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Category Archives: Scifi

In your everyday life, you might have come across a book, television show, video game, or movie that captured your imagination. It excited you. Perhaps you shared it with your partner or friends, but they just didn’t get as excited about it as you did. You may have wondered to yourself, are there other people with the same passion who want to

Well, this is where sci-fi conventions come in. These conventions grow more popular every year. Like-minded people meet in these conventions to discuss their passions, experience the boundless reaches of creators and writers, and network. There are a variety of sci-fi conventions and in the guide below we discuss the top 4 and what they have to offer.

Getting to the Con: Hotels.com Promo Codes

Unless you happen to be lucky enough to live near one of the major conventions, you will probably need to spend some money on travel to and accommodations at the event. If you want to do that without blowing your vacation budget for the next two years, have a look for coupons for hotels.com at CouponFeed.org. Besides, the less you spend on travel the more money you can spend on merch!

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Top Science Fiction Conventions in the World

Sci-Fi is popular in places all over the world, not just the US. Here are some of the biggest conventions you might want to attend:

San Diego Comic-Con International

Way beyond just comic books now, each July the San Diego Convention Center opens its doors to the biggest sci-fi convention. For science fiction enthusiasts, this is their point of pilgrimage. During this convention, entertainment firms promote currently airing shows and roll out previews for upcoming television series and films.

Occasionally, there are panels where you are allowed to ask your favorite actor/actress questions. The event organizers understand not all people in the convention are locals so they list parties and events around town happening during the convention. This convention lasts for four days.

Worldcon

The Worldcon is one of the oldest conventions; it started in 1939. Worldcon is held in different cities each year. The Hugo award, one of the most prestigious awards for sci-fi creators, is awarded during this convention. As a member of Worldcon, you get voting privileges.

During this convention, you get the opportunity to meet artists, authors, publishers, literally agents, and editors. You can also participate in live-action gaming, panel discussions, art show, Klingon Opera and autographing sessions. If you are a budding writer, you can have your work critiqued by an editor.

Novacon

Established in autumn 1971, Novacon is the biggest sci-fi convention in the UK. It is held annually in November and is organized by the Birmingham Science Fiction group. At this convention you get the opportunity to meet authors and likeminded people. You also have access to a dealer room and the art room.

The dealer room has a wide selection of collectable books, new fiction books, and second hand books. During this 3-day event, Nova awards are awarded to the best artist and fan.

Star Trek Convention Las Vegas

If you consider yourself a Star Trek fan, “Trekkie”, then you must attend this convention. Each year, this event is held across different cities in the US. This year’s Star Trek convention will be held in Las Vegas.

In preparation for this event, make sure you learn some Klingon. During the convention you get to dress up as your favorite alien, meet actors such as Dominic Keating, and ask questions during panel discussions.

How to prepare for your first sci-fi convention

In order to have a fantastic experience on your first event, you need to amply prepare. Here are some few tips to help you maximize the fun:

  1. Make sure your gadgets are fully charged and bring spares
  2. Pack only the essentials. A heavy back pack will tire you easily and minimize your movement.
  3. Make all your bookings early.
  4. Get yourself a con badge. This gives you access to rooms such as the con-suite. In this room you will get free snacks and drinks.

Sci-fi conventions are important. They help enthusiasts network and see the possibilities of the future. The guide above covers the top 4 world science fiction conventions your must attend and tips to help you prepare in order to maximize the fun.

Star Trek: TNG Blu Ray: How Does It Look?

Season 5 of TNG has been released. I’ve been going through the new seasons to assess how the show holds up in 1080p definition.

Obviously the Creative team behind Star Trek didn’t know that the medium of television would change so drastically in the new millenium. They did do some ‘future-proofing’, however. They filmed episodes using actual film, unlike many other shows in the 90’s that used low-definition videotape.
star trek tng blu ray reviewstar trek tng blu ray review
The special effects, which used a combination of small models and computer effects, were a hybrid of film and video: the models were filmed on film, but the effects themselves were filmed using video.
It made sense at the time: no one was watching TNG episodes on the big screen, so there was no need. But it also meant that getting TNG Bluray ready would involve redoing all of the visual effects.

Thankfully the producers went ahead of it, and we can enjoy TNG in glorious HD. Granted, the episodes are still filmed in 4:3 aspect ratio (instead of film’s 16:9 ratio). As much as I’d like to watch these shows in 16:9, it would be highly improbable. If they did release it, there would be lighting equipment, crew members, and unfinished sets clearly visible.

But that’s how it should be: the directors filmed the episodes thinking it was 4:3. If they had known it would be shown in 16:9, they would have staged scenes differently.

The Strings are Visible

The first thing you notice right away is how vivid the uniforms are. On TV the reds and blues were subdued, but in 1080p the bright colors are striking. They aren’t quite as vivid as the red and blue uniforms of The Original Series, however.

This isn’t a bad thing at all. What I did notice was that I could see the stage makeup on the actors’ faces. Sometimes Patrick Stewart would look like a chimney sweeper.

Data’s Eyes Aren’t Yellow

One cool detail I noticed was how Data’s eyes were slightly green. Not yellow, as the DVD quality images show. I actually watched one episode on a movie theatre screen, and I was amazed at how green his eyes were. Again, I’m not sure if this was intentional: they may have given him green contact knowing that they would appear yellow/gold on television.

It’s just one of those cool things where you realize how much high definition can change something that you’ve looked at for twenty years. It can appear new.

As I watched the Star Trek episodes, I began to realize that these were actors, in costumes and make up, saying some lines to a camera. They were probably thinking about what to have for lunch in early 1990’s Los Angeles (where the show was filmed). The HD took the glossy sheen off of the show. It became less immersive than it once was.

And you know what? There’s nothing wrong with that. I could appreciate the cheeziness. Maybe in twenty years people will look at Game of Thrones reruns in the same way.

Meanwhile, check out the future of learning here.