Dan Jones

Frustration, blurred vision, and neck cricks, now with a Star Wars theme! The spherical Mazes of Death that are Perplexus games have produced their own Death Star. If you thought it was tough for Luke and Han to take down the Dark Side's battle station, wait 'til your try your own hand at navigating an X-wing Starfighter through the ship's spiraling chutes and precarious pathways.

With the addition of lights and sounds, the Star Wars Perplexus gives every fan 8 and up the chance to fight for the Alliance and destroy the Death Star. The 3D puzzle requires no batteries for use, and is suitable for one player, or multiple players taking turns. And tilts. And leaps. Just remember: the only way to defeat this Death Star is to use The Force...gently.

Register or login and click Get Started. Sync with your iTunes, Google Play, Amazon Video, Microsoft or Vudu account to get the movie for free. Free Monsters Inc. Movie Download

The post Free Monsters Inc. Movie Download appeared first on SweetFreeStuff.com.

Last week we wrote about prefetching and preloading but forgot to mention preconnect. Thankfully however, Ilya Grigorik has written a great post about this elusive resource hint:

Preconnect is an important tool in your optimization toolbox. As above examples illustrate, it can eliminate many costly roundtrips from your request path — in some cases reducing the request latency by hundreds and even thousands of milliseconds. That said, use it wisely: each open socket incurs costs both on the client and server, and you want to avoid opening sockets that might go unused. As always, apply, measure real-world impact, and iterate to get the best performance mileage from this feature.

Direct Link to Article — Permalink

Eliminating Roundtrips with Preconnect is a post from CSS-Tricks

Cheap Android tablets have been a thing for years now, but the problem with most of ‘em is that, well, they tend to suck. Amazon apparently hopes to change that later this year.

The Wall Street Journal claims that Amazon is planning to launch a 6-inch tablet that’ll cost just $50. The company reportedly outsourced a lot of the tablet’s development to overseas companies like Shanghai Huaqin Telecom Technology Co. and Compal Communications Inc. in order to help get its price down.

In terms of specs, the only detail included in today’s report is that the device will include a mono speaker. Considering that this is Amazon we’re talking about, it seems like a safe bet that Amazon’s Android-based Fire OS will power the device.

Last year we saw Amazon introduce a 6-inch Fire tablet that was priced at $100, which is a reasonable price for a small Android tablet from a big-name company like Amazon. A $50 6-inch tablet could be big for Amazon, though, giving consumers a super-cheap slate to buy during the holiday season. It could be interesting for folks not looking for a gift, too, because $50 for a tablet would probably an impulse buy for a lot of people.

Would you be interested in a 6-inch Amazon tablet for $50?

This photo of a guy rocking an tiny fedora tribly on top of a bun is being hailed as a new fashion trend. WAT.

The Capitol Hill Seattle Community Blog claims this is what’s trending for “Hill male fashion.” But there doesn’t seem to be any visual confirmation of this trend taking place in the wild. Fashion magazine Styleite reached out Capitol Hill for a comment and their spokesperson responded:

“I myself haven’t seen this in person but our community posts submitted by site readers are often out in front on trends.”

Here’s hoping that the man bun tribly is the hipster equivalent of Bigfoot.

Hey everyone, I am excited to announce the launch of MakeWebcomics.com, a free online resource aimed at teaching people how to make webcomics from start to finish. The goal of MakeWebcomics.com is to serve as a repository of everything I have learned, and everything my friends & colleagues in the webcomic industry have learned, that we will now pass on to you. I have been making webcomics for over 10 years, so whether you are an aspiring artist, an established veteran, or a curious fan, I am sure you will find something useful on this website. We'll update with new content at least once a week.

A heartfelt thank you to Tapastic, The Button Mash and the backers on my Support Program for making this project possible!

Homepage: http://makewebcomics.com
Facebook Page: http://facebook.com/makewebcomics
Twitter: http://twitter.com/makewebcomics
Subreddit: http://reddit.com/r/makewebcomics

2 years ago, Google offered 10 GB of free storage for installing the Quickoffice app for Android or iOS. Unfortunately, Google's bonus storage is about to expire.

"We wanted to let you know that you have bonus Google Drive storage expiring on Oct 3 2015. While this bonus period is coming to an end, you can always purchase additional storage," informs Google. "Rest assured that your files in Google Drive remain safe and accessible by you and the people you've shared them with. You just won't be able to add or sync any files unless you are using less than your current available storage or you've purchased additional storage."

Zombie Apocalypse Garden Gnomes – These aren’t your grandmother’s garden gnomes.

Also available for £13.63 from Amazon.co.uk

They see me rolling they BB-8ing 

Hulu has had a paid subscription option for quite some time now, but for those that have paid to get their TV shows (and some movies) accessible on-demand, advertisements may have still been a point of contention for that monthly cost.

