BadServo

Lately, issues of copyright and DRM have been on the forefront of my mind. The fact is that things are changing in a big way. Content producers are torn between embracing new models and distribution channels and clawing madly at the revenue streams of the past, lashing out at any perceived threat whether real or imagined. Meanwhile the public mindset is shifting, much quicker than anyone would have expected. A new generation of consumers who've never known a world without the internet, on-demand programming, and digital content are growing up and will be swaying the market accordingly.

As the disposable income is increasingly in the hands of individuals who place little to no value on boxed items, and instead only focus on sentimental and personal value in a world where most things can be had quicker and easier for free than going through the official channels that providers are willing to provide, the world of consumable media is in for some surprises.

Anyone who follows tech news will tell you that in the post-DMCA world, fair-use is a dirty word. And in the eyes of big media, any hint of ownership is synonymous with criminal. As originality becomes scarce in the arena of media conglomerates, the only recourse is to find new ways to make people pay for what they already own. And forces the consumer to prostrate themselves to beg for rights. Even people who know nothing of these issue can see the irony in record companies that claim the disc means nothing, that it's the “license” you have to listen than matters, yet at the same time claim that ripping your music to an ipod constitutes theft. They want it both ways, and something's bound to give as a result.

Even as record profits are being made across the board for film, music, game, and television, executives and lawyers claim that traditional media is dying at the hands of piracy. While I'm no expert on such matters, I have historically been a large consumer of media, both digital and traditional. I've been an early adopter fo new technologies. And I've seen how the landscape has changed, and how my own opinions have changed as a result. Below I'll site a few examples that more than anything signify why current models are failing.

DRM is a dirty word among tech-savy consumers, and yet is still considers to be some holy signet of warding to industry. Despite consistently being proven as ineffective, expensive, and even harmful both to end users and profit margins, the industry still pours money into the gapping maw of this. Nowhere but in the realm of organized religion have I seen such persistence in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

In the interest of trying to find ways of making DRM “uncrackable”, companies have managed to make content ever more undesirable to the public. In times past, there were only a handful of reasons you might pirate something:

-Lack of funds

-Scarcity

-Technical Challenge/Fun

-Sampling

Obviously a young teen who is unable to work and has no real meathod of acquiring funds is likely to steal a newly released album online. Especially given the historical lack of risk, and the alternative with is to be without it. Music DRM has posed very little challenge to illegal distribution. Likewise, a student or digital media enthusiast who wants to learn flash, photoshop, lightwave, or similar tools is staring down a fortune on software costs. Even less expensive student licenses can be cost-prohibitive to a large group of people. AS long as people have desires without means, piracy in some form or other will exist. Most of these people are good folks who would happily pay for what they have if able. Sadly, this pseudo-self-righteous fact only makes it that much easier to pull the trigger on an illicit download.

Scarcity was at one time a huge factor in piracy. As the world gets ever smaller, thanks to better communications technologies and diplomacy, there is simply an abundance of content that our grandparents could never have comprehended. This has been both a blessing and a curse to media companies. For example, there was a time, when anime was just catching on in the United States and VHS was king, that you could count the number of new domestic releases on one hand in a given month. But now there are more companies and more shows being produced than ever before. Distribution is faster than ever. This is something that is being mirrored in many other industries as well. As a result, the consumer has more options than ever when it comes to spending their hard earned cash. This fact is the real reason fewer people go to the movies or buy the latest DVDs. There's simply too much choice for your entertainment dollar, and in the case of theaters, far more cost-effective ones.

The scarcity issue is also a problem for the “license not sell” mentality of media companies, since much of that licensing is region-specific. I'm personally a huge fan of foreign music. But I'm simply unable to log onto a legal website and buy that latest JPOP track I hear on youtube. This lack of options drives many to piracy. Before the age of youtube, Amazon, etc.. if your local shop didn't have that specific film, album, or game, your option was piracy. Add this to the stereotypical OCD nature of most rapid media fans and you have a recipe for disaster. The tech-savvy teen who knows that 5 new anime he enjoys are being released this month, but can only afford 4, is unlikely to let that last release fall by the wayside when the “joy of completion” is a few clicks away. Extrapolating on this a little. Fans of a certain niche or genre often keep up with the goings on in the industry. In the age of the internet, it's simply too easy to be informed. So perhaps a new series from his favorite studio is airing in Japan this month. Our fan is excited, and knows that fan-produced, subtitled copies will be available within days. The alternative is to wait perhaps months for the American distributer to license and distribute it. This is particularly annoying, since fans of subtitled material routinely pay more than those of dubbed releases, despite subtitles being cheaper to produce.

Fortunately, scarcity is the easiest issue for content providers to overcome. Forget about release windows, street dates, and distribution channels. The fact is that once something exists... it will be online sooner rather than later. Cut out the proverbial middleman and get in on those profits by selling things online directly, yourself, and as soon as possible. Tiers is an incredible new revenue stream waiting to happen. I'm a busy guy and it's hard to find time to go tot he theater. Tack on the additional costs and time lost associated with a cinema trip (babysitter, gas, travel) and it becomes a less and less appealing option. However, I'd have no problem whatsoever paying more than standard ticket price for the ability to stream a theatrical release to my PC or (heaven forbid) my television. In this scenario, the industry already has the advantage on the pirates in terms of availability, time to release, and quality. People at large, and Americans in particular have shown repeatedly that they are more than willing to pay for convenience. Put that mindset to work for the industry instead of against it.

