you think it is gonna get hard to get vhs tapes (blank or prerecorded), just think about DVHS (if you know about it).
The selection of movie tapes is reeealy slim (for D-Theater) and getting slimmer, and blanks are pricy and very hard to find in B&M stores. But as a tradeoff you get HiDef in all its glory. The picture of this format looks better than DVD, hands down.
I guess with a small slice of the market wanting/ willing to pay the premium, it will remain a niche product. I like mine tho.
I don't know about other 7 year olds, but my 7 year old boy saw it with me. However we did not go in cold-turkey. I took the time with him to re-emphasize that it is a story for entertainment. We watch it and pretend it is real to enjoy watching a story unfold.
I described the technology used in making the film, and we watched some documentaries along those lines (blue screens/ miniatures / choreography etc). He actually got a good feel for how films are made and how the actors really work (or try to) and how the computer guys create this fantasy. I wanted him to be able to immerse himself in the film to the point where he would enjoy it but still be able to step back mentally (if things got intense) and say, "yea I know this is 'acting' for my entertainment and they put a great deal of effort into making this 'look' real."
We actually had an interesting discussion afterwards about how the computer guys removed Anakin's arms/legs and made the final fight as realistic as they could. We also talked about the choreography of the fight scenes and even about people manipulating others (Palpatine - Anakin) and how it was "skillfully done" and how people manipulate others in real life.
In the end, based on his reaction to the film, I know he really enjoyed it (I didn't ruin it), and I think he got more out of it compared to a cold turkey viewing. I did think hard about even taking him, but again I think I prepared him well. I don't regret it.
No wonder the Chinese are keen to take up technical functions of the USA (engineering/manufacturing). This goes with their cultural plans of favoring boys over girls.
They think long term over there.
I can hear it now in China, "By the year 5320, the USA will be in the hands of women, ripe for easy picking."
Little do they know with how to deal with an angry American female, much like the rest of this forum.
in IE 6 (at work use - gag) I can't stand the fact that when you have the favorites pane open, that you cannot right click on a favorite to "open new window". Instead, you have to CTRL-N then click the favorite. Annoying to me.
In firefox (correct me if I'm wrong), you start with no tabs, then you have to CTRL-T to open a new tab, then you can double click next to the tab to open new ones.
In Netscape 7 and Mozilla, you start with one tab, but then a double click would immediately open a new tab, no CTRL-T needed. I wish this one thing was in firefox.
1. tonsils - create more problems than they're worth. F*cking swelling, soreness and sleep apnea.
2. appendix - that's a winner.
3. coccyx - I had to look this up to spell this useless thing right.
4. funny bone - this has never made me laugh. It has helped with new curse words though.
5. needing sleep - 8 hours-c'mon, can't we evolve down to 2 or so.
6. the knee - there has got to be a better way- stretched ligaments, torn ACL's etc.
7. religion - nuff said.
8. ingrown toenails - trim trim trim
9. ingrown hair - great fun digging them out
10. balding - (or hair migration to the back) what is the point of this "evolutionary advance"?
According to relatives of mine in Australia, the retarded cousins are all actually from Tasmania, the little island to the south. As far as "backwards" jokes go, Tasmania is kind of like the Kentucky and Arkansas of Australia.
from the first paragraph in the article (but edited):
SONY missed out on potential sales from _____ and other ______ because it was overly proprietary about ______, the head of the company's unit said.
insert: mini disk / beta / media stick / atrac / SACD / (hopefully blu-ray does not end up on this list)
the original was this:
SONY missed out on potential sales from MP3 players and other gadgets because it was overly proprietary about music and entertainment content, the head of the company's video-game unit said.
from the first paragraph in the article (but edited):
SONY missed out on potential sales from and other because it was overly proprietary about , the head of the company's unit said.
insert: mini disk / beta / media stick / atrac / SACD / (hopefully blu-ray does not end up on this list)
the original was this:
SONY missed out on potential sales from MP3 players and other gadgets because it was overly proprietary about music and entertainment content, the head of the company's video-game unit said.
we recently got the att service and had a hell of a time setting it up. The TA didn't like my router, and they were both dlink boxes.
The customer support was competent, but not responsive. I had to keep calling them for support to get the TA to work out. My case had to get "escalated" to a higher level of support.
In the end it finally was hooked up and working most of the time. However, for some reason, the service was occasionally spotty and the cable modem would spontaneously reboot when we received a call.
