So, shortly after my friend leaves I begin to *seethe*. (1 Viewer)

[Charles J P]

Mark C sort of reminds me of another pet peeve I have about friends who dont know squat about HT but still choose to judge ours. The people who complain about it being too loud when a quick SPL check would show that its anywhere from 10-20 dB quieter than the local multiplex. WTF!

 

[Michael St. Clair]

FWIW, and I guess I'm exhibiting my patented "crankiness" here, but if you are constantly adjusting the sound level on your system during a movie, it is not properly set up. That would probably drive me nuts.

In general, I'll agree.

But if they were watching the first DVD edition of 'Fellowship', I'll argue that the sound itself was not properly set up. The remixers were masturbating.

The Extended Edition, no such problem.

 

[Rob Gardiner]

On the "no rentals" issue,

My roommate refuses to play scratched CDs in his CD player. He claims it can throw the laser beam out of alignment. I have never asked him for any support for this claim. Does anyone know if this is true?

 

[Angelo.M]

Jack:

I certainly appreciate the care you take with your system and with your software (I'm a bit surprised you let your buddy eat pizza in your living room!); and I'm sorry about the episode with the landlord. Apparently, it left some scars.

Yes, I do think your meticulousness/fastidiousness crosses the border of compulsion, but to each his own. I also like my things kept cleanly/neatly, but I don't wipe down the trays or cover my equipment. We do keep our DVDs and CDs (not to mention our computers, the guitar, the piano) out of the reach of the little one, and our stuff, too, looks, feels and smells brand-new. But, in the end, the stuff is just stuff, and it's meant to be enjoyed, so as long as you're enjoying it...

But, I don't get the DVD rentophobia. When I rent a DVD at Mom-and-Pop Video, I do look at its surface and clean it gently with an appropriate material, but only if there's something very obvious that I don't want in my player.

Did you swap bootleg tapes or vinyl back in the day, Jack? Or did you only play fresh, store-bought, 'official' stuff?

 

[Jack Briggs]

Only the fresh stuff.

As for how this longtime friend of mine was treated, it was all very nice. And he kept asking me toward the end of the movie if I liked it. At movie's end, I said nope.

He has stayed at my place countless times (we've been best buddies, see). Even after raging arguments with his girlfriend (at the time), I'd let him crash at my place. We go back.

Throughout it all, Cohen has looked at my own fascination with electronics with bemusement, preferring not to know anything about any of it. But when he wants something better, he comes to me for advice (and, promptly, doesn't take it). He doesn't want to know about the equipment, and when he asks questions regarding his own purchases, he is looking for only one kind of answer. (About a year ago he asked me if he'd need to buy a new TV in order to get into DVD. I told him the advantages of DVD will be lost on the old Sylvania, especially with its RF-only connection. He balked at my answer, and I then told him to quit asking me such questions if he didn't want a straight answer that may not be to his liking.)

Look, he is hard pressed to tell the visual difference between DVD and VHS, and so that's why I bristle a bit when he offers criticism of my own system(s).

 

[JohnRice]

Hope I'm not giving you too much grief Jack. I mean most of it with at least a little humor.

I've known people like that, who ask a question and then ask another question before you even begin to answer the previous one. Some have even just turned around and started talking to someone else in mid sentence, even the middle of their sentence.



My reaction would tend to be the opposite. Why bristle at the comments of someone who doesn't know what he is talking about and can't see a difference? Are you sure this guy is a Photographer? I gotta wonder about that, but I won't go into it.

 

[JohnRice]

Jack, on the other hand, I have known people who seemed to react to everytyhing that didn't involve them with a subtlely sarcastic "tsk" and it can get seriously annoying.

 

[Angelo.M]

Jack:

I also hope that I'm not giving you too much grief! I think this whole thing is pretty funny--I have this outrageous image of you (of course, I have no idea what you look like, so it's constructed purely out of conjecture) seething, foaming and otherwise gnashing.

Sounds like your friendship will survive this. And, even though I don't usually loan out my DVDs either, you can borrow one of mine anytime!

 

[Ricky Hustle]

Jack,

Here's some Star Trek words of wisdom that might help and/or amuse you through this crisis...

Avoidance is better than confrontation
- Bajoran Proverb

Kirk: Mr Spock, you're a stubborn man.
Spock: Yes, Sir.
- Galileo Seven

----------------------------------------------

Spock (Jack): I love you, however, I hate you.

Alice 210 (Jack's buddy): But I am identical in every way with Alice 27 (Joe six pack)!

Spock: Exactly. That is exactly why I hate you, because you are identical.

(Both the androids slump over in confusion)

Spock: Fascinating.
- I, Mudd

 

[Jack Briggs]

"I, Mudd" is just about my favorite second-season episode, Rick. Thanks!

 

[Angelo.M]

Jack:

One more thought. Seeing the good in your friend at times like the one you experienced is good karma for you.

 

[Jeff Rosz]

wasnt sigmund freud in an episode of next generation? he would have a field day in this thread.

 

[Vickie_M]

Vickie: If ever I am in the Chicago area I would love to visit you and your husband for an evening of home theater fun. (Keep the Stanley Kubrick films out in the open, please.)

Our opposing viewpoints on LOTR are easily set aside, and I would be pleased to have you. I already know you wouldn't be allergic to our cats! That's a problem for a couple of our friends.

Oh, and, we have the (2nd) Kubrick Box Set, all ready and waiting.

 

[ChuckDeLa]

I don't play scratched-up rental discs in any of my players

my strictly enforced policy of neither lending nor borrowing DVDs

I don't like using window shades in the kitchen

When the final credit rolled, I excitedly hit Stop and removed the disc.

My anger went into cascade mode during the weekend. Only a few bottles of Pacifico Clara were able to hold my contempt and rage in check.


Lighten up a little, Jack. You'll live longer.

 

[Brett_H]

Jack,

This

I don't play scratched-up rental discs in any of my players

has kept me up for the past two nights, wondering what the reason is!

My explanation: scratched up discs require more error correction, therefore wearing out the player .001% faster than unscratched discs. Am I right???

I beg of you: please let a brother sleep!

Thanks,
-Brett.

 

[Steve Christou]

I think Jack may still be seething, seeing how his thread has sort of backfired and everyone is either telling him off about not liking LOTR or questioning his Home Theater ethics.
Cheer up Jack, we still love you (eee did I really say that?).

 

[Dheiner]

Careful, Steve. Sandra might read this thread.

 

[John Stone]

If my friend told me I needed a bigger screen, I'd laugh and agree. Who doesn't need a bigger screen? And if a friend wants to borrow a DVD, hell yes. That's what friends do for each other where I come from. Friends matter more than DVDs.

 

[Jack Briggs]

Some rental discs bear contaminants, from peeled-off stickers or what have you. I saw one friend's rental disc that had a piece of the protective plastic chipped off. And the scratches and the smudges. One of my machines can handle just about anything thrown at it; the one in my main system, though, cannot deal as effectively with abused discs.

I haven't rented in more than four years.

 

[Vickie_M]

We don't rent as much as we used to, because we buy. But, we buy a lot of rental DVDs. We look closely at any rentals, and my hunband takes it in the bathroom and cleans it thoroughly before it goes into the drive. We've had more problems with brand new, fresh out of the box DVDs than rentals.

Inspecting and cleaning a "foreign" DVD before play doesn't seem like such a big deal to me. I still don't understand the problem.