fondue's New Writeups

E2 Bugs (thing)

2011-03-25T03:14:41Z

Writeups by users hidden using the Pit of Abomination are still showing up in Cream of the Cool on the front page.

Cream of the Cool, along with most of the things on the front page, is generated cached once every few minutes, and displays the same for everybody. It is also a particularly expensive query that it runs, so changing it to running dynamically wouldn't be a great move either. Some solution similar to the feeder/filter method used right now for New Writeups might work, but I'd be concerned about the database load. -om

It might be a bit mad, but we could do it reasonably cheaply with CSS by giving titles and things 'by-user' classes, which would also have the inestimable advantage of allowing people to automatically embellish entries by their crushes with a purple background and little hearts and flowers. Just if anybody didn't have anything better to code... - Oo

The Comic Strip Presents... (thing)

2009-02-19T17:37:57Z

"The Comic Strip Presents..." is a series of 38 television films (plus two movies and independent release 'The Bullshitters') produced between 1982-2005 by a troupe of comedians (principally Adrian Edmondson, Rik Mayall, Nigel Planer, Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders) affiliated with the Comic Strip comedy club, led by producer Peter Richardson, who cowrote (with Pete Richens) and performed in many episodes.

The most fondly-remembered films tended to be parodies of well-known film and television genres. There were occasional satires of politics and the media, as well as more surreal efforts. Some films rejected the confrontational 'alternative comedy' approach in favour of silent-era whimsy. As they were produced as mini-films (shot on film, on location) they still look quite good, although some episodes are painfully bad.

The collected series is available on DVD (omitting Sex Actually and Eat the Rich).

Notable picks:

…

Cubello (thing)

2009-02-17T00:42:17Z

Cubello is a puzzle game for the Wii, developed by skip Ltd. and published by Nintendo under the Art Style brand.

A 'Cubello' is a structure of different-coloured cubes rotating in space. The object of the game is to eliminate all the cubes by firing additional cubes which stick to the structure. When four like-coloured cubes touch, they are removed from play. It is possible to set off chains of these eliminations.

Cubes can only be stuck to faces that the player can see directly. When a fired cube collides with the structure, it changes the direction of rotation. The player's 'magazine' of cubes to fire is only replenished when cubes are eliminated.

While the player dilly-dallies, the structure inches closer, eventually colliding with the camera (and reducing the magazine as a penalty). Slow players are also penalised by additional branches of cubes sporadically sprouting from the structure. A 'bonus time' mode is sometimes triggered during play, giving the…

Pixelblocks (thing)

2009-02-12T23:27:26Z

Pixelblocks ("The Evolutionary Building System") are a construction toy manufactured by Pixelblocks LLC. A Pixelblock is a small cubic block (approx. 8mm a side) with a Lego-style peg protruding from the top, a corresponding hole in the bottom, and narrow, jigsaw-like interlocking teeth in each of the other four sides. These features allow similarly aligned Pixelblocks to be connected on all sides to construct either two-dimensional mosaics or three-dimensional structures.

Pixelblocks are sold in sets of 250-2,000 pieces, each containing a set number of blocks in 8-12 different colours. These sets also come with sorting trays and activity booklets. The Pixelblocks website also sells bulk packs of single colours (including several not available at retail) for larger projects.

While the Pixelblocks marketing materials emphasise their educational uses and the potential of recreating photographs or original artwork in mosaic form, their main…

Who Killed Monster Munch? (essay)

2008-05-26T19:37:18Z

Who Killed Monster Munch?

Over the last 20 years, UK consumers have been stealthily robbed of several classic foods, as their recipes have been changed to the point where they are no longer recognisable. These changes have been made by the manufacturers either as a cost-cutting measure or in a bid to capitalise on the consumer trend for healthier eating (which is usually a smokescreen for cutting costs anyway). The following ten foods we will never again be allowed to enjoy, even with all our money and technology. Damn you all to hell.

1. Monster Munch

"Pennies can't buy a bigger snack" ran the old slogan, because Monster Munch used to be big. They used to have a softer, flakier texture and were coated in flavouring. MSG, presumably. Man's flavouring. Modern Monster Munch are tiny, hard, bland pieces of shit. The culprits of this atrocity are of course Walkers (Lay's to Americans), the EA of the snack world, who have ruined most…

This Is Spinal Tap (thing)

2008-01-30T22:46:04Z

Rob Reiner's 1984 mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap is one of the best and most influential comedy films ever made. The idea of a largely improvised spoof documentary about a hugely egotistical (and toe-curlingly mediocre) hair metal band sounds like material for a Saturday Night Live sketch or a cultish low-budget student favourite at best, but the film is much more subtle than its low-brow subject matter might suggest. Tap has been praised by serious film critics and is on the list of "significant" films maintained by the United States Library of Congress.

Spinal Tap are David St. Hubbins (Michael McKean), Derek Smalls (Harry Shearer) and Nigel Tufnel (Christopher Guest). The film documents their U.S. tour to promote their latest album, Smell The Glove. It becomes increasingly apparent as the film progresses that Tap's career is on the skids - their self-indulgent, chauvinistic style being seen as an amusing anachronism even in…