That’s changing, though, as Hulu has just announced a brand new subscription plan for those that want to get rid of advertisements. It will cost $11.99 per month, up from the standard $7.99 subscription model, and it’s available right now for those that want to jump into an ad-free experience.

There are some caveats. While the majority of the programming will be without ads, there are some “exception shows,” which will still be rolling with advertisements  even if you’re paying the higher monthly subscription cost. Those shows include titles like New Girl, Scandal, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and Once Upon A Time, plus others. These will only have 15-second ads, though, and no timed advertisements before the show starts.

The new subscription means no ads when you’re watching from your mobile device, too, so there’s a link to the Hulu app below if you want to check it out. Will you pay more to get (most) ads removed?

Sorry, everyone. It turns out we have to ditch enjoying our entertainment a certain way because the managing editor of Movie Mezzanine thinks they are, and this is a direct quote, “truly toxic.”

Alright. Let’s do this.

In his latest editorial, titled “Why Fan Theories are Destroying Film Discourse,” film critic Josh Spiegel deconstructs the modern fan theory, directly calling me out on two theories I’ve written on this very site. For that reason, I think it would be rude not to respond, right?

He starts the essay with a few examples to set up his case.

Did you know that, in The Dark Knight, the hero was actually the Joker? It’s true—if you buy into this recent theory posited by a user on Reddit.

Interesting that he doesn’t link to the post itself, just an article on SlashFilm reporting on it. I mean, that’s not egregiously terrible or anything…but why not just link to the original post? Wouldn’t it be fairer for readers to evaluate the original version instead of a shortened one that leaves out his full explanation?

Also, I don’t get his logic with this sentence: “It’s true—if you buy into this.”

Well, no, something isn’t “true” just because you believe it. I suppose, then, it is true to you, but if Josh is subtly implying that truth is relative, then doesn’t that make this entire article pointless?

And did you know that Andy’s mom in Toy Story is also the grown version of the girl named Emily in Toy Story 2 who owned, and then discarded, Jessie the cowgirl?

YES! Wait, is this a trap?

No fooling, according to a post by the same guy who has a far broader theory that every Pixar movie—yes, even the Cars movies—are connected to each other.

Well, no, that’s not true. If he had read the actual post he’s linking to, he would have noticed that I didn’t, in fact, come up with the original theory for Andy’s mom being Emily. It was presented to me, and I made the case for it with my own research.

And in the most mind-blowing one of all, it’s even been suggested that the snarky kid at the beginning of Jurassic Park who Alan Grant threatens with a raptor claw grew up to be none other than Chris Pratt’s hero character in Jurassic World.

Again, Spiegel links to the article reporting what someone posted on Reddit, instead of just the original posting. Does Spiegel hate Reddit or something?

Also, I actually like this theory about Jurassic World. It’s interesting. It’s a fun connection. It makes enough sense, and it doesn’t contradict anything presented in the respective movies. So, what’s the problem?

There are an embarrassingly large number of fan theories floating around the Internet, and the emphasis here should be on the word “embarrassingly.”

It’s embarrassing to have a large number of discussions about movies? I thought fan theories were destroying film discourse, not strengthening it? Oh, Josh, let’s just cut to the chase, friend. 

What these ideas amount to are fan fiction, not fan theories.

Wait, but what are “these ideas” you refer to? I didn’t leave a sentence out. You’re saying that fan theories are fan fiction, but they’re not fan theories. What?

Also, fan fiction isn’t as broad a term as you’re alluding. Unless someone is actually writing a fiction, it’s not fan fiction. And even if it is, some fan fiction can be pretty good (don’t see above), and a lot of people read and love it. In a way, the celebrated Star Wars novels are a form of fan fiction cleverly called “expanded universe.” Why is that acceptable, but an interpretation of a movie you just saw isn’t?

I have a feeling he’s not going to answer the question and instead bring something else up.

Few, if any, of these theories ever get a direct response;

They’re not supposed to get a direct response. That’s not the point. Fan theories, in a broad sense, are an experiment by moviegoers to let themselves interpret movies they love in new and different ways. They don’t have to be “true.” 

That’s like saying your interpretation of 2001: A Space Odyssey isn’t worth your time because Kubrick hasn’t directly responded to it from the grave.

..the closest in recent memory is Pixar director Lee Unkrich playfully retweeting a comment or two from followers of his who treat the so-called Pixar Theory as utter silliness.

Well first of all, it’s not “so-called.” It’s just called.

Also, why not just link to the Tweet itself?? Again, Spiegel links to the blog post about the Tweet. I’m feeling an Inception fan theory coming on here…is…is Josh Spiegel Dom Cobb? Makes sense.

Oh, and you’re linking to the wrong Pixar Theory. That’s the website inspired by it, not the original post. I’m guessing Spiegel doesn’t care.

[UPDATE: Movie Mezzanine graciously fixed this error and sent the link to the correct spot. Credit where credit is due.]

