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Karyudo

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Join date
23-Oct-2004
Last activity
12-Jan-2025
Posts
805

Post History

Post
#187873
Topic
THE FAN EDIT CONTEST HAS A WINNER !!! REVIEWS IN OFF TOPIC FORUM
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/187873/action/topic#187873
Time
Yeah, I'm sure I'll enjoy watching this version. Always fun to see what people have done.

The disc and cover art are quite nice -- although perhaps too nice. Because this came into Canada without a return address, and apparently without a Customs form identifying it as a gift (which it was, I presume, since I didn't even know it was coming), it has been opened by Customs, assigned a value of CAD$20.04, and my parents (the home-during-the-day residents of the address you shipped to) have been charged a quite-astonishing CAD$9.51 in taxes, handling fees, and duties. If you were feeling in a generous mood, you could e-mail me (address below) and I'd hook you up with some PayPal account details...

Boon, you may also note that I didn't receive this disc until two weeks after someone else (Bizzle?) reported getting his. So I think there's some evidence that it's not just my slowness in viewing that has contributed to the overall delay of the contest. Post Offices and international mail sometimes suck.

BTW, DAYV, is this an official entry, or should it be considered merely for interest's sake? I'll judge it the same as the others (even if unofficially), but if it's unofficial, I'll get around to watching it last.
Post
#187527
Topic
Info: Prequel Trilogy in HD on German TV!
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/187527/action/topic#187527
Time
Originally posted by: eros
The bladerunner hint was put in there to make it obvious I was talking about dvd compatible mpeg OK!


Uhh... OK.

At least one copy of BR that I have is HD and MPEG-2 (IIRC). Another one is HD and Xvid. Yet another one or two are DVD MPEG-2. But of course you'd know that from my writing "MPEG-2" and "Blade Runner" as hints somewhere in the same sentence.
Post
#187526
Topic
Info: Prequel Trilogy in HD on German TV!
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/187526/action/topic#187526
Time
Greencapt, when I used to subscribe to HBO-HD (about four years ago), almost none of their HD was OAR. So much so that I nicknamed it (in my Usenet posts on the topic) "IBC" -- you know, how the letters "HBO" would look with the left and right sides cut off.

I don't think anything has changed. Recent caps I've seen from HBO are still not typically OAR.

You do know that "OAR" stands for "Original Aspect Ratio," and that because many films -- including our favourite six (or three, depending) -- are wider than 16:9, that means there should be black bars top and bottom on an OAR broadcast, right? If there are no black bars on IBC's Ep II, then it's not OAR.

Cropping to 16:9 isn't quite as heinous as cropping to 4:3, but it still ain't right!!
Post
#187484
Topic
.: The XØ Project - Laserdisc on Steroids :. (SEE FIRST POST FOR UPDATES) (* unfinished project *)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/187484/action/topic#187484
Time
Pretty confident that there's no analog-capture-to-HD method available. From an NTSC or PAL source, it's sort of pointless anyway.

However, I'm a big believer in upsampling. So if the X0 Project was going to do its processing in HD, I'd figure that was worthwhile. Not as hot as a true HD transfer, but who outside of LFL is ever gonna have that?

BTW, Grinder, there was a story in the NY Times (?) the other day about how HD-DVD is looking more likely to beat Sony's Blu-Ray. Despite the fact that I've seen Blu-Ray recorders available in Japan, and so far I don't think there's any HD-DVD sources.
Post
#187366
Topic
.: The XØ Project - Laserdisc on Steroids :. (SEE FIRST POST FOR UPDATES) (* unfinished project *)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/187366/action/topic#187366
Time
In my opinion (and this is a bit off-topic), HD-DVD and Blu-Ray are two technologies that should be avoided at all costs, by everybody. The DRM (digital rights management) is so unbelievably draconian that it's criminal and highly user-unfriendly. Both formats deserve to die a quick and horribly-expensive death. Teach those anti-consumer bastards at Sony, Microsoft, Toshiba et al a lesson.

