Improv Everywhere, known across the Internet for seemingly-random outbursts of public hilarity, has taken up the cause of helping the New York Public Library stay afloat by making a Ghostbusters-inspired appearance that was completely unexpected by those in the library trying to get some reading done:

From improveverywhere.com:

For our latest mission, we brought the movie Ghostbusters to life in the reading room of The New York Public Library at 42 Street. The 1984 movie begins with a scene in the very same room, so we figured it was time for the Ghostbusters to make an encore appearance.

Only a handful of library workers (along with those who shot the event on their DSLR cameras) were in on it. Everyone else in the library was completely surprised by the team of Ghostbusters chasing white-sheeted ghosts through the famous movie location.

Their behind-the-scenes write-up tells the whole story of how it all came together and includes a great photo series depicting smiles on almost all of the onlookers’ faces. I only wish I could have been there because bustin’ like this certainly makes me feel good.

The Drobo FS from Data Robotics offers huge data storage capability with sufficiently-fast network transfer rates for everyday use. The device isn’t without quirks, but my initial take on it is rather positive. Read on for my full review of the Drobo FS…

Background

I recently found myself in desperate need of additional hard drive space - and a lot of it. I had been using a 250GB Buffalo LinkStation for a few years, but have had to regularly delete files from it to make room for new ones. Plus, since the LinkStation is a single-drive unit, none of the videos, photos, music, or other data files I was storing on it were ever being backed up. I was one power surge away from losing it all.

Finding myself in the market for a new network-attached storage (NAS) device, I turned my attention to the brand name I had been hearing so much buzz about: Drobo, by Data Robotics. I first heard of the Drobo line of consumer-level RAID storage systems some time last year, but never committed to buying one as none had built-in network sharing capabilities. At the time, the only option was an add-on device called the DroboShare, which had received poor reviews due to slow transfer speeds.

But on April 6, 2010, Data Robotics unveiled the Drobo FS. The “FS” stands for “file sharing,” which is exactly what I was looking for in a data storage system. The notion of combining the much-acclaimed Drobo “BeyondRAID” no-configuration-necessary technology with fast, built-in network sharing was too much for me to pass up.
Read the rest of this entry »

If you’ve been following Inside the Magic on Twitter, Facebook, or listened to Show 262, then you know that I’ve recently launched an all-new web site for Inside the Magic at http://www.InsideTheMagic.net.

If you didn’t know that already, consider this the announcement. :) Go check it out!

InsideTheMagic.net is now going to be home to all of my Disney and theme park related posts, thoughts, and coverage. That includes podcasts, videos, photos, news, articles, and more.

So where does that leave the distant creations blog?

This blog began as my own personal place to post my thoughts about whatever it is I’m doing at the time. Then it evolved into a place to post lots of news and links to random things around the Internet. Then it became somewhere for me to post videos, photos, and articles from the many theme park events I attend. Now… I’d like to bring it back to where it began.

“Distant Creations” was originally created as nothing more than a portfolio for me to show off my works. But since I rarely (read: never) updated it, it quickly became outdated. That’s when I added the blog with the hopes of posting more often. That notion has come and gone… and come and gone… and come and gone.

But now, while I keep regular business hours at my day job at Lanyard Lab, I need something to occupy my time during slower periods between assisting our customers. So my intention is to post any Disney and theme park-related items to InsideTheMagic.net and anything else I like here.

That means the distant creations blog is once again returning to being my own personal blog. I’ll be writing here and there about the usual topics that interest me, mainly music, movies, collectibles, and technology. But I doubt I’ll post here every day (not that I have ever really done that anyway).

So that’s where I’m going with this blog. I hope you continue to enjoy it. And (one more plug) be sure to head over to InsideTheMagic.net for the most interesting Disney and theme park topics.

Following on the footsteps of Disneyland Resort’s Downtown Disney in Anaheim, Calif., today Ridemakerz opened a store at Walt Disney World’s Downtown Disney here in Orlando.