It turns out that the new 5.8 GHZ phone that was right next to the modem was causing all the problems. We moved the the cable modem under the desk, and now everything is working perfectly.
Thank goodness for Google, where I found that someone was having a similar issue, otherwise I'd never have thought to move equipment around for troubleshooting.
consider the Pythagorean theorem. a^2+b^2=c^2... the sum of the squares of the lengths of the legs= square of the hypotenuse of a triangle.
Yes it is a theory, but it is the best explanation for the relationship of the sides of a triangle we've come up with. We've tested it and still it stands. Nothing better, supported with facts, has come along to replace it.
Same for evolution.
Yea we have ID (creationism in a new suit)as an alternate "explanation", but where are the facts that make it a realistic contender. It explains nothing while making a big assumption - a designer did it.
Sure, evolution may be wrong, but it has a body of supporting evidence that makes it extremely unlikely.
When ID has some real facts, science will consider it. Until then, it has been brushed off as BS by all intelligent scientists.
I don't care who has the best series on TV, as long as they get some decent acting in them.
The first hour of the earthsea series was so bad, that it was hard to get into the story and enjoy it. The high priestess and the blacksmith father were particularly horrible. By the time Danny Glover showed up, I said "finally here's someone who might teach these people how to act!!!"
Either the acting got better as the show went on, or the art/drama part of my brain has calluses from the abuse.
I loved Farscape, but Farscape's problem was that is was too original. IMHO, your average sci-fi Joe wants something simple yet familiar - something he can relate to or understand. Stargate is basically going to a new "earth world" every episode, while Farscape's folks are trapped in space somewhere or are up to their elbow dealing with funky aliens that we cannot relate to. Well, that is why they are Alien, we aren't always supposed to relate to them or understand their motivations.
Don't get me wrong, I really like the Stargates also; they appeal to a broader audience, rather than the more "hard core" sci fi audience which Farscape probably appeals to.
This is not Best Buy related, but pigeonholing related and had to do with a car purchase. I had just been in a large car accident and my face was a mess from the airbag and not being able to shave for 3 days because of the bruising. Well, I went to a BMW dealership to buy a car, since my old one was totalled. I was surprised that I received excellent sales support, as I had walked in with an old t-shirt and shorts (& again the appearance of my face). I honestly expected to be pigeonholed into a "he can't afford this" category.
Some salesdroids just want to help and make a good match: product-customer.
Just like some people on this board have noted: they don't dress to look like they can afford anything, they just dress for comfort. A good droid doesn't prejudge, because (especially here in TX) you generally can't judge the size of a persons wallet by their appearance.
I suspect Bush is really a muslim extremist. He probably turned a blind eye to activities that resulted in terrorist strikes on US soil, because he knows that the more chaos the better. If the middle east is unstable, then Israel will suffer and may ultimately fall. Just think of how many terrorist activities were going on quarterly pre-Bush, now compare that to DAILY terrorist strikes (labelled insurgent attacks).
Man someone would have to work for years to develop the cover story he has, and must have excellent funding (cough cough.. Saudi) to get where he is today. We know it ain't because of his brain power.
Bush is the ultimate Iranian mole.... "Hey please take out our enemies the Iraqi's"... "No problem, Saddam is too lax on those secular alcohol merchants!"
My brother who lives in LA, says that he just buys everything when it comes out for $15 at BBuy. By the time he buys tickets for 2 and parks he's over $20, so for him it is an easy decision. He doesn't have a fancy HT BTW.
For me in Houston, I can do the same for under $12. The theater in LA has to pay for the real estate it sits on, so the LA movie patron helps out quite a bit.
Next it depends on your level of "must see"
My brother has no problem waiting until a flick comes out on DVD. There is the rare flick he will not miss on the big screen (me too). I have kids, so I'm in no rush to hassle with sitters etc. I'll just rent it for $1 at the local kiosk machine at the grocery store.
3rd: how much of your life revolves around bad movies? Evidently quite a bit as we're now choosing the most cost effective way to watch more video. My brother used to go to the movies weeekly, so to keep the same level of entertainment, he has decided the "buy" route is the way to go. For me, I went out once per month at the most, so I just end up renting.
4th: if you have $$, you probably will see the flick and then buy it to watch again and again anyway. There are few movies I've bought. I probably have 1/10th the movies my bro has.
5th: if you want a HT, you're gonna find some way to justify buying one. I have a nice HT setup, but it is not just for movies.
