Bloodis' TF2 Blog - ETF2L S20 - Week 1 Premiership overview

February 19, 2015, 11:03 am

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News: "Übersexuals" have replaced their demoman "WARHURYEAH" (England) with a new, but highly known replacement for him, as "numlocked" (England) takes the place in "Übersexuals" for the rest of the season, he has said to not play anymore after this season but the future remains as unknown however as people would expect him to still continue regardless.

Season 20 has already finished it's first week, what had happened at that time in Premiership however and what are the scores?

Week 1: cp_badlands and cp_process_final

"LEGO" (Denmark) Vs. "Ze Knutsson Rollerbladers" (Sweden/Finland)

cp_badlands - 0-5
cp_process_final - 0-5

Match Page

Week 1 kicks off with a match between a team that nearly got their place in Premiership against a team that placed as second in Season 19, with the surprise of LEGO's main Medic "Beater" (Denmark) being unable to play in this match, and getting replaced by an infamous Medic "LuLu" (Russia), many didn't expect this to turn out, but as LEGO is currently not a fully Danish team anymore they could easily get anybody to play with them how they want.
Ze Knutsson Rollerbladers also had a change in their roster recently before the season started as "Zappis" (Finland) decided to move on from playing TF2 to be an active Counter-Strike: Global Offensive streamer, getting replaced by "Starkie" (England) who has proved to do just as well in the team along with the others.

The match itself was a quite of a disappointment, not that LEGO overall would be a weak team, but that Ze Knutsson Rollerbladers are extremely powerful overall, rolling cp_badlands in about 20 minutes and cp_process_final in 13 minutes.


"L'Avant Garde de Plouvorn" (France) Vs. "Lethal Weapon" (Russia)

cp_badlands - 5-0
cp_process_final - 6-2

Match Page

With the next day comes in the second match in Premiership, with Frenchies who finished off with a 3rd place in last season to compete against Russians who took a slight break after having a rough start in last season, causing them to drop from the season, but are they able to show again what are they made of? Many thought that the Russians would bring a very close match, especially with two legendary sniper players, "Flippy" (France), from "L'Avant Garde de Plouvorn" and "Vic"/"Forsak3n" (Russia) from "Lethal Weapon" battle against each other. Match does start very closely all the way to taking 1/3 of the match time to capture one round for "L'Avant Garde de Plouvorn", with the first 3 rounds in Badlands being very close for both sides but in L'Avant Garde de Plouvorn's favor, Lethal Weapon starts crippling and loses very quickly the rest of their rounds in Badlands. Lethal Weapon is able to show what are they made of in Process however, by at least getting couple rounds to themselves, as the match goes on however both "Forsak3n" and "atomic-" from Lethal Weapon changes their classes in between, from Scout to Pocket soldier as they previously have played more with those classes.

Sadly Lethal Weapon still isn't able to push much against the Frenchies and lose their first match completely.


"E-SHOCK ESPORT" (France) Vs. "Reason Gaming" (EU)

cp_badlands - 2-7
cp_process_final - 0-5

Match Page

"Reason Gaming" starts off their first official match against the infamously known "E-SHOCK ESPORT", but what makes them infamous however? The fact that in last season it was found that their previous Soldier "Baud" (Belgium) had been using aim assist, which along with all other 3rd party programs related to cheating in ETF2L is strictly prohibited and will be punished with a year long ban, however this was a second time when Baud has gotten a ban from ETF2L, and "E-SHOCK ESPORT" have stated that they will still play with Baud, but are going to use a mercenary, a player who is not in the team roster, in every official on his spot. "Reason Gaming" however is famous for their Demoman "kaidus" (England) who is highly known for his ultimately aggressive playstyle and said to be one of the best demomen in TF2, if not the best. He has been able to show that "Reason Gaming" is worth their sponsorship, before the season and with this match, as "E-SHOCK ESPORT" manage to get couple rounds off from "Reason Gaming" at first on Badlands, but "Reason Gaming" wants to show what are they made of and manage to come back from a 2-1 situation all the way to 2-7 just before the timelimit runs up, and continue on with their aggression in Process as they finish up with a 5-0 score.

"Reason Gaming"'s Scout wltrs (Sweden) doing a very huge job at Process for his team as he managed to get nearly twice as much kills than anybody else in his, or in the enemy team.


"CPLAY.Tt" (Germany) Vs. "Übersexuals" (EU)

cp_badlands - 0-3
cp_process_final - 1-6

Match Page

"Übersexuals" coming back to Season 20 to defend their title as they won Premiership in last season, with couple roster changes in their team, as stars from the highly dominant European team "Epsilon eSports" (EU) join the last season's best team, with "KnOxXx" (France), "Mike" (Wales) and "numlocked" (England) getting their places. CPLAY.Tt was able to show that they are worthy of coming to Premiership with the playoffs before the season, as they had not been playing in Season 19 and only got 2nd place in second highest division in Season 18, but are still able to prove that they do bring some challenge to Übersexuals by defending well in Badlands and managing to get a one round off in Process. However Übersexuals still do want to show that they still are a very strong team in this season just as well like in last season and manage to get a win in both maps in their favor.

Pretty normal start for a first week however, not that much of balanced matches yet so far but on the bright side most of the matches are a very great treat to watch as they aren't complete rolls however.

VODs: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLf27BHuLrQCbsyVlfTkE_GqKky07panDq

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Cinephile Confessions - Star Trek: The Motion Picture

February 21, 2015, 9:02 am

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I'm not gonna lie. I'm an honest-to-God Trekkie, primarily thanks to my parents who watched Star Trek and Star Trek: The Next Generation on television whenever it came on (Deep Space Nine and Voyager, not so much). The Star Trek franchise, originally created by Gene Roddenberry, is wildly considered to be one of the biggest cult phenomenons of all time, if not, THE biggest. The original series, unfortunately, came to a sad end when it was cancelled after three seasons, without a conclusion, mind you. It was followed with an animated series made by the folks who also make He-Man and the Masters of the Universe that feature the voices of the original cast. While the stories made for this series were quite imaginative, the animation was anything but top quality, despite all the characters being recognizable. Thankfully, for every single geek who grew up in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the voyages of the Starship Enterprise were anything but over. The folks at Paramount Pictures, including Roddenberry himself, sought an opportunity that there was a possibility of making a feature film continuing said voyages of the Enterprise crew, led by the uncanny Captain James T. Kirk, alongside his faithful first officer Spock, Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy, Scotty, Uhura, and the rest.

In 1979, Paramount Pictures released Star Trek: The Motion Picture into cinemas. It would be the first of what will currently (as of this post) be a total of 12 theatrically released movies based on Roddenberry's Star Trek franchise. This film would be directed by Academy Award-winner Robert Wise, whom prior to this has also directed hit movies such as The Sound of Music (1965, Fox), The Sand Pebbles (1966, Fox), The Haunting (1960, MGM), West Side Story (1961, United Artists), The Andromeda Strain (1971, Universal), and The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951, Fox). Already, he's had a hit winning streak when it comes to directing motion pictures, so did he have a hit with this? Well...

So, the story behind this movie is that an unidentified anomaly is heading towards Earth, right after destroying three Klingon ships. The Earth happens to be the home of the United Federation of Planets, also known simply as the Federation, so guess who is sent to investigate the anomaly? That's right, the now Admiral James Tiberius Kirk (William Shatner), who has been given the duty of taking over the command of the Enterprise's new captain, Decker (Stephen Collins), despite being three years since the good admiral took command of a Federation starship, and the ship's interior has been completely redesigned to keep it in service, to which Decker reminds Kirk that this version of the Enterprise is entirely new, and not like the one he served on. Nevertheless, the Enterprise crew sets out to confront this entity and declare peace, not realizing that it wants something more than just a friendly greeting.

