at 20th Century Danny Boy: a tale of stolen artwork involving Joe Simon and the FBI.

Comedy writer Paul Laikin (he wrote for MAD Magazine and was editor of Marvel’s Crazy) has passed away.

And speaking of MAD Magazine, I’ve never met anyone who didn’t like Don Martin’s work. Here’s a nice piece in honor of his birthday.


Ernie Chan 2010Comic book legend Ernie Chan (who had previously gone by the name Ernie Chua) has passed away.

Greg Hatcher at Comic Book Resources has a very good piece about him.

Here's a nice, though brief, interview with Ernie from a while ago.

I met Ernie in a "hello, pleased to meet you" kind of way at Comic Con International in 2010 (that's where this photo comes from). He seemed like a very nice guy and the art on his table was just tremendous.

He had a tremendous following because of his Conan work at Marvel, but when I was a kid he was one of the great Batman artists. I loved his dynamic covers as much as I loved his interiors.

[Artwork: Photo of Ernie Chan by and © Tom Mason]


NoxIf you happen to be in the Seattle area on Saturday, May 19, consider dropping by Artist & Craftsman Supply on 8th Ave.

My pal, Shon Bury, will be the guest speaker at this month’s meeting of Cartoonists Northwest from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. The deets are at the link below.

In addition to his freelance writing career, (which includes creating WildStorm’s Black Ops with Jim Lee and Dan Norton; working with Colleen Doran on Marvel’s Power Pack; writing for Superman Adventures and Cable), and his self-publishing career (the original graphic novel Nox) Shon is the founder and pres of Space Goat Productions, the full-service production studio that supplies Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Boom! and many other publishers with art and colors.

Read More | Cartoonists NW

Windows 8 ui

Microsoft has just revealed some major changes as it pertains to the user interface of Windows 8. Gone is the popular Aero Glass theme that shipped with Windows Vista and Windows 7. It's being replaced with a flatter design that seems to match the boxy shapes that we've been seeing on the Xbox 360, Windows Phone, and the Windows RT Metro UI. It does seem to make sense, although we always thought that Aero Glass was certainly visually appealing. Microsoft says it's confident that users will find the new UI less distracting.

Within the same announcement, the company takes you back in time with a tour through various Windows interfaces, starting with the original Windows 1. Good stuff.

Read More | Building Windows 8

Buy PC free xbox 360

Once again, Microsoft is going to be offering a free Xbox 360 for students who buy a qualifying PC. The computers start at $699, and when purchased at certain retailers, a 4 GB Xbox 360 will be thrown in gratis beginning on May 18. Up in Canada, students are welcome to the same deal, and the PCs start at $599. Participating retailers include Dell, Best Buy, Newegg (see our Newegg promo code thread,) Fry's Electronics, Staples, Future Shop, the Microsoft Store, and more.

Wanna save even more cash? Wait to make the purchase until June 2, when the Windows 8 upgrade program is set to launch, allowing PC buyers to upgrade to Windows 8 for just $15.

Read More | Windows Team Blog

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