Published on
December 30, 2007 in
Music.
Tags: rant.
According to a story in the Washington Post that Slashdot picked up, the RIAA now considers songs ripped from CDs that you own to your computer (that are not shared) to be illegal copies of copyrighted music. How many ways is this an utterly asinine position? Well, first off, they are completely violating the concept of fair use as codified in law. Secondly, if they really felt they had a case, why aren’t they going after the likes of Apple and Microsoft that enable to ripping of CDs?
Is the music industry dying? Yes. Is that a good thing? Yes! Maybe we will finally get to a point where artists are getting our cash directly and have choices about where they want to sell their music and how they want to control their property. The RIAA is poorly suited to handle this in any capacity.
UPDATE: It sounds as if they’re actually suing over sharing of these “unauthorized” copies, but they do still have their heads up their collective ass over fair use even if they’re not actually suing over it…
Published on
December 28, 2007 in
Personal.
So, were still in Atlanta. We travelled to Alabama to see my family on Wednesday. We had a good night with everyone celebrating Christmas with Ben and then went to one of my favorite restaurants, a small local Chinese place named Formosa. Oh…was that good 
Thursday, we headed over to IKEA and were completely amazed! I’ve never been there, but I really like the look of the furniture. We did find a ton of stuff for us and for Ben like the following:
Now, I believe IKEA will be opening a store in Charlotte, NC sometime in the future and I know where my furniture will be coming from.
We also visited the Georgia Aquarium and all I can say is that it is HUGE. Much bigger than the NC aquariums I have been to.
Back later with more…
Published on
December 25, 2007 in
Personal.
I hope you all have had a Merry Christmas (or at least a happy holiday season).
We’ve been at Heather’s family today and had a great Christmas so far. Ben got some fun gifts from Santa and family. The biggest hit for him has been the Fisher-Price Little People Ramps Around Garage seen below.
We’ll be travelling to see my family next, but so far the holidays are off to a bang!
As seen on Slashdot…
Check out this video to see how much punishment this crystal-sapphire covered LCD can take. One hint is that it involves a crossbow 
Published on
December 23, 2007 in
Personal.
Ben is napping, Heather is at the gym, and I’m sitting here on the sofa watching The Matrix Revolutions on HD DVD (I tried to get them in order from Netflix, but this is what I got first). Definitely not the best of the trilogy, but boy does it look damn good in HD. Before this I started sanding and painting a small wooden rocking horse that Heather got for Ben. Soon, I have to start packing the Honda CRV for out Holiday travels.
So, please mourn my sanity as Heather and I got Ben a toy that I am sure to hear all the time during the long car trips.
Elmo now knows Ben’s name, favorite color, foods, drinks, friends, and daily schedule. He will talk to, sing songs, and play games that will be personalized to Ben.
My God, what have I done?
UPDATE:
We watched Elmo’s Christmas Countdown. Ugh, Ben enjoyed it, but wow, oh my, the pain. How much did they pay Kevin James to do that? It had to be more then Sheryl Crow or Anne Hathaway whose skits were somewhat tasteful…
3.5 out of 5 stars
I really enjoyed this film much more than I had expected to. It really is almost two different movies in one, but more on that in a second. Will Smith plays a virologist who is conceivably the last man on Earth. I don’t want to give away spoilers, but for the most part this is a one man, one dog movie. Will Smith is excellent in his portrayal. He is surprisingly believable as a scientist that is trying to survive. I would say this is one of his better, more enjoyable roles for what it is. The audience is basically watching his decent into madness and grief. As the film runs on, the audience is treated to something that more closely matches a typical blockbuster action film, but it is still an enjoyable ride, albeit a less intelligent thoughtful one. I was somewhat disappointed with the end of the flick as I think it could have been much more, but …
For my money, the CGI effects in this film are not very good. The seem too artificial, but luckily, that isn’t what attracts me to this movie. All in all, it was an enjoyable show. I would definitely recommend a matinee or a rental.
