The Cybercurmudgeon's Obligatory Blog

Skype (rhymes with type) is an free, no spyware internet telephony application that as they claim "just works" and is available for Windows, Mac, Linux, and even Pocket PC's. It's a relatively new player in the field, but they are making a big impression in the industry.

Skype lets you make voice "calls" from pc to pc for free, with better ease of use, sound quality, and reliability than any of the major players I've tried so far (like Net2Phone, ICQ, AIM, and MSN). I have made US to Japan pc to pc calls with excellent results.

This app rocks! I really can't say enough good things about it. Its a sad state of affairs when the best self styled slogan available is "it works", but that's just what Skype does and does it well. For those of us who have slaved over a hot firewall beating other telephony apps into submission, Skype is a refreshing change. No one I know had any problems getting it to work regardless of connection or firewall - no manual cofiguration required. It even works well with (shudder) dialup!

Skype also features free conference calls, instant messaging, and file transfers. For a fee, you can make pc to telephone calls worldwide at rates generally lower than your local teleco's. IMHO this is a must have app! Download from http://www.skype.com/.

Can you hear you local teleco scream - good :-).



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If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself (look closely).

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If you like horror and black humor, its a safe bet you will like Shawn of the Dead. The trailer alone made me want to see it, and the reviews are overwhelmingly positive. Even George Romero (remember, creator of the X of the Dead series) likes it.

So far as I can tell, it's already been released in the UK and is available on DVD (there at least) , but premieres in North America this weekend. Here is the very basic plot - it's the cliff notes version of the one on the site without some of the spoilers. Don't bitch if it's not a perfect translation - just deal.

Shawn is your basic slacker in his late 20's who's dreams seem to have passed him by - in fact just about everything has passed him by. He has no real goals or ambitions, except ignoring his girlfriend to hang out with his slacker friends at the local pub (it's set in England kiddies, which I think works well based on the trailer). Then one day, the dead decide to walk the earth and Shaun (who is a decent guy at heart) realizes he needs to organize his friends to fight the zombies and save his girlfriend. If the movie is half as good as the trailer you should laugh your ass off.

Check out the movie site at http://uip.co.uk/romzom/ to learn more about the plot, watch the trailer, hear the sound track, and play the game. Go left and right in the bar then move your cursor over the scene to find and activate the goodies (it will make sense when you goto the web site - promise).

It (and I) will be shuffling into theatres this Friday, September 24, 2004. I'll see you there (I'll be the one eating your brain, and probably starving to death :-)

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Ok, maybe you're cheap. Maybe you're broke (odd that in this society you can be broke but have a 3 GHz machine with $300 video card and a $50 monthly broadband fee, but I digress). Or maybe you think your risk of virus or hacking is too low to warrant shelling out the bucks to protect your machine (if so, your friends just might spring for that sterilization procedure you have your eye on - we can only hope). Regardless, you can provide a solid level of protection for your machine free, that's right, I said free.

Listed below are some of the best free ways I know to help protect your machine - these are full or in some cases limited versions of the associated retail products, but not crippleware. There is no excuse not to protect yourself when tools of this caliber are available free of charge. It's not a matter of if you will be attacked, its a matter of whether you can repel the attack when it comes. FYI, except for the antivirus package, I have personally used the following programs with good results. I did do a quick check on the web to verify the antivirus program is generally well received and SHOULD be safe and effective. As always, YMMV (the free versions are generally for non commercial use - you have been warned).

The quoted descriptions below are from the web sites - I make NO claim as to the accuracy of these comments (my lawyer made me say that). I can say all the programs are well reviewed and updated regularly ( a very important aspect of protection software).

AVG Anti-Virus: http://free.grisoft.com/freeweb.php/doc/2/
"AVG Anti-Virus FREE Edition is the well-known anti-virus protection tool. AVG Anti-Virus FREE is available free-of-charge to home users for the life of the product! Rapid virus database updates are available for the lifetime of the product, thereby providing the high-level of detection capability that millions of users around the world trust to protect their computers. AVG Anti-Virus FREE is easy-to-use and will not slow your system down (low system resource requirements)".

