I've been crazy busy over the last day or two, so catching up on my feeds and compiling a few interesting links took me awhile.
I'm Glad I Don't Smoke
Mass. lawmaker proposes no smoking zone within 25 feet of building entrances and windows. I rarely go to bars anymore, but one annoyance with the smoking ban is having to push through a cloud of smoke to get in and out of the building. So the results are the same as when they allowed smoking in bars, you still come out smelling like an ashtray. (This happens with some area restaurants as well.) The problem with this new addition to the law would mean that the smokers would essentially have to stand in the middle of the street.
Tech
Microsoft files lawsuit over "click fraud". At first, I thought this was about people using bots to get prizes on Microsoft's Live search, something lots of people have been doing for quite some time. (Seemed like a little too much work for too little reward for me to bother with.) Instead, this is about people using bots to click ads and make themselves money.
Twitter delays down time to aid Iranian protesters. Apparently because the State Department asked them to: U.S. State Department speaks to Twitter over Iran.
Barney Frank online gambling bill picking up steam. If this passes, it would be good for people like me. Stuff like the bank seizures from last week might just be the last desperate gasps of a crappy law on its way out.
Pirate Bay launches VPN service. The long-ago announced service launched Monday.
MySpace to lay off 30 percent of staff. They've lost all of their users to Facebook and Twitter. Everybody is on both of those. The last time I logged into Myspace was to reject a friend request from some band I never heard of. That was over a month ago. Just last week I received an email from Myspace urging me to see what my friends on Myspace are up to. I can tell you what they're up to... using Facebook and Twitter. (Myself, I use Twitter daily, and rarely log into Facebook.)
Are cellphone exclusivity deals bad for consumers?. Some senators think so. Personally, I think it sucks that unless you buy an extremely expensive (compared to the subsidized phones offered by the carriers) unlocked phone, you're limited in the selection of phones that your carrier offers.
Entertainment
DiCaprio playing poker in new drama. I wonder how compelling a drama about playing online poker could really be. I mean, if my experience is any indicator, watching a movie about a guy sitting around in his pajamas listening to mp3s, swearing at his monitor, eating the occasional snack while playing, and running to the bathroom before another hand starts after he folds wouldn't be that exciting. Aside from losing some money, the only drama involved in online poker is if somebody knocks at your door or calls you on the phone, interrupting the game.
New GI JOE poster has more side boob. Bad Photoshopping at work there. Plus we all know Sienna Miller is pretty flat-chested. So on top of a bad poster, I've also read that the movie isn't very good. (See: Test Screening Review: G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA)
BATTLESTAR boss teases THE PLAN spinoff. I'll watch THE PLAN, despite the sour taste the season three and four, and the disappointing series finale left behind.
Handy chart explains what happened to TNG after Spock traveled through time. Who needs a chart? The new STAR TREK movie takes place in an alternate reality created when Spock and Nero went back in time and altered the course of history. The original timeline, crappy sequel shows and all, is still there. It's just the original Spock is now trapped in another universe.
Big spoilers in this link: Your first look at DOCTOR WHO's next big guest stars. For some reason, the shot of Timothy Dalton made me think of his role in FLASH GORDON.
Robert Rodriguez to start MACHETE in five weeks. Finally!
Alec Baldwin to quit 30 ROCK in 2012. Let's see if the show even continues that far.
Fox wants DOLLHOUSE to fail early. I'm shocked it even got the second season. Pleased, but shocked.
Is James Bond's Blofeld Back? Highly unlikely since EON Productions lost the rights to the character, which is why he disappeared after DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER. After that he only appeared in the pre-credits sequence, unnamed (for legal reasons) of FOR YOUR EYES ONLY. Fun fact: Blofeld was intended to be the main villain of THE SPY WHO LOVED ME, but after losing the rights to the character, they had to shoehorn in another character to play the same part.
ENTOURAGE does kind of blow. This parody video really does nail what pretty much every episode of ENTOURAGE is like. I dig the show, but the formula is easy to pick apart and mock.
Comics
WEDNESDAY COMICS feature to be picked up by USA Today. That art is awesome.