Image courtesy of IMP Awards.
2.5 out of 5 stars
I enjoyed this film, but it wasn’t a great (or even very good) film. The ideas are intriguing, but they aren’t fully explored. I enjoyed the concept of animal spirits (or demons). There are many interesting ideas thrown about, but they’re never well explored. Maybe the remainder of the planned trilogy would clear up the concerns? I personally wanted information on how the vehicles functioned. They all had similar power generation plants that had an appealing visual design, but this wasn’t ever touched on in all likelihood because in their world this tech is “common”.
Daniel Craig and Nicole Kidman have throwaway performances for the most part. There is nothing really bad, but also nothing of note that I could find here. Dakota Blue Richards was rather entertaining in the lead role and when paired with the Ian McKellen-voiced armored ice bear and Sam Elliott’s cowboy-ish character, the film really begins to take off. These three are the focus of the story, but the story just accomplishes far too little in this first film to be very good.
I have to admit that the “demons” and the ice bears made this movie for me. It was definitely worth the matinee, but I fear it will not do well in the long run. This will also be a rental when it comes out on HDM (HD media).
Image courtesy of IMP Awards.
3.5 out of 5 stars
Well, H and I just got done watching Superbad. It’s very funny. I mean really damn funny. Not sure I would buy, but I will watch this a few more times I’m sure. The dialog is king here. I had to rewind many times just to catch what was said. Seth Rogen is a comic genius. I just keep enjoying his work more and more, but really, the teenagers are the stars in this flick. McLovin’ and the cops simply crack me up, but Jonah Hill (Knocked Up and Accepted) and Michael Cera (Juno – which looks funny) are fabulous. One line, just one line…
Prepare to be fucked by the long dick of the law! – Officer Michaels (Seth Rogen)
Another two words … dick drawings. Can’t go into more details as I don’t want to spoil anything, but I found it hilarious…
This is a rental that you must go get. Like now! Get off your ass and prepare to laugh
Image courtesy of IMP Awards.
Published on
December 9, 2007 in
Movies.
Check out this review of the upcoming Blade Runner DVD, HD DVD, and Blu-ray sets. It doesn’t yet include the high-def versions, but has some VERY good information for all you Deckard fans…
Well, I have now had a few days to think about my Xbox 360 HD DVD Anniversary gift.
Pros:
- Amazing picture
- Easy to hookup and use
- Web extras are quite cool
- Menu systems work well
- Bookmarking is great
Cons:
- Audio down-sampling (read about, haven’t hooked up to sound system yet)
- Cost of content – $25-30 is overpriced, but just barely and it will simply make me buy less
- Format war with Blu-ray is worthless
Watched so far:
- Batman Begins (RENTED)
- King Kong (INCLUDED with player)
- 300 (RENTED)
- Transformers (BOUGHT)
I hooked up the Xbox 360 HD DVD player and so far I am very pleased. The thing that pushes this over the top for me is the absolutely jaw dropping picture and the very cool extras. It has also made me rethink my opinions as Blu-ray doesn’t yet have much of the extra features such as web-based extras (more on that soon) that are already on HD DVD. I think I have found a great system for myself. The menus are browsable while watching the movie. The extras are plentiful. There are now many options such as a commentary track that pops up a picture in picture video of the actor/director who is talking and then can fade away and let them continue commentary over the film. Within Transformers, there is a very cool web extra that puts up a H.U.D. around the film. At the top of the screen, it shows the GPS location and mapping of where the action is taking place. On the left had side there is a dimmed list of pics of all Transformers in the film. As each one comes on screen, they light up and slide out with their names. This also includes a “damage meter” that shows damage during the battles. Corny? yes. Necessary? no. Fun? Hell, yes.
I am VERY pleased, and at $129 with the 1 disc included and a MIR for 5 more, the deal is very good…