Spybot - Search and Destroy: http://www.safer-networking.org/en/download/index.html
"Spybot - Search & Destroy can detect and remove spyware of different kinds from your computer. Spyware is a relatively new kind of threat that common anti-virus applications do not yet cover. If you see new toolbars in your Internet Explorer that you didn't intentionally install, if your browser crashes, or if you browser start page has changed without your knowing, you most probably have spyware. But even if you don't see anything, you may be infected, because more and more spyware is emerging that is silently tracking your surfing behavior to create a marketing profile of you that will be sold to advertisement companies. Spybot-S&D is free, so there's no harm in trying to see if something snooped into your computer, too :)"

Spywareblaster:
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html (Note Spybot and Spywareblaster should be used together, not one or the other - they offer different but complimentary protection)
"Spyware, adware, browser hijackers, and dialers are some of the fastest-growing threats on the Internet today.By simply browsing to a web page, you could find your computer to be the brand-new host of one of these unwanted fiends!The most important step you can take is to secure your system. And SpywareBlaster is the most powerful protection program available. Prevent the installation of ActiveX-based spyware, adware, browser hijackers, dialers, and other potentially unwanted pests. "

ZoneAlarm: http://www.zonelabs.com/ (select "Free ZoneAlarm And Trails" then "ZoneALarm Free Download")
"Award-winning PC firewall protects against hackers, viruses, worms, and other Internet threats."

There are lots of other excellent utilities and services available for free - many do allow donations so consider it if you use them for the long term. Do I have to spoon feed you everything? Get of you lazy virtual ass and put that google search engine to good use. Sheeesh.

Comments on your experiences with these programs or suggestions for the list are as always appreciated.


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That's right - nobody reads my dumb blog - and I'm going to prove it. Keep reading, and you will find out how. You see, I'm going to prove once and for all this blog is, as my first post alluded to, a waste of my time. How am I going to prove it you ask. Simple. Just check the comments for this post. Zero right? The ole goose egg. Nada. Zilch. Negatory good buddy. And that's really too bad. Want to know why it's to bad? Well I'll tell you why anyway. You see, I just happen to have some gmail invites, that right my little spammers, coveted gmail invites that will allow you to have your email poked and prodded by the great google machine. So I tell you what I'm going to do. I'm going to save at least one of those invites for the first person to leave a comment (with email address) for this post within one week of the date of publication. You post it, you get it. It's that simple. Add if I have any left by the time the next lurker leaves a comment (and email address), they just might get one too. Remember, I only guarantee the first comment (with email address) for this post within one week of the date of publication will get an invite. As for the rest, only time will tell. Now don't you wish you had read this drivel sooner :-).

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Yes my little FPS addicts, the demo is out. Now you can try out the latest PC carnage fest before plunking down $55 just to discover you need to buy a $300 video card for it to run properly. And that kiddies, is the primary reason PC gaming is on a steep decline and why I broke down after twenty years and bought my first console gaming unit - and even then its just a PC in a black box with gimmicked USB ports, but I digress :-).

Anyway, to get your hands on this puppy, click on http://www.doom3.com/ and select "DEMO" for a rather long list of download mirror sites to choose from. But be forewarned, it's a whopping 461 MB and everyone and their brother are trying to download it - its might take a while. But isn't worth it to reach out and frag someone?

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"CNN and CBS, they have their place I guess. But when in doubt, send in the BBC" (with apologies to Tom Lehrer).

Seriously, in my experience the national news organizations often fall short when it comes to non-browser access, and especially international news (after all, we are supposed to be a global village). IMHO, there is one news site that is head and shoulders above the rest in both access and international coverage, and that's the venerable BBC. Burger King may claim you can have it your way, but the BBC delivers.

So what do they offer? I thought you'd never ask.

• International news that may cover places you haven't even heard of (especially if you are an American :-), organized by region: http://www.bbc.co.uk/.

• RSS with seventeen feeds by region and subject: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/help/3223484.stm.

• Email breaking news alerts: http://www.bbc.co.uk/email/breakingnews.

• Desktop breaking news alerts. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/help/3533099.stm.

• Desktop ticker: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/help/3223354.stm.

• PDA and mobile phones: http://www.bbc.co.uk/mobile (unlike many combination access points for these devices, this one really does work properly on both).
  

You must admit, not too shabby - and yes I really have used ALL these access methods. (Please keep in mind that web addresses do change, so check the site directly if any of the sub-addresses listed above break).

I'm not saying not other news organizations don't offer some of these services, but its rare to offer as many forms of access or provide international coverage as well as the BBC. No matter where you are or your mode of access, the BBC keeps you informed, so do yourself a favor and give it a try.