But fan theories are becoming as prevalent to modern film culture as stories about casting rumors or reviews, and they are becoming truly toxic.

Toxic, eh? That’s strong language. I mean it implies that fan theories themselves are harmful. Probably to film discourse! Let’s read why. 

It’s easy to imagine the counterargument from those in favor of fan theories: What’s the harm?

Right. That’s a big one. 

The Dark Knight doesn’t become better or worse because of a Reddit user’s theory about the Joker, as silly as that theory might sound.

Nods.

The Toy Story films are still marvelous whether or not Andy’s mom is Jessie’s old owner.

True that. 

Jurassic World is still a resounding disappointment,

Wait, what? A resounding disappointment? That’s heavy hyperbole, especially considering the adjective is implying that we’re still feeling it as a disappointment months later. 

Never mind that Jurassic World is one of the top-grossing films of all time, or that it managed to score good reviews when most people were expecting another terrible Jurassic Park sequel. 

I get why you may not have liked it, Spiegel, but that doesn’t make it an ongoing disappointment to everyone else.

The problem is that these theories, online, become as inextricable to a vast amount of readers as the actual movies themselves.

He just asserts this. No evidence. No examples. Not even a bloody anecdote. Spiegel, in all his wisdom, just declares that fan theories are confusing people because there’s a lot of them. Does he not think we’re smart enough to read fan theories? And then he says the movies should be confusing us. What? What’s confusing? 

This argument makes no sense to me because it implies that people care more about fan theories than the movie themselves, but liking the movie is the actual prerequisite to even wanting to read a fan theory.

So what’s the problem? People aren’t overthinking movies the right way? Is that where this is going?

Worse still, these fan theories are quickly replacing actual critical analysis,

Last I checked, people still critique movies. Like a lot of them. All the time. Do you have, maybe, any evidence that there are fewer articles that analyze movies the way you want them to be analyzed?

covered by a large amount of entertainment websites in part because the content beast must be fed,

Exactly! Like how celebrity gossip ruined film discourse because the magazine content beast had to be fed. Should we hate that, too?

and in part because it takes the work out of the hands of the sites’ writers and into the hands of random commenters who have too much time on their hands.

Look, I’m all for giving writers more work to do. Like sourcing the actual comments instead of just linking to the blog post about them. (But I guess he’s doing that to strengthen his point.) 

And we don’t totally disagree on this. Some fan theories are pretty bad, and it’s annoying when a website will feature them just to get clicks. So why are you attacking all fan theories? Some of them are fantastic, and yes, worth talking about.

They’re not from “random commenters” as you so condescendingly refer to them as. They’re human beings who love movies just as much as you and I do.

I don’t care what you think about them, Spiegel. Loving movies is the only qualifier you need to join the discussion, EVEN if you have free time (gasp).

So what’s the difference between a fan theory and a deep-dive exploration into one aspect of a film?

Hmmm…How many flattering adjectives you’re willing to assign to them? 

The former is the product of a person choosing to fantasize about what they would do if they had made the film they’re watching,

No, that’s not it at all. Last I checked, not everyone wants to be a director. Maybe I’ll check again. Checks. Nope. 

and the latter is the product of a person paying attention to the movie they’re watching and responding in kind.

Wow. Just…wow. Spiegel isn’t using words like “some” or “generally.” He’s definitively saying that people who write fan theories aren’t paying attention to the movie. 

Because it’s not like I write both fan theories and elaborate critiques about how The Incredibles demonstrates the subtle benefits of inequality, how Inception brilliantly built its story around filmmaking, or how the humans of WALL-E represent the best in society contrasted with their horrible surroundings you’re only perceiving as “bad” because of clever story tricks. 

I couldn’t have written any of those things because I wasn’t “paying attention.” I was too busy also writing fan theories, and those are bad.

Often, the fan theories that send the Internet—specifically its social-media avenues—into a tizzy rely heavily on the fact that they aren’t based directly on what’s present in the text.

True. Most of these theories end up being rubbish, or not completely thought through. 

Take, for example, the notion that Owen Grady in Jurassic World is the kid in the opening of Jurassic Park. That certainly sounds cool, and would be a nice, if random, tie-in to the 1993 film. But what’s the evidence backing this theory? Well, see, the kid in Jurassic Park is only credited as “Volunteer Boy.” So his name could be Owen! Also, Chris Pratt is only a year older than the actor who played Volunteer Boy, so the timeline could fit! Also…um…hey, look, something shiny!

Seriously, Josh? Why so mean-spirited in that last line? We get it. You think fan theories are childish. You don’t have to be a tool about it.

Also, the evidence for this Jurassic World theory comes from the fact that you can reasonably see the people who made the film creating a character who embodies this moment from the first film. It actually informs the story as a whole.

That said, and I can’t stress this enough, this theory doesn’t have to be true. But it is a fun thought experiment that you can speculate about because it does happen to fit with the source material so nicely.

