Fun and Games Dept

Today the suits at CBS/Paramount announced the official guidelines for fan films made by aspiring fans of the “Star Trek” universe. Star Trek fan films have been around for decades but recent endeavors have caught the attention of the franchise owners and they’re worried about legal and monetary infringement of the official films and the upcoming series.

Judging by the quality of the rebooted films and the trailer I’ve seen for the upcoming “Star Trek: Beyond”, they’ve probably come to the realization that the official product is crap and the fan films are out doing them on several fronts. Bruises to the ego and all that.

The official list of guidelines can be found here: Star Trek Fan Films

Some highlights from these very restrictive guidelines that caught my attention include:

1. The films can be no more than 15 minutes in length and a story arc can be no more than two 15-minute features. 

There are several fan film efforts that feature television episode length films out there, so films like “Star Trek: Phase II” and “Star Trek: Continues” are out. One film that I really enjoyed, “Star Trek: Renegades” is out as well.

2. The fan production must be a real “fan” production, i.e., creators, actors and all other participants must be amateurs, cannot be compensated for their services and cannot be currently or previously employed on any “Star Trek” series, films, production of DVDs or with any of CBS or Paramount Pictures’ licensees. 

Several of of the fan films featured actors from the various incarnations of the show: George Takei, Grace Lee Whitney, Denise Crosby, among many others took part in these fan films because they’re actually fans of their work. Apparently this is no longer allowed.

Fan films set in the “Star Trek” universe have kept the franchise alive for over 50 years, especially when there hasn’t been any commercial offerings of the show. While there has been much hype and advertising over the reboots of the “Star Trek” movies, I firmly believe that some of that enthusiasm can be attributed to the fan base, including those that make fan films.

“Be a part of a ‘Star Trek’ fan film” has been on my bucket list for many years. With these new rules, I don’t know that I’ll ever be able to check that item off my bucket list. 

Corporate greed often stifles the more creative and I believe this is part of the issue that CBS/Paramount now has with the fan films. I will admit that some of the latest fan endeavors have really pushed the legal limits of the “Star Trek” universe, but honestly CBS/Paramount should make a better effort to work with the fans that help energize the franchise instead of squashing them like so many bugs. The film length clause and the participant clause really irk me. The film length clause in particular makes it nearly impossible for any sort of imaginative story to be shared with the audience.

I also wonder if some of the big wigs at CBS/Paramount came to the realization that their latest offerings were dumbed down crap and that the fans were doing “Star Trek” better than the official “Star Trek” folks were. I think some egos might have been bruised. Again, working with the fans instead of against them would help in this situation.

“Star Trek: Beyond” is coming to theatres soon and ever since I saw the first trailer, with loud music blaring, motorcycles blaring and a really seemingly obnoxious actress playing an alien that does Karate moves on a planet far, far away, I really couldn’t care less if I see this next movie or not. I have been to many “Star Trek” movies on opening night but this one just doesn’t feel like “Star Trek” to me.

It’s a shame that I won’t be able to watch new fan films to fill the void.

Edited with BlogPad Pro

I’m am giving a new (to me) blogging app a whirl on my iPad Pro. To celebrate, here is a picture of Oneida Lake. 

Oneida Lake is the largest inland lake in New York State. When one looks at a map of The Empire State in search of the largest inland lake, your eyes might be drawn to one of the Finger Lakes, Cayuga Lake in particular. But the largest inland lake is Oneida Lake.

Edited with BlogPad Pro

For my junior and senior year in high school, every morning at 08:00 and four seconds after the bell signaled the beginning of home room, I stood in the high school office and led the school over the PA system in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.

I pledge allegiance, to the flag, of the United States of America
And to the republic for which it stands
One nation, under God, indivisible
With liberty and justice for all.

Here is one of the beautiful sights I saw today as I made my way through my Monday.

Few scents make me happier than the scent of lilac. I don’t know if it’s because I associate the scent of lilac with the arrival of spring in these parts or if they invoke memories of happy times when I was a kid (Grandma City had a wide variety of lilac bushes in her lawn), but I was delighted to see that our lilac bush is getting ready to produce some lilacs for the season. I was concerned that the freeze a couple of nights ago was going to kill off any chance that we would see lilacs this year, but the tree has grown heartier of the years and the little buds look like they’ll be full blown lilac flowers soon.

I’m looking forward to enjoying the fragrance that I associate with happiness.