Basically, the conclusion is to find a great paying job in a low cost of living part of the country, then you can watch the movies for cheap then buy them all over again to watch on your HT system that you paid big $$ for. Why settle for one or the other when you can have both!!
The firewire plug is the same, but the protocol to transfer over firewire to DVD is not the same as the protocol to transfer to DVHS. I understand they are not compatible, otherwise you'd be able to record downrezzed HD programming to DVD over that interface.
LG-3410A (there is an older Zenith version also). This can record OTA HD, but apparently cannot playback while recording. It has active firewire ports for archiving to DVHS. I hear folks have put 300GB drives in them without fuss. Was $800, but now are $600ish.
RCA-DVR10: this is a firewire only solution. two plugs: power and firewire. I hear it is unreliable, plus you can't buy them in a local shop. You should be able to daisy chain to DVHS.
Firewire ain't that bad. To record HD, I go onto my integrated set, then tell the timer to record a show, it turns on the vcr, sends the show to the DVHS deck (mine was $90 at Best Buy) and turns it off. Again I have 2 cables: firewire and power. Yea, it's tape, but I'll spend $90 plus a few tapes (which can be found for much cheaper online than their "retail" prices) before I spend $600+ on a HD unit.
I'm not that much on the bleeding edge. I'll wait for prices to come down and more features to be crammed in. PLUS, other units are coming that support cablecard. I can afford to be patient, as long as I can record the occasional HD show that I absolutely cannot miss.
DVHS seems to be a stopgap technology... ultimately the best thing would be to have a unit that records to a HDD and can archive to HD-DVD (or Blu-ray), that has integrated firewire for other units that may come along.
Last thing: the article implied that the JVC deck should have been able to record over component video. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but recording an analog HD signal over component wires would require the signal to be (re)encoded in realtime to be recorded. This is $$$ for the chip, compared to just recording a straight digital signal.
Slashdot Mirror
you think it is gonna get hard to get vhs tapes (blank or prerecorded), just think about DVHS (if you know about it).
The selection of movie tapes is reeealy slim (for D-Theater) and getting slimmer, and blanks are pricy and very hard to find in B&M stores. But as a tradeoff you get HiDef in all its glory. The picture of this format looks better than DVD, hands down.
I guess with a small slice of the market wanting/ willing to pay the premium, it will remain a niche product. I like mine tho.
I don't know about other 7 year olds, but my 7 year old boy saw it with me. However we did not go in cold-turkey. I took the time with him to re-emphasize that it is a story for entertainment. We watch it and pretend it is real to enjoy watching a story unfold.
I described the technology used in making the film, and we watched some documentaries along those lines (blue screens/ miniatures / choreography etc). He actually got a good feel for how films are made and how the actors really work (or try to) and how the computer guys create this fantasy. I wanted him to be able to immerse himself in the film to the point where he would enjoy it but still be able to step back mentally (if things got intense) and say, "yea I know this is 'acting' for my entertainment and they put a great deal of effort into making this 'look' real."
We actually had an interesting discussion afterwards about how the computer guys removed Anakin's arms/legs and made the final fight as realistic as they could. We also talked about the choreography of the fight scenes and even about people manipulating others (Palpatine - Anakin) and how it was "skillfully done" and how people manipulate others in real life.
In the end, based on his reaction to the film, I know he really enjoyed it (I didn't ruin it), and I think he got more out of it compared to a cold turkey viewing. I did think hard about even taking him, but again I think I prepared him well. I don't regret it.
No wonder the Chinese are keen to take up technical functions of the USA (engineering/manufacturing). This goes with their cultural plans of favoring boys over girls. They think long term over there. I can hear it now in China, "By the year 5320, the USA will be in the hands of women, ripe for easy picking." Little do they know with how to deal with an angry American female, much like the rest of this forum.
I can summarize the meetings:
Sony/Matsu.: you guys back down and adopt our standard
Toshiba: YOU guys back down and adopt OUR standard
-repeat with more yelling/capitalizations-
Disclaimer (I prefer to use Firefox)
in IE 6 (at work use - gag) I can't stand the fact that when you have the favorites pane open, that you cannot right click on a favorite to "open new window". Instead, you have to CTRL-N then click the favorite. Annoying to me.
In firefox (correct me if I'm wrong), you start with no tabs, then you have to CTRL-T to open a new tab, then you can double click next to the tab to open new ones.
In Netscape 7 and Mozilla, you start with one tab, but then a double click would immediately open a new tab, no CTRL-T needed. I wish this one thing was in firefox.
