HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Happy Birthday to the founder of, and brain behind this ever improving blog.

Have a great day pacman Read more!

Vol. 4: Music Technology (EDIT)

The past few weeks, i've been on my electronic/house music grind, downloading then listening to a bunch of daft punk, ratatat, justice etc. as i was searching some videos i came across the video of daft punk at the last grammys. They performed with kanye on stronger and had their own little part, check it out here:

(fast forward to 2:45 because it's all pretty standard kanye)

first off, props to daft punk for their red lining outfits. it must have looked really cool in person

second, that weird ass touch sensitive DJ equipment!?!?!?! i thought i was fake as hell at first. like daft punk just laid down these flatscreen monitors and had these prerecorded videos and just played them during the show. then i did some more research and found out that its real equipment!!

truly epic piece of technology right here, the Lemur, from french company JazzMutant is a touch screen midi controller that can be customized to do pretty much anything a standard mixer could. it syncs up with most popular softwares for Macs and PCs, including logic. and it does all this while looking extremely sexy. popularized by daft punk and adopted by other bands including justice, this piece of french technology is definitely the future of DJing. (sidenote: it seems like the french are just years ahead of everyone in the electronic music genre: in terms of artists, technology, AND fanbase..) i think i'll have the money/skills to buy/know-how-to-use one in maybe ten years???

here's the website. watch this video of this kid dicking around and mixing songs with it, looks super fun, and its actually a good sounding mix. (starts off slow but its worth watching it all)

I POSTED THIS BEFORE I SAW IT ON KANYE's BLOG! FUCKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!

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Dreamer- K'NAAN

-nahright Read more!

New Palm Pre Footage...Speechless

This is going to be competitive in the smart-phone market...Look how free the presenter was to letting people just throw their iPhones and Blackberries to compare the Pre with...That's something you just don't see very much in the tech world and shows that palm is very confident with this product, and you have to admit it beats the other phones when they are all side by side... The multi-tasking feature, where you can leave one app and come back to it, with nothing changed and nothing saved to take up space, is just remarkable...Like he said it just flows, no worries, just flows... hard keyboard always a plus...beautiful device....lol at the music in the background tho wtf?

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Some Indiana University College Pranks...

So the Banana one actually happened to my lecture first semester and I just happened to come across this video of them doing it today so I thought I would share lol... It is pretty funny, I wish they would of gotten my Profesor's reaction because she flipped lol...enjoy...



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A little Throwback Joint...

The hip hop world/blogosphere seems to be a little dead as of late...so I thought I'd throw this up while we all wait for hip hop related stuff to be released and such... Props to my man Zach for showing me this....

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Dopest App out for the iPhone!

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...Look how far we have come in technology!!

This video is from about 25 years ago, just think how far we, as the human race, have come in the past 25 years? It's crazy, almost incomprehensible to think about, that I can write this and hit Publish Post, and the whole world can see it within about one to two seconds, and then comment on it, and watch videos... Like Kid Cudi's line, I think I'm in the Future Too...


-gizmodo Read more!

Netflix to abandon mailing DVDS?

netflix said they are noticing trends that people want streaming more than they want to wait in teh mail for their movies... I think it makes a lot more sense to just do everything streaming and I bet they will as long as they can get the rights...
-engadget Read more!

Gotta Love Wisconsin...

I guess the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled Cheerleading a contact sport and so then girls (or guys) cannot sue each other if one of them fails to catch them and cause injury or harm.

You just can't make this stuff up... READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE HERE

SIDEBAR: 300th post! I absolutely love the direction that proacktive has taken within the past month or so, and just want to say thank you to every visitor and contributor to this blog, I think it's really becoming an original, fresh, and different blog. Where else can you discuss Kanye West/Mainstream Music and Hacking into computers and the Oscars and the latest Death Cab for Cutie Album and the Palm Pre all in one place? Answer: Proacktive lol Read more!

Amazon to release new Kindle?

These pictures have been on the web for a while now, however Amazon just recently sent out invitations to an event held in downtown NYC... Rumors are that they will release the new kindles at this event... Looks pretty cool from the pictures and could revolutionize reading and books Read more!

Pennies Video- The Cool Kids

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Martin Louis the King Jr...AHAHAHAHAHA

A message from kwest on Vimeo. Read more!

Prom Queen- Lil' Wayne

Off his new rock album titled Rebirth (April 9th)

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N.A.S.A.- "Hip-Hop" Ft. Fat Lip & KRS-One & Slim Kid Tre

and oh yeah a WEEZY rock album on the way, due out April 7th Read more!

By Request....The rest of the Oscar Nominations...