I have been wanting to try these “Grilled Hot Dogs” from Burger King since their announcement. I gave into the temptation this afternoon.

As a fast food connoisseur I must admit that I am quite impressed. I recommend them!

My view this evening.

It’s nice to be in a place where spring actually looks like spring. When I left home for the airport this morning, it was looking like this.

Now, I enjoy a good winter storm like every Upstate New York native does, but I prefer them to be during the winter months.

As I get older I could easily see my becoming an Upstate South Carolina lad.

As a software engineer by trade with a keen interest in civil engineering, I am always fascinated by the seemingly well-oiled logistics that run behind the scenes at Walt Disney World Resorts and Parks. I’ve been fascinated with the way things run at the House of the Mouse since my first visit in 1997. I’ve tried to find some historical information on how things worked before the Digital Age, but other than references to “E” tickets and the like, there’s not a lot of information on the web.

For those that have not visited the parks and resorts in Orlando, I’ll give you a really brief overview of how it works. When you’re a resort guest (staying at a resort on the property), you wear a “MagicBand” around your wrist. The MagicBand lets you do everything. It’s your key to your room. It’s your admissions ticket to the park. It’s tied to your charge account so that all purchases are paid using your MagicBand. It’s scanned by photographers scattered around the parks taking portraits. And it’s your FastPass+, allowing you to take advantage of the “line hopping” service offered by WDW.

I had the opportunity to see a computer screen as I walked into the Pirates of Caribbean attraction using FastPass+; if the cast member was attentive, he would have been able to say “Welcome back, J.P.” as the screen had my name and the fact that I was a return guest to the attraction. From what I have read online, there are RFID readers scattered throughout the park tracking guests’ movements, so that Disney can move staff appropriately and/or use the data to tweak the magical experience that Disney is trying to offer.

Having this one access point around my wrist is wicked cool. Yeah, there’s a Big Brother concern to it, but anyone that thinks they’re going to be able to wander around such a popular tourist destination without being part of a constant surveillance program is naive. Cameras are everywhere in today’s world. Folks have been able to take a photo of our cat sitting in the driveway of our house long before Google Maps was around. People can take a photo of you from space at their whim, so if giving my touristy habits to Disney through technology is going to make my vacation more enjoyable, I’m all for it.

Not surprisingly, there’s not a huge amount of information available as to the systems that power all of this data integration and interaction, but from my casual observation it looks like a lot of it is running on Linux with Microsoft Windows on the front end in some spots. The point of sale systems are running on NCR terminals but it looks like the same software they were running on the older IBM systems in the early 2000s. The backends are most likely running on a Linux system tied to a giant database.

Disney also offers apps for both iOS and Android devices. These apps show all the photos that are taken by Disney’s photographers and the photos that are snapped on the attractions. They also show what “FastPass+” tickets you have waiting, your dining and other reservations and allow you to do many other things. Wifi blankets all areas of the parks and resorts, so you’re not using your data plan minutes to access any of this information.

Disney has embraced technology and I think the logistics behind it all are well thought out and fascinating.

When technology is used the proper way, the experience for everyone involved can be absolutely magical.

I am enjoying our view tonight.

Earl and I just finished a flight from Syracuse to LaGuardia. The flight was on Delta, the official airline of our family. Since Syracuse is insignificant in the commercial airline world, we get the express version of Delta whenever we are connecting to a hub. Today’s flight was on a CRJ200. It seats 50 people.

Before takeoff, the lone flight attendant advised that we needed to redistribute some of the weight in the front of the cabin. She needed three volunteers from the first four rows to sit in the back just for takeoff, then we could move back to our seats.

As a good citizen trying to set an example for all, I obliged. I moved to the very last row and sat next to a woman who was quite nervous. She asked why we moved and I told her we needed to meet weight and balance requirements of the airplane for takeoff. I used my pilot voice and everything. I told her I’d be there for just a minute and would be moving back to my seat after takeoff.

It’s been a while since I’ve purposely sat in the very back on a commercial airliner. It was kind of fun, though I missed being up front with Earl. When you’re traveling with your spouse, it’s always good sit with them.

All in all I didn’t mind being ballast for a few moments. I enjoyed walking back through the cabin when the flight attendant gave the all clear signal. People might have whispered about me for a nanosecond. I like the attention. I wore my AOPA cap so they would know that I was involved with aviation.

I’m cocky like that.