Merry Christmas Everyone

Hi everyone! I just wanted to wish you all a Very Merry Christmas. Whether it is with family or with friends I would like to wish you all the best.

So, "Merry Christmas and to all a Good Night". God Bless.

Why I still say "Merry Christmas"

In this increasingly politically correct world that we live in, we are encouraged during this holiday season to say "Happy Holidays".  This is to show respect to all cultures that are currently celebrating a holiday during this month and indeed there are many holidays.  There is Kwanzaa, Eid, Hanukkah, etc., that currently share the same month as Christmas.  So, why won't I say "Happy Holidays"?  Don't I respect these other holidays?  I do, I just don't believe that I should change what I'm saying to reflect someone's sensitivity.  Let me explain.

Say I went to Saudi Arabia during the month of Ramadan and someone told me Happy Ramadan.  Being a Christian, does this then mean that I have a right to be offended that he said this.  No.  It would be my problem since I decided to go to a predominately Muslim country, and so I would have to respect there culture and traditions that they have in their country.  Its like going to Wendy's to expecting to buy a Whopper.  It would be completely stupid on my part to be offended.  But yet,  it seems that I'm a bad guy for saying "Merry Christmas".  I  don't believe that I am. 

In fact, I feel in many ways that saying "Happy Holidays" is even more disrespectful to everyone involved since it requires you to know absolutely nothing about someone's culture to say it.  Lets face it,  "Happy Holidays"  is probably the blandest term that we could give this season of holidays.  At lest, I believe it is.  I would rather just say happy Eid or Hanukkah, etc.  then to use the term "Happy Holidays".  Then again,  may be you disagree.  In any case,  I would like to hear from you.  How do you feel about this subject?

MiniVan Crashes onto ABC studios during Live News.

Shameless Ripoff of the Lobby scene...bollywood style

Hip Hip Violin And DJ

Hip Hip Violin And DJ - Click here for the funniest movie of the week

I've finally reached 70

If you have been coming around my blog recently you have probably noticed the lack of posting that has happened on this blog.  The reason for that, is I've been playing allot more World of Warcraft, to get my character up to level 70 (which is the top level your character can reach.  So as of last Monday, I reached that mark and am now working on getting my character geared up and ready for Kara (which is a 10 man raid instance in the game).  So I apologize, to you and I do hope to get more of a steady posting pace in the coming weeks and into the new year.

Should the Government Regulate Video Games?

This was the title of a resent article published by on the popular video game website IGN.  In the article, they highlighted a recent study released by Hill & Knowlton which suggested that the majority of adults would like to see more government oversight as it  comes to the sale of "Mature" video games. 

This study was quickly shot down by the ESA (Entertainment Software Association) which stated that the study was incomplete.  The ESA, then went on to talk about how they are helping to protect children and educate parents with there rating system, etc..  But they never really released any counter information to discredit the study, and so we are only left with nothing more than a PR statement.

Do I believe that the government should regulate video games? Yes I do. Why?  Because we can't trust retailers to be responsible in respecting ESRB ratings.  If I was a parent and my kid wanted Manhunt 2 or any similar game, I wouldn't buy it for him or her.  But,  if there is nothing stopping retailers from selling the game to my kids they might just run out and buy the game with out my permission.  I know I would if I knew my parents wouldn't allow me to get a game I wanted.  Do I believe that my child would become a murderer because he played violent video games.  No, but I wouldn't want to subject my child to that type of content in case he ever became depressed or anger.  One thing that I have personally noticed is that my friends that are easily angered (or bitter) seem to consume a lot of violent programming.  I'm not sure if it is the violent movies or video games that have helped them to be more aggressive or if they are aggressive and so they consume so much violence.  This being said, I don't want to learn the answer at my child's expense. 

And so, I do support government oversight in this area.  And it is fine if you disagree with me. 

Open Gaming Platform, a Bad Idea.

BBC News reported a month ago that EA is calling for an open gaming platform. The idea is simple.  EA believes that there should only  be a single set top box instead of the current three being put out by Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo.  In EA's vision Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo would become licensers of technology for manufacturers in order to produce this one open set top box. 

It does sound good from the stand point of the game developers since they would only have to worry about developing for one system.  Also, consumers would no longer have to worry about buying more than one system to play the exclusive games for each console.  So, this seems to be a win, win for all of us right.  But it will probably never happen.  Each console manufacturer seems to have a different priority for why they produce there consoles.  Nintendo is trying to be different, Sony sees there consoles as a vehicle to sell there latest technology and Microsoft sees the console as a stepping stone to get into the living room of peoples homes. 

I personally don't see these companies being able to open up to each other.  And even if they are able to come together.  Just think what would happen if we had one gaming console.  For one,  there would be no incentive to subsidize the cost of the console since there would be no more competition.  Normally,  each company in the gaming industry subsidizes there console and makes their money back on the sale of games and accessories.   But with a monopoly there would be no incentive to subsidize.  And so your next console may cost $900 (which is was a estimated real price of the PS3).  

Then again, as licensers of technology, Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft wouldn't need to produce there own consoles.  And what we could be looking at is a reinvention of the PC market.  Where people take a chipset from one or more of these companies and puts together there own version of this open console.  Which could actually make it harder to produce games for this open console since there wouldn't be any standard configuration that would necessarily exist in this model. 

Also,  if there is only one console and people are making money, by selling consoles.  Then this could mean that the 5 year life cycle that we all came too enjoy, would be over.  The incentive would be to simply pump out new versions of the open console so that they can continue to make money.  Which this all comes down too.

So really the real winners in this open console will be the hardware manufacturers and not the gamers or developers.  Then again, may be I'm wrong and we will all celebrate the day the open console arrives. 

Beware of Paypal

For those that have used it, Paypal has become probably the most convenient and safest way to buy products and services on the web.  But, it appears to have a dark secret.  Well, that of course is what security expert Steve Gibson is saying. 

On the last episode of "Security Now" (which I recommend you listen to), Steve Gibson out lined how PayPal has been causing its users to go through a page set up by a third party (Doubleclick), as users are going around Paypal's site. 

This redirection is particularly concerning, since it is not readily apparent to users of the site and has caused a concern for peoples' privacy.  Depending on how far Paypal and Doubleclick's relationship goes, they may have all of PayPal's user information, which includes all of there banking or credit card information. 

What ever the case is, it doesn't sound good.  So if anyone has a chance, download the last episode of Security Now and comment on what you think it means.

Wonder Bra - Cadbury Spoof

It appears that not even the world of advertising exists without spoofs.  A couple of months ago I posted to the blog Cadbury's commercial which featured a Gorilla playing the drums to Phil Collins song "In the Air Tonight". This video went all the way around the Internet and is probably why Wonderbra has decided to spoof the commercial.  The Wonderbra's commercial is pretty much the same as Cadbury's commercial, but with one exception.  In Wonderbra's Commercial,  there is a pretty woman in here bra playing the drums instead of a Gorilla. 