The majority of the work to make this theory seem remotely logical is done behind the scenes, as someone imagines what could have happened to this kid after Alan Grant scratched at his stomach with a raptor claw.

Yeah, who needs imagination? Certainly not people who watch what is essentially an illusion on a big screen.

See, much of what we take from a movie has to come from thinking external of what’s being presented. This is because the audience makes an emotional connection with what’s happening, but not every director can spoon feed you the context. That would alienate the audience.

We have to fill in those blanks ourselves most of the time, which leads to…you guessed it…film discourse.

This same vagueness plagues the majority of fan theories. Yes, it’s not impossible that, in the Toy Story films, Andy’s mom could have a deeper connection to one of his toys than he or even she realizes. So many existing fan theories rely on the first four words of the previous sentence: “Yes, it’s not impossible.” The lack of impossibility, however, doesn’t automatically prove a theory correct; it merely suggests that it’s not impossible for something to be true.

Again, these theories don’t have to be true. That’s not why most people come up with them. It’s about interpreting small clues in new ways that get you to think about the film. When someone reads this theory for the first time, they’re often pushed into rewatching the movie, and (guess what!) paying attention to it. 

Fan theories are no substitute for critical analysis, yet they have quickly become inseparable for so many readers online.

This is Josh’s main argument, and I get why he’s so concerned. Because it’s true that fan theories are not a substitute. But that’s a complete misunderstanding of their role. They’re not meant to be a substitute, either. They never were. 

Instead, fan theories in their nature are meant to be a form of interpretation through imagination and passion for the subject material. They’re meant to answer questions that don’t have to be answered, but create conversations between the people who answer these questions in different ways.

Analogy time!

Fan theories are like movies. There are good movies, and there are bad movies. That doesn’t mean we should get rid of all movies because some are bad. And bad movies certainly don’t replace other art forms that approach entertainment in a different way. I can read a fan theory and a deep analysis by A.A. Dowd. And I can enjoy both of them.

On the other, fan theories pose as critical analysis in spite of featuring neither criticism—often, these are posed by people who would proudly consider themselves fanboys or fangirls, never pausing to think about the built-in imperfections of even their favorite films—nor analysis.

Translation: Josh thinks you like movies too much. Go figure. 

Right, because in his world, people who overthink movies don’t criticize them. That is an actual opinion held by a film critic.

Popular films like Jurassic World or The Dark Knight or Toy Story beg to be debated for their themes.

And nothing else! Only themes! 

Hey, wouldn’t that mean that critical analysis of themes is destroying film discourse? What if someone wants to debate the characters in the movie, or how some of the movies share nods to each other?

Nope! To save film discourse, we must prevent it from happening the way we want it to. Shrug!

As ubiquitous as they may be, the discourse surrounding these films frequently sidesteps a conversation on nostalgia, on childhood heroes, on the possible emptiness of vast spectacle.

This sentence exists in a world where The Nostalgia Critic is one of the most widely viewed critics in new media. 

Fan theories now drive the discourse on these films, and to everyone’s detriment.

No, they just exist. That’s all they do. Yes, some are more popular than others, but how is that in any way proof that they’re replacing anything? 

I browse the Top and Trending URLs almost every single day. You know which articles about movies I see the most being shared? Not fan theories. Those make up a small percentage, because the reality is that a good fan theory is hard to discover, while pointing out what you think about a movie is pretty easy, and a lot of people are pretty interested in critical analysis.

You know what the top trending links were for the day I wrote this (September 2, 2015)? The top link was an image of Bryan Cranston as LBJ in the upcoming movie, All the Way.

The second most shared link about movies (including via social media) was a longform piece by Italo Calvino about movies that influenced his youth, adapted from a published autobiography.

There was another piece about actors who’s built successful careers after The Twilight Zone.

Even Gawker published something interesting about how Bruce Willis was unaware that China has a huge film market even though he’s in a movie made in China. OK, I thought it was interesting.

So that’s everything movie-related from the top 100 links. Yet I don’t see a single “fan theory” shoving its way past articles that are, in Spiegel’s eyes, more deserving.

For some odd reason, Spiegel feels threatened because a good article he probably wrote isn’t as famous as a theory about the Joker from The Dark Knight. And I guess I sympathize. That sounds weird, and I’ve been there.

Does that mean fan theories are inherently bad, though? Absolutely not. You could only argue that they’re toxic if you actually have an argument that points out how they prevent people from deep analysis.

But instead of doing that, Spiegel has chosen to create a false dichotomy between analysis and analysis fueled by imagination. By doing this, he tries to makes you feel dumb for liking fan theories instead of something he likes.

That’s not an argument. That’s a childish guilt trip.

On their own, fan theories are, indeed, harmless; if they existed next to critical discussions, and did so in lesser standing, they would be a fun distraction.