Please don't start a line at your local IMAX. I strongly suspect any film documentary of this WON'T be coming to an IMAX near you.
I expect that only an AC would reply to this.
1. tonsils - create more problems than they're worth. F*cking swelling, soreness and sleep apnea.
2. appendix - that's a winner.
3. coccyx - I had to look this up to spell this useless thing right.
4. funny bone - this has never made me laugh. It has helped with new curse words though.
5. needing sleep - 8 hours-c'mon, can't we evolve down to 2 or so.
6. the knee - there has got to be a better way- stretched ligaments, torn ACL's etc.
7. religion - nuff said.
8. ingrown toenails - trim trim trim
9. ingrown hair - great fun digging them out
10. balding - (or hair migration to the back) what is the point of this "evolutionary advance"?
I'm sure I missed many
According to relatives of mine in Australia, the retarded cousins are all actually from Tasmania, the little island to the south. As far as "backwards" jokes go, Tasmania is kind of like the Kentucky and Arkansas of Australia.
the preview let me down ... trying again:
from the first paragraph in the article (but edited):
SONY missed out on potential sales from _____ and other ______ because it was overly proprietary about ______, the head of the company's unit said.
insert: mini disk / beta / media stick / atrac / SACD / (hopefully blu-ray does not end up on this list)
the original was this:
SONY missed out on potential sales from MP3 players and other gadgets because it was overly proprietary about music and entertainment content, the head of the company's video-game unit said.
from the first paragraph in the article (but edited):
SONY missed out on potential sales from and other because it was overly proprietary about , the head of the company's unit said.
insert: mini disk / beta / media stick / atrac / SACD / (hopefully blu-ray does not end up on this list)
the original was this:
SONY missed out on potential sales from MP3 players and other gadgets because it was overly proprietary about music and entertainment content, the head of the company's video-game unit said.
we recently got the att service and had a hell of a time setting it up. The TA didn't like my router, and they were both dlink boxes.
The customer support was competent, but not responsive. I had to keep calling them for support to get the TA to work out. My case had to get "escalated" to a higher level of support.
In the end it finally was hooked up and working most of the time. However, for some reason, the service was occasionally spotty and the cable modem would spontaneously reboot when we received a call.
It turns out that the new 5.8 GHZ phone that was right next to the modem was causing all the problems. We moved the the cable modem under the desk, and now everything is working perfectly.
Thank goodness for Google, where I found that someone was having a similar issue, otherwise I'd never have thought to move equipment around for troubleshooting.
consider the Pythagorean theorem. a^2+b^2=c^2 ... the sum of the squares of the lengths of the legs= square of the hypotenuse of a triangle.
Yes it is a theory, but it is the best explanation for the relationship of the sides of a triangle we've come up with. We've tested it and still it stands. Nothing better, supported with facts, has come along to replace it.
Same for evolution.
Yea we have ID (creationism in a new suit)as an alternate "explanation", but where are the facts that make it a realistic contender. It explains nothing while making a big assumption - a designer did it.
Sure, evolution may be wrong, but it has a body of supporting evidence that makes it extremely unlikely.
When ID has some real facts, science will consider it. Until then, it has been brushed off as BS by all intelligent scientists.
when are we probing Uranus?
I don't care who has the best series on TV, as long as they get some decent acting in them. The first hour of the earthsea series was so bad, that it was hard to get into the story and enjoy it. The high priestess and the blacksmith father were particularly horrible. By the time Danny Glover showed up, I said "finally here's someone who might teach these people how to act!!!" Either the acting got better as the show went on, or the art/drama part of my brain has calluses from the abuse.
I loved Farscape, but Farscape's problem was that is was too original. IMHO, your average sci-fi Joe wants something simple yet familiar - something he can relate to or understand. Stargate is basically going to a new "earth world" every episode, while Farscape's folks are trapped in space somewhere or are up to their elbow dealing with funky aliens that we cannot relate to. Well, that is why they are Alien, we aren't always supposed to relate to them or understand their motivations.
Don't get me wrong, I really like the Stargates also; they appeal to a broader audience, rather than the more "hard core" sci fi audience which Farscape probably appeals to.
this can be a no win situation:
If we have no more "events" then the gov't can say look we made things safer. Bush thinking he's right makes more problems.
If we have another "event", then they'll say to bring him back as he's the only one to keep us safe.
