What are you watching?

Hi Bob. First let me address that the new computer is exactly the one that you showed. I did get an additional Blu-ray writer for it though. I have large files for my book and a Blu-ray player – writer is just what I need to backup my files. So far I needed a bit of help from their tech support to set everything up, but the computer is running very well. I have a Samsung sync master 2430 monitor that does not need to be replaced. I set up my computer to look very much like Windows XP so I am not using any touchscreen. Touchscreen is fine for laptops but I don't think they do well for desktops. From where I'm sitting a mouse and a keyboard or the most comfortable.

I want to have the Blu-ray experience when I do you movies. That is I want the great picture and a terrific sound. So I have started using red box on occasion. For example I knew I didn't want to buy the Lone Ranger movie but for a dollar 50 I could get the Blu-ray. Unlike you guys I have seen very good movies listed there. Movies that include Nebraska, Philomenia and Dallas buyers Club. Most of the time I have bought movies either new or used from Amazon. Bob, just like you, I just got touch of evil and I'm dying to see it. I saw this version intermuseum last year. It is so much better than the crappy one that they have shown on TV. For example well has a five minute opening shot that is not edited. It's one long cake. When originally released they put credits over it so you never really got the effect of that shot.

I still have cable because I am a big baseball fan and I really enjoy watching my local teams as well as the national coverage of baseball games. In addition I do like the movie channels. I get to see movies that I would not necessarily pay for Normally I don't get them with the full Blu-ray effect but certain movies, and I just saw American hustle, for example would not need to be a Blu-ray experience. By the way I saw that movie the movie theater. I do watch the news daily on television and yes I do watch a few TV series. Not many just a couple including The Big Bang Theory and S H I E l d.

That was a good read, and to the point; thx Barry.

Yesterday was Good Friday, today is Saturday, tomorrow is Easter Sunday (Orthodox Easter), the day after tomorrow is Easter Monday, and then Earth Day (Plant a Tree), and then my Birthday (Plant another one), and for the last month or so I am in pain (teeth related), my laptop was no good (broken speaker - they shouldn't have sold it to me), and I'm still alive but one less day..., and I couldn't finish 'Inception' for too many reasons.

There is no recipe on how to live life happy; each one of us discover one of them and abide by it the best he/she could. And tomorrow might rain...

Blu-rays are like car wash; makes your car shine, but aren't necessary, and once in a while it's good to revisit.
You can ask your son to do it for you or you can go to your local one and pay. ...Or you can do it yourself.
At the end, it is what makes your car happy, but because a car doesn't have emotions, then the task is related to you, and to the onlookers.
It's only a car, only a Blu-ray, and love is much more important, and health, and friendship, and respect, and family, and nature, and life small appreciations, and pets, and music, and movies, and TV (watching stuff that transports you), and radio, and a computer, a phone, and an hi-fi stereo sound system, and a home theater, and a home to put it in, and few doors, and windows (but not too many in your home theater room), a car if you need to be transported privately, a truck if you need to transport your own goods, a job to pay the bills and entertain yourself with the money left over, a certain knowledge on smart investment, a communication skill, a sense of being alive and an ability to transfer that aliveness to others, a good heart and soul and spirit.
...Life is like a movie screening in front and all around you non-stop for a certain time (years and years and years or only for a short time), life is like a Blu-ray movie; you have the choice of 2D and 3D, and you can pick anyone, and for some it cost more than to others.

We, all of us, register life emotions from our own sense and sensibilities.
And it don't matter if we live in another country without borders, without laws, and without respect for human lives, and living without a roof, without a religion, without food, and without a sense of who we are. *
 
...

To those who have not watched Game of Thrones or True Detectives you are missing some great TV and story telling.

I am deeply sadden by my missing it (them both). ...Is my deep sadness fairly justified? ;) ...I will never know, but through your own eyes you found the satisfaction in watching them, and you feel it's good to "those" (others too). And you might be 100% right, or less.

* Did you see 'Baraka' and 'Samsara' on Blu-ray? ...If not I think that you may have missed some powerful stuff. :)
 
Yes, Netflix has 3d movies and include same audio soundtracks as the consumer discs but many of the newer discs don't include any of the extras. Those usually say "rental" across the face. I too am a happy Netflix subscriber (disc only- no streaming). :)

That is excellent Matt, and Tom, and everyone else who rent Blu-rays from 'Netflicks'; you guys save a lot of money by becoming a subscriber.
I'll have to look into this and perhaps change one life's rabbit (habit) of mine. ...Saving money is good, for the spiritual metabolism.

* Netflix is only $15/month, or only $1 per Blu-ray movie? ...How do you return them BDs? ...How long to get one you ordered?
What is the total average you guys are paying every month to have the privilege of access to TV programming and all the movies you're watching? ...The total; cable box (or satellite box), Netflix, Vudu, Hulu, Guru, etc., including all the taxes, shipping, and hidden fees.