“Fan theories wouldn’t be so bad if people liked my articles better.” 

But the more fan theories are treated as serious, thoughtful salvos in a debate, the more ridiculous they appear to become.

To you. 

Here’s a new fan theory to ponder: making these things die a quick death will improve the world of film immeasurably. What more proof do you need?

All of the proof you failed to deliver thousands of words ago. 

And I’m puzzled by the raising of the stakes toward the end. Now we have to make fan theories die a quick death? What’s going on, Josh? Did a fan theory steal your girlfriend or something?

Seriously, he went from talking about how fan theories are harmless to calling for their immediate death. This sounds a lot like a dictatorship to me, rather than letting people who love movies make up their minds on how they want to approach the entertainment they like.

In other words, not everyone thinks like a film critic. And that’s OK.

This entire article is a classic case of subjectivity rearing its opinionated head. The truth of it is that Josh Spiegel is an intelligent film critic. I actually like his work a lot and enjoyed his review of Inside Out, among others. We don’t always agree, of course, but he’s good at adding great points to any given discussion.

But this idea that fan theories are making everything worse is a true moment of FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt).

The quick of it is that Josh doesn’t like fan theories. So he doesn’t like that you like fan theories. Then he accuses you of not liking the type of analysis that he likes (even though you probably do). Then he calls for the death of said thing that you love.

No thanks.

[UPDATE] The original author of the “Joker” theory (who goes by the username, generalzee) responded to Spiegel’s post via the comments, and I thought it would be good to share it here as well. Source.

As the person who wrote the Joker Fan Theory in question, I can’t believe how wrong and insecure this article sounds.

First of all, I never intended for my fan theory to be a critical analysis of The Dark Knight. Nowhere in my theory do I talk about the framing of shots (which I could have), or the acting (which could have been a major point in such a theory), or even the uber-dark mise-en-scene, which may have fully supported my theory, and highlighted how, thematically, all three main characters were living in the dark. Instead, I made an arguably compelling argument that the film could be interpreted another way.

What I find worse than that, though, is the fact that you claim that I ignored facts that are DIRECTLY MENTIONED in my theory. I explained both the boats and Dent’s scarring (Both physical and emotional) directly in the original piece. Of course, I wouldn’t expect a modern blogger to actually check his sources, and I’m sure you just read the Mashable version at some point, but it annoys me that you would make such an attack on fan theories WITHOUT EVEN READING THE ONE YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT.

So please let me be clear that this response IS intended to be a critical discourse on your work. What I see is a self-proclaimed critic who is horrified by his perceived loss of power to a basically unrelated group of people investigating films in a way that he, himself, has arbitrarily deemed below himself. This is reflected in his weak, but clear call to action to end Fan Theories as if they are going to harm legitimate film criticism. The panic he feels reflects strongly in his hastily researched (Really, how long did it take you to read the titles of the top 5 Fan Theories on Reddit?), and poorly thought-out criticism of a culture that he would attempt to appropriate into his own, only to discard it immediately.

I’m Jon and thanks for reading this. You can subscribe to my posts by clicking “Follow” in the right sidebar. Or just say hey on Twitter! @JonNegroni

Just don’t line them up or they might disappear

Oh boy, I don't know what I'm going to be for Halloween 2015 yet, but I sure know now how I'm going to dress up my girlfriend, She-Ra: Princess of Power's cat. Yeah, the Russians say this Werewolf Muzzle is for dogs, but I bet I can stuff Zoogle's head into one of the smaller ones. Zoogle's got a big head.

Moscow-based pet care site Zveryatam has come up with this brilliant method of both protecting other people from your dog, and protecting you from other people. The Werewolf Muzzle fits loosely over your pup's mouth and nose, attaching behind his ears, and instantly transforming him from floppy, lovable Giant Schnauzer to snarling, bloodthirsty hound of the night. The toothy, entrails-laden portion of the muzzle is made of non-toxic plastic, and the interior has a leather insert for comfort. So yours won't be one of those weredogs who just mopes around whining and trying to paw his face off instead of intimidating bratty children and know-it-all brogrammers.

Zveryatam sells its Werewolf Muzzle in 5 sizes, fitting snout girths from 20 and 35 cm. I think the 22 cm model will be perfect for Zoogle.

Muchas danke to Ruth W. for the Dude Product Tip.

I love Reddit, but visiting the main website is a sure-fire way for me to end up reading bizarre stories and upvoting dodgy Doctor Who puns. 

Reddit Mini is a suitably named Chrome extension that puts a streamlined version of Reddit right in the browser.

With a single click you can load up your favorite subreddit and scroll through the latest posts, images and comments without needing to open anything in a new tab.

Reddit Mini is not a fully-fledged Reddit client, though. It can only display one sub-reddit at a time and you do need to enter its name manually (i.e. there’s no list to choose from). But since you only have one pair of eyes, and is designed to be a window on the web’s most eclectic forum rather than a door, this is not a massive drawback.

