Passing all understanding, in the fast lane...

[alexpgp]

In a welcome change from the norm, Make is featuring an article on how to make an Altoids case out of an old iPod Shuffle. I love the irony, but don't need an Altoids case that badly.

While surfing the tube I was again struck by two aspects of the viewing experience that finally have made it to a LiveJournal post:

(1) Can someone explain how it is that horror films make up a significant part of the programming on the SciFi Channel? It's bad enough having that stuff around near the end of October, and I suppose there's nothing to be done about the occasional offering in the horror genre, but lately, it seems to be a fundamental staple of the programming.

(2) Can someone explain what kind of mental gymnastics one goes through to justify reporting on the Natalee Holloway affair on Entertainment Tonight? Sure, ET and similar shows are basically video versions of the supermarket tabloids, but what possible connection could such shows have to the tragic death of a young woman who - as I understand it - has nothing to do with the entertainment industry? I mean, compared to this, having horror films show up in the SciFi Channel programming schedule seems normal.

BTW, the result of today's cleaning spree is clear: I need more shelf space in my office.

Also, dedicating a device (i.e., a USB drive) as a TrueCrypt volume is maybe not so good an idea. Any attempt to access the drive (say, by clicking it in Windows Explorer) shows it to be "unformatted," and it'd be just your luck to have some helpful soul click "Yes" in response to the question about formatting it.

Cheers...

Comments

Tuppence worth

[platofish.livejournal.com]

1) Em, dunno.

2) Natalie Holloway has become a celebrity (albeit via a macabre route). Celebs are the subject of tabloids, so in their world this is the normal thing to do. As an aside, I find the amount of time the other news channels spend on the Holloway case rather bizzare.

Re: Tuppence worth

[alexpgp.livejournal.com]

Hmmm. That's an interesting point, and maybe there is some kind of special dispensation made for people who go missing and presumed dead that allows them to become the subject of tabloid journalism (of either the dead tree or broadcast genres), not to mention that it is impossible, legally, to libel the deceased.

Then again, it is entirely possible that the reason the Holloway story made the ET broadcast was the fact that the show 48 Hours Mystery did some kind of update on the case last night (I caught a glimpse as Galina was channel surfing), where it was proposed - and apparently for the first time - that the girl wasn't the victim of foul play, but of a drug/alcohol overdose.

Either way, it's a sordid affair.

Cheers...