The わ series are TDK's flagship minidisc blanks for 2006. The word "sublime" comes to mind…
(Bottom two rows. From top left, L-R: 2003 HO series yellow, 2004 XS-iV 80, 2002 Bit Club, XS-iV "Ministry of Sound" Series, わ in various colors.)
They're only available in Japan, and at the moment, it appears that none of the usual importers plan on carrying them. I got my set from a friend at T-Board who lives there. Let me know if you need a set, and I …
Well, it's official: Pluto is no longer classified as a sovereign planet. Lots of people who don't get out much are arguing and foaming over the mouth right about now over an issue that really boils down to one thing: semantics.
The whole question is really a matter of opinion rather than science.
Folks who call Pluto a planet do so because
it orbits the Sun independently,
it has an atmosphere, albeit a tenuous one,
it has a moon (actually, three), and of course,
it'd be a real pain to rewrite all those textbooks.
They're not wrong. …
Season 8 of the Simpsons is out on DVD. This was really the liminal season; the cracks had begun to show as far back as Season 4, and after this, the show took a real downturn, from which it hasn't recovered.
The series started out as a great family drama/sitcom, and its strength was in the interplay between the characters. After a few years, it started dredging its comedy from abstract situations and gimmicks, and the characters became cardboard cutouts going through the motions over and over again.
One of the most annoying devices was the use of …
I love Warren Ellis. If he was a beautiful woman, or if I were gay, I'd kiss him. Even though he's English.
Of course, given that neither of the above conditions apply, we'll just have to say, "it's the thought that counts."
Ellis has brought some real merit to the world of comics. Transmetropolitan more than lives up to all the hype you've heard. This is the guy who turned Image's dreadful superhero comic Stormwatch into the loud, obnoxious, borderline-fascist and utterly exhilirating Authority that we all came to know and love. He's also responsible for …
As far as most people know, 1974's Autobahn was Kraftwerk's first album. It's certainly the one that solidified their image and sound, and as far as the band is concerned, it's supposed to be their first record.
The truth is something different and far more interesting, however.
Autobahn was actually their fourth album. In fact, the band had been recording since 1970, going through a couple of lineup changes and honing their sound. Autobahn saw them settling on their now-familiar sound, which was largely dominated by computerized instrumentation and robotic vocals. The music was simple and repetitive, but …
A member at the High Road posted a new piece of Mall Ninja lore, this one from MySpace. Personally, I haven't bothered browsing the forum from which it originated, as it requires an account on MySpace, and well…I only browsed MySpace once, and I felt like I needed to wash my hands afterwards. No thanks.
Anyhow, here it is, verbatim. For posterity, I'll leave the poor punctuation and grammar intact, as they typify this sort of writing.
Hello All.
I am new to this group; however I am not new to carrying [a firearm]. I have been carrying
…