It's not uncommon to hear the media insiders to lament the leak of unreleased material. Losing money on unfinished material is bad news. There's no way to recover from it. But losing money on unreleased material is the fault of the providers. What's the that? The new Guns N Roses album is out? Where can I buy it? Oh, I can't? Only available illegally you say? That's the quandary many fans found themselves in recently. And taxpayer money was spent to track down the culprits your leaked that material. But my question is this... what self-respecting fan of capitalism has sits on a finished product that's in demand instead of fucking selling it immediately. If you aren't willing to offer your fans and consumers the product, rest assured that someone else will. If you don't have a digital equivalent of your product available on or shortly after day one, in my eyes it's almost publicly condoning piracy.

A much smaller considerations for participating in illegal files is the mere joy of it (why men climb mountains). In this category you have “sceners”. These are people who, for the love of digital traffickingg as a hobby, have built vast networks of supplies, crackers, and an efficient distribution chain to get their warez to thememberss of the scene. These people have no socio-political motivations for their actions. They are typically well-to-do individuals with the money to purchase the media they desire. It is all done for the love of the act. Most established sceners will tall you straight up that they detest peer-2-peer networks, bittorrent, and the like as much if not more than the industry at large. They take great effort to slow the spread of their releases into those channels and strongly urge everyone to pay for the materials they enjoy. The cat and mouse game between the media companies and sceners caused by ever more complicated forms of copy protection and sophisticated cracking methods only makes this more enjoyable and enticing as a hobby.

Lastly, you have the people you are just picky as hell about what they consume and want to sample a little of everything to find the so called, diamonds in the rough. As competition for the entertainment dollar increases, companies spend less money on risky or unproven ventures. Budgets for the blockbusters of the game and movie world are skyrocketing. Especially where video games are concerned, where banner titles routinely cost $60 on release. You core demographic faces tough choices when new releases arrive. If your a kid torn between to releases with the funds to procure only one, and you have no demo to go by, why wouldn't you pirate a them to try out before handing over your cash on a possible flop? While I agree that once you have a film, movie, or piece of music in your possession, you might be hard pressed to find the incentive to purchase it. But studies have consistently shown that those you do the most illegal downloading are also the largest consumers of legitimately purchased media as well. One can only hope that content providers eventually take notice or this fact, and stop assuming that everyone with an open bittorrent port is some “all information should be free” hippie who shuns and legal recourse.

Now, the topics I'm approaching are very large ones, and came be approached from many angles. As such, I'll likely be splitting this into several posts. But for now, I do want to mention a few recent examples I've faced where legally purchasing something has been an inferior experience. One that I fear would make someone else turn to piracy.

I'm a very courteous driver. I make every effort to let people turn out into traffic, change lanes, etc. This drives my wife nuts.

Today, while heading home from work, I was slowing down to let someone merge when it hit me. I need to put some sort or atheist insignia on the front of my car. Having the science fish, "Kneel before Zod" sticker, etc. on the rear bumper is great, but it does no good to inform the person in front of me that an evil old atheist just gave him some rush hour respite.

I can't count the number of times I've held up the traffic behind me to let some poor fellow get out only to have a Jesus fish staring at me for the rest of my commute.

Just a thought. After all, it's the little things that can shape one's opinions of a group.

Posted via LiveJournal.app.

So I'm doing the weekly shopping when it occurs to me that I'm out of cereal. I'm certainly a a man who love his cereal, so I go to pick something. While I'm generally partial to "Honey Bunches of Oats mit Almonds", variety is the spice of life, so I browse about for something new.

I eventually settled on an industrial sized (what happened to little boxes) of "Corn Pops." Corn pops had always been a favorite of mine in my youth, and I figured a nostalgic visit to the ill habits of old might be nice.

I was happy with my purchase right up until the first bowl. While the eating experience is just as satisfying as ever, I was puzzled by the packaging.

Why is it that of all the cereals out there, only "Corn Pops" comes in that insane radiation-proof silver inner wrapper. To the best of my knowledge I have never encountered another breakfast cereal that breaks tradition form the standard translucent plastic bag.

I am at a loss as to what strange secrets the silver bag-thing holds, but I can only hope it's power will be used for good and not evil. Thus far, it has at least kept my remaining pops safe from the ravages of time, so I take that as a positive sign of it's intentions.

**Special thanx to my neighbors, the Parkers for providing the above picture of teh clear bag. Their daughter Hannah is modeling the sack.

Now this is funny....

I'll spare you my explanations of what occurred since it's far more humorous to read the article itself However, I will attempt to persuade you with this photo:

Now imagine that all these snappily dressed individuals entered a Best Buy retail store with the sole intent of “helping customers.” Yeah, I thought that'd catch your interest

Read more here.

Well been quite a long time since I last updated. So I'll spew forth a bit on random goodness.

Firstly, I want to mention that I'm watching Prince's “Sign 'O' the Times” concert video on monitor 2 whilst I'm writing this. Praise Vongo and all it's on-demand goodness!! Although I should mention that Blockbuster video is now offering an in-store version of the Netflix system. For a flat monthly fee (usually $14 for the first and $20 afterward) you can rent as many movies as you like from you local store, and keep them as long as your paid up, simply swapping in each movie when your ready for another. Been grabbing a new flick everyday for a week, and it's a fairly great value. Any fellow film fans would do well to look into it.