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By now, you've seen the ads for SCATWOT (sounds like a freaky porn film), which opened nationwide yesterday. I won't rehash the trailers, but you might not know its major influences are Fritz Lang's "Metropolis", the old "Buck Rogers" serials, and Max Fletcher's theatrical "Superman" cartoons. Good stuff, well two out of three - you can figure out which two :-). Also, except for a small number of props the actors physically interact with, the entire movie is CG, shot on a blue screen.

But this ain't a movie review, kiddies. I want to let you know the web site, http://www.skycaptain.com/, has a pretty decent (albeit somewhat difficult to control) flying game based on the movie. Its about 43 Meg, so be warned if you still use "shudder" dial-up. Believe it or not, there is a Mac version too.

The game has two unlocked missions, and the ability to upgrade your plane and unlock new missions as you gain "points" by completing missions and challenges. You can "challenge" other players by making a wager and beating their time on the same mission (this is not a real time challenge, you just fly "against" their best time and you don't have to accept challenges). After unlocking three levels, you can even enter a tournament. You have to "register" the game, (you must register and login through the game to play it) but you can use bogus email address, city, etc and leave most of the short signup menus blank. I do suggest you enter your real age, especially if over 18.

You can download other goodies as well (PC only), including but not limited to themes and the "Flying Legion Dispatch" application which (among other things) lets you receive challenges in real time. Explore the site, there is even an online chat (no download required).

Why not give it a try, the price is certainly right? Defend the skies - and post some pointers if you discover you're a natural born stick and rudder man.


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Tako is Japanese for Octopus by BTW. Without a doubt http://www.8legged.com/ featuring Chef Tako the Octopus is one of the weirdest, entertaining, often informative, and most difficult to describe web sites I have ever seen.

Imagine Alton Brown of Food Networks "Good Eats" program was an animated Octopus with his own cooking show (Deep Fried Live!) and web site. I mean, who hasn't imagined that :-). If you can't imagine that, I'm not even going to try to explain the site further. All I can say is if you like to cook or are just curious about it, give it a try. The site does not like the term "edutainment", but its' a good description of the well written and presented content. Watch Chef Tako whip up a masterpiece while you click on links to "learn more about it".

One last thing, if you think that description came out of left field, one of the sites co-founders has penned several episodes of Good Eats and it shows :-).

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So you have a yahoo mail account. You and a million other email jockeys. But how often do you use it? If you hate web based email like I do, and hate even more to actually plunk down the green stuff for pop3 access, the answer is probably not much. But consider this, with the advent of the freakin huge GMail accounts, services like hotmail and yahoo are stepping up to the plate, storage size wise that is. Of course with GMAIL invites scarce, and what should be your aversion to having GMail poke and prod your email like it was your genitals during the draft board medical exam (oh yeah, that riote of passage will make a comeback, mark my words), Yahoo mail looks better and better, except for lack of free pop3 access. Well my little spammers, free Yahoo email pop3 access can be yours.

YahooPOPs is a free utility that runs in the background on your machine and, well, lets let the creators of the app tell you in there own words; "This application emulates a POP3 server and enables popular email clients like Outlook, Netscape, Eudora, Mozilla, etc., to download email from Yahoo! accounts. We do not go against the license agreements of Yahoo! Mail. This application is completely legitimate and well within the realms of legal software. How do we do it you ask? Well, this application is more like a gateway. It provides a POP3 server interface at o­ne end to talk to email clients and an HTTP client (browser) interface at the other which allows it to talk to Yahoo!"

I've been using it for several months on Windows XP with absolutely no problems. You can download Yahoopops from http://yahoopops.sourceforge.net/. Give it a try and if you like it, consider making a donation to the guys that provided this very useful piece of software. Donation details are on the website.

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I'm going to tell you about GITS2: Innocence. I promise. But it may take a bit if reading to get there - bear with me. If your idea of anime is something like "Speed Racer" or "Pokeman" prepare to be pleasantly surprised. Let me start by saying the "ghost" referred to in the title would roughly translate as "soul" or "consciousness" in the western (as opposed to the eastern) world, and "shell" would roughly translate as "cybernetic body" or "machine". So, you could think of the title as "Soul In The Machine" (with apologies to Tracy Kidder). Glad we cleared that up :-).

