11/23   Noticed that tivo is now offering some sort of DVD transfer
        service. Has the time come to chuck in the VCR or is this
        stuff still too new (I have a few hundred video tapes)?
        \_ yes.  Tivo has a straight to DVD burner.  VCRs are obsolete.
           Netflix will deliver movies to Tivo eventually.
           \_ A VCR costs $25 and a rental costs a buck for a week.  I can
              get a VCR tape of almost anything.  Hooking up a VCR is no
              easier or harder than a DVD.  Inserting a tape and hitting
              play isn't hard.  Why exactly are VCRs obsolete with 300
              gazillion of them out there and every movie available on them?
                \_ I heard a story about someone's child being upset with
                   having to rewind a VCR tape.  Why don't you just hit
                   play, stupid?
                \_ Videotapes wear out with repeated use and copying, you
                   can't choose subtitles or dubbing on fruity foreign films,
                   you don't get the director going off on all the extra-gory
                   bonus material, they're clunky, they don't make great
                   coasters, they don't play well in your laptop, VCR read
                   heads get nasty and goonked up, need more?  -John
                   \_ Exactly my point.  Most people are *not* entertainment
                      fanatics, don't care about subtitles, dubbing, foreign
                      films, director babbling, laptops, or anything else.
                      Most people just want to see the movie and return it
                      a week later for a buck.  Need more?
                      \_ Totally!  Hey, the model T is easy to maintain and
                         it gets people from one to place to another -- which
                         is all any car owner really wants.  They're so totally
                         not obsolete!  Why would any car owner want any of
                         fancy modern crap anyhow?  *sheesh*
                         \_ Hi red herring person.  Are there millions of
                            model T's on the road?  No.  Can I buy one for
                            $25 and fill the tank for $1?  No.  Does your
                            response carry any weight?  No.  Did you read or
                            comprehend anything I said?  No.  Are you a baby
                            troll in training?  Yes.  Come back when you have
                            a meaningful analogy, or better yet, just don't.
                            \_ Uhm, look up obsolete.  Ubiquity is not
                               synonymous with "not obsolete".  Train harder,
                               grasshopper.
                               \_ I did.  You lose.  Train harder, indeed.
                                  Perhaps you could fall back on defn #2 and
                                  claim my vcr is no longer stylish.  ;-)
                                  Or maybe you meant my VCR is vestigial as
                                  per defn #3?  Certainly "no longer in use"
                                  does not apply.
                                  \_ *sigh*  Forest for the trees, man.  I've
                                     got work, so believe whatever makes you
                                     happy.
                                     \_ Sorry you can't score any points.  All
                                        I was saying is there's a zillion
                                        perfectly functional VCRs out there
                                        and tons of available movies for them.
                                        I believe that because it's a simple
                                        truth.  Do they hav e whiz bang and
                                        flash?  No, duh, of course not.  Most
                                        people don't give a damn about it.
                                        Anyway, you should read the dictionary
                                        entry before belittling someone else
                                        for not reading it, especially if
                                        you're wrong about the word defn.
                                        Have a nice time at work.
                                        \_ I think all that's been proven in
                                           this thread is that we're both
                                           idiots, and that John is the only
                                           smart one for letting it go.
   obsssssssolllllllete   [9] Audio pronunciation of "obsolete"
   ( P )  [10]Pronunciation Key  ( b s -l t , b s -l t )
   adj.
    1. No longer in use: an obsolete word.
    2. Outmoded in design, style, or construction: an obsolete
       locomotive.
    3. Biology. Vestigial or imperfectly developed, especially in
       comparison with other individuals or related species; not clearly
       marked or seen; indistinct. Used of an organ or other part of an
       animal or plant.

        \_ The image quality of Tivo -> DVD is not as good as straight Tivo
           because the Tivo has to convert to MPEG-2 so you can burn DVDs,
           adding a conversion step.
           \_ Uh, Tivo encodes to MPEG2 anyway.
                \_ Yup that's what I thought too ... Then I was looking for
                   a Tivo with DVD-burner and read review after review
                   complaining of shitty image quality.  Maybe I should have
                   said "convert to DVD compatible MPEG-2 levels" or
                   whatever that might be.