We love her even when she’s singing gibberish.
BACK TO BLACK (Original Lyrics ;-))
He left no time to regret
Kept his dick wet
With his same old safe bet
Me and my head high
And my tears dry
Get on without my guy
You went back to what you knew
So far removed from all that we went through
And I tread a troubled track
My odds are stacked
I’ll go back to black
(more…)
Well, I took the plunge again with UPC. We are on the verge of buying a Full HD LCD TV and I know that the analogue signal will look like sh*t on it - so we need digital. To clarify: I hate UPC but they are the only cable TV supplier in Amsterdam that also offer BBC1 and 2 - an absolute must for me (KPN’s Digitenne doesn’t).
So, for digital TV, UPC offers a normal digital package and an HD package - both available with and without a built in DVR harddisk recorder. I decided I’d like the recorder. So what are the prices?
The Royaal Digital package costs: € 13/month
The Royaal Digital HD package costs: € 22/month
That’s a € 9/month difference - for what exactly?
Not for receiving everything in HD, no… the HD package is identical to the digital package except you can connect it to the TV with HDMI instead of scart, which makes no difference to the signal except for 4 extra HD channels.
I would have thought UPC would have made some kind of subsidy deal with the HD TV manufacturers to offer HD channels at an attractive price (rather than an exhorbitant one for diddly squat) to encourage people to spend their cash on new hardware and get addicted to UPC channels.
But then, UPC’s way of conducting business is something that has always baffled me. When, oh when will they be faced with some true competition in the Amsterdam area. Please, OPTA, make ‘em sweat!
I’m spending so much time researching productivity tools for my new iPod Touch that I’m not getting anything done… pffff…
Nederlands is wellicht niet mijn sterkste taal - maar ligt het feit dat ik deze reclameborden van Praxis niet begrijp aan mij of aan mijn ‘gebrekkig’ Nederlands?
In an attempt to heal some of the damage done to the image of PC’s by Apple’s “I’m a PC and I’m a Mac” adverts, Microsoft has embarked upon a new advertising campaign. Their concept is to kill the stereotype of a PC user as a clueless nerd in a brown suit. To be honest, I think this is a pretty good response to the Apple ads - but I’m still sticking with Apple.
By the way, the actor that portrays the PC in the Mac ads is actually a Mac user in real life.
As I eagerly await the arrival of my iPod Touch second generation, I upgraded to iTunes 8 today as it is required for the iPod Touch to sync with. I’d read about some problems with iTunes 8, but decided to risk it anyway and so far so good - nothing buggy happening.
I like some of the changes version 8 has brought, including the grid album cover view.
But one of the most talked about features is the addition of Genius playlists. Basically, iTunes analyzes your library, sends the information to the Apple Store (anonymously) and feeds back information about your tracks to the Genius in your library. Then, if you play a track and click the Genius button, it will generate an “intelligent” playlist of music you should like if you were playing that track to start with.
I’ve experimented with it and have been pleasantly surprised by the playlists Genius compiles. They ain’t ‘arf bad really. OK, so there were some weird recommendations in there for my more obscure artists. But to give you an example, I told it to make a 25-song playlist based on “This Is the Day” by The The (one of my favourite bands). This is the list it came up with (with suggestions from my own library). Click on the image to view a larger (legible) version.
Not bad really. And then, if you open up the Genius Sidebar it will give you recommendations for songs you might like from the iTunes Music Store which you don’t yet have. Clever little bugger that Steve Jobs isn’t he?
Many people are already praising the Genius function quite simply because it is enabling them to (re)discover music they already have in their libraries but never listen to. Seeing as I have 27594 songs in my library, chances are big that I may even hear songs I’ve never heard before! ;-)
Recently PayPal restricted my account because I needed to verify various information with them. They claim it’s due to the European Regulations on Money Laundering - but there are people who think that’s just a scam to convince us to give PayPal direct debit access to our bank accounts. (more…)
Another gadget dilemma is haunting me. It’s hard being addicted to gadgetry whilst trying to be just slightly financially responsible at the same time. It’s that damn iPhone 3G luring me into its Apple lair of beautifully crafted interface and apps - to integrate seamlessly with my iCal, Address Book and my generally sleek Mac experience.
I’ve greatly enjoyed having an all-in-one smartphone since I got the Nokia E61 (E61i in the meantime) but the iPhone interface appeals so much more than Symbian S60 and I can’t wait to get my hands on those apps and dirty the screen with my greasy fingertips. However, something is holding me back. (more…)
As far as shopping-addictions go, nothing beats wandering around a book shop, leafing through the latest paperbacks with appealing covers (yes, I judge books by their covers quite regularly). Or the thrill of spotting that one really original, cool pair of sneakers on the shelf between all the crap at Foot Locker. And then walking out the door, laden with bags, just waiting to be unwrapped and repeatedly admired at home. Or, as the case may be, thrown into a cupboard to be forgotten for years (as is the sorry fate of a few too many purchases in this world). (more…)
There’s a Kate Nash clone on the scene. Another London-accented songstress to join the clan. Last.fm offered me “Faces Going Places” by Jose Vanders as something which might appeal to me if I like Kate Nash (which Last.fm of course knows I do). It did appeal to me, immediately, but at the same time it sounded almost a little too much like Miss Nash.
Vanders even does the, by now Nash-trademark, “ro-oh-oh-oad” staccato chopping up of words, but despite Vanders’ young age (she’s a mere 18), I’m not sure who came first. They appear to have both released albums (Vanders an EP) in 2007. According to her MySpace blog she now works at HMV on Oxford Street - so she hasn’t hit the big time yet, but she has a very impressive-looking website already and her own merchandise.