Also on the note of entertainment..... Henry Rollins, who bears a very high pedestal in my own personal “Hall of Heroes” has launched his own Talk Show on the Independent Film Channel. The show follows a fairly strict formula each week. Henry will open with a rant against some specific topic, have an uncensored interview with a guest and actually ask questions with substance, he'll then do a segment in which he writes a letter to someone of notoriety chastising them for their actions or lack thereof. In the second half of the program, he does a tongue-in-cheek (ala Colbert) rant about how he misjudged someone of something. This is then followed up by an uncensored performance by the week's musical guest, and closing statement giving props to 2 individuals.

All in all it's fantastic show, and I'd urge anyone to watch it. Thanks to a benevolent and anonymous (cough cough) source, the episodes that have aired are now floating around on select bittorrent sites.

I also watched the first Hollywood produced Narnia film and “The Brothers Grimm.” I was pleasantly surprised by both. Neither garnered the critical acclaim of audience that they were gearing for. Although BG certainly had it's pacing and effects issues, it's a solid and entertaining film. Narnia I expected would fail to hold my attention, since I was a fan of the books and also of the BBC produced mini-series. Given the time constraints, the film was a huge success and stuck fairly close to it's roots. While I feel the acting of most of the central cast was uninspired, the young actress playing Lucy really draws you into the wonder and splendor of Narnia.

Some new photos have been added to the gallery that include some from March in which the missus documents her gardening skill, and some from earlier this month and from easter. Crazy though she routinely drive me, my kid is an intoxicatingly cute lil' varmint.

Anyone who knows me is aware that I'm a fan of the so-called “Nerdcore.” It would seem that a freely available and bittorrent distributed compilation CD of some of the nets up and comers in this genre is being formed. Keep your lookin'-orbs locked to this address for the inevitable download. Some may also be interested to know that MC Chris is still churning out the new album and plans to be touring again soon.

I'm jumping topics a bit here, but while I'm watching Prince jump around in his crazy-ass skin-tight outfits, it occurs to me that he could easily become the most powerful ninja the world has ever known. I would so love to see a no-hold-barred Texas-Cage Match between the lavender lyricist and Cobra Commander. It be a quick match, with Prince beating the Commander's ass all the way from here to Paisley Park.

Been doing a small bit of gaming recently. First the biggie: Despite absolutely hating everything about “Morrowind,” I'm finding myself rather taken with Oblivion. It just “feels” more captivating. Although I do hope to see more artistic diversity in the later dungeons, as that could get old fast. “Need for Speed: Most Wanted” is providing a terribly challenging bit of distraction. Even with a trainer installed, it giving me quite a run for my money.

Somewhat less mainstream is the UK game “Keepsake.” This is a classic point-and-click adventure game right out of the Sierra On-Line and Lucasarts mold. It's well made with good art and a simple interface. If your still a fan of the long-abandoned genre, AND can handle some of the most vile voice-acting ever committed to disc, you'd be screwing yourself not to give it a try.

What the fuck ever happened to Chewy Sweet Tarts? I mean honestly?

I'm about half-way through the 2nd “Dresden Files” novel, and thus far it's even more gripping than the first. Whoo-hoo!!! Another series that can go the distance. Such is rare when your as picky as myself.

On the software side of things, I have become completely enamoured with Google Desktop. While it's not a “new” utility, I had tried it in one of it's earlier incarnations and been totally unimpressed. But this newer version, while adding a bit of bloat is far more functional and elegant. I certainly wouldn't soil my desktop with it's sidebar feature, since my widgets handle every task I could ask. But once you deactivate it and couple other unnecessary plug-ins it's a lightening fast and elegant searching companion. And when one acquires as much data as myself with such haste, it's a godsend.

Motherfucker... Prince is doing “If I Was Your Girlfriend.” That's my jam bitches!! Respect!!!

Had another metric ton of things to mention, but I'm intoxicated and forgetful, so I'll leave ti here. However, if anyone out there happens to have a recommendation for a simple tool that can cut/split WMV files without the need to re encode I'd certainly appreciate the tip.

Till next time...

Well here it is again, yet another belated journal entry. I want to apologies up front for any incoherency, as I've been in a particularly odd mindset lately. As a person who thrives on the cold and dark, I generally love this season and and not typically suceptable to “holiday blues.” But with the combination of side projects running into stand-still hurdles, countless unexpected issues, and juggling financial situations to achieve certain goal, it's been a very stress-filled period. It's frustrating spending an entire day running around trying to synchronize documents between mortgage people, insurance people and references, all the while dealing with a toddler and having to constantly send emails and international calls about because your trying to fend off a bogus copyright infringement claim against one of your websites. Honestly it's enough to make one crack.

The stress, in and of itself, I can deal with. However, what makes things interesting is the complete lack of an outlet. There's simply very few ways for me to deal with stress lately. The methods I used to utilize to blow off steam or relax are for the most part unavailable or unfeasible. As a result, a lot of the stress and frustration gets internalized, which puts me in a sour, reclusive, and non-talkative mood that no doubt is frustrating to those around me.

On the same note, another aspect of my life I've been analyzing lately is “friends.” I'm trying to come to a determination on the nature of friendship as one gets older. That is to say, that I'm not sure if I'm simply not fostering the kinds of friendships I want anymore, or if friendships forged after one reaches a certain age are just not of the type I crave anymore. “Growing up” changes alto of things, and this would seem to be no exception. Depending on the definition, I feel comfortable saying that I may have no “real” friends anymore.

