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Comment Re:Apple did the same with Itunes. BOYCOTT APPLE. (Score 1) 146

I think the predicament for the musician may nevertheless be better than for the writer.

Musicians, except for the Madonna's and the U2's, make very little money off of their album sales (due to the record company's double and triple dipping with recoupable expenses). Donald Passman goes through a line-by-line estimation (see citation) of where the money goes for an act that manages to release a gold album –he concludes that the act (i.e., this is not per person) brings home about $40,000 from the album, after the record label has recouped expenses. Further, the act is signed to several more albums under the same financially dismal relationship (the record company may also choose not to release further albums, leaving the act in a limbo). [See Donald Passman's book "All You Need To Know About The Music Business" for a much more complete explanation].

And yet, we see musicians everywhere, eating caviar in their butler-driven flying mobiles – this is because a sufficiently popular musician can tour and get a much better cut of the venue's revenue and merchandise sales. The industry view is that bands release albums to raise awareness for their tours. This is also why very old, very sad "rockers" tour into their 90s –they make good cash on shows.

I know less about the publishing industry, but my understanding is that there is no make-your-money-on-tour equivalent for writers. There are speaking tours, but these are chiefly to raise awareness (and possibly seduce B&N employees, baristas/ers, other hangers-on), not as a means of raking in cash. Notoriety may bring a writer opportunity (such as writing a column some place where everybody knows which are the really good ascots), but not in the form of further profit on the existing art.

Comment Re:Saw it Sunday (Score 1) 412

No wonder women are not satisfied.

By contrapositive, existential: Wonder Woman is satisfied. Well, sure, with the lasso and the cuffs, who wouldn't be?

Real women like real men are actually very difficult to deal with. Most people would want a faithful companion that matched them over an interesting companion who might show them up, leave them, or screw around on them.

Don't take anything as an attack; your comment sounded, to me, a bit pessimistic regarding the ladyfolk and (perhaps unintentionally) a little bitter, specifically the cost incurred for showing them up. Probably good relationships with humans of any gender (sorry non-humans) doesn't involve a great deal of showing one another up.

It seems many males (let's exempt anyone in this thread), especially when they're younger, are frustrated when common male/male dynamics ("I dunked on him", "I benched more than him," "I destroyed him at Street Fighter" –read: dominance) do not translate to successful male/female dynamics ("Greetings, I destroyed your boyfriend at Street Fighter - I assume you'll be wanting to date me now."). But we certainly wouldn't want to be held to the same standard with common female/female dynamics ("You really spread some great lies about her, let's date.").

These comments in no way apply to other types of relationships, in which ritual abuse, et al, may be a principle highlight.

United States

State Senator Caught Looking At Porn On Senate Floor 574

Everyone knows how boring a debate on a controversial abortion bill can get on the Senate floor. So it's no wonder that Florida State Sen. Mike Bennett took the time to look at a little porn and a video of a dog running out of the water and shaking itself off. From the article: "Ironically, as Bennett is viewing the material, you can hear a Senator Dan Gelber's voice in the background debating a controversial abortion bill. 'I'm against this bill,' said Gelber, 'because it disrespects too many women in the state of Florida.' Bennett defended his actions, telling Sunshine State News it was an email sent to him by a woman 'who happens to be a former court administrator.'"
PC Games (Games)

EA Launches Ultima-Based Browser Game 106

On Monday Electronic Arts launched Lord of Ultima, a free-to-play, browser-based strategy game that's based on the Ultima universe. Quoting VG247: "Set in the new world of Caledonia, players start the game as conquerors raising an empire, and then move from developing a village to evolving it into a highly customized capital. Players can be peaceful merchants by trading resources over land or sea and using diplomacy, or become feared conquerors using armies of knights and mages to crush their enemies one by one in maniacal glee."

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