The story for this movie is quite fascinating and fitting for the very first Star Trek movie, because the imagination created by Gene Roddenberry translates very well onto the big screen as it did on the original television series, and at the time of release, it was great to see the unflappable and iconic captain and his crew in the theatre. The special effects, unlike the television show, are actually really freakin' good. Unfortunately, even though this is the first Trek movie, it isn't without noticeable flaws, the biggest one being the overall pacing. This movie has a nickname, not just from Star Trek fans, but from a lot of moviegoers who watched the film from beginning to end. That nickname is "Star Trek: The Slow-Motion Picture". That's right, this movie is slow to the point where it'll put anyone suffering from insomnia to sleep in a matter of minutes, because the movie moves as slow as a snail. Considering that this is from an Oscar-winning director of some of the most iconic movies in the film industry's history, you would think that Mr. Wise would know how to get the audience's attention. In fact, the show that the film is primarily based on was an exciting space opera that had its fair share of dramatic and action-packed scenes rolled into an hour-long program. In the movie, what we get is a movie with the pacing of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey (1969, MGM), only in that film, the slow pacing worked in its favor. Here, it just drags the movie on longer than it should, and that is my biggest complaint. There are also some moments in the movie where it just feels a bit...well...silly. but hey, Star Trek as a whole is also known for having some cheesy and silly moments here and there.

This is not a bad start for the franchise's first step into the world of cinema, and it definitely wouldn't be the last, as 9 more movies would follow, including two reboot films in the late 2000s and early 2010s, but there are better Trek films out there, and this is one I would recommend if you're planning to have a Trek movie marathon or if you're a huge fan of Star Trek. On its own, it's a slow moving space picture.

DID YOU KNOW?:

- 12 minutes of extra footage was inserted into TV broadcasts of the movie. These were deleted scenes that didn't make it into the original theatrical release. On the Director's Cut DVD, the deleted scenes can be seen as a bonus feature.

- The film was originally rated G by the Motion Picture Association of America. When the Director's Cut was submitted for certification, the film was re-rated to PG.

- The Director's Cut version of the film is 4 minutes longer than the original theatrical release, not including the deleted scenes.

- The film was made 10 years after the cancellation of the original series.

SuperUnate's Blog - About Me

February 21, 2015, 6:25 pm

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In order to help build friendly bonds on this forum, I'd like to list off some of my interests.

You can do so too, but that's what the welcome section is for, unless you forgot to do so when you posted there.
*I started out using the demo version of Movie Studio Platinum, and then bought Vegas Movie Studio HD 11 and used it ever since.

*I have quite an arsenal of game consoles and games for them. In my room, I have a CRT television with an NES, Sega Genesis (have only 3 games), SNES, Dreamcast (have only 3 games), N64 and PS2. In my basement, I have a Wii U, Xbox 360 and PS3. However, I only use my Wii U and use my 360 and PS3 on special occasions.

*Started gaming when I was 3. My first game was Super Mario 64, and I played it at a hair cut place.

*The types of games/game franchises I'm interested include Super Mario, Sonic the Hedgehog, Fantasy Zone, Kirby, Dynamite Headdy, Team Fortress 2, Portal 1&2, Super Smash Bros., Klonoa, Parodius, Nitrome, Xenoblade Chronicles and Bubble Bobble, Just to name a few.

*Not only am I video Game fanatic, but I actually MAKE my own PC games with a tool called "Game Maker." I have been using the thing since I was 6, believe it or not.

*My games can be found here: http://sandbox.yoyog...users/Supernate. (Keep in mind a majority of the stuff you see is from when I was younger.)

*Most of the influences for my games come from arcade games like the after-fore-mentioned Bubble Bobble, Pengo, Fantasy Zone, Space Harrier, etc.

*When it comes to all my work, I like to make my stuff have a "weird" feel to it.

There you go, if you have anything to reply about, please do so!

(I didn't paste a link to my channel because I don't want to look like I'm begging for attention.)

The Weekly Furnessly - A Diatribe of the PlayStation 2

February 24, 2015, 3:11 am

≫ Next: The Realm of Entropy - Strange Dreams I've Had Lately..

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Hello and welcome to the Weekly Furnessly, content that is hopefully going to be every week. I would have called it the Daily Furnessly except a daily blog would be just too stressful considering that I'm not a very good writer at all. Also the name is a word play, try figuring it out. Usually the stuff is going to be on about video games however sometimes I might talk about something else.

For any younger members of the forum who want to know, well let's just say that I am an old member of Youchew who has been around since 2007. Try to be in the poop tennis section as well as making videos, didn't work out and got too stressed (plus the videos were poor), was one of the earlier article writers and left since the second sentence would explain it all. You may have even seen me being mentioned on RF Generation where I add some European entries to their system since the site is very US biased. Even sprite ripped on the Spriters Resource in the past but got burnt out. For the older ones wondering what happened to me been unhappy yet again for the past month and lately just too busy playing games to get my mind off it (suppose to be playing Sonic Unleashed on the PS3 right now after finishing Vanquish and dreading when it comes to playing a month of Xenoblade Chronicles next month, ouch).

I was thinking of writing a post on the General Video Game Revengance thread about it however I thought that it is going to be too detailed for that thread and a topic that might be well... a bit unpopular. So without further ado.



The PlayStation 2. A console for many is loved for its games and that it was really popular in the early to mid 2000s. NeoGaf call it the King of game consoles alongside Pro Evolution Soccer 5 that is the king of all football games. For some it might even be their first console. While this might be a nice set up to talk about how great it is however I do not feel this way both in the past (bearing in mind that I have been playing games since the late 90s and actually experienced this time) and the present. It isn't to say that it is a bad console because it is not but I am going to explain why I don't have the same happy memories of the console.

Firstly I describe from experience. As mentioned I was there when the hype started, I got myself a Dreamcast for my birthday in September 2000 since the PS1 was dying down, the N64 was nearly dead and the games were hard to find plus I wanted a console that had the Sega goodness of its games and very very good arcade ports (e.g. Soul Calibur, Sega Bass Fishing, Confidential Mission, Crazy Taxi [but stopped working and had to take it back to Computer Exchange the first of many many returns], Virtua Tennis, 18 Wheeler and the not so good but finally played it at home Sega Rally 2). As as well as the graphics were better than any console at the time. Then came the PS2 hype, magazines were hyping up the console to silly levels and not just because it had a DVD player even though much of the hype was to do with that and "graphics" as good as Toy Story with tech demo screenshots. I actually got a tape, that's right a VHS tape from somewhere (for young ones reading, before the days of streaming, downloads, Blu-rays and even DVDs; videos were released on tape) showing the PS2. It might have been from E3, can't remember but it didn't show much. The console had a good design at the time though. One of the games shown was Midnight Club, an early PS2 title and the first footage that was a cutscene, it looked okay but afterwards when it showed the actual gameplay footage, it looked awful. Jaggies everywhere, not very good looking textures, not much draw distance and I think it wasn't smooth. While I didn't think it looked BAD back then, my first thought was after watching it "was it an alpha"? Was it even the same game? It might have also had Smuggler's Run too that looked a bit better, probably also Dead or Alive 2 as well showing off a cutscene. Now I'm not sure if Fantavision was on the video, I do know that it is a launch title and remember it at the time. Since I had a Dreamcast, the graphics looked slightly worse in comparison on the games shown. Bearing in mind it took a couple of years before the PS2 had the mega hits coming such as GTA 3 and Metal Gear Solid 2.

