The amplifier., May 01, 2007, Page 19, Image 19

Web comics have foothold on internet culture
M ike G orgone
Entertainment Editor
The internet has seen
the rise and fall of several
new media platforms.
Flash animation cartoons,
podcasts and blogs are the
more common examples, but
perhaps the most widespread
and popular of these media
revolutions is the web comic.
We have all read the
morning newspaper and, at
one time or another, turned
to the funnies to amuse
ourselves with the antics
of "Garfield" or the hijinks
of "Dilbert." The almost
infectious spread of the
internet has given any person
with access to a computer the
ability to upload comics into
a international viewership.
Thus the web comic was
bom.
Web comics have become
a major force on the internet
of late, whether you're aware
of it or not. While most of
the readily available ones
are focused around pop
culture and an overall "geek"
lifestyle, others revolve
around much more mundane
issues like being alive in
today's socioeconomic
environment while coexisting
with your fellow man. Some
of the more popular web
comics include Tim Buckley's
"Ctrl+Alt+Del," Scott Kurtz's
"Player vs. Player," (PvP for
short) and Woody Hearn's
"GU comics."
Each artist started his or
her comic under different
pretenses, but most of them
have just springboarded
from entertaining their
friends and family to
enthralling an entire culture
on the internet.
Jerry Holkins and Mike
Krahulik, started a little
comic named "Penny
Arcade" back in 1999, when
the internet had just barely
gotten off the ground.
"Penny Arcade" is mainly
focused around the neurosis
that can grip people at times
when presented with one
video game or another and
the foolishness of some very
idiotic video games.
Almost a decade later,
"Penny Arcade" has become
one of the largest forces in
video games on the internet,
the site is updated with news
and opinionated posts by
the authors more than once
a day in most cases. "Penny
Arcade" has grown so much
in fact, that several years
ago it became the focal point
of one of the largest benefit
conventions on the west
coast. Known as "PAX," the
convention is a breeding
ground for the new video
game market and geekness
in general; it also donates
all of its proceeds to the
Child's Play foundation, a
nonprofit organization which
devotes its resources to
helping underprivileged and
critically sick children.
Not all web comics can
claim the responsibility of
being altruistic though. In
most cases these, comics
merely exist to entertain their
internet-bound audiences.
Woody Hearn's "GU
comics" was started as a
page that the author used
to entertain his friends
that played alongside him
in the MMOG (Massively
Multiplayer Online Game)
"Everquest" and has since
become a more mainstream
comic that focuses on the
wacky antics within today's
market of popular console
and PC video games. It also
picks apart the niceties of
everyday life as a geek, or
just as a human being (i.e.
washing dishes, fighting
Santa Claus and time wasted
trolling the internet). The
comic succeeds in digging
into the meat of the current
socioeconomic stat of global
politics.. .mostly when
pertaining to video games.
One of the greatest
things about web comics
is their ability to make you
branch out. Most people
start off reading just one. I
personally began with "GU
comics," and from there,
via comments made by the
author or references within
the comic itself, I started
down the slippery slope
of internet goodness that
eventually leads to checking
dozens of comics every day
to see who has the earliest
update.
You can find a comic that
pertains to your personal
interests and hobbies so
instead of having them fed to
you in a papery format, you
can select the ones that suit
your lifestyle. It's like having
your own personal Living
section, right there on your
computer.
Apple's iPhone offers promise of greatness
iE C arney
Staff Reporter
In June of 2007, Apple's
new iPhone will hit stores
featuring a 3.5 inch, 320X480
resolution screen as well
as 4-8 GB of storage. This
multifunctional device was
first advertised during this
year's Superbowl. It combines
the features of an iPod,
internet browser, camera,
and cell phone all in one. The
phone will be available for
purchase for $499 (4GB) or
$599 (8GB), with a two year
contract, in June through
Cingular Wireless.
