ON Christmas shopping

Having found the last Nexido 2000X in stock, Alvin realizes he still has to make to the checkout.

Yes folks the christmas stuff is out in the shops already!

IF :: flying

Alvin knows that it is just a dream, but he still is really pleased he can fly

For illustration Friday's topic flying 

IF :: Girl Germs

[Flashback] After being caught by Laura in a playground kiss chassy game, Alvin experiences his first infection of girl germs.

For illusytration Fridays topic germs

Espresso comes to the coffee wildness

Meg gets to server her cafe's first every short black,

but is still unable to understand what it is?

IF :: always welcome

Aunty Vi's welcome is a little bit too exuberant (as usual)

For Illustration Friday 's topic welcome

IF:: a little strong

Alvin confidently cuts the cheese knowing it will be all his.

For Illustration Friday's Topic strong

IF :: Over Magnified

Alvin is puzzled by the ants sudden apparent look of terror?





For Illustration Friday's topic Magnify

IF :: Caution

Too Late, Alvin realises what he has just done!

for Illustration Friday's topic Caution

IF :: Wrapped

Alvin is pleased with his first attempt at self gift-wrapping.

For illustration friday's topic wrapped

On Jon Faine's Conspiracy Theory

This was originally meant to be uploaded to twitpics, but I could not log in? (Not another DoS I hope?)

Just a comments on Jon Faine's conspiracy theory (I thought you didn't entertain them Jon) about the Twitter DoS, Denial of Service Attack, being commercial interests trying to exploit and commercialise the net!!

The best comment on the Twitter DoS attack comes from Sighmon

IF about to modify

Lila discovers it is difficult to modify her beauty regime!

For illustration Friday

IF dancing

Just one step too many

For Illustration Friday's topic tango

IF in a shaky situation

Suddenly, it dawns that more than one Alvin is required to change the light bulb

For Illustration Friday's topic shaky

IF :: Impossibility

Alvin can barely believe his eyes

For Illustration Friday's topic Impossibility

IF :: Fleeting

For Illustration friday's topic fleeting

IF :: blessed with inner poise

Sometimes Lila wishes her inner poise was not just in her dreams.

For Illustraion Friday's Topic Poise

On Extreme Energy Saving

Alvin starts to believe every hour should be earth hour

In memory of the innocents

It is not the time yet to open the book of blame and recrimination,

it is still a time of grief and mourning and practical help for the victims,

those who lost loved ones and houses in the bushfire tragedies in Victoria's Blackest Saturday.

For illustration friday's topic instinct

IF counting the heat

The heatwave conditions in Southern Australia

are turning Alvin into a thermopile

For Illustration Friday's topic counting

IF :: Pale

For Illustration Friday's topic Pale

2009 already

Alvin & Lila wish all their friends a most happy and prosperous New Year.

IF :: the word were candle-stine

For Illustration Friday's topic clandestine

On post-christmas sales

IF :: you hear voices

For illustration Friday's topic voices

Lila and Alvin have decided to be responsible, in the light of the world finacial crisis and global warming and stay home, not holiday in Europe, (ok that's how Alvin described it to Lila), so they are getting a lesson in the little known stress of babysitting other people's pets.

The making of packed properly

My technique to make these cartoon has changed enough, since I last let you into my secrets, that I should just review the changes. First and most importantly I tend to created the specific figures, and other objects, as hand drawn sketches to suit each cartoon. (Rather than trying to use a library of shapes). I still might drawn different figures and things seperately. I then "ink in" with any felt pen I can find, colour doesn't really matter as i just digitise this in black and white. Next I use Corel Trace to convert the shapes into vector drawn shapes and then corel draw to manipulate those shapes... for example, colouring rescalling rotationg and adding the "standard layout". Generally I can get from pencil concept to final drawing on the blog in half an hour or less. Just a longish coffee break!

If you haven't noticed I am also doing some "quickie" cartoons in a simple layout for twitter pics (look down on the left hand column). These cartoons are meant to be mostly for my twitter friends, supposed to be highly relevant and I keep them very simple so the time from concept to upload is 15 minutes or less (ie a true coffee break creation) and explainable in 140 charcaters of text (or less)

IF :: packed properly

For Illustration Friday 's topic packed

IF clique-y

for Illustration friday's topic clique

IF we all had island dreams

For Illustration Friday's topic island

With a little bit of inspiration from Paul Gaugain

IF living in clutter

For illustration friday 's topic clutter

IF memories

for illustration friday topic memories

IF under false pretenses

 For Illustration Friday's topic sail

IF poofed!

For Illustration Friday topic poof!

IF Out of the Can

Who let the spam out?

For IllustrationFriday's topic canned

On looking deeper at TiVO

Alvin decides to look at the features and fine print before he orders his next tech toy, this time.

No ripped music library, no picture library, no ability to swap content with your PC or iPod etc. only 160Gb of HDD space which will allow you only 20-30 hours of HD content and apparently they will be releasing it without any capability to transfer to external hard drive short of a PAID firmware update. To add insult to injury, can you believe they will actually display advertisements while you fast forward? ...see MyEPG for more details

But the real bitter pill to swallow is the Channel Seven TiVO cartel's attempt to make it illegal to use a published TV guide to information to record Free to Air television shows (other than using their device); and yes, the current copyright conditions are easily interpreted to include using the newspaper for the purpose of programming your VCR! Hang on aren't the rights to broadcasts licensed from us, the public (ok its through government licences, no TV stations or hardware manufacturers owns the broadcast space, it is not their property, and stange how there is no mention of legality of recording free to air broadcast, just that you are infrigining copyright if use a guide to know when to do the recording)

So if you want to do something about it now before it too late write to your local politician, write to the newspapers, discuss it with your friends, or get involved

IF one slice of cake was enough

 One slice of chocolate cake is never enough.

For Illustration Friday's topic enough.

On Life, without Email, IPhones & 9 o'clock meetings

On Alvin's Organizer

IF in a fog

For illustration friday's topic foggy

Alvin gets his IPhone

Alvin contemplates his new 3G toy ... and joins all the hype.

But the cost of actually using it as a web phone hasn't dawned on him yet.

going mobile

Since Alvin loves technology, why shouldn't this blog/cartoon go mobile friendly, staring with a QR code to say hello and get you directly here with only a click or two.

If you have a mobile phone with a camera and web access you can find out how to scan the code with your mobile here.

Thanks to MOJI-Q for the nice QR code

as IF ...

The Victorian government is playing hardball threatening to make protestor group "your water your say" pay court costs, but what about the current residents?

For illustration friday's topic fierce

If only i had a parachute

for Illustration Fridays topic Momentum

This is the rework of a very early sketch of alvin, using photo of clouds to enhance the idea of falling. It is also my first blog post using window's live writer

IF I were captain

Alvin over estimating his ability to swash the buckle.

for illustration friday, topic captain

only IF it suits

for illustration friday's topic suit.

As I was planning this cartoon, I realised there was an opportunity to exploit the collage part of my technique and use a photo of actual cards to help out in the development of this joke, but I also wanted to add "meet the people" style arms and legs to keep the cartoon feel. So these were sketched up seperately, scanned in and it was all pasted together in corel draw.

IF he has purchased a lemon

Alvin comtemplates his new hybrid car.

For llustration friday topic citrus

This cartoon marks a slight change of software (paint.net & corel draw) and a new format that will fit perfectly onto your PSP (play station portable)