Filed under: business | Tags: blu ray, blue ray, dvd, ipod, media, movies, portable, standard def, standard definition, terry white
Okay, so I’m a bit down on the ‘revised’ Digital Copyright Act for Canada.
Downloading= illegal?
Can someone send me some links about this revision?
Anyways, looking towards other alternatives to legal downloads or aquirement of digital assets and entertainment, I smiled as I was reading a recent post on Terry White’s blog about Blu-Ray and Digital Copy.
Technically, ripping DVDs to a portable media player’s format is frowned upon.
I’m wondering about the popularity of this choice to have both copies of the movie in Hi-Def (Blue-Ray) format and standard def (especially for my iPod or portable DVD player that doesn’t play in Hi-Def).
I was looking for the availability of the DVD Terry White featured that offered both Blu-Ray and Standard Def format on Amazon.ca.
Note:
Yes, Amazon DOT C A.
Remembering the day that Steve Jobs announced that movies were to be available in iTunes, I quickly was dismayed as I reinstalled my iTunes and found that movies were only allowed to be offered in the States.
The Eye
Search result 1>
Hmmm, doesn’t look like the same image of the DVD cover on Terry White’s blog until I realized that it was just a Standard Def- DVD.
Search result 2>
Had to look under the Blu-Ray DVD section.
I looked through the text-details and found that there wasn’t an indication that this edition also offered a “Digital Copy”. Only by the image with the “Digital Copy” sticker was how I was able to distinguish that the DVD offers a Digital Copy.
I’m hoping that really soon that movies can be searchable by formats.
Especially “Digital Copy” so I can have movies to watch while commuting to and from work.
Filed under: competitions | Tags: 2008, 2009, contest, heart, international, nikon, photography, picture
I’m a Canon-shooter myself, but I find myself from time to time “borrowing” my pal Simon’s Nikon to shoot candids on the go while we’re hanging out.
For those photographers out there, Nikon has announced the The Nikon Photo Contest open for submissions from September 1st, 2008 to November 30th, 2008.
This year’s theme: “At the heart of the image”.
More details here >
Thanks to Dave Cross (ie- The Canadian dude of the Photoshop Guys) for posting this on his blog.
Filed under: Concerts & Fun
Passed on from the Vancouver Artists Collective Association (VACA):
Come check out the City of Vancouver Mayor’s Arts Awards this Monday June 23rd!
7PM
Vancouver Playhouse.
See the invitation online:
http://mayorsartsaward.ca/rsvp.htm
Filed under: competitions | Tags: buddha, get smart, mike myers, movie, preview, steve carell, the love guru, tinseltown
Miss 604 is giving away double passes to see the preview of The Love Guru and Get Smart.
More details here >
I’m trying to figure out which production I would like to see first
Signs pointing to Steve Carell:
-On my way to Las Vegas via US Airways, I flipped open the June edition of US Airways magazine and read an interview with Steve Carell.
- At the Flamingo Casino, Travis and I were waiting in line to see X-Burlesque at the Second City Theatre . Outside on the walls featured past performers, and there was Steve Carell and Stephen Colbert.
- Keeping up-to-date on the latest Apple Store events through e-mails from Apple.
In Soho (New York), Steve Carell and Anne Hathaway will be promoting “Get Smart” on Wednesday 9PM.
Steve Carell: 3 points.
Signs pointing to Mike Myers:
-Travis and I were channel surfing and came across the Sundance Channel.
We were so intrigued about an episode with Mike Myers AND Deepak Chopra.
We were surprised how spiritually-in tune Mike Myers is.
- I just finished reading Chopra’s “Buddha- A Story of Enlightenment”
I admire the great narrative of Deepak Chopra describing the ups and downs of Siddharta’s journey to becoming Buddha
-Compared to Get Smart, The Love Guru is an original production, where Get Smart is a movie revival
Mike Myers: 3 points.
Steve Carell and Mike Myers at a tie: 3-3
Jessica Alba and Justin Timberlake are going to break the tie.