The sad, strange tale of Dwayne McDuffie. This comic strip is so true. It's a shame DC didn't let a great writer, who has a proven track record of writing solid, entertaining stories with the JUSTICE LEAGUE, tell the stories he wanted to tell.
Video Games
Sam Fisher in his 50s for CONVICTION. Sam's always been older than he looks in the games. So it's no real surprise.
Crytek showed "discipline" in holding off on consoles, EA says. I think it's mostly because the console hardware couldn't handle their games. Hell, most high-grade PCs couldn't handle their games at launch.
ALIENS: COLONIAL MARINES still in development, coming next year. I remember reading about this game a long time ago, and I had thought it had gotten canned. I wonder if it'll be worth the wait.
Mulit-platform FINAL FANTASY XIII won't be compromised. Most non-Sony produced games, don't seem to make the most of the additional space Blu-Ray affords developers.
Kojima says MGS: PEACE WALKER is his MGS5, calls RISING a 'different kind of action' game. Good to know. Based on the trailers, I was honestly already looking more forward to PEACE WALKER anyway. This just confirmed my choice.
MAX PAYNE 3 gets different, older voice actor. I doubt most gamers will notice or care.
EGM Subscribers Getting Maxim As Replacement. Well, as an EGM subscriber, who only got two magazines before the magazine died, I guess now I know what will serve as my bathroom reading.
Yarr!
BT throttling online video for competitive, not congestion, reasons. Can anybody really be surprised by this? What's odd is that the cable companies are still making money off of people who prefer to watch TV and movies on the internet, because a significant chunk of those people are paying for internet through the cable companies. They're just not paying as much because they're not ordering premium TV packages, etc. Greed. That's all it is, pure and simple.
Andy Kessler: Piracy happens, get over it. Shocking that a writer for Forbes would take such a common sense, but unpopular to big business, stance.
Anti-piracy group wants "3-strikes," calls throttling "waste of time". Only fools and assholes are in favor of a "three strikes" and then no internet policy.
Lawyers in DVD-copying case charge up to $765 hourly. Sounds to me like, adding it all up, the content industry spends more money in lawyer fees than the amounts that they claim that they're losing. Idiots.
I'm Glad I Don't Smoke
Mass. lawmaker proposes no smoking zone within 25 feet of building entrances and windows. I rarely go to bars anymore, but one annoyance with the smoking ban is having to push through a cloud of smoke to get in and out of the building. So the results are the same as when they allowed smoking in bars, you still come out smelling like an ashtray. (This happens with some area restaurants as well.) The problem with this new addition to the law would mean that the smokers would essentially have to stand in the middle of the street.
Tech
Microsoft files lawsuit over "click fraud". At first, I thought this was about people using bots to get prizes on Microsoft's Live search, something lots of people have been doing for quite some time. (Seemed like a little too much work for too little reward for me to bother with.) Instead, this is about people using bots to click ads and make themselves money.
Twitter delays down time to aid Iranian protesters. Apparently because the State Department asked them to: U.S. State Department speaks to Twitter over Iran.
Barney Frank online gambling bill picking up steam. If this passes, it would be good for people like me. Stuff like the bank seizures from last week might just be the last desperate gasps of a crappy law on its way out.
Pirate Bay launches VPN service. The long-ago announced service launched Monday.
MySpace to lay off 30 percent of staff. They've lost all of their users to Facebook and Twitter. Everybody is on both of those. The last time I logged into Myspace was to reject a friend request from some band I never heard of. That was over a month ago. Just last week I received an email from Myspace urging me to see what my friends on Myspace are up to. I can tell you what they're up to... using Facebook and Twitter. (Myself, I use Twitter daily, and rarely log into Facebook.)
Are cellphone exclusivity deals bad for consumers?. Some senators think so. Personally, I think it sucks that unless you buy an extremely expensive (compared to the subsidized phones offered by the carriers) unlocked phone, you're limited in the selection of phones that your carrier offers.
Entertainment
DiCaprio playing poker in new drama. I wonder how compelling a drama about playing online poker could really be. I mean, if my experience is any indicator, watching a movie about a guy sitting around in his pajamas listening to mp3s, swearing at his monitor, eating the occasional snack while playing, and running to the bathroom before another hand starts after he folds wouldn't be that exciting. Aside from losing some money, the only drama involved in online poker is if somebody knocks at your door or calls you on the phone, interrupting the game.
