Chindie

No, Outlook all the way unfortunately.

Typing an email up specifically saying you've attached stuff for reference, having the phone ring or someone talk to you for a moment, going back to said email and hitting send without attaching said stuff, and then having to send a follow up with the distinct tone of 'I'm not a moron, really' with the attachments. Made all the worse when you're basically sending the same email, with small variations, to about 20 clients, with the same attachments.

One of the concerns with horse meat in the burgers is that given how rare its consumption is in the UK it may not have passed the food safety standards required for consumption.

Gangster Squad is a film that feels like its constantly on the verge of parody. But enjoyable enough for what it is.

HMVs entire model is not long for this world regardless of the mistakes made and other pressures. The market for physical media is only going to dwindle further. Even if you save the chain now, it has to become a fundamentally different beast to survive much beyond the next few years.

I'd like HMV to be able to survive, but it's death is inevitable. It simply cannot compete in the current market, and it's made poor, silly, and absurd choices along the way. I was in there a couple of weeks ago, and spotted the Wire boxset marked up at £125. I was in both of the branches in the city centre, the pop up and the Bullring store, today and well... the pop up store was basically in process of being mothballed and the Bullring store was just... kinda... sad really. Plenty of stock, some of it decently priced... but somehow I knew I wasn't buying. I've cancelled the couple of preorders I had, just in case.

They're bull sharks. You can kill them with gunfire, aim at the base of the fin and go to town. Or you can kill then by running them over...

I got absolutely no sleep last night, and was tired anyway. I'm not sure how I'm going to get through today without bankrupting the company or something. I'm supposed to be giving a clients a call later, I genuinely don't think I could hold an intelligible conversation with anyone by then. And the bloody snow means my deathtrap shoes are even more dangerous when I'm not in the office today.

Grindhouse was a double feature, basically. It was Tarantino's Deathproof (which is absolutely shite) and Rodriguez's Planet Terror, which is also crap, and a load of spoof trailers, in the manner of a 70s low budget b-movie horror double header. Deathproof is Tarantinos worst film, it's the worst of the faux b-movie stuff he does with no charm or excellent aspects like his other work is usually elevated by. Shite.

Put it like this - I like Lambert, generally, I think he's done a fairly poor job under poor circumstances... but I wouldn't shed a tear were he out on his ear Monday morning. As you say, though, I don't think it'll make a difference either way. And to be honest, I don't think he will be replaced.

Don't get me wrong - I'm not shouting Lamberts corner here. He's made daft errors and has far from covered himself in glory, and I've got my doubts if he's really the one for us. I wanted him in the summer, didn't think we'd get him in all honesty, but I always maintained that I'd be happier bringing him in had he proven himself for a second Prem season. Of course we didn't have that option to wait. The thing is, the team is so shit, so riddled with crap, some of bought by Lambert himself, that I think you could put in Mourinho, Fergie, whoever, and we'd be down. The team is not only completely out of it's depth, it's gutless too - miracles are required to save us. Sacking Lambert I don't think achieves much beyond upheaval, more costs (and we know Lerner is loathe for those) and new false dawn.

It'd be a pointless gesture and nothing more. There is no manager that will get this hopeless squad doing much better than it is now.

Just a jokey comment at some incongruity.

...hmm?! Cough...

We'll concede but I expect a hard fought win.

John Carter is strangely enjoyable rubbish - there's nothing, besides the CGI (and even that is only from a technical standpoint - the art design is hopeless) that's any good, and a lot of it is downright shit (the entire plot, all of the acting, the dialogue...), but it passes a couple of hours in an inoffensive family friendly actioner way. It verges on so shit it's alright at times - James Purefoy being basically comically aware that he's in a shit movie and playing it up. I also agree with Stevo on the US version of TGWTDT, having also rewatched it recently. It's laughably superior to the Swedish original. The only thing the original has on Fincher's version is getting there first and more consistent accents.

