Love it or hate it, Yahoo! Mail has been redesigned once again

It's been less than a year since Yahoo's last interface redesign, and only months since their controversial logo update. Just like the previous redesign, I found myself switched to a totally new interface unexpectedly after using the 'old' look all day long.

Notable changes include:

• Conversations: the ability to group messages and replies together (optional).
• Snippets: the first few words of a message appear next to the subject line (optional).
• Page-wide themes with transparency.
• 1 TB (yes, you ready correctly) of free storage, enough for '6,000 years', according to Yahoo. 
• All features of Yahoo! Mail Plus are now free (disposable address, POP email, and mail forwarding).

• Calendar and Contacts, originally tabs above the 'Compose' button, have been moved to the sidebar.
• Folders are now hidden and require that you click the 'Folder' button to see them.
• Messenger is also hidden until the 'Messenger' button is clicked.
• When replying to a new message, 'To', 'From', and 'Subject' are now hidden by default and formatting options are at the bottom of the pane rather than the top.

Many of these features are now also available on the mobile Yahoo! Mail app for Android and iOS.

If you use Yahoo! Mail daily, the new look and feel will take some getting used to. If you're also a Gmail user, the blow will be softer since both services now share many similarities.

Ark: unravel the mystery in this 9-part web series

Ark is an incomplete, nine-part web series following two people, Connie and Daryl, who wake up aboard a mysterious ship in deep space. With no knowledge of how they got there or why, the pair begin exploring the vacant vessel in an attempt to discover its secrets. I recently watched through the entire 'series' -- it's unfortunate production didn't continue since the show had quite a bit of potential.

For those of you unfamiliar with the concept of a web series, each 'webisode' is only a few minutes in length and always ends on a cliffhanger (also see BSG: Blood & Chrome). Therefore, each episode picks up exactly where the previous one left off without any gaps.

All nine webisodes are available for viewing on Hulu. It's definitely work checking out -- just don't be too disappointed when the show abruptly ends and there's still lots of unanswered questions.

Space Rangers: a forgotten sci-fi gem?

I recently learned of this obscure, short-lived '90's series and just wanted to share it with you. Set in the year 2104, it follows the adventures of a rag-tag team of police/marine 'Rangers' based at the Earth colony Fort Hope. The show isn't exactly considered 'great' sci-fi, but it has its moments (at least, from what little I've seen).

Produced in part to capitalize on such hits as Star Wars, Space Rangers had heavy competition from Star Trek: Deep Space 9, which premiered the same week. It also suffered from meddling network execs, who among other things, aired the episodes in a different order than produced, confusing viewers.

In some ways, Rangers reminds me of Space: Above and Beyond, another short-lived (but well-liked) '90's series about a team of marines fighting in a war against aliens. The show doesn't take itself nearly as seriously, though.

Although Space Rangers seems to have had a lot of potential, it was canceled after only one of the six produced episodes had aired. In fact, only four of the six episodes were ever shown on US network TV. The entire 'mini-series' did air in the UK, however.


Sci-fi gem? Probably not, but worth a peek for some light action/adventure entertainment.

Check out the civilian side of the Federation in this animated fan series

Ever wonder about all the jumpsuit-clad civilians the Enterprise encounters in Star Trek? Clearly, the producer of Star Trek: Aurora does. Set in the TOS era, Aurora follows the two-woman crew of a small merchant vessel, whose adventures rival that of the Enterprise itself.

The first Aurora episode became available (in its entirety) late last year, and is a very impressive work considering its one-man production crew. The plot includes plenty of back story on Aurora's captain, a trip to an alternate reality, and of course, a look at a side of the Federation only hinted at previously. This entire 'pilot film' is available for viewing on the Aurora website and is highly recommended. Don't let the fact that this is an animated/CG feature scare you away -- it's a very high quality production and most definitely worth watching.

A second episode is currently in production, with a rough segment available for viewing on the aforementioned webpage. It's looking like Harry Mudd, the infamous con-man from several episodes of TOS, returns, and we all know what that means: trouble...

Give Star Trek: Aurora a try and see what adventure awaits hidden beyond the final frontier. After all, we can't let Kirk, Spock, and McCoy have all the fun :-)

Sony MDR-ZX100 Stereo Headphones - A Review

I've been in the market for a decent set of stereo headphones for some time now. I was getting tired of dealing with cheap ear buds that were constantly breaking or wearing out. The Sony MDR-ZX100 ended up being a pretty good solution.

Running only $15 USD on Amazon, these headphones are a great deal. Will they give you the sound quality of a pair of Bose? Probably not, but for casual listening of music and games, the semi-portable ZX100 puts out good-enough quality audio (Note these do not have any noise-reduction capability). Coming in either white or black, the headphones are fairly comfortable to wear and seem to have pretty decent build-quality overall (considering the price-point). The cord itself is fairly thick and doesn't at all resemble the extremely thin wire found on cheaper models.

