Wildman's World

Sony Innovates Again - Life With Playstation - NeoGAF

2008-06-26T19:32:00.000+01:00

Sony Innovates Again - Life With Playstation - NeoGAF

During the presentation, the 'Life' was demoed for the audience for the first time — the service shows the Earth, and users can access current news and weather for locations around the world. It's possible to even pull up the full article from the headline. Users can also set background music while looking at the Earth, checking the weather and the world news.

http://news.dengeki.com/elem/000/000/089/89289/"

MAXCONSOLE - Playstation 2 Playstation 3 Xbox 360 Nintendo DS PSP Gamecube Nintendo WII Revolution - To the MAX!

2008-06-24T22:02:00.000+01:00

MAXCONSOLE - Playstation 2 Playstation 3 Xbox 360 Nintendo DS PSP Gamecube Nintendo WII Revolution - To the MAX!: "Forbes dubs Sony as the Playstation Poor House

Following yesterdays news that revealed Sony lost around $3.3 billion since the launch of the PS3 in 2006 due to its pricing strategy, Forbes have dubbed the electronic giants as the Playstation poorhouse. Moreover, analyst Michael Patcher indicates that the PS3 is still too expensive for the masses and a recession will not help HDTV or Blu-ray sales."

Anyone think SONY might of had a hand in this?

2006-12-15T13:12:00.000Z

Talk about an over-reaction, over a freaking WRIST STRAP! (of which both of mine remain completely intact by the way).

Cant believe this got the front page/main headline!

Isnt there a war on or something?..!

Wii are ready to play! / Wii-Get!

2006-12-08T11:39:00.000Z

I attended the offical Nintendo European Launch party for the Wii midnight last night at HMV Oxford Street London.

All in all, coupled with some online orders, I managed to nab myself..

1x Wii Console
1 x Wii Play game with Extra Wii Remote
1 x extra Wii Nunchuck
1 x Wii Classic Controller
1 x Wii Component Cables for EDTV/HDTV
1 x Zelda Twilight Princess (not arrived yet - be here tomorrow!)

World Music Awards - My VERDICT

2006-11-16T01:09:00.000Z

I just got back from Earls Court.

What a @#$#% disappointment.

Michael bottled it - simple as that.

There was a long, long noticeable delay before a performance of 'Thriller' commenced, some fans had their WAP on their mobile phones and heard that MJ didn’t want to perform (as planned) and that the organisers of the show were franticly trying to persuade him otherwise - well, that would explain the delay.
Eventually Thriller started with young R&B Artist Chris Brown in Mikes role in Mikes famous red jacket complete with the dancing undead. The whole choreography looked as if it was building towards something, the Zombies dragged Chris off towards the back of the stage area, smoked filled the back - we all expected MJ to come out, but nah, nothing. Performance over.
Then the stage was cleared, MJ fans booed and called for Michael, An announcer introduced Rihanna and she entered the stage and began to sing, the boos continued - poor girl. Even the VIP area wanted Mike, they called for him with the fans. However, its important that I clarify that the fans were not booing AT Michael, they were booing FOR Michael – if you know what I mean.

All we did see is Michael collect his 'Diamond' award, for over 100 million records sold. Beyonce presented him with the trophy and Michael thanked God and the Fans for his achievements.

At the very end of the show a choir of KIDS/ pre-teens entered the stage (talk about giving the tabloids ammunition - DUMB PR move) and sang the chorus of 'We Are The World' about 4 times. An announcer said "singing for the first time in years, its MICHAEL JACKSON" the whole crowd went nuts, Michael strolled onto stage very reluctantly, sang "we are the world, we are the children" that was it. he lowered the mic from his mouth and the kids carried the rest. It was as if he could not be bothered or simply bottled it.
Now MJ MUST have known the world’s media was deeming this a comeback, heck it was his ideal opportunity to return to the public eye in a favourable light. He threw that golden opportunity away Everyone wanted to see Michael remind the world just why he is the King of Pop, yet this half assed effort not only disappointed fans, it has given the Red-top press an opportunity to have a field day to brand him as a ‘washed up has been’.
During the 'We are the World' number, Michael threw his designer jacket into the audience pit below. As you can imagine there was a riot. Even after the show had ended, you could see a bundle of fans - grown-ass-men I might add, tugging and pulling at the black fabric. Men were jumping in, throwing punches, pushing and shoving. The crowd separated into two, all of a sudden there were TWO fights going on - that’s right, the jacket had ripped in half.
A poor guy was unconscious on the floor, another suffering convulsions. I publicly expressed my disgust at one particular 'fan', who after a bit of research I am going to name and shame as DANNY OLIVER, who literally jumped on a mans head just to try and get closer to the jacket. Now what annoyed me particularly about this, was that when Michael was on stage, this 'fan' was standing in my vicinity the whole time - and Michael threw that jacket no where near us at all. Just what gave this person the right to act like an animal and savagely attack someone whose only crime was to simply be at the right place at the right time with a lucky catch?

The whole evening presenters such as Rachael Hunter and Peter Andre teased the crowd about wanting to see Mike - the whole show felt like it was building towards something spectacular, only nothing happened.

Do I believe Mike has lost it? No I don’t. When you have a God given talent (which MJ has proven) you have a God given talent, it never goes away.

Do I believe Mike no longer cares - maybe so…

Michael Jackson!!

2006-11-15T22:38:00.000Z

Yeah yeah, not the best picture in the world. But you try stabilising a Camera Phone when you are being crushed by hundreds of screaming fans!

Chris Brown

2006-11-15T22:30:00.000Z

Chris Brown performing 'Thriller' by way of tribute to Michael Jackson.

Enya

2006-11-15T21:48:00.000Z

2006-11-15T21:20:00.000Z

Damn - camera battery died. doesnt have enough juice to Blog any further pics.
The other pictures will follow as soon as I get home and have a chance to upload.

2006-11-15T20:59:00.000Z

Nelly futardo

Katie Melua

2006-11-15T20:56:00.000Z

2006-11-15T20:39:00.000Z

Andreas Bocelli, if ur into tht kind of thing..

Beyonce

2006-11-15T20:22:00.000Z

Beyonce

2006-11-15T19:37:00.000Z

We're in!

2006-11-15T18:29:00.000Z

Still bloody waiting. The crowd is cold and are starting to boo.

2006-11-15T16:54:00.000Z

Worked our way to the front of the line. Not long now..

2006-11-15T16:52:00.000Z

The Red carpet has been rolled, the paps r out and the crowd r screaming WE WANT MICHAEL!

2006-11-15T16:44:00.000Z

Ive arrived at Earls Court, met up with my Brother and his mate and am now waiting in line . Theres only about 200 people in fromt of us, so im quite confident we can push our way to the front.

World Music Awards 2006 - Earls Court

2006-11-15T14:42:00.000Z

This evening, Earls Court hosts the 2006 World Music Awards - a prestrgious annual ceremony that celebrates the record sales of music industry recording artists the world over.
This event will feature a incredible line-up of recording artists, plus celebrities from the world of film, fashion, TV and sports. The likes of Beyonce, Mary J Blige, Nelly Futardo, Enya and Faithless will be performing tonight, as will a little superstar by the name of MICHAEL JACKSON.
Yes! Tonight Michael Jackson will pick up the much-coveted Diamond Award, which was created to honour artists who have sold over 100 million albums, it has since also been confirmed that Michael will PERFORM! This will be MJ's first public appearance since all of the bullshit he went through a year ago, so naturally I gotta go down there and support the King of Pop. You betcha! I managed to snag a ticket (which I currently have safely in my wallet) and will be heading down to Earls Court for the 7pm start. Im currently at work at the moment, but Earls Court is only 10 mins away. I passed by the venue this lunchtime out of curiousity, and as you can see from the picture above, around 200 enthusiastic fans have already begun queuing for their places. I'll probably leave work for the venue around 3.30pm today.

Keep checking the Blog for more!

Wii got in!

2006-09-15T14:11:00.000+01:00

Intergrated Mobile Blogging from my K800i!

2006-09-02T10:55:00.000+01:00

Cool! The built-in Mobile Blogging function of my new K800i works!, as...er, confirmed by this rather random and mundane pic :-D

A new baby...... TECHnically speaking :-D

2006-09-01T18:13:00.000+01:00

Look what landed on my doorstep today....

3 Megapixels with a built in flash!
Isnt she beautiful?!! - Isnt 3g a blast??!! (yeah yeah, I was a little late to THAT party - thanks to T-Mobile)

Specs here

Glad I left those buggers at T-Mobile for the fantastic Online 500 tariff on O2.
My old number should be ported to my new phone SIM in about 5 days.

In my opinion, the K800i is THE BEST phone on the market today - however its only flaw is that Sony used it to introduce yet ANOTHER memory stick format.This time is the M2 - Memory Stick Micro.

I picked up a 1GB stick (or rather, chip)for 40 notes, which was quite a feat as Sony havent produced anywhere near enough to satisify demand, which makes them a bit like golddust at the moment. It really is a tiny thing, no larger than my fingernail.

Isnt technology amazing??!

My best Brain Age yet!!

2006-07-08T19:19:00.000+01:00

My best Brain Age yet!!
Originally uploaded by darthbane2k.

You have a new picture message!

Ive completed Super Princess Peach!!

2006-07-07T19:13:00.000+01:00

Ive completed Super Princess Peach!!
Originally uploaded by darthbane2k.

You have a new picture message!

Racist or Harmless?

2006-07-04T13:39:00.000+01:00

Just some advertising from Sony for their white coloured PSP handheld in Amsterdam.

Offensive?- You decide..

2006-07-01T19:03:00.000+01:00

Yet ANOTHER Brain Age record!

2006-06-28T11:45:00.000+01:00

Yet ANOTHER Brain Age record!
Originally uploaded by darthbane2k.

You have a new picture message!

2006-06-25T19:35:00.000+01:00

After a thrilling day of football, I finally got around to completing New Super Mario Bros for my Nintendo DS. The photos below serve as proof, the three stars mark the fact that not only was Bowser defeated, but all secret levels/exits accessed and all Star Coins collected and spent.
Some of the rewards the game provided (For completion) was the ability to change backdrop wallpaper, and the ability to play as Luigi!

The game was an absolute pleasure to play from beginning to end, one of the most perfect platformers in the past 10-15 years.

Now onto my Father's Day pressie... Super Princess Peach!

2006-06-22T15:34:00.000+01:00

Both Mum and Baby are home from hospital, healthy and safe & sound.
Jaden is dealing with the presence of his new sibling well, no signs of jealousy yet. He seems to be very excited about Baby and very protective too, as a big brother should be.
We are all re-adjusting nicely to having a newborn within the house - sleepless nights aside, all is going well.

Its a Boy!

2006-06-21T04:48:00.000+01:00

At 3.57am on Wednesday 21st June 2006, Musole gave birth to our second child Jerome Jonathan Wildman, a healthy baby boy weighing at 8 pounds, 3.

Another Brain Age RECORD!...its my age!

2006-06-18T21:10:00.000+01:00

Another Brain Age RECORD!...its my age!
Originally uploaded by darthbane2k.

You have a new picture message!

England 2, Trinidad & Tobago 0

2006-06-16T09:08:00.000+01:00

I warned everyone that writing off Trinidad and Tobago would be at their peril, yet yesterday served to remind me what exactly I hate most about the England team….its supporters.
From Joey-Twopence being interviewed on the street by London Tonight, to the smug and arrogant Terry Venables (in ITV Pundit mode) to the complete ignoramus Wanker Gareth Southgate, who could not be any more incompetent as an ITV Commentator.
These are the same England supporters who fail to recognise that Paraguay and Trinidad & Tobago even exist in England's group, the same supporters who think there are only two teams In this tournament, England and Brazil. The same supporters who think that just because England fancy their chances this World Cup, that they will win it by default The same supporters who have an unhealthy obsession with World War Two and 1966 (That’s 40 years ago folks) who rushed out in their droves to purchase the most jingoistic and xenophobic diatribe (song) that not only stereotypes, mocks and ridicules all Germans (have England even played Germany yet?!) but goes that one step further and likens Jurgen Klinsmann to Adolf Hitler - simply because (you've guessed it!) he's GERMAN and because the World Cup is hosted in GERMANY.

ITVs coverage of the football yesterday was a complete joke. It was as if they had no interest in covering any of the games except for the England one. Now I know that the England team Is of obvious national interest, but when you have a Ecuador v Costa Rica match at 2pm (pre England) and a Sweden v Paraguay game at 8pm (post England) you at least expect commentary that is relevant to the respective match and half/full time analysis that at least covers said match. Not even a goal was replayed or discussed, instead we got a Sven Goran Erickson interview for the umpteenth time. Hey ITV! If you DON’T want to show any non-England matches, then hand the rights over to the BBC! They always do a much more professional and thorough job than that joke of a broadcaster with their pathetic PC female host.

