Hellmouth Podcast

Archive for the ‘Misc.’ Category

UPDATE: It appears that the I have taken care of removing the intrusion from yesterday. Thank you for your patience, the site should be fully operational now. If you experience any technical difficulties with the site please let me know. hellmouthpodcast@gmail.com

The Hellmouth Podcast website was hacked this morning. I am working with my hosting provider to resolve the issue. In the meantime I have had to disable a number of features on the site. If you experience some problems navigating the site I apologize, I will have the site back to normal as quickly as possible.

thanks,

Bryan

Today (04.12.10) I find myself extremely fortunate. I am now a contributing author for the New Media Expo BlogWorld blog. My contributions to BlogWorld will be a series of articles, Tips From A First Time Podcaster, written to pass on everything I have learned about podcasting to those who are just entering the arena.

The first article that can be found here covers what I consider to be one of the core elements of preparing to start a podcast and that is your mental preparation.

Just thought I would pass this along so that you can see what your wacky Hellmouth Podcast host has been up to. Please head over to the BlogWorld Blog and check out my article and please leave comments to show the BlogWorld people that at least 1 person besides me read the article.

Thanks to all the folks over at BlogWorld for this fantastic opportunity and I look forward to a long fruitful relationship.

For those of you who frequent the website, you undoubtedly have noticed that the website has undergone a pretty significant overhaul. Since the inception of the Hellmouth Podcast, I have tried to find a suitable format and design for the website with the proper combination of features, ease of use, and “pretty-ness”. Up to this point I have piggybacked on the work of others using designs that were created by others and available for use. I was unable to find a design that fit with the theme of the site and the podcast. Therefore I finally took matters into my own hands and designed the site myself. What you see before you is the finished product.

Some other website changes to take note of. If you are an RSS subscriber previously you have probably noticed that the RSS feed is only updated when new podcast episodes are released. While the podcast episodes are the core of the site, it is only a fraction of the activity on the site that happens on a daily basis. The site is constantly being updated with news and updates regarding the Whedonverse. Consequently, I have setup a second RSS feed that will incorporate all site updates. The podcast RSS feed will remain unchanged, if you only wish to receive RSS updates for new episodes then do nothing and your feed will remain unchanged. If you wish to subscribe to the Hellmouth Podcast RSS feed which includes all articles and news updates then that feed is now located here:

http://feeds.feedburner.com/HMPCBlog

You may also have noticed that along with the site redesign there are now a minimal amount of sponsor advertisements on the site. In the interest of full disclosure, I wanted to discuss, briefly, these advertisements. It is my pledge to you the Hellmouth Podcast listener that I will only include sponsor advertisements based on the following criteria:

• It is a service or company that I personally use.
• It is a service or company that I legitimately feel will be of interest to the podcast listeners.
• Anytime I discuss or review a sponsor on the website or in the podcast, you will receive my honest opinion, good or bad.
• The sponsor placed advertisements will never become cumbersome or an eyesore, making it difficult to navigate the site.

By clicking on the sponsor advertisements and participating in their promotions and purchasing merchandise you are supporting the Hellmouth Podcast and the work being done by the crew. The cost of equipment, software, hosting fees, etc. required to maintain and improve the podcast continues to increase. Your support of the Hellmouth Podcast helps to offset some of those costs and is greatly appreciated.

In addition to the sponsor advertisements, the Hellmouth Podcast now has a “donation” option. If you would like to support the Hellmouth Podcast directly instead of through sponsor promotions that option is available as well and is also greatly appreciated.

As always, any feedback regarding the new look of the website or suggested content is always welcome. I hope that the new site will encourage a number of you to keep up to date on what is happening in the Whedonverse and you will check back periodically to see what is going on with the site. Thanks for taking the time to read all the way to the bottom of a boring post about website stuff.

from WalterKoenig.com

Andrew Koenig, the son of Star Trek actor Walter Koenig, is missing.  The last time Andrew
Koenig was seen was on Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Andrew Koenig never boarded his flight back to the US, and he hasn’t heard from since then.

He was last seen at a bakery in the Stanley Park area of Vancouver.

Andrew Koenig, 41, was working as a camera operator on the show “Never Not Funny” as well
as doing improv in Los Angeles. Best known as “Boner” from “Growing Pains”, Andrew also
had a role in “Deep Space Nine”, and is a talented actor director, editor and photographer as
well as a passionate activist.  In 2008, he  was arrested at the Rose Bowl while protesting
China’s part in the genocide in the country of Burma.

This is a serious matter that has Koenig’s friends and family gravely concerned. If you have
seen him, emailed him or had any contact after the 14th or spent time with him during his stay
in Vancouver please call Detective Raymond Payette of the Vancouver PD at 604-717-2534.

I have to admit that when this article came across my Google Alerts this morning, I clicked on it thinking to myself, “this will probably be some radical Christian group damning anyone to hell if they watch any of the current, popular shows revolving around vampirism.” — It wasn’t.