And! If not receiving physical discs by the mail, how much stuff is true HD (@ least 720p) and without picture breaking up or sound dropping?
And! On cable do you get compressed Dolby Digital Plus and dts 5.1 channels audio?

Yeah, how much total every month are you paying towards viewing privileges on your TV? ...Netflix included.
 
I suspect if youi subscribe to Netflix you'd like Red Box, which ae thsoe big red machines at supermarlkets. You can reserve and select and home and pick it up at the store for $1 to $1.50

Barry, here in igloo country (Canada) I believe that they are more expensive than just a dollar or a dollar and a half.
And then you need to drive back to the store to return them; that's about ten bucks each trip, thank you very much, plus the time lost being on the road with a bunch of monkeys. ;)

* Are you typing from your smartphone?
 
The Netflix library is deep and broad, supplying me with many films which hold little or no interest for the general public; ie foreign films with subtitles, cerebral etc. On the occasions when I have looked for titles in a Redbox, I find nothing but junk- action, animation, car chases, etc. Much like what finds at the local cineplex. Here's one from Netflix you will never find at Redbox!
View attachment 6018

Those Redbox machines; how many Blu-ray movies they hold? ...And someone keeps replacing some titles every week?
 
My cost per BR disc with Netflix is based on how quickly I turn them around. The $15/mo allows two discs out at a time. For us, this means we average about 12 discs per month. This is possible because we live close enough to their distribution center that it is one day in the mail, and 1-2 days on the return. If I put one in the mail on Monday, they get it on Tuesday and immediately mail out the next on in my queue. I then receive it on Wednesday, watch it that evening, and it goes back in the mail, being received by NF on Friday or Saturday and so on. If we don't watch one immediately, that slows the process, and we get fewer for the month, and thus a higher average cost. How quickly your mail service works, and from where they would be mailed, I don't know. Thus, YMMV. In any case, you should visit their website, as it is a terrific resource to look up films or information about any actor, director, etc. Try it for a month, and then you will know. There is no commitment.

Oh, and there are no problems with substandard picture, rez, sound, dropouts etc!
 
That is excellent Tom!

For 36 Blu-ray movies (three months) that you watch and your total cost, for me it costs the same for only one Blu-ray (Disney BD title)!

My guess though is that it isn't the same for everyone because as you just said you are living close to one of their distribution centers.
But still, even at the very worst, that is a lot of money saving.

That truly stops me on my steps, and makes me rethink my strategy.
 
Question: How many members here download their movies, for free, and illegally? ;)

Number two: How many members here don't bother to post in this thread because they are afraid?

Number three: What is the true price of freedom in the year 2014?
 
That is excellent Matt, and Tom, and everyone else who rent Blu-rays from 'Netflicks'; you guys save a lot of money by becoming a subscriber.
I'll have to look into this and perhaps change one life's rabbit (habit) of mine. ...Saving money is good, for the spiritual metabolism.

* Netflix is only $15/month, or only $1 per Blu-ray movie? ...How do you return them BDs? ...How long to get one you ordered?
What is the total average you guys are paying every month to have the privilege of access to TV programming and all the movies you're watching? ...The total; cable box (or satellite box), Netflix, Vudu, Hulu, Guru, etc., including all the taxes, shipping, and hidden fees.

And! If not receiving physical discs by the mail, how much stuff is true HD (@ least 720p) and without picture breaking up or sound dropping?
And! On cable do you get compressed Dolby Digital Plus and dts 5.1 channels audio?

Yeah, how much total every month are you paying towards viewing privileges on your TV? ...Netflix included.

I pay $10.54 a month for Netflix after taxes for 1 BD at a time. I cut the satellite cord over 5 years ago and rarely ever regret it. There is a surprising amount of quality programming on the OTA channels, and when there's nothing to watch I listen to music or do something else.

As far as the speed of getting and returning the discs, my discs travel about 200-300 miles to the two nearest centers and it's a day each way. When they don't have a disc at your nearest center, they simply send you your next title while your other title is coming from another distribution center. The title that is traveling from another area doesn't count against how many titles your allowed at a time. I had one come from as far as Anchorage, Ak and it still only took two days to get here.
 
Last night we watched the Mandela Long Walk, which was done very well with lots of history I was unaware of. Nobody well known, but the guy who plays Mandela was excellent.

Friday night we watched Lone Survivor, which for a shoot em up war movie was also good and attempted to show that they are not all pro-nutso over there.
 
Hello bob


I am using Dragon NaturallySpeaking to talk to the computer and it will take a while before my profile is final and all words are correct. So please excuse any little mishaps.
Red boxes just three minutes from my house so it is very much worth me going there and choosing one of the 40 or 50 Blu-ray movies that they have. New ones are added each week and they often put in very popular old ones. For example on the second hunger games movie came out they put in also the first one. When you return a movie to red box it does not have to be to the same one that you printed it from but electronically that disk will now be available in that red box location.
But we are all saying here is that there are now very many ways to pick out our movies and watch them and we all take out the method that is easiest for each one of us and fits our needs and location.