GITS2: Innocence is the sequel to the critically acclaimed theatrical release anime "Ghost In The Shell" (1997), based on the manga by Masamune Shirow. BTW, today I lucked into an English translation of the original manga at the local used book store for half price (and I might add in mint condition). I mention this because IMHO anime based on manga is usually very different in look and feel and often plot as well. If you find an anime you enjoy based on manga, it may be worth the effort for you to track down the manga. You may literally get two very different stories. I can't guarantee you will like them both, but even then I often find the different approach to the same subject matter interesting. If you think movies in the US drastically differ from the books they are based on, you ain't seen nothing yet.

Ok, I promised I'd tell you about the movie. GTIS at its core, IMHO, is a thoughtful and action filled look at an oft asked question in the SF genre, how much human can you take out and how much machine can you put in before your humanity is lost? GITS: Innocence appears to expand that concept into more familiar SF Genre territory, if the humanity is lost or was never there in the first place, exactly what is there? The subject matter might be argued as well worn, but the thoughtful approach of GITS is not.

Most of the main characters appear to be in GITS2: Inncocence, and it uses the events in the original GITS as a springboard, so there appears to be good continuity between the original and the sequel. For detailed information about the GITS world and characters click on http://www.manga.com/ghost/ghost.html (GITS) and http://www.gofishpictures.com/GITS2/ (GITS2).

The good news is GTIS2: Innocence was released earlier this year in Japan and will arrive in US theatres Friday, September 17, 2004. The bad news is that once again Hollywood has a foreign property that could be huge in the US, but has gone out of its way to make it difficult for most people to see it. The film is in "limited release", which roughly translates to "it’s probably not showing near you". For that matter, you have probably never even heard of it until now, given the minimal advertising the film received.. For a list of theatres and times click on the GITS2 website listed above and select "Click For Theatre Locations" on the bottom of the movie poster.

If it’s half as good as the first movie, it will be well worth tracking it down - and of course there is always DVD, if it's released. But wait, there's more. A TV series based on the manga/anime called GITS: Stand Alone Complex aired a few years ago in Japan. As with GITS2: Innocence it appears to be a continuation of GITS, with many of the same characters and plot elements. It will find a home on the Cartoon Network starting November 6, 2004, so remember to add it to your TIVO's Season Pass. For more info on GITS: SAC click on http://www.ghostintheshell.tv/.

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Ah, pinball. You know, those funky, flashy, often gaudy and always loud electromechanical marvels of a bygone era. Even today, they still have an almost cult following. Here's a way you can save your quarters and relive the heady days of your (or your Father's or Grandfather's :-) youth.

Recently. I picked up a copy of Microsoft Pinball Arcade on a whim for $2.50 on clerance at Wal-Mart, and was surprised to learn it's a pretty decent pinball simulation, inspite of it's roughly 1998 original release date. FYI, I installed it on Windows XP with no problems.

The marketing gimmick for the package is the tables offered are real, "classic" pinball tables for the 30's to present (well, classic here being defined as "manufactured by "Gottlieb" :-). Anyway, the older tables are interesting, the newer tables are decent, and its a steal at $2.50.

But here is the kicker, if you can't find it or $2.50 is more than your mom (or wife) will let you spend, you can download a free table from the package at http://www.microsoft.com/games/pinball/downloads.htm. I discovered this while investigating the related web link the program offers. Again, I installed the freebie on Windows XP with no problems. You can also ownload pinball back glass art as wallpaper. If you like pinball, or just want a decent free game, go for it. Its about time we got something from Microstuff that actually works!

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No, no, its not an insult. Pluck is a free RSS reader that integrates with Internet Explorer. Yeah, yeah, I know IE is evil, what about FireFox, etc, etc, etc. Look, the bottom line is, for the moment at least. Microstuff's IE rules the roost. So, just deal. Now that we have that out of the way, it's time to get Plucked.

What the heck is RSS you ask, and more importantly why should I care? Fair questions one and all. RSS stands for "Really Simple Syndication" and in a nutshell is a simple way to automatically track what's new on any web site that implements it (many if not most most popular sites do) . For a more detailed explanation of RSS click here: http://www.mezzoblue.com/archives/2004/05/19/what_is_rssx/

Pluck runs in the background, automatically checking for new content from the RSS friendly sites you specify and maintains lists of what you have and have not read. It sure beats the old "method of exhaustion" search through web site after web site looking for what's new. Pluck was recently given CNET and ZDNet Editors Choice Awards for RSS readers, in part because Pluck has other features not offered in most RSS readers. Pluck can create persistant eBay and Google queries (very cool I must add), share web pages and notes with friends, and share and access bookmarks via the web. Best of all, Pluck conatins no adware or spyware.