Now to me this seems kind of like "cheap" marketing.  But then again, I'm pretty certain that there are many guys out there that won't mind.  Enjoy.

 

Nintendo Drops the Ball on Marketing Again

In two days, Nintendo will be releasing Super Mario Galaxy, which is probably there biggest game to date to release for the Nintendo Wii.  But where is the advertising?  Has anyone seen a commercial for it?  It wasn't until today that I saw a commercial for this game, even though it releases Wednesday.  There are no bill boards or other types of ads which you would think would accompany the release of one of there top franchises, but there is nothing.  So I have to ask.  What's up with the marketing?

This by the way is not the first time that there was near zero marketing for a Nintendo game.  In August, Nintendo released the game Metroid Prime 3: Corruption with literally zero marketing.  This lead to Matt Casamassina (an editor at IGN) to write an editorial on how Nintendo dropped the ball on marketing that game and yet here we are again, just a few months later, with zero marketing for Super Mario Galaxy. 

Now this to me just doesn't make sense.  And probably never will.  Then again,  maybe I've been hiding under a rock for the last several months and I really don't know what I'm talking about.  So, now that I've finished my rant, I thought I would let you see the ad for the game.  That is of course if you haven't seen it.  Enjoy!

 

Japanese Magician - Burger Trick

If only food was this easy to get.

Toyota does a World of Warcraft commercial

I saw this video on Marketing Safari's blog recently.  Apparently Toyota has decided to capitalize on the success of World of Warcraft to sell there new Tacoma truck.  Although I like the fact that Toyota is acknowledging this game, I'm not sure that the World of Warcraft crowd is the type of people to be buying pickup trucks.  Then again I could be wrong.

Going in the Car

Have you ever been driving and felt like using the washroom, but you didn't want to get out of your car.  Well your in luck.  Reuters is reporting that a Japanese company named Kaneko Sangyo Co.  has developed a toilet for your car.  Yep, you read that right.  A toilet for your car.

Apparently, it comes with a curtain large enough to conceal the person using the toilet, as well as, a plastic bag for the waste.  This sounds like a good invention in a sense, but I feel that overall it is pretty bad.  It is nice that you don't have to leave your car to use the washroom, but just think of how your car is going to smell after you used the toilet.  And what if the bag leaks.  This device sounds like trouble.

I don't think that it will ever find its way into my car.  Then again, maybe people will want to pick one up for those times when it is an absolute emergency. In any case we will have to wait and see if it sells.  If it does you might just see it on a store shelf near you.

Sorry

Sorry guys that there weren't any post over the last couple of days.  I've been having some computer problems and I had to reinstall my operating system several times.  So, I was busy fixing the problem, which I can say is finally fixed.  So hopefully I will be putting something up over the next couple of days.  And even probably tonight, if I can get everything reinstalled on to my computer.  So, I'll see you then.

The Real Hustle - Bartender Scams

Street Fighter 4 Teaser Trailer

 

For all of you that grew up pumping quarters into arcade machine, it is now time to rejoice.  Capcom annouced this week that they are working on Street Fighter 4.

Now as for details there are very little, but it doesn't mean that you can't enjoy the trailer.  Enjoy!

Women Seeks Advice, But Gets Wrong Answer.

 

I guess she didn't read the letter. 

Harry Enfield - Women know your limits

I was inspired to look up this video by a friend today, and I thought that I should post it. Now I know that anyone that watches this video will say that it is sexist (which it is). But, I think that some people can see the humor in this video.

And, if you feel that I'm not of equal opportunity when it comes to jokes about the sexes just look at this video I posted in August. So enjoy! ( Hopefully I won't get to much hate mail from this.)

Real Life Smash Bros Brawl Trailer!

I just had to post this video, which I say on today's Attack of the Show Episode.  This Video is probably the cheesiest video that I have ever see, but has been able to garner 58,206 views at the time of this post.  So enjoy!

Israel Tries Controversial ‘Hot Babes in Bikinis’ Campaign to Draw Tourists

Apparently, Israel has decided to begin to run a new controversial ad campaign where they are using Bikini clad models to help boost tourism. 

Whether it will boast tourism or not I'm not sure.  But I guess it does serve a purpose in showing that Israel does beaches and other areas, that are fairly nice.  But as for the models, I think I agree with the women in the video.  These ads send the wrong message.  I'm sure that some guys will go there in search of these women, but not me. 

Then again, Israel is one of the countries that I would hopefully like to visit in the future, in order to see all of the Biblical sites that I have read about in the Bible.  So, I guess I have another reason to go.  (Just Kidding)

 

** I forgot to mention that I spotted this video on Breitbart TV.  I don't know much about the site, but I thought I should give them a mention since this is where I found the video.

kissing monkeys(very funny)

 

I feel sorry for these girls.  But it is kind of funny.

Stephen Colbert For President

Editor & Publisher reported this week that Stephen Colbert stated that he will be running for President, to the delight of his fans.  The Colbert Report host, apparently has plans of not only running for president, but in running for the nomination for both parties, so that his fans could decide what party he should belong to.

Whether he will win or lose we can't be sure.  But the one thing that I know is that it would be a sad day in America if he were to win.  Now, I don't personally have anything against Stephen Colbert,  I actually find him to be quite funny.  But,  I feel that it would be sad to see someone elected on the share fact that he is a funny Comedian. 

Stephen Colbert's candidacy is an obvious joke that will boast his ratings etc., but in doing so would degrade the office of the presidency.  It is almost like the time Michael Moore ran ficus trees against unopposed senators during an election for his show "The Awful Truth".  All of these stunts only bring us all down, as these are our leaders.

I know that many of the people that seem to run are not high quality people, but they try there best.  And if we are not completely satisfied with who is running than it means that perhaps it is time that we ran for office ourselves and try to change the system and our country from the inside and not by always complaining about it from the outside.  Then again, that is what I think.  What do you think?

iPhone Mid- October

BetaNews this past week reported on a Digital Journal article that reported that Apple is planning to release the iPhone through Roger's Wireless mid-October.  The selling price for the phone (according to the article) will be a staggering $799, which puts it $400 over its US price.  If this report is true (which I seriously doubt) it would be a very stupid move for Apple since it would encourage people to simply buy an iPhone in the states and get it unlocked. 

But then,  I believe that this report is bogus, since we haven't even seen an ad for the phone yet and it is mid-month.  If the iPhone was really coming out we would have already seen a commercial for it.  So this story is bogus.  Then again, maybe I'm wrong and we will see one in the next week. I'm just not going to be holding my breath for one.