For me, having the cable movies and access to the blue rays in red box is fine. I also buy a lot of used and new Blu-rays from Amazon. I actually cannot believe the amount of entertainment available to me now.


Also I have triple play with my cable company. Not only do I get cable but I also get my telephone and my Internet service. I'm not saying cable is cheap but I now pay about $175 a month for cable, telephone and Internet service. At one point I was paying DirecTV $150 a month for the cable, New York telephone $85 for the phone service and our local Cablevision $50 a month for Internet service. (This was down from about $70 when I had to use the telephone connection for the Internet) so I tend to look at this as being $100 cheaper than it used to be.
 
Barry, typos are not a thing that is considered a crime. I am much more a criminal myself because in English I don't always get my point across the way I intended. Sometimes I can be misinterpreted, and on the Internet (audio forums) even more so. ...And even in French (not everyone can get the good humor of some of my posts).
So it is always with humor that I occasionally remind people of innocent typos. :) ...And I love it when others do correct me when I make some of them, and other grammar faults; that's the only way I can truly improve, and improvement is my raison-de-vivre. ...School is everyday and everywhere.

<<<>>> The way we watch movies (mediums, gear, money spent, etc.) and the way we listen to music (mediums, gear, money spent, etc.) it don't matter much to me; what does is the emotional impact we get from it.
{Netflix, Redbox, Amazon, Walmart, Costco, Bestbuy, HD Tracks, ...it just don't really matter.}

And some people pay $300/month to have 1 Gig of Download speed. ...Not including phone line, smartphone contract, movie and music subscription, cable TV, etc.
Others pay roughly $100/month for everything (the full package).
And some pay gratis for nothing at all. ...No TV, no PC, no Phone, no Speed, not even a car or a bicycle (Amazonian jungle).

It would be interesting to show Blu-ray players to the jungle people. :) ...And tablets (iPads). But I'm not sure they would adapt quickly, probably not.
Their true concern is food, clean water, clean air, and peace among all the tribes. ...Fair trades, good sharing, good health, good and free living.

___________________

Last night I finally finished watching 'Inception'. ...Tonight I might be ripe for 'Touch of Evil'. ...It remains to be seen; I'll keep in touch.

 
An open letter to Bill Gates:

Dear Bill,
The Ford Mustang is celebrating its 50[SUP]th[/SUP] anniversary. People love that car and bought zillions of them. It was an important and exciting purchase for them In fact they are still buying them.
And you know what? 50 years later it still has the same operating system. The steering wheel, brakes, accelerator, and window washers are all in the same place. Then and now, some people like the transmission attached to the steering wheel, some like it on the floor. Cars today are very different, safer, have power brakes and steering, but I bet if we transported someone from 1964 and put him in a new Mustang it would take them minutes to figure out. Yeah, the audio system and GPS will be new, but they can still use the car for transportation, it’s main purpose.
Of course the car key still goes into the same spot, on the lower right near the steering wheel. Of course in many cars that has been replaced by the START button. BUT THEY HAVEN’T MOVED THAT START BUTTON in 50 years. And you use the start button to shut the car down too!
So why couldn’t the geniuses at Microsoft realize that after 20 years of having Windows thrusted upon us, we don’t want to spend days figuring how to use it or where to find that damn START button. Hey, and even the Mustang comes with an instruction book.
Your Former Friend,
Barry
PS: Were the same people who designed Windows 8.1 the same people who put up the government’s Health Care site?


Gang, thanks for the typo forgiveness, I am trying to break in my new computer. Well, I think the computer is trying to break in me.
 
Excellent point Barry; to get into my documents I have to go inside my recycling bin! ...That start button at the bottom left of my screen is doing nothing anymore to me. ...In that regard of getting inside my documents with pictures and all.

Windows 8.1 is a totally new learning process. It'll take a while before I can navigate fast and freely like when I was sixteen. :)

But you're right; it is a new world. I'm ok with it though; it's good for the brain, and overall life's exploration, before I exit this world for good (physical death). ;)

________________________

P.S. Barry, below my new Windows 8.1 main page, when I click on the arrow v I have 115 apps.
And I only started using my new laptop on April 12.
About you, how many apps below your main Windows 8.1 screen?

And, do you think that eventually we can get to one million apps?
 
A new computer is like a new baby; feed him a bunch of junk and you'll see quick enough what kind of teenager you'll end up with! ;)

Feed him only what you consider is good for him, and you'll never know really where he'll end up sometimes down the line.
Because after all it isn't under your full control. ...Your baby has a life of his own, irregardless of how you operate with him during his lifetime.
And then you'll most likely die before him. ...Then he'll take over, or a new OS will for him...
 
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