That's right... the power of porn!
It is sometimes shocking how people tend to underestimate the power of the porn industry. Even though adults may not like to openly discuss the fact they enjoy watching "adult content," the fact that it's a multi-billion industry proves that people are watching this entertainment.
After I reported last year that Vivid Entertainment would offer content in both next-gen formats, my inbox was floooded with intriguing e-mails! :eek: I tried to convince some people the porn industry could very well help determine the winner between HD and Blu-ray.
To further complicate the next-gen battle, it looks like the Japanese porn industry is going to support Blu-ray.
How will HD respond? Can it respond?
I still fervently believe it is too soon to tell who will ultimately end up on top, but the few months should be interesting...
Monday, July 30, 2007
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
The Cycling Drama Continues...
Vino, say it ain't so!
Double stage winner Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana captain) reportedly tested positive for committing a definite no-no among pro cyclists - homologous blood transfusion, with the positive test coming after he won the stage 13 individual time trial.
The Astana team regrettably suspended Vino and agreed to withdraw from the Tour de France, even though two Astana riders are in the top 10.
The popular 33-year-old Kazakh rider has had a rather tumultuous TdF - he won the ITT (though the victory will end up going to Cadel Evans) - crashed, dropped far on GC, then escaped in a big breakaway to win a road stage.
If tour leader "Chicken" Michael Rasmussen also ends up testing positive due to blood doping before the end of the TdF pro cycling may end up being permanently ruined.
I'll now turn it over to some official articles regarding the incident.
Cycling news coverage
VeloNews coverage
BBC News
AP
Double stage winner Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana captain) reportedly tested positive for committing a definite no-no among pro cyclists - homologous blood transfusion, with the positive test coming after he won the stage 13 individual time trial.
The Astana team regrettably suspended Vino and agreed to withdraw from the Tour de France, even though two Astana riders are in the top 10.
The popular 33-year-old Kazakh rider has had a rather tumultuous TdF - he won the ITT (though the victory will end up going to Cadel Evans) - crashed, dropped far on GC, then escaped in a big breakaway to win a road stage.
If tour leader "Chicken" Michael Rasmussen also ends up testing positive due to blood doping before the end of the TdF pro cycling may end up being permanently ruined.
I'll now turn it over to some official articles regarding the incident.
Cycling news coverage
VeloNews coverage
BBC News
AP
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Congrats to Barloworld!
Barloworld's Juan Mauricio Soler won the biggest race of his life, easily leaving behind everybody on stage 9 of the 2007 Tour de France. After the team originally entered the tour as one of two wild card teams, Barloworld promised some explosions, and the young Colombian was the first to deliver on that promise.
I always want to see a wild card team rider do well in the grand tours, even at the expensive of the rider(s) I am cheering for.
Congrats to Soler!
"The Chicken" Michael Rasmussen is still the overall leader, with several flat stages and a crucial time trial before heading back into the mountains! :D
I always want to see a wild card team rider do well in the grand tours, even at the expensive of the rider(s) I am cheering for.
Congrats to Soler!
"The Chicken" Michael Rasmussen is still the overall leader, with several flat stages and a crucial time trial before heading back into the mountains! :D
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Chaos During Today's TdF Stage
I silently promised I wouldn't make this blog into my own personal TdF journal throughout July, but I need to write about the chaos that took place during today's stage. Even though stage 7 (yesterday's stage) was the first proper mountain stage of the TdF, stage 8 really sorted out the general classification (GC).
"The Chicken" Michael Rasmussen took the peloton by storm, easily taking his aggression out on the peloton for the majority of the stage. However, T-Mobile's Michael Rogers thought he made the right move after making an early jump into a large breakaway group - a group the other GC contenders didn't bother to chase down.
Things went downhill for Rogers, who ended up dislocating his shoulder in a crash, which led to him having difficulties before finally abandoning the stage. :(
While The Chicken now holds a firm grasp on the mountains jersey -- and he's wearing yellow -- the overall GC group is in a bit of chaos at the moment. It is likely a true winner will probably not emerge until the peloton heads through the Alps.
News coverage of today's stage 1
News coverage of today's stage 2
Let's all hope for the speedy recovery of Team CSC's Stuart O'Grady, who is severely injured due to a crash -- Punctured lung, broken collarbone, broken shoulder blade, five busted ribs, broken bones in his spine.
