Spike Lee: Top Films and Unforgettable Controversies

Spike Lee is one of the most influential and provocative American moviemakers. Recently, he celebrated the 20 year anniversary for the release of his remarkable debut film Shes Gotta Have It. His films are groundbreaking in their controversial approach towards social and political issues and offer different perspective on race, class and gender issues in contemporary America.

Spike Lee was born as Shelton Jackson Lee in 1957 in Atlanta, Georgia to a jazz musician and an art teacher. When Lee was a young child, the family relocated to Brooklyn, which was used as a background for many of Spike Lee's movies. Lee's talent was recognized while he was still a film student in NYU. His thesis film Joes Bed Stuy Barbershop: We Cut Heads won 1983 Student Academy Award for best director.

Spike Lee's debut movie Shes Gotta Have It was released in 1986. The movie was shot in 12 days in a budget of 175,000 dollars. The film was written, produced and directed by Spike Lee. Shes Gotta Have It tells the story of Nora Darling, a young, independent African American graphic designer who cannot commit to any of her three lovers. Tracy Camilla Jones played the role of Nora Darling. Tommy Redmond Hicks and John Canada Terrell along with Lee himself played the three men in Noras life.


Shes Gotta Have It was a landmark film in its presentation of African American characters in an American movie and part of the explosion of 80s independent movie industry. The African American community embraced the movie, which displayed a non stereotypical group of young, intelligent black American people. The film won the Prix de Jeuness at the Cannes film festival for the best new film by a newcomer.

The 1992 biographic epic Malcolm X is considered by many as Lee's best film. The 195 minutes movie depicts the story of the African American activist Malcolm X, from his early childhood to his assassination. Lee uses the Malcolm X story to confront the audience with the racial discrimination and violence that black people went through during the 1950s and 1960s in America.

Spike Lee's name was associated with many controversies. He was often accused of anti Semitism and racism for portraying Jews and Italians in his films a stereotypical manner. His 2001 television miniseries about one of the Black Panthers founders, Huey P. Newton, stirred another controversy, which helped establish Lee's image as a provocative and radical figures in the American film industry.

Lee's latest project is the documentary When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts, which tells the story of New Orleans post and pre hurricane Katrina. The four hours documentary is about the New Orleans culture, the damage caused by hurricane Katrina and the recovery efforts. Lee does not spare his critic on the government inadequate reaction to the destruction.

5 Top Movies Directed by Spike Lee

Do The Right Thing: this 1989 comic drama shows what happens in Brookline when the interracial tension heats up during the hottest day of the year. Starring: Spike Lee, Danny Aiello, John Turturro

Mo Better Blues: Denzel Washington as a jazz trumpeter who makes all the wrong decisions regarding his musical career and relationships.

Jungle Fever tells a pessimistic interracial love story between an African American man and an Italian American woman.

Girl 6 looks at the life of a young black actress who prefers working as a phone girl than being abused by movie directors

25th Hour is dedicated to the last 24 hours in the life of a New York drug dealer before his jail term begins.

Today's Entertainment Encompasses Digital Videos, E-Books, and Audio

Today, we can get virtually of the information and entertainment we need with a few clicks of our mouse.

The digital revolution has transformed the way we receive information and indulge in entertainment. We no longer have to listen to the radio, watch TV, go to the movies, or pick up books at our local bookstore. Instead, we can get virtually of the information and entertainment we need with a few clicks of our mouse.

Digital videos, e-books, and audio products are appealing for two primary reasons: they're affordable and they're instantly downloadable. Because there is no manufacturing process per se, you don't have to pay for tangible goods or packaging. Plus, those providing informational products and digital entertainment don't have the high overhead costs of a brick-and-mortar retail outlet, such as leasing a storefront and paying salaries of sales associates. As a result, digital downloads are a fraction of the price of the similar items you'd buy at a store.

Similarly, digital information and entertainment offers the ultimate convenience. Because digital products are instantly downloadable, you can easily find what you want, pay for it, and download it in a matter of minutes. You never have to traipse to the store, face online backorders, or wait for your books, music, and videos to arrive in the mail.