Bad Week for Parodies

Normally when parodies come out we all laugh and that is the end of it, but it seems that not everyone these days gets the joke. MSN TV is reporting that the owner of the song "When you wish upon a star is suing Fox over it's Family Guy parody called "I Need a Jew".

The song appeared in an episode entitled "When you Wish Upon a Weinstein" that never originally aired on TV until recently, but was distributed with its season 3 box set. The lawsuit filed against Fox seeks to stop the shows distribution and is seeking damages as they call the parody copyright infringement.

Also this week, Computer and Video Games reported the creators of the "The Simpsons" video game where forced to remove stuff from there game due to complaints from people in the industry. "The Simpsons" video game contains parodies of a bunch of video games from the past 30 years. One of the companies that complained was Rockstar Games, due to The Simpsons' parody of Grand Theft Auto.

I find these complaint rather ridiculous, especially when you consider companies like Rockstar games have made a career out of offending people. But now, when the shoe is on the other foot these companies just don't like it. Then again, maybe it is not the developers but simply the legal team being over zealous.

In any case, hopefully future parodies will not suffer from these complaints in the future.

World Without Authority

Hey guys. Its been another slow week so I thought that it would be a good idea to share a little of what I've been think of over the last little while.

Recently, I have become concerned about the level of respect for Authority that I have been seeing in the world. Never before have I seen, so many people opposed to their governments. (This is not a statement of whether or not you oppose the war or not, but is a statement towards the fact that people seem to be fighting each other.)

Even the way we drive shows this warring of people that exists in society. People do not drive the speed limit anymore, nor do they consider the other drivers or the pedestrians as was what happened in the past.

There are two crosswalks by my neighborhood and every time I cross at one (without fail) there is someone that will drive through the crosswalk without stopping. Even though we have rules against speeding and driving though crosswalks when people are crossing people seem to still do it with little regard for these laws.

Maybe it was because I was younger, but it seemed like in the past we were more at peace with each other and that we all tried to obey the laws that were out there more than we do now. But this is the way that I see it. How do you see it? I would like to hear your thoughts on this, as I hope I am not the only one that feels this way about our society. Then again, maybe I am.

In Living Color - Star Trek; The Wrath of Farrakhan

Hey I'm back

Hey guys, as you can already guess I made it back safely from my retreat this weekend, where I had a great time fellowshipping with other men from all over Ontario. The only problem is that I kind of over did it when I decided to play floor hockey this weekend, so I'm in a bit of pain. But it will pass.

I hope that you guys had a great weekend and I'll see you next blog.

Sharing is Caring - Pro Piracy Commercial

This commercial I found posted to Digg.com and I thought that I would share it with you guys. Apparently, this commercial is an altered Zune commercial that seems to display that piracy doesn't hurt anyone and that sharing is in fact "caring". But I disagree with them.

I have heard arguments as to how piracy actually increases sales of music, etc. (which in many cases I believe it does). But the problem is that I don't believe that the decision of whether piracy is OK should be left to consumers, but to the content creators since they are the ones that worked to produce the music or movies. Do I believe that they should be lobbying governments to impose taxes on music devices, etc. or going after students and old ladies. No I don't. But ultimately, if you created the content you should be the one to decide how it is distributed since ultimately, you are the ones that spent months working on it and it is your livelihood. I'm sorry, but that is what I believe. What do you Think?

I'm Off to Muskoka

Hey guys. I'm going to be leaving for a Christian Mens' retreat in Muskoka, so I will not be posting this weekend. Sorry about that, but I do hope to put something up early this week. So I hope that everyone has a good weekend and doesn't get into to much trouble. See you next week.

Family Guy salutes TV at the 2007 Emmys

American's giving up on Life for Internet

Yesterday, Yahoo News is reporting that in a recent study many Americans are now giving up on sex and friends for the Internet. Not that any of this is surprising, but it is scary.

In the study many people reported that "They felt disconnected from the world, from their friends and family" when they are forced to go offline. This has lead me to evaluate my own us of the Internet and whether the Internet could be considered addictive. And I have to say that it is.

At times, I've felt cut off from the world when I couldn't use my computer and I know that I have personally put off activities to go online. (I admit it.) Is it wrong to do this? Probably. If going online is negatively effecting yourself or others then it probably is, but perhaps this change towards people going online is a good thing, as it shows me that people really want to have community.

For decades now, people have been living somewhat isolated lives with no real significant relationships. Just think about your relationship with your neighbors. How many of you regularly talk to and have over for dinner your neighbors? Some of you probably have good relationships with their neighbors, but some don't. In my neighborhood, I use to have a lot of friends that I ran around with as a kid. But they all moved away and since then I haven't really had much contact with my neighbors. I say hi and I know some of them by name but beyond that I really don't know them.

So, whether it is a good thing or not that people are giving up on life for the Internet I just don't know.

Slow Week

Hey guys. You probably noticed that there were no posts this week. The reason for that is that it has been kind of a slow week, with only a couple of things happening such as the $200 price cut for the IPhone (which I am waiting to see what happens with that before I post anything). And they announced a new set of Ipods, but other than that there hasn't been much. So sorry guys, but I'm waiting for some news before I make my next post.

Internet People

Internet People - Watch more free videos

9mm Versus Katana

If you were ever wondering if a bullet could be deflected by a sword. Here is your answer.

Is the Internet Destroying Cinema?

Ridley Scott seems to think so. In a recent interview Zero Paid is reporting that Ridley Scott believes that technology is killing off cinema with all of the different ways that people are able to view film.

From cellphones to computers, fans of film can now watch movies in many different ways, especially with Internet streaming. But is it really destroying cinema? I would say maybe. Directors when they make movies they make them for the big screen and not our homes. There might be a few straight to DVD movies that aren't, but for the most part films are made for theatres.

Some may argue that there is no difference between watching a movie at home and seeing it at the theatre, but I would disagree. For one the bigger picture and sound does make a difference as it comes to the overall enjoyment of a film. But also, when you go to a theatre there is a social aspect, as well as, various things that a director may put into a film to play on the audience, which you can't nessarially get at home. An example of this was in Jurassic Park 3. For those of you that haven't seen it, there was a running gag where a cell phone would start ringing. When it first went off during the film the sound came from the right side and about the centre of the theatre. So, everyone began to turn around and look since we all thought that it was someones cellphone going off in the theatre, but it was actually part of the movie. Someone at home would probably miss that and thus not have the same effect. Another example is the film Snakes on a Plane. I remember going to see it at the theatre opening night and having the best time I ever had in a theatre. The audience was right in the movie and it was a pretty fun time, even though it was probably the cheesiest movie that released last year.

So from the perspective of Ridley Scott, the Internet and other technologies are ruining the social aspect of film and is creating a poorer viewing experience. But from the perspective of a independent filmmaker technology has expanded his market. Without the Internet many filmmakers wouldn't have a place to showcase there work, but now with the Internet it is now ever easier to get your work out to your audience without substantial investment from a studio. And so cinema, because of the Internet, is in a state of growth as the theatre industry dies down. Then again that isn't true. Recently "The Movie Blog" reported that the film industry had a record summer at the box office.