"The Chicken" Michael Rasmussen took the peloton by storm, easily taking his aggression out on the peloton for the majority of the stage. However, T-Mobile's Michael Rogers thought he made the right move after making an early jump into a large breakaway group - a group the other GC contenders didn't bother to chase down.
Things went downhill for Rogers, who ended up dislocating his shoulder in a crash, which led to him having difficulties before finally abandoning the stage. :(
While The Chicken now holds a firm grasp on the mountains jersey -- and he's wearing yellow -- the overall GC group is in a bit of chaos at the moment. It is likely a true winner will probably not emerge until the peloton heads through the Alps.
News coverage of today's stage 1
News coverage of today's stage 2
Let's all hope for the speedy recovery of Team CSC's Stuart O'Grady, who is severely injured due to a crash -- Punctured lung, broken collarbone, broken shoulder blade, five busted ribs, broken bones in his spine.
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Commercial Reruns = Grumpy Mike
I would venture to guess that watching the Tour de France on Versus is the only way for Americans to actually watch the prestigious bike race. I love every bit of being able to watch as my favorite cyclists push themselves to the limit on a monstrous climb.
Even though I appreciate being able to watch it on TV, what good would a blog be without a bit of whining?
Although I truly appreciate the way Versus covers the event, I have a problem with what viewers have to endure every day of the tour.
COMMERCIALS!
Not just the regular type of commercials that all TV viewers are used to watching, but commercials that we just had to sit through a mere 10 minutes ago!
To help offer the end of some stages commercial free - usually mountain stages will have an hour of commercial free viewing - Versus usually really packs in the commercials as much as possible. While I can fully understand why the channel had to do that, couldn't they honestly mix the commercial selection up a bit more?
Aside from bike-related commercials and previews featuring upcoming Versus programs, too many of the same commercials are shown over and over again! :/
You remember our friend Bob? You know, the guy who sports a big grin and a happy wife? You'd certainly remember him if you watch the TdF - Bob's cheeky mug graces the commercials at least six times during the airing of each stage. Joining Bob in the wee hours of the morning are the following companies: Saab, Motel 6, Yamaha, Visa, Mobil 1, and a few other commercials that now drive me nuts.
Saab also is using a commercial that is very similar to the one they aired last year -- in case you don't know what I am talking about, here is the commercial.
OLN (now known as Versus) is apparently well known for doing stuff like this.
Regardless of what I really think about the commercials, as expected, I will continue to watch the TdF on Versus. I just hope that one day the producers will be kind enough to not irritate viewers at such an early time of the morning. ;)
Even though I appreciate being able to watch it on TV, what good would a blog be without a bit of whining?
Although I truly appreciate the way Versus covers the event, I have a problem with what viewers have to endure every day of the tour.
COMMERCIALS!
Not just the regular type of commercials that all TV viewers are used to watching, but commercials that we just had to sit through a mere 10 minutes ago!
To help offer the end of some stages commercial free - usually mountain stages will have an hour of commercial free viewing - Versus usually really packs in the commercials as much as possible. While I can fully understand why the channel had to do that, couldn't they honestly mix the commercial selection up a bit more?
Aside from bike-related commercials and previews featuring upcoming Versus programs, too many of the same commercials are shown over and over again! :/
You remember our friend Bob? You know, the guy who sports a big grin and a happy wife? You'd certainly remember him if you watch the TdF - Bob's cheeky mug graces the commercials at least six times during the airing of each stage. Joining Bob in the wee hours of the morning are the following companies: Saab, Motel 6, Yamaha, Visa, Mobil 1, and a few other commercials that now drive me nuts.
Saab also is using a commercial that is very similar to the one they aired last year -- in case you don't know what I am talking about, here is the commercial.
OLN (now known as Versus) is apparently well known for doing stuff like this.
Regardless of what I really think about the commercials, as expected, I will continue to watch the TdF on Versus. I just hope that one day the producers will be kind enough to not irritate viewers at such an early time of the morning. ;)
Friday, July 13, 2007
Summer Reading Selections
Are you in the need for a bit of summer reading? If so, please allow me to offer a couple choices from authors that I simply haven't been able to stop reading.
Barry Eisler's John Rain book series quickly turned into one of my favorite series I have ever read - the plot lines, characters, everything makes it memorable. Eisler's seriousness towards realism (i.e. locations, weapons, tactics, etc.) in the books is also commendable.