The last console to launch with a new major franchise release was the Dreamcast I think. It just doesn't happen anymore. It's kinda disappointing, but it makes sense for manufacturers. Your tent pole titles you want to release when there is an established user base, for a start, and the difference to sales numbers of a new console release a big franchise release is going to make are negligible. I think the only chance this has of releasing with one of Microsoft's big franchises is if they go cross gen with a title (release a 360 and next gen edition of something at the same time, as happened with the 360 release for third party titles, Gun for instance) or if theyve been quietly working on a side release to a franchise (like GOW: Judgement is a side story to the main Gears releases). Or maybe a re-release, maybe, an up-conversion of a classic. But yeah - I'll be gobsmacked to see a Halo 5 launch title release.

I think it's fairly unlikely that any of the manufacturers will implement an anti-preowned measure on this gen. The easiest way to do it requires net connection, which as I and others have said in the next Xbox thread, is problematic as a considerable part of the market don't connect their consoles to the internet. Every other patent smacks of patents for patents sake to me, including this. I don't think this will be implemented on the next Playstation. The preowned market is doomed regardless. A non-physical media console market is inevitable, it's just a question of how long it takes. It won't be this gen, but it will happen and then the preowned market is dead - unless licence swapping services are allowed to come about. There is one of those already for music but it's being attacked already by Apple IIRC. The industry demonises the preowned market but neglects to note that it actually contributes to new sales by allowing a number of buyers to pick up the latest releases when otherwise they might not be able to.

I still don't believe it'll launch with Halo 5 regardless.

Absolutely dreading work tomorrow. We had the first backlash today from the combination of Christmas time off and illness going through the office - things falling through the net leading to clients emailing and calling for quotes and documents that hadn't got sent out. Nothing major but kinda frustrating... But i just know that tomorrow, when I'm left holding the fort, that things are going to get worse. Probably related to quotes and documents being sent out today. Its made worse by the fact I basically can't do much for clients with regards advice or information - that isn't my job and I'm actually not allowed to advise clients anyway, even if I knew whats what. Tomorrow is going to be one of those where I quietly hope all day that nothing happens... I'll kill for a long boring day. It was bad enough today and that was with my boss there.

They'll sell about 2 of these.

Exactly. Microsoft know that there simply isn't a big enough market to really make money selling a console that is all download at this moment in time, so they will persist with physical media.

My argument is simple. Microsoft hasn't convinced a very, very large number of its customers to connect their console to the net or to pay for Live. They won't sell a product that only allows for purchasers to download titles, a considerable part of their market either do not want to connect their console to the net, or are unable to. Thus, the console will feature physical media for games. That immediately maximises their market and they can push downloads and further net services to that audience and win them over that way. I'd stake considerable sums of money on the console having physical media. I understand your argument entirely and Microsoft certainly would love to not have to produce physical media, but I think they understand the market won't buy that yet and that its in their interest to maximise that market to continue physical media releases.

They don't care about boxes on supermarket shelves. They care about selling shit. They'll sell more (of everything) at this moment in time, if they have a physical retail copy of games on shelves. They would make less money if they went fully download, so it will not happen. They will cut down their market if they force download only titles on customers. So instead they will maintain a physical media line, whilst introducing customers far more heavily into downloads. I suspect they will pack in a download code for something to introduce a greater market to Live, by giving them something they will want as opposed to marketing the service as they do now, on multiplayer gaming and access to services that most customers already have some form of access to. The system will certainly come with a next gen Kinect, I would not be surprised to see a Kinect Sports disc in the box with what accounts to a day and date considerable DLC add on code as that customers introduction to downloads. They will heavily push downloads, the odd minor exclusive will become the norm (free map dlc for download copies for instance, or exclusive add on content, later on i expect full game exclusives but not something like Halo, more like a Banjo game). But there will be discs on shelves come its release.

I think you'll be wrong on that point - Microsoft won't go completely download, it'll have an optical drive. Too many people would be unable or unprepared to go fully download, and too much of their potential market isn't going to be in the position to buy into a completely digital market. There will still be boxes on shelves in retail for titles. I completely agree, as said, though, that they will allow those that wish to to go fully digital and they'll heavily push the format, on the back of the success of Live.