Because the technology to create digital videos, e-books, and audio products is widely available, you have a greater choice than ever before. Indeed, you can find excellent sources of information and entertainment that mainstream publishers might overlook. Moreover, many sources of entertainment and informational products allow you to sample the wares before you buy, by enabling you to listen to a portion of the audio or read a few pages of the ebooks.

That's not to say that, for example, bestsellers aren't available on audio. You can find audio versions of James Patterson and Michael Connelly crime novels as well as non-fiction bestsellers like "Freakonomics" and "Preacher and the Presidents."

But you can also find e-books on a wide range of topics written by experts who may never publish a bound book. For example, perhaps you love to garden and want to learn the secrets of bonsai gardening or how to do companion planting and design an organic, sustainable food system.

Because of the lead-time involved in publishing a book, e-books also allow you to get up to the minute information on timely topics. Take the current housing market, for example. If you're a homeowner who wants to sell or an investor looking to take advantage of the increase in foreclosures, you can't afford to wait a year or two for a book to be published to learn the best strategies for reaching your goal. E-books allow you to get the information you need right now.

Perhaps the best feature of downloadable products is flexibility. For example, you can download audio books without any special software, and then either listen to them, transfer them to an MP3 player, or burn them onto a CD.

Digital videos, e-books, and audio products are the wave of the future - and the future is today!

Net Preneuring: The 21st Century's Gold Rush

No boundaries exist. There are no limitations. In a nutshell the Internet, if you haven't quite caught on yet is the biggest opportunity frontier we have ever explored and the thought of that is absolutely mind-boggling. Anyone, and I do mean anyone, with a computer and a way to plug into the Internet has created for them an unlimited opportunity, plain and simple.

Whether you're an old timer or a newbie to the Internet, one thing stands out. There are an awful lot of people appearing to make money with it and on it. The first question one has to ask when viewing this flurry of activity and the overwhelming number of offers that come our way on the world-wide-web is whether or not this is real.

It's real but beware. Illusions of opportunity and tricksters abound. What separates this from other seemingly universal opportunities is that this one, unlike the gold rushes of the 19th century and the oil boom of the 20th century is that this boom is universal and all at the same time, every where at once. I won't go into the global ramifications of this politically or socially but we are as likely to be spun, diced and served by someone from Uganda and Singapore and all points in between as we are from someone from Cloudcroft, New Mexico.

No boundaries exist. There are no limitations. In a nutshell the Internet, if you haven't quite caught on yet is the biggest opportunity frontier we have ever explored and the thought of that is absolutely mind-boggling. Anyone, and I do mean anyone, with a computer and a way to plug into the Internet has created for them an unlimited opportunity, plain and simple.

Let's look at the stats. In 2002 there were 500 million plugged in from all over the world. Today, just four years later, that number has doubled. There are now one billion users. Bottom line is the speed of the market expansion is accelerating and it will double again in just a couple of years. Can you even begin to imagine it?

Now how easy is it to break in? I always like saying, "In about a New York minute". It pretty well sums up how long it takes. There are those who have a head start, no question about it. Some have been soaking and/or serving folks from the late 90's and some even brag they have been doing it from the mid 90's as though they somehow know all there is to know. Actually, all you need to know is that you can learn this in what, "a New York minute"? If you can turn the computer on and off, you can do this. This is not rocket science. And, by golly, you too can call yourself an "Internet Guru".

The “guru” description when used in connection with the Internet, I must admit, has always tweaked my disgust button. I always thought of "guru's as rare birds indeed, individuals that came along infrequently that can be counted on to be the sages of the time. They possess a vast reservoir of expertise. But, on the Internet, we have exploiters by the dozens who fancy themselves as such. Do not be swayed. In two days, you can make yourself an expert and in two months, you can, if you wish to join their ranks, call yourself an Internet "guru". All it takes is a little homework and a couple of other self-proclaimed “gurus” to back you up. First check out the good guys and the bad guys.

