Years ago I used to play the video game Grand Theft Auto 3 for hours and hours. It’s a violent game where murder, drugs, prostitution, and car-jacking are a core element to the story.
I just found this video of a Coke commercial that was based on that game but they added a happy little twist to the story. Yes, I guess Coke does make everything better. LOL
**James.
I’m not a huge Star Trek fan but I do enjoy it from time to time. I found this image on the internet today and I just had to post it as it’s just too funny:
Awesome!
For the most part I have given up watching TV about 2 or 3 years ago and I don’t miss it a single bit. I even gave away my old 27″ tube TV as it was just sitting around collecting dust. Because of that it may seem strange that I just purchased a brand new 42″ LCD TV and I’m loving it.
I’m not watching TV now, that hasn’t changed, but I am basically using it as a very large computer monitor. Almost everything I watch is a download from the Internet with the exception of some DVDs from Netflix. I plan on canceling that account in week or two so it will be Internet only soon. The only show I could watch on broadcast TV but download instead is Heroes. Most of what I watch is anime, Japanese TV shows, or technical shows.
I think we all know what anime is so I won’t bother explaining that. Japanese TV shows are just what it sounds like, TV shows made in Japan for a Japanese audience. Some of my favorite places to get these shows are SARS and E-Addicts. They copy TV shows that aired in Japan and then add subtitle translations to the shows. The quality is usually excellent and many of the shows are incredible, better then most American TV shows at least. I know, that’s not saying much.
You do need a bittorrent program (client) to be able to downlod these shows. There are many different programs that you can use but my suggestion would be to try out uTorrent. It’s free, very small, and very stable. Make sure you open a port on your router to let the bittorrent program use to help increase download times. You can Click Here to see their information on opening a port number so your download speed increases. For new releases of popular anime shows such as Bleach or Naruto I usually get 500kb – 800kb downloads and can get a complete episode in about 10 minutes.
Finally I watch what I can technical shows, also downloaded from the Internet. These include things such as Techzilla or PixelPerfect at Revision3.org. As well as videos to learn Japanese, study Photoshop, or drawing manga. As you can see, these are not shows you would find on regular cable TV so since the don’t offer what I want I go elsewhere.
I have a pair of 19″ LCD monitors for my computer and that makes watching shows on my computer very comfortable but I wanted something a little more interesting. I had a little extra cash saved up and I’ve been thinking of buying a large LCD TV to use for a 2nd computer and now that the prices of these TVs had gone down a good deal I figured it was time to buy something.
After searching for a while and finding a great deal thanks to the store my Sister works at I was able to get a 42″ LCD TV with 2 HDMI inputs for just under $700.
This TV seemed to have everything I wanted, I was going to get a 37″ with only 720p because that was more in my price range. I really wanted to get 2 HDMI inputs on the TV if I could as well. Thankfully because of the deal I got I was able to “upgrade” to a this 42″ with 1080p resolution with the 2 HDMI inputs.
I first tried connecting a spare computer using Linux Kubuntu system and then worked on trying to load the Linux MCE (Media Center Edition). I’ve worked a little with Linux before and it’s not bad if you don’t mind putting a little work into learning a new way or using a computer. The big problem I had was that I could not get Linux MCE to load onto the Kubuntu system
Eventually I downloaded the Linux MCE quick install DVD which is a single image that installs both the Kubuntu operating system and the Linux MCE during the same install. This worked pretty well but I soon discovered that Linux MCE has a lot of rough edges. After working with it for a short while I gave up on it. I just don’t think it’s ready for “prime time” at all.
I ended up breaking down and installing Windows XP Pro (Thank you Pirate Bay LOL) and it’s working flawlessly. I setup file sharing on my main computer to the drives that I store my anime or other media on, that’s close to about 2 terabytes of data I’m now sharing.
I also purchased the Gyration wireless keyboard and “air mouse” to control the new computer and I’m surprised at how well it works. The mouse is designed to be able to be used on a flat surface liken any other optical mouse but it also can be held in the air, not needing to be on a surface at all.
Within a few short hours the new system had all of my codecs, media player, and other various software installed and I was able to start playing media from my main PC without any problems. Ahhhh – what a beautiful experience….
Above is a beautiful shot from the new ecchi anime called Kodomo no Jikan. I wont get into the subject matter of this story as it’s getting it’s fair share of attention from many other places on the Internet now.
What’s great about this image is it shows the entire screen being used. Since Japan has been showing wide screen format shows for such a long time now most of what I watch fills the entire screen. Unlike in America where so much of TV is still in the old 4:3 format.
