How to Make Your Own Doctor Who Adventure for the BBC Menu Entertainment How to Make Your Own Doctor Who Adventure for the BBC Written by Christian Cawley August 21, 2015 How to Make Your Own Doctor Who Adventure for the BBC Have you ever dreamed of making your own TV show? Do you want to tell a story full of action, adventure, and alien invasion? The BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) might just have given you the way to get started with its Mission DALEK competition. This competition offers a collection of sound, video, and photo assets (around 1GB worth) that they want fans of Doctor Who to use to create a new adventure. This should then be shared online, and linked to on Twitter using the #MissionDALEK tag. (While the competition is only open to UK residents, the assets are available for fans globally to download and use.) It’s part of the broadcaster’s Make it Digital initiative, a vast push to promote digital creativity (which also includes the release of the micro:bit, a small programmable computer which we’ll be hearing more about later in the year). Mission DALEK: What’s It All About? Are you chomping at the bit to have the TARDIS materialize outside your house? Do you want Daleks to trundle along your local city center or invade the shopping mall? Mission DALEK gives you these powers, and more. muo-entertainment-missiondalek-asset Would a Dalek bring your story to life? Would Missy make you smile? Does the Doctor dancing set the tone for your tale? If you would like to use material from the actual series, we’ve prepared some Asset Packs for you to download and enjoy! Clips, images and sounds, all to help bring your digital creation to life! Create a mash-up, use a monster, add a blast effect! It’s all here to augment your ideas and original content. But remember, you can ONLY use Doctor Who series material provided in these packs, and not from anywhere else. There’s a wealth of treasures for you to enjoy! Ignoring the small chance of victory, the real prize here is the collection of assets. The BBC is offering a collection of images, videos, and audio clips that can be reused in your homemade projects, and all you need is your own imagination and a few editing tools. Want to Create a Doctor Who Adventure? Here’s What You’ll Need To get started you’ll need to head to the Mission DALEK asset page and download what you need. This might be some images for a photo caption story, or video clips for a more televisual experience. Don’t be limited by the assets, however; you don’t have to use them if you have something more suitable to hand. For instance, you might be a talented artist, in which case you might create a stop-motion animation project, or an animation using computer software. Alternatively, you might rely on the popular figures from the series, which cover over 50 years of Doctor Who. The sound effects asset pack might prove useful, however… In addition, you’ll need an application to edit your footage and sound. Video editing tools for all desktop platforms are widely available these days (we’ve recently covered Windows video editors while Linux and Mac OS X users should take a look at Kdenlive), so make sure you have one that you’re happy with before proceeding. Meanwhile, should you need additional dialogue, record it using a tool like Audacity. This open source sound editor can be easily tweaked to enable the addition of authentic-sounding Dalek and Cybermen voices, as demonstrated here: Turning Assets into a Story I’m a bit of a Doctor Who fan myself: you may recall I recently offered a rundown of the must-watch Doctor Who episodes, and I’ve run the online magazine Kasterborous.com since 2005, offering readers everything from a podcast and even a print and digital magazine. With this in mind, it should come as no surprise to discover I decided to have a go at Mission DALEK. The first thing I thought was, “Wow,” as there really is a lot of material available. There is certainly enough to give you plenty of inspiration in order to plan your story, which should run for up to 90 seconds. The premise is as follows: Lost in space and time without his TARDIS, the Doctor is trying to make contact. The only clues as to where he is are in his 2000 Year Diary, located in the TARDIS Core. Use these clues to create your very own #MissionDALEK adventure to tell us how the Doctor comes face-to face with the Daleks once again. This is where you’ll find the clues: It can take a while to download the assets. Sadly the BBC’s servers aren’t particularly fast (certainly not during daytime hours), so don’t expect the assets to be immediately available. The best route is to plan ahead, and preview the assets to ensure the type of footage you want is available. As per the competition rules (whether you’re taking part as a UK resident or global fan) only assets from the asset packs are permitted, and this is worth noting: Digital works that feature imagery or clips from past Doctor Who episodes that are not included in the cleared assets on this website, cannot be featured. In short, you need to stick to the sections of the Doctor Who universe portrayed in the assets, which is largely everything since 2012. My story was relatively simple, and short. The TARDIS would deposit the Doctor on a Dalek spacecraft upon which he would reprogram a Dalek in order to distract the Dalek fleet with civil war. But would the assets support this? What’s In the Asset Packs? You know about the video, audio, and photos in the asset packs. But what do they show? And what can they bring to your story? muo-entertainment-missiondalek-edit Well, there’s everything here from establishing shots