The Gantry Launchpad

Dean's World contributor Aziz P discusses the "fanatical bickering" ... of competitive DVD formats.

His final graf focuses content protection, and how it protects consumers:

I think [the debate between Blue-ray and HD-DVD is] important and affects us in a potentially greater way than did the VHS vs BetaMax standards battle of a few decades ago. Ultimately, content on these next-generation discs will have to tread a fine line between consumers' rights and content producers' need to protect their intellectual property. It is good that the debate is playing out in public, because the transparency will ensure that we consumers have a window into the process. After all, it's our hard-eaned cash that both consortiums plan to suck in the hope that we will replace our DVD collections for our personal home theater libraries. Stay tuned.

Foreword: Dean Esmay writes about A Voice of Sanity on Intelligent Design. After I finished writing this, I was surprised by my conclusions. As opposed to Dean, I'm agnostic, and believe there are "things on Heaven and Earth, undreamt-of in your philosophy." On the other hand, I still insist on scientific rigor when processing ideas.

So where does that leave me?

If anyone is interested, I'm selling the COMPLETE Walt Simonson THOR on eBay. Details here.

Will Collier has an interesting post at Vodkapundit , wherein he speculates about just what Apple will be announcing during their October 12 "One More Thing" event.

His suggestion: "iFlicks," a downloadable movie service similar to iTunes, with (one supposes) similarly low prices. Will envisions a connection he calls "Airport-Express-on-steroids" with a video out connector, and a remote.

There's some consensus in the comment thread that -if this is what Apple is planning- it will involve a new 100Mbit/second Airport standard to handle the bandwidth.

All of this is very cool, and even if that's not the new service, folks should check out a recent innovation from Apple: Airport with Airtunes, called Airport Express.

What's so cool about Airport Express is that -if you're using Airport as your wireless router- you can painlessly transmit music to another room. Just connect a "stereo out" line from your sound system to the base station, and plug a second pair of speakers to a module in another room. Viola, music everywhere!

You can even get a remote. So (say) your sound system is in the living room, and your downstairs blogging (or hobbying, whatever) you can control the music from down there.

How cool is that?

So what do you do, when you add eight whole blogs (out of maybe eight bazillion you really like) to your blogroll?

Do you send some sort of tacky form letter to all eight? Or should you send a personal note?

Or should you just wait for them to check their referral logs and get pissed off?

Heh...

In an odd fit of insanity, I submitted a photo to the King of Cotillion competition.

For those of you who don't know, the Cotillion is a collection of sexy, sassy, classy blogger babes. No men allowed! (sorry guys, get your own clubhouse)

The winner gains the title "King of the Cotillon."

In any case, yours truly is in competition with some truly ferocious competition, including the infamous B.C., Imperial Torturer, Jay (Stop the ACLU), and (worst of all) Thunder6 (365 and a Wakeup)!

This could get ugly; wounded egos, tempers flying. And that's just us guys...

Nope. The ladies can't complain they lack choice, this time.

Drop on by, and vote.

Over at Chiefly Musing, Nathan developed a rather profound observation.

Go there, and (as they say) read the whole thing.

Thanks to Dean for the link! :)