Anyway rant over, as sickened as I was with the result yesterday, I am pleased with the way Trinidad and Tobago played. They had more fighting spirit than England and held themselves with great dignity. What pissed me off was how (and still) the media write off this team, constantly mocking them and ridiculing them as the worst side of the tournament. From what I saw yesterday and with the Sweden game a week before, Trinidad and Tobago are far from one of the worst teams of the competition. No excuses about the weather, Rooney's fitness, playing ten men behind a ball etc, Trinidad and Tobago made England work their asses off - and they still weren't good enough to ensure a Jamaica style thrashing like they so arrogantly assumed was theirs by rights, even before stepping foot onto the pitch.
Generally, the English supporters are far too ignorant to realise just how much of an achievement it is for Trinidad and Tobago - a small nation comprised of two small Islands, (less than 1 million population) to qualify for this tournament and play among the best to the standard of the best. They deserve far more credit and recognition for what they have done than what they are receiving.
After frustrating and holding England, T&T only slipped up with less than ten minutes to go after a blatant Peter Crouch foul on a defender (Is the pulling of the hair not considered a foul these days?) allowed him to score a goal. If that goal had rightfully been disqualified, then im damn well sure that Gerard's opportunity would never have arisen.

To be honest, I never expected Trinidad and Tobago to beat England, I expected a gallant tie at best. One can debate all day whether T&T actually deserved a draw, however I would have thought at the very least, and especially now, that they at least deserved some RESPECT.

Check out my Brain Age today!!

2006-06-15T11:14:00.000+01:00

Check out my Brain Age today!!
Originally uploaded by darthbane2k.

You have a new picture message!

Its been a long time!

2006-06-15T10:22:00.000+01:00

Alright, I'll hold my hands up - this is the first entry on my blog for a very very long time. Truth be told, I've simply been far to busy to keep it up to date. However im going to try to get things going once more, and not let it fall so far behind again.
Hmmm… so what has happened since my last entry? - Well rather than attempt to recollect and explain everything in detail, here's a anecdotal summary of some of the latest developments, before we get 'back to business':

Arcade Light Gun:

That’s right folks, I finally succumbed against my better judgement and made yet ANOTHER modification to my MAME Arcade cabinet.
I purchased an LCD Topgun from EMS in Hong Kong for a bargain £30 delivered. Installed the two LED tracking stands to either side of my cabinet (these are black, so they aren't too much of an eye sore) and after a rigorous and sometimes frustrating attempt at collaboration, I can now play many lightgun game arcade classics!
Some of my favourite titles include, House of the Dead, House of the Dead 2, Virtua Cops 1 & 2, Point Blank, Chiller (a curious game where your aim is to torture and maim people!!) and the American Laser Game cheese-fests that are Mad Dog McCree 1& 2, Crime Patrol and Who Shot Johnny Rock!
The gun attachment has added over 100 additional arcade games.

PICTURES TO FOLLOW

2006 FA Cup Final:

I said it was Liverpool for the win all along, and it sure was. Thrilling match, even more gratifying for myself as I happen to hate west ham and its supporters - so after the 120 min roller-coaster ride and nail biting penalty shootout, there was a lot of gloating done by yours truly, who had to endure the match in the presence of an ever-so-grateful Gooner (see Tottenham).

Digital Camera:

I sold my unreliable aging Sony Digital Camera on eBay for a tidy profit and imported a beautiful Nikon P1 in its place. This baby takes cheaper SD cards (I have 2Gb at its disposal), can take pictures at 8, yes 8 mega pixels, and has built in WiFi functionality! Yes!, I can shoot pictures and have them directly transfer to my PC, I can send a batch of pictures wirelessly to my PC when I want to free up some memory, and I can even send pictures wirelessly to my photo printer!
Full review here.

E3 2006:

E3 baby!.. E3!!!! This years E3 in May was the big one that everyone was waiting for. Nintendo were to unleash full details of their revolution, now officially called Wii, and Sony their Playstation 3.
Sony kicked things off with their press conference, which managed to drag on for over 2 hours. They promised everything and delivered NOTHING - hype without substance and same old bland and boring games. Rather than go into detail here, you can simply read a transcript of the event or watch a hilarious video summary courtesy of You Tube. However some of the specific low points for me were as follows:

A $599 / £425 price tag for the PS3 console!

HYPE! - lauding a game for its innovative ' real time weapon change'!

A $599 / £425 price tag for the PS3 console!

The PSP STILL doesn’t have any decent games

A $599 / £425 price tag for the PS3 console!

The PSP is now a rear-view mirror for PS3 racing games…… still has no games.

A $599 / £425 price tag for the PS3 console!

Rumble removed from Dual Shock 3 controller - Sony say rumble is last gen, an Immersion lawsuit says otherwise

A $599 / £425 price tag for the PS3 console!

The over-rated Grand Theft Auto is NO LONGER a Playstation exclusive series! Xbox360 says hello!

And finally, the shameless attempt to 'rip off' Nintendo's motion controller. Sony add a tilt function to the Dual Shock, the PS3 can detect whether the controller has been lifted, lowered or moved left or right. A half-assed demo of a crappy title called 'Warhawk' showed a developer in spasms, franticly tilting his arms left and right (like your grandmother does when trying a video game) in order to land a craft on screen. What Sony wont tell you is that UNLIKE the Wii controller, the Dual Shock 3 CANNOT detect 3D Space - i.e how far away you are from the screen or whether you make a punching or sword slash motion.

Now Nintendo's conference was much better, clear, concise and focused. It is unanimously agreed that they 'won' E3 and officially won the 'Hardware of the Show' award for the Wii.
You can read a transcript of Nintendo's conference, or watch the full video here, part 1 and part 2
Nintendo's show started out strong, with an almost immediate display of footage for multiple Nintendo titles, including Super Mario Galaxy, Pilotwings, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption and Red Steel. It was basically the strength of knowing these games exist, coupled with live demonstrations of Red Steel and Zelda using the Wii remote that carried the show.
There was no real surprise about the Wii, just confirmed rumours: The controller will have a built-in speaker (the example they used for it was you could hear the bow in Zelda pulling taut) and rumble, and the nunchuck attachment will have its own motion sensor. A lot more was eventually revealed about the games the next few days, as there was 27 Wii titles on the show floor for people to play. Iwata also mentioned a web browser loaded on the Wii's flash memory. There will be two versions of Zelda: Twilight Princess released at the same time: the Gamecube version and the Wii version. Both will go on sale the day the Wii launches.
The big news on the DS front was the unveiling of StarFox DS and Yoshi's Island 2, which drew applause from the crowd. Phantom Hourglass was said to "pick up where Wind Waker left off." Osu! Tatakae! Ouedan! was confirmed as coming to the US as Elite Beat Agents.
They also briefly mentioned "Wii Connect 24", some sort of feature where the system can stay connected to the Internet all the time, even when you're not using it. This would allow people to visit your home in Animal Crossing, even when you're asleep or automatically download new game demos to your DS. The Wii in this standby mode is said to use as much power as a small light bulb.
No pricing or launch details beyond "fourth quarter 2006," no major slams on Sony for trying to steal the control scheme. But just on the strength of their franchises alone, Nintendo generated more excitement in their first five minutes than Sony did their entire conference. The one thing that surprised me was that they didn't end with one final surprise announcement, as they usually do. They did eventually pull out Super Smash Brothers Brawl a few days later, featuring a guest appearance by none other than Solid Snake!

So what has happened since E3? How about the Wii-60 alliance, even endorsed by Microsoft's Peter Moore who strangely enough, has nothing but praise for Nintendo's new-gen console. The general consensus is that the price of a Xbox 360 + the price of a Nintendo Wii = the price of ONE PS3! So 360 and Wii are the way to go! If sales of the underestimated DS are to go by (which is trouncing the psp globally) I predict that Wii will take the global market and Microsoft take Europe. Sony's ridiculous pricing and focus on Blu-Ray has simply alienated one too many gamers, and yes - I have pre-ordered my Wii already!
Check out this video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6sASwCPQZY&search=E3%20WII%20QUEUE)from E3 - the public simply do not care about PS3 - they all rush past Sony's stand to play Wii! Welcome back, Nintendo!

PSP gone Bye-Bye! - DS Lite says hello!!:

After the disappointing E3 showing, I finally decided to sell the most expensive paper weight I have ever bought, my PSP. Why? - Because for a handheld games machine, it had NO decent games - even downloading and playing ISOs on my 1.5 firmware bored me.. Sony are more concerned about treating the PSP as an all-in-one multimedia device. I have no desire to listen to MP3s or re-buy the same movies I already own for portable device with preprioty format. The PSP had been gathering dust for months, I sold it and three games and bought be a sexy Nintendo DS Lite. The DS Lite has been joyous to own and play! I have a blast with online Tetris (8-bit era themed for Nintendo fanboys!) and Mario Kart, and enjoy the fascinating Brain Training and New Super Mario Brothers. Simply put, New Super Mario Bros is the greatest platform to grace us since Super Mario 64 10 years ago. THIS is what gaming should be about - having fun!!
The DS Lite is lighter and more compact than the original. Its screens are more vibrant, sharp and colourful than even the PSP!
I imported mine from Australia TWO WEEKS before the UK release and saved £40! - and even after buying a case and all of the aforementioned games, I STILL have £110 left over from the PSP sale!!

MORE PICTURES TO FOLLOW

World Cup 2006!

Need I say more? I have been going into work at an un-Godly hour just to be able to come home early enough to catch the majority of matches. It's has been a GREAT tournament so far.
Of course im rooting for England, but as always, I've a fondness for Brazil and a hope for Trinidad and Tobago - who admittedly, I would love to beat England today!

Jas, Sham and I enjoyed the first England match very much under the traditional influence of alcohol. Two Asians, one Black guy, sitting by Gus from Eastenders, supporting England in a South African bar (Barracuda) - go figure! , only in England indeed!

The pattering of tiny feet, the sleepless nights, the dirty nappies!

And last, but certainly not least comes the news that I am to be a Father again. Very very soon infact, as my second child is due for delivery in less than a week. We have been frantically trying to redecorate the flat in time for its arrival (which Musole describes as nesting) and are all very excited; Jaden, too - as he is well aware that a little brother or sister is on the way!

IS IT BECAUSE HE'S BLACK?: What They DONT Want You to Know About Michael Jackson

2006-01-06T11:29:00.000Z

By Christopher Hamilton
Source:eurweb.com

What do you think of when you hear the name, Michael Jackson? Michael? Criminal? Great Entertainer? Businessman? Whatever you think of MJ, throw all your thoughts out of the window and let's examine some facts.

For years the media has labeled him "Michael Jackson." What happened to MJ? Wasn't he the biggest thing in music at one point? When did he go crazy?

All anyone has to do is look when Michael started being portrayed as "Crazy." It wasn't during the "Thriller" years. It's cool being a song and dance man. That's what they want. DON'T DARE BECOME A THINKING BUSINESSMAN. DON'T DARE BUY THE BEATLES CATALOG. DON'T DARE MARRY ELVIS' DAUGHTER. DON'T DARE BEAT THE RECORD INDUSTRY AT THEIR OWN GAME. Michael started being labeled crazy when he began making business moves that no one had been successful at doing.

Michael took two cultural icons and shattered them to pieces. All our lives, we've been bombarded with 2 facts. The Beatles were the greatest group of all time and Elvis was the King of Rock and Roll. Michael bought the Beatles and married the King's daughter. (if that ain't literally sticking it to the man) If I wasn't a cynic, I'd say Michael did the Lisa Marie thing just to stick it to the people who consider Elvis the King.

The Beatles were great, but they weren't great enough to maintain publishing rights over their own songs.

Elvis was great, but he didn't write his songs. His manager, Col Tom Parker, was the mastermind behind Elvis ... keeping him drugged with fresh subscription pills and doing all the paperwork.

Michael could do no wrong as an entertainer. "Off the Wall," first solo artist with 4 top ten singles. "Thriller," the biggest selling album of all time, with a then record 7 top ten singles. "Bad," the first album to spawn 5 number one songs (even Thriller only had 2 number one songs). All this is cool. But that is all you better do. SING AND DANCE. Michael wanted to be greater. He bought the legendary Sly and the Family Stone catalog and no one really cared. When he bought the Beatles, people noticed. The Sony merger took the cake. Sony, in their eagerness to have a part of the Beatles catalog, agreed to a 50/50 merger with Jackson, thus forming Sony/ATV music publishing. Now, Michael co-owns half of the entire publishing of all of Sony artists. Check out the complete lists of songs at sonyatv.com. A sampling of the songs he owns the publishing rights to are over 900 country songs by artists such as Tammy Wynette, Kenny Rogers, Alabama. All Babyface written songs. Latin songs by Selena and Enrique Iglesias. Roberta Flack songs, Mariah Carey songs, Destiny's Child's songs. 2pac, Biggie and Fleetwood Mac songs. In essence over 100,000 songs. "What is this man doing?" None of the greats did this. Not Bono, Springsteen, Sinatra. "Who does he think he is? Get whatever you can on him."

To "get" someone, you have to attack what they love the most. I'll say no more on that.

The only man who even approaches MJ in taking on the industry is Prince and to a lesser extent, George Michael. They went after poor George Michael, publicly outing the man as a homosexual. Prince fought hard and made his point, but nevertheless still had to resort to using a major company to distribute his materials. There is nothing wrong with that. Prince would get the lion's share, but the result were years of being labeled crazy and difficult.

The greatest moment for them was the Sneddon press conference. "We got him." Never was such glee so evident. Who cares if we have evidence?

Michael was acquitted, did not celebrate, went home and left the USA. Best move ever. Now what is there left for the haters to do? He's gone. "Gone, what do you mean he moved to Bahrain? Well, how the hell can we get him if he's not here? Quick, get that columnist to write a series of articles on how MJ's teetering on the brink of destruction. Oh we did that? Well, what can we do?"

