Bow Down To The Jolly Links Of Doom
Dec 16, 2003 · 2 minute readThe free-market economy. It’s great, isn’t it? The ability to source items from anywhere in the world, at the lowest price possible. Corporations love it. Except, of course, when the consumer dares to turn the tables. So I’m sure we’re all lining up to support the BPI’s lawsuit against cd-wow.com, as it must be hugely embarrassing for them to be upstaged by a company that imports the CDs from Hong Kong, yet still manages to sell them for three-quarters of the price that our benevolent record companies decides is appropriate for the UK. Hurrah!
I tell a lie. This is the geekiest page on the Internet. At least for this week.
The Japanese continue to find new uses for the USB port. Genius.
Ha ha ha ha ha ha. ha. May this signal the beginning of the end for Pop Idol. Please.
Download this. Listen. Experience Joy.
Best of 2003: Kill Bill: Vol. 1
Or Mallrats: Quentin Tarantino Edition. Death! Swords! Slicing! Quips! Obscure retro references! Bill remains steadfastly unkilled at the end! Blood! Japanese Schoolgirls with maces! Swords! The Crazy 88's! The 5,6,7,8s! RZA! There's actually not much more to say about this film except that it's a fun b-movie, and that I'm looking forward to Part 2, where I'm assured that Bill Will Be Killed.
Journalism At The Edge of Reality
Dec 15, 2003 · 2 minute readSome interesting news from the world of virtual reality. The Alphaville Herald is a news resource for The Sims Online, and has in recent weeks investigate fraud, child prostitution and the community’s attempts to form a force to combat some of the issues plaguing the game, the Sim Shadow Government. The journalist behind the Herald has just had his account suspended by EA/Maxis, and the story is featured in this Salon article from last Friday.
Meanwhile, a bug has been found in Ultima Online which allows players to rack up millions of gold pieces easily. So what, you say? Well, for a start, the various MMORPGs are beginning to resemble nation-states. Last month, the Gaming Open Market opened its doors for trading. This is a currency trading site that allows players to exchange currency between the different gaming systems, or to convert into US dollars. This bug will likely cause the value of the UO Gold Piece to drop considerably against the dollar, and could set off a hyper-inflationary rise in prices in the game itself. This in turn could lead to increased migration from the UO to a world that has a more stable currency, like The Sims Online, for example.
I've never been enticed by the MMORPG, as in order to get anywhere, you need to put in ten or more hours of game time each day. Which seems a little excessive to me. But it is interesting to see the problems that are occurring as this genre develops…
Best of 2003: Kingdom of Fear — Hunter S. Thompson
A rather depressing book, to be honest. HST is getting old, and all the venom he's spurted over the years has come to nothing. They gave Nixon an full-honours funeral, praising his name, and the current Administration fills Hunter with a new sort of Fear: a relentless, unending rule of The New Stupid. The book tells the story of a law suit that a woman filed against Thompson a few years back, but mostly this is a collection of random thoughts and rantings from a man who has seen it happen before. They didn't listen to him then, and they probably won't listen to him now…
Dirty Dancing III Casting Starts Here…
Dec 14, 2003 · 2 minute readEverybody else is talking about how the capture is so important to the Iraqi people and President Bush’s re-election campaign, or why the USA felt that broadcasting footage of a captured man was not in violation of the Geneva Convention when it cried foul during the Spring offensive. But I want to act like a McSweeney’s hipster, so I will instead focus my attention onto something trivial.
Operation: Red Dawn?!?!
What exactly was going through their minds? "This is possibly one of the most important missions we've undertaken since the end of May, so naturally we'll name it after a cheesy 1980s film" (incidentally, check out the review on the IMDb; it's quite amusing). At first, I thought it was just a coincidence, but as the press briefing continued and the Lieutenant General talked about how the troops had split into two "Wolverine" squads, I realised the horrible truth: someone had put thought into this. A lot of thought. Somewhere deep in the Pentagon is a person with far too much time on his hands (or her hands). Was it a deliberate attempt to equate Saddam Hussein and his supporters with Patrick Swayze and a host of Brat Packers? The world has a right to know…
Best of 2003: Panjabi MC — Mundian To Bach Ke
The first of two songs chosen more for the memories they evoke rather than the quality of the song itself (although I do like this; if someone told you the concept of this record, you'd dismiss it out-of-hand, but when you hear the mix of Knight Rider and Bhangra, it just seems to fit perfectly); this one reminds me of the Easter weekend spent at the Outer Banks when a drunk Shafaq showed us how Bhangra dancing is really done, and an amusing drunken acappella version from this September 8-).
Adventures In Time!
Dec 13, 2003 · 1 minute read(note: doing these things manually is best avoided...)
Best of 2003: Buffy The Vampire Slayer Season 7
It was always going to be a difficult season. And yes, parts of it didn't work; the main storyline dragged on somewhat; Caleb should have been introduced much earlier in the season. But episodes like "Storyteller", "Lies My Parents Told Me", and the heart-wrenching "Conversations With Dead People" showed that the writers were still able to produce fantastic television. The finale, "Chosen", ended too quickly, but it was a powerful hour, combining tragic loss, bunnies, the ultimate redemption of a character long lost, the amusing fate of Sunnydale, and an ending that promises that the story has only just begun. Yay for Joss Whedon!