Sega then announced that the Dreamcast was dead and as a result meant that the Dreamcast dropped support. The official magazine didn't even review Sonic Adventure 2 like it promised. So in order to continue gaming, I felt that I had to get a PS2 since by 2001 it had a better library and another DVD player would come in handy but for my bedroom. Due to lack of money from those days, games from me were few and far between and many were gifts. Unlike the PS1, I only managed to get a couple of PS2 magazines with demo discs so much of the games back then I bought blind, played the arcade games or from previous experience. Before the Gamecube in early 2002; got James Bond 007: Agent Under Fire (not bad), Time Crisis II (finally play it at home!), Silent Scope 2 (ditto), Simpsons Road Rage (Crazy Taxi clone that I did enjoy), Virtua Cop Elite Edition (finally able to play a non-Tiger electronics version of the game) and had to wait until it got to £20 and the Platinum range before getting Gran Turismo 3 and slightly later the PAL/Japan only Gran Turismo Concept. Graphically, most weren't the best and had a very dull look on the graphics where it looked desaturated (Time Crisis 2 and Virtua Cop had better contrast in the arcade) with the more colourful ones being GT3/Concept, Agent Under Fire, Simpsons Road Rage (bad loading times though) and Silent Scope 2 had the same contrast as the arcade/Xbox. This was also from a SCART connection too, the best in PAL land at that time and was from a CRT TV. I also remember the slowdown too, with only the GT games not having that or at least noticeable. It was the gameplay however that made me play the games for what they were. So while I was able to enjoy playing the games, the Gamecube hype got to me and by May 2002 got myself a Gamecube and was more happy.



2 years later with only GT4 and Time Crisis 3 (both barely played) in terms of PS2 games, Gamecube games were getting really hard to find in the stores with a few retailers refusing to sell Gamecube games (history repeating itself with the Wii U). Since by then I only realised like with the N64, the Dreamcast and now the Gamecube only lasting 3 years from my experiences (plus the Xbox only lasted 4 years in Europe) while at this point the PS2 was 5 years old, I knew something was fishy so I went back towards the PS2 but rather bitterly. Got Sega Classics Collection cheap so I could play some okay to good remakes of Sega games, Capcom Classics Collection to play Capcom arcade games, same thing for the Midway Arcade Treasures trilogy since they weren't released on the Gamecube in Europe, Sonic Gems Collection to play Sonic the Fighters (heard the PS2 version had the JP tracks and bonus games, it didn't on my copy and when I played Sonic CD on it, I used a CD player to play the JP/EU songs, yes I was immature back then) and a gem of a game, OutRun 2006: Coast 2 Coast. OutRun 2006 actually impressed me on the PS2 and became my favourite game that still is to this day (will talk about it in the future). It was colourful, looked really good and ran pretty good with a few slowdown spots. Oh and a game crash but it does happen. My last PS2 games of that era were the Sly Cooper trilogy but only managed to to play 1 and 2, didn't play 3 despite having it until the PS3 HD remasters. The slowdown in Sly 1 was really bad on the 3rd World on the PS2 (thankfully fixed on the PS3 version), however the game was enjoyable enough to go to the end.

Thanks to the other consoles dying out and the monopoly of the PS2, it nearly put me off gaming all together since I was just that bitter. Luckily with the DS and later the PSP, I was able to play handheld gaming right up to 2012 when I got a PS3 and my gaming passion has returned.

It was these experiences that taint my like of the console. When I see online especially the GAF praising the console, I have a counter argument in my head. "Every game is 60fps!" More like up to 60fps, many games ran at 30fps (same thing on other consoles) or up to 60 but had slowdowns, sometimes really bad. "Massive fill rate!" Only comes in handy for shmups and Dynasty Warriors where they need lots of the same sprite/model to be on screen. It also doesn't help like the Dreamcast that many of the games that were famous on the PS2 were also ported to the PS3, the Xbox, the PSP, the Vita or even the PC, some even came in trilogy/double packs making them cheaper. GTA (3, Vice City, San Andreas)? Better on the Xbox due to better graphics, smoother frame rate and a few tweaks/bugfixes as well as on the PC, people can mod the games too. God of War 1 & 2 had a better frame rate on the PS3 but not drastically. While Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3 lost a few features in the HD packs (one was an online mode that got switched off), it however gained an extra game in the form of Peace Walker HD except the Vita and JP versions. The pack might have had a better frame rate for MGS 3 but not sure. I mentioned the slowdown fix on Sly 1 and the graphics are much clearer to see. Plus in the case of multiple mulitplatform titles, the Xbox or the Gamecube versions were better with a few exceptions where the PS2 was the best version due to graphics, performance, loading times, better sound (Dolby Digital/Pro Logic II), extra features or in the case of the Xbox a hard drive without the need of memory cards. I ended up usually getting a Gamecube or a Xbox version of a game, sometimes even rebuying the game like with OutRun 2006. Then again the PS2 couldn't cope well with certain games such as Max Payne 1 and 2 where they were ported with worse graphics, smaller areas, longer loading times unlike the Xbox version where they were closer to the PC originals. Thanks to this, it is hard to tell whether it is a true exclusive (e.g. The Getaway) or one that is at the time (e.g. Jak and Daxter).

As for the library, much of the currently talked about games don't have any interest such as the Persona/SMT series, Final Fantasy X + XII, Xenosaga, Suikoden, Kingdom Hearts, Dark Cloud/Chronicle and other genres such as Shadow of the Colossus, SOCOM (at the time not many people had the internet here where I live and was pricey for it, plus wasn't easy getting all the equipment needed too), even the Dragon Ball fighters. They aren't to say that they are bad games since it is understandable why people like these (whether it is the story, the gameplay or something else). Great if someone is into RPGs since there are plenty on the PS2 however I am not into that genre which makes the praise, well not as praisey. There are also a bunch of games that were not released into my region such as Katamari Demancy, Kinetica as well as the Mega Man Collections to know why the games were good (ironically, the first one was made in England based off Rockman Complete Works) and ones that I would have happily bought back in the day but not a chance due to JP only such as Dynamite Deka, Monster World Collection, Fantasy Zone Collection and Sega Rally 2006. This was another reason at the time since I saw all these lovely games online only to be heartbroken that sorry, this game is not coming out in Europe (similar thing to Smashing Drive on the Gamecube).

Honestly I would love to know why and finding that PS2 exclusive that makes me like the console. I thought OutRun 2006 was it but founded out that it got released on the PSP and the Xbox, ended up buying both and the Xbox version has more content without cheating. A game that makes the PS2 what it is, was released in Europe, that I can't play on another console (such as Ratchet & Clank and played most of the main games on the PS3 except Gladiator/Deadlocked). As I already said, hard to know what is an exclusive now and actually could do with some recommendations (providing that the games are cheaper enough).