This is not Best Buy related, but pigeonholing related and had to do with a car purchase. I had just been in a large car accident and my face was a mess from the airbag and not being able to shave for 3 days because of the bruising. Well, I went to a BMW dealership to buy a car, since my old one was totalled. I was surprised that I received excellent sales support, as I had walked in with an old t-shirt and shorts (& again the appearance of my face). I honestly expected to be pigeonholed into a "he can't afford this" category.
Some salesdroids just want to help and make a good match: product-customer.
Just like some people on this board have noted: they don't dress to look like they can afford anything, they just dress for comfort. A good droid doesn't prejudge, because (especially here in TX) you generally can't judge the size of a persons wallet by their appearance.
er ... so you've been told, right?
I put on some sarcasm on-off tags, but I guess they were interpreted as faulty HTML and didn't pass thru to the posting.
It was not intended to be taken seriously, thus this followup.
I suspect Bush is really a muslim extremist. He probably turned a blind eye to activities that resulted in terrorist strikes on US soil, because he knows that the more chaos the better. If the middle east is unstable, then Israel will suffer and may ultimately fall. Just think of how many terrorist activities were going on quarterly pre-Bush, now compare that to DAILY terrorist strikes (labelled insurgent attacks).
Man someone would have to work for years to develop the cover story he has, and must have excellent funding (cough cough
Bush is the ultimate Iranian mole.
rather than 4 years in the making, eh?
First it depends where you live:
My brother who lives in LA, says that he just buys everything when it comes out for $15 at BBuy. By the time he buys tickets for 2 and parks he's over $20, so for him it is an easy decision. He doesn't have a fancy HT BTW.
For me in Houston, I can do the same for under $12. The theater in LA has to pay for the real estate it sits on, so the LA movie patron helps out quite a bit.
Next it depends on your level of "must see"
My brother has no problem waiting until a flick comes out on DVD. There is the rare flick he will not miss on the big screen (me too). I have kids, so I'm in no rush to hassle with sitters etc. I'll just rent it for $1 at the local kiosk machine at the grocery store.
3rd: how much of your life revolves around bad movies? Evidently quite a bit as we're now choosing the most cost effective way to watch more video. My brother used to go to the movies weeekly, so to keep the same level of entertainment, he has decided the "buy" route is the way to go. For me, I went out once per month at the most, so I just end up renting.
4th: if you have $$, you probably will see the flick and then buy it to watch again and again anyway. There are few movies I've bought. I probably have 1/10th the movies my bro has.
5th: if you want a HT, you're gonna find some way to justify buying one. I have a nice HT setup, but it is not just for movies.
Basically, the conclusion is to find a great paying job in a low cost of living part of the country, then you can watch the movies for cheap then buy them all over again to watch on your HT system that you paid big $$ for. Why settle for one or the other when you can have both!!
easier said than done, eh?
The firewire plug is the same, but the protocol to transfer over firewire to DVD is not the same as the protocol to transfer to DVHS. I understand they are not compatible, otherwise you'd be able to record downrezzed HD programming to DVD over that interface.
firewire to DVD is for camcorders.
LG-3410A (there is an older Zenith version also). This can record OTA HD, but apparently cannot playback while recording. It has active firewire ports for archiving to DVHS. I hear folks have put 300GB drives in them without fuss. Was $800, but now are $600ish.
... ultimately the best thing would be to have a unit that records to a HDD and can archive to HD-DVD (or Blu-ray), that has integrated firewire for other units that may come along.
RCA-DVR10: this is a firewire only solution. two plugs: power and firewire. I hear it is unreliable, plus you can't buy them in a local shop. You should be able to daisy chain to DVHS.
Firewire ain't that bad. To record HD, I go onto my integrated set, then tell the timer to record a show, it turns on the vcr, sends the show to the DVHS deck (mine was $90 at Best Buy) and turns it off. Again I have 2 cables: firewire and power. Yea, it's tape, but I'll spend $90 plus a few tapes (which can be found for much cheaper online than their "retail" prices) before I spend $600+ on a HD unit.
I'm not that much on the bleeding edge. I'll wait for prices to come down and more features to be crammed in. PLUS, other units are coming that support cablecard. I can afford to be patient, as long as I can record the occasional HD show that I absolutely cannot miss.
DVHS seems to be a stopgap technology
Last thing: the article implied that the JVC deck should have been able to record over component video. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but recording an analog HD signal over component wires would require the signal to be (re)encoded in realtime to be recorded. This is $$$ for the chip, compared to just recording a straight digital signal.