to footage of Daleks exploding, from villains laughing to the Doctor landing on them. Do you want footage of a Dalek council discussing events? You got it! Cybermen, Daleks, Ice Warriors, Missy/The Master, the Silence, Silurians, Weeping Angels, Zygons – they’re all there. Better still, some of the audio clips come without sound, so you can add your own and further the narrative as you go. Here’s my finished Mission DALEK entry: It turns out that making a story last 90 seconds is surprisingly tough… Other Mission DALEK Videos Reaction to this competition among Doctor Who fans has been favorable, with many posting their videos to YouTube on the same day the competition was formally launched. We reckon these are reasonable efforts given the assets on offer. But it seems likely that more ambitious Mission DALEK projects will surface on YouTube in the days and weeks to come. Will you be creating a Doctor Who episode with Mission DALEK? Should more TV shows provide assets in this way for fan productions? Tell us what you think in the comments section below. Ads by Google No Comments Yet Write a Comment Subscribe to our newsletter This Show Has Been Running 50 Years! Top 9 Websites About Doctor Who Have you ever dreamed of making your own TV show? Do you want to tell a story full of action, adventure, and alien invasion? The BBC lets you do just that with Mission DALEK. The Best Free Video Editors For Windows Have you ever dreamed of making your own TV show? Do you want to tell a story full of action, adventure, and alien invasion? The BBC lets you do just that with Mission DALEK. Kdenlive – A Stable & Versatile Free Cross-Platform Video Editor [Linux, Mac & Live CD] Have you ever dreamed of making your own TV show? Do you want to tell a story full of action, adventure, and alien invasion? The BBC lets you do just that with Mission DALEK. Who Is Online: The Best Doctor Who Episodes of All Time Have you ever dreamed of making your own TV show? Do you want to tell a story full of action, adventure, and alien invasion? The BBC lets you do just that with Mission DALEK. How I Self-Published My Magazine Online And In Print Have you ever dreamed of making your own TV show? Do you want to tell a story full of action, adventure, and alien invasion? The BBC lets you do just that with Mission DALEK. Celebrate a Decade of the Doctor with the Doctor Who BitTorrent Bundle Have you ever dreamed of making your own TV show? Do you want to tell a story full of action, adventure, and alien invasion? The BBC lets you do just that with Mission DALEK. Affiliate Disclamer This review may contain affiliate links, which pays us a small compensation if you do decide to make a purchase based on our recommendation. Our judgement is in no way biased, and our recommendations are always based on the merits of the items. For more details, please read our disclosure.
5 Online Security Threats That You Need to Tell Your Friends About
The
push for computer and online security awareness seems to become more
difficult as the years roll by. While viruses and malwares, Trojans and
backdoors have all been pushed into the public consciousness thanks to
TV shows and movies, we think of these threats purely as computer-based.
In truth, these and other attack types can be angled through any connected device, whether it’s a smartphone, router, even a child’s quadcopter.
We’ve compiled five key threats that you need to be aware of that go beyond the standard virus-in-an-email or malware-in-your-browser that you’re more used to. These threats are so unsuspected at present that we urge you to talk to as many people as possible about them. So feel free to share this post on Facebook, Twitter, etc., or post it to people via email.
Well, we know of several ways in which a smartphone can be subverted. Threats exist in the shape of SMS spam, unsecured Wi-Fi connections, and even with the attack known as War Texting, in which the Bluetooth connection between car and phone is sniffed, potentially allowing you to be tracked or even your car stolen.
But it is the rogue apps that offer the biggest threats, especially to Android users, who should ensure that they rely only on trusted apps from Google Play.
It has been shown that data transmitted between two smartphones via NFC can be tampered with, as well as intercepted. More worryingly, malware can be transmitted to an Android device using NFC.
All of this can happen without you being aware of anything, which means that you need to keep an eye on NFC. When you’re not using it, keep it switched off, whatever type of device you’re using.
But your smart TV is susceptible to JavaScript and HTML5 flaws, thanks to the fact that it has a web browser.
Back in 2013, researchers demonstrated a collection of attacks on Samsung’s SmartTV OS, with the result that local credentials and browser history could be stolen, and the apps crashed. Then there’s the lack of a software firewall, and the big privacy issue of a built-in webcam. Basically, smart TVs are a privacy advocate’s nightmare.
Meanwhile if you don’t have a smart TV but have an Android-based set top box that gives your TV smart qualities, then any vulnerabilities that already exist in Android can be exploited.
And it gets worse. Your home router might actually be insecure too, either because you’ve left the default settings enabled, or because the firewall is useless. You can resolve these problems, however, either by taking the time to correctly configure your router (check the documentation for help with this) or by installing the Open-WRT router operating system on your device.
Follow our steps to avoid your router becoming a security time bomb.