So really I'm just not sure where these comments are coming from. Then again, at lest he didn't suggest that the Internet be shutdown for 5 years like Sir Elton John.

Phil Collins "Gorilla Drummer" Cadbury Ad (Dairy Milk)

Those guys at Cadbury are marketing geniuses. This video I have seen everywhere from "Attack of the Show" on G4 to You tube. And so, I decided to share it myself. Enjoy.

How Much Do You Know About Movies Made in the Past 25 Years?

76%The Movie Quiz

FilmCritic.com - Movie Reviews

Filmcritic is running a quiz on there site, testing your knowledge of films from the last 25 years. I thought that any movie buffs out there might enjoy doing the quiz and might want to beat my score. Which sits at 76%.

How to be the Perfect Girlfriend

I say this video on digg recently and I thought that it was pretty funny and well done. Not that I'm a caveman or anything.

Do Animals have more rights than Humans?

Last week I read an article written in Women's E-News, where the author complained about the fact that it seems that professional sports doesn't seem to care if it's players commit domestic abuse against women, but takes offense to the poor treatment of animals. Which got me thinking about our society as a whole. We seem to spend more money and resources to protect animals then we do people.

If Michael Vick had just beat his wife he might still loose some of his endorsements but at least, in a season, he might be on the field. While now, the NFL is saying that he may never play again. And I find this to be sad. People have become second class as it comes to animals.

Not that I'm saying that we should stop trying to protect animals. I believe that it is a good thing for animals to be treated well, but I would like to also see some of the energy put forward to help people. Also, I would like to see people valued more than there pets.

Recently, luxury hotelier Leona Helmsley died and left $12 million for her dog, but nothing for 2 of her grandchildren. I would comment about this, but I think you get the point. This has got to stop.

Sniper ONE Shot

Sniper ONE Shot - The funniest videos clips are here

Trailer for Harold and Kumar 2

TALKING TO AMERICANS - Pt 2 (Comedy-clueless Americans)

TALKING TO AMERICANS - Pt 1 (Comedy-clueless Americans)

THE DARK KNIGHT TEASER TRAILER

Homer Simpson on the Tonight Show

"Thriller" (original upload)

This apparently was taken from a practice at Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center, Cebu, Philippines.

Copyright Board of Canada gives thumbs-up to "iPod tax"

Last week, ars technica reported that Copyright Board of Canada, believes that we (Canadians) should have to pay a special tax when we buy digital audio players and removable storage because they are able to hold audio files.

Now, taxes like this one aren't new to us Canadians, who we have been paying a special tax on blank Cds and tapes to help compensate artists for lost album sales due to piracy. (At lest that's what they tell us.) But, in my experience they have only worked to increase piracy, as people feel now that they are paying for there music when they by there blank CDs and so it is ok for them to pirate. (Well that's at lest what they tell me.)

And so, I just don't think that it will work. Tactics like this one by the record industry only works against them (record industry) since it erodes public sympathy and gives people excuses to keep pirating their music. So, I hope that they don't continue to move forward in this direction or they might wake up one morning to find there sales gone.

Stephen Colbert Cracks up Michael Moore

Marvel vs DC 2

Patton Oswalt on old woman giving birth

The Tonight Show: Patton Oswalt

Will It Blend? - Transformers

Best Husband Ever

Vince McMahon on Today Show speaking about Benoit Tragedy

Mr BeanBastic!

Bayer Exposed ( HIV contaminated vaccine )

This is just disgusting. These guys shouldn't be in business.

Transformers Theme by Black Lab: full video

PARIS IN JAIL: The Music Video

Whose Line Is It Anyway - Irish Drinking Song (Wrong Name)

Wrestler smacks reporter for asking if wrestling is fake

Jay Leno puts Paris situation into Perspective

Back to Jail for Paris Hilton

TMZ is reporting that Paris Hilton has been ordered back to Jail to serve out the remainder of her sentence at Lynwood, with a 5 day credit for time already served. I glad to see that justice has been done in this case and that Paris will not get away for what she has done. Hopefully, Paris will come out with a new attitude and new direction in life.

Back to Court for Paris Hilton

Yahoo News is reporting that the judge that sent Paris to Jail is ordering her to go back to court. Apparently, the Sheriff' that let her go didn't contact the Judge or the City Attorney before releasing Paris, and so, the City attorney filed a petition with the Judge (Judge Sauer) to have her sent back to Jail. So, she will be in court today to appear before Judge Sauer to decide whether or not she should be sent back to Jail or allowed to stay under house arrest.

Only time will tell if Justice will be done in this case. I hope that they make the right and fair decision this time.

Paris Hilton -- Free Woman

In what can only be described as a cruel twist of justice, TMZ is reporting that Paris Hilton has been released from prison this morning, after serving only 3 days of a 23 day sentence. Apparently, she has been released due to a medical reason, but will be placed under house arrest for 40 days. This is just absurd. I feel sorry for those of you that are American, since your justice system has just been made into a joke.

Paris Hilton has been allowed to pretty much get off easy after endangering herself and all those around her by Drinking and Driving. Anyone else in this position would probably still be in jail. This decision is bad for the American Justice system and for Paris's career. Because if her medical condition can't be proved to the public to be very serious, I don't think anyone is going to want to watch another of her movies or to hear her music or to see her in ads, especially those that have lost someone to a drunk driver.

This is terrible. But that's enough of me ranting. What do you guys think?

Comment Policy

Hey everyone. It appears that my blog has received its first spam posts in the comments section. And so, I thought that I would be a good idea to publish some rules for the comments section.

First, any posts that I view to be spam, will be deleted. I don't mind someone leaving a plug for there site or blog, but you must leave a comment that is in English and it has to be on topic with the post or conversation in the comments thread.

Secondly, I don't mind religious declarations, as I am religious, but they must follow the previous rule of being in someway related to the post or conversion in the comments thread, or it will be deleted.

I believe these simple rules are reasonable, but if anyone feels they are not, just leave a comment in the comments section of this post.

So, until next time. I hope that you guys keep enjoying this blog and I'll see you next post.

Sarah Silverman Blasts Paris Hilton At The MTV Awards

Sarah Silverman Blasts Paris Hilton At The MTV Awards - video powered by Metacafe

Akon throws a fan off the stage LITERALLY!

This video just goes to show you. Don't mess with Akon.

TV kidney competition was a hoax

The BBC is reporting that the controversial reality tv show called "The Donor Show" was in fact a hoax. Apparently, the women that was the donor was in fact an actress and the contests that were vying for the new kidney were real patients waiting for a kidney transplant, but knew going in that the show was a hoax.