I certainly know quite a few people. And I even have regular contact with many of them. But things just aren't the same as they were when I'd refer to my friends in years past. I know a lot of really great guys, and I think they all know that I'd do pretty much anything for them if asked. But relating to people has become increasingly difficult in recent years. Most of the people in my immediate circle that would be the likely candidates for friends undoubtedly come form different backgrounds than myself, and have very different personalities and value systems. As such, it's difficult to have an open dialog with many of them. I feel this is the primary factor induced by getting older. It's my opinion that as we get older, people become more guarded and less willing to share thoughts or feelings in an unrestrictive fashion, fearing ridicule and alienation.

It's easy to find someone to talk shop with. I know countless people I could get in touch with and discuss the latest film, but if I were afraid of something, honestly scared, I don't know who I could tell. Everyone in my immediate circle maintains a very secure emotional distance. Topics always stay withing a safety zone either mutually understood, or more heavily enforced in one direction.

A sense of comradery is also missing in many relationships these days. I remember when i was younger, that a group of guys would get together for the hell of it. The simple logic being that “more = more fun.” These days, it takes nothing less than an act of god to get 2 persons together. While the scheduling difficulties of adulthood are no doubt much to blame, people just seem so less willing to do something for the sake of spending time with one another. I often feel as though I have to bride people outright to get them to do something with me. The carefree nights of bad movies, jokes, and games are long gone. If there's no benefit to leaving one's house, there's little likelihood they will.

Ironically, it seems the more I have in common with someone the greater the divide. It seems very hard to establish a trust factor with people similar to myself. However, having a no doubt similar mindset to such individuals, that may perhaps be less of a mystery to me that I'd admit.

Even people I think I had established a more inclusive report e with int eh past seem to be drifting. Either contacting me ounce in a great while to pick my brains over some curiosity just to vanish again as fast.

This is a topic that's hard to organize ones thought about, so the above will quite possibly not make sense to anyone but me, and that's just fine. In the end, the journal is a way for me to share ideas and blow off a bit of that aforementioned steam. I also want to stress that the above are generalized observations based on my experiences over the past few years. SO there's no need in anyone getting enraged or taking anything personally. Not that anyone really reads this crap anyway. The average 12 year old goth poet on MySpace gets more this than me. ^_^

On an unrelated topic, Yahoo has recently upped the price of it's Yahoo Unlimited Music service. Now I used the service for some time and certainly enjoyed it. But with the newer price points bringing it closer to Napster, it begs the question of which is the better value? With Napster having just released a newer version of it's client software and upgrading the audio fidelity of the music on it's service, I decided to find out.

Napster has always had the edge over Yahoo in the areas of stability, and interface design. But with version 3.5, it's also brought some excellent new features tot he table. Previously, Napster's streaming and purchased tracks were encoded at 128 kbit/sec, while Yahoo sported 192 kbit/sec tracks. Napster's new version closes the divide on the quality gap, also offering 192 kbit versions of all it's tracks. It's also added numerous community and cross-referencing features. One feature is the Daily Playlist function that keeps a running tab on the music you listen to, download, and purchase, and constantly creates new playlists based ont eh information. Simply log in and click a single button to drop a unique playlist of songs base don up to the minute stats onto your portable player. This is in addition to the already large library of custom themed playlists that Napster has always supported.

Another added benefit is the database of Billboard chart listings incorporated into Napster 3.5. So if for instance, you decide that you want to listen to every #1 single from the spring of 1979, it's very easy to do so. It only took me a couple clicks to dump all the top 10 tracks from the year of my birth onto my player for an afternoon drive.

So Napster obviously has numerous features, but what about shortcomings? Well unfortunately, Napster still suffers from a few issues. It still consistently thinks I'm connecting a new Player to my PC whenever I resync my T10. Though this doesn't affect the performance, it's mildly irritating. Transferring large numbers of files tot eh player at once can occasionally fail, but this is infrequent. In general, transfer speed seemed inferior to what I achieved with Yahoo's service. Also, I tend to run into slightly more instances of tracks or albums begin “buy only” than I did with Yahoo. But this is a problem with both services.

On the whole, considering the price difference on a monthly basis is only 2 bucks, I'd have to recommend Napster. It's superior speed, stability, and features make it the clear winner. However if price is your largest concern, Yahoo can't be beat. Whit it's lower price for subscription and discounted purchase price for tracks and albums, it's the budget victor.

One interesting item of note.... All account functions are built directly into the Napster client, so changing billing information, account type, or cancelling service is a breeze. Ont eh contrary, Yahoo hides it's cancellation form under countless clicks buried on it's web page.

Myself and the staff have been working towards expanding the scope of the Exploitstation.com website. We hope to focus on more technology and entertainment happenings. As such we're trying to cook up more editorials, articles, and reviews. So if you'd like to try your hand at writing something, let me know, and I'll be happy to pass any submissions on to one of the editors. Pretty much anything with redeemable value will get published.

OpenOffice 2 has recently gone final. So if your an OO user, I strongly suggest you upgrade. If your not, then you should be. I personally dislike MS Office, and find OO just as capable of any task. And you can't beat free, folks.

Firefox is in RC2 of it's 1.5 version. While I haven't tested this latest release yet, I can confirm that RC1 was looking great. It offered a substantial boost in rendering speed and a much improved options screen. The automated privacy features are also a nice touch. However, plugins for streaming media such as quicktime did exhibit some problems with the RC1 build (although all other extensions worked fine) so if you spend all day surfing around ConsumptionJunction.com you'd do well to wait on the final release.

I've been a user of the fantastic ObjectDock application for awhile now, but when a friend of mine was looking for similar functionality without the cost we stumbled upon RocketDock. While not quite as refined or user friendly as OD, it certainly offers equivalent functionality in a streamlined, freeware package. Be sure to check it out.