Ridemakerz allows you to create and customize your own model car, choosing the body, undercarriage, tires, wheels, decals and other accessories (each with their own price tag). In addition, you can add radio control ability, which in my opinion is a must. The average sale, with radio control added, will range from $50-$75 depending on how many add-ons you choose.

Here’s a video from today’s Ridemakerz grand opening including a complete walkthrough of the process of customizing your own car as well as interviews with Downtown Disney vice president Keith Bradford, Ridemakerz CEO Larry Andreini, and Hollywood custom car design legend Fireball Tim:

I had the chance to build my own Ridemakerz car today (for free, as part of the opening). My design would have cost around $75, including remote control ability and two sets of add-on accessories.

It took me around 10-15 minutes to go through the process of choosing all the parts and while I felt somewhat overwhelmed by it, I did enjoy it. The options are endless and result in literally millions of combinations you could come out with.

I nicknamed the style of my car “gothic sci-fi” as I chose an all-black body with “pirate” skull wheels, purple/black tires, and a “jet pack” accessory kit. Here’s a look at it:

Upon driving it around my house for a while, I found that the top speed of around 14mph is far too fast to be driving around inside a house, but perfect for moving around speedily outside. Apparently I frightened my cat indoors as well - another reason to take it out.

I also found that turning does not work as well as I would have liked. It seems that if I am telling the car to move forward or reverse, it doesn’t want to turn until I let up on the forward/back joystick and then press the left/right stick before proceeding. It’s a bit of an annoyance but not terrible.

In the end the quality of the build is solid and I came away with a much more personalized car than I would have if I had spent $75 to get an off-the-shelf RC car at a toy store. If you’re a fan of cars or remote control toys, I’d definitely recommend a trip to Ridemakerz, but be prepared to not leave under $50.

One note: Don’t expect to walk out of the store and start driving your new RC car around Downtown Disney. It isn’t permitted. You can drive it around the store after you’ve purchased it but you’ll have to put away the controls before heading out into the Downtown Disney streets.

The new store occupies most of the first floor that was formerly the home of the Virgin Megastore. The second floor remains closed off for now.

Ridemakerz is a temporary “pop-up” store, currently scheduled to remain open throughout the summer. Afterward, if business does well, the store may move to a permanent location elsewhere at Downtown Disney, just as it is currently doing following a successful test run in California’s version of the popular shopping area.

More photos inside Ridemakerz and from today’s grand opening:

Sesame Street fans will want to head to Busch Gardens Tampa Bay this coming weekend as the all-new, Sesame Street-themed “Safari of Fun” opens on March 27.

This kids’ play land features Elmo, Big Bird, Cookie Monster, Burt, Ernie, and other Sesame Street characters, available for meet-and-greets and photo ops. Also in the new area are kid-size rides, water fun, shows and other adventures.

Highlights include “Air Grover,” which looks to be a fun-filled a kid’s coaster. “Oscar’s Swamp Stomp” and “Bert & Ernie’s Watering Hole” are sure to cool you off in the upcoming hot months.

“Lights, Camera, Imagination!” is Busch Gardens’ new 4-D film, located in their Timbuktu area. The movie features Elmo, Cookie Monster, Big Bird and other Sesame Street characters trying to save the Sesame Street Film Festival.

“Only at Busch Gardens can you meet versions of the Sesame Street characters in unique African-inspired costumes and have experiences with them you can’t find anywhere else,” says Jim Dean, Busch Gardens’ executive vice president and general manager. “With this new addition to our park, Busch Gardens really does have something for everyone. We expect to see many more families come to enjoy all that our park has to offer.”

Families can also share breakfast or lunch with Elmo and friends on select days at an outdoor dining facility in Sesame Street Safari of Fun.

Find out more about the “Sesame Street Safari of Fun” at SesameStreetSafariOfFun.com.