So, no one going in will come out feeling like a loser since there was no kidney to win and they can be happy that much needed attention was brought to the donor shortage. But, whether people will remember the donor shortage or just the elaborate hoax that they put on, only time will tell.

Mass deletion sparks LiveJournal revolt

CNet is reporting that users on LiveJournal are now up in arms at the deletion of thousands of user accounts that it says violate its user agreement. The deletions appears to have started after a activist group called the "Warriors for Innocence" (a group that claims to track sites promoting pedophilia, the sexual abuse of minors, and other illegal activities) prompted LiveJournal to do so, in a bid to protect minors.

Much of the deleted accounts and groups seem to revolve around sexuality. Some account that were deleted had the names " childlove" and "little_children". Some science fiction groups were also among the accounts deleted as they presented stories that involve sex between characters.

Now some may argue that these steps may have gone to far, and that this is censorship (which is the new bad word). But I have to agree with LiveJournal. Why you might ask? Because unfortunately you never know who is going to come to your site, and so if your site contains stories that are sexual you may have minors that will read them without there parents knowledge. Parents ultimately should actively observe where there children are going online, but parents can't always be there, and so to have this little piece of protection for there kids I think is a good idea. This probably sucks for most people that wish to read stories that include sexuality, but it is one of the prices that have to be paid to protect our kids.

Also, as I said before with the Digg revolt, the site should have the right to decide what activities are allowed to happen on the site. If they decide that sexual content is a no-no, then they should have the right to do so. Now as with the Digg revolt, I do believe that LiveJournal will back down on the deletions, and so I hope that they will instead try to create an under aged section to there site. Not that someone can't lie about their age, but at lest it would create a situation where the site could protect itself against an litigation if any that could come against it, if it feels threatened by lawsuits.

But, only time will tell what will eventually happen with LiveJournal. What do you guys think?


***update: It appears that LiveJournal has now come out and apologized for Thursdays mass deletion of user accounts and will now re-instate many of the deleted accounts.

JediInsider.com Star Wars Celebration IV: Family Guy Preview

Dutch reality show contestants vie for kidney

CTV is reporting that a new reality show in the Netherlands called "Big Donor Show" in which the players compete in order to win a kidney. This show is just plain sick and represents a new low in reality television.

Now I understand that they hope to bring attention to the shortage of organs, but to glamorize it in a TV show I think is unethical. If these guys were really concerned about people they would donate their profits and instead create programming that would draw attention to the issue without glamorizing it. Kind of like how World Vision and other organizations do it.

What troubles me most about this is that the idea of players competing for a kidney has overshadowed the real message of the donor shortage. And so the show has failed to do even this. Then again, maybe I'm wrong. What do you think?

Streetfighter Unbelievable Comeback

Here is one for those of you that like Street Fighter.


Streetfighter Unbelievable Comeback - For more funny videos, click here

Monty Python - Self-Defense Against Fruit

Sorry

For anyone that has been coming to check my blog over the last several weeks you may have noticed that it hasn't been updated regularly. I just wanted to apologize for that. I haven't felt very inspired to write over the last couple of weeks. But, I will be returning to do more regular posts and hopefully I will have something up this afternoon. So, once again I'm sorry it will hopefully not happen again.

Family Guy - The Jetsons Spoof

New Transformers Trailer

Police Officer Steals Marijuana

How WoW has Taking Over My Life

After all of the hype and stories of addiction, as well as seeing my brother grow addicted to WoW, I decided to final take the plunge myself. And I have to say that it is a great and very addictive game. In fact, it has taken over much of my life over the last couple of weeks that I've had the game, as it has monopolized my free time.

One of the reasons that I haven't posted as often, as of late, is that I have been immersed in this game. And I do apologize for that. I think I have regained enough of a grip of myself to return to doing more posts. So again, I do apologize.

Calvados

Mr. Bean at the Dentist

Mr.Bean - More amazing video clips are a click away

Paris Hilton Is Off to Jail

MSNBC is reporting that a Los Angeles judge has sentenced Paris Hilton to 45 days in jail for violating conditions of her sentence for drunk driving. She also will "...not be allowed any work release, furloughs, use of an alternative jail or electronic monitoring in lieu of jail,...".

Now, if I was a producer on her show or had booked her to do some work, I would seriously be very pissed with her. You would think that she would have been smart enough to at lest comply with the court order of taking a Alcohol related course but she didn't.

In court this was her response,

"I’m very sorry and from now on I’m going to pay complete attention to everything. I’m sorry and I did not do it on purpose at all,” she told the judge before he announced the sentence."

This is absolutely insane, but it gets worse. Paris' attorney "...testified that to his knowledge Hilton did not drive during the 30-day period. He said he then advised her that he believed her license was no longer suspended."

To which the judge responded,

"I can’t believe that either attorney did not tell her that the suspension had been upheld,” the judge said. “She wanted to disregard everything that was said and continue to drive no matter what."

Also, as Paris left the courtroom, a reporter asked her what she thought of the court ruling to which she responded,

“What do you think? This is pathetic and disgusting, a waste of taxpayer money with all this nonsense. This is a joke.”

So, she still doesn't get it yet. I hope that her time behind bars will change her mind about what she did, since she could have killed someone. People that drink and drive are only asking for trouble and so I'm glad that she got caught for it.

Late Night at ILM

The Day the Ax Fell

May 1st was marked by various marches, violence around the world. But for us geeks, the big event that occurred on may 1st was the user revolt on the popular social news site Digg. The event all started when Digg received a take down notice from the guys at AAC requesting the removal of all stories and links pertaining to the leaked HD DVD encryption key. Digg complied with this order deleting stories containing the code, which resulted in users reposting these stories, which caused Digg to suspend the user accounts of those responsible. This quickly lead to a revolt as users went up in arms against the Digg Administrators, posting story after story with the HD DVD encryption key, and Digging those stories up until the front page was filled with stories displaying the HD DVD encryption key.

Some users demanded an apologies, others believed that Digg had somehow sold out as Diggnation had carried advertising for HD DVD. But one thing was very clear. Users were not happy with Digg decision to take down stories on their site.

So in what became a surprising decision, Digg's co-founder Kevin Rose posted the HD DVD encryption key to his blog and stated:

But now, after seeing hundreds of stories and reading thousands of comments, you’ve made it clear. You’d rather see Digg go down fighting than bow down to a bigger company. We hear you, and effective immediately we won’t delete stories or comments containing the code and will deal with whatever the consequences might be.