Helpfully, Reddit Mini remembers the last visited subreddit and shows it automatically the next time the add-on is clicked.

Images appear auto-expanded inline by default (NSFW images don’t, but you can toggle the behavior for both to suit your, err, desires) and .gif images auto-play, too. You can set how many posts appear, too: 5, 10, 15 or 20.

Reddit Mini lets you read comments on post. Click the comments icon to load these in the extension.

You can’t comment, but sometimes that’s for the best…

Is this extension ideal for full-time Redditors? Maybe not, but for casual readers or those all-too-aware of the time suck that the full site can be, it’s a clean, compact and digestible way to get a Reddit fix.

“Reddit Mini lets you check Reddit without leaving the page you’re on. Yo dawg, you could even reddit while redditing. Type in your favorite subreddit and enjoy.” the official Web Store blurb reads.

Another really great thing about this add-on? It doesn’t require any permissions, none at all. It also doesn’t run in the background sapping your bandwidth or hogging memory. When it is visible it uses around 70MB of RAM but as soon as you close the pop-over window it stops running.

What Reddit Mini Doesn’t Do

The name of this extension should give you some indication of what to expect from it. It’s not a Reddit client or app, so you won’t find all of Reddit’s famed features packed into the small portrait-sized window. It also isn’t pitching to be a replacement for the main website, either.

There is no sign-in option and you can’t post stories to subreddits, or upvote/downvote comments and shared items. You won’t find any options to sort posts by hot, rising, controversial, etc, and clicking a story will open it in a new tab, not in the pop-over window.

Given the point of the extension these features aren’t hugely missed. And if they are, well, you can always open the main website since you’re using this in your browser anyway.

Which leads me on to one small feature I do find lacking: an option to detach Reddit Mini from the browser, like Twitter Notifier allows. This would allow me to ‘dock‘ the window in Chrome OS.

Install Reddit Mini in Google Chrome

A free extension that requires zero permissions, works well and is light on resources, Reddit Mini is totally worth checking out.

Reddit Mini on the Chrome Web Store

The article Reddit Mini Brings a Streamlined Reddit Experience to Chrome was first published on OMG! Chrome!

Fun Friday thing! Natalya on CodePen made a super fun Pen.

You know how clicking a <label> with a for attribute that matches a checkbox input, it will toggle the input to checked or unchecked? That, combined with the :checked selector in CSS and the sibling combinator forms The Checkbox Hack, and you can use that to do all kinds of fun stuff.

Natalya used it to build a toggle switch where in the off/left position it shows one emoji, and it slides to the on/right position where it switches to a different emoji.

See the Pen Kitty Toggle by Natalya (@tallys) on CodePen.

I thought whittle it down a bit to the most basic level I could, so if you wanted to snag this idea for something you're working on, you'd have a more clear building block.

See the Pen Emoji Toggles by Chris Coyier (@chriscoyier) on CodePen.

<!-- The wrap for everything, so you can position it wherever.
     Also, so all the other elements are siblings. -->
<div class="emoji-toggle emoji-travel">

  <!-- The input is first, so the ~ selector can select siblings after it. -->
  <input type="checkbox" id="toggle2" class="toggle">

  <!-- The emoji is a psuedo element on this. -->
  <div class="emoji"></div>

  <!-- This is absolutely positioned over everything.
       Also, the split/label comes from using both :before and :after -->
  <label for="toggle2" class="well"></label>

</div>

The input itself is visually hidden, but absolutely positioned on top of everything so that clicking pretty much anywhere will toggle the checkbox, and thus change the emoji and it's position.

There is a bit more code than this, but these are the most vital bits of CSS:

.emoji-toggle {
  position: relative;
  .well { // the label
    cursor: pointer;
  }
  .toggle { // the checkbox
    appearance: none;
    background: transparent;
    position: absolute;
    width: 100%;
    height: 100%;
    cursor: pointer;
    z-index: 100; 

    // "off"
    ~.emoji:before { 
      content: "emoji unicode here";
      position: absolute;
      left: 0;
      top: -15px;
      font-size: 40px;
      z-index: 1;
      transition: 0.2s;
    }

    // "on"
    &:checked {
      ~.emoji:before {
        content: "different emoji unicode here";
        left: 100%;
        margin-left: -1em;
      }
    }

  }
}

Sass for Versions

To make different versions of it, it required changing the pseudo element content on four different selectors with nested states. It was sorta mind-bending, so I made a quick Sass @mixin to help me. This is the kind of thing I love using preprocessors for - it's not too fancy, it just helps abstract something that would be very wordy otherwise.

