Being a web developer, I have a lot of RSS feeds that I look at involving web design, graphic design, free resources, and inspiration. Some of these feeds send out a couple posts a day, some shoot for a few a month, but if I had to choose just one of those feeds to subscribe to, it would be Smashing Magazine's feed.

Although the name and slogan are a little weird (who wants to be smashed? Not me), the content and format is anything but. Smashing Magazine's articles and resources are super-useful and really robust, compared to a lot of other sites that will give you teasers and then want you to pay for more, or are just a compilation of links to other sites. Although SM also does some link compiling, a lot of their content is original and great even if you aren't a hardcore designer. They have everything from free icon packs for your desktop to in-depth tutorials on redesigning your blog, the latest CSS techniques, or how to create an 80s look in Photoshop. If you are looking to get into web design or need some inspiration, check out Smashing Magazine.

Twilight is the perfect scenario for a movie studio: Thousands upon thousands of teenage girls have read the books, teenage girls like to spend money at the movies, and movie studios like to make money.

The recipe here is as follows: Take 1 best-selling novel in a key age range. Check. Add some actor from a previously popular series teenage girls will swoon for. Check. Complete as soon as possible. Check. Leave out all ability.

Watching Twilight is about as painful as being bitten by a vampire must be. The overwhelming awkwardness of the acting in this film overshadows any positive aspects. You find yourself laughing at Twilight constantly, even when the movie is at its most serious. (Glimmering in the sun, anyone?). It's like asking your first-grade class to put on a movie about the revolutionary war, and then only having one take per scene.

The story is interesting, and probably the only really redeeming aspect of the movie. But this is obviously taken from the book, so you may wish to spend your money there, instead.

Poets of the Fall recently released a note on their facebook page about a band that they will be performing with called Phoenix Effect. Poets of the Fall also happen to be helping with the production and songwriting of Phoenix Effect's first album, so I decided to give their first single, 'Broken Promises,' a listen. (You can listen yourself here or here).

The lead singer, Janne Kärkkäinen, is a former member of Sunrise Avenue, who has had recent success with their album On The Way to Wonderland in Europe. 'Broken Promises' is a little edgier than most of Sunrise Avenue's work, but it's also a whole lot better.

'Broken Promises' is full of strong guitar riffs, but it also has some excellent lyrics (Poets of the Fall's Marko is participating in the songwriting, so who would expect anything less?) and "power" to it without being screamy or overdone. Hopefully Janne and Phoenix Effect can carry the effect on to the whole album while still keeping it fresh, because it is a sound that works. 'Broken Promises' instantly catches you and begs to be played over again and again.

Undoubtedly, 'Broken Promises' is a song about Kärkkäinen's ousting from Sunrise Avenue, but it may just be the best thing that has happened to him. The album is set to be released sometime in early 2009. You can find more about Phoenix Effect at their webpage. 'Broken Promises' is available for $0.89 at Amazon as a DRM-Free MP3 download. Check it out!

Broken Promises Lyrics

You let me in so I could guide your hand,
A quest for gold that yielded lead,
So many things I still don't understand,
Would rear their ugly heads instead

No instigation
just run away
With nothing to fall back on
no skin left to flay

(Chorus)
What you needed the most
were no more of these ghosts of my
broken promises
What you needed the most
never even came close to my
broken promises

Sedated sorrow palms a lazy coin,
You'll find no vindication here,
Flashing a fast lane if you've come to join,
The ill fated fortune of the year

Castles we built now
crumble like smiles
Skeleton hope now
eaten by trials

(Chorus)

How you choose to wear your heart,
is how they’ll cast your part,
How you choose to wear your heart
You wear a world upon your sleeve,
The way you choose to wear your heart,
is how they will tear you apart,
Do you choose to save the world or to deceive

(Chorus)

Max Payne: The Movie is not Max Payne: The Video Game: The Movie. If you are looking for a two hour recap of the video game, which was released in 2001, then your best bet is to use the ticket money for the movie to go grab a copy and play it again.

For those unfamiliar with the series, this may be a better movie for you than those who loved the game. Max Payne is a NYPD detective whose family is brutally murdered in his home (don't worry, I'm not going to give away any spoilers here). The unsolved case leads to his thirst for vengeance and a whole lot of shooting, dreary weather, and dark New York streets.

What the Max Payne movie does well is the effects. Although some denounce the Valkyries used in the movies because they didn't even exist in the game, their ability to show the effects of the drug in the game. The shots in the game look amazing, both during the Valkyrie scenes and the shooting scenes. The gunfighting, no matter how brief, is also well done and is one part of the movie that pays homage to the game. Also, the acting in the film are well done, and the cast includes an interesting mix, from Mark Wahlberg and Mila Kunis to Nelly Furtado, from Ludacris to Chris O'Donnell, all who play their parts well. Yes, I said Ludacris can act.

Unfortunately, what the movie doesn't get right is a long list of important characteristics. Max Payne is a game about shooting, yet there is almost none until after an hour into the movie. You're basically stuck hearing a differentiated version of the original Max Payne: The Video Game storyline for the first hour or so of the movie. While the adaptation of the storyline from video game to big screen is an okay attempt, it adds in too many side tracks which never even existed and fails to really boil down the plot from the Max Payne video game into a cohesive movie. While some of the story getting lost in translation is understandable, the differences here are far too great to be forgiven.

Bullet time, one of the stand-out features of the Max Payne series, makes a small appearance here, which is in good taste since any grand amount of it would make the movie look like an attempt to redo the Matrix. Also, fans of the video game will be happy to know that many of the locales have been transported from video game to Max Payne: The Movie (Ragnarok, anyone?). However, there are some notable omissions in the character category, including many of the main characters, which is probably due to the shift in storylines.

The Max Payne movie is an average mix of story and bullets for most viewers. However, if you come from the video game then the balance is likely to throw you, as is the adaptation. Unfortunately, the movie feels more like an attempt to make money than it is an attempt to please fans of the series. An average film, but nothing too spectacular, save a few of the shooting scenes.

(P.S. For those of you who do go to see the movie, you may have heard about an extra scene after the credits. In my opinion, don't bother, the credits themselves are more worth watching than the scene.)

Thai Kitchen is not that much different from any other Thai restaurant you have previously visited. The dishware is a little less authentic, using colorful fiesta-ware style plates in place of what I would consider traditional Thai dishware. The setting is a little more well-lit than other establishments, but it could have been just about any other Thai restaurant otherwise.

The Tom Kha Gai soup we started our meal off with immediately made me think that Thai Kitchen was a level above other Thai restaurants I had visited. It was full of flavor, perfectly spiced, and had a wealth of mushrooms and chicken in it. I was blown away.

Unfortunately, I can't say the same thing about the Bangkok Chicken. Their menu lists it as a "Thai Kitchen Specialty." It consists of breaded chicken sauteed in a garlic sauce and garnished with basil. I hope that the regular chef was off that night, because the meal was absolutely bland and uninspiring. I could see the garlic, I could see the basil, I could see the spices, but I couldn't taste it, anywhere.

I'm willing to give Thai Kitchen another shot based on the possibility the Tom Kha Gai showed, but I can't recommend the Bangkok Chicken.