The ironic thing is that I actually really like Sony's other consoles quite a fair bit. The PS1 gave me lots of memories and great games such as Crash 2, Gran Turismo, GTA, Rage Racer, Ridge Racer Type 4, Metal Gear Solid, ports of Point Blank and Time Crisis among other games. The PS3 I am playing rather regularly with so many decent to great games on the thing with Yakuza 5 and probably Battlefield Hardline being the last games that I will get for it (not bad for a console that is nearly 8 years old) and being my own Blu-ray player. PSP was nice especially with some games especially Dracula X Chronicles and Burnout Legends but faulted by its poor battery life and the Vita is a console that is a great handheld but nearly dead apart from the odd indie or the Japanesey games that I am not into (e.g. Hyperdimension Neptunia, etc) thanks to the changing gaming climate.

It isn't to say that I hate the PS2, this year I got 3 proper exclusive games and a Sega game. Smash Court Tennis, Formula 1 2001 (both really cheap), The Getaway (the original version with the BT vans) and Headhunter. I have also played a few on the PCSX2 emulator such as Time Crisis 2 and Virtua Cop Elite Edition, just how I remember them (my computer can't run The Getaway or a found copy of Ratchet & Clank 2 very well at all). Plus I don't get rid of any console since one day, that PS2 spark might alight for me. I mean the PSP, the Wii side of the Wii U and the 3DS all had negative first impressions but ended up really liking them.

So there we have it, a bit long but goes towards my experiences regarding the PS2. I know more people would have more positive ones rather than a distilled slightly disappointing one like mine. Then again I hope that one day this disappointment would drop and follow yet not as much as to why the PS2 is worth remembering.

The Realm of Entropy - Strange Dreams I've Had Lately..

February 24, 2015, 3:22 pm

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For some reason, my dreams have been rather memorable lately. I usually don't remember them, but when I do, they're either super awesome or super frightening. Thankfully, as you might have guessed, since I'm writing about it, they're the awesome variety.

I had a dream yesterday where, for some reason, me and Miki (My wife) and a few others in my family were visiting North Korea. Kim Jong Un apparently has this weird thing about not letting people see him enter his place unless it's done under a certain ceremony, and for some reason, Miki was part of said ceremony. He got off his bus, which I remember being green and looking like one of those Cavallo busses.. and then there was a specific order as to the color of the things people wore when they got off. I remember Miki was one of the ladies wearing a purple dress who accompanied him back inside, and since I'm her husband, I was there too, but off to the side, just having to bow as the procession led inside. I remember some specific other strange details but not how they line up.. like her boss from work was there too, as well as my cousin Arielle.. I dunno. But the dream ended when I sat down on a cushion and moths popped out from it instead of dust, then Miki freaked out. All I remember from that one.

Another dream from yesterday would be the one where I had to go to the hardware store to buy some stuff so I could build something. I don't remember what the thing I was supposed to build was, but when I got inside, the greeter there for some reason was my grandpa, so I was like, what the hell are you doing here? And he just responds with "Spoons." Then I go to where the paint department is, and this girl I used to know in college is there, Frankie. Which is also weird, because she told me before that she used to dress up like a clown professionally and do shows and stuff, and in Home Depot or wherever, she was in full regalia. Then I'm looking at colors, and we end up deciding on something called "Smush Bank" which is a greenish-brown. That's where that one cut off.

This one, though, is my favorite, from two nights ago. I was in the Harry Potter Universe, or at least somewhat of a facsimile - it was magic, but instead of being magic magic, it was technomagic, so instead of having a wand, I had a hand-held computer glove thing that did magic for me when I pushed the right buttons. I ended up befriending this girl from another house named Angela (who looks like no person I know, named Angela or otherwise), and we, and the rest of the school ended up having to fight the big bad with our technomagic gloves in an assembly hall where he tried to hold us all hostage and eventually kill us off with these technomagic dogs he had, plus his own thing. But when we were attacking, we all had to do it in turns (which I blame RPG influence on), and when it came to my turn, I sucked at my technomagic glove and instead of hitting some kind of attack spell, I activated the flashlight, and shined it on one of the dogs and shook it really hard, making a strobe effect that effectively robo-epilepsied it to death. Eventually the big bad died, but with his dying breaths he said, "You know this is going to hurt the franchise.." which I understood as meta and referring to how it would kill sales as well of this particular book/movie franchise. Then, after that's dealt with, I'm going away and see that my house is actually a part of this place I'm having school at, and make some off-hand comment about being worried about my cat being nervous with all these people roaming around. Then I learn that I'm actually an actor, and I've been on set the whole time. I start walking toward the kitchen and Chris Pratt and Jack Black come out of nowhere and start nailing me with paintball shots before giggling and running off.

If it were real/my thoughts on: The Youtube Poop Movie - De Article

February 25, 2015, 7:13 pm

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Lets face it. We all know this. There will never be a YTP Movie. To be honest, I don't think if (I really don't wanna mention this name because I hardly know about you guys but I'm afraid you guys might pounce me about this guy in a minute.) WalrusGuy is still working on his YTP Movie. Probably not. I hardly doubt it. But anyway, if there WAS a YTP Movie, what would it feature? The first thing is...



To me it seems important that all the memorable YTP, that includes Spingebill and all the modern YTP characters, are included in the movie. Because like Smash Bros, people will be begging for a sequal saying that this character should be in. This is something that the movie, not saying there SHOULD be one, should avoid.

Another thing is that it should have a plot. Now we all know that YTP never has a plot unless its a Plot Poop. But it's only fair this particular YTP movie should have one. Nothing like "WEEGEE DESTROYS THE KING SO LINK MUST TEAM UP WITH MAMA LUIGI OR ELSE HE WILL DIE!!! XD XD XD XD" No. No memefied crap. That's the last thing the movie needs.

My Thoughts On The Original YTP Movies.
1. The YTP Movie by CraaazyCat13

Nothing but Movie Maker Text, Long RPG Battles and Movie Maker Effects like the Rainbow Effect. In other words, extremely bad and the pacing is horrible. And the use of overused clips is awful.

2. YTP the Movie Part 1 by Beatthat

The masking is decent but some parts of this chapter of the movie use MS Paint.

3. YOUTUBE POOP: THE EPIC MOVIE by guysafari

More of a poop than a movie. Either way it's pretty decent.

mah glitch art blog - request of glitch art

February 26, 2015, 3:38 pm

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One of my friends requested a glitch art piece of BonziBuddy. I will soon, but i need more ideas

Shadzify's Somewhat Interesting Thought Dump - To the Open Internet; I salute thee, FCC

February 27, 2015, 9:15 am

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So after a lengthy battle, encompassing several months of hasty telephone calls to Congress, numbers of online petitions, and many, MANY campaigns in the streets, the Federal Communications Commission yesterday ruled in favor of Net Neutrality with a 3-2 vote of approval. http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2015/02/26/389259382/net-neutrality-up-for-vote-today-by-fcc-board
A narrow margin, but eking it out regardless.

Considering FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler's previous intentions were to side with the big telecoms like Verizon, Comcast, Time Warner and so on in order to create Internet "fast lanes," this outcome is all but a breath of fresh air for those pressuring the big-ups to disown that policy in favor of an open Internet. To say it was a helluva road to get here is a huge understatement. But in the end, what matters most is; you, the people of the Internet, let your voices be heard. You spoke up loud and clear to the FCC and those Republican feckheads in Congress, and you let them hear your message: "We want Net Neutrality." So for your efforts, I raise a glass of milk in your honors. You Internet peoples is beautiful~

..........SPEAKING of the aforementioned telecoms:
http://www.theverge.com/2015/2/26/8116259/verizon-net-neutrality-vote-response-morse-code



I mean, wow. There's taking your loss lightly, and then there's shit like this. Considering Verizon ironically called themselves a carrier of the Title II reclassification of the Telecommunications Act, their response is the equivalent of a school bully getting rightfully beaten up, then later limping off crying "I LET YOU WIN!!!"

