March 2007: Boycott RIAA Labels!

Gizmodo’s Anti-RIAA Manifesto

While twenty years ago a band needed a record label to discover them, help them record, help them shoot a video, manufacture and then distribute their album, a resourceful band can do all of those things themselves. Eventually, bands will be able to sell their music online direct to fans with minimal reliance on a record label. The RIAA is teetering on the edge of irrelevance, and it’s our job to give it a hearty shove. […]

Reference: Celeb Gays

It’s In To Be Out: Openly Gay Celebrities

WTF? Lesley Gore is gay?!

Singer Lesley Gore came to fame in the ’60s with ‘It’s My Party (And I’ll Cry If I Want To)’ and other hits. She once told an interviewer that she didn’t realize she was gay until she was in her twenties, and that she decided to come out when she toured the Midwest and saw the negativity that existed in places where “there are probably two gay people in the whole damn town.” She still records and tours.

I mean, Lesley Gore?!!?

Reference: Celeb True Names

SLIDESHOWS: Hollywood Walk Of Names

Kirstie Alley
born 1951
Gladys Leeman

So Ask Yourself, Punk: Do You Feel Lucky?

Drudge is reporting:

FLASH: More than quarter of U.S. women ages 14-59 infected with sexually transmitted human papillomavirus… Developing…

My, uh, desire, just, uh, retreated.

(Headline cultural referent here.)

Update: HPV infections seen in over quarter of U.S. women

Microsoft Vista: No Luv x 2

Vista, Office and Outlook 2007 are a Nightmare

As a somewhat technical person, I’ve followed just about every fix recommended, but still the performance is completely unacceptable, even on a machine that is at the higher end of what Vista will ever run on this year and next. As of tonight, I plan to “downgrade” back to Office 2003 and XP. I’d also like to send Redmond an invoice for my lost productivity, but alas, monopolies such as MSFT would probably laugh at such a thing.

Windows Vista: I’m Breaking up with You

Sorry, I… I gave Vista a real chance. I just can’t use it as my primary OS anymore. It’s NOT horrible at its core (by any stretch of the imagination). If all of your hardware and software are fully baked, you’re good to go – but that’s not the world I live in. I will continue to recommend Windows Vista for some users, mind you. I wish I could take the best parts of Vista and bring them back with me to XP. I’m still more than willing to help Microsoft improve Windows and get the message out to users, but I simply can’t sacrifice my own time and productivity without benefits in clear sight. I’m begging Microsoft and all of my hardware and software vendors to make Windows better for me. Until then…

The Whoa starts now.

Prior relevant coverage on this blog: Microsoft Windows Vegta

One Of Those Things That Looks Just Plain Eerie Years Later

The quirky getTRIO daily email newsletter contained a link to Esquire magazine’s cover archives.

This one in particular now seems just plain spooky.

Update: Link fixed. Sheesh.

Wii Woorld

Ken Kutaragi, brilliant, genius father of the PlayStation, cannot be a happy man these days. People are now openly calling for his resignation.

Meanwhile, the happy-happy Wii from Nintendo just continues to shake the world!

Check out this incredible (embedded) video of a Wiimote adapted for business use!

And then look at this cutesy-cutesy game for the Wii: NY Comic Con: Hands-on with Kororinpa for the Wii.

Hell, even Microsoft is now considering ripping off the Wii!

Nintendo, you are really making it hard for me to resist!

Prior coverage on this blog:
Wii Wowws, Cann Bee iPPod Too Gaames?
Bravo, Nintendo! Now Can You Please Do A PDA?
Wii Maan
Cue Bob Dylan: The Times They Are A-Changin’
Mother Of Mercy, Is This The End Of Ken Kutaragi?
Wii Partiies
Wii Wee-Wees On Nokia 770
Wii Wiinniing Buuzz Baattle
Nintendo: Great Ad Line!
You Mean It Won’t?!!?

Sony: Will You Give It Up Already?!!?

Three hacker teams unlock the PSP

Sony sells its PSP with built-in software, known as firmware, which controls how the console operates.

The firmware locks many of the PSP’s capabilities, preventing enthusiasts from writing their own programs, known as homebrew, and running them on the machine.

It also limits its ability to play some films which are not bought on special Sony PSP disks.

But last month three hacker teams – Noobz, Team C+D, and a group led by PSP hacker Dark Alex – co-ordinating their efforts over the internet, found a flaw in the most recently released version of the firmware – version 3.03.

See PSP firmware milestones

Using this flaw they devised a way to unlock all PSPs, regardless of their age or the firmware running on it.

This is a ridiculous cat-and-mouse game that’s been going on since the PSP was first released.

Sony, once the PSP is in users hands, it’s up to them to decide what they want to do with it — not you!

How much manpower have you devoted to thwarting everyone’s legitimate enjoyment of their legally-purchased device?

You keep losing — and you will continue to lose.

Give it up.