Phil

[Phil]

Awesome! I assumed the money was a token sum in exchange for the rights.

But yes, a $50 bonus just because my story was so awesome it blew their wallets open…that’s something to brag about.

[Phil]

Between you and I, I think he’s mentally ill.

[Phil]

Yeah, if you’ve already got it there’s no point re-investing. It LOOKS better, yes, and the music is fortunately remixed in a way that sounds better without losing what made the original tunes so great. But it’s still the same game, and if you’ve got it, you’ve got it.

However, if you DON’T have a version of it, this is definitely the version to get. There are a few extra features that kind of suck (the click-and-drag version of the game is an exercise in preposterous tedium) but the WiFi competition mode can keep you busy for hours at a time.

Benbo:
1590-5083-2099

Post yours again, too. A while back I cleared out a bunch of dead numbers that never resolved and yours might have been among them.

[Phil]

Out of curiosity, then… what DID they buy?

[Phil]

Ah rats. Somehow I thought you guys had it already. I know the US region wasn’t the first to get it, but I guess we weren’t the last, either!

I was really curious how the friend-invite thing would work. As far as I understand you get a fully-functional game out of it for free, but you can only play against the person who invited you, and can’t do random matchups instead.

Which, I admit, kind of sucks.

But it’s very nice of Nintendo to offer even that much for free!

[Phil]

First:
>Volume 2, No. 6 of the Smegazine (dated October 1993)

And then:
>The new book should be hitting the shelves at the end of October [!];

Forgive me if I’m being thicker than a hilarious comparison, but does this mean that the book was scheduled to come out that very month, or are they referring to next October?

If it was that very month then the thing…well…it should have been finished, barring corrections/minor rewrites.

If it was to be the following October, though, God knows…

[Phil]

Actually, a quick Googling reveals that “addicting/addictive” is a debate that’s been raging quite intensely. Mainly among those who would rather post emotionally on a message board rather than look it up in a dictionary.

I particularly enjoyed this link:
http://dionidium.com/2006/02/addicting

Not only does it make clear the distinction between the two words, but it also questions the necessity of drawing a distinction.

The short answer appears to be, yes, it’s “addictive” that I meant to say. But the somewhat longer and possibly worrying answer is that if “addicting” is becoming a synonym, however unofficially, the result could be overturned in a few generations.

Anyway, fuck all of you. Talk about Dr. Mario.

[Phil]

>Is it an American thing to say ?addicting? instead of ?addictive??

Possible…if only because I don’t think I have any experience of the word “addictive” outside of the phrase “addictive personality.”

It’d be easy enough to check the OED to see where (if ever, in fact) the two words diverged, but I’d rather play Dr. Mario.

[Phil]

I need to re-add you in Mario Kart, as well. You never ended up showing up on my friends list…no idea why. Delete my code and try entering it again. The only people around here that I had a successful connect with are John and Shithead…but friends from other places seem to be added without a problem.

Nintendo hates G+T.

[Phil]

’tis now available:
http://www.snafuanthology.com/html/issues/order.html

While I encourage those interested to buy a copy (and the writers among you to submit something to the next issue!) I do want to stress that I don’t make any money from sales of this issue. I got my whopping $50 for the rights to my story and that’s all I’ll ever see, dagnabbit.

Still, it’s an excellent venture that I’m proud to support.

Submissions for the Cowboy Fiction issue have already started arriving, so if you’re interested in contributing, now’s the time that you might want to get something down on paper.

I’ve already sent mine, but I doubt they’ve read it yet. If they have read it, they’re all dead from awesome-writing-overload.

[Phil]

I really love lines that sound adlibbed when they aren’t. It shows how deep into the character the actor is that you actually begin to suspect the scene of being more real than it is.

And yes, the line is great, and the delivery makes it about a thousand times better.

[Phil]

The comments are about 500 times as interesting as the main article. And the main article is damned interesting.

[Phil]

>They?re doing a US leg?

Unless I’m going insane. I remember when the dates were announced that there were a few stops in the US. Let me go see if I can’t find it…

EDIT:
Here we go:
http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/news/2008/03/07/hattie%2Dand%2Dnorman%2Dannounce%2Dtour%2Ddates/

However I see now that those are CONVENTION dates, not actual stops for this tour. They’re doing them together, but it won’t be their show. Rats.

[Phil]

This sounds great. Maybe I’ll try to catch them on the US leg, if they come anywhere near me.

[Phil]

I can’t wait to sit and read all of that later on.