One caveat, its official status is beta (but hey, so is ICQ's and its been that way for years :-). When I tried to install the latest update (you would of course be doing a clean install) it really screwed up my RSS links. However, I had saved a copy of the previous installtion app, so I deleted the new, reinstalled the old, and everything, including the links I added, were back to normal. Proceed at your own risk (my attorney made me say that). Learn more and download at http://www.pluck.com.

If you have any recommendations for RSS readers based on personal experience , pro or con, please let us know. Thanks.

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No, it's not that kind of lube, please put that thing away! I must admit, it would be a good brand name for personal lubricant, but this stuff has other uses.

I'm always on the lookout for good lube (insert joke here). Without good lubrication those mechanical marvels we all rely on would be screeching, smoking, useless pieces of junk in no time at all. WD-40 is ok for what it does, but as often as not you need the heavy stuff, the sticky stuff, the messy stuff. Well, at least until now you did (for those who jump in with cries of "aerosol lithium grease", my experience with it has been less than satisfactory). I stumbled upon this stuff in my local Wal-Mart's automotive section, and I just had to try it. How did I like it? Let me put it this way, within a week I bought four more cans of the stuff and put them on the shelf for a squeaky day.

Let me quote from the can; "PRIMIS® Light Viscosity LubeGel delivers concentrated gel lubricant precisely where you want without the mess that comes with typical aerosol-type spray lubricants. There is no mess with our unique, patent-pending delivery system - no overspray, no dripping, and no waste!". I couldn't have put it better myself. A quick search of the web found this site http://www.iqproducts.com/new/primis/primis_lubegel.htm, where I discovered they have several different formulas available including Heavy, Medium, Light (what I have), Silicone and Lithium Grease. I looking forward to trying the other "flavors" (yes, even the lithium grease :P).

If you have the need to lubricate things on a regular or even irregular basis (again, insert joke here) without the mess, give this stuff a try. I paid about $3 a can for it, and IMHO it is worth every penny. YMMV, but I think you will like it. Check out the web site for a picture of the can (because lets face it, probably no one at Wal-Mart or even your local automotive supply will know what you are talking about :-). Happy hunting, slick.

(If you have a favorite lube - now, now, you know what I mean - why not post it here for others to consider? Thanks. And if you actually read this far, I might as well tell you the best water based lubricant for sex - saliva :-)

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Ever wonder why people do the things they do? Ever wonder why you do what you do, especially those things that come back to bite you on the ass? Ever wonder what the answer is to Rodney King’s question (assuming you remember it - more on that later)? Unless your medication is superbly tuned, of course you have. Well, I have a simple, basic theory. But in this age of rampant political correctness, dare I voice it?

If the land of free speech has taught us anything, it’s saying what you really think is the one of the best ways to destroy your reputation and career. But, since I don’t particularly care what people think (I’m much more interested in WHY they think what they do), I will tale the plunge and steel myself for incoming flames.

The following is presented tongue firmly in cheek, but I do stand behind it. Since language is a poor means of communication, let’s dabble in a bit of semantics. When I say stupid, I don’t mean drooling stupid, just ordinary everyday garden variety stupid (isn’t that enough). And when I say crazy, I don’t mean ECT crazy, just ordinary everyday garden variety crazy (isn’t that enough). And finally, when I say scum, I mean people do the voodoo that they do, even apparently cooperative or altruistic acts, because it provides them with some form of pleasure, not because it is the right thing to do. We have big hind brains and little fore brains – size does matter :-).

Cybercurmudgeon's Law of the Human Condition:

People are the same all over - they’re scum.

(We all act in our perceived, but not necessarily, best interests. This makes earnest cooperation a dicey proposition at best. One for all and all for one? I wouldn’t bet the farm on it.)

Corollaries:

1) Men are stupid.

(Franklin Ajaye said it best; “Some guys think with their dick. My dick thinks for me”. Ladies, you know it’s true for 99.9% of them :-), at least from your perspective, but don’t start applauding until you read #2)

2) Women are crazy.

(Guys, you know its true for 99.9% of them :-), at least from your perspective. Baskin-Robbin’s may have thirty-one flavors, but women have thirty-one personalities, one for each day of the month! Seriously, call it society or physiology, but female grey matter and male grey matter have externally observable differences. For most people the question seems to be are the differences better or worse? If you’re a woman the answer is probably better. If you’re a guy the answer is probably worse. If you’re pragmatic the answer is probably neither, just different and very confusing to the “Y” chromosome.)