@mixin emojiType($leftEmoji, $rightEmoji, $leftLabel, $rightLabel) {
  .toggle {
    ~.emoji:before {
      content: $leftEmoji;
    }
    &:checked {
      ~.emoji:before {
        content: $rightEmoji;
      }
    }
     ~label {
      &:before {
        content: $leftLabel;
      }
      &:after {
        content: $rightLabel;
      }
    }
  }
}

// Usage
.emoji-happy {
  @include emojiType(
    "\01F604", "\01F620", "Happy", "Mad"
  );
}

Getting Unicode For Emojis

You may have noticed the unicode values for the emojis are like "\01F604" in the CSS content. Fortunately Tim Whitlock has a pretty solid reference page for this info.

So if the unicode for "grinning face" is "U+1F601", in CSS pseudo content, that becomes "\01F601" because of how CSS escapes stuff.

Mileage My Vary

Emojis are weird. I've heard this doesn't work correctly on all setups. Different browser/platform/versions have different emojis available. I'm sure none of us are surprised.

Emoji Toggles! is a post from CSS-Tricks

Google Street View has long been a staple of Google Maps, allowing you to explore an area as if you were there. It’s incredibly useful for looking for business, orienting yourself, getting a sense of parking in an area, or even just looking around for the heck of it. And now, Street View gets its own app for both Android and iOS.

This new app is aimed to help people explore and share their surroundings. There’s a gallery full of photo spheres that people have contributed, and it allows you to contribute your own. This app replaces the Photo Sphere app on iOS, and comes built in with the photo sphere camera on both platforms. You can take beautiful 360 degree photos and share them for all to see.

Not only can you use your own camera, but the app has support for 360 degree cameras like the Ricoh Theta S and the NCTech iris360. All photo spheres taken will also appear on Google Maps for regular folks to see. If you want to download the app to your Android device, head over here to the Play Store!

In case you want a snapshot of the movies I’ve seen this year and what I thought of them, here are your power rankings for 2015 movies.

For the movies I haven’t seen, I’ve given them grades based on other reviewers via the Now Conspiring podcast, including one other critic. These “Third Party” reviews are colored gray. Because I’ve included them, this isn’t a perfect ranking, but it should still be useful for anyone wanting to catch up on some “A” movies from 2015. And avoid some Fs.

That said, here’s your list. It will be updated over time as I watch films I’ve missed and add new ones coming out every week. Also, be sure to let me know if I missed something. Enjoy!

(In case of the microscopic chance you care: I’ve seen 45 new movies as of the end of the summer, 35 weeks into 2015. For context, legendary critics like the late Robert Ebert and Gene Siskel watched, on average, five movies a week).