On the outer surface, it appears Michael is not doing anything to make money. Don't even count the weekly sales of his CDs. 15,000 CDs a week is nothing for Michael. The Sony/ATV catalog is money for Michael Jackson every time he breathes. Serious money. The fact that no one reports on the actual amount is proof of that. They would rather you believe he is broke than tell you the truth. Neverland is still owned by MJ. The family home in Encino is still owned by MJ. Michael still owns the Beatles songs through the merger with Sony as well as full ownership of his own songs. But, hey, that's our little secret.

Michael Jackson is literally walking in the shoes that no Black person has ever walked in before. If he ever writes an autobiography, it will be one of the most interesting ever. A Black man with no real formal education becomes the most powerful man in the industry, DESPITE hatred, racism, enemies in his own camps and a media willing to be bought to the highest bidder.

If Sony had any sense, right now they should offer to continue the partnership. That's the only way they will make future money off of Michael's catalogue. Tommy Mattola did not lose his job with Sony because he was a bad label head. It was a casualty of war. MJ exposed him and Sony had to cut their losses. Companies do it all the time. Notice no one at Sony nor did Matolla himself ever sue MJ for slander. Michael always was loyal to his bosses at Epic/Sony. Back at the 1984 Grammys, he even brought then label head Walter Yetnikoff on stage with him at one point. He's always thanked Dave Glew, Mattola and others at Sony in his acceptance speeches.

Sony can still do right by Michael, but it may be too late. However, they still should make a goodwill gesture, but how many times do businesses do that? If I were them, I'd still want MJ as an ally, not as an enemy. It is/was a mutally profitable merger.

I'd be scared as hell if I was an enemy of MJ while he is with the multi-billionaires overseas. Believe me, they aren't just over there discussing designer clothing. A conglomerate is in the making.

One last note, these facts that I write here should not be the only times you hear this, but the sad fact is it probably is. I was worried that Michael would go down because of the uncertainty of the jury. That's playing unfair. If I'm presenting these facts here at EURweb, YOU CAN BELIEVE THE MEDIA KNOWS IT ALREADY AS WELL. They aren't salivating over everything MJ related just because he made "Thriller." They know what's up. Think about it. That's why I laugh when I see shows like BET's "The Ultimate Hustler." We all know who that is. (How can Damon Dash know who the ultimate hustler is anyway? He lost Roc-a-fella to Jay-Z)

In the end, Michael won't be known for being an alleged child molester. He won't be known for "Thriller." He will be known as the man that fought the record industry and won and lived to tell the tale. That is a book worth buying.

Peter HACKson

2005-12-20T12:46:00.000Z

Say what you want about George Lucas, at least he still has an imagination Peter Jackson will never have. Lucas also takes risks, some of which may even fail (and certainly do, as the present has shown us). But that's why they're called risks.

While Jackson is content at adapting novels or already made movies, Lucas takes things from the imagination, whether it be his own or from the many creative talents he surrounds himself with, and creates, while Jackson borrows.

Lucas created a huge galaxy full of many interesting people, creatures, places, stories, and conflicts. Jackson took a series of novels with a built-in audience and threw a bunch of CGI and overhead sweeping shots at it. There was very little in the way of actual creativity involved. And what exactly did Jackson contribute? The LOTR films are rather drab, lifeless costume fantasies that reek of lack of inspiration. They are NOTHING next to the Star Wars films.

Once again, Jackson is playing it safe with King Kong. Everything is already there; just add a ton of CGI and some 'safe' actors and there's your movie. Just like LOTR, there is already a built-in audience. The LOTR fanboys will clamor to whatever their master hands out. The older crowd who may have been fans of the previous Kongs will go to see this newer version. And of course, Joe Sixpack, who loves a big movie, will be attracted by the largeness of the event and join the other crowds waiting in line.

And of course, the praise will be needlessly heaped on his name once again. Maybe Kong will be a competent movie. Maybe people will love it. But it won't be because of Jackson; like LOTR, it'll be because Jackson simply followed the 'blueprints' that were already laid out and because of the miles of CGI that he threw at it to make it more lifelike.

What is Jackson going to take on next? A very popular video game franchise with a built in fanbase? Oh wait...

2005-12-18T22:48:00.000Z

The facts speak for themselves:

whether it is version 1933 or 1976 or 2005, the movie king Kong shows:

1-White people going to remote islands reminds of the white british slavery traders going to africa back in the expedition era.
2-King Kong eats dark women but falls in love with white blond woman.
3-The capture of King Kong is a reminder of these white slave traders capturing black africans.
4-The transfer of King Kong to New York is a reminder of black slaves moved to the new world.
5-the exhibition of King Kong for profits is a reminder of slaving black africans in cotton fields and other areas.
6-The revolt and subsequent destruction of KK is a warning to the dark slaves that light-skinned people will prevail.

Boycott this bullshit...

Why I REFUSE to see Peter Jackson's remake of this RACIST Movie...

2005-12-18T22:24:00.000Z

King Kong
Race, sex, and rebellion

by David N. Rosen
from Jump Cut, no. 6, 1975, pp. 7-10
copyright Jump Cut: A Review of Contemporary Media, 1975, 2004

It’s clear that a central aspect in the critical analysis of a film (or any work of art) must be an appreciation of its historicity. This principle is based on the assumption that the film and its meaning reflect the cultural environment of its time and place. To be aware of the historicity of a given film, then, requires some awareness of the specific complex of factors—social, political, economic, psychological, etc.—informing the sensibilities of artists and audiences at the time of the film’s creation and initial presentation.

An interesting effort along these lines is Gerald Peary’s “A Speculation: The Historicity of KING KONG” (JUMP CUT, 4), which interprets the giant ape Kong as a conservative RKO’s very skeptical symbolic assessment of the New Deal, with the adventurer-promoter character Denham representing FDR. I believe, however, that a historical appreciation of the film should be expanded to include some other themes, those of race, sex, and rebellion. I say “expand” because I don't believe it necessary to “refute” Peary’s interpretation in order to present this one. Symbols can be overdetermined, that is, represent more than one idea.

It doesn't require too great an exercise of the imagination to perceive the element of race in KING KONG. Racist conceptions of blacks often depict them as subhuman, ape or monkey-like. And consider the plot of the film: Kong is forcibly taken from his jungle home, brought in chains to the United States, where he is put on stage as a freak entertainment attraction. He breaks his chains and goes on a rampage in the metropolis, until finally he is felled by the forces of law and order.

The causative factor in his capture and his demise is his fatal attraction to blonde Ann Darrow (Fay Wray). As Denham says in the last words of the film, “Oh, no, it wasn't the airplanes. It was Beauty killed the Beast.” If we look at KING KONG in terms of a racial metaphor, “Beauty” turns out to be “the white woman.” This kind of theme is foreshadowed in the behavior of the “natives” on the island where Kong is captured. When he first sees her, the “Native Chief” offers six of his wives for Ann, and when this is refused, he kidnaps her. Thus the sequence of events leading to Kong’s capture is set in motion: the romantic lead,/hero of the film, Jack Driscoll (Bruce Cabot) and Denham organize a rescue party.

This type of plot device is a recurrent element in films of the jungle adventure genre. The white woman comes along on the safari not only to provide romantic interest. She is usually a focus of tension between the white males and the “natives,” furnishing an opportunity for some of the former to display their virile heroism against the savages. An alternate scenario involves the search for a legendary white woman reportedly living among an obscure, remote tribe, for example, TRADER HORN (MGM 1931). In both cases the “natives” view the white woman as a special kind of fetish with magical powers. In those instances where the white woman isn't fetishized by the “natives,” the very opposite treatment of her provides an index of their barbarity—they lack a special standard of mercy for women characteristic of civilized peoples.

Aside from the sexual aspect implicit in the question of race, there’s the more direct, and somewhat delirious, sexual imagery in the film. The ape often functions as a most appropriate anthropoid symbol of “lower,” “animal” instincts. In this case we have a giant ape (literally a huge, hairy monster) and his unrestrained, headlong pursuit of a “blonde,” that archetypical Hollywood sex-object, ending on top of the world’s foremost phallic symbol.(1) The sexual theme touches on the standard racist myth of the black male’s exaggerated sexual potency, and the complementary notion of his insatiable desire for white women.

As stated above, to locate these interpretations in a historical context requires that we ask questions about the specific events and trends influencing the attitudes of the film’s creators and audience. A survey of the post World War I period in the United States or, for our purposes, the fifteen years between the end of the war and the release of KING KONG in 1933, reveals a period of increasing racial and social tension.

During the war period the movement of blacks from rural to urban areas intensified, and migration continued through the l920s, resulting in increased racial friction in the cities. In 1919 numerous race riots broke out, the most well-known being that which began in Chicago in July 27. What was most significant about these riots was their widespread occurrence (six major riots, twenty other racial disturbances in the summer and fall of l9l9) and the fact that blacks were fighting back, as indicated by the Chicago statistics on number of whites killed and injured, which is cited as a major factor in accounting for the particularly violent character of the riots.(2)

The Ku Klux Klan greatly expanded its membership in the twenties, with its biggest gains in the growing southwestern and midwestern cities; in 1922 Chicago had the most Klan members of any city.(3) Miscegenation, of course, was and continued to be an idée fixe with the Klan and white racism in general, the protection of white women viewed as a major part of the task of saving “white civilization.” Although the wave of rabid racism may be considered to have abated somewhat in the late twenties. it is incontestable that the nation was still affected by the same racial preoccupations. In March of 1931 the infamous Scottsboro Boys case began, in which nine black youths were accused of raping two white girls.

The Depression hit blacks, traditionally last hired, first fired, especially hard. Blacks played a prominent and highly visible role in the hunger marches to Washington which took place in December, 1931 and 32, and in the Bonus March to Washington of July 1932. In the election of that year black voters decisively broke away from the Republican party of emancipation’ to vote for Roosevelt.

It should be noted that the popular cultural representations of the twenties and thirties continued to present the Sambo character and the minstrel tradition, exemplified by Stepin Fetchit on the one hand, and Al Jolson end Eddie Cantor on the other. In other words, blacks were presented as the stereotypical good natured, fearful, stupid, lazy characters who loved to dance and sing, and who provided laughs and entertainment for white audiences.

The image of King Kong on a Broadway stage may correspond very closely to white America’s attitudes toward the black men in the 1930s: an object of entertainment, but also of fear. The ape is apparently securely chained, but with the ever present potential for bursting his chains and wreaking violence and destruction with all the power of his supposed “savage” primitive nature.

KING KONG was released a few days before Roosevelt’s inauguration in March of 1933. the high point of the Depression in terns of number of unemployed. If this period of intense capitalist crisis clearly raised the possibility of revolution, in a general sense it can be argued that Kong symbolizes this possibility, the threat of the masses “losing their chains” in a revolutionary upheaval—which conservatives always picture as a strictly chaotic, wantonly destructive dissolution of society. It should be remembered that this threat was not new; it had been haunting the capitalist world with particular Intensity since the end of the war.

A revolutionary wave had swept through Europe beginning with the Russian Revolution of 1917, with soviet republics briefly established in Germany end Hungary in 1919, and all of Eastern and Central Europe in the throes of revolutionary ferment. The reaction in the United States to these events and increased working-class militancy at home was the postwar “Red Scare,” which coincided with the outburst of racism.

The Palmer raids of 1920 were unambiguously directed against “alien elements,” especially southern and eastern European immigrants who were thought to be the carriers of the “Bolshevik” virus. (4) If these immigrants were the carriers of the disease, other racial and ethnic minorities such as blacks. Mexicans, and Orientals were thought to be highly susceptible. In a popular racist tract published in 1920, The Rising Tide of Color Against White Supremacy, Theodore Lothrop Stoddard warned”

“In every quarter of the globe ... the Bolshevik agitators whisper in the ears of discontented colored men their gospel of hatred and revenge. Every nationalist aspiration, every political grievance, every social discrimination, is fuel for Bolshevism’s hellish incitement to racial as well as to class war.” (5)

Attorney-General Palmer’s antiradical division, headed by J. Edgar Hoover, saw fit to publish a pamphlet in the fall of 1919 on “Radicalism and Sedition among the Negroes as Reflected in Their Publications.”

The Communist Party, was later very much involved with black causes, such as the American Negro Labor Congress established in 1925. The International Labor Defense formed by the CP devoted a great deal of attention to black cases, most notably the Scottsboro Boys case.

What’s important here in terms of this analysis is not so much the actual amount of Communist activity among U.S. blacks as the degree to which the government and media of communication fostered this conception and reinforced it In popular opinion, the Scottsboro Boys case in particular was one of the biggest stories of its day. No doubt it played on and contributed to the linking of a series of ideas about race, miscegenation, communism, etc. in sectors of the American consciousness. In other words, it touched on those very thoughts end fears which, as this article has argued, form the latent content of KING KONG.

The movement for “100 per cent Americanism” was directed against all those “alien elements” which were seen to threaten “American civilization.” Seen in this light, the choice of location for the finale of KING KONG is especially appropriate. What better monument to this “civilization” was there in 1933 than the then only recently completed Empire State Building? According to one source, an alternate location considered for this scene of Kong’s destruction was Yankee Stadium!(6)

As mentioned previously—a whole genre of Hollywood films (and TV serials) have been devoted to the jungle adventure theme. An examination of the relationship of these films to the question of race in the United States would probably make an interesting and illuminating study. What may be of significance for the analysis presented here is that the directors of KING KONG, Merien C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack, were important figures in the development of this genre.