Those of you who want HD resolutions should be looking at a nice open standard like Xvid. Well-known, widely available, no DRM (if you make it yourself, anyway), and playable on standalone players. Yes, even in HD.
Post
#186943
Topic
THE FAN EDIT CONTEST HAS A WINNER !!! REVIEWS IN OFF TOPIC FORUM
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/186943/action/topic#186943
Time
Hoo, baby. I go and spend a nearly OT-free day -- mostly spent watching all three CBB edits, no less; how's that for irony? -- and I miss all the fun.

I apologize for being the late judge. I guess I approached this a little differently than most: I wanted to have all the entries in hand before I started watching, so I knew how many items I'd have to go through, and how much room I should be leaving for ranking everything. I also wanted to watch the original films that I hadn't seen before I judged edits (I missed Haute Tension, but I think I got the right flavour of the original through the deleted scenes included on the CBB edit). Also, maybe it's because Canada Post sucks, but stuff trickled in over quite a long time period after the contest closed. I don't believe there was ever a definitive listing of entries supplied, either, so for a while there I was half-expecting something else to turn up. And then there's the Japan thing, which came at an inopportune time. I'm with DAYV: things didn't go as smoothly as any of us had hoped, but I'd like to think that the end result will still be fair (if later than originally anticipated) and the next contest will be much more tightly and timely run, based on the lessons learned this time. No harm, no foul?

Boon, I understand your frustration. I'd be a little choked, too, I suppose, if things took longer than expected. I don't think you're doing a particularly smart thing by openly complaining about it, though. There are still judging cards out there (mine!) that don't have your scores written in ink just yet!

Luckily, I'm not a vindictive sort. Well, OK, I sorta am, but in this case I will certainly accept the criticism without too much argument. I do think you're expecting an awful lot from a free, fan-organized, volunteer-judged contest. It's like you're expecting your gift horse to be Seabiscuit, which I think is a bit unreasonable. In hindsight, though, I think we can all look at aspects of how this thing went down and figure out ways to improve the next version. But what's done is done (or as yet undone...); no use in crying over spilt milk.

My marks and comments will be submitted by mid-week. Let me also add that I appreciate all the entries, and I'm really impressed (so far) by the effort that all editors have put into their work! This judging gig ain't so easy...
Post
#185653
Topic
THE FAN EDIT CONTEST HAS A WINNER !!! REVIEWS IN OFF TOPIC FORUM
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/185653/action/topic#185653
Time
I apologize for my late scoring cards. I'm trying to watch everything as quickly as I can, but between a trip to Japan last week, plus being busy with various board meetings held off for my return, etc., I'm going to have to run later still. I don't want to cheap out and not watch some entries, or to just skim anything. That means freeing up lots of hours, and recently I could use more than 24 a day.

I wish I could watch on the train, or while I'm in boring meetings...

Post
#184751
Topic
QtheGaijin's - The Complete Saga (In Theory) (* unfinished project *)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/184751/action/topic#184751
Time
Originally posted by: QtheGaijin
So, this is my plan, which I have just started. I am going to compile ALL the Star Wars movies [...] and re-author each of them so they go in a nice set. I won't be ripping the Original Trilogy; rather just finding the best one and recompiling it. [...] If all the releasers want to chip in, we can make "the ultimate" saga collection for ourselves.


Maybe I'm missing the point, but what's the point? Sounds like you're going to take TR47's 1-disc versions, and re-author them as 1-disc versions. Then you'll take the official DVDs of the PT, and make downgraded versions of the official versions, as 1-disc versions. Oh, and you'll throw in some stuff that has been done before, but as a 1-disc version.

To me, this does not sound very "ultimate". It doesn't even sound very "worth the time at all." You're welcome to do whatever you like, of course, but I'm really curious as to why or how you think "all the releasers" will want to "chip in" on what sounds to me like a highly-derivative vanity project.

If you want my opinion as to what's "ultimate," I'd say buy yourself an LD player (a good one), a cap card (a good one) and a hard drive (a big one). Then take about two years to fiddle around and get things right. Do something original, in other words.

Personally, I'm really looking forward to the X0 Project, and I'll pass on a dozen projects like this to wait for that real ultimate version.