On the other hand, the ZX100 lacks any headrest padding, so if they're worn for any serious amount of time, they could start to hurt your head. The ear padding is more than sufficient, though -- some may think the actual earphones a bit on the small side, but for me, that's not an issue. My only real complaint is the cord could stand to be a bit longer -- when plugged into the jack on the front of my computer, I have no problems using these headphones, but there's no way they'd be long enough to plug into the back of a PC.

If you're looking for some good headphones for a cheap price, definitely consider picking up Sony's MDR ZX100. A sound expert may dispute how good the stereo audio quality is, but for the average user, they're more than sufficient.

'After Earth' - A Review

"Danger is real; fear is a choice."

Only a few weeks after seeing Star Trek Into Darkness, I found myself at the theater once more for another summer blockbuster: Will Smith's After Earth. After recently reviewing Oblivion, I remembered writing this article but never posting it, so here it is (albeit a bit late).

Will Smith plays a strict, high-ranking military general, Cyper Raige, who rarely sees his family and, therefore, has been unable to build a strong relationship with his son Katai (Smith's real-life son Jaden). The pair soon find themselves crash-landed on Earth, long-abandoned a millennium prior after Humanity managed to destroy the environment and pollute the air. Katai soon finds himself on a dangerous mission to retrieve a device to signal for rescue, battling fear, the elements, and predatory creatures along the way.

 In some ways, I can see why some people didn't like this movie. It's definitely not the sci-fi action films Independence Day or I, Robot were, but more of a drama/survival film about a father and son bonding. Even so, this really wasn't a bad movie at all; I think it's just not what people were expecting from a summer sci-fi blockbuster. Kudos to the producers for trying to do something a little original and different from mainstream sci-fi movies.

The producers of the film did an interesting job depicting technology 1,000 years from now. For example, while the interiors of the transport ship definitely has a military feel to it, the technology and aesthetics almost feel 'non-human' or alien. But then again, we have trouble predicting where technology will be in a few years or a decade, let alone ten times that. Overall, I think this gave the setting an interesting flare that's not typical of sci-fi movies set in the far-flung future.

The movie isn't without its flaws, the biggest of which is the writers do a poor job of providing any substantial back story. Many modern films seem to be like that, but it can make the movie a bit difficult to understand. We learn very little about the war humanity is fighting in this future and the alien creatures who are somehow able to 'smell fear'. Fear plays a big role in the film, as Katai is forced to overcome it to complete his mission. The movie is clearly trying to drive home the point that fear is an allusion, something that can be overcome if we work hard enough and are willing to face that which scares us. If nothing else, that's a great take-home message we can all benefit from.

Is After Earth worth seeing? I think so. It's by no means a summer blockbuster, but if you like survival films and sci-fi dramas, I'd definitely say check it out.

'Oblivion' - A Review

"Earth is a memory worth fighting for."

Sixty years after a fierce war with alien invaders, the remnants of humanity prepare to leave a devastated Earth for Titan, a moon of Jupiter. One of the last remaining men on Earth, Jack Harper (Tom Cruise), soon finds his whole life turned upside-down when the crash of a pre-war spacecraft challenges all he believes.

Oblivion is probably one of the best sci-fi movies I've seen in quite a while. It's not a reboot or remake, and beyond the post-apocalyptic setting and alien invasion back-story, it has considerable originality. The visuals are petty spectacular and the story-line complex. It's the kind of movie that leaves you wanting answers until the end. To have all those 'pros' in one film these days is unusual, so it's nice to see the studios get it right for a change. Why the movie didn't get higher marks at the box office is a mystery to me.

Despite being just over two hours long, the film-makers do an excellent job of keeping up the suspense; the movie doesn't at all drag, since the complex and thought-provoking plot has enough substance to fill that entire block of time. It's really one of those movies that deserves more than one viewing to catch all the subtle details. Character development is limited (with the exception of the main character), but for a good reason. Overall, the plot is a nice mix of sci-fi, action/adventure, drama, and even a little romance.

From a technology standpoint, Oblivion does a nice job of portraying futuristic tech, but without being too flashy (for example, the designers stick to using lots of large touchscreens as opposed to holographic displays). The few spaceships we see are practical-looking and well-designed (with the usual dose of futuristic elements, of course).

This movie also has plenty of subtle bits from other sci-fi franchises, but succeeds in using them without being too obvious.You'll have to catch them yourself to see what I mean.

Definitely give Oblivion a try if you haven't already. It's probably the best of the sci-fi films I've seen so far this summer. Maybe there is hope for modern sci-fi after all...