The explorer-showman-entrepreneur character Denham in KING KONG actually bears a strong resemblance to Merian Cooper. Cooper and Schoedsack had made a name for themselves with the exotic documentary footage of their two previous films, GRASS (1925) and CHANG (1927). GRASS followed the migration of a primitive Persian tribe while CHANG depicted a family’s struggle for survival in the jungles of Laos. These files strongly influenced the production of later African adventure epics such as TRADER HORN, the Tarzan and Frank Buck films, both because of their popularity and in terms of the technical and aesthetic examples they set. Cameramen Schoedsack’s action footage of wildlife, such as the low-angle shots of stampeding elephants taken from a pit, illustrates this. The team later filmed in Africa for THE FOUR FEATHERS (1929) and went to India to do parts of LIVES OF A BENGAL LANCER (1935).

Merian Cooper is an intriguing character in still another way. In 1927 he invested heavily in aviation stock end eventually went on to be elected a director of Pam American airlines. He was a supporter of General Billy Mitchell’s drive for increased air power and, as the saying goes, was a “staunch anticommunist.” In 1919 he had volunteered to fight the Bolsheviks as a flyer in Poland’s Kosciusko Squadron, was shot down behind the front limes in July of 1920, and was imprisoned in Russia for ten months before escaping.(7) Later he produced number of films in Hollywood, doing a few with John Ford.

Cooper’s interest in airplanes no doubt had something to do with the very striking finale of KING KONG. In a less obvious way, his political orientation may have figured in this story’s depiction of a monstrous threat to “American civilization” and its final destruction.

In conclusion, it should be understood that an historical appreciation of the problem of symbolism and meaning, i.e., the recognition that meanings and the reaction to images (historically) change with changes in audience sensibilities, implies no fixation on a work of art’s original milieu as the only basis for a “genuine” or “authentic” estimation of it. Such a fixation actually constitutes a one sided distortion of a historical approach, of value only to antiquarians and pedants. Examination of present-day audience reactions to older films is no less necessary or valid. But what’s especially interesting about an interpretation of a film like KING KONG in terms of its historicity is how our more recent experience enables us to retrieve and appreciate its “original” meaning and compare it with our own understanding of it. The racial conflagrations of the 1960s, the resurgence of a radical movement in the United States, and the deepening social—and now economic—crisis stimulate and make possible such an understanding. More recently, of course, we have also been sold some new improved metaphors for social and economic crisis in the form of a capsized ocean liner, an earthquake, and a “Towering Inferno.”

Notes:

1. The Hays Office censored what it considered the objectionable scenes in KING KONG, which included one sequence on the island where Kong gently tears Ann’s clothes off, strokes her with his finger, and then sniffs it. See “King Kong Was a Dirty Old Man,” Esquire (September 1971). pp. 146-9 for stills of this sequence.

2. Stanley Cohen, “The Failure of the Melting Pot.” The Great Fear: Race in the Mind of America. ed. Gary B. Nash and Richard Weiss. (New York, 1970), p. 146. Cohen comments on the riots in the following terms: .”.. race riots were not a new phenomenon in United States history. But never had riots been even remotely as widespread or as violent on both sides as in 1919.” (p. 148, fn. 7).

3. Ibid., pp. 156. 159.

4. The word bolshevik is in quotes here because during the Red Scare it was often used rather loosely, in a pejorative way, rather than in a precise ideological sense.

5. Theodore Lothrop Stoddard, The Rising Tide of Color Against White World Supremacy (New York, 1920), p. 220, as quoted by Cohen, p. 155.

6. Chris Steinbrunner and Burt Goldblatt, Cinema of the Fantastic (New York, 1972). p.52.

7. Rudy Behlmet, “Merian C. Cooper.” Films in Review. 17:1 (January 1966), p. 18.

Rest in Peace -Richard Pryor

2005-12-11T10:13:00.000Z

Richard Pryor, the groundbreaking comedian whose profanely personal insights into race relations and modern life made him one of Hollywood's biggest stars, died of a heart attack Saturday 10th December. He was 65.

In his autobiography, Pryor said he thought the script for SUPERMAN III was sh-t. But when they offered him $3m to do it, he said to someone "for a piece of sh-t, it sure smells good!"

Rest in Peace, Richard.

2005-12-01T09:24:00.000Z

Its 9.30am on Thursday morning. My brother Stephen (who is 20 years old and old enough to know better) is presently sat in an ASDA store near his university queuing up for the official launch of Xbox360 (a grossly overrated product in my opinion).
Problem is, the X360 doesnt launch until the stroke of midnight this FRIDAY (tomorrow), so he has 15 hours to survive on the likes of ASDA doughnuts etc... at 9am there were six other geeks sat in front of him - rumour has it that ASDA only have an allocation of 8 premium units to sell.

Spare a thought for him today, wont ya?....!

Interesting email from a Games Industry Insider...

2005-11-22T13:35:00.000Z

I work in the games industry and have a PSP game in the charts right now. The vibe is that people already are, or should consider ditching their DS. As an "insider", my advice is to hold onto your DS. Here are some facts and figures:

--------

http://nintendoinsider.com/site/EEEFylpkElFffmiBlr.php

http://nintendoinsider.com/site/EEEZuAypVuTuOJPzyb.php

http://lostgarden.com/2005/09/ninte...n-strategy.html

--------

The division of Microsoft that handles the Xbox has a net revenue of $3.1 billion, but makes a loss of $551 billion, as it subsidises the cost of each Xbox sold.

Sony also spends heavily in order to maintain its presence in the videogame market, though it manages to make a profit for $400 million from its games division.

Meanwhile, Nintendo doesn't subsidise its hardware so makes larger profits of $4.7 billion. Furthermore, it (surprisingly perhaps) has approx 60% market share of total console sales worldwide. From games alone, it makes nearly enough profit as the entire Sony empire combined.

Videogames seem to crop up a lot in people's posts on the moneysaving forums. I just thought I'd balance things out based on facts rather than hype from PR firms.

Analysis of sales figures also throws up some surprises. Eg. a #1 selling PSP game can actually be low (#37) in the multiformat sales chart. A couple of DS games that are higher in the multiformat chart are selling more, but appear lower profile in the shop because Nintendo hasn't payed for them to be all over the place.

That chart-track.com website is the only sales-based chart for the UK. Retailers such as HMV, Game, WHSmiths etc charge us a fee in order to have a game in their chart. They also charge for window displays, shelf space etc... When you walk into a shop and see Burnout (for example) all over the place, its because the publisher has payed tens of thousands of £££s for it to be there. Its not because its a good game, (though in Burnout's case it is actually good).

Be aware that games publishers can buy space in magazines, (and I don't just mean adverts) magazine covers, content, coverdisks, players guides etc... If a magazine gives too many low scores, the game publisher stops sending it early review versions and images for print. The result is that most games mags are just reprints of glossy press releases from the games companies.

If I want an honest opion of a game, I tend to go to www.gamefaqs.com where you can find every game on every platform reviewed by ordinary people. You soon get an impression of what's a turkey and what isn't. www.metacritic.com is also handy.

<<< I expect this post will generate a lot of angry and aggressive replies from Sony and Microsoft fans who have absorbed their PR company's spin >>>

Get Rich or Die Trying...

2005-11-10T14:50:00.000Z

by ZombieSolutions of aintitcoolnews.com

Sums up my feelings about 'Fiddy' perfectly...

"get rich or die trying." yep, it's the american dream! fuck getting an education; fuck trying to better yourself and your neighborhood; fucking getting organized, getting involved; fuck taking activist action against a racist and corrupt government. fuck all of that shit, right? just get rich or die trying. its all about YOU. it's all about the "Bling Bling." sell crack and shoot down all of your frriends! that's the quickest way to buy that shiny rock and those spinning rims. yeah, thats the most important thing. to prove to everyone else that you have more shit then they do. go America! woo-hoo! get rich or die trying! i wonder how many kids will internalize that message? i wonder how many will be like, "hey, maybe i can sell crack and become a rap star just like Fitty?" only to be gunned down dead before their even 18. yeah! what a great message to send! thanks Fitty you Republican Uncle Tom KKK fuck. your really helping to keep the status quo alive and to keep your people down. good job, asshole! so, much kick back money did you get from the KKK and the Bush Administration, i'm curious? i bet it was A WHOLE FUCKIN LOT. SELL-OUT sucker....

2005-11-10T13:10:00.000Z

In advance of its cinematic release, I have just one thing to plead to the Black Community...

BOYCOTT

THIS

MOVIE.

Opposition Mounts to 50 Cent Movie -Posters for(fabricated biopic) Get Rich or Die Tryin' show 50 Cent holding a gun in his left hand and a microphone the other.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael Antonovich wrote to Paramount Pictures urging them to take down the posters.
The company said it had taken down one poster near a Los Angeles nursery school, and planned to remove more.
Mr Antonovich sent a letter to Paramount chairman Brad Grey asking him to remove the billboards, starting with one outside a school in Altadena, a suburb north of Los Angeles. "This billboard conveys to the students a disturbing message actively promoting gun violence, criminal behaviour and gang affiliation," he wrote.
Activists in the Los Angeles neighbourhood of Hyde Park - an area affected by gang violence - staged a rally earlier in the week calling on Paramount to remove a billboard next to the pre-school - the sign was taken down the next day

A grass-roots (or more accurately a street-pavement) campaign is now spreading across the USA to promote a boycott of the upcoming 50 Cent movie.
Following the vehement opposition to the placement of the film's billboards in Los Angeles, 21 billboards have now also been removed from the city of Philadelphia.
"The message could be 'rob to get rich,'" Bilal Qayyum of Men United for a Better Philadelphia told The Associated Press. "It's a very offensive message that is part of a mindset that says you can solve problems with violence."
Men United targeted the protest at billboard owners Clear Channel Outdoor, whereas Los Angeles protesters went after Paramount Pictures.
Clear Channel, hearing the strong negative reaction from Philadelphia groups, agreed to remove those billboards from the city.
Of the protests in Los Angeles, 50 told Reuters with typical ignorance: "I don't have a problem with [taking down billboards]. At the end of the day, those kids are going to see the film."

On Saturday, the New York Daily News reported that a similar campaign has been launched in Brooklyn -- not only against the billboard ads but against the film itself. City Councilwoman Letitia James said that it appears to her that the message of the movie is basically, "Do whatever you can to get ahead and advance yourself -- even if it includes violence." The "singer/actor's" yet again typically ignorant response to the latest developments of the controversy was, "I do appreciate it. ... They are helping me out." Yet what the pathetically ignorant Curtis '50cent' Jackson ironically fails to realise is that his actions are NOT helping his own people out. Everytime he opens his mouth or has his picture plastered on TV or print media, he sets the Black Race back years of achievement, advancement and progression. Gannett columnist Deborah Mathis, writing on the BlackAmericaWeb website, commented that films like Get Rich "create the illusion of young black men with power, when all they really have is weaponry. With their glocks and their snarls, it's fear they engender, not respect."

50 Cent: Yet another moronic traitor to the Black Community that glamorizes the gangster lifestyle and violence. Even the title of his "movie" is problematic. Sadly, 50 Cent is seen as a role model to a large segment of the youth population, and that regrettably includes my little Brother Jamie...

PostSecret

2005-11-10T12:05:00.000Z

PostSecret is a fantastic Blog/website I stumbled upon which consists of artistic (or simplistic) contributions from the normal Human Beings of the world in the form of a postcard. These Postcards, however express secrets shared with no other, some of them light hearted, some of them dark and tragic. It’s a compelling site and yes, its all REAL.
None of the images are archived on PostSecret, so be sure to bookmark the site as the selection of contributions are updated every Sunday.

www.postsecret.com

Got a secret to share? Follow the instructions below…

How Do I Mail-In My Secrets?

You are invited to anonymously contribute your secrets to PostSecret. Each secret can be a regret, hope, funny experience, unseen kindness, fantasy, belief, fear, betrayal, erotic desire, feeling, confession, or childhood humiliation. Reveal anything - as long as it is true and you have never shared it with anyone before.

Create your 4-by-6-inch postcards out of any mailable material. If you want to share two or more secrets, use multiple postcards. Put your complete secret and image on one side of the postcard. Please do not email your secrets.

Tips:
Be brief - the fewer words used the better.
Be legible - use big, clear and bold lettering.
Be creative - let the postcard be your canvas.
Mail your secrets to:

PostSecret
13345 Copper Ridge Rd
Germantown, Maryland
USA 20874-3454

50 Cent's 'Moronic' Movie Ads Draw Criticism

2005-10-26T13:39:00.000+01:00

Despicable, 'Pop Rapper' 50 Cent's upcoming movie Get Rich Or Die Tryin' has sparked outrage among Los Angeles community leaders, who are repulsed by the gun theme in advertisements for the film. Billboards, posters and other ads for the movie depict the rapper brandishing two handguns as a promotion for the movie, which is based on the complete fabrication that is sold as the star's real-life rise to musical success from the streets of New York City.

Website AllHipHop.com reports the campaign has led to a call for a boycott from a number of organisations. Najee Ali of Project Islamic Hope, says, "Gun violence is one of the leading causes of death for young black males in South Central Los Angeles and across urban America. It's irresponsible for Paramount Pictures to promote and market a movie that glorifies carrying guns. Guns are weapons of mass destruction that are used to kill people. We demand that Paramount Pictures remove these negative images of death and destruction, images that our young children are influenced by." The group is demanding that the ads showing weapons be immediately pulled from the marketplace.

