Underground Media: Reloaded

I had a little time this past weekend, so I decided to test out the Netflix's movie streaming service . Yes, in this day of ginormous HDTV and Bluray DVD's, I am perfectly willing to stream in 480p (standard def) to my 15" laptop screen. First up, was Justice League: The New Frontier . Bruce Timm, the genius behind Justice League and Justice League: Unlimited decided to dish up a period piece set in the 1950's. As an avid comic superhero fan, I've got to say that it was too cool to see the Silver Age versions of Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman. But, as sci-fi and fantasy often does, it focused much more on social relevancy than on the wonders of having super powers. In fact, the story opens with Hal Jordan (the Green Lantern) flying a combat mission over North Korea. Conscious of the pro-propaganda nature of that decade, it presented traditionally pro-American themes in a very different light. For example, Wonder Woman is in Cambodia freeing enslaved wom...

Recently, I decided to give JungleDisk (powered by Amazon's S3 service) a test-drive. JungleDisk provides a toolkit for online data storage. Basically, I can store a bunch of stuff (music, docs, videos, etc.) remotely on Amazon's servers instead of my own local harddrives. The benefits include safe and super-reliable access to my data from wherever I am, at any time. I was thinking what a cool idea it would be to store all my music there , so I could stream it from any computer. In fact, I think storing things like pictures and music on local harddrives is a total waste. For the most part, this media just sits around on a harddrive doing nothing. Perhaps you occasionally search it for that wedding photo your mom wants to see. And then, at some point, the harddrive fails for some reason or another. Then you're really screwed. Online data solutions, on the other hand, have backups for their backups. And streaming pics or music is just fine for me. As long as i...

Or so you'd think after watching the movie industry attack anyone who shows even the grainiest of bootlegs. Their latest target is the online video sites. It's all a game of Whack-a-Mole to them as the MPAA smacks one , and another pops up. Such is the ferocity of their assaults, you'd think they were starving in the streets. Somehow, I don't think so. In fact, I think they've had a record summer . To the tune of $4.1 Billion. I can't freaking believe it! They raise ticket prices, produce a record number of crappy movies with astronomical budgets, have a banner year in revenue and profit, and try to tear anyone who touches their content to shreds. The slimy bastards are having a non-stop drunken orgy and we're footing the bill. Reminds me a scene from Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas . It's hilarious that Youtube has it. I post it because it's appropriate, and to thumb my nose in their general direction. "I was in the middle of a f*c...

Those crazy Swedes are trying to get themselves locked up at Guantanamo! Although it's the Entertainment establishment that wants their heads, and I'm not sure where Hollywood locks people up. Skywalker Ranch? Dr. Phil's house? Anyway, the history of The Pirate Bay is really fascinating. To understand them, you've got to place them within their historical context. In the world of movies and music, there are pirates and there are pirates. Type-A pirates are those who copy a movie or a CD, and then sell the copy for a profit. This type of operation is a VAST industry, with huge markets in southeast Asia and Latin America. I'm not sure about the figures, but I'm sure the profits are in the hundreds of millions annually. Type-B pirates distribute (share) such content freely to anyone with a high-speed internet connection. No money is made from such distribution, unless you count ad revenue from clicks into the hosting website, although this probably only c...

Many out there think that Youtube is the pinnacle of streaming video content. Without a doubt it is the most popular, but Youtube along with it's Google parent are rapidly being left in the dust with regard to content. Youtube suffers from it's own popularity in many ways. They're under pressure for keeping out copyrighted content, their maximum ratings are PG-13, and they really haven't updated their UI in a while as their resources have been focused on taking down those pesky NBC clips. While Google/Youtube takes the heat, other streaming video sites have risen and developed under the radar. My current favorite, Dailymotion , is based in France and they honestly seem like they could give a sh*t about American copyrights. Nor do they seem to care about content ratings (excluding hardcore stuff). Even better is that guys like Youtvpc are using Dailymotion as a content server, and putting up a website to pipeline that content to viewers on-demand. TV shows, boo...

Nice write-up over at TorrentFreak about a piracy documentary done by a Canadian. The actual documentary DVD is freely downloadable , so give it a watch and let me know what you think. I've got some very strong opinions on this topic, if I can rant for a minute. I LOVE movies. No, really. I LOVE them. I watch at least three a week. Sometimes more. But I RARELY go to the theater anymore. Why? Because after I drive all the way the freak to the theater, pay $16 for my wife and I just to walk in the doors, pay $10 more for dry popcorn and over-sweet sodas, sit my ass in the uncomfortable seats, and start watching the tiny (this is the midwest, and I'm from L.A.) screen all while telling the moronic teenagers in front of us to "shut the f*ck up, I'm trying to watch the movie! This is NOT your flippin' living room!", I realize that the studios have not jerked me hard enough yet. Why? Because as the lights go down and the screen starts, a F*CKING PEPSI ...