The Revolution Is Only A T-Shirt Away
Dec 12, 2003 · 2 minute read- Billy Bragg — Waiting For The Great Leap Forwards
Well, since getting hold of "Must I Paint You A Picture?", the new three-disc retrospective this week, I've been making my family suffer this, so now it's your turn. Muahahaha!
- Tori Amos - Father Lucifer
- Sleater-Kinney - Lions & Tigers
- Johnny Cash & Joe Strummer — Redemption Song
Every so often, I pull out "Boys For Pele" and realise that I don't listen to it often enough. Then I forget about it for another six months. Just call me Dory. Anyway, this came up through random playing the other day, and is recommended for the Sgt. Pepper-like flourish that occurs at 1:59.
One of the bonus tracks from the limited edition release of "One Beat" from last year (I donated a copy to Schoolkids Records in Chapel Hill this May as I had two). A cute baby song which doesn't make you reach for the volume control.
Is it just me, or is "Johnny Cash — Unearthed" a really inappropriate title for the current box set? Joe Strummer's solo version of this, on the posthumous "Streetcore" album is affecting, but this is something else…
Best of 2003: Beyoncé Knowles & Jay-Z — Crazy In Love
One of the most talked-about singles of the year, so pretty much everything that can be said has already been put to paper (or active LCD pixels in this case). All I'll add is that in 2043, this track is going to be as popular as (Love Is Like A) Heatwave and Dancing In The Street. Yes, it's that good. Shame the rest of the album wasn't up to much, but then nobody really remembers the albums that Martha Reeves and The Vandellas released either, do they?
The Nerdiest Page On The Internet
Dec 11, 2003 · 1 minute readSee how far you can read before your eyes bleed!
(three comments in for me, then I. just. couldn't. take. any. more)
Best of 2003: Pirates of The Caribbean
"WHY IS THE RUM GONE?" — If there's a better piece of dialogue in film this year, then I be gladly walking the plank, arr. For 'tis a tale of treasure, fair maidens, chilling ghosts, buckling swash, and lashings of the rum. Here be Captain Jack Sparrow, the finest pirate that ever sailed upon the seven seas, arr. For a Christmas treat, avail yourself of a copy of this fine film, lest the Ghost Pirates hunt you down. ARRRR!
Link Forever
Dec 10, 2003 · 1 minute readThe quest to find the most useless gadget on the Internet is now officially over.
Best of 2003: Snow Patrol - Final Straw
Melancholic alt-rock from Scotland! What's not to like? Actually, this album is a little patchy, with "How To Be Dead", "Chocolate", "Somewhere a Clock is Ticking", and "Grazed Knee" towering over all the other songs. So why is it here? Partly because it's one of the few British albums of this year that I've even partly liked, but mainly it's due to these four songs being very good indeed. This isn't much of a write-up, is it? "The album's not all that great, but most British albums this year have sucked, so this is all I've come up with..."
We Apologise For The Break In Service
Dec 9, 2003 · 1 minute readApparently there was a router failure at the server farm where this site is located, which caused the site to drop out of the DNS and disappear from the Internet. So, if you sent me any mail today, you may need to resend it :-).
Best of 2003: The New Pornographers — Electric Version
It's the new sound that the hip kids are calling 'joycore'! Songs shouldn't have hook after hook crammed into them, but here they do! An official dance! Lyrics featuring spelling bees, the failure of traditional antibiotics, and Bush's daughters! The delectable Neko Case! Far too many exclamations! A record that cannot fail to bring a smile to your face; with a jackhammer if necessary. Go here and here. And you have to get this simply for Testament to Youth in Verse, where the band completely loses the plot at 1:59, and simply sings "no, no no, no" for two wonderful minutes.
Married With Children Is Safe For Four More Years
Dec 8, 2003 · 1 minute readCould you drive that stake just a little bit further into Lieberman, Mr. Gore? Thank you kindly.
(If this is true, expect the DNC to go nuts from tomorrow onwards, and don't be surprised if you see them pulling out the classic 1972 game plan...)
The Priest Betting Pool Begins Anew...
Dec 8, 2003 · 2 minute readThis probably isn’t of interest to most of you, but Priest has revealed the new comic he’s going to be working on:
Hmm, I have to admit that I don't have the utmost confidence that it'll still be published this time next year, but it does sound relatively interesting; Priest's "Pembleton from Homicide" take on the Falcon has me intrigued, and although he and his editor have spoken at length to say that it won't be an overtly political take on Captain America, the first storyline, "Two Americas", does sound as if it will touch on the current political situation somewhat. Anyway, I'm happy to know that there will still be Priest-written comics to read next year…
Best of 2003: Dawson's Creek Finale
Okay, I haven't watched the past two seasons of this, because I thought that the story had been played out, and I didn't really want to see what contortions the writers went through to end up sending Dawson back to the Boston area. When I heard that Kevin Williamson was returning to write the finale, I knew that if nothing else, the final two episodes would be worth watching. And yes, they were. Metafiction jokes about the infamous stylised dialogue and the ages of the cast, a look at the motivations of a writer, a sad farewell, the return of fond-remembered characters, and even a final resolution of the love triangle (which managed to give both Joey/Dawson and Joey/Pacey fans what they wished for, although in different ways). It was all a final episode needed to be, and a little bit more besides.