I'm loving the discussions that are going on in the comment sections after the posts...I was reading about how to make a good blog and the number one thing is to have people commenting on the posts and the bloggers to respond and interact with the readers so keep it up everyone...And that is why, I posted something like this, because I saw that it was wanted from the comments section..So by all means continue to argue/discuss these nominations...

Best Achievement in Directing
David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon
Gus Van Sant, Milk
Stephen Daldry, The Reader
Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen
Courtney Hunt, Frozen River
Mike Leigh, Happy Go Lucky
Martin McDonagh, In Bruges
Dustin Lance Black, Milk
Andrew Stanton, WALL-E

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published
Eric Roth, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
John Patrick Shanley, Doubt
Peter Morgan, Frost/Nixon
David Hare, The Reader
Simon Beaufoy, Slumdog Millionaire

Best Foreign Language Film
The Class
The Baader Meinhof Complex
Departures
Revanche
Waltz with Bashir

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
Bolt
WALL-E
Kung-Fu Panda Read more!

XMEN Origens...Surprisingly sick

I know were in Oscar season and everything,but this trailer is really really cool.
Make sure to watch it in HD down in the bottom right.
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Verizon Hub

-FROM VERIZON PRESS RELEASE

Families with active lifestyles and virtually anyone who wants to stay current and connected need a tool that helps manage their communications, contacts and calendars simply and smartly – all from one easy screen. The Verizon Hub is poised to help pave the way for people to stay in touch and up to date with the information they need to navigate their increasingly busy days and nights.

“The Verizon Hub reinvents the home phone system that’s been centered on your kitchen counter for years. We’re bringing huge new functionality to a common household device that will unlock its true potential. And in the process, Verizon Wireless is updating the tools busy families can use to manage their lives,” said Mike Lanman, vice president and chief marketing officer at Verizon Wireless. “The Verizon Hub is going to change the way you think about what you want and need your home phone to do. Whether you’re thinking about getting rid of your home phone or can’t live without it, now is the time to try out the Verizon Hub.”

Information will be at a family’s fingertips, literally from an easy-to-navigate touch screen with clear icons on the Verizon Hub. Families will start and end their days with nuggets of customized information from the Verizon Hub:
· Check local traffic and weather in the morning before leaving the house
· Update your calendar and automatically receive a text when an appointment changes or as a reminder not to be late
· Get directions to the new site when the location for soccer practice is moved
· Find the number of the new pizza parlor to order a pie
· Preview the trailers from an upcoming movie that you might want to take the family to over the weekend, then purchase tickets using the Verizon Hub.
-Gizmodo Read more!

Vol. 3 - Hackings

Now i would never consider myself an actual "hacker," like one of those gifted individuals who can break through website encryptions and meddle around at their own will (for good or bad). However, i do consider myself technology savvy, and so i think i'm allowed to call myself a poor-man's hacker. its nothing special really; in fact, i'd say that the majority of college students are probably on the same level. we psuedo-hackers can facebook hack someone (but not all of us are clever about it - we all can do better than editing someone's status to "is gay"), meddle with backgrounds, and the more skilled one's can remove those home screen login passwords that are supposed to make mac osx and win vista somewhat "secure" in the matter of minutes that make annoying psuedo-hacking seemingly impossible..

the point is, any level of hacking is fun. it falls under the category of public mischief, like graffiti, streaking, egging houses, and other vandalism. most people get a rush from doing it. now if you guys/girls have some real balls/ovaries, check this one out and give it a shot. something that most of us have thought of but never had the right information to do it:

read the full instructions here

thanks to Bb Gadgets for the link.

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2009 Oscar Nominations

After Rueben's post, I thought this would be good to share...

BEST PICTURE

The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button

Frost/Nixon

Milk

The Reader

Slumdog Millionaire

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

Richard Jenkins - The Visitor

Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon

Sean Penn - Milk

Brad Pitt - The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button

Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married

Angelina Jolie - Changeling

Melissa Leo - Frozen River

Meryl Streep - Doubt

Kate Winslet - The Reader

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Josh Brolin - Milk

Robert Downey Jr - Tropic Thunder

Philip Seymour Hoffman - Doubt

Heath Ledger -The Dark Knight

Michael Shannon - Revolutionary Road

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Amy Adams - Doubt

Penelope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Viola Davis - Doubt

Taraji P Henson - The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button

Marisa Tomei - The Wrestler Read more!

The T.I./Asher Roth Handshake

Find more videos like this on The Daily Kush
Read more!

Buzz

This flick has serious potential to win big at the Oscars's. It already won best picture for Critic's Choice Awards and the Golden Globes....damn. Read more!