If we lose, then what the hell, at least we died trying

This reversal was a bit unsettling for me at first, since I didn't want to see Digg placed in a situation where Digg could be shutdown by the AAC through legal action. And call it the conservative in me, I didn't like seeing Kevin (Rose) back down on his decision to allow posting of a story that clearly violated the users terms of service. But, now that sometime has past, it have become apparent that maybe this was the right decision for Digg. For one, it has allowed the readership to almost double in the wake of the revolt as the story grabbed headlines in various publications such as, the NY Times, Forbes, C-Net, BBC news, and many others. Also, it re-enforced that Digg was a Democratic system were the users decide what stories get posted and what makes the front page. It was probably that fact alone that lead to Digg decide to leave the postings up, as it became quickly apparent that without the support of the users they wouldn't be able to prevent the encryption key from being reposted.

So, whether this is a sign of bravery on the part of Kevin, as Doctor Tiki proposed, or simply a move to appease the users. We are heading for a showdown between Digg and the legal might of the AAC group. This battle could mean the end for Digg as a site and as a company or it could be the first nail in the coffin for AAC protection on HD DVD disks. Whatever the case the Ax will comedown on one of these two competitors. I'm personally hoping that Digg will come out on top in this round of legal wrangling, but only time will tell who will.

Marvel vs. Capcom vs. Family Guy

I thought that this would be a pretty cool video for those that were fans of the Marvel vs. Capcom series. So, Enjoy.

Jim Carrey - Jacuzzi Lifeguard

List of Top Ten Films of Summer 2007

Recently, MSNBC came out with a list of films that they believe will come out on top after the summer of 2007. Now, I usually would not make predictions as to how films will do since normally predictions are off. But, I disagree with some of MSNBC's chooses. So, here is my list of what I believe will be the top films of summer 2007.

1. Spiderman 3: This film I believe will beat all others including Pirates of the Caribbean 3. Not that the first two movies have the box office record that Pirates of the Caribbean 2 set, but most people liked the first two Spiderman movies and I wager that those people will go out to see the last one in large numbers.

2. Transformers: MSNBC choose this film to be #5 on there list, but I believe that it will take the number 2 spot since it is the first Transformers movie that we have had in about 20 years and so fans of the original will go out to see this one. Originally, I was going to place this movie in the number 1 spot, but I believe that since this movie doesn't follow from the original series some people will not relate to it on the same level that they did the original.

3. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End: This film took the top spot on MSNBC's list but I don't think that this film will do, as well the previous film did. Why? Because many people were somewhat displeased with the last film and so not all of the people that saw the last movie will be willing to go out and see this one. Will it still do well? I believe so, but just not as well as the last one.

4. Shrek the Third: This one speaks for its self. The previous two movies were very popular and did very well in the theatres. But, since the last film wasn't as good as the first one in the series some people may stay away from this one, unless there is some new buzz around the movie.

5. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: This film series is still very popular, as the book series is very popular among children. But, I don't see it doing better than the number 5 spot on this list.

6. Live Free or Die Hard: Although it kind of has a dumb name I believe that this film will be a surprise hit this summer. Why? Because there is enough of us that grow up in the late 80s early nineties that really liked the first three films and are willing to go out and see the fourth one in this series.

7. The Bourne Ultimatum: Although the first two movies in this franchise were not your typical action movies, and some might say were a bit slow. I think that there are enough people that liked the previous movies and who like the trailers to the Bourne Ultimatum to make it a success.

8. Evan Almighty: I think that a lot of people enjoyed the previous film Bruce Almighty and enjoyed Steve Carell's character to give this movie a try. Will it do as good as Bruce Almighty. Probably not.

9. The Simpsons Movie: People have been waiting to see a Simpsons movie for almost 20 years and for that fact alone I believe this film will be very successful. Also, for those that don't normally watch the Simpsons on TV, the trailers are funny enough to bring those people into the theatre.

10. Fantastic Four: The Rise of the Silver Surfer: I believe that this film will be the most surprising hit this summer season. Why? For one, you have the Silver Surfer that, in all the previews looks really cool with all of the special effects that have gone into creating him. Also, fans of the Silver Surfers origin story will go out to see this movie. Finally, the fact that Galactus will make an appearance in the film will send people running to the theatre. But, this is also the point that will keep some people away from seeing this movie, since it has been rumored that Galactus will be a cloud. This has pissed off a lot of people in the Blogosphere. But, I wager that Galactus will not be a cloud, and if he appears as one that it is not his real form. Once that comes out, people will forget there anger and go out to see this movie.


Now, by no means do I believe that this list will pane out the way that I have it listed, but I do believe that it may be closer to what will actually occur at the Box Office. But then again, maybe it won't. What do you guys think? What movie do you believe will be #1?

Jack Black sing "Kiss from a Rose" on Idol Gives Back

Tiger Attack

I really feel sorry for this guy.

Record Labels may get rid of DRM in Six Months

Ars Technica is reporting that record labels may get rid of DRM on music with in six months. Apparently record label execs are beginning to see that DRM is hurting (and not helping), the record industry since it has created problems with interoperability between players and services. This is good news for us the consumers, since if DRM is removed from all of the music we purchase, we no longer need to worry if or music will still play if we decide to move to a different service or device.

Although, I do disagree with Paul Jessop when he states that "removing DRM could pose a particular challenge because open formats often mean "free" to consumers used to pulling down MP3s from peer-to-peer networks." If the record industry produces content that people want, then people will pay for it. Will people pirate the DRM free music? Of course they will, since they are doing so with the DRMed music right now. Those people will not change if the DRM is removed, but what it does is allow their paying customers the ability to enjoy the music that they paid for hassle free and not turning them into criminals for using their music the way that they want to.

I sincerely, hope that DRM is dropped in six months.

Why do people like UFC?

Last Saturday, I was out at a bar in Montreal. Just sitting back, enjoying a beer and the atmosphere in the bar at the time. When I noticed that they had the last UFC fight between Gabriel Gonzaga and Mirko Cro Cop on. As I watched, I began to notice how brutal these fight still are, as competitors punch and elbow each other in the head (not that Mirko Cro Cop did very much in the match). So, I began to wonder to myself, "How could people possibly like this?"

I am always surprised by how many people I know that actually watch UFC. Even people that normally frown on watching TV, and read books in there spare time seem to like UFC. So I ask, "Am I the only one that doesn't like UFC?

Sure it is different than the way that it used to be. I remember back in high school, seeing matches that may friend recorded from Pay Per View, where people would have blood pouring out of their foreheads and fighters would get pounded on by their competitors if ever they got on the ground. But now, the fights seem a lot cleaner and prettied up so that you can still recognize the fighters after the match is over.

But, I still worry about the level of damage these fighters are receiving each fight. The fact that people are actually damaging the other person disturbs me. Not that everyone that watches UFC is thinking of that. Back in the 80s, I use to watching Wrestling fully believing that it was real. It didn't bother me when Hulk Hogan went out to the ring and used violence to try to beat his opponent. Part of it probably was that everything was so clean and it was entertaining to think that the matches weren't already decided.