Click on "internet gurus" on Google and you will find over 7 million references. Can you believe it?

Your first lesson is complete. You already surmised these listings are a lot of hype and the biggest purveyor of them all is none other than Google itself. Easily, they are the biggest seller of the shovels to all these "gold miners". Now who do you think are the billionaires?

The moral to all this is that staring at you from your computer screen is the biggest opportunity you may ever face in your life. When testifying before Congress during their attempt to breakup Microsoft, Bill Gates, the richest man in the world, was asked what would he do if he were suddenly to lose it all. He reportedly said that all he would need is one of those, pointing to a staffers computer, and in a month, he would have made at least a million dollars.

What you do with your computer, how you do it, where you do it and whom you do it for will determine whether or not you can call yourself a "guru". The opportunity has never been greater. Good hunting and good luck.

An Introduction to Internet TV

You use the Internet and, of course, you watch television, but have you ever tried Internet television?

Most people are unaware of one of the more recent developments in interactive Internet use. This new technology brings all the benefits of the Internet and television together to create your own personalised viewing experience. In simple terms Internet television means that you can watch TV straight from your laptop or desktop PC.

Internet TV allows you to you maximize the use of your computer and your Internet connection. I expect you have probably thought that there must be more you could do with your personal computer or laptop. You know that typing the occasional letter, transferring your MP3 collection to your iPod or playing the odd game or two online is hardly making use of its full potential. Now you can explore a trusted method of entertainment with access to unlimited viewing and you don't even have to stop your usual computer activities.

If you are someone who can’t get enough of watching programs on television, think about how Internet television will open up new options for free viewing. You can catch up with current news stories, watch real time sports action, keep up to date with stock market movements or enjoy a little light comedy. You are provided with a wide variety of entertainment possibilities that continues to grow, gaining in popularity every day.


If you use the Internet for any kind of research (even if it's only helping the kids with their homework), you no longer have to view what you find in the usual format of text and pictures. Now you can see this information through streams of live or pre-recorded video enabling you to see details that simply wouldn't be visible in a series of pictures.


5 Features of Internet Television:

1. Stations are available internationally. Currently over 150 countries have Internet access so you can rest assured that your country has at least one Internet TV station you can watch.

2. No additional hardware is required. In the past, watching television on your computer would require the fitting of a PC TV card but this is no longer necessary. Improvements in the telecommunications industry have made broadband connections more widely available and cheaper than ever before allowing more and more people to view high quality streaming media on their computer.

3. Anyone with an Internet connection can watch. A minimum connection speed of 56K is recommended and watching at this speed should give you a reasonable picture. Higher connection speeds will improve the picture quality (dependant on the server capabilities) and the fastest connections can enable you to view programmes in DVD quality.

4. New channels are added all the time. Major players in the Internet industry have recently started showing significant interest in this rapidly expanding market. Google is developing Google TV and has signed up American channel UPN and is in talks with the BBC in the UK to provide content. AOL is launching IN2TV which will show thousands of hours of programmes from Warner Brothers across 6 different channels and Yahoo has plans to show Internet TV in Japan which could lead to a worldwide service if successful.

5. Personalize your experience. Normal televisions have fixed channels which depend on the local stations or the cable operators. Internet television gives you the opportunity to bookmark your favorite stations so you can get back to them quickly without having to flick through everything else available. There is usually the option of viewing in either full screen mode or in a smaller window enabling you to get on with other things on your computer while watching.

You too can enjoy all the benefits of Internet television. The world really is at your fingertips now you have discovered this new, hassle-free way of watching TV.

Where Are the Software Engineers?

The technology industry is on a slow but steady rebound. The demand for qualified IT professionals has gone up over the last several, but many students have given up computer related majors in response to the Dot Com bust. Many industry professionals fear that there will be a crippling shortage of qualified personnel to fill tech jobs.

The technology industry is on a slow but steady rebound. The demand for qualified IT professionals has gone up over the last several, but many students have given up computer related majors in response to the Dot Com bust. Many industry professionals fear that there will be a crippling shortage of qualified personnel to fill tech jobs. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (http://www.bls.gov), computer software engineers will be one of the fastest growing occupations over the next 7 years.