Ah, well. Let 'em be salty all they want. We got our Internet back. And that's what should really count.

Cheers, my lovelies.
Shadzify~

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Sick fuck's blog - A sad day for Trekkies and non-Trekkies

February 27, 2015, 2:40 pm

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As NegroTed pointed out in a status update this morning, Leonard Nimoy, best known as the man who played Spock on Star Trek, both the TV series and movies, has unfortunately passed away at the age of 83.

According to IMDB, the cause of his death was chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at its end-stage. As a fellow Trekkie, I am saddened by his death, as well as those who had respected him in person. William Shatner mentioned that he was like a brother to him, not just in Star Trek, but in real life as well.

Though he began his acting career at the young age of 20, we all know him best, of course, for Gene Roddenberry's late '60s sci-fi series Star Trek, where he portrayed Captain Kirk's first officer Spock, a Vulcan from the planet...well...Vulcan. In every single episode, we saw Spock at Kirk's side discovering new civilizations and life out in space whilst encountering hostile lifeforms and debating on what to do next. They also did it in the movies as well, two of which Nimoy directed (III and IV). He even made appearances in the recent Star Trek films by J.J. Abrams.

Outside of Star Trek, he also took part starring in episodes of Mission: Impossible as Paris, a couple of episodes of The Simpsons as himself, and starring in the more recent sci-fi series Fringe, amongst other minor roles throughout his career, including voicing the villain known as Xehanort in Disney and Square Enix's Kingdom Hearts series. It's unknown if he recorded any dialogue for Xehanort for Kingdom Hearts III before his death.

Aside from acting, he was also a legitimate doctor, as he obtained two honorary doctorates in the field of education, along with a masters degree in the same field. You could say that the character of Spock was with him. Not only this, but he communicated and related to his fans through fan letters and eventually Facebook and Twitter.

Though he is no longer with us, he does live on, not just in our hearts, but also through his past works. I don't think I'm the only one who's going to be doing a Trek-a-thon in spite of this sad news today. We can also be assured that he is joining his past Star Trek cast members who are also not with us (James Doohan and DeForest Kelly) in the skies above, most likely even the stars.

R.I.P. Leonard Nimoy. We shall indeed live long and prosper as you have.

1931-2015

mah glitch art blog - Datamosh!

February 27, 2015, 7:08 pm

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My friend wants to make him a datamosh. Or at least i think.

SO's Blog - Bye

February 28, 2015, 2:21 pm

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I need to go
My life is not going well
I am not doing well
I feel extremely self destructive right now
I'm not saying this is permanent
Knowing me I'll probably come crawling back here tomorrow or something
But I don't know
If I do I'll just delete this
Maybe I'm acting the moment
Who here cares about me anyway though
Fuck me
Bye for a while (?)

Dark Fox is a re-color, not an original character. - Boo

February 28, 2015, 6:23 pm

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I just wanted to continue the trend of blog titles with another 3-letter B word. I'll change it later if I remember.

I guess I should actually use this to update anyone who gives a damn about what's going on in my life. School's going okay. These snow days were pretty fun. Overall, no complaints, except the crippling debt that's sure to follow the eventual degree.

Internet wise, I've managed to re-hit 1,600 subs, after Youtube swept unused accounts and bots, so my account seems to be doing better with actual humans. TF2 Taunt Kills 7 was released, but it's gonna be a while before I work on 8.

Smash Bros WiiU is still going good, but I can only be arsed to play with friends. I'll do a few For Glory matches on 3DS while doing laundry, but I won't go out of my way to increase my win percent any more.

I've been stuck on a big multisource poop for a while, and as I type this, the Vegas window is open in the background, ready for editing. I finally learned how to datamosh and smear, so you might be seeing that.

I was thinking about doing a Q&A, but... I'm just not popular enough, and I don't have a real occasion or event to warrant one, so it's just not my time yet.

Oh, yeah, and possible interview with AwfulFawful. Keep an ear out for that. Maybe.

Anyways, I know it's a short blog, but I don't know what else to say, and I really wanna get back to making this poop, because I finally defeated the pooper's block. Thanks for not totally hating me, and if you do totally hate me, thanks for not telling me.

YouChew Football - Update

February 28, 2015, 9:15 pm

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Well, it's been a while since I last updated this. The delay has been mostly due to the fact that my current semester of College has been a bit more difficult than the previous ones. Now, I haven't forgotten about this blog, and I do intend to update eventually. It might be a while, though.

In any case, thanks for reading.

SO's Blog - I need to clarify why I left

March 1, 2015, 6:02 am

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I decided that maybe I should come back for a moment to clarify why I have left youchew for the time being along with closing many of my other online accounts. I've pretty much been a mess for a long while now, more so than most realize. This past year and a half in particular has been very, very rough on me. I may look fine on here and on other websites and hell even at school but its all pretty much an act. On the inside I am for the most part a very sad and terrible person. Everything that could go wrong has ended up going wrong for me. I feel lonely and left out both irl and online, my parents are constantly fighting, I'm literally grounded from pretty much everything because I'm failing classes, I have nothing I really I see myself living for. I hate myself so much too, I can't even look myself in the mirror. Occasionally when left alone I find myself yelling and degrading myself. It's pretty obvious but I suffer from some really bad and often extreme depression. I think about killing myself daily. Somedays when it's very serious I hurt myself. Other days I write these rambling tangents about how much I hate myself and my life and how I want to die. I feel like all I am now is an angry, bitter, and jealous person. I can never feel happy for a long period of time.

I think about my future and the present a lot. The more I think about it the more hopeless I find it all. I feel like I can't make friends anymore and that I have no chance at all to be in any romantic/intimate relationship. The few friends I have online I'm practically chasing away by burdening them with my problems. I have little chance of getting into a good college because I have fucked up high school, and even if I managed to get into college what would I do then? I'd have to pay for that all out of pocket and then if I graduate I spend the rest of my life in an office alone. I'll die alone and I'll die from my own hand I know that for a fact. I turn 18 this year I should be having fun and thinking about the positive future ahead of me but I can't it's none existent to me.

On top of depression I suffer from anxiety, OCD, and ADHD. The OCD and anxiety practically go hand in hand. I feel like if I don't do something as mundane as setting a water bottle down a certain way or walk in a certain path that bad things will happen to me. Panic attacks and break downs happen somewhat frequently for me

I left youchew because I started bringing these feelings and their effects to the forums through my posts and constant need to instigate shit. I never wanted people to see that side of me here. I also know that probably no one here actually cares though, I hardly talk to anyone here, even on Skype.

Dark Fox is a re-color, not an original character. - Entry 15: Small update, big expectations.

February 28, 2015, 6:23 pm

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I just wanted to continue the trend of blog titles with another 3-letter B word. I'll change it later if I remember.

I guess I should actually use this to update anyone who gives a damn about what's going on in my life. School's going okay. These snow days were pretty fun. Overall, no complaints, except the crippling debt that's sure to follow the eventual degree.

Internet wise, I've managed to re-hit 1,600 subs, after Youtube swept unused accounts and bots, so my account seems to be doing better with actual humans. TF2 Taunt Kills 7 was released, but it's gonna be a while before I work on 8.

Smash Bros WiiU is still going good, but I can only be arsed to play with friends. I'll do a few For Glory matches on 3DS while doing laundry, but I won't go out of my way to increase my win percent any more.