The unpredictability of each match in UFC, is probably what draws people in and has allowed it to became the new wrestling since WWE wrestling has been shown to be fake. Then again, maybe we just like to watch a good fight, as for years boxers have been knocking each other out without any outrage. In any case, I don't think I will be watching UFC again any time soon. But I would like to know what you think of UFC. Am I over reacting?

Vader Dealing With Cellphone

If only Darth Vader could be at the theatres that I go to. I always hate hearing people talking while I'm in the theatre. It is very cool that Lucas Arts has made this warning. I just hope that people will finally listen to it.

Amazing Japanese Street Painter

Mr. Bean-- Mr. Bean at the Fair 2/3

Derren Brown - "Paying with Paper"

I'm Back From Montreal

Hi, everyone. I hope that you all had a get weekend. I just go back today from Montreal where I spent a lot of my time just walking around and seeing the sites. (Which was kind of cool in itself, since Montreal is a pretty interesting place.) But, I do regret going for such a short period of time. There was places I want to go to, but time didn't allow it. But that a side, it was great to get away and if anyone is thinking of going there it is a great place to visit.

Also, you don't really need to know French to go there, since pretty much everyone also speaks English.

I'm Off to Montreal

I'll be heading to Montreal tomorrow for some much needed rest and relaxation. So, there will not be any posts until at lest Sunday. I hope to see you then.

See Digg as a Tree Graph

The guys at Digg Graphr have come up with a website that allows you to view Digg as a tree graph. Now, I tried their site out for about a couple of hours today, and I have to say, that this site goes along way towards fixing the problems with Digg. In just a few seconds of scanning the table you can pick out stories from Digg that you are interesting in reading. I'm not sure what their algorithm for displaying articles is, but it seems to equally display upcoming stories and current front page stories equally. So, you are able to see what current stories you want to read and the upcoming stories that you are interested in at the same time.

Now, the graph only has the sections of "World News", "Programming", "Game News", "Movies" and "Music" right now, but if they expand it or give you the option of choosing what categories that you want to be displayed this could be the perfect way to search Digg. I hope that Digg buys this site off of these guys and incorporates it in to Digg.

Men to be spanked in new town

News.com.au is reporting that in the Shuangqiao district in China's Chongqing construction has begun on a new town that will be ruled by women. Apparently, men will have to obey women while in the area or face a judge that will be on hand, as well as, a "tip staff" that will punish men that disobey women.

All of this is designed to attract tourists, but I'm just wondering what guy would go to a town like this. I don't think a guy would enjoy, being pushed around by his wife or girlfriend or some local women. Then again, if we take a look around the internet, you can see that there are some guys clearly into being pushed around by women. Tourism officials believe that it will encourage men to be respectful of their wives, but I'm just not sure that message will get across. Also, I wonder what will happen if a guy begins to refuse to be punished. Will he go to Jail? I guess we will have to see what happens when guys start going there.

If anyone wants to read more there is also a article from China Daily that can be read here.

Grayson

This is probably one of the best trailers that I've seen in a long time that is not hollywood. If anyone wants to see more behind the scenes stuff from the making of the trailer, you can see them here.

Man Proposes on Price Is Right and Gets a Surprise

Paris Hilton runs out of gas

Celebrities videos - Paris Hilton runs out of gas

This Girl is just plain crazy. This guy (the Cameraman) is nice enough to go out, get her gas, then to give her back her change just to have her through it down in her back seat. If she didn't want it the lest she could have done is give it to the camera man, who helped her out. Paris really needs an attitude adjustment.

Tim Duncan Ejected! Worst Ref. in the world.

I don't normally watch basketball, but when I came across these two videos I couldn't help but blog them. Did Tim Duncan deserve to be ejected? I don't know. If all he did was laugh, then the referee should be disciplined. But, if he was complaining like the referee Joey Crawford was saying I don't know. It depends how he said it. If he was swearing, and insulting to Crawford then he deserves it. But then again, I don't normally watch Basketball. What do you think?

**If anyone wants to read a write up of the incident, there is a good article at NBC Sports which you can read here.

I've Officially Joined the Red Ring of Death Club

Yep, its finally happened. My brothers X Box 360 has just broke down and is now displaying the 3 flashing red lights. And so, now I am able to experience the same leave of joy that millions in North America have already experienced and the horrors that they have endured.

This past weekend, I went to the Toronto Comicon Fan Appreciation Expo, were I had a chance to talk to Agnes Garbowska about videogames. (By the way, if any of you ever gets a chance to go to one of the Toronto Expos, make sure you drop by and see Agnes. She is a very nice person to talk to and although she is not a big name, she has a lot of good stuff which you can see at Evilrabbit.) But anyways, when we got on to talking about the X Box 360, she became somewhat anger and explained that the X Box 360 that she had bought for her boyfriend had broken down, and so she called X Box customer service where she was told that she would be able to get a credit for the two X box Live accounts that they had on the system. But, when they called X Box Live they were told that they do not issue credits for X Box Live her situation. (Which is ludicrous, since it is Microsoft's hardware that is the problem.) Also, there was someone that was standing by who heard our conversation, and told us about his friend that had his X Box 360 breakdown, he had sent it in and was told that he would get it back in 5 business days. Well, 5 business days turned into a month, and he still hasn't gotten back his system.

So, hearing all of this I thought that it would be a good idea for me to ask anyone that has had problems with their X Box 360, What are your horror Stories? How long did you have to wait for your system? And did you get any credit for X Box Live? This maybe helpful to me and to anyone else that is sending in their system for the first time.

Spike's Crappy Neighbor

I guess she won't be stepping on his lawn again.

Red PS3 Sells for $12,100

I couldn't help, but blog this. Bunga Tech is reporting that a Maserati red PS3 has sold for $12,100. This is absolutely insane. They can't sell PS3's at $650, how can they sell it at $12,100. I guess they should paint them all red, and then maybe they'll start to move off shelfs.

Details on Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD

I just got back from the Toronto Comicon Fan Appreciation Expo where I had an opportunity to talk to UDON about their work on Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD. They have conformed that they are currently working on this project and have been doing so for about the last couple of months. They also have conformed that they will be drawing 17 Characters (which includes Akuma) for the game. And, possible features for the game may include Online Play, the ability to talk to other gamers while in game and leader boards.

Vista Degrades Video Podcasts. Particularily Doesn't Like the Democracy Player.

I recently decided to go legit and picked up a copy of Windows Vista. But, one thing that I've noticed after installing it is that the quality of all the Video Podcasts that I watch has declined. Below is a image captured from the last episode of MacBreak (EP. 63), while running Quicktime happening even though it is an . If may you click on the picture you will notice that there is some pixelation happening even though it is a HD program.

But if I try to run the same video with the Democracy Player, it becomes so dark that you can't see anything.