Harry Potter & The Goblet of Fire hits theaters this Thursday, so if your a fan, get the hell down there. It's playing in select IMAX locations as well, which always makes things better. I was hoping to hit ye olde IMAX on the opening night myself, but scheduling conflicts and financial concerns have be considering a belated matinée. Regardless, it's gonna rock. BE THERE!!

In a past entry I regaled you with tales of “City of Villains.” While I have unfortunately not yet been able to secure a copy for myself, I'm fortunate to have allies. My Canadian buddy, selflessly volunteered to let my use his spare Everquest 2 account to help quell any intermediary boredom. Now I played EQ1, and absolutely ABHORRED it. SO you can imagine my surprise when I discovered that it's actually quite good. Personally, if I were Sony, I'd be VERY pissed. Countless aspects of “World of Warcraft” are blatantly stripped from EQ2. While I confess (having played both) that WoW does streamline or simplify many aspects making them more accessible, EQ2 still offers a fantastic gameplay experience.

If I had to describe it with as few words as possible, I'd called it a less cartoony looking WoW with more depth. However, I personally like the cartoony nature, but the ultra realism of Norrath's world certainly holds attention easily. That said, the graphics in EQ2 are simply staggering. While my PC isn't nearly up to snuff enough to handle the game at it's upper graphical tiers, you can certainly see the beauty. Water effects, secular lighting, and atmospheric conditions in particular are breathtaking. Sound too is an area of superiority, with sound effects being numerous and of exceptional quality. The wonderfully soothing sound of being underwater when listened to through headphones could easily lull one to sleep. Also, while not too overused, some character speak verbally, which is nice for a change.

Well, I had other things to mention, but they'll have to wait until after I eat this popcorn fish.

Firstly, while logging out of my PayPal account today, I was presented with a number of “deal” ads. This is routine, and I generally ignore them completely. However this one caught my eye:

Now there's an entrepreneur who knows what people want. Being able to purchase my technology and my dried meat products in a single location would no doubt reduce the number of locations I have to visit in a given week by 50%. Nootch!

Also, anyone that doesn't already visit the LiveJournal of my comrade billsprestonesq, is strongly urged to do so, as he continues to chronicale the adventures of his virtual LEGO empire. I might also mention that the name I suggested (Choking Hazzard) was chosen as the official title of the comic. While many of may say “whooptie-shits” to this achievement, I'm rather proud. Namely because he can be a very picky chap. But also, I consider it to be one more domino in my precariously balanced ego line. The more I add, the harder it is to avoid tipping one over and have the shattering totality of ego crush me under it's wake.

On the topic of self-promotion, I've also written an article that is a comparative review of various anti-spyware applications. It's posted over at Exploitstation. Check it out here. I'm also running a contest in conjunction with it, the details of which are here. Thanks again to FBM software for graciously donating not only a review copy of the software for myself, but also for providing the prizes for my contest. The article is doing moderate success. It's not only doubled traffic for the past few days, but we've gotten links from several sites.

I feel pretty certain I've mentioned my love of Jonathan Coulton before in these pages. His unique blend of smooth folk-style vocals and songs about mutant and robots makes him and instant-classic. It would seem as though he too has experienced a huge swelling of traffic due to his rendition of the Sir-Mix-Alot classic “Baby Got Back.” It's easily the best cover I've heard in AGES!! Check it and Jonathan's own journal out here.

I also STRONGLY urge everyone to zip to their local Target store and browse the Halloween merchandise. In addition to some genuinely awesome stuff, they also have some pretty bizarre costume selections. I'm kicking my ass for not having the camera when I was there, and I'm afraid I won't get a chance to go back before Halloween is over and done. I was able to find a few pics on the Target website, although some can't be found. But if the following items don't peak your interest enough to inspire a visit, then I can't be your friend anymore:

-Batman, Superman, and Darth Vader costumes....for DOGS!!! (I shit you not.)

-Dukes of Hazzard Costumes. (Not the new Dukes, the classic.)

-Miami Vice Costumes. (This must be a sign of the apocalypse.)

-Prince Costume. (Totally purple fakey velvet bodysuit with white lace.

-Devo Costume. (Shit! I'm gonna try and buy this when it's discounted to get the hat alone.

-Magnum P.I. (No Comment)

-Elton John (Billed as the “Rocket Man”)

I've been listening to a lot of new music lately, but that's an update in and of itself. Instead I'll just leave you with this suggestion: Listen to some Queen. You see, recently, Queen's “Best of” album popped up in my Yahoo Music recommendations. I started it up, and was shocked at just how many songs were on the disc that I not only liked, but had no idea where performed by Queen. It was rather enlightening.

Also, you should give the Spam-A-Lot soundtrack a listen. I've been singing it for days. Tim Curry is fantastic as King Arthur, and the classic Python wit shines through. These guys are making so much fucking money it's ridiculous.

I also felt terribly old today when I read that Prince needs a hip replacement. However, after giving it some thought, it occurred to me that he isn't even 50 yet, and shouldn't be needing such heavy work done. As it turns out, the reason he needs a hip surgery is due to wearing high-heels all these years. The man's wardrobe is some brutal on his scrawny frame, that it's literally put him in the hospital. Now THAT'S dedication!!

With that, I'll wrap things up. Hopefully I'll have a more fulfilling entry up within the next week.

Cheers.

It's a sad day today as news arrives that legendary comedian and actor Don Adams died late Sunday due to a lung infection.