'Fiddy' is also the endorser of a Playstation video game entitled 'Bulletproof' - in my opinion it would be of BENEFIT to the Black Community if indeed someone proved he was not. He is also the person who dismissed a criticising Black community as 'Haters' when they objected subsequent to the release of Eminem's racist tapes that insulted Black Women the world over as "Dumb Nigger Bitches".

For every time Fifty opens his mouth and spews his usual garbage, he sets the Black race back 5 years of achievement, civility and progression. Representatives for Paramount have yet to comment on the marketing of this travesty of a motion picture.

2005-10-26T12:20:00.000+01:00

Once cant help but notice how The Sun (scum) newspaper have been proclaiming 'all-Anglo-Saxon hero' Robbie Williams as the new King of Pop.
Excuse me for being dumb, but I thought to be crowned 'King of Pop' the following criteria applied:

1) You had to outsell the REAL King of Pop, Michael Jackson - who to this day still has the greatest selling album of all time in 'Thriller'.

2) You had to have a broad international fanbase, or at least a market that extends beyond 'White people from the United Kingdom'.

3) You had to be talented or at the very minimum, be able to sing…

Oh well, at least Robbie serves as inspiration to all of the other trumped-up, glorified Saturday-night Karaoke singers out there - one day you too could be king!

As if skin lighting for Vanity Fair a'la Photoshop wasn't bad enough…

2005-10-21T15:38:00.000+01:00

Am I the only one who gets slightly annoyed at the fact that in interviews, Beyonce Knowles always harps on about being some sort of song writing / production genius and the brains behind most of her and Destiny's Child's hits? Heck, even her father is receiving production 'credits'!
The reason why this irritates me is that this could not be further from the truth - Destiny's Child and/or Beyonce as solo have not brought released original in years, if at all. This really demonstrates the lazy rut the music industry at large is stuck in.All artists do these days is to sample the TRUE artists/musicians of the past, try to reheat it, make a hit and then say they've written it. Its sad but true.

So fire up Kazza folks!, search for these obscure tunes and see what I mean…

Crazy in Love = "Are You My Woman (Tell Me So)" by The Chi Lites
Baby Boy = "Here Comes the Hot Stepper" by Ini Kamoze
Naughty Girl = "Love to Love You Baby" by Donna Summer
Bootylicious = "Edge of Seventeen." by Stevie Nicks

*Bootylicious is of particular mention because of Beyonce Knowles specifically mentioning (in interview) of "coming up with the rhythm" on-flight while travelling.

Anyone care to contribute to this list?....

2005-10-21T10:46:00.000+01:00

Picked up this baby yesterday to compliment my Arcade. Got it from my local Argos, which set me back £27 after a small sale reduction.

Its a really gorgeous Bar Stool that suits my living room perfectly!

Now I can sit down, sit back, rest my feet, grab a beer and enjoy a few waves of Robotron without the leg cramps!

2005-10-14T22:44:00.000+01:00

For those of you who care, you can view a Flickr slidehow that chronicles the construction of my Arcade machine pictorially.
From two pieces of MDF to the slick, finished product - this one is worth a watch! Enjoy!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/92651577@N00/sets/1138933/

WTF??!!

2005-10-14T22:01:00.000+01:00

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=32981484&Mytoken=EDEF9787-B21A-4F1C-B389C2696194CAF53148614078

Stalking Michael Jackson

2005-10-13T15:26:00.000+01:00

I would like to express my utter DISGUST at the attitude of Michael Jackson fans who gathered outside the Dorchester yesterday evening. I'm not talking about all of them, im not even talking about 80's generation fans who grew up on the likes of Thriller and Bad, no. I'm talking about NEW fans, those aged around 16/17 who quite frankly appal me.

Yesterday afternoon I gathered outside the Dorchester on my lunch break hoping to catch a glimpse of Michael who was expected to leave for the afternoon. Alas, it was not meant to be, however I did meet a nice group of European fans who told me fondly of their experiences and how they hope to see Michael for the first time. Later, after work around 4.30pm I went again, the same group of adorable fans were there but there was another group, who although were there in the early afternoon, I did not pay them much attention until now. These were around 16/17 year olds, possibly younger - I prominently remember a skinny white effeminate looking male wearing Black and a short, large (in terms of weight and attitude) mixed race or fair-skinned Black girl. The guy was completely camp, a real diva while the female was bossy as hell. I tried to be friendly talk to them and things seemed quite okay. That’s when Kerry, Michael's chief bodyguard, showed up - he explained how the police have had a word with Michael about disturbances from fans, how if their presence is going to be required to restrain things then Michael may have to pay 100k per day and how they could charge him with instigating a disturbance if he continued to wave at windows etc.. Kerry then asked fans to show some restraint and act a bit more calm and MJ would try to find a time to appear and greet everyone. As Kerry was speaking, a few fans made comment and spoke to one another - what did the short mixed-race girl do? She rudely "Shoooosh"-ed! each and everyone who uttered a breath, it was if Kerry was speaking to her and her alone. She then fell into a hysterical mode about how she wanted to stay but did not want to get Michael into trouble - she was really concerned that she would get MJ arrested or something! Seemed a bit over the top if you ask me.
Later on she yelled at this young Black guy, who I presumed she knew. Accusing him of NOT being a Michael Jackson fan (despite the fact he was seen hanging round singing MJ songs) because he only showed up at 3pm!!

Later on, Kerry appeared by the front of the hotel in a suit, it was clear that MJ and his entourage were going out that evening. A few hours passed and MJs car was waiting by one of the side entrances (The Ballroom I think), obviously the fans crowded to that area with Cameras in tow. The mixed-race girl started to yell at everybody, "If ANYONE goes near MJ I'll fuckin flatten them!" At first I took this in jest, but when she said it repeatedly (and more aggressively each time) it annoyed me.
So after a 5 min wait, Grace (the Nanny to Michael's children) steps out and straight into the car. The car then waits a further 5 mins and pulls away to the next side entrance, for the hotel restaurant. Again the car waits and the fans follow, it seems that it all was a diversion as the car pulls away and drives off with no one else entering it. It seemed (According to Police) that MJ left the hotel ten minutes ago and disappeared from the garage or staff entrance on the opposite side of the hotel while everyone was distracted. Some fans start pulling out their mobile phones and ring various 'contacts' franticly. A group of friendly fans I was with actually said that MJ went to Harrods and that he was seen on the steps with photos being taken. I believed this considering Harrods was not far away at all from Park Lane. The friendly fans hailed a taxi and asked if I would like to join them. It was getting late, I had to go home so I decline and walked back towards Hyde Park Corner tube station.
As I approach the subway just before the station, I see a group of fans, leaded by the short mixed-race girl and the effeminate White guy - as I approach them I hear someone say "shooooosh!", I greeted them with a smile and said "I'm beat, I suppose you guys are off to Harrods then" - I get NO response. Fine I thought, they didn’t hear me. I stepped closer to them again with a smile saying, "you off to Harrods then, its only up the road.." again nothing, not only was I blanked but they walked straight past me like I was dog shit.
Now why did I deserve this treatment? Its because this 'new-generation' of MJ fan is selfish, deluded and thinks that they OWN him. I tell you what, knowing the type of man that Michael Jackson is, he would be ASHAMED to have 'fans' like this. They act childish and weirdly possessive. The MJ fans I remember from the 1980s had a sense of community, they sang and danced together and dressed like MJ together. Never would I have been subjected to such treatment in the golden days.
The ironic thing is that I was an MJ fan before these morons were even born. Heck, I don’t even think they were alive when Bad was released! I have been to all three of MJs solo world tours and they have probably been to none. Biggest difference between me and them? - They are psychotic, I am NOT.

Rant Over! - Let me know your thoughts on this.

The Arcade is COMPLETED!

2005-10-09T23:51:00.000+01:00

This is it! This is the day when I complete my three-month DIY project, Wildman's Arcade Classics!

First we sticked the adhiesive vinyl bezel onto the toughened glass that I ordered a week or so back. This is to disguse the fact that we are using a PC monitor as a, erm.. monitor(!) and will also display the operational controls for the arcade and its various emulated platforms.
The centre screen area of the bezel was still in tact and was simply a white square. We had to cut this away very slowly and very accurately using a fine blade.

Once cut, we peeled back the paper backing and applied the bezel onto the glass surface. As you can guess, there were air bubbles galore! A flat plastic card (like a credit card) and a sharp pin are your friends in this situation!

The finished glass bezel is place in the glass retainer (glazing strips) and fit tightly in place on the cabinet in front of the monitor. I applied some ultra-strong glue to secure the strips to the MDF surface with an instant bond upon contact. The glass is now firm and cannot be easily disturbed.

Next we move to the Marquee! I sandwiched the marquee artwork in between two clear sheets of stiff plastic. The plastic and marquee art is then retained with Black Plastic 'L' channels which are screwed onto the MDF surface of the arcade on the top, bottom and sides.

The bottom and the side screws would be visible, so once again we use Black plastic screwcaps for asthetic purposes. I think the visible caps compliment the overall design of the cabinet rather well!

Next we apply the vinyl Pacman decal onto the top sides of the cabinet and on the surface of the lower coin door. The idea behind this was largely to disguise traces of screws that recessed above the surface of the MDF prior to painting. Looked and worked a treat!

So, we finally reach the end, and the very last thing to do is to apply the side artwork onto the cabinet. This was relatively easy, as the artwork was printed on a rectangular sturdy vinyl sheet which would simply peel back and could be applied with ease and minimum fuss from airbubbles due to the strong adhiesive.

And voila! We have one FINISHED arcade!

I could not be more proud of this accomplishment, as it far exceeded my expectations being better than anything I thought I was capable of planning and constructing. It looks particularly beautiful when illuminated within its home in the corner of my lounge, and I look forward to both friends and family alike gaining maximum, nostalgic enjoyment from it! Sure it was expensive, hard work and incredibly time consuming - but it was worth it!

Since constuction completed, several of my friends suggested that one day I could sell it on ebay and gain a tidy profit. HELL NO! Too much of my sweat and tears have gone into this project for me to even think about that!!

Now for some Mortal Kombat!.....

2005-10-08T19:53:00.000+01:00

Started the completion stages of my arcade today. Here we attach the front door (which houses the Coin Door) onto the main cabinet build by screwing onto thick timber ledgers. As we screwed to the cabinet externally, we used black screw caps for aesthetic purposes.

Remember, the PC power-on button will be accessible via opening the coin door. So without the keys to the lock the arcade cannot be powered on or off.

2005-10-08T11:48:00.000+01:00

I upgraded my mobile phone this weekend. Being a Sony Ericsson fan (and absolutely detesting Nokia) I opted for the gorgeous W800i, more fondly referred to as the 'Walkman phone'.
With an ultra crisp LCD screen, 2 megapixel camera (With light flash and autofocus), 512mb external memory (supplied), 100mb Internal memory and fantastic hi-end Sony headphones (which handle Bass and Treble tremendously), it is, in my opinion the BEST handset on the market!
Musole took out a T-Mobile contract for herself and got one too, so now we have a His&Her set. *Meh!*

Check out this review below for more details...

http://www.mobileburn.com/review.jsp?Id=1178&source=HOMETOP

2005-10-05T21:49:00.000+01:00

As you can see, glass is here and Artwork is here - we are now ready to go! Saturday will be the big day that my grueling Arcade project will come to a head and reach its very completition!

2005-10-03T09:18:00.000+01:00

I placed my glass order locally for a piece of clear toughened glass measuring 510 x 508mm. At a price of £11 with a lead-time of two days, I didnt think it was too bad of a deal!

Also ordered my arcade artwork today from mamemarquees.com. Scott, who runs the business from Miami Florida. Scott is pretty much the best out there for specialisation in printing Arcade Art, and is a true Gentleman to boot. Very honest and very helpful. He offered me a combo deal of my custom-designed marquee, Bezel and tough-vinyl sideart for around £70 total (a real bargain my my book, considering the quality) and even went out of his way to rectify some of the design mistakes I made within photoshop.

2005-10-02T09:12:00.000+01:00

I have been having random restart and shutdown problems with the Arcade PC for a while now.
Diagnostic software indicates that there is nothing wrong with the RAM, and considering that the power LED to the X Arcade controller often craps-out, I figure its an issue with the power supply.
The current Power supply unit in the Arcade PC was 300w, so I went out to the Computer Fair and picked up a 550w unit for under £20. I put it in, connected it to motherboard and other hardware and have not had a shutdown/restart since!

2005-09-19T21:04:00.000+01:00

As we more closely approach the end of this exhausting project, it is time to measure for the glass.
I achieved this by using a piece of soft cardboard and cutting to the measurements of the PC monitor.

I placed this card into the glazing strips (that will actually be used to retain the glass) to determine a tight fit.
Through trial and error, folding and unfolding, I got the card to successfully cover the entire screen area. I noted down the measurements as they will form the basis for the dimensions I will supply when ordering the glass.

Although I have no picture as example, I actually duplicated the measurement of the card to cut out a piece of transparent film. I placed this film in the area in front of the PC monitor via the glazing strip retainer and marked out the boundaries of the actual monitor screen area with blue masking tape, again making a note of these measurements for ordering the bezel that will border the screen.