Even if the show is in 4:3 format such as when I’m playing Bleach (above) the screen is so damn big that I don’t mind the missing space on the sides.
The one problem I did have was my DVD player was a standard DVD player, not an upconverting player. That means the image it put out was only a 480i image (the “i” stands for interlaced):
480i represents 720 pixels displayed across a screen horizontally and 480 pixels down a screen vertically. This arrangement yields 480 horizontal lines, which are, in turn, displayed alternately.
This is pretty good looking if you are still using a regular tube TV but as I was putting it on a screen that was able to show 1080p (the “p” stands for progressive):
1080p represents 1,080 lines of resolution scanned sequentially. In other words, all lines are scanned in progressively, providing the most detailed high definition video image that is currently available to consumers.
Basically “p” (progressive) is better then “i” (interlaced) and the more lines of data the better. In other words, my old DVD player put out an image that looked like crap on the new TV. I ended up buying a 1080p upscalling DVD player, basically it connects to one of the HDMI digital connections on the TV and adds lines of resolution to bring the image from the 480i to the 1080p and it makes a huge difference.
The player I got (at Circuit City) was only about $50.00 brand new and it does a great job. I’ve never heard of the name before (Element Electronics) but it got some good reviews and it was cheap.
This is a very good investment, the quality in the images improved a great deal. I don’t use my DVD player much as I mostly watch downloaded files but when I need it I know it will work great. I have no desire for a Blue Ray or HD player at this time. I’ll wait for the format war to settle out and then prices to drop further.
Finally, if you are thinking of setting something like this up, make sure to use the best connection available. From my computer to the TV I used a DVI to HDMI cable so I could get the best signal to the screen I could. Please, please, please don’t buy our cables at an electronics store or department store (aka – Target, Circuit City, or Walmart). You could easily pay $40 or $50 for this type of cable but if you go online, even a to a place like Newegg.com and you could get one for $8. I think I only paid $6.00 for a 6 foot long HDMI cable there. Don’t get screwed and buy the first one you see, it’s worth shopping around.
**James.
I’m starting to finish of a number of anime series that I’ve been watching over the last few months. Tonight I just watched the last of Nagasarete Airanto (Cast Away – Asian Island). It was your pretty standard “harem” anime, not that there is anything wrong with that, but just don’t go in expecting too much from the start.
A “harem” anime is basically a show featuring the main lead (usually male) character who finds themselves in a situation where they are surrounded by a large number of very attractive members of the opposite sex. As they are the only immediately available member of the opposite sex they quickly become the focus of the harems interest.
As you can imagine these stories which usually have the main male character surrounded by attractive females cater to the male viewers desire to be in a similar situation. This titillating situation helps to peak the sexual interest in the male audience to get more viewers. Usually it’s a male as the main character surrounded by females because the manga/anime audience is mostly male and lets fact it, men are more easily swayed by their sexual desires.
Nagasarete Airanto had plenty of “fan service” as you would expect.
The story is about a teenage boy called Ikuto who while on a cruise ship gets lost at sea during a very bad storm. He ends up washing up on shore of a uncharted island that is inhabited by (you guessed it) only females. There are no men on this island but there is an entire village of very pretty young females who all instantly fall in love with poor little Ikuto.
In typical Japanese anime/manga fasion he’s a perfect gentlemen who would never take advantage of the situation. In fact, the girls are the aggressive ones who at times almost fight for his attention.
Overall, I really enjoyed Nagasarete Airanto, it was funny and entertaining for it’s 26 episode run. These shows are great to watch as long as you don’t go in expecting too much. It’s just a cute funny little story with some good fan service if you are interested in that.
I really loved the character design on many of them, I especially loved the voice actress (aka – Seiyu) that played Ayane:
The Seiyu’s name is: Yukari Tamura. She did such a great job giving life to this character, here is a YouTube clicp that you need to at least hear the voice acting in the first minute or two. It’s Ayane (above) looking for her sister. She’s screaming “Onee-sama” which is the respectful Japanese word for older sister.
I recently finished another couple anime series and I may finish another one or two in the next day or two so I may post about them as well. I don’t know why I haven’t been posting more about anime since it’s a pretty big part of my entertainment life. Maybe I was still too hung up on World of Warcraft at the time.