In light of this information, the answer to Rodney King’s oft ridiculed but highly relevant question; “Can’t we all just get along?”, is regrettably the 14th and 15th letters of the alphabet, in that order (short of insanely great medication, bioengineering, or divine intervention – but that’s probably a long shot at best :-).

What do you think about my assertions – truths, lies, or fairy tales? Am I full of wisdom or full of something else? Put your keyboard where your opinion is and post a reply – why should I have all the fun?
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Ok boys and girls, If you have even the vaguest knowledge of the SCO Linux lawsuits, then this is absolutely a must click. If you don't laugh until it hurts you probably don’t have a sense of humor. Ok maybe not until it hurts, but trust me, this is funny stuff.

This much appreciated laugh comes from the fine people who publish the web comic "User Friendly", one of the longer running and better web comics out there. UF presents the trials and tribulations of Columbia Internet, "the friendliest, hardest-working, and most neurotic little Internet Service Provider in the world." Simply put, UF is to the open source community what Dilbert is to the techno cubicle crowd.

The link to the specific cartoon is http://ars.userfriendly.org/cartoons/?id=20040905 (if you have no idea what SCO and Linux are, then you won't understand why this cartoon is hysterically funny).

Whether or not you click the link above, do yourself a favor and check out the rest of the site at http://www.userfriendly.org/.

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Megatokyo is a webcomic started in 2000 about two college age fanboys, Piro and Largo, who goto E3 and wind up in Japan before you can say vaperware - and they're still there over 600 strips later (with every strip available online).

So what does happen when two American Otaku goto Japan on a whim and have no money to get home? Let's just say SEGA is the root of all (well much) evil, sections of Tokyo really are destroyed by monsters on a regular basis, you should ph33r /\/\y skillz, and just about everything is not quite what it seems to be.

If you like computers, video games, anime, manga, or japanese pop culture in general then you found your comic holy grail. If you want any chance of understanding what's going on then trust me and start at the beginning. Read twenty or so a day (it wont take long) and you'll be upto date in a little more than a month - and going into withdrawl as you anxiously await the next. It's worth the effort - I know. Oh yeah, Piro is a guy - really - trust me.

What do you mean that's too much trouble? OK you lazy bastard, here is concise summary of the main characters and what's happened so far http://users.pandora.be/koen.van.baelen/megatokyo.html. Happy now? (Note: there is currently no summary of characters or plot on the megatokyo site, the posted links are under construction.)

If your skillz should be ph33r3d, click over to http://www.megatokyo.com.

And try to relax - they have a RSS feed so you won't miss a single one :-).

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So, you want your email poked and prodded like it was your ass laid bare for a little grey dude with big black eyes. But (pardon the pun), you don't have a coveted GMail invite.

Well, if you feel lucky, punk, and have some some time to kill (specifically 4:00 - 5:00 pm PST on Tuesday, September 7th) you could be one of the lucky 2000 to feel pressure on the roof of thier mouth.

And yes, this is the real deal, it's not a joke link to some anal probe web site. Really (and my apologies if you were disappointed). Check it out here. The latest info as of this post was in the Friday, September 03, 2004 entry.

http://kevinrose.typepad.com

If you get one, how about a post to let me know. Good luck.

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It's too good to be true - well thats what I thought when I first encountered FreeiPods.com. SIgn up for an easily cancellable free trial offer from a variety of vendors, convince five of you friends to do the same, and - BAM - a free iPod is yours, with free shipping no less.

Yeah, right. Well, maybe right.

Check out this article from Wired magazine and try this ENTIRELY at your own risk! And if you do, how about posting your experience, good or bad. Thanks.

http://www.wired.com/news/mac/0,2125,64614,00.html



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Yup, you can bank on it. Never heard of anime or manga? That will change, and soon. Been exposed or heard of it, but dismissed it as pop culture bubble gum? Hey, everyone makes mistakes :-).

So far, its been a stealthy invasion, but the main force is on its way. Trust me, we are at the crest of a wave of anime and manga that will soon wash over this country. So pull out the pop surfboard and come along for the ride.

Why take my word for it? Check out this article from the September 2004 Wired magazine. The giants of anime ARE coming (and I must add manga too).

http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.09/anime.html


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