The article on the ChristianCentury.org website, written by Rodney Clapp has some interesting points to make. I found parts of the article interesting and other parts of the article somewhat reaching. I think that his point about Vampires and Werewolves being character types that many adolescent teens can relate to in that both groups are experiencing drastic changes to their bodies and personalities. He also makes an interesting point about the feelings of alienation felt by teens. That is pretty much where my agreement with his article ends. Rodney goes on to discuss how vampires and werewolves in popular culture are an analogy of American views of post 9/11 terrorism, etc. I personally feel that is a bit of a stretch.

There is a link to the article here, you decide.

UPDATE #2: As February came to an end the listeners of the Hellmouth Podcast did a fantastic job with the February Goals! We ended the month with 21 surveys completed and 15 iTunes reviews. Thanks so much to everyone who took part in achieving these goals. It is greatly appreciated. Stay tuned for the March Goals in the next podcast episode.

UPDATE: A big thanks to everyone who has been helping the Hellmouth Podcast reach its February goals. We are halfway through the month and we have made some great progress. As you remember the February Goals were 20 iTunes reviews and 20 site surveys completed.

As of this morning, we have 7 iTunes reviews and 18 site surveys. Keep up the great work everyone and keep those reviews and surveys coming. If you haven’t completed either assignment you still have roughly two weeks.

Everyone’s support is greatly appreciated.

Read the rest of this entry »

Neil Patrick Harris

For those of you who did not tune in to American Idol last night to watch Neil Patrick Harris in his guest judge roll, shame on you. Harris did a fantastic job guest hosting on the show and achieved what some would consider the impossible, stealing the show from Simon Cowell.

From the onset, Neil Patrick Harris was witty, honest (sometimes painfully so) and entertaining. Before the day was over, Harris was calling for votes and asking Simon what he thought of the Idol hope-fulls. He was a breath of fresh air for a series that in it’s 9th season can seem stagnant at times and with Cowell already stating that he will leave the show when his contract is up, Idol should be hoping and praying that How I Met Your Mother tanks and Harris becomes available to take Cowell’s spot.

Don’t panic people, the odds of How I Met Your Mother tanking are slim to none and I like most of you would prefer Harris spend his time in ventures outside of American Idol.

Bring on Glee!

Felicia Day

Felicia Day will be in a Vanity Fair article titled “America’s Tweethearts” discussing her and other prominent women with a substantial twitter following. I myself am a follower of Felicia and find her tweets-a-treat every day.

Charisma Carpenter

For those of you in the Dallas area, you will be happy to know that the beautiful Charisma Carpenter will be appearing at the Dallas Comic Con this year so get your tickets, your tents, and your digital cameras and go ahead and get in line outside the venue.

A big thanks to AthenaMuse and the folks at Between The Lines Studios for playing the Hellmouth Podcast promo in the newest episode of the Upsidedown and Halfway to Happyland podcast.

In the new episode Kim and Heidi discuss one of the more infamous Buffy episodes “Doublemeat Palace”. It is a very entertaining podcast about what is widely viewed as one of the less-entertaining Buffy episodes. It’s a lot of fun, many laughs to be had.

You can find the podcast on itunes or here. Thanks again to AthenaMuse and Between the Lines Studios for supporting the Hellmouth Podcast!

You know that you have made an impact on society and culture when colleges and universities have classes which teach students who you are and the work you have done. That is the position that Joss Whedon now finds himself in.

The Flagler College Community Lecture Series on Feb. 16 will feature Tamara Wilson, associate professor of English at Flagler College, “Welcome to the Whedonverse: The Past, Present and Future of Whedon Studies from Buffy the Vampire Slayer to Dollhouse.” Original article here.

Congratulations to Joss, I would assume that this is quite an honor to have yourself be the topic of college lectures. Next up will be entire semester courses on the Whedonverse to be followed soon after by Whedonverse University if Whedon fans have any input.

Whedonverse University:

Introductory and Advanced Magik studies. Beginner to Intermediate spellcasting, charms and hexes.

Werewolves then and now: A look at werewolves through history and their role in modern society.

The Politics and Administration of the Watcher’s Council: Explore the inner-workings of the Council, it’s internal operations and beurocracy.

Investigating the supernatural: Learn investigative and observation techniques required for tracking and defeating elements of the supernatural.

Vampires: Then, Now, Tomorrow. A look at the lives of some of histories most notorious vampires and where they will be in the next 500 years.

Neuro-manipulation: Introductory course to memory wiping and imprinting.

Guys and Dolls: An in depth look at how to build a personality which meets the needs of an active.

Smuggling/Scavenging: A career or a menace? : An objective evaluation of the role of smugglers and scavengers in society. The impact on the universe’s economy and the poverty class.

Evil 101: (Course only offered at the downtown community college extension) How to be evil, an introduction on what it takes to be a supervillain. Topics include: evil laughing, costuming, rays and guns, how to choose a nemisis…

So get ready kiddos because enrollment is limited, start working on your essays and applications and get those SAT scores up and maybe you too can be a part of the first graduating class of Whedon University.

My gosh, it has been far too long my fellow geeks. I wish that I had some unbelievably good reason why I have not been blogging. Truth be told I have been busy. (Define: Busy) – four letter word that does not nearly describe how crazy life has been over the last 6 months. I will not bore you with the personal details, quite frankly you probably don’t care. That’s not why you are here, all 6 of you that read this blog. Read the rest of this entry »