Post
#183513
Topic
Inexpensive solution for those wanting to view PAL DVDs in NTSC-land
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/183513/action/topic#183513
Time
This is kinda turning into a player love-fest, to which I'll add:

I've got an LG LDA-530. I don't know if it's available in the US, but it can be found at Future Shop here in Canada. The 'regular' price seems to be about $100, but it comes on sale now and again for as low as $79.99. I actually talked the sales guy down to $89, bought it, and then when it went on sale a week later for $79, I went and got the difference back.

It has played everything I've tested:

DVD-R, DVD+R, CD-R
MP3, DivX, Xvid, VCD, SVCD
PAL, NTSC
SRT, TXT soft subtitle formats

And, with a quick patch:

R2 PAL, R2 NTSC

It can't do DivX HR, but I think there's only one or two players that can, and they're a lot more unavailable and expensive.

Oh, and there's also a third-party firmware that fixes a few things and makes the subs look nicer (Google 'lg 9900' maybe? This player's available almost everywhere in Europe and South America under some 99xx model name.)

I've recommended this player to four people from work. Three bought one immediately and all of them love it. One is wavering, and will almost certainly get one when I tell him I only have the whole first season of The Office (UK and US) as DivX!

There's a more-expensive version (the LDA-531) that adds HDMI out and internal scaling, but since I've got a pretty bare-bones TV (for now), I don't need to spend another $100 for that.

Post
#183506
Topic
.: The XØ Project - Laserdisc on Steroids :. (SEE FIRST POST FOR UPDATES) (* unfinished project *)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/183506/action/topic#183506
Time
As a long-suffering fan, I hope that all thoughts of film are shelved for a while, at least until the readily-achievable LD transfer is done. I sorta look at any kind of film-based project as being a little like a trip to Mars: sure, all the pieces are theoretically possible, and anyone with any imagination can see it might eventually even be practical, but there are an awful lot of other things to take care of closer to home first before such a gargantuan task is taken on.

Personally, I'd rather have a definitive LD transfer in my hand before I start hearing rumblings from the XØ Project about anything film -- but once the "one small step for man" moonshot-level LD transfer is done, I can't think of any better crew to tackle the next "giant leap for mankind." (And even if it never fully happened, it would be fun to read about the process.)
Post
#179734
Topic
Info: Holiday Special on 16mm?
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/179734/action/topic#179734
Time
Originally posted by: SKot
The Holiday Special was filmed on videotape


Do you know that for a fact? I'd actually have thought it was filmed on 16mm or 35mm, if it was made in 1978 (or whenever). Probably 16mm, if it was made for TV. Very, very little stuff is shot on video, aside from live events. So it's not out of the realm of possibility for it to be film, is it?

Post
#178000
Topic
***//BUILDING EMPIRE\\: PAL & NTSC DVD - NEW EDITION NOW ONLINE! ***
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/178000/action/topic#178000
Time
Originally posted by: Jambe Davdar
Several people have just been 'done' for copying Star Wars material!


The most surprising thing to me is that one of those nerds was a woman! She should know better than to hang out with a circle of friends that includes a guy named "Dwight"...

Can't help but think of "The Office" (US version) when I hear the name "Dwight."

Post
#176980
Topic
THE FAN EDIT CONTEST HAS A WINNER !!! REVIEWS IN OFF TOPIC FORUM
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/176980/action/topic#176980
Time
There is no way I will be able to finish watching and judging by February 15. I am stupid busy (yes, even in the evening) between now and February 11, when I am leaving the country for a week. In fact, the reason I'm stupid busy for the next week is because I'm leaving the country for a week. You can't bump the close of judging somewhat later, huh?
Post
#175306
Topic
.: The XØ Project - Laserdisc on Steroids :. (SEE FIRST POST FOR UPDATES) (* unfinished project *)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/175306/action/topic#175306
Time
Originally posted by: Patrick R.
It was only made in Japan and used to go for $7000.00 U.S. and about $700.00 for shipping to the U.S..


A few points of clarification:

1. The X0 was not only "only made in Japan," it was only ever sold in Japan.
2. The MSRP was about ¥800,000. Maybe a bit more.
2. That $700 for shipping to the US wasn't a factory option or anything; this player was just not available outside of Japan except through grey market resellers.