J.J. ABRAMS breathed new life into the "Star Trek" franchise . . . can he do the same for "Star Wars"? Sources say he IS directing the seventh "Star Wars" flick for Disney . . . it's a done deal. And that's despite the fact that Abrams himself has already denied he's interested.
Back in November, he said, quote, "'Star Wars' is one of my favorite movies of all time. I was never a big 'Star Trek' fan growing up, so for me, working on 'Star Trek' didn't have any of that, you know, almost fatal sacrilege. "And so, I am looking forward more [than] anyone to the next iterations of 'Star Wars', but I believe I will be going as a paying moviegoer."
Abrams created the TV series "Felicity", "Alias", "Lost" and "Fringe" . . . and directed "Super 8", "Mission: Impossible 3", the "Star Trek" reboot and its upcoming sequel.
(MSNBC)
Netflix to add personalized profiles sometime next year
Netflix is working on launching personalized profiles some time later this year, according to remarks made by Netflix CEO Reed Hastings during Wednesday’s fourth-quarter 2012 earnings call. However, he cautioned that a launch is “not imminent.” Reed explained that the company is still testing ways to make the experience simple enough for consumers as well as resilient enough so Netflix won’t have to change it up much after launch. “Some time over the year, I am sure we will launch it,” Hastings said. GigaOM was able to capture some exclusive first screenshots of the current personalized profile tests at CES this year. The profiles currently in testing could be offered as an added feature to consumers at no additional cost, allowing them to add a separate profile for each family member. Profiles would include a separate queue as well as viewing history and recommendations. [Giga OM]
Restaurants don't want you to take pictures of your dinner
Some restaurants have started banning customers from taking photos of their food, the New York Times reports, quoting several chefs in New York City. If other restaurants follow suit, it may signal the demise of “foodstagramming,” a popular practice that involves restaurant-goers taking Instagram pictures of their meals, and sharing them online. While some find it silly and annoying, others just can’t stop themselves from photographing that juicy steak in front of them. Policies around food photography vary from restaurant to restaurant; they range from restrictions on using flash to outright bans. “Some people are arrogant about it. They don’t understand why. But we explain that it’s one big table and we want the people around you to enjoy their meal. They pay a lot of money for this meal. It became even a distraction for the chef,” said Moe Issa, owner of Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare. [Mashable]
Fark.com
Police chief wants officers armed with AR-15s. Why? Because f--k you, that's why.