Thanks a lot Mick!

[Phil]

>I know but cannot say. :-(

It’s true…you could be fired!

[Phil]

>The group of people existed first, and we created the forum to cater for them, rather than vice versa.

Amazing how many other sites don’t seem to realize that this is the CORRECT way to do this. I remember at first being a bit nervous about this forum because it really did start pretty slowly…but before too long it got rolling and now the momentum is up high enough that it’s worth checking daily. Definitely went a long way toward expanding G+T’s value.

[Phil]

Who do I contact about getting you banned from this site?

[Phil]

Yeah, never underestimate the power of “just wanting to own something.” It outweighs logic something like 7/10 times.

I have no real inclination to get an iPhone, or any one of its competitors, but I do remember absolutely NEEDING an iPod when I was buying an MP3 player. Nothing else was even a possibility as far as I was concerned.

Was it because I did loads of research and decided for any rational reason that the iPod was for me?

Nah.

I just used one once and fell in love.

Sometimes that’s enough.

[Phil]

Oh, that card!

[Phil]

Is that what they call it nowadays?

[Phil]

http://i29.tinypic.com/3307hg9.gif

[Phil]

>Bill Bailey was definitely the best Holly!

Seconded.

Absolutely positively seconded.

[Phil]

Wow, Mad TV! I didn’t even realize that show was still on.

I remember when it premiered, and everyone was hoping that some competition would make Saturday Night Live start being funny again.

It didn’t.

And then Mad TV gave up, too.

They both have their moments, mind.

But jeez oh man is American sketch comedy depressing.

[Phil]

I NOMINATE THIS THREAD FOR HALL OF SHAME STATUS.

[Phil]

Another Mii tournament Saturday at 4:00 Eastern, 9:00 GMT:
http://www.mariokartwii.com/showthread.php?p=217726#post217726

The theme is horror, so scariest Mii gets a 5 point bonus.

If anyone here wants to join in you don’t need to register at that thread…just leave your friend code here and I’ll add you.

Go easy on me this time, John. You cunt.

[Phil]

“Through the magic of editing, we are able to finish the film without Ledger.”

http://www.gametrailers.com/player/33588.html

[Phil]

Well, no, there wasn’t a misunderstanding–I knew you were saying it was something people theoretically COULD do as opposed to SHOULD do, and I addressed that above–but if you got your feelings hurt or thought I was attacking you personally in any way, then yes, of course I apologize.

[Phil]

>My question was ?Is it can?t or won?t?? Literally, that was it. To one person, to Ian. And yet you keep replying

With my opinion, yeah. That’s all it is…and it’s okay. More than one person is allowed to respond to things! No matter what Tonguetied may have tried to teach us…

>Given the the question came from seeing the posted dislike of iTunes, did I give any indication that I needed the second part explaining?

Given that this is a discussion board read by more than the two people who may happen to be conversing at any given time, is there any reason I should have NOT explained what I was trying to say? ;-)

I hate to say it, man, but seriously, don’t get defensive! My comments have been pretty general, on the whole. I’m brainstorming this thing as much as anyone…you shouldn’t interpret a post I make in reference to something you say to mean that I think you’re a bonehead who needs everything laid out before him.

That’s not the case.

It’s a discussion board. I’m bringing my end of the discussion in an overall general sense, for everyone to read, for everyone to interpret, and for everyone to agree/disagree with as they see fit. They’re not shots at you and they’re not disrespectful…don’t interpret them to be!

[Phil]

*I* can’t believe they had Hollister leave the blindfold on the entire time he was cornholing the baby T-rex, believing he was having anal sex with his sexy new housemaid Carla.

[Phil]

>Did give the impression that I might not realise that?

Well, you rattled off a fairly convoluted way for somebody to end up with the files but not have iTunes sitting on their computer, which, as I pointed out, is possible, yes. People CAN do it. But can you expect them to do it? People can build an automobile from the ground up and probably save a lot of money in the process. But it’s an investment of time, as well, which, I reckon, is why most people buy them premade. We CAN do it…but we don’t. For a lot of us, the effort isn’t worth it. You can’t expect that the effort of download/registration/purchase/download/burn/uninstall is going to attract many people who don’t want iTunes. And though I wasn’t trying to sound snarky before, in answer to your question, no, you did not specifically give an indication that you realized this.

>But I never argued for or against any of that

Your question was: Is it an anti-Apple sentiment that keeps G+T from endorsing this release?