The screen of this new
device has sensors to detect
when to turn it off and
how you hold it. The
first one is a proximity
sensor. When the phone
is brought up close
enough to your face,
it senses it needs
to turn off the
back light and
touchpad screen.
This helps the
phone save its
battery life. The
next sensor is an
accelerometer.
This senses the
orientation
of the
phone (vertical or horizontal)
and lines up the menu
according to the direction
in which the phone is faced.
The last and final sensor is an
ambient light sensor, which
also controls the backlight in
order to save battery power.
The next feature to the
phone is the built-in iPod
functionality. Like the video
iPods, the phone can show
movies, TV, and music. When
watching a movie or TV, you
can choose between full screen
or wide-screen just by tapping
the screen twice.
The music is organized in
a slightly more convenient
way. It's are organized in
phones, the iPhone displays
websites, just like a computer,
only smaller. This is different
compared to most other
phones, which usually show a
more simplified version of the
site, which can be confusing
to try and work. The view of
the page can also be displayed
vertically or horizontally.
In addition to everything
else, the iPhone has all the
regular calling functions of
the average cell phone, but
with even a bit more. It allows
three-way calling, call holding,
call merging and caller ID, but
it also has another convenient
voice mail feature, allowing
you to check your messages
without even calling voice
mail. The phone lists your
voice mails on screen without
the hassle if having to call.
You can browse through them
all at one; no more listening
to 20 old messages before
hearing the one you want.
A two megapixel camera
with video recording and
zoom capabilities, and a built
in battery that is designed
to last up to five hours of
phone use and 16 hours of
music time is also apart of the
package
The headphones that come
with the phone are much like
the ones that come with the
iPod, but they have a built in
speaker that can answer calls
by pinching it.
This phone will be available
for purchase in Cingular and
Apple stores, June 2007
FtoylisT Sp otligh t: Jon Ares
N athan F isher
co-Editor-in-Chief
"My tastes are pretty wide-
ranging, but I'm much more
of an 'album' guy; I'll listen to
a full album from beginning
to end, rather than 'shuffling'
[them all]," Jon Ares, Media
Tech Assistant and Technical
Director for the Theatre
Department, said.
-
-fe #
Ares appreciates the
art that an entire album
represents; the work that an
artist puts into song choice
and order or if the album
tells a story. "Artists that are
excellent poets (like Sting and
Annie Lennox) are the ones I
will listen to over and over."
Ares' home CD collection
is just under 500 discs
and contains, "classical,
'old school' jazz, lots of
alternative, tons of music
from Broadway shows, many
operas, techno, New Age, and
a good amount of classic rock.
One can also find Chinese
hillside music, Gregorian
chants, and 'novelty'
recordings; some that go back
50 years or more."
..
Album
Time A rtis t
.
a
a
a
a
a
a
a
3
alphabetical
order, and
displayed in. much
larger, easier to read font.
The iPhone is capable
of both Wi-Fi and EV-PO
internet access. Unlike other
m
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a
a
a
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Who’s Sorry Now?
It’s A Privilege to Pee
Pinball Wizard
Think I’m In Love
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Behind The Wheel
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Haben Sie Gehört Das Deutsche Band?©
James K. Polk
0
Porcelain
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Embraceable You
0
Us & Them
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Space Oddity
0
Movement IV
0
Russians
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Fortuna Imperatrix Mundi
©
Why
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2:37
3:47
4:19
3:19
5:18
1:11
3:19
3:59
6:49
7:48
5:15
_•__
3:58
5:36
4:53
Esquivel
Broadway Cast
The Who
Beck
Depeche Mode
Broadway Cast
They Might Be Giants
Moby
Billie Holiday
Pink Floyd
David Bowie
Vangelis
Sting
Cart Orff
Annie Lennox
C Space-Age Bachelor Pad Music
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“Urinetown, The Musical!“
Tommy
The Information
Music For The Masses
“The Producers”
Factory Showroom
Play
The Billie Holiday Collection
Dark Side of the Moon
Changes Bowie
El Greco
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© Carmina Burana
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