New GI JOE poster has more side boob. Bad Photoshopping at work there. Plus we all know Sienna Miller is pretty flat-chested. So on top of a bad poster, I've also read that the movie isn't very good. (See: Test Screening Review: G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA)
BATTLESTAR boss teases THE PLAN spinoff. I'll watch THE PLAN, despite the sour taste the season three and four, and the disappointing series finale left behind.
Handy chart explains what happened to TNG after Spock traveled through time. Who needs a chart? The new STAR TREK movie takes place in an alternate reality created when Spock and Nero went back in time and altered the course of history. The original timeline, crappy sequel shows and all, is still there. It's just the original Spock is now trapped in another universe.
Big spoilers in this link: Your first look at DOCTOR WHO's next big guest stars. For some reason, the shot of Timothy Dalton made me think of his role in FLASH GORDON.
Robert Rodriguez to start MACHETE in five weeks. Finally!
Alec Baldwin to quit 30 ROCK in 2012. Let's see if the show even continues that far.
Fox wants DOLLHOUSE to fail early. I'm shocked it even got the second season. Pleased, but shocked.
Is James Bond's Blofeld Back? Highly unlikely since EON Productions lost the rights to the character, which is why he disappeared after DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER. After that he only appeared in the pre-credits sequence, unnamed (for legal reasons) of FOR YOUR EYES ONLY. Fun fact: Blofeld was intended to be the main villain of THE SPY WHO LOVED ME, but after losing the rights to the character, they had to shoehorn in another character to play the same part.
ENTOURAGE does kind of blow. This parody video really does nail what pretty much every episode of ENTOURAGE is like. I dig the show, but the formula is easy to pick apart and mock.
Comics
WEDNESDAY COMICS feature to be picked up by USA Today. That art is awesome.
The sad, strange tale of Dwayne McDuffie. This comic strip is so true. It's a shame DC didn't let a great writer, who has a proven track record of writing solid, entertaining stories with the JUSTICE LEAGUE, tell the stories he wanted to tell.
Video Games
Sam Fisher in his 50s for CONVICTION. Sam's always been older than he looks in the games. So it's no real surprise.
Crytek showed "discipline" in holding off on consoles, EA says. I think it's mostly because the console hardware couldn't handle their games. Hell, most high-grade PCs couldn't handle their games at launch.
ALIENS: COLONIAL MARINES still in development, coming next year. I remember reading about this game a long time ago, and I had thought it had gotten canned. I wonder if it'll be worth the wait.
Mulit-platform FINAL FANTASY XIII won't be compromised. Most non-Sony produced games, don't seem to make the most of the additional space Blu-Ray affords developers.
Kojima says MGS: PEACE WALKER is his MGS5, calls RISING a 'different kind of action' game. Good to know. Based on the trailers, I was honestly already looking more forward to PEACE WALKER anyway. This just confirmed my choice.
MAX PAYNE 3 gets different, older voice actor. I doubt most gamers will notice or care.
EGM Subscribers Getting Maxim As Replacement. Well, as an EGM subscriber, who only got two magazines before the magazine died, I guess now I know what will serve as my bathroom reading.
Yarr!
BT throttling online video for competitive, not congestion, reasons. Can anybody really be surprised by this? What's odd is that the cable companies are still making money off of people who prefer to watch TV and movies on the internet, because a significant chunk of those people are paying for internet through the cable companies. They're just not paying as much because they're not ordering premium TV packages, etc. Greed. That's all it is, pure and simple.
Andy Kessler: Piracy happens, get over it. Shocking that a writer for Forbes would take such a common sense, but unpopular to big business, stance.
Anti-piracy group wants "3-strikes," calls throttling "waste of time". Only fools and assholes are in favor of a "three strikes" and then no internet policy.
Lawyers in DVD-copying case charge up to $765 hourly. Sounds to me like, adding it all up, the content industry spends more money in lawyer fees than the amounts that they claim that they're losing. Idiots.
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2 comments:
I will never understand the complete hatred people have of other people who smoke cigarettes...
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