My answer was: No, I don’t think there is one (apart from Seb, I can say now ;-), but people are concerned about introducing a program like iTunes to their computer.

[Phil]

>I?m just saying that?s a choice. Getting iTunes, buying the books, burning then uninstalling is, generally, an option

You’re right, but this factors into the investment required for the purchase. It’s more than just a monetary issue; in addition to the question of “is it worth my money?” you now have to ask yourself the related question of “is it worth my time?” Buying a CD takes no time at all…but if you intend to download iTunes, register an account, make a transaction, download your purchase, burn your purchase to an audio CD and uninstall the iTunes software…well, that’s a very real process, and you’d have to reeeeeeeeally want something to go through all that just to get it.

I’m not saying your point is without merit…you’re right. People CAN do it. But it’s a question of worth, and value, and the fact is that people may be turned off by what seems to be–and in this case is–an excessive series of obligations.

>everyone has time to do an anti-Apple rant in the comments

I’d imagine that a quick “rant” of two or three sentences can be tossed off while doing other things, or on a short break at work or something…whereas it takes actual time and focus to sit down and write a news article about something.

I can only speak for myself, but I post a lot here while I’m at work…yet anything of merit I contribute to NTS usually happens on a day off, when I have several hours to just sit and consider what it is I’d like to say, and how to say it.

Also, I don’t think it’s an anti-Apple atmosphere around here! I’m hugely pro-Apple (based on personal experience, mind…not trends) and I know John’s a big fan of his Mac Mini…

I think Seb and Ian–rightly–are just against the selfishness of the iTunes install, which is one of the things Apple pointlessly stole from Microsoft, and therefore they are deserving of the dissatisfaction that goes along with it. That’s not anti-Apple…it’s anti-pointlessness, whomever does it.

An interesting epilogue to this story is that I tried to log on to the iTunes store after work to see if it was available for US download (not everything is) and I got a message saying I couldn’t use the iTunes store anymore unless I upgraded to the newest version of the application. Which doesn’t run on my version of OSX.

So despite the fact that my iTunes store was fully functional before the mandatory upgrade, I’ll need to buy a new computer to use it ever again because iTunes wants to show me awesome videos, or some such bullcrap, that it couldn’t do in the old version. Regardless of whether or not I actually want to see them.

So…I guess we can upgrade my condition from “won’t purchase” to “can’t purchase.”

[Phil]

Back issues will probably be available based on existing supply…I’m not sure they ever intend to print anything more than the initial batch. I’ll post here when the ordering info is available.

In case you’re concerned that you missed the first issue, don’t worry…you’re not. It’s still marked March 2008 so that it won’t affect their second issue publication date. :-) You’re not late at all. If anything, you’re still early!

[Phil]

>people (not just in this thread) seem to be suffering from the old delusion that GNP can just decide ?let?s release a CD!? and it?ll be in the shops the next day.

Yeah, that’s why I made a point of claiming my knowledge of the exact opposite. For me, no, I don’t believe it’s a matter of GNP choosing the wrong format. I know that not every format is a viable option, and I’m personally glad they’re out there. I won’t be buying them because it’s not a format I’ve embraced yet and my listening habits don’t include it.

>You?re not unable, you?re just unwilling to purchase from a certain source using a certain format.

Well, sure, but that’s a right the consumer has. I want to play The Legend of Zelda: The Phantom Hourglass but I don’t want to buy a DS. I’m not bemoaning the lack of cross-platform release, but it’s not anybody’s responsibility to adopt a format into their lives for the sake of one or two things that interest them.

I understand that GNP can’t go for omni-format release. That’s okay. I don’t mind that. And, again, I want to stress that I’m glad they’re out there…just as I’m glad Zelda exists in many forms that I’ll never even get to play. But the fact is one format brings with it one circle of consumers, and another format brings with it a different circle. There’s overlap, sure, and maybe lots of it, but it’s a differernt circle all the same.

[Phil]

>once you?ve paid for them, you can download them any time if they accidentally get deleted or you have to clear space?

This may be true…I DO use iTunes, but, as I say, I don’t buy music from it, I just rip stuff from my CDs.

Anyone know for sure?

[Phil]

I kind of hear where Baz is coming from. I know it’s just a matter of commercial uncertainty that’s keeping them from being released on physical CDs in shops, but I like to have a physical reminder of my purchase, something tangible to put on a shelf or a rack somewhere…

Also, too much can go wrong with downloads–it’s too easy to lose them. I have a lot of digital music, but it all comes from physical CDs. I have backups. They’re in no danger.