Sad...

Iowa's Tucker out for year because of academics

Sporting News -
Posted: January 21, 2009

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) -- Iowa freshman guard Anthony Tucker will miss the rest of the season after being ruled academically ineligible.

Iowa coach Todd Lickliter says Tucker has been involved in an appeal process regarding his course work since the end of the fall semester. The school says Tucker was ruled ineligible for the spring semester according to the Big Ten's academic requirements.

The announcement caps a rocky first season for Tucker, a native of Minnetonka, Minn. Tucker averaged 10.4 points per game, but he's played sparingly since early December.

Tucker averaged 17.2 points in the Hawkeyes first six games. But Tucker was suspended on Dec. 7 following an alcohol-related incident and sat out two games. He's played sparingly since then because of mononucleosis. Read more!

Obama Walks into Technological Stone Age in the White House...

Read this article from the Washington Post, It's interesting... Read more!

The Best Coach Ever (Bobby Knight) speaks on another good coach (Tubby Smith)

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Security at the Inaugural

Found this interesting as to just how much security was on hand in DC...
These are some excerpts from this article...

Barack Obama will be sworn in as America's first African-American president under the tightest security ever, shielded by a new, heavily armored Cadillac limousine, bullet-resistant glass, fighter planes overhead and Secret Service SWAT teams toting automatic weapons.

Days before he was elected the nation's 44th president, federal agents broke up an alleged plot by two neo-Nazi skinheads to kill him. Then, on Tuesday, al Qaeda's No. 2 leader issued a tape blaming Obama for Israel's recent attacks on the militant Islamist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Rodriguez, a former SWAT team leader who guarded four presidents over 22 years before he retired in 2004, said he also thought that the risk of harm to the nation's first African-American president "is greater, because, unfortunately, I believe there is still active prejudice in our nation."

The Secret Service, which has mushroomed from 325 agents in 1981 to some 3,500 today, has demonstrated time and again its ability to safeguard presidents, vice presidents and other dignitaries at inaugural events. No would-be assassin has harmed a president since 1981, when drifter John W. Hinckley Jr. shot Ronald Reagan in the chest outside a Washington hotel.

Obama will wear bullet-resistant clothing, speak behind a protective glass shield and ride in the parade in the armored Cadillac limousine, with doors and windows so thick that he probably would survive a bomb blast, law enforcement officials said.

Trailing his car will be black vans loaded with Special Weapons and Tactics and counter-assault teams, high-speed communications equipment and electronic devices capable of jamming the detonators for homemade bombs.

Nondescript boxes that can detect the airborne releases of chemical or biological weapons such as lethal anthrax spores will be scattered among the crowds.

Wiley said that Secret Service agents had surveyed every building along the cordoned-off parade route, which like the Capitol grounds will be limited to ticket holders. Snipers will be positioned on rooftops and balconies along Pennsylvania Avenue, their eyes joining surveillance cameras in scanning to ensure that every window is closed and no one threatens the new president.

Under such security, Rodriguez said, "adversaries may look for a more opportune time to harm the president."

remeber these are just snippets from an article, read the whole thing here Read more!

Kanye Mullet...lol

Kanye rocked this at an inaugural ball...thoughts? Read more!

Lupe Annoncues that "Everywhere" will be released in June...

"Everywhere" is the first of the three albums that will be released to complete LUPend... Read more!

The Moon Man Mixtape- Kid Cudi

Check it out, some new ish on here (if your my mojo music friend feel free to download it there too lol...(Mojo Music is my new thing!)


download here... Read more!

Apple launches Ustream app...and my Media Life Class...

This app allows users to live stream video from their iPhone to the internet. So when you saw all those people will iPhones in the crowd at the inauguration, you possibly could have had a live stream of what they were filming... Pretty cool if you ask me...



Also, I'm currently enrolled in this class that is about how people use media in their life and just how relevent it is...My professor has been amazing thus far and really knows what he is talking about when it comes to media/technology in a person's life...He has a very fresh and new style of teaching, his class has no text in his lecture, instead it's a plethora of youtube videos, images, movie clips, surveys, studies, etc... Anyways, this is what I'm really into right now, I honestly can't stop thinking about his lectures and just how crazy media is and is going to be in the future....To make a long story longer, He shows my class a bunch of cool videos that I will probably be posting on here...so here is one today that really grabbed my attention...Sorry for the long post, I know that's more Ion/Eyedea/Rueban's style lol...



Maybe a little much, but honestly this is something to look at in the future... Read more!

This post covers the early part of this week...