In addition to ultra-celebrity precense: Love Guru is my choice at 5-3.
It’s likely that I’m going to see both of these movies later in the summer, but it would be sweet to get Love Guru advance passes from Miss 604.
Filed under: Concerts & Fun | Tags: air conditioning, bad experience, boiling, broken, casino, hot, hotel, las vegas, new york new york, strip, sweating
Continuing Sunday June 1st, 2008:
I was so excited as Travis and I left the Venetian.
Tickets to Blue Man group in hand, and headed to the star production of the night: Zumanity at New York New York.
It was around 6 or 7 o’clock at night, and we didn’t want to rush over to the hotel to make it on time.
(Traffic via cab sucks, it can get so slow!)
So we wanted to take a break in the hotel and wait for the show to start at 10PM.
Jumped off the Deuce and walked through the entrance of New York New York:
“How is it that it’s hotter inside than the outside?”
“Hmmm, maybe it’s just this part of the hotel. Let’s walk over to the other side where the front desk is.”
We walked around the casino floor and nothing changed.
Sweating, sweating, and more sweating.
It didn’t stop.
My attempt to get Travis on a roller-coaster failed as we got up to the higher floor to see the roller coaster and the “Coney” themed game area. We hung around and played some games.
Travis was drawn to playing “Dragon’s Lair,” as if the heat in the hotel didn’t glue us to our seats.
We headed toward ESPN Zone to grab dinner before the show.
Dining area closed?!
So we settled for the Mexican place in the hotel, which was also brutally hot in temperature.
So muggy as we sipped out margaritas waiting for the show to start.
Close to 10PM, we walked over to the Zumanity theatre doors.
There were so many people around.
I was smiling, and was so excited to see so many people to attend this performance.
As we got closer however, it didn’t look like any of these people were very happy.
A couple yelled out to us, “Hey, are you here to see tonight’s show?”
“Yeh! I’m excited, what’s going on?”
“The show’s canceled tonight.”
Travis said later that night that he saw the saddest and angriest expression on my face when we learned that the show was canceled.
I stammered, “But we’re leaving in a couple days. We’re going to see the Blue Man group Tuesday and then we’re back home the next day. Is there a show tomorrow Monday?”
“Oh no. You need to get one of those white sheets from the box office people to figure out your refund or rescheduling of your tickets.”
The broken air conditioning and the cancellation of the show brought me to a point that I was going to lose it in front of everyone.
We flew all the way down to Las Vegas so I can see Zumanity.
Yet all this time and effort to get down to New York New York,
the show got canceled.
New York New York Hotel & Casino just lost a customer.
Not just a customer, but a future loyal hotel guest.
Does air conditioning systems break down from time to time.
Yes, we understand it does, like any machine.
I plan to come back to Vegas for a convention in the near future.
I was looking forward to staying at New York New York because the hotel really brings back the memories of time I spent in the actual area of Manhattan in New York last winter.
Now seeing how no proactive actions were taken to keep the guests and visitors comfortable on the casino floor, I believe this will reflect the mediocre service I will receive if I do visit this hotel again.
Why wasn’t the air-conditioning fixed right away?
We spent over three hours waiting in this hotel for Zumanity, and everyone in the hotel had to go around uncomfortably.
Why weren’t there some things done just to make this wait in New York New York just a little more bearing against the heat? There was no kind gesture to ease the tolerance of the heat in New York New York. Why weren’t complimentary beverages handed out? Why was there no announcement over the intercom system to “apologize for the inconvenience” of the broken air conditioning.
I asked the couple how long ago was the cancellation announced for the 10PM show of Zumanity.
“Oh, just about 5 minutes ago.”
Why was there no announcement?
Why did they cancel so close to the start of the show?
Why wasn’t the announcement of the cancellation done earlier so the attendees could go somewhere else on the Strip and find something else to do so the night, or in our case our whole trip, would be ruined?
Thanks for nothing New York New York.
Thanks for showing how “high” your customer service can be at your hotel in Las Vegas.