This is a particular blow to me personally. One of the most tragic elements of getting older has always been seeing my heroes and idols succumb to old age, senility, and death. It seems as though everyday we lose more of history's greats. Having been an insane fan of both "Get Smart" and "Inspector Gadget" in my youth, Don Adams has always been the embodiment of the "good guy" in my eyes. His weekly televised exploits always proved time and time again that good prevails over evil..... ..even when good doesn't have much to work with. ^_^

It's tough to find words to say about a man who meant so much to so many. And I have to admit that as I write this with tears in my eyes, that countless others are more qualified to pay tribute to this great man. I sincerely hope that his genius, and his wry-wit live on for other generations to enjoy. I hope that anyone familiar with the man will take a quiet moment to reflect on his body of work, and think fondly of him.

We as ES send our sincerely sympathies to Don's family and friends. At the height of Get Smart's popularity, Don's trademark catchphrase was always "Would you believe......?" And a world without Mr. Adams is truly something I would never have believed.

Donald James Yarmy (Don Adams)
1923-2005
A father, a soldier, and a hero.

Firstly, we took a mini vacation to Chattanooga. I wasn't super enthusiastic initially, but I ended up having a really nice time. The city is really interesting to wander around in. Very unique and with sections that look very unique to the rest of the city. Kinda like driving around inside the game “City of Heroes.”

We stayed at a relatively decent Days Inn right on main street. Although next time, I think we're gonna spring for a hotel with net access. We've grown so dependent on the net for directions, and venue info that it's very frustrating without it. We stayed for 5 nights, and enjoyed a good bit of the attractiosn the place had to offer. First was the Zoo. While not a large as the Atlanta Zoo, they did have several interesting and rare creatures, and it had a very relaxed and uncluttered feel to it. There were very few visitors at the time, which also made it more enjoyable. It was also relatively inexpensive compared to other zoos.

Then we hit up the Tennesee Aquarium, which was REALLY cool. It's actually separated into 2 large buildings. One is dedicated to river-life, and the other to the oceans. Then there's an outer area with eateries and the like, and an IMAX theater a short sprint away to see their features films on sea-life. Both the sea and river attractions were lovely. We saw countless varieties of fish, sea-mammals, and reptiles. There was even a shark petting tank and a butterfly room. The scenes and large aquariums were breathtaking.

We also visited the Child's Discovery Museum. I really wish we had taken more pictures. The place is really awesome. It shames Atlanta's own Discovery Zone a great deal. There were countless interactive displays for the children to play with. Lots of unique art, and age-specific play areas for all. Emily had an absolute blast, particularly with the roof-top area that featured giant bubbles to blow, and the library-sponsored reading area. I enjoyed the special Charles Schultz exhibit.

We also spent a lot of time at the local park, which was quite beautiful. Well manicured fields, a fountain similar to the Centennial Olympic Park in downtown Atlanta, and with large air-conditioned glass-walled buildings nearby for eating or riding a carousel. The park overlooks the water, and has a bridge running across one part of it. One time we visited, there was a birthday party going on, and a hippie jam band was playing bongos. They offered Emily Ice Cream and Cake, and she ate and danced about as they played. It's was very relaxing. Also, as opposed to Centennial Park, there was plenty of free parking nearby. And lots of interesting shops and eateries.

The rest of the time, we spent driving about, visiting other minor attractions, like Rock City, and generally relaxing at the hotel. The pool area was open until 10pm, so I would wait until it got nice and overcast, and enjoy a little soaking. There was a great restaurant that delivered steaks and really good seafoods, etc. That was a nice contract the pizzas and chinese I usually eat out at when staying out of town.

I must say that on the whole, the people in the area were exceptionally nice. It was almost startling. Even the pan-handlers were nice and helpful. Go figure. And the drivers seemed far less retarded than the average ATL commuter. They used turn signals and everything. Can you even imagine!?

I've also burned though a couple of MP3 players this month. I finally got sick and tired of burning countless CDs to listen to in the car, and decided it had been far too long since my trusy Diamond Rio player had parted company. I resigned myself to buy a new portable audio player. I took some proceeds from a recent Ebay auction and headed to Wal-Mart. I ended up buying an RCA Lyra RD1028. It is, and this is being nice, a total pile of shit. I initially bought it, because it was inexpensive, and although only sported 128MB of storage, had an SD expansion slot. Having a spare 64MB SD card laying around from Ashley's last camera, I figured it would serve my purposes. But it constantly screwed up during transfers, requiring a reformat. It was slow to respond to controls, and had limited format playback ability. In addition the controls were very stiff, and difficult to manage while driving. It did however have excellent battery life. Customer support was poor however.

It traveled along with me on the Tennesee trip, and put forth a valiant effort, but shortly after returning home, it simply stopped working, and would no longer be recognized by my PC.

So, I decided to upgrade. This time, I went with the slightly more expensive Rio ce2100. This is a hard-drive based model with 2.5GB of storage, and superior feature set. I was thrilled to have it. Considering that Rio crafted the very first consumer MP3 players, I figured I was in good hands. The player itself worked wonderfully, and after a quick firmware update, even worked with subscription services... .. but more about that later. Despite the fact that the player was the very epitome of style (no pics I've seen do it justice), I certainly had my issues with it. Specifically, during a bit of cooking while listening to it, some grease splattered onto me, and in my hurry to get Emily out of the kitchen while I dealt with it, she got tangled in the headphone cord and sent the unit skipping along the floor. And this was the end of the ce2100. While I do miss the enhanced bookmark functions, support for the audible format, and the sweet-ass fade-in/out effect of the screen and it's haunting red-glowing buttons, I think I've done even better.