To help meet this demand, students seeking a career in computers will need at least a bachelor's degree in computer software engineering.

Computers and info rmation technology is a part of our daily lives, and new technology is being developed at a fast pace. Computer training is needed to help expand new computer software systems and to include new technologies and applications. The skills needed for careers in IT change all of the time reflecting changes in technology and the growing needs of companies. Computer software engineers research, design, develop, and test operating systems-level software, compilers and network distribution software. They work with medical, industrial, military, communications, aerospace, business, and scientific and general computing applications. Software engineers set operational specifications and formulate and analyze software requirements

Computer software engineers need the skills to create functional and technical design qualifications for software development. They must also have solid programming skills, and be familiar with data types, syntax and control structures. Along with the ability to correctly analyze info rmation, software engineers also need to be able to fix multifaceted application glitches and be able to produce quality requirement specifications, design documents and test plans. Problem solving and working as a team are also necessary parts of working as a software engineer. Now is the time to earn a degree in a computer-related discipline, as it is required for most software engineering positions. Growth in the technology field will be driven by the rapid growth in the technology sector. Demand for careers as a computer software engineer is expected to grow as computer applications continue to expand.

At this time, many companies are experiencing difficulty finding qualified programmers and software engineers. The USA grants only about 6% of the world's engineering degrees, behind China, the European Union, Japan, Russia and India, according to the latest figures from the National Science Foundation ( http://www.nsf.gov/ ). This trend showing a decline in interest in computer science majors comes at a time when companies and groups representing U.S. technology professionals continue to debate whether there is an IT skills shortage requiring foreign workers to fill industry needs.

Graduate degree programs have not yet experienced the decline of computer science majors. Many U.S. graduate programs are dependant on foreign students who come here for Computer Training. Approximately 45% of computer engineering students are non-resident aliens. Enhanced security regulations in regards to student visa's may account for the lack of students applying for computer programs.

When the industry does rebound, there will most likely be a crippling shortage of qualified personnel to fill tech jobs. Student s with a love of technology should still continue to pursue a degree in computer science, as the need for these persons will continue to rise. The current shortage of qualified computer science engineers for hire in the United States is a problem that is reflective of a decline in Computer majors. Though the glamour of stock options and tech firm perks may be over, the need for qualified personnel is still present. Students with a love of technology should still continue to pursue a degree in computer science, as the need for these persons will continue to rise.

Online Education Benefits

To date, it had been reported that over 4 million students are presently enrolled in various online schools and universities. Moreover, the number is increasing by around 30% every year. There must be something in online education that attracts all these students.

Some pundits attributed this sizable increase to the simple overall increase of the general population at large. Whichever way the story goes, it cannot also be denied that these online students must have their reasons.

The following explanations may have formed some of the basis of their decisions to study online.

Flexible times

Studying online is not a hindrance to students who have other full-time responsibilities and commitments (jobs, care of children, managing home life). They can “attend” their classes at any appropriate time.

The students also appreciate that in online learning, they can “attend classes” fully awake and refreshed. Their attendance are fashioned formed along the needs of their own personal schedules.

This is in direct contrast to the rigid 2 to 4 hours time stretches in regular classes in regular schools. Sometimes, problems crop up if these schedules clash with some important personal concerns.

Flexible instructors

In online education, instructors – by the very nature of the learning setup – are more approachable. Through online chats, emails and newsgroups, students can talk openly with their teachers. (Additionally, this makes for enhanced teacher-student contacts.)

Online instructors sometimes come from another part of the globe. This adds to the student’s exposure to additional concepts and approaches to problems not learned from books.

Student-focused approaches

One big factor is the accessibility of study materials and other resources 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The student can re-read, review and to watch again these multi-media materials.

Within the online education system, “class attendance” can only be ascertained if a student participates in classroom discussions. Participation here means interacting with the instructor and other fellow students by their postings in the discussion groups, or emails.