Sidebar: No disrespect to the Doctor with the small image, but it is Barack's moment and it was the first one that came up on google images for both of them lol... Read more!

UPDATED: Some more New Japanese Cartoon

Remember this is Lupe doing his British Pop thing...

Firing Squad - Japanese Cartoon (Lupe Fiasco)

Invaders Must Die Shinobi (Fats Mash-Up) - Japanese Cartoon Read more!

The "What We're Feeling" Box on the right

I decided that I wanted to add a player on the right hand column that is just a song that the proacktive bloggers are feeling...It can be new, old, different, main stream, whatever, it's just something you can jam to while reading the blog...tell me what you guys think of this idea...

peace Read more!

Bigger than World- Justin Timberlake

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Tiger Woods to Speak at Obama Inaugaration

According to ESPN.com, Tiger Wooods is going to speak at the "We Are One" Celebration on Jan. 20 for the inauguration of America's first black president, Barack Obama. Woods usually stays out of the spotlight so this was a little surprising to me. I would argue that Woods and Obama are the two most well known African Americans in the US and maybe even the world. Read more!

I think I'm in the future too...

A little unnecessary, but interesting none the less...

BONUS QUESTION: What song is the title of this post from?? Read more!

The World(Prod. by Kanye To The)-Nas

Read more!

An Album Worth Your Time

Let me first introduce myself, being that this is my first post.. I'm Ion and I've mainly been working behind the scenes on the artwork and layout of proacktive, but I thought I would let you know some stuff that I'm into.

 

I have been doing the banners for proacktive starting with the second version. The latest banner you see now was a collaborative effort with University of Minnesota Duluth art student tictacmacos. Any feed back that you guys have for me is very helpful. Thank you.

A group that I really enjoy listening to is Death Cab For Cutie, I feel like they have a very deep and solid range of songs, weather it be from notable albums such as Plans and Transatlanticism or any of their other albums that include, The Photo Album, Forbidden Love EP, Something About Airplanes, Stability EP, We Laugh Indoors and a later also notable and rich album Narrow Stairs, which I am talking about in this post.

Here is a track listing with some thoughts

1. Bixby Canyon Bridge. Very good introduction to a solid album.

2. I Will Possess Your Heart. The strength in this song is the roughly 5 min tranced out instrumental before it powers in with the lyrics. You can still find hidden treasures in this track every time you listen.

3. No Sunlight. Change of pace for the album, a little faster.

4. Cath... 

5. Talking Bird. Slows the album back down nicely.

6. You Can Do Better Than Me. 

7. Grapevine Fires. Very solid track, it evokes a thoughtful mood. Its about the California wildfires and I find the mesh between voice and production soothing. 

8. Your New Twin Sized Bed. Good listen.

9. Long Division. Probably most known song from the album. Very good, but I prefer the second version not released.

10. Pity and Fear. AMAZING production and entry of lyrics. Probably my favorite from the album.

11. The Ice Is Getting Thinner

The album meshes together excellently. Narrow Stairs is definitely worth checking out no matter what kind of music your into. 

Read more!

Let's Be Rale Hurr: Volume 2

What's good everyone, eyedea here with another post, finally. Winter break from school is winding down to an end, and honestly, i couldn't be happier. At the beginning of the semester, the prospect of a one-month-long massive break seemed great, an excellent way to relax after finals and see everyone return home from their first semester of college. However spending days upon days caged in my room watching episodes of planet earth and the office has finally gotten boring. I'll be back at school in lovely minneapolis in a few days though, so no worries.

As far as blogging goes: first off props to Ion. The new banner is sick nasty and it brings a new feel to proacktive.

Second, i was searching up "Go Hard" by Jay-Z and Santogold on youtube this one day and came across this one song, with the same title. It's a pretty decent song with an extra shitty video, DJ Khaled being an idiot as usual, nothing iPod worthy.. but Kanye pulls his weird ass antics again and says a ridiculous line, classic yeezy. Check it:

The line is at 2:55. hahhaaa

Lastly, Christian Lander is stopping by the U of M bookstore on Jan 26th to sign books and chat with fellow white people. Lander, more commonly known as clander is the author and webmaster of stuffwhitepeoplelike.com, so anyone in the area that wants to meet a legit blogger, stop by the coffman bookstore at 4pm. Read more!

Three New Leaked Gorillaz Tracks

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Quick Shout Out to ESPN.com

Really like the new interface, its a lot smoother, faster, well organized site...Not that it wasn't before but this is THE site to get sports news from hands down and the new layout just makes it that much easier...lol just had to get that off my chest being a frequent visitor of that site... Read more!

I'm Telling you this is going to be big!!