Ironically, the day after I killed the Rio, a press-release was issued saying that the company was officially dropping out of the DAP market. So perhaps it was a stuck of good fortune the unit perished when it did.

The death of the Rio reminded me why I always preferred flash-based devices to hard drive ones. They are damn-near indestructible. The battery life also is greatly aided by this format. No moving parts means ultimate reliability and greater confidence for (as Eddie Izzard says) running, jumping, and climbing trees. And so began my search for a suitable replacement. I wanted a player that met the shortcomings of the previous devices and offered decent storage and a great feature set with a flash-based system.

After lots of research, I came across a small amount of info on the iRiver T-series of players. These units have enjoyed great success in Korea and the UK, and were soon to be released stateside. The units are very small and have a really impressive group of features for a flash-based player. They also claim (and rightly so it seams) to be the first flash-based players that are compatible with subscription services. So I decided which model I wanted and waited patiently for release. In yet another odd coincidence of timing, Best Buy stores began receiving them a mere 2 days after I first learned of them.

And so I slipped in and purchased a 512MB version of the T10 player. Mere words cannot describe how remarkable bad-assed this thing it. It's got an absurd list of features. Many of which I will never hope to make full use of. I could never list all the excellent features, but I'll hit a few high points. Firstly, the unit is very compact and equally stylish. It features a very beautiful color screen, which although small, easily displays all the pertinent info. It uses standard AA batteries, which is nice, as it avoids the pitfalls of having to ship off the unit for repairs when the battery fails. Ipod owners are very familiar with the non-removable battery flaw. It's also handy when there's no time to recharge, or when you must reset the player to to a lock-up or similar issue. So far I've never had to reset the player, but it's nice to have the option.

It sports a rated battery life of 45 hours, and based on my usage thus far, I think that's a reasonable estimate depending on usage. I've had it for a couple weeks, and have only changed the battery once. It supports WAVE, MP3, OGG, and WMA formats. It comes in both a 1GB and 512 version. I opted for the 512 to save cash. Considering the unit can handle WMA, I simply convert the files from their original format to 64 kbit WMA. Recent implementations of the format can achieve 64 kbit files that sound identical if not better than 128 kbit MP3s. Using 64 kbit WMA allows the player to store around 17 hours of music. It supports the ID3v2 and v1 tag formats. This allows you to not only store the usually artist/song info, but can also be used to store timed lyrics, that scroll along the screen in sync with the currently playing song.

The unit has a very nicely done FM tuner, with 32 presets. This is great on the rare occasions you run out of tunes. It can also record FM broadcast directly to MP3s. This is pretty cool when you hear the awesome enw song, and want to remember it the next time your shopping for music. You can also configure a timer, so that the unit will automatically record a certain station at a certain time for a particular duration. This is handy for grabbing a daily radio show or news program. There's also a good old-fashion alarm clock built into the unit, that will wake you with either stored music or FM radio.

In addition to recording FM broadcasts, it also sports a built-in microphone, allowing you take notes and voice dictation. An external mic or line-in feed can also be supplied to record from external sources. I could see this being a live-music fans best friend.

It has a file browser for navigating music and other files, and can even display pics on the screen. For giggles I keep a pic of Ron Jeremy dressed as Mario on ti to demonstrate this function. It has a number of file play modes, and supports a fully customizable EQ, as well as EQ presets and SRS WOW effects. It has standard features such as physical hold button, A-B repeat. Volume fades, all the usual playback controls, and a auto-bookmarking feature.

The bookmarking feature is well implemented, although not as robust as that on the ce2100. With it, you can have the player automatically remember what track was playing and at what point in the track you were when the device was last powered off or when you switch to record mode or radio. It's similar to when you turn off a car with an in-dash CD player, and it remembers where you were on the disc. This is very handy when you store 17 hours of music, or are listening to audio-books and podcasts. I'd be lsot without this option, although it can be disabled.

The colorful screen gives one all the usual info, and additionally has a screen saver mode that can display a tiny dancing guy, a spectrum analyzer, or an ocilliscope. The eye-candy is a nice touch when listening in bed. The unit uses a standard USB cable, so no proprietary cables will have to be ordered in the future. It's sport-minded design is fantastic and it features a built-in spring-loaded clip for attaching to bags, or belt loops, etc. The player comes with an adjustable arm-band carrier and an adjustable necklace for carrying it, but I generally just snap it onto a belt loop. It makes my recent trips to the exercise room, a lot more enjoyable. ^_^

There are many other options and features, but that's the best bits. Of particular interest to me, is that it support music subscription services. If your not familiar these are services like the new Napster-to-Go that you may have seen advertised recently. With them, instead of buying and downloading individual tracks and albums to keep forever, you pay a monthly fee. This fee gives you access to the ENTIRE library of music the service has. You can download, play, and put onto a portable player, as much or as many tracks as you like at any time. The are full CD-quality files and work just like any other MP3 you may have. But they have specially encoded DRM that makes them stop working if you ever cancel the subscription. It's an ingenious system, and if you like music as much as I do, it's a good idea provided the price is right.

Napster, Rhapsody, MusicMatch, and the like all have a similar pricing structure of about $15 a month. This is a bit much perhaps. However, Yahoo has just recently launched their own subscription service called Yahoo Unlimited. And it costs a mere $5 a month. Personally to me, it's worth what I pay for a single lunch to get limitless new music anytime I want. I've been using the service to the fullest. Yahoo handles their music liscencing differently than the others, and have different music. On the whole, they have mainly the same music, but Yahoo focuses on more obscure stuff in addition tot he mainstream music that Napster specializes in.