2005-09-18T23:46:00.000+01:00

Now we get to work on the Arcade's coin door. I gave the door a clean lick of Black Hammerite paint, to cover over minor scratches and areas of rust. I also replaced the Camlock for access to the top door.

We cut a hole in a piece of painted MDF and attached the coin door from behind, securing it with Timber Mending plates.

As you can see, the coin door opens to reveal the PC's power switch. You will need to have the keys to the Arcade in order to switch it on and off.

2005-09-17T20:00:00.000+01:00

Continued work on the Arcade today. We are closing in on the finishing stages of construction - How exciting!!

Covered the holes where the Speakers are to be placed internally (and the grills
externally) with accousticaly-transparent felt. The material had to be stretched tightly and stapled down onto the MDF surface. Unfortunately I didnt have a staple gun at hand, so I used the more colourful solution of Drawing Pins! Worked a treat!!

Drilled small holes through the flat plastic wings of the Creative PC Speakers and mounted tight to the MDF panel using regular screws.

Next stage was to use the Straight-Edge to level and mark where the runners for the hidden drawer will go.

The actual MDF drawer is constructed and ready to fix onto the runners.

The Hidden Drawer houses a mini-keyboard and mouse for emergency administrative purposes and should be camoflaged as unnoticable when closed.

Next, we mount one of the most useful and essential parts of the Arcade Cabinet - the beverage holder! I bought two of these babies from ebay for the dirt-cheap price of £1.50 each! They were originally designed for Golf Trolleys and came with a metal clip that is supposed to hang off the edge. I removed the clip and mounted to my cabinet with screws. When closed, the drinks holder blends seamlessly with the Black Hammerite painted finish. When opened, the holder itself can expand and retract to suit your beverage container, be it cup, glass or can!

Let there be light! The two 10watt florescent bulbs are mounted within the marquee panel with plastic brackets - Incredibly bright!

NOW it makes sense!

2005-09-17T11:44:00.000+01:00

For all those who were doubting Nintendo's plans to sell classic controller shells to allow more traditional gameplay on the Revolution, cast your eyes on THIS!...

This add-on makes it possible to play Revolution games in a more traditional manner. The shell is designed to look and function like accepted "regular" controllers, such as the Wave Bird. After its bottom casing is removed, the Revolution's free-hand-style remote is inserted into a gap in the middle of the controller shell. Gamers can then use the shell as they would a traditional controller, with a notable difference: the pointer remote's sensory functionality remains active. As a result, gamers get the best of both worlds: more buttons and two analog sticks along with motion-sensing operations. In a Revolution version of Madden Football, gamers might be able to use the combo to control players with the shell's analog sticks and execute pinpoint passes with the pointer's improved accuracy.

2005-09-16T16:08:00.000+01:00

How easily people have forgotten that the ancient ideas we've all become so used to, were all revolutionary once - and that it was Nintendo who brought them to us. D-pads, sholder buttons, analog sticks, controller vibration, wireless controllers... all brought to us by Nintendo. It's ironic to see people say, "Why can't Nintendo just give us a normal controller, like Sony and MS?" when Sony's and MS's controllers wouldn't be what they are today without Nintendo.

So kudos to Nintendo for doing what they've always done - making gaming better for us all.

The Revolution's controller - Demo'd!

2005-09-16T10:25:00.000+01:00

Source: revo-europe.com

You've seen the controller. You know it is different. Now discover the first uses of the controller in potential gameplay situations...

So the wraps have come off Nintendo's revolutionary new controller. However, with all the new features and unorthodox design, just how will the controller translate to gameplay in next generation titles? Here is a summary of various hands-on tech demos that illustrate its functionality. Note that the graphics used in most of these demos were extremely simple representations, as the express purpose was to highlight the ways the controller could be used.

1. Aim and Fire: This demo allowed the user to see how the device can work as an accurate pointing device. Simply using the controller to locate an on-screen cursor, the player could fire at blocks for points. Two players competed on one screen for the high score.

2. Fishing: This demo showed off just how sensitive the controller gyroscopic-like detection will be in 3-D space. Not just left, right, up and down...but forward and back as well. Essentially, the player is engaged to utilize the controller to "pick up a fishing rod" and "cast" it into the water using simple intuituive movements. When the player feels a "bite" on the end of the line (represented by force feedback which will be present in the final controller), simply pulling back on the controller would reel the unlucky fish in. You can bet the next NEXT Zelda will be building off of this.

3. Irritating Stick: In this demo, the controller was used again to guide a cursor onscreen, this time represented as a rotating stick, through a 2D maze of obstacles. The player does not want to hit the walls for fear of "shock" and thus must keep a steady hand. Very reminescent of the (once?) popular japanese game Irritating Stick. If anything, this demo made me imagine how shmups (shoot-em-ups like Gradius) would play on the Revolution.

4. Air Hockey: Air Hockey is just like you would imagine...with a twist. Literally. This demo allowed the player guide their "paddle" onscreen as with previous demos, but the puck's direction could be altered by simply twisting the wrist in the desired direction. Needless to say, sports games like tennis may suddenly have a very compelling reason to reside on the Revolution.

5. Basketball: The Basketball demo was actually multi-player. Predictably, two players face off on a basketball court trying to guide the ball into their opponent's hoop. The catch is that the player moves the ball by using the B-trigger on back of the controller to create indentations in the court that the ball could be dragged toward, and then using the A button to reverse the recession into a bump that could launch the ball toward the hoop. Strange as it may seem, maneuvering despite the two players was apparently very easy to the point that blocks and steals could be pulled off.

6. Toy Plane: Pilotwings, anyone? Essentially this demo manifested one of the most common ideas for a controller that could sense actual movement. And the results are predictably very natural. The "pilot" holds the controller as he would a toy plane, raising and lowering the controller to make the on-screen plane dip and rise. Turning is achieved by twisting the controller in the appropriate direction. On a side note, Miyamoto wondered aloud how amusing it might be if a special plane-shaped controller was made for just such a game. Anyway, hopefully this is compelling evidence that Pilotwings will be making its anticipated return. Dogfighting could be very cool as well...

7. Where's Waldo?: Displaying a flat board populated by many various pokemon, the player is engaged to pick the wanted monster out of the bustling crowd. The idea is essentially the same as the mini-game "Wanted" in Mario 64 DS. The catch, as each of these demos possess, is that the camera could be panned and zoomed in unique ways. To look left or right the player would need only point to that direction on the board, whereas zooming in or out requires moving the controller closer and further from the board. The demo served as a compelling glimpse into next-generation dynamic user-controlled cameras...as well as teasing with thoughts of sniping in a first-person-shooter.

8. First Person Shooting: Speaking of first-person-shooters, the FPS demo represented the most cohesive and graphically complex of the otherwise simple game demos. In fact, it was basically Metroid Prime 2: Echoes rewired for Revolution-style control. Quickly scratched together by the folks at Retro Studios, the analog control attachment is held in one hand to allow player standard and strafing movements. The main controller base meanwhile could be utilized similarly to how a mouse is used in FPS games to aim and fire...all working very intuitively as FPS fans can imagine. No doubt the possiblities are very provocative for a FPS game...and it will be interesting to see just what Retro will have in store for Metroid Prime fans come launch time...or if in fact they are hard at work on another brand new FPS as well.

Nintendo reveal the next REVOLUTION of Gaming!!!

2005-09-16T09:57:00.000+01:00

This is going to change the way we play and enjoy games.. FOREVER!

This is it. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has revealed the Revolution controller at the Tokyo Games Show. Pictures inside.

The controller has been revealed. On first glance it looks like a television remote, but one with a big "A" button, a "B" trigger underneath (reminescent of the N64 z-trigger), a D-pad, 2 normal A and B buttons (also labelled "X" and "Y" in some pictures), plus buttons for Start, Select and Home. At the top is a power button that can shut down the console and at the very bottom are four lights that designate the numbering among multiple players (currently allowing for up to four.) The sleek, rectangular remote-like controller comes in various colours as well (including white, black, silver, gray, red and lime green). Most visible in the pictures is certainly the glossy white design, which matches the Revolution console's new iPod-inspired look.

The ergonomically shaped controller is held in one hand, while attachments will be held in the other. Attachments connect to the bottom port of the controller. One of these is an analog stick attachment that also features two trigger buttons - named Z1 and Z2 - on the underside.

Now here is the Revolutionary bit: the controller acts like a mouse in real 3D-space.

Gaming legend Shigeru Miyamoto was called upon to demonstrate the new technology - where small sensors placed near the TV and a chip inside the controller track its position and orientation, allowing the player to intuitively manipulate the action on screen by physically moving the controller itself.

For example, you could slash an in-game sword by actually swinging the controller from side to side, turn a race car just by twisting your wrist, or aim your gun in a shooter by pointing the controller where you want to fire.

Sensors understand up, down, left, right, forward and backward, while the pad is also tilt sensitive. The controller can be rotated or rolled from side-to-side. For more traditonal style games however, like a freshly downloaded NES classic, turned on it's side the Revolution controller has the same button configuration as the classic NES controller! The expansion port can be used with many different types of controller peripherals apart from the control stick, more of which are sure to be revealed later.

The controller will of course be wireless, though there are currently no definitive measurements on the max distance, source or power. Nintendo has said that the controllers are already tested to be fine from 10-15 feet, and that the battery life should at least mimic that of the Wavebird (they are still undecided if it will utilize traditional batteries or rechargeables.) Finally, rumble will be included as a standard in all the controllers.

First sneek peek at a REVOLUTION game??

2005-09-15T09:15:00.000+01:00

Just check the funky logo! Incorporates a regular DVD disc and mini Gamecube DVD disc. Also at the bottom of the screen there is an icon representing a controller.. looks fairly standard/boring..

Its just a matter of hours now until the Revolution is revealed in its full glory!

Happy Birthday Mario!

2005-09-15T09:09:00.000+01:00

2005-09-11T20:20:00.000+01:00

Another weekend flies by and yet more modifications are made to my Arcade construction that just won’t quit!

Today we screwed on the Castors to the base of the beast to ensure that I will be able to actually move this thing if need be, in the future.

All four castors can swivel yet the back two wheels have foot locks to secure the cabinet in place.

The castors add just over two inches of height to the Arcade which surprisingly makes game play (or at least at this stage, holding the Joystick) a far more comfortable experience.

Next we attached the speaker grilles to the front speaker panel. No electric screwing required here, the MDF is so soft that we used a conventional screwdriver.

I still have to stretch and pin/staple-down Black speaker fabric (£1.99 for a square metre from Maplin) in place to the rear of the panel.

..and finally (for this week at least anyway!), we attach the florescent light fixture to the marquee panel. Notice I have attached two florescent bulbs; well that is because it is recommended to use a 16-18 watt bulb, however no matter which DIY/Lighting store I went to, I could not find such bright bulbs in the length I required (all were too long), therefore my only viable option was to use two 10 watt bulbs (got a great deal in B&Q on these for £17) in the hope that they will do the trick just as well as a more powerful single. Only time will tell I guess...

So the Arcade is edging ever closer to its completion...

This weekend I also purchased the runners for my hidden keyboard/mouse shelf-drawer, so next weekend I aim to paint and attach the draw and cut a hole in the front MDF panel (which also needs painting) for the coin door.

2005-09-06T21:45:00.000+01:00

I finished ironing-on the pre-glued Black Melamine edging today. Looks and feels a treat.
All thats left for me to do before I move onto the glass installation stage is to touch up various areas of small imperfection with Black Paint and a fine brush.

2005-09-03T23:16:00.000+01:00

Left the painted Arcade cab to dry outside my flat door last night.
Went to check on it this morning, the texture of the finish still impressed me, plus the awful smell had cleared.
I immediately moved that baby into my lounge and put it into place.

However to my horror I discovered that some fine fibres had managed to get stuck into the paint in various areas on the side.
Its only really noticable if you go looking for it, and providing any light hits it just on the right side.
However it bugs the hell out of me (especially after all of the hours I have put into this thing) and I will be ordering vinyl side artwork to be applied on the sides in an effort to disguise the most affected areas.
I got a quote on the artwork today - its gonna set me back £30 - OUCH!

Tomorrow -I will apply the edging and hopefully put some Castors on the base. My next major confrontation is with Glass..... but more on that when I get to it!

2005-09-02T22:29:00.000+01:00

Well, i've got a full week off work starting today, so I've decided to get back to this Arcade construction lark to get the job done sooner rather than later.

The main MDF frame has already been constructed, so all that is needed to do now is to paint!

First of all, I covered the areas I did not want paint to touch with cheap Painter's Tape from B&Q (only cost a quid!).
I will apply the pre-glued Melamine edging on these areas, and to do so sucessfully, no paint much touch the surface.

Secondly - I wanted to attempt to hide some of the protuding wood screws on the sides of the cabinet, (This would be an area I eventually bugger up) so I applied wood filler on the surrounding area of the screw head, with the plan (once dried) to sand to as near surface level as possible.
I didnt get this right and ended up making the screw areas more lumpy than usual. This would eventually show through my paintwork and I am currently considering using Vinyl artwork to hide some of the imperfections.

Next I was ready to Prime. Reason why you HAVE to put primer on MDF is to hold the paint. MDF is basicly like paper or a sponge.
I bought a tin of MDF Primer from B&Q for around 8 quid. The plan was to apply two coats with light sanding between both coats.
We used a foam roller to apply - the process was straight forward enough with a 30 min wait until touch dry and a hour wait before the second coat could be applied.
Stuff smelled like Glue...