I've been stuck on a big multisource poop for a while, and as I type this, the Vegas window is open in the background, ready for editing. I finally learned how to datamosh and smear, so you might be seeing that.

I was thinking about doing a Q&A, but... I'm just not popular enough, and I don't have a real occasion or event to warrant one, so it's just not my time yet.

Oh, yeah, and possible interview with AwfulFawful. Keep an ear out for that. Maybe.

Anyways, I know it's a short blog, but I don't know what else to say, and I really wanna get back to making this poop, because I finally defeated the pooper's block. Thanks for not totally hating me, and if you do totally hate me, thanks for not telling me.

---

Eggy's Blog - My first blog entry and maybe my last for some time.

March 1, 2015, 11:23 am

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Yeah. After having made a Goodbye thread, only now I remember to make a blog of my own...
So... It actually really pains me how I am forcing myself to leave Youchew, other sites I am on etc. so I could focus on real life instead, and occasionally I even feel like I'm regretting having made a Goodbye thread because right now I'm still finding myself using the computer too much, though I'm trying to focus on RL more. I even feel quite attached to Youchew too and only now I realize that... I can see that I might end up coming back when this year's summer starts (because of surplus of time I could waste on being on the computer) if not sooner or later, and I keep fearing that I will end up creating a "Eggy tricked/lied to us" situation should I end up not leaving at all because I've grown so attached to Youchew, despite the fact I'm not even online as much as I was in the past. But I think it's for the best; after all, I have a life to look forward to, and this could easily be just a temporary feeling that will go away after a while. That doesn't mean I don't care about the community though.
Anyhow, that concludes my (very first) blog entry. If I end up coming back sooner than expected or not leaving at all... I just hope it won't stir up any trouble. Especially because of things I've seen like people making a Goodbye thread and then coming back very soon and the whole simplyslap's fake death ordeal.

The Realm of Entropy - Gross Liquids and Sadness

March 4, 2015, 10:36 am

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My wife and I have been trying to have kids for like a year and a half now. Before you read further, YES, it's going to contain graphic details not suitable for children or people who can't discuss bodily fluids. Warning over!

She's been to the doctor to get her plumbing checked out, make sure she -can- have kids and all that.. and she's fine. She's a little anemic, but that's corrected with multivitamins. This happened about six months ago. So then, because the doctor says she's fine, the onus falls on ME being the problem, because trying for a whole year and nothing is odd.

I dunno if any of you have had to jizz in a cup before, but because it's not a sock, and because aiming is a little more difficult than taking a piss, when I took a home test to make sure I wasn't shooting blanks, the first one I missed. Then, after clean-up, I get to wait and recharge, but because I don't want the test results to be wrong, I'm stuck there wondering like, how many hours do I have to wait? I ended up waiting three, then successfully hit the target, huzzah! Let me tell you - home tests for pretty much anything are going to be fucking gross. I had to wait for a while until it turned more liquid-y before getting an eye dropper and putting it down on a piece of paper. Have any of you ever played with your own ejaculation? It's fucking weird. Not as much shit as when my wife is checking her ovulation schedule thing.. peeing in a cup every day before having to stick a piece of paper in it to figure out if her RH levels are up, so we should be fucking.

Well, anyway.. the home test confirms that hey, I have a low sperm count. But that's about all it says - it could be a plethora of problems. Maybe I have a low sperm count because I have Klinefelter's Syndrome (I don't, I'm just speculating), so some of them are coming out with XX or XY and that's not gonna work. Maybe it's not due to anything in particular, I just got fucked on the genetic lottery. Maybe I need to not drink every day. Whichever "maybe" is right, fuck this shit, professor.

Ever tried to make something happen for a year and a half? Believe me, the trying part is a shitload of fun for obvious reasons, but when it's time for Aunt Flo to visit, both of us turn into emotional wrecks, because constant disappointment is a shitty way to live your life. As of yesterday, we were in that period of time where we're waiting for period, or does she need to pee on a stick now, and since both of us are fucking terrible at dealing with this, ended up going to Wal-Trash at night, just to buy pregnancy tests. It's worse when you REALLY think this time it worked, or she's not feeling quite like she's having a period, and things hurt in other places than normal - anything becomes a sign that babies are gonna happen, and then Aunt Flo visits and you want to kidney punch the closest non-wife living person. At least that's what it's like for me.

Anyways, due to her peeing on a stick last night, the answer is, yet again, NOPE, which means we get to feel this way again for at least another month. I haven't been to a doctor yet for an official evaluation on my stuff, but it's planned, for this month, that I go. Having to jizz in a cup is bad enough in my own bathroom, so I have no fucking clue how I'm going to explain to the doctor that I need a bunch of wet naps so this room doesn't look like a contemporary art project under blacklight. Dealing with all this shit is really fucking hard, and I already have dysthymia, so that helps about as much as getting a hot poker in the ass while playing Jenga. The monthly disappointment is fucking terrible. Just don't have kids, or if you do, make sure you don't shoot blanks before you get your hopes up. I think I'm gonna go punch something now.

The Weekly Furnessly - The Weekly Furnessly 2: The Fall of Furnessly

March 5, 2015, 12:41 pm

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Hello. I've been trying to struggle on something to talk about since my first entry didn't seem to well be much cop (even though it is my opinion regarding the PS2) so instead I just thought of talking about how I am feeling right now.

Right now, I just feel fed up. Fed up of feeling old like some people don't even know who The Blues Brothers are due to changing times. Also fed up that I don't have a sense of humour. It's like I have to try harder than I did in the past and really hard to the point of feeling forced. Part of me feels like I want to leave the forum again except I know that somehow I just come back until the day when tabull announces its closer. Much of the people that I knew in the olden days either no longer there or changed so much that I feel that I don't know anyone anymore and have been burned a couple of times too. The old Furnessly is gone and to be completely honest, I wasn't really helpful in the first place. I would like to be helpful but my knowledge on things are strictly limited. Speaking of which, I am helping and looking after my parents since they are getting older with both having back problems and my dad's mind isn't want it used to be sometimes to the point where I have to tell him what day and time it is and what he is suppose to be doing.

The advice given on the depression thread is good except a few minor problems that I haven't explained there so I can't follow said advice. One is that I am on the disabled side both mentally and slightly physical and well don't like to mention it in public so that is as far as it goes. In fact when I used the treadmill, my body very often leans towards the right and because handily there is a door on the right hand side I have to hold my hand on the door so my body can shift to the left and back to the centre or how clumsy I am when it comes to walking... So yeah I have poor co-ordination.

Another thing that I want to mention is that about the music misconception. In the past, I have indeed listen to plenty of VGM on the grounds that my hands were aching and listening to the game soundtrack is like imagining the game. Right now? Not as much and even non-VGM music that I have (not much but it is something), don't listen to it as much. I could have spent at least 2 maybe 3 hours a day listening to it while I look on websites, right now it is an hour at the most with some days only about 10/20 minutes or so. When I was younger, I didn't even LIKE music. Besides since I left Youchew in 2012, I have spent more time actually playing the games with the uptake kicked off when I got my Wii U/3DS/Vita and the original Xbox in 2013 so the imagining not as much. I would have mentioned about the original Xbox being the best time to buy it and playing indeed at this moment Everything or Nothing, how good it is and how it has aged well both graphically and controls (except the pre-rendered cutscenes looking worse than the in game graphics) but I just couldn't be bothered. My heart has gone and what is left of me is a shell and a shadow. I also thought that nobody would be interested in it, there isn't even an emulator of the thing.

