How To Make Video Files Smaller
Buried in this long article about making video files smaller is a nice tool I’d never seen before – Shotcut. It’s a little intimidating looking but fairly simple to use.
Also in the article is Handbrake, but that one I already knew about.
Source: How To Make Video Files Smaller Without Losing Quality | Uscreen
Superman, Batman and Lex Luthor Daddy Issues
From Zack Snyder, talking about Batman v Superman, which was a ridiculous movie but I thought this bit was interesting. Emphasis added:
While Luthor is often used as a parallel to Superman, Snyder was interested in showcasing the parallels between Lex and Bruce as well. All three men are fixated on their fathers, and have maintained tombs in their memory. Lex took his father’s study and built a new house around it, and maintained its upkeep so that nothing fell out of place. Bruce held onto Wayne Manor, but let it fall into decay. And Superman keeps the memory of both fathers, Jonathan and Jor-El, as a part of his deeds and Kryptonian suit,
I never thought about it but this all makes sense. Batman is fixated on both parents, but it’s always about the dad. Superman barely mentions his mother. Luthor I never thought about, but again, it makes sense.
Someone told me “Men don’t have daddy issues” and I said “oh please.” Even superheroes have them! Maybe especially superheroes.
Source: Zack Snyder Shares Secrets from Lost ‘Batman v. Superman’ Sequels | Hollywood Reporter
Download YouTube Videos using VidPaw
If you need to download a YouTube video for a legit reason (like it’s your friend’s video for example), the best way I know of at the moment is VidPaw. Very simple, no crazy ads or spyware. This could change of course, there used to be other ones I used. But as of this moment (4/3/20, day 22 of quarantine) it works.
Source: VidPaw | Download this video using VidPaw Free Online Video Downloader
How To Stop Calendar Spam
This happened to me recently and it’s super annoying. Here’s how to fix it.
Source: Spam In your Calendar? Here’s What to Do. — Krebs on Security
What is a fantast? Depends who you ask
Today’s word of the day is fantast. Which spell check does not think is a word but the Internet does.
I was trying to type “fantasyguru.com” and typed “fantast”. The definitions intrigue me.
Dictionary.com says a fantast (or phantast) is “a visionary or dreamer.”
Merriam Webster says:
1 : VISIONARY
2 : a fantastic or eccentric person
3 : FANTASIST
TheFreeDictionary says “someone who predicts the future” (if you scroll down).
Not bad for a word I didn’t know was a word.
Man finds parents 33 years after he was abandoned at Gatwick
Amazing:
A man who was abandoned as a baby at Gatwick Airport more than 30 years ago has tracked down his parents.
Steve Hydes was left in the airport’s south terminal in 1986 when he was just 10 days old and was found wrapped in a blanket in the women’s toilets.Mr Hydes has spent 15 years trying trace his family and now, after genealogists tested DNA samples, has discovered that his mother passed away but his father is still alive.
After making contact with his father, Mr Hydes found he had siblings who did not know he existed.
Source: Man finds parents 33 years after he was abandoned at Gatwick
Justice League cartoon helps my kid answer a science question
My son just made me very happy.
He was taking a physics exam and said something from the Justice League cartoon helped him answer a question.
It had something to do with x-rays not being able to pass through lead, and that’s what they did with Superman.
So there you go! Superhero animation is educational.