After a couple hours, Primer was done. The Cabinet looked a pale and pasty white and quite frankly, an uneven mess. Although I was reassured that this was the typical effect of Primer.
Anyhow, at this point I was really psyched to paint the thing Black, to finally see my construction take some real resemblance of a real Arcade Cabinet.
I had decided that I wanted a textured, yet shiny finish to the paint for the cabinet to look that more authentic. I opted to use a paint actually designed for metal (dont worry, it still holds on MDF!) called Hammerite, with a 'Hammered Finish' Effect. Damn thing cost me £13 from B&Q!
Although the picture below giveS a slight indication to the texture, it does it no real justice. The best way to describe it is to compare it to the texture of an Orange Peel.

With the foam roller, the paint came on beautifully - however the paint seemed as thick as tar and stunk the place out. (We painted and primed outside my front door in the foyer of my flat).
We had to leave the doors and windows open and even had some ass of a 'neighbour' bang on our door shouting the odds about the smell. He was pissed out of his head and later apologised for his overreaction, but I still told him to Fuck Off all the same - arsehole!.

To be perfectly honest, Musole did a hella'lot of the painting. Mainly because she had a better knack at it than me, and she wanted it finished ASAP so we could go order Pizza.
I ensured that I made it up to her later on ;-).

At this point it was getting late but it was too late to finish. For some reason once you start using this paint, you HAVE to add your second coat within eight hours or something dreadful happens (the tin didnt exactly elaborate).

This beautiful paint took an hour to dry between coats. We only added two coats in the end as it was already so thick and actually acted as an additional primer/undercoat. I didnt add a second coat to the unseen areas of the cabinet such as the monitor shelf etc..

PSP: (Sniff, Sniff!) I guess this is the end

2005-09-01T13:32:00.000+01:00

Oh well it was good while it lasted........

I guess every Tom Dick ,Harry and Sally will now have a PSP and the "I'm the only one" feeling will be no more ..

No more stares from onlookers on the Tube

No more crowds forming around you

No more "can I have a go" reply "no" "you can watch"

(Sniff Sniff) the import elite are no more............

BUT

You gotta laugh your ass off at the UK launch - those suckers paid near £200 for a PSP, £50 more than I did. The Evening Standard today had pictures of a midnight opening of HMV last night to mark the launch - queues of over-enthusiastic nerds about to be ripped off. The newspaper also reported about a boy and his brother who were the 'first in the UK to get their PSP', I laughed thinking "yeah right!"

Walking through the Victoria Place shopping centre at lunchtime was disturbing. Crowds of people going mad, buying the likes of Untold Legends, Metal Gear Ac!d and Ridge Racer for £39.99 each!!! (I paid £17 tops from the States). Also UMD movies were shockingly expensive. HMV sold Ghostbusters on UMD for £19.99 while on DVD they sold it for £4.99! Again people were dumb and lapped up these overpriced movies that they probably already owned.

Don’t get me started on Memory Sticks. 512mb cost some poor Sod £70 in GAME, cost to me last night on ebay (and this INCLUDES shipping): £25!

Another thing is these reports that PSP is sold out everywhere. My stroll at Lunchtime seemed to contradict this statement. Dixons had THREE un-reserved PSPs behind the counter and GAME had 2. Only HMV had sold out their allocation.

Being stitched up because you live in England and have to pay more than everyone else and have to wait the longest = Priceless

For everything else.... IMPORT!

Revolution revealed! - for real?

2005-08-24T18:26:00.000+01:00

From what seems to be a legitimate article posted on Nintendo's Press Only news site, the video gaming pioneers have apparently leaked some infomation regarding their strategy for Revolution! - Think 3D Visors! However this news tidbit does NOT contain any information about the Groundbreaking controller Nintendo have developed for the machine - for that we have to wait until September!

2005-08-19T18:50:00.000+01:00

Got my Simpsons Season 6 boxset today.
While undisputedly this is one of the best seasons of the show, the DVD box it comes in is actually worse than my expectations thought it would be, especially considering the hundreds of fans having a moan over the Internet about Fox Home Entertainment's decision to radically change the continuity of the packaging just 6 seasons in.

The thing is made of the cheapest, nastiest plastic ever, looks like it will last two minutes (if lucky) should Jaden get his mitts on it.
The thing doesn’t even fit on my DVD shelf properly, let along my 'Now Playing' marquee, and to make it worse, it doesn’t even blend in at all with the previous five boxsets.
Their poor excuse to compensate for the missing spine is just, pathetic.

However I did receive this leaflet inside the packaging:

which basically categorises me and my dissatisfaction as 'Anal Retentive'.
Oh well - shame I can’t obtain this alternative packaging as I’m based in the UK and imported a Region One DVD (they don't ship abroad).
If the new box style continues to irk me, I’ll simply get the alternative one shipped to my Aunt in Los Angeles, then passed on to me.

However checkout Simpsonsbox.com nonetheless - it’s pretty funny. Makes you wonder though how Fox could have been so short-sighted in the first place.

Microsoft prepare to introduce us to... WINDOWS VISTA!

2005-08-19T16:18:00.000+01:00

This is going to be AWESOME!

PSP UK release is nigh!

2005-08-19T14:04:00.000+01:00

To those in the UK looking forward to the official European release of the PSP (Playstation Portable) on September 1st, I have one message for you...

WELCOME TO TEN MONTHS AGO!!

You are about to get what a select group of people, including myself, have already enjoyed for months, with the privilege of paying almost double the price for it!

That's right!

And don't fall for Sony's crap about supply problems/shortages and rush out like the lemmings you are to the nearest rip-off GAME or HMV store. Do what the smart people have done.... IMPORT!!

Here's a couple of links for ya:

http://www.lik-sang.com/

http://www.ebay.co.uk

Makosi deserved to LOSE

2005-08-15T15:56:00.000+01:00

I'm not normally one who follows Big Brother, but I gots-to-talk about Big Brother….

I keep hearing people talking about runner-up Makosi being an OUTSTANDING HOUSEMATE, that she PLAYED the game WELL..... You know if what she did is being OUTSTANDING or PLAYING IT WELL, what does that really say about those who advocate for this woman?

I mean come on now...even the celebrities on that other trash TV reality programme (the Love Island one), had the decency to take their business behind closed doors and THEY were KNOWN for their lewd behaviour.. I'm struggling to comprehend when having sex live on national TV, in a swimming pool in full view of other people came under the banner of OUTSTANDING behaviour or is something that should be worthy of PRAISE?
When did it become OUTSTANDING to prostitute yourself in that manner for notoriety?

But forget that Makosi hysterically lied and manipulated her way through the show so what!!, Forget that she was obviously confused...again so what!!!..My beef with Makosi was that she had no self respect and was a damn right disgrace to the Black Community.

I don't care what any of the Makosi supporters want to say, they know that if that was their friend and they had witnessed that behaviour they would have very strong words for that friend..
So people can moan about her treatment on Friday night, they can shout till their voices run dry that she was a 'good' housemate until the cows come house..but the FACT is to the objective observer Makosi was a DOORMAT who lacked any self respect, she let herself down and her culture(which is where most of this anger comes from).

When she left the house, the crowd heckled her with Boos and racist Monkey noises.Even Davina didn't bother with her and conducted a blatantly 'cold' interview. But do I feel sorry for her?.....NOT AT ALL. The reception this 'princess' received should be a stark reminder that any efforts to assimilate oneself in the name of the fame-game or Multi-Cultural Britain are and will always be futile. This is why she will never ever get any sympathy from me!!! She is a disgrace and a SELLOUT!!!
She got everything she deserved, she is a compulsive liar, a self obsessed freak of nature and a fake. She had the opportunity to represent black woman in a positive light but instead made an outcast of herself, exposing her breasts in an attempt to seduce a White Racist (Maxwell) and publicly jerking off and fornicating with another White man who openly admitted to fancy trying a Black woman only because he had never done so before (That asshole Anthony).
The funny thing is that EVERY Black person I speak to feels the same as myself. That in the beginning we all wanted this (then)apparently strong, sexy and seemingly intelligent Black woman to win this competition. It was only after she threw herself at that Anthony bloke that she lost the respect and support of the Black community, and more significantly, that of her own people.

No doubt that this Thursday she'll grace the covers of Zoo or Nuts or whatever!!

2005-08-14T11:53:00.000+01:00

I was supposed to compete some finishing touches on the woodwork side of the Arcade today. A few areas need sanding and trimming before painting can begin.
However my Dad convinced me to wait until next week where we'll have the Bank Holiday weekend to finish things off completely , including the painting!
Almost there!...
So today, I guess I'll continue to tinker with that Jukebox software.

2005-08-13T20:32:00.000+01:00

While testing the sound on my half-constructed arcade cabinet and marvelling at the impressive bass during a game of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, an idea occurred to me. Wouldn't it be neat if the cabinet could somehow act as a Jukebox as well as a games machine.
I researched immediately and found some fantastic Jukebox software that was highly customisable with the kind of flexibility that would be ideal in setting up for use on the X-Arcade control panel.

The excellent SK Jukebox is available for download free at http://www.salmonking.emuchrist.org/

The flexibility in its design allows for the following features:

Key remapping
Full screen or Windowed
Customize Fonts & Colors
Hide or Show mouse cursor
Animate Album Browsing
Display Album Art
Built-in Screen Saver
Random Mode
Require Credits or Free Mode
Minimize To System Tray
Genre Listing

Now this thing is simply awesome when up and running. You can imagine throwing parties and having your mates pick, select and queue songs by navigating through the pages of album art. When one flips through the pages of albums, the software replicates the sound and animation of a real digital jukebox providing a real feel of authenticity.
walmart.com is your friend, when it comes to acquiring album art and http://louhi.kempele.fi/~skyostil/projects/albumart/ is your best friend for making the burden of downloading even easier!

I have already put a few albums on for experimentation purposes, and I will be adding a more comprehensive selection in the coming week.
I can rip MP3s from my CDs and add to the jukebox HDD space on the Arcade PC wirelessly across the network from my Master PC. This will be great when adding to the vast collection of songs in the future, as the software refreshes its list of music and album art everytime it starts up. I can also share the folder of MP3s with my Liteon wireless netplayer that is currently hooked up to my TV.

Launching the software is easy, as I simply created another platform on my MAMEWAH frontend that points to the SK Jukebox executable, with the Arcade Player 1 or 2 button acting as the launch button as it already does with the games.

2005-08-12T11:12:00.000+01:00

While rummaging deep within my Norton AntiSpam folder purely by chance, I came across an automatically discarded email from my ISP virgin.net.
It seems that virgin.net wish to offer me an upgrade to 2mb Broadband from my current 1mb connection. At present I pay £24.99 a month for uncapped access, and this free upgrade would not change the price or any of the terms and conditions of my current deal.
I followed the link to their website and put the acceptance/request in. I now have to wait a few days for a follow-up email alerting me that the upgrade has been completed which is when I’ll reset my router and enjoy!

2005-08-07T21:51:00.000+01:00

The main bulk of the Arcade Cabinet is screwed together and is fully playable while standing upright.
We can breathe a sigh of relief as most of the hard part is over. All that is left to do before painting (and will probably be tended to this weekend) is some minor sanding, the screwing on of the marquee support and speaker panel ledger boards as well as cutting the sides ever so slightly so that the X-Arcade control panel fits in snug, tightly and securely.

I also set up my master PC to control the Arcade PC remotely using Microsoft's Remote Desktop - a simplistic Godsend actually pre-built into Windows XP! Theoretically I don’t even need a separate keyboard, mouse and CD/DVD Rom drive for the Arcade PC as absolutely everything can now be controlled remotely!
Isn’t technology grand??!!

As you can see by the pictures below, young Jaden is a bit peeved that he wont be able to reach the Arcade. However rest assure that he will go to whatever lengths possible (and that includes climbing on the chairs and dining table) to try and reach his games!

2005-08-06T19:27:00.000+01:00

Work on the Arcade resumed today with yet again my Dad offering a hand.
Today we constructed the base that will sit the PC and Subwoofer as well as the Monitor Shelf, that will support the, erm.. monitor!
Again, I Followed the ArcadaPC plans, however I discovered that they did not mention that MDF had insufficient strength to support the Base and Monitor, so a quick trip to B&Q and purchase of a couple of nice thick timber strips remedied that problem, as detailed in the pictures below.

2005-08-02T20:59:00.000+01:00

Well here it is in all its splendor.. the COIN DOOR!
A decent freebie as its in perfect condition, AND it came with a key for the lock which means I dont have to waste time or money replacing it!

It didnt come with a working coin mechanism, however that isnt the point. The door will open to allow access to the PC that drives the Arcade Cabinet, allowing me to switch it on or off.

2005-08-02T15:47:00.000+01:00

Managed to source an old Arcade Cabinet coin door from a local Amusement Machines supplier in Ilford. To them, the dysfunctional door is a hunk of junk, meaning I could have it for free. However for me, it could be a cosmetic gem - exactly what I need to complement my project and further the impression of authenticity.

My Brother has gone to pick the door up - I'll update later on with pictures.

2005-07-31T10:07:00.000+01:00

Saw ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ last night at Newham Showcase Cinema after discovering that a “Power cut” has left Ilford Cineword disabled of any service for several days??!
‘Charlie’ was excellent, I thoroughly enjoyed it, even though I’m 25 years old – perhaps because I’m so fond of the book.
Tim Burton, I believe, faithfully captured the spirit of Roald Dahl’s writing , which Johnny Depp nailed it as Wonka! Still –preferred the children in the original Gene Wilder film version.