A look at the Palm Pre... The real keyboard will really set this apart in my opinion and the gesture area, and the whole webOS always being connected and having more than one app run at a time, etc..This is obviously getting a lot of hype on the web and deservingly so... Read more!

Barack's Official President Photo is first one taken with a digital camera

Not that big of deal lol but with this blog dealing with politics and technology, I though it was a good thing to post... According to engadget, it was taken by a Cannon EOS E5 Mark II... Read more!

Just Juke Ft. GLC- Mikkey Halsted

just juke feat. GLC - Mikkey Halsted

Good Beat I guess... Read more!

CIty of God Son Trailer

So I guess this producer named Kenzo is using only hip hop samples to be like a hip hop opera musical movie if you will.. It features the likes of Jay-Z, Nas, Biggie Smalls, Samuel L. Jackson and is a coming of age movie in a crime ridden neighborhood...This looks pretty different and interesting... Read more!

Flex OLED Watch/MP3 Player from Sony leaked video

Contrast - A Sony Flex OLED Walkman Concept from Sony Insider on Vimeo.

There has been a lot of hype about this flex OLED stuff and it turns out to be half as cool as this video, than it's worth it in my opinion. Read more!

Talented Family

This song is off flesh in dSun*'s new alubum Dusty Scriptures. It's a collaboration with two of Mongolia's top mc's and was produced in Mongolia. flesh in dSun* is my cousin and has just recently returned from traveling in Asia for two years.

Tell me what you think- I'll post more songs if you dig.

Read more!

google chrome to come to apple computers...

Google product manager Brian Rakowski said they're aiming for the first half of 2009 to release a mac and linux version of the web browser. Read more!

Whachadoin (Feat. M.I.A., Santogold, Spank Rock and Nick Zinner)-N.A.S.A.

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Fear of Mandingo- Nas

illroots Read more!

Proacktive Update

Hey guys

...just catching up with all you guys...Sorry for the lack of posts over holiday break..I was really busy catching up with my friends and the blog kind of took a backseat... I hope I posted enough to keep you coming back...anyways, you can probably see the new banner that was made by Ion again...I just want to say that Ion didn't make it because of Blah from the Chatbox, We did it because we honestly felt that the new banner represents proacktive a lot better...once the semester starts monday posts will be like they were pre holiday break...

Best,
Pacman Read more!

Palm unviels the "pre"

This phone is really gettting some hype with all of it's capabilities and sleekness of it's actual design...check out the keynote from CES here...palm revamped everything from their os to their design techniques and it sounds/looks like it's really going to pay off and that this device will be nothing short of a amazing...just watch the keynote... Read more!

Asher Roth on Carson Daly

Asher Roth Carson Int 1-8
by yardie4lifever2

I Love College Carson Live
by yardie4lifever2

Read more!

WEEZY ON ESPN VS. SKIP BAYLESS! WHAT!

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Biden gets denied to see Benjamin Button, No one notices him at theater box office....

Doesn't anyone know who our future VP is going to be?

...
Quantcast

Employees at the Regal Brandywine Cinemas say the vice president-elect and his wife, Jill, tried to attend the 7:45 showing of "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" at the theater on Concord Pike but left after they were told the movie was sold out.

There's been no confirmation from the Biden camp, but the theater employees say they are sure it was him.

....

read more here Read more!

MacWorld 2009 Wrap-Up...

OK so I was really looking forward to the Keynote presentation at MacWorld that took place earlier this morning. I was expecting to be blown away by a new mac mini or an update to the iPhone or maybe even the release of the new snow-leopard OS. Well basically none of my wishes were granted and honestly I'm a little disappointed.

First, here is a list of what Apple DID release today...
-New iLife pack, with face detection, geo-tagging on pics, update to iMovie,etc
-New iWork pack, with iphone as a remote for powerpoint, easier to share documents, etc
-iTunes Plus, DRM-free, $0.69 songs, and iTunes can be accessed over 3G and not just wifi
-17 inch MacBook Pro, with non-removable battery, matte screen, firewire, aluminum...

So while the iTunes update and the MacBook Pro were pretty solid additions to apple's product line... There was just something missing, 2009 is shaping up to be a big year in consumer electronics, and this would of been a great time for apple to release something big to really get people excited...now we just have to wait and see what's going to come from apple and I just they would of laid out their plans for 09 a little more today... Read more!

Lupe in a new band called Japanese Cartoon

Very different vibe here but I gotta say I can feel it...these tracks are called ARMY and Heirplanes...

Heirplanes - Japanese Cartoon

ARMY - Japanese Cartoon Read more!