Now the problem is that it seems a lot of people talk about anime and manga whether it is here, NeoGAF, Sonic Stadium and highly imagine the online foursome of Something Awful, 4Chan, DeviantArt and Tumblr are also really big on it (plus Facebook and Twitter). Last year, I honestly tried to watch some but just couldn't get into it. All pilot episodes except one when I was pointed out that it was a DVD only episode. Tried Space Dandy and apart from one scene of him with his gun just looked a bit poorly animated at some parts but liked the main character sort of, tried Wangan Midnight and wasn't too bad with animation being decent however it wasn't dubbed so it felt drier than it might have been (at least that I have understood the plot to the game thanks to the subtitles in the show) and felt a bit slow, tried Azumanga Daioh aka that show that a fair few people here really like (the first 5 in this case) and didn't really like the characters finding them a bit annoying even though it was half decently animated, Nichijou was okay but again wasn't dubbed and some parts I just thought eh? Then it was Cat Girl Nuku Nuku or something along those lines, now the animation was one of the better ones however I couldn't get into the main character at all and found her really annoying. Finally I tried Cowboy Bebop and it was sooooooooooooooooo close, I liked Spike and his pal, animation was good but a part nearly the end just felt a bit uncomfortable to me and sadly put me off the series. I didn't even get to see Faye Valentine and the others. I thought if these were the pilots, then the animation quality would drop off like a rock when it comes to episode 2... Plus many of these shows except Space Dandy and Cowboy Bebop gave me a Waterloo Road feeling and I don't like Waterloo Road. For the Americans who want to know what it is, it is an English (later Scottish) slice of life high school drama but in live action. At least the hatered of Sailor Moon has dropped and just become a big meh to me.

This alone makes me feel out of place. Especially when people online seem to be talking about Kill la Kill an awful lot at the moment (I know the character designs of Ryuko, Mako and Satsuki but that's about it). Now I don't have many problems of people talking about Japanese cartoons at all, it's just that I don't seem to have much luck.

Not just anime but also shows and stuff aren't the same as here. I am not into American comedies or dramas and neither are my family. e.g. It's Always Sunny in Philly and Parks and Recreation. Even cartoons such as SpongeBob due to that I became a teenager just as that show started and few cartoons that were made more recently don't appeal to me. To make a confession, I don't really watch much TV and my parents watch afternoon gameshows and nighttime dramas. I wouldn't mention them here since only a few members would understand what the shows are about, well maybe except The Chase (due to having an US version) and Luther.

Even when it comes to games, I very very rarely use Steam (only have two games, AudioSurf and Tropico 3 not played either) or the other one (Sims 2, Theme Hospital and ditto) and rather play consoles since they are easier, not as easier than the past but PC gaming can have a lot of problems depending on game.

So yes, I don't know what to do here anymore. Not talented enough to draw, write or make music. Not smart enough for the smart places and too boring to be in the entertaining/humourous places. Doesn't help that a lot of things make me stressed.

Cinephile Confessions - The Cat Concerto

March 6, 2015, 9:47 am

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In 1847, famous composer Franz Liszt wrote Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 (henceforth called Number 2), which is considered today as one of the most iconic pieces of classical music ever written. Though made to be a dramatic piece, it has had a place in the world of comedy, mainly in animated shorts and feature productions. The first use of the tune in film came from the 1929 Disney short "The Opry House", and this started a trend with other movie studios, including Universal, Warner Brothers, and MGM, on making comedic interpretations of the Liszt's masterpiece performed by cartoon characters. Tom & Jerry, at this point, have become household names in the motion picture industry as one of the greatest film duos ever conceived, even before the creation of Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner. For MGM, the Tom & Jerry shorts have become just as memorable for their craftsmanship, writing, and execution as their now classic movie musicals like "Singin' in the Rain" or "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers". For years, Tom & Jerry showed that the art of the chase is eternal, having both characters beat the everloving hell out of each other with whatever they could get their hands on, most of the time taking place in an old-fashioned suburban household. However, this short takes a different turn from the usual house setting. Instead, it takes place in a fancy concert hall, which is the last place you would expect the duo to be at this point.

In this short, Tom Cat is a concert pianist who arrives on stage to perform Liszt's "Number 2" on the grand piano in front of a massive audience. When he begins to play, everything is going fine as if it was a dead-serious musical event or an episode of PBS' Great Performances. That is, until we look inside the piano and we find that Jerry has made himself a small abode. Of course, he is waken up, though he doesn't get angry about it when he finds out who's at the keys. So he decides to have a bit of fun by making Tom's big night something he wishes never happened. Plus, in a way, it serves as a lesson for all piano owners: make sure there's no mice inside to ruin your session, 'cause then you're gonna have a bad time, and no one wants to have a bad time.

Anywho, what makes this short work to its advantage is how it slowly builds up the slapstick as the tune goes on, and as it goes into the second half of the short, it starts to get more hectic, with the orchestra joining in. At first, Jerry does things to the piano that just irritates and distracts Tom, but when the tempo begins to rise, Jerry decides to make Tom's night a living hell by pushing him towards exhaustion, as if the last straw was finally drawn. In the end, as is the norm, Jerry gets the last laugh, as the spotlight shines on him and he takes a bow for the performance, whilst Tom is laying on the keys breathing heavily. Now THAT is a sign of satisfaction.

This is one of the Tom & Jerry shorts that has gotten such high praise from critics and audiences as a comedy classic, it became one of seven Tom & Jerry shorts to win an Academy Award for Best Short Subject in the Cartoon category, which was accepted by the film's producer, Fred Quimby. It's indeed one of the greats from the Hanna-Barbera catalog. The animation and timing is well done, and the comedy is as smart as usual. The music, obviously, flows with the on-going havoc, and it fits perfectly, making it one of the best uses of Liszt's classic piece. In fact, I have a feeling that the scene from Robert Zemeckis' Who Framed Roger Rabbit where Donald Duck and Daffy Duck do dueling pianos in the Ink and Paint Club pretty much pays tribute to this particular short.

In conclusion, this is a gem in the Tom & Jerry franchise, and a step forward for the characters to interact in different environments. As a kid, I looked forward to seeing this film appear on a Tom & Jerry block on Cartoon Network, and they still do this today. Though if you're looking to own this film so you can watch it at anytime, it can be found on the first Tom & Jerry Spotlight Collection volume or the first volume of the more recent Tom & Jerry Golden Collection. It is also a bonus feature on the DVD release of the MGM's 1946 film The Yearling.

DID YOU KNOW?:

- The film fell under controversy when Warner Brothers released the Bugs Bunny short Rhapsody Rabbit at the same time. This short involved Bugs also performing Franz Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 on the piano at a concert hall, similar to this film. Both films were sent to a film lab that serviced both studios, with the lab accidentally sending the opposite films to the studios. This led to the filmmakers of both films accusing each other of plagiarism. It was settled eventually when both sides agreed that the similarities were, in fact, coincidental. Rhapsody Rabbit was not nominated for the Best Short Oscar.

In Other Words - Backing Up in Windows 7, 8 and 8.1

March 9, 2015, 9:53 am

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Are you backing up? You really should be.

An issue that’s came up in General Poop Discussion rather frequently lately has been about Vegas freaking out and making your system wonky. My most frequent suggestion—use the last restore point available from a time when you remember your computer worked reasonably well.