The Yahoo service works very well, and flawlessly with the T10. It also has other great features for managing your existing and ever-expanding music library. It can auto generate similar playlist to songs you like, make nice recommendations based on the ratings you've given to songs you like or dislike, and gives you access to over 100 streaming radio stations and custom stations based on your taste. It also has some socialization features that incorporate yahoo Messenger, but since I use Trillian, I can't comment on these features. I strongly recommend any avid music fan to take advantage of their free 7-day trial. For that matter, most the the services offer a similar trial, so if you don't care for Yahoo Unlimited and don't mind paying a little extra, give Napster a go. There's something very liberating about hearing nearly any song you can think of almost instantly, and not having to wade through P2P or run to the music store when you hear an awesome new track and want to add it to your collection.

That aside, I've also been getting into Podcasts. For the uninitiated, a Podcast is like a prerecorded radio show, that you can download and listen to anytime. The files are embedded into RSS feeds, so you subscribe to a show you like, and your application automatically updates it with the newest episodes. I personally listen to about 11 now, ranging form tech shows, to news, to comedy, and music. Of particular note is “Coverville” a bi-weekly radio show that features interesting covers of popular songs.

For getting and managing podcasts, I recommend the program iPodderX. It has the best feature set and is the easiest to use for the novice, I'd expect. And freeware alternative is “iPodder.” Although it is lacking some features. Of course, a podcast directory and aggregator is also now built into newer versions of iTunes.

I should also mention, that during my research, I became enthralled by the iPod Shuffle's function of automatically syncing a set of completely random tracks from your music library. I discovered you can easily do this with any MP3 player by using the Windows Media Player's Auto-Playlist function, or by using the standalone application “iShuffle.” I personally use a program called “Shuffler” to do the same, but it's not as user friendly as “iShuffle.”

On a completely unrelated note, Bob Denver has recently passed away. Most of you will remember him as the titular character from “Gilligan's Island.” I personally really enjoyed his work in everything I saw him in. His goofy Maynard from “Dobbie Gillis” still incites a laugh, and his hapless half-wit personas will warm the hearts of people for generations yet to come. It's a damn shame that Dick Clark is draining the life of everyone to keep himself eternally young, or are “lil' buddy” might not have had to go. Rest in Peace my friend.

I've been using Ebay with a great deal of frequency lately. Eliminating old items form my collection and aquiring new things. I'm really shocked at the variety of goods one can get compared to the last time I seriously checked it out. I've gotten some remarkable deals, and I suggest any Ebay nay-sayers have a browse though it when you have some free time. Having sold items to people around the world has also allowed me to aquire some new knowledge regarding shipping that I think is valuable to have. All in all, Ebay has been quite the learning expirience. Not to mention the profit. Lately I was trying to raise a little extra cash for my wife's birthday, and Ebay thankfully made it easier than I had initially expected. Although, as Tom Petty says, “The waiting is the hardest part.”

Again I'll make another huge topic jump. I want to thank Patrick profusely for not only spending the entire night helping me install an FM Modulator in the car to accomadate the MP3 players, but more importantly, for turning me on to “Uncrustables.” These things are fucking great. Basically it's a small, sealed, round peanut butter & jelly sandwich. They are individually wrapped and frozen. You simply grab a box and toss it int eh fridge and you now have PB&J on-tap. There's something terribly saticfiing about having a sandwich whenever you like without the tedium of actually making it. Ah, instant gratification.... tis the American way.

My gaming has been slow lately, and mostly I've just been tinkering around with Myst 4, and Painkiller, which are both terribly saticfying examples of their respective genres. And I'm eagerly anticipating “Indigo Prophecy” and “City of Villians.” The former is easily one of the more unique games I've seen lately. I doubt I could explain the story in a manner that makes sense, but if a supernatural thriller in which you play both a man losing his sanity and hunted as a killer and the cop hunting him sounds intruiging you'd do well to look into it.

Unfortunately, I think I'll be rather lonely playing “City of Villians.” Despite how bad-assed the game sounds, my friends with PCs and Net connections capable of using it showed little to no interest in it's predecessor. And unfortunately, Ashley is still too taken with “City of Heroes” to be swayed to the darkside at this point. My hope is that I can at least rise to power in the underworlds and make her my arch-nemesis. ^_^

For reasons completely unknown to me, Ashley recently decided we needed a Hamster. She claims it was “for Emily.” But she's full of shit. I can easily tell when she wants something, but is too proud to admit it. But I play along like the good lil husband. SO we started with 2 Hamster, which we were assured where both boys. As it turns out, one of them managed to have a sex-change en route from the pet shop to the house. A few days and a trip later, we have the solo Hamster. Although I don't honestly know how long life with my daughter and wife will permit the lil critter to live. They play.... .rough.

I guess I should also mention that the Magneto expiriment wasn't nearly as impressive as I had initially hoped. He didn't grow nearly enough to meet my expectations. Although during his re-shrinking process, his head and feet seemed to shrink at a rate completely different from the rest of him, giving a delightfully deformed appearance. It seems that Magneto was a Morlock all along. Go figure.

As I said earlier, there's about a million things I wanted ot mention, but this update is taking ages, and my memory blows ass, so I'll leave it at this, and update again soon with anything new, anything I forgot, as well as some new movie, music, and podcast recommendations.