1. It Follows (March 27th) | A+
2. Mad Max: Fury Road (May 15th) | A+
3. Inside Out (June 19th) | A
4. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (June 12th) | A
5. Shaun the Sheep (August 5th) | A
6. GETT: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem (February 13th) | A
7. 3 and 1/2 Minutes, 10 Bullets (June 19th) | A
8. Phoenix (July 24th) | A
9. Paddington (January 16th) | A
10. Ex Machina (April 24th) | A
11. What We Do In the Shadows (February 13th) | A
12. ’71 (February 27th) | A
13. Creep (September 4th) | A
14. About Elly (April 8th) | A
15. Grandma (August 21st) | A
16. The Look of Silence (July 17th) | A
17. The Stanford Prison Experiment (July 17th) | A-
18. Mr. Holmes (July 17th) | A-
19. The Gift (August 7th) | A-
20. Kingsman: The Secret Service (February 13th) | A-
21. Avengers: Age of Ultron (May 1st) | A-
22. Selma (January 9th) | A-
23. Hard to be a God (January 30th) | A-
24. The Visit (September 11th) | A-
25. Love & Mercy (June 19th) | A-
26. Still Alice (January 16th) | A-
27. The End of the Tour (July 31st) | A-
28. Fort Tilden (August 15th) | A-
29. The Last 5 Years (February 13th) | A-
30. Don’t Think I’ve Forgotten: Cambodia’s Lost Rock and Roll (April 22nd) | A-
31. The Duke of Burgundy (January 23rd) | A-
32. Jurassic World (June 12th) | B+
33. Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (July 31st) | B+
34. Ant-Man (July 17th) | B+
35. McFarland USA (February 20th) | B+
36. Ballet 422 (February 6th) | B+
37. While We’re Young (April 17th) | B+
38. Mistress America (August 14th) | B+
39. Far From the Madding Crowd (May 1st) | B+ 
40. Digging for Fire (August 21st) | B+
41. Dior and I (April 9th) | B+
42. Beloved Sisters (January 9th) | B+
43. A Most Violent Year (January 30th) | B+
44. Diary of a Teenage Girl (August 7th) | B+
45. Goodnight Mommy (September 11th) | B+
46. Southpaw (July 24th) | B
47. Straight Outta Compton (August 14th) | B
48. Pitch Perfect 2 (May 15th) | B
49. Furious 7 (April 3) | B
50. Unexpected (July 24th) | B
51. Clouds of Sils Maria (July 14th) | B
52. Cinderella (March 13th) | B
53. People Places Things (August 14th) | B
54. Insidious: Chapter 3 (June 15th) | B
55. The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (August 14th) | B-
56. American Ultra (August 21st) | B-
57. Ted 2 (June 26th) | B-
58. Unfriended (April 17th) | B-
59. The DUFF (February 20th) | B-
60. The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (March 6th) | B-
61. Tomorrowland (May 22nd) | B-
62. Run All Night (March 13th) | B-
63. Focus (February 27th) | B-
64. Ricki and the Flash (August 7th) | B-
65. Paper Towns (July 24th) | C+
66. The Gallows (July 10th) | C+
67. Slow West (May 15th) | C+
68. True Story (August 4th) | C+
69. Dope (June 19th) | C+
70. Project Almanac (January 30th) | C+
71. Fantastic Four (August 7th) | C+
72. Magic Mike XXL (July 1st) | C+
73. The Wedding Ringer (January 16th) | C
74. A Walk in the Woods (September 4th) | C
75. Spy (June 5th) | C
76. Age of Adaline (April 24th) | C
77. Cymbeline (March 13th) | C
78. The Longest Ride (April 10th) | C
79. Woman in Gold (April 1st)| C
80. No Escape (August 26th) | C
81. Minions (July 10th) | C
82. San Andreas (May 29th) | C
83. The Spongebob Movie: Sponge out of Water (February 6th) | C-
84. Chappie (March 6th) | C-
85. Spare Parts (January 16th) | C-
86. Child 44 (April 17th) | C-
87. Get Hard (March 27th) | C-
88. Blackhat (January 16th)| C-
89. Before We Go (September 4th) | C-
90. Entourage (June 3rd) | C-
91. The D Train (May 8th)| C-
92. We are Your Friends (August 28th) | C-
93. Trainwreck (July 17th) | D+
94. Aloha (May 29th) | D+
95. The Gunman (March 20th) | D+
96. Poltergeist (May 22) | D+
97. The Transporter Refueled (September 4th) | D+
98. Max (June 26th) | D+
99. Little Boy (April 24th) | D+
100. Vacation (July 29th) | D
101. Terminator Genisys (July 1st) | D
102. Self/less (July 10th) | D
103. Unfinished Business (March 6th) | D
104. Lazarus Effect (February 27th) | D
105. Kill Me Three Times (April 9th) | D
106. Insurgent (March 20th)| D
107. Serena (February 26th) | D
108. Fifty Shades of Grey (February 13th) | D
109. Hot Tub Time Machine 2 (February 20th) | D
110. Sinister 2 (August 21st) | D-
111. Pixels (July 24th) | D-
112. Absolutely Anything (August 14th) | D-
113. Hot Pursuit (May 8th) | D-
114. Home (March 27th) | D-
115. Jupiter Ascending (February 6th) | D-
116. Return to Sender (August 14th) | D-
117. Mortdecai (January 23rd) | D-
118. Survivor (June 5th) | D-
119. Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 (April 17th) | D-
120. The Boy Next Door (January 23rd) | D-
121. Accidental Love (February 10th) | D-
122. Hitman: Agent 47 (August 21st) | F
123. Strange Magic (January 23rd) | F

I’m Jon and thanks for reading this. You can subscribe to my posts by clicking “Follow” in the right sidebar. Or just say hey on Twitter! @JonNegroni

tastefullyoffensive:

(via hypofreak)

Shirley Chua, affectionately known as Aunty Shirley on Facebook and in the Singaporean cosplay community, is 68 years young and has a badass repertoire of cosplay outfits. Her sparkling personality shine through in every picture and she epitomizes the mantra “you’re only as old as you feel.”

Inspired by her son’s active participation in cosplay, Shirley began making her own costumes and attending conventions. Her talent for costume making is amazing and her smile really sets the cosplay off.

Check out more of Aunt Shirley’s iconic cosplay after the break.

(via Rocket News 24 / Images: Shirley Chua and Aunty Shirley)

I know a car cup holder adapter that allows you to insert your Hydro Flask or Gatorade bottle without it flying out of the console every time you stop, turn, speed up, or slow down won't change the world, or even your own life all that much, but I still think it's a nice 21st century amenity to have. Right up there with Hydro Flasks and Gatorade themselves. The Bottle Pro base is designed to fit snugly into a wide variety of narrow car cup holders, while its blooming mouth opens up wide to accommodate big ass bottles 3.5" to 3.8" in diameter. In addition to the above, these include 32-ounce Nalgenes and 40-ounce Kleen Kanteens. The Bottle Pro also has a 1" opening on its side so that handles on travel/coffee mugs slide in easily too.

Bottle Pro cup holder expanders are made of rigid plastic intended to hold up well both to the bottles they holster, and the extreme temperatures vehicles might experience.