The attack disables the quadcopter and the intrusion demonstrates that devices with cameras and GPS support could be hijacked and used for all manner of dangerous, nefarious, and privacy-breaching purposes.
Throw in the surprising fact that kids have a lot of toys right now with connected technology, from advanced LEGO kits to LeapPad tablets, and you have a whole new attack vector for online scammers: through the toy box.
What security threats do you find surprising? Are there any that you find people seem to be generally blasé or unaware of? Tell us in the comments.
Image Credit: Zurijeta via Shutterstock
In truth, these and other attack types can be angled through any connected device, whether it’s a smartphone, router, even a child’s quadcopter.
We’ve compiled five key threats that you need to be aware of that go beyond the standard virus-in-an-email or malware-in-your-browser that you’re more used to. These threats are so unsuspected at present that we urge you to talk to as many people as possible about them. So feel free to share this post on Facebook, Twitter, etc., or post it to people via email.
Scammers Can Use Your Smartphone Against You
This is one of those threats that you’re either aware of or you’re not. After all, how could your smartphone possibly prove a danger to your financial and personal security?Well, we know of several ways in which a smartphone can be subverted. Threats exist in the shape of SMS spam, unsecured Wi-Fi connections, and even with the attack known as War Texting, in which the Bluetooth connection between car and phone is sniffed, potentially allowing you to be tracked or even your car stolen.
But it is the rogue apps that offer the biggest threats, especially to Android users, who should ensure that they rely only on trusted apps from Google Play.
NFC: Mobile Malware and Card Fraud
Near-field communication isn’t widely used beyond contactless card machines (that you tend to actually have to tap with your debit or credit card, therefore making contact and rendering the term “contactless” utterly meaningless) and those of us who are interested in automation. But while your smartphone might need an NFC tag to switch to map mode when you mount it on your car dashboard, this is technology that comes with some risks.It has been shown that data transmitted between two smartphones via NFC can be tampered with, as well as intercepted. More worryingly, malware can be transmitted to an Android device using NFC.
All of this can happen without you being aware of anything, which means that you need to keep an eye on NFC. When you’re not using it, keep it switched off, whatever type of device you’re using.
Is Your Smart TV Watching You?
Enjoying weather apps and streaming TV services like Netflix, Amazon Instant Video, and Hulu Plus through your smart TV is one of the great successes of the high speed Internet era.But your smart TV is susceptible to JavaScript and HTML5 flaws, thanks to the fact that it has a web browser.
Back in 2013, researchers demonstrated a collection of attacks on Samsung’s SmartTV OS, with the result that local credentials and browser history could be stolen, and the apps crashed. Then there’s the lack of a software firewall, and the big privacy issue of a built-in webcam. Basically, smart TVs are a privacy advocate’s nightmare.
Meanwhile if you don’t have a smart TV but have an Android-based set top box that gives your TV smart qualities, then any vulnerabilities that already exist in Android can be exploited.
Wireless Routers Are Not Secure by Default
Over the past few years we’ve been treated to more secure wireless encryption in the shape of WPA2. But with wireless Internet being so commonplace, it’s easy to forget that often you’re connected to an unsecured public network.And it gets worse. Your home router might actually be insecure too, either because you’ve left the default settings enabled, or because the firewall is useless. You can resolve these problems, however, either by taking the time to correctly configure your router (check the documentation for help with this) or by installing the Open-WRT router operating system on your device.
Follow our steps to avoid your router becoming a security time bomb.
Could Your Quadcopter Turn on You?
Earlier in 2015 we saw how Rahul Sasi created a demonstration malware for drones, a proof of concept demonstrating how poor security on these kidult toys really is.The attack disables the quadcopter and the intrusion demonstrates that devices with cameras and GPS support could be hijacked and used for all manner of dangerous, nefarious, and privacy-breaching purposes.
Throw in the surprising fact that kids have a lot of toys right now with connected technology, from advanced LEGO kits to LeapPad tablets, and you have a whole new attack vector for online scammers: through the toy box.
Be Aware, and Share
Do you own any of the hardware highlighted here? We would advise you to not panic; instead, follow the links to the relevant posts and see what steps you need to take to ensure that your smartphone is secure, your NFC is disabled, and your smart TV is left unable to monitor you. Additionally, you should spend some time configuring security settings on your router, and keep a watchful eye on any connected toys you or your children have lying around…What security threats do you find surprising? Are there any that you find people seem to be generally blasé or unaware of? Tell us in the comments.
Image Credit: Zurijeta via Shutterstock
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Affiliate Disclamer
This review may contain affiliate links, which pays us a
small compensation if you do decide to make a purchase based on our
recommendation. Our judgement is in no way biased, and our
recommendations are always based on the merits of the items.
For more details, please read our disclosure.
For more details, please read our disclosure.