Beyond that, though, System Restore is not and should not be used as a backup plan. It’s not perfect. System Restore applies only to core Window’s files and programs and their registry settings. It absolutely cannot bring back a picture of grandma you accidentally deleted, but inversely it will not remove files you’ve created after the restore point you revert to.

System Restore is awesome though, don’t get me wrong. It’s faster creating a restore point than a system image and uses far less space. So if Vegas or any sort of software is giving you problems by making your computer behave in a less than desirable way (like downloading disgusting amounts of pornography and locking you into a ransomware security suite) fire up System Restore and take a step back a few days. Hell—go back to the earliest one ever made and have a clean(ish) system. Backing up, though, is something you need to also give serious attention to. If you’re not backing up, you’re not doing something right. If you’re backing up to the same drive as the backup’s source files, you’re still not doing something right. Get an external hard disk.

No if’s, and’s or buts—you have no excuse not to buy a 1TB external hard disk unless you’re a kid with no income and your parents are on a razor thin budget that disqualifies a $60 external hard disk even as a Christmas gift. I’m dead serious—you can buy a 1TB hard disk for $60, and that’s pretty cheap as far as most mission-critical hardware goes. Sling any slurs at me about assuming how anybody can afford an external hard disk without knowing about their financial situation all you want. But as far as I’m concerned I’d no sooner use a computer without a mouse or monitor than I would without a backup drive. To me, it’s that, stinking important and essential.

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Here you see the backup and restore center, and its breadcrumbs through the Control Panel in Windows 7.

When it comes to backing up, you have various options. I’m going to presume the wide swath of us are probably using a Windows 7, 8 or 8.1 PC. In Windows 7 you open the Start Menu, type “Backup and Restore” and open the Backup and Restore center. If you’ve never made a backup before, you’ll see an option on the right in blue text “Set up backup” which from there you’ll be able to select an available drive to backup to. Windows 7 has two options which is to let Windows choose what to back up and the second option you pick which folders and libraries you want to backup. By default, when Windows chooses the backup source files, it selects your libraries, your desktop, and the default personal folders (eg My Documents, My Downloads… etc). The second backup option also gives you the option of making a System Image along with any individual folders you select.

With Windows 7, I recommend the default backup plan Window’s chooses unless you’re some weirdo who saves personal files in Program Files (or have an oddball program that saves data to Program Files—I’ve seen that before and it’s pretty stupid… I’m looking at you, CDex).

Both default backup strategy choices. Note the recommended backup will not offer to create a system image.

In the Backup and Restore center, on the left-hand panel you’ll see the option to create a System Image. I recommend you doing this semi-frequently. At least on a monthly basis. And if storage space is an issue (as I have the problem with a 1TB internal backing up to a 1TB external), keep them only one month at a time too. You’ll at least have something to fall back on if your computer meets with a terrible fate.

A System Image is very much like a Restore Point on steroids. I’ve never heard of a case of System Restore being compromised and failing, but a System Image is just what it says on the box—a complete clone of your C: drive you can squirrel away and revert to when your disk eventually fails (and trust me, it will. I’m riding out year three on a Western Digital 1TB HDD and am starting to study my options of migration). If your hard disk fails, System Restore will not save you.

So, you have a backup of your personal files and a System Image. Your hard disk fails and you pop in a replacement—how do you get those files back on there like nothing ever happened? You might have noticed in the Backup and Restore center beneath Create a System Image in the left panel, there was an option to create a System Repair recovery disk. Use this to create a bootable medkit for your PC which you can use to re-image your System Image onto the new hard disk. It’s been while since I’ve had to re-image a Windows 7 PC but if I remember right, your System Image will already include the contents of your C: drive which means that you shouldn’t even have to restore the files from your backup and they will be there without any extra fiddling.

Windows 8 and 8.1 have File History which is as easy as plugging your external in and turning File History on. You’ll forget you’re even backing up at all! To turn on File History, open the Charms bar (Win Key+C, or mouse to top right corner and move the cursor down). Select Settings, Change PC Settings, Update and Recovery, File History. If the slider says “off”, move it to “on” to turn on File History.

Side-by-side views of Windows 8/8.1's File History settings. You can access it through the Modern UI's PC Settings, or through Control Panel.

There are a few tweaks, you can use to personalize the backup. For example, I realized to my frustration once that File History doesn’t backup AppData by default. In fact, by default it only, ONLY backs up folders included in a library group. If you want to keep a copy of a folder and its contents that aren't included in a library, I recommend opening the File Explorer, and right-clicking Libraries in the navigation pane on the left. From there, you can create a new library group. Call it whatever you want. If in Windows 8.1 you do not see the Libraries group in the navigation pane, go up to the ribbon, select view, Navigation Pane in the “pane” group, and check “show libraries” if it is not checked.

To add folders to a library group, it’s super-easy. You right click a folder, go to “Include in Library” and from the sub-menu that opens select the library group you want to add the folder to. After that, File History will always make sure the folder you selected is backed up.

You can also further detail File History through its Control Panel settings. Confusingly, this isn’t available from the PC Settings interface of Update and Recovery. From the Start Screen, start typing File History. You’ll see three options come up. Select File History--it looks like a little folder icon with a small clock and green arrow (not the gear that misleadingly says "File History Settings", that’s the Modern UI settings). This will bring you back to the desktop with the File History settings which should have logically been in the Update and Recovery group as well as the desktop’s. From here you’ll notice you can make a System Image very much the same way you could in Windows 7. There’s also the Recovery section from which you can create a bootable recovery drive to troubleshoot badly behaving PC’s or fiddle with the restore point settings.

Going back to File History, though, you’ll see “Advanced Settings” in the left pane, which will give you some neat options like how long to keep backups, and how frequently you want File History to save them. The defaults are fine, but I’ve found as my internal HDD’s space has shrank, it’s been even harder on my external which has to hold multiple versions of each file, and I’ve found myself keeping my backups for shorter and shorter periods of time.

Guess it’s time to buy a second backup drive! A 2.5TB, this time. Lock the old one away in a safe and reformat it next year when I feel all of its data probably holds no further intrinsic value to me. A word to the wise, though, backup drives (especially with File History) are written to many, many times throughout their lifetime. When you find yourself needing a newer, bigger backup drive and retire the old one, it's probably already at the end of its lifetime and shouldn't be relied on for critical backup any further.

OTHER THOUGHTS

Cloud backup might be your only choice if you well and truly cannot afford or access any sort of external backup medium. What services work for you depends on several factors. I like Dropbox, personally, but then again I’ve earned a lot of free extra space for my account and have nearly 30gb that I’ll probably never use. Dropbox initially, though, has 2GB for its free account. If you’re just storing class work, documents, and maybe some photos and music it might just be enough for you to get by with.

Alternatively, if you’re already using Windows 8 or 8.1 and aren’t as grounded in Dropbox as I am, I think OneDrive is a very solid alternative since it already integrates well into Windows. It also boasts an initial free 15GB of storage compared to Dropbox’s paltry 2GB. Quite honestly, I’d be using OneDrive right now if I didn’t already have so much integrated into Dropbox.

A word to the wise, though, you more than likely will not benefit from commercial cloud backup providers that specialize in data backup and protection. Things like OneDrive and Dropbox work more accurately as syncing services which while they do save your data to the cloud, they aren’t intended to store big data. Services such as SpiderOak cater more to businesses that deal with hundreds of gigabytes to terabytes worth of data and if you are storing that much data in the cloud, you will likely never fully upload the full contents of your drive due to the relatively low upload speed limits and caps that come with residential ISP’s.