Anyhow – we got to the cinema a little early, and I decided to kill some time by looking at the arcade machines, just to see if my project was moving in the right direction.
I was amazed at how close my design plans matched the real thing – from the shape of the cabinet to the scanlines on the screen which I faithfully simulated on my computer monitor.
However what struck me as good idea was the fact that the sides of the arcade had some form of plastic moulding on it to provide a smooth and professional finish. If I implemented this on my Arcade it would make it look all more authentic while easing the burden of excessive sanding of any uneven edges. Seemed a generally inexpensive option too, as the moulding could be laid flat with some sort of wood adhesive. Great stuff!

and the Cutting begins!....

2005-07-30T20:46:00.000+01:00

My Dad came round in the early afternoon to help me start cutting the sides of the Arcade Cabinet. I had the template already drawn out on one piece of MDF, so all we had to do was fire up the jig-saw and go!

The first obstacle we came across was an elementary one - what should we use to actually place the wood on for cutting? I didn’t have a work bench or DIY table and didn’t fancy shelling out for one. Solution? - The coffee table! (Covered/protected in many layers of plastic, of course!)

We took the coffee table outside the flat as I did not fancy MDF particles clogging up the air inside with the little one about.

The Jig seemed easy enough to operate, although there was an initial confusion as to which correct blade (supplied) to use on the 3/4" MDF.

Initially we used a very fast cutting blade, which although went through the wood with easy, the fast movement of the blade made things very difficult to see and thus difficult to control, resulting in a few uneven cuts.

We then tried a slower blade, which although tested out patience a little, it DID seem to work a treat. More accurate cuts were made, and we even went back and refined some of the earlier flawed cuts. All in all results were satisfactory and left us in a good position for sanding.

As you can see,to achieve an accurate cut of the second piece of wood that is identical in mesaurement to the first, we used a simple 'tracing' technique

So here you see something that actually resembles an Arcade Machine! This is highly exciting. Hard part is over! All that is left now is to cut simple rectangular measurements of wood (B&Q can do this for free) that will form the back, top and base of the Arcade Cabinet!

Now I’m off to reward myself by going to watch 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'!

Watch this space!!

2005-07-26T12:24:00.000+01:00

Jeeeez! - Work on this Arcade Cabinet never seems to end! Just as I thought I was satisified with the current selection of games on there (we're talking almost 15,000 in total!) I decide to go and test a 3D game using the Zinc emulator, just for the heck of it to see if the Arcade PC could handle it with its Graphics Card.
The game I tested was my favourite 3D fighter, Streetfighter EX Plus, and guess what? - worked perfectly at full speed/framerate.

So for the sake of being a ROM completist, I am going to formally add Zinc games to my Arcade setup. Not all games work full speed, some require minor tweaking here and there which is what I am setting to do tonight.

Also I have found a rather nifty application which I also plan to implement tonight -CPViewer.
CPViewer is an add-on for MAME. More specifically for the MameWah front-end used to launch the various games. It uses a file called controls.ini to lookup the controls for a particular game. It then displays them on the screen so I will know what buttons and movements perform what actions in the game that is currently highlighted in my MameWah front-end. Handy for when one decides to sitdown and to try a NEW game, which can usually be a pain as I often ask myself, "What buttons do what?" Well if the game has been documented in the controls.ini file, this won't happen again. By simply pressing a hotkey (one of the X-Arcade Buttons) a graphic of the control panel will be displayed with all of the character movements or button assignments displayed so I know what buttons perform what actions.

2005-07-25T11:49:00.000+01:00

Spoke to the people who supplied my 21" monitor today. They claim the monitor was tested and was in full working order - missing the point of my complaint entirely that it although it did work, it produced a dull and non-vibrant image.
I even tried a second SVGA cable yesterday which didnt seem to work at all.

However they did promise I could exchange for another of my choice (may have to trek it down to Thurrock myself just to test things and ensure all is okay) however they have run out of Black monitors and only have beige ones left *dang!*.

Another bit of Arcade-related news, I have found out that it is indeed possible to run Snk Vs Capcom: Chaos on a hacked version of Mame.
Excellent news! I will be working on adding this to my exisiting Mame setup tonight when I get back from the Gym.

2005-07-24T19:07:00.000+01:00

Just finished marking out one of the pieces of MDF for the side of the Arcade Cabinet. The idea is to mark one side with a pencil, cut and draw around the cut piece to trace measurements for the second side so that they remain accurate.
And accuracy is paramount here, as it seemed like it took an age to measure and measure again before drawing onto the wood.

However, I feel a little more confident now and am ready to take the plunge and just cut this damn thing! Probably be next weekend though - my Dad has reluctantly agreed to give me a hand! *Phew!*

2005-07-23T09:33:00.000+01:00

My brother Stephen picked up the Black IBM 21" monitor yesterday for the Arcade project.
I plugged it in and was amazed at how awesome Streetfighter looked - at last a size a little closer to Arcade authenticity! The sprites were large and chunky as they should be.
However what irked me a little was the immediately noticeable fact that the monitor simply wasn’t as bright and as vibrant as the 17". I don’t quite know how to explain it but the picture has a softer look that doesn’t bounce the images from the screen even after fiddling with the various picture settings.
I emailed the e-bay sellers and am contemplating returning (or swapping) it, however the look is much easier on the eyes and, truth be told, I am kind of getting used to it.
I'll think it over some more and try a different VGA cable on it today.

Pictures below..

I know I said the picture was soft, but its not as grainy as these photos suggest!

2005-07-21T22:21:00.000+01:00

Lets face it, my 17 inch monitor isnt going to cut the mustard for my full-sized Arcade Cabinet. So tonight I completed the e-bay purchase of a 21 inch IBM PC Monitor with Black casing (should blend in nicely with my completed Cab which too will be painted black).

**TOTAL COST £25**

My Brother will pick it up from a warehouse in Thurrock tomorrow.

Pictures to follow...

2005-07-21T19:09:00.000+01:00

So now's i've gots my Power Tool, all I need is my wood.
I head to B&Q and get them to cut down two sheets of 3/4" MDF as far as my plans will allow them in order for me to fit them into the car.
I cut two 190cm x 120cm pieces and keep any scraps, confident that they will slide right into the car boot (we're talking a Vauxhall Vectra Hatchback here).. NO CHANCE!

Rather than give up or shell out a ridiclious £20 for home delivery. I literally nick one of their Timber Trolleys and simply wheel the Wood home!
Luckily I live right across the street and I did take the trolley back, HONEST!

The wood now sits outside my front door in my flat foyer, with a note telling the neighbours to keep their nosey mitts off!
It waits for me to draw out the basic template of the Arcade Cabinet sides, ready for me to cut to shape with the jigsaw.

**TOTAL COST £24.99**

2005-07-21T12:11:00.000+01:00

The Arcade Insanity continues!

I've hit a snag.
My local B&Q can cut Timber, but their machine will only make STRAIGHT cuts end-to-end and not at any angles.
This has scared me shitless, simply because it means I will be forced to use a *gasp!* jigsaw! I have got NO wood work/carpentry experience at all and am NOT certainly a DIY handyman.

However, in terms of expenditure, I have reached the point of no return with this project, and the show MUST go on.

I take a deep breath, head into Robert Dyas in London, Victoria and purchase one of these:

**TOTAL COST £19.99**

2005-07-18T11:57:00.000+01:00

More on the Arcade:

Now that I have the technology to run the games, I need the wood to house the technology. I need to start thinking about actually building the cabinet.

Considering that I am using the x-Arcade as a control panel, I have decided to base my cabinet on the following plans from ArcadaPC.

Seems simple enough eh? - with mainly straight cuts, especially considering that my local B&Q has a free timber-cutting service.

I intend to use 3/4" MDF.

2005-07-16T10:35:00.000+01:00

More on my Arcade project - I've setup the PC with MAME emulator and ROMS (games). All is working fine. I have even put the X-Arcade on there for some pre-cabinet Streetfighter sessions, which my little Boy, Jaden, is proudly demonstrating in the picture below.

Also picked up the following Wireless 802.11g PCI Network Card for the MAME Arcade Cabinet PC. This will enable me to make changes to system and game configuration wirelessly from my Master Desktop PC (in my bedroom) without dragging the tall Arcade PC tower out of the cabinet.

**TOTAL COST £12.99**

2005-07-14T19:11:00.000+01:00

Swooped some deals to progress construction of my Arcade Cabinet.

From e-bay I got the following:

Athlon XP 1800
768Mb RAM
32Mb Graphics Card (MAME is NOT Graphics card intensive)
DVD-ROM/CD RW Combo
17 inch CRT Monitor
Creative 5.1 Sound System (with cabinet-mountable volume control!!)
Keyboard
Wireless Mouse

**TOTAL PRICE £100 (£12 postage)**

From a Seller at BYOAC forums I bought a two-player X-Arcade Control Panel. This is a quick and easy solution to recreating the authentic joystick controls of an arcade machine without building (and wiring!) a control panel of my own. Not only did this purchase save me a lot of time, but it also saved me a lot of £££s as I managed to get this at half the RRP at a bargain £50!

**TOTAL PRICE £50 (£10 postage)**

The arrogance of 'O'

2005-07-07T21:48:00.000+01:00

If the subject of events wasn't so serious, this would be funny..

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/050707/325/fmw5r.html

London Terrorist Attacks

2005-07-07T13:34:00.000+01:00

I'd just like everyone who knows me to know that I and my family are fine. Unfortunately I had already arrived at work when this happened so I am stuck in London Victoria. I will try and find a way home though. I think they are arranging cars to take staff home.

Anyone else currently in Central London/ The City, please try to find a way out and get home as soon as its reasonably possible.

Really, Who Cares??!

2005-07-07T09:53:00.000+01:00

So London wins the Olympic games! - Gee, Wiz! - I guess I can look forward to an unavailability of tickets (as all the backslapping VIPs would have taken them up), increased congestion around East London, the public transport system crippling under pressure (as always) and a hefty rise in my council tax bills to actually pay for these wonderful new Olympic improvements within the M25.

Can we even deliver major projects on schedule and within a budget? - remember the Dome??!

Its also funny how London or more specifically, the British, have already started to show the World their 'Olympic Spirit' by choosing to celebrate the successful bid not through dignified jubilation, but rather to concentrate on sneering at the French with total conceited arrogance.
Emails are being circulated showing a limp Eiffel Tower and a French woman flogging half price Paris 2012 T-shirts, radio DJs are calling Parisians "hairy Frogs", and the nation revels in jingoistic references - I mean WTF does Napoleon and Trafalgar have to do with the Olympic games??!!
I thought the Olympics were supposed to unite the world, not aggravate age-old feuds between nations!
If the IOC initially saw this (typical) behaviour of the British (i.e., they are sore-winners as everything seems to revert back to wars and xenophobia) then I'm not so sure the Capital would be celebrating today.

London 2012 - who cares??!!
Oh yeah, and remember that thing called the G8 that we were all so concerned about when our favourite Rock bands were playing Hyde Park last Saturday? - Funny how Africa's plight has now been relegated from the front page...

I have a dream!... and it's an ARCADE CABINET!

2005-07-06T14:20:00.000+01:00

I had always been inspired by the folks who had taken the plunge and built their own Arcade machine. Although one would be a fitting addition to my 80% complete Living Room/Home Entertainment Centre area, the idea of doing any sort of wood work/carpentry in building the cabinet itself always seemed like Mission Impossible. This difficulty and my total lack of DIY skills had deterred me from embarking on such a project one too many times in the past.
However after seeing some of the inspired examples at BYOAC of how this CAN work, I decided to bite the bullet and just, go for it.

To simply throw money at this ideal and BUY a ready-made Arcade Cabinet would cost me over a Grand, so the only way I could achieve this was to BUILD!

In order to run the arcade games I would need to emulate. This would be easy to execute as I was already familiar with MAME.
MAME (an acronym for Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) is a computer software program for personal computers. The purpose of MAME is to faithfully and precisely emulate as many arcade games as possible, with the intent of preserving gaming history and preventing vintage games from being lost or forgotten. Donkey Kong, Galaga, Ms Pacman, Streetfighter 2 - all the classics are there and FULLY playable!!

So what needed to begin my Arcade project would be a dedicated PC fast enough to run MAME and some sort of control panel (keyboard, mouse and gamepad just don’t cut it) to play the arcade games in somewhat of an authentic fashion. My first job would be to setup the equipment, get it fully operation in working order and build the cabinet around it.

Oh well.. to e-bay I go!

Live 8

2005-07-02T15:41:00.000+01:00

However you may be following the events today, be you at Hyde Park or in front of your television sets, please remember why this is happening..

This isnt about your favourite Pop Star, your favourite Band. This isnt about egos, back-scratching, shameless promotion or vanity.

THIS IS ABOUT AFRICA and helping the greatest continent in the world and the birthplace of civilisation become great again.

It has already become apparent that certain 'acts' participating in this gig are more conscious than others. So in no order whatsoever, props go out to:

Bob Geldof
Bono
Dido
Youssou Ndour
Bill Gates
Kofi Annan
Ms Dynamite
Will Smith (over in the USA)
Annie Lennox
Mariah Carey

Keep the focus people...