And, yeah, I could burn them to a CD, but CDs have a limited lifespan before their layers cease to hold themselves together, and something burned on a home computer has a lifespan much shorter.

I’d like to hear them, but how often will I listen to them? Owning a CD set is more appealing to me than paying for the data itself. It’s not a shot against the product, it’s just the way my buying habits work.

Is it better that it’s being released in this format than not at all? Well, of course. Yeah. Because a lot of people don’t mind and they are going to love it. But there are definitely going to be a few who would rather have something in a case, with a nice little booklet or something, rather than a Memorex CD on a spindle somewhere with DWARF RADIO THING written on it in black marker.

[Phil]

It’s coming:

Looks lovely, too. I’ll have my copies early next month as I’m heading up to Montreal for the big launch event. I’m just hoping all the other authors are young, skinny, attractive women who really like knock-knock jokes.

[Phil]

A review of the DVD set already!

http://www.screenjabber.com/futurama_beastbillionbacksDVD

Spoilers, obviously…I didn’t read it…just looked at the rating and did some SLIGHT skimming of the section on extra features. It’s hard not to read the plot summary, but I’m sure it’s worth going into the film as fresh as possible.

Some great (and not entirely spoileriffic) screen grabs at that site are worth attention, too.

[Phil]

I NOMINATE THIS THREAD FOR HALL OF FAME STATUS.

[Phil]

I can’t really see the in-helmet hose in the propstore pic, but otherwise it looks very similar. I wonder…

[Phil]

You can change the dimensions of your Mii and that’ll affect the karts you get. Or you could always swap out your Mii for a novelty small one…my personal fave right now is Snoopy…

Also, http://www.mariokartwii.com is a message board full of tournaments and things like this…check it out if you ever get bored and have the itch to make new friends to race. Pretty good group of people.

[Phil]

Better than I’d originally thought it’d be. I was impressed overall…a few moments of “ugh” dialogue but otherwise not bad at all. I’m trying to work up some excitement for Dark Knight…and this movie at least has convinced me that the next one will be worth my time.

[Phil]

Glad you could make it, John. You and I spent just about every race duking it out for last place!

It was fun and I might host another one next week.

Also: you were definitely picking on me. I thought we was friends.

[Phil]

>So, who do we reckon shot Mr Ackerman?

I’ve been rewatching that episode a few times over the past couple of days to see if there are any more clues I can pick up on. But each time through I just get more and more disgusted by that scene at the end, where Archie sodomizes the unconscious Ackerman as he’s bent over the sundial, bleeding. Totally unnecessary.

I mean, there’s bad taste…and then there’s BAD TASTE.

[Phil]

How did I miss that post, John?

Anyway, I’m hosting a “race as your mii” tournament Sunday at 4:00 Eastern, 9:00 GMT. Anyone who wants to pop in is welcome; no idea what kind of turnout to expect.

The only ones I’ve managed to make a connection with here have been Pete and John…so if anyone else wants in let me know and I’ll try re-entering friend codes.

[Phil]

AH. It first I just saw the O RLY YA RLY bit going back and forth and scrolled down before realizing there was more to it.

Yes, that’s pretty fucking excellent. :-)

It’s now a tossup between that and Ceiling Cat. New G+T contest?

[Phil]

Oh, so that is you. I thought you were some kind of outer-space potato man.

[Phil]

I’m voting the Ceiling Cat one. It is now the only thing I like about the main plot of that episode.

[Phil]

>I?ve never actually questioned that before!

I’d hate to bring reality into this discussion, but my old college had a sundial with directional markers as well…that said, it ALSO had numbers (or numerals, I guess I should say). The idea is that the sundial serves a dual purpose. I reckon they left the numbers off the sundial in that particular mystery as it would have been distracting from the main clue.

Also, I do like they way they set Kryten up to be the obvious suspect. I wonder how many of you realize, though, that Ackerman was shot at 3:30, which, as we know from the television in the background of Parrot’s, is when Channel 27 airs Androids.

That was a brilliant way of layering the mystery, I thought.

A less-brilliant move was revealing that Kryten’s surname is actually Connor, just so he could be referred to in the same clue as Kill Crazy.

Lazy writing.

Still not as bad as revealing Kevin to be Cat’s first name…

[Phil]

>Now, Ricky Gervais? turn as Arnold Rimmer?that was terrible.

His turn as Kryten however…mwah! Perfecto.

[Author]

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