Now, this could be an issue with the Democracy Player itself, but seeing that everything other Video Podcast that that is not shot in HD does not suffer from this "Darkening" I have to believe that it is Vista's DRM reacting to the Democracy Player. Then again maybe I'm wrong.


**Just a note I downloaded PixalPerfect from the Revision 3 network and found that It became very dark as well in Democracy, but not under Quicktime. Also, I'm using a slightly older monitor without a DVI connection.

Bill Dance Fishing Bloopers

This is probably the funniest set of Bloopers that I have ever seen. Enjoy.

Toronto Comicon

I'll be heading to The Toronto Comicon this afternoon and maybe tomorrow. I put up a post about the show probably tomorrow or Sunday.

Will It Blend? Video Camera : The Return

Pelican eats bird

I think this video speaks for itself. This is just strange.

Fixing Digg

Last week, I wrote a post called Is the Digg Effect Over?, in which I complained about the problems with Digg. But given some thought, I thought that it might be useful for to supply some suggestions to improve Digg, which are:

• Digg should become more of a "Long Tail" site
  
• Add More Categories
• Add Editorial pick stories

Becoming more of a "Long Tail" site

For those that have read Chris Anderson's Book " The Long Tail" , you realize that the long tail refers to the content that is usually left out of normal, main stream media. Now, what does his have to do with Digg? Well, one of the many principals behind Digg is the ability to find stories that you want to read. But, because of the Digg model ("The Hits Model"), it has the weakness where only the most popular stories at the time see the light of day and the rest stay close to the bottom of the pile. So how do we fix this?

Add More Categories

By having more Categories it allows for more people to find the stories that they want by allowing the stories to become more filtered. How does this work? Well, say I was looking for news on the Apple iPhone. When I log into Digg I see all stories, but no iPhone stories, so I click on "Technology" where I see all Tech stories and probably no iPhone. So I click on "Apple" under Technology where I can see the story " iPhone confirmed for Rogers Wireless in Canada. Again. and no other iPhone stories. Under the current system, if I wanted to read more about the iPhone I would have to perform a search, but if there was a "iPhone" sub category under "Apple" I would simply be able to click that and see the most recent iPhone stories. In this case a simple search would work, but what if I were looking for something new and I didn't know the name of it. You probably won't find it since other stories will probably overshadow it and making it impossible to find. And example is the story One Second Film with over 7,000 Producers!, which I read about a week two ago and had an idea what the story was called, but still had difficulty finding it using the search.

Another advantage of having more categories is that it is less likely that a small group will be able to dominate Digg. This works since someone that is into Tech news is probably not equally into all areas of tech. Thus preventing postings in those areas that he or she is not into from being over shadowed. So, someone that is an Apple fan is probably not equally a windows fan and so if he or she dominates in the "Apple" category he or she probably won't dominate the "Windows" category.

Also, by having more categories, it also invites different kinds of stories to be posted. Sometimes if their isn't a category that fits a certain type of story it discourages people from posting them. An Example is "Car" stories. If you want to post a story about a new car, where do you put it. It doesn't really belong in any of the current categories and so it could discourage people from posting "Car" stories. Although for some, it makes them become inventive and submit the story in a category that it doesn't really belong in. An example is if you perform a search for "cars"you will find that there are stories in pretty much all categories. Some are in Design, which is the same section that you find stories about wallpapers and web page designs. Some are in Tech Industry News, which is the same category that this article is being submitted to.

Finally, by having more categories, and thus more stories, it invites more different types of people to come to Digg. Digg right now is a primarily for people into "Tech". There are far more tech stories than anything else on the site (which is fine with me), but the vision of Digg is to be appealing to all types of users and so you need the stories and thus the categories that will appeal to a broader audience of people. If I were into fashion I wouldn't be on Digg since there are no fashion stories. If I were a car enthusiast I wouldn't probably come to Digg since I would look at the categories and not see it and probably leave.

Editor's Picks

Another way that Digg could help people to find the stories that they want is by having an "Editors Picks" section under each category (or at lest the most popular categories). The job of the editor would be simple. To go out and look at the incoming stories, go through them and pick out the stories that he or she finds to be most news worthy or interesting. Now, some may say that this goes against Digg's model. But I disagree, since we already have some types of editorial services on Digg where users are able to look at what stories other people on Digg are digging, and so by having an "Editor's Picks" category, all it does is carry this same idea forward, and does it a little more professionally.

I hope that these suggests do help those at Digg. But then again, maybe they have already thought of these ideas and didn't think that these ideas would work. In any case, Digg will be around for some time to come and so lest see what changes do eventually come.

GTA IV Spoof - Real Life

Joost Invite

Hey guys. I just received my invite for Joost, and it is looking pretty good. I have had some issues with slow down so far, but it might just be issues with my Internet connection. I hope to give a more in depth review of Joost much later.

X Box 360's Hard Drives Overpriced

2old2play is reporting that Microsoft has responded to complaints that the X Box 360's hard drives are too expensive. In their response they have stated that:

"We know it is expensive and we have definitely heard that feedback but it is a little apples and oranges to compare it to internal PC hard drives because those are off the shelf drives that you have to install yourself. There is a lot of work there for your average consumer it is not a plug in and play experience for them"

This is complete garbage. I bought a 200 GB external hard drive last year for about $130 CAD at Best Buy. And all the work involved in setting it up was to plug in the A/C adaptor and the USB cable to the computer. XP did the rest, by auto detecting it and installing drivers. These guys must have been smoking something pretty strong if they believe that we are really going to except this as a valid excuse for overpricing their hardware. It is bad enough that they sell their wireless adapter for about $130 CAD ($100 US). But then again, maybe not too many people complained about that and so now they feel that they can overprice their stuff elsewhere. I really hope these guys come around on this issue, or they may find a lot more left over hard drives kicking around their warehouses.

ASIANS: The Asian Response to Asian Responders

Is the Digg Effect Over?

Tonight as I was reading through articles on Digg, I happened to come across the article entitled "Is Digg Broken Beyond Repair?". In this article, the writer talks about the need for Digg to get fixed, as the site seems to be dominated by a small number of users. And, I have to say that I agree with him. I was just the other day thinking about how Digg has slowly over the last couple of weeks been losing its appeal. It seems that the same stories always make it to the top and many of the front page stories aren't that interesting to me. It could just be a slow news period or it could be signs of a broken system.

Now, can I lay the whole burden of this on the guys at Digg? Probably not. Part of it is the way that we use Digg. I remember early on when I went to Digg, I would read a story and then automatically "digg it". So, maybe as users we need to be more choosy with what we digg, since I probably was not the only one digging every story they read. Then again, maybe the guys at digg could give us an option of allowing some diggs to be more weighted than others. Kind of like a rating system, where we could say this is article should be on the front page. Then again maybe that was what the "My #1" feature was meant for. What do you think?