Another nice touch is that he is willing to admit when he makes a mistake (link can be found on his web site).
Eisler's latest book, Requiem for an Assassin, received a plethora of solid reviews.
All of this is rather strange for me, especially since I usually don't like reading book series very often.
... but I have another book series that I have enjoyed reading: J.A. Konrath's book series about a pretty gnarly detective.
Barry Eisler's John Rain book series quickly turned into one of my favorite series I have ever read - the plot lines, characters, everything makes it memorable. Eisler's seriousness towards realism (i.e. locations, weapons, tactics, etc.) in the books is also commendable.
Another nice touch is that he is willing to admit when he makes a mistake (link can be found on his web site).
Eisler's latest book, Requiem for an Assassin, received a plethora of solid reviews.
All of this is rather strange for me, especially since I usually don't like reading book series very often.
... but I have another book series that I have enjoyed reading: J.A. Konrath's book series about a pretty gnarly detective.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Thank the sponsors!
At a time when even pro cycling teams are having trouble finding sponsors (sponsors have to invest millions into a pro team), it's nice to see local cycling clubs get the kind of support we need.
As a member of the Team Alameda cycling club/team, we have a small handful of companies which help out the club. TA's sponsors include Specialized Bicycles, Peet's Coffee, Linguini's Restaurant, Alameda Bicycle, and a realtor, McNulty Realtor@Kane.
You know what is even better about some of the sponsors I mentioned? I actually enjoyed going to both Peet's Coffee and Linguini's before I joined the team!
Even though I would like to see additional sponsors -- GU or Clif Bar, or even Accelerade -- progress is still being made.
If you're on a type of team or club (regardless of what sport/activity), please take some time to thank them for their support!
:D
M.
As a member of the Team Alameda cycling club/team, we have a small handful of companies which help out the club. TA's sponsors include Specialized Bicycles, Peet's Coffee, Linguini's Restaurant, Alameda Bicycle, and a realtor, McNulty Realtor@Kane.
You know what is even better about some of the sponsors I mentioned? I actually enjoyed going to both Peet's Coffee and Linguini's before I joined the team!
Even though I would like to see additional sponsors -- GU or Clif Bar, or even Accelerade -- progress is still being made.
If you're on a type of team or club (regardless of what sport/activity), please take some time to thank them for their support!
:D
M.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
The Local Bike Scene
This blog entry was written solely to promote the local bike communities and groups located here in the Bay Area!
Since I happen to live in an amazing town that seems to like its cyclists (for the most part), let me start off in my own town:
A quick shout out to my cycling team/club: Team Alameda!
Here is a local article which explains why my town happens to be an excellent location for serious cyclists and recreational bicyclists alike.
A couple of other Bay Area organizations and clubs that I support:
East Bay Bicycle Coalition
Alameda Bicycle - My local bike shop.
Cycle City - Another local Alameda bike shop
And I can't forget World Bicycle Relief, an organization building bikes for AIDS/HIV workers in Zambia
Since I happen to live in an amazing town that seems to like its cyclists (for the most part), let me start off in my own town:
A quick shout out to my cycling team/club: Team Alameda!
Here is a local article which explains why my town happens to be an excellent location for serious cyclists and recreational bicyclists alike.
A couple of other Bay Area organizations and clubs that I support:
East Bay Bicycle Coalition
Alameda Bicycle - My local bike shop.
Cycle City - Another local Alameda bike shop
And I can't forget World Bicycle Relief, an organization building bikes for AIDS/HIV workers in Zambia
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Welcome, welcome!!!
"Hello, world!" *sigh* Sorry about starting off my first blog post with a bit of typical nerd/programmer humor.
Anyway, welcome to what will become my unofficial blog until I get my own web site up and running - and available to the masses.
BTW, you may see two names which I go by -- Michael Hoffman or Michael Hatamoto. Relax, don't worry... Maikeru Hatamoto is my Japanese name, though I now prefer Michael Hatamoto.
Anyway, welcome to what will become my unofficial blog until I get my own web site up and running - and available to the masses.
BTW, you may see two names which I go by -- Michael Hoffman or Michael Hatamoto. Relax, don't worry... Maikeru Hatamoto is my Japanese name, though I now prefer Michael Hatamoto.
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