What is Kawaii? Basically it’s the Japanese word for “cute”. It’s pronounced:
Ka (with a long A sound like in KAA)
wa (again, long A sound like in “water”)
ii (just say the letter E Hold this longer then the other two syllables)
Click HERE to hear it pronounced by some very silly guys from the anime “All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku“.
If you see a cute looking cat, called “neko” in Japanese, you can say: “Neko no kawaii desu” which means “The cat is cute”. So why am I making a blog entry about this word?
In Japan the concept of cute has a much larger social meaning then it does in America. We may say “That cat is cute” or “Look at the cute baby” but it doesn’t go much further then this. The idea of dwelling on the cuteness of something brings up images of being childish.
In Japan there is a more accepting view of cute and many people desire for cute things in all areas such as clothes, cars, electronics, and even food. Yes, it’s not uncommon to have food prepared in a cute way:
Little bunnies and pigs in your bento? Why not?
Here are some examples showing ‘kawaii’ in action as only the Japanese can do it:
(Aruru from the anime Utawarerumono)
(Yuki Nagato from Haruhi Suzumiya no Yuutsu)
Even if the original idea or character is not thought of as being cute you can count on the Japanese to come up with a cute version to enjoy.
 Traditional Vampire from Nosferatu |
 Hazuki from Tsukuyomi -Moon Phase- |
 Gaara from Naruto |
 Cute dancing chibi Gaara |
The specific area I’m going to be showing examples from is how kawaii is used in pop music, something you don’t see much of in America. This also gives me the ability to add some more videos to my site. Fun to look at and I don’t have to upload and host the files.
The first few are from Ai Otsuka who I have about three albums from. She has some of my favorite songs that I would call kawaii. Very light-hearted happy songs that make you feel good.
Ai Otsuka -- Chu-Lip
Ai Otsuka -- Frienger
Next is Aya Matsuura. This video is the first I heard of here when I found it on YouTube. The song is called Momoiro Kataomoi, “momo” is the Japanese word for peach so that’s why she is working in a peach canning factory. This is another one of those songs that’s hard to get out of your head after hearing it.
Aya Matsuura -- Momoiro Kataomoi
For pure sugar overload of something being almost sickly sweet and cute I don’t think you can find something more then Kawaii then Sakuranbo Kiss by Kotoko. It’s so over the top I can’t say I really like it but wanted to include it in the list.
KOTOKO -- Sakuranbo Kiss
As you may have noticed, so far all of the artists I’m posting are female. It’s not that this idea of kawaii does not appeal to males but they usually are only on the consuming side and usually don’t try to act cute.One of the most famous all-girl groups in Japan was ZONE which was together from 1999 -- 2005 and which put out about 6 albums, 5 DVD’s, and a large number of very popular singles. They also were more of a rock-pop group and played their own instruments. They were also one of the first Jpop groups I heard of about three or four years ago and I was an instant fan of theirs. This is one of my favorite songs of theirs:
ZONE -- Good Days
I really like ZONE as you just can’t get their songs out of your head, they are so catchy. I also believe that their bassist (Sakae Maiko) is easily one of the CUTEST women I’ve ever seen. (cute > beauty)
ZONE -- Sotsugyou
One of the most famous Jpop groups in America is Puffy AmiYumi, I like their music but I can’t say it’s a favorite of mine. I do have a few albums of theirs but aside from the title song to the Teen Titans this next clip is the only one I wanted to share:
Puffy AmiYumi-Nice Buddy!
The last clip I had isn’t a music video, it’s a scene from a very funny anime called Ichigo Mashimaro which basically in English means Strawberry Marshmellow. It’s about a group of 4 young girls and one of the girls older sisters.
In this scene one of the young girls called Matsuri-chan has made plans to get together to study with one of the other girls. The other girl is embarrassed about it and doesn’t want all of them to know about it so she asked Matsuri-chan to come over without letting the others find out. She is trying to leave without letting them know why but as Matsuri-chan is a very timid and honest girl she’s very bad about lying.
The older girl, Nobue-chan, is an example of the Japanese love of cute things. Nobue-chan also shows that she has “moe” for cat girls and tricks Matsuri-chan into putting on a cat eared hat, a tail, and little bells. Moe, pronounced “mo-eh” is Japanese slang for a certain type of fetish or desire. Someone can be a moe for girls in maid uniforms or one in glasses. Nobue-chan likes kawaii cat girls. Not in a perverted sexual way but as in:
“Are wa neko no kanojo wa totemo kawaii desu.”
(That cat-girl is very cute.)
Ichigo Mashimaro -- Nya scene
**James