New useful skills

Attending online classes by way of the Internet teaches the student skills in using the latest technologies. These unique skills can later be useful for the student going into the outside world, especially in his future jobs. .

Online education affords the students to grasp and experience hands-on the idea of team learning. This is facilitated (and demonstrated in action) in the chat rooms and newsgroups by the instructor.

Personality development

In online learning, to participate in online discussions (asking questions, positing opinions and ideas, proving or disproving those of others, etc.) is the heart of the matter.
This is how the class in online education operates.

How To Have Websites Built For You The Cheap Way

Normally, if you want to have professional designers custom build your site, you must be prepared to dish out at least a few hundred dollars. All this can change if you know where to find the best deals, the best designs for the lowest price. Here's a rough guide:

First, you must understand that it is a rip off to get companies to design websites for you. Have you ever seen those advertisements in newspaper classified ad sections that offer a 5-page website at $500? These companies are established companies with physical locations, therefore they have to increase the amount they charge to pay off some overheads: office rent, designer's wages, advertising costs and so on.

Therefore, it would be wise to find freelance designers who work from home. These people are often working from home so they do not have a high operation cost like that of a company. On the other hand, they will be able to design images with quality similar to those of designers from big companies, so it's a "no-brainer" choice.

However, choose freelancers with care. The best way to do this would be to go to elance.com. There, you can post the abstract of your project and get thousands of freelancers to bid on your project, so you will surely get the best deal. On top of that, you will be able to choose the designers based on their experience, past transactions and ratings, so your value for money is secured.

Another route you can take is to design your website yourself. Think about it, if you only need 5 simple pages to present some simple information, why waste hundreds of dollars for it? Just spend a little time to sit down and do it yourself. You'll be able to design your own sites even if you do not know a single line of HTML code with the help of WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) programs such as Microsoft Frontpage, Macromedia Dreamweaver and so on.

Home Theater Design May Require Professional Help

Having to be able to bring home entertainment may be a luxury. This is because only very few households can afford home theater system. Of late, only the rich and the famous can afford such luxury. This notion is now a thing of the past. Home theater systems may now be available to greater number of households because of the knowledge of basic home theater design. The basic home theater design may only require three basic components and these three components may already be affordable for the working class.

However, before you may need to think of the basic home theater design for your home theater system, you may need to know the size of the room for the home theater set up. The size of the room to where the home theater will be set up will depend on how basic the home theater design needs to be.

Home theater experts recommends that if the room is quite small, all you need for your home theater design is a television set, three speakers and a DVD player. The home theater design may be dependent of the shpre of the room; however, the position of the speakers remains to be the left, the right and the center of the room. Basic home theater design may require a television set bigger than 27 inches. Too small screen for your home theater design may not be sufficient for a movie theater-like experience. This is because even for the home theater design, you may need to consider the sight and sound of a movie theater. It is the main consideration why people go to a movie theater, the big screen and the surround sound. With respect to the surround sound of a movie theater, the basic three speakers is only applicable for smaller rooms, if the room is bigger, the home theater design needs to be more than three, you may go up to six speakers and a complimenting subwoofer may be necessary for the surround effect. Going back to a small room, if you will only put three speakers, you may want to consider buying a high quality brand speaker; this will give you enough surround sound for a smaller room.

If you have a small budget, ensure that the store where you will buy your speakers will allow you to test the product in your room and if it will not give you a good surround sound, they should allow you to return or replace the unit. This is because some speakers sound good in the store but when you finally set them up in a small room, the effect is not very good. Find a neat deal where they can allow you to return or replace the speakers. However, if your budget is sufficient, you may consider hiring the services of a home theater designer. Your home theater designer will be able to design the home theater better and with complete accessories. He may require checking the power rating, and the need for amplifiers. He may also recommend using home theater projectors and he may recommend how the speakers need to be. You will get a good home theater design if you will be able to hire home theater designers. The need for home theater seating and television cabinet may also be necessary for the complete package of your home theater.

You may enjoy the entertainment without having to tide traffic jam and enjoy in your own home theater system.