Midjourney
Midjourney is another AI based art generation engine. Lamona42 used the engine to generate this fantastic image called Heavenly Meeting
Teaching an old Vectrex new tricks
I’ve always wanted to own an old Vectrex, but the Vecfever cartridge amps that desire up to 11. Not only can it let you program your own Vectrex games, but it also allows you to play actual arcade vector-based ROM chips like Star Wars, Battlezone, Tempest, Lunar Lander, and many other vector-based graphics classics.
Check out this wonderful video (and many other fascinating retro computing videos) from the guys at The Cave.
You can also replace the CPU of an old Vectrex with PiTrex – a Raspberry Pi based emulator.
There’s also a lot of replacement parts from tenpencearcade if you need some replacement Vectrex parts.
Controllers: http://tenpencearcade.co.uk/victors-t…
Modern painting
Not a very good painter or artist? You don’t need to be anymore. Like some of my other postings on AI art generation, there are more and better tools creating art every day.
Enter nVidia Canvas AI. It has been offered for free and runs on just about all recent nVidia RTX graphics cards. Give it a shot.
What an interesting new world we live in…
Pugs and Steam engines
Some of the clever and interesting sound sources used to create the audio in Halo Infinite. From renting out airfields to record blackhawks, to recording old steam tractors, to visiting Tasmania to record lions and chickens, to pugs used for groundhogs. Foley artists are quite an interesting breed.
Make-A-Will month
Our ultimate journey to eternity is something Catholics know a lot about. Sadly, 2/3 of all Americans do not have a will. Without one, loved ones not only have to deal with grief, but with difficult estate issues without legal protections, knowing your wishes, locations of assets, etc. Sadly, in too many cases, the people left to deal with these legal and financial matters are not equipped to deal with them emotionally or fiscally.
Each August, the Church encourages everyone to get a will made. This year, they have partnered with FreeWill for members to get a will made free of charge. A link to getting a free will made was sent if you’re on the archdiocese mailing list, or contact the archdiocese office/your parish for more information.
Here was the info:
August is National Make-A-Will Month! So this month we’re encouraging our entire community to consider how they can plan for the future in a way that honors their loved ones, community, and faith.
No matter what your “estate” includes, everyone needs a plan. But ⅔ of Americans don’t have one, and many in our community may not have a trusted place to start!
That’s why we partner with FreeWill to offer members of our community this free estate planning tool. Having a legal will in place is more than checking something off your to-do list — it also provides the opportunity to create intentional plans that have a lasting impact on what you love most.
If you don’t have an up-to-date will in place, you can use this estate planning resource from FreeWill to get started. FreeWill is a trusted online platform that can help you write your legal will in 20 minutes or less at zero personal cost.
Dwarf planet song
This is pretty ridiculous and fun.
AI generated art is not copyrightable
According to a recent copyright application denial, AI generated art is not copyrightable. I highly suspect this will not be the end of the story as it brings up all kinds of questions about what it means to use increasingly more complex mechanisms to generate art.
Welcome to the (AI) Dungeon
Want to play some Dungeons and Dragon’s style adventuring, but don’t have time to set up the game night and campaign? Try AI Dungeon (also on Steam) created by Nick Walton, the founder and CEO of Latitude.
Nick Walton believes that AI will never fully replace humans in a creative capacity, but it can be the engine artists use to try out new ideas and spark creativity.
“There’s always going to be a really important place for humans defining what the experience is, what the story is, and what matters, but AI is essentially enabling every person to be a creative director of their own experience.” In other words, tech like this should be used to facilitate human creativity.
“Our goal is just to make it really easy for creators to build those types of experiences, and to continue to lower the barrier that it takes to build those.”
Most famous person from your town
Fascinating project that scans Wikipedia and reports the most famous person from just about any city and town on a big global map. Even my own tiny home town of about 3000 people had an entry. While many places have people famous for politics, sports, music, Nobel prize winners, and so forth, you might also discover that the most notable person from your town might have been a pretty terrible person – name recognition is fickle.
Father Mulcahy’s Sermon
“God created us so He could be here Himself – in the lives of those He created in His image”