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DVD Jon Hacks iTunes Ecosystem
Mark Fleischmann  |  Nov 16, 2006
Jon Johansen strikes again. As a teen, the now 22-year-old Norwegian became notorious for hacking the CSS digital rights management associated with the DVD format. His latest project is to open up tightly guarded ecosystem of Apple's iPod and iTunes Store by hacking Apple's FairPlay DRM. To that end he's cofounded DoubleTwist Ventures with partner Monique Farantzos. They plan to license their technology to manufacturers and download services, as Farantzos explained to news.com, with two aims: "One is to enable other online stores to wrap their content with FairPlay so that it works on the iPod.... We also plan to allow competing devices play iTunes content." No doubt Apple will litigate fiercely to protect its highly profitable closed system. But the music industry, long uncomfortable with Apple's rigid pricing, has been praying for something like this to happen. And several European governments have been quietly or not so quietly demanding it.
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Geoffrey Morrison Blog
Car Parks You
Geoffrey Morrison  |  Nov 15, 2006
Check out the my new review of the $1000 720p Optoma here.
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Projector Reviews
Optoma HD70 DLP Projector
Geoffrey Morrison  |  Nov 15, 2006
HD projection on a budget.

Sure, 1080p is getting all the buzz, but even the cheapest 1080p displays are still really pricey. For example, the lowest-priced 1080p projector is 4.5 times the price of this little Optoma. The HD70, while "only" 720p, has a distinction all its own that makes it one of the coolest products to come out in months: It's the lowest-priced HD projector ever.

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Ears On
Napster Starts Free Downloads
Mark Fleischmann  |  Nov 15, 2006
Looking for a way to get free music without being attacked by the Recording Industry Antichrist of America? Napster will keep you out of court with its "Free Download of the Day," which began last week. Each day will feature a different track, with initial sponsorship from Intel, which will push its Viiv technology for the next three months. Today's featured artists: Airpushers, with MoZella. The codec is good old DRM-free MP3 and tracks posted to the Napster Free Downloads page—gosh, how I love the sound of that—will remain up for a week. So plan at least one day a week to visit Napster and check out the free goodies. Oh, there's one catch: You'll have to register to get your free downloads and provide an email addresss. But you can opt out of emailings and needn't supply a credit-card number. Napster, for those who were literally born yesterday, was once the nexus of P2P file sharing on the net but has been reborn as a music-industry-sanctioned paid download service.
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Ears On
Jacqui Reviews 2nd-Gen iPod Shuffle
Mark Fleischmann  |  Nov 14, 2006
No one writes iPod reviews like ArsTechnica's questing Jacqui Cheng. Already notorious for putting two generations of iPod nanos through a washing machine, she upped the ante by dipping the second-generation iPod shuffle in beer, then running over it with a car. Did it survive? I won't deprive you of the pleasure of finding out for yourself. She also literally took the unit apart, as you can see from the pic. One of many things I learned from her review is that Apple has eliminated the "universal" 30-pin docking connector. Instead, the new shuffle's mini-jack handles power and transfer as well as audio output.
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The Devil and Daniel Johnston—Sony Pictures
Mike Prince  |  Nov 13, 2006
Video: 3
Audio: 2
Extras: 4
The mind of an artist is a frightening place, more so if you’re Daniel Johnston. The Devil and Daniel Johnston is a documentary about this troubled “genius,” covering those closest to him as he’s grappled with mental illness and unlimited artistic vision. Using an inexhaustible amount of archival footage, the film paints a portrait of Johnston, showcasing his artistic endeavors from childhood to recent years. Countless fans across the globe celebrate his work, hailing the cult hero.
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Scarface Platinum Edition—Universal
Mike Prince  |  Nov 13, 2006
Video: 4
Audio: 4
Extras: 3
Thanks to gangsta rappers and the white suburban kids who worship them, we are blessed with yet another version of Brian De Palma’s bloody, operatic masterpiece. The story hasn’t changed since the last edition was released three years ago—only the sound effects have. The “all new” Platinum Edition comes complete with all new digitally remastered sound and picture that only seems like more of the same. Granted, it’s a better option than going the Lucas route and adding unnecessary robots or the sound of a vacuum when Pacino snorts mountains of coke. However, if you already own Scarface, this edition is needless.
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The First Star Wars Trilogy Limited Editions—20th Century Fox
Chris Chiarella  |  Nov 13, 2006
Video: 2
Audio: 3
Extras: 1
Finally available in their 1977, 1980, and 1983 versions, the new Limited Edition Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi DVD sets contain minimally tweaked re-releases of the laserdisc masters created in 1993. Disc one in each case is essentially the same as the first disc inside the four- and three-disc Trilogy sets that came out two years ago; the second disc for each movie contains the original theatrical version. So, this review pertains to those second discs, the supplemental inclusions of the “unaltered” films.
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Lucky Number Slevin—Weinstein
Aimee Giron  |  Nov 13, 2006
Video: 4
Audio: 4
Extras: 3
Imagine you’ve just fallen into some bad luck, and suddenly the city’s two biggest crime bosses are looking for you. By the way, they’re also at war with each other. Not only do they each claim that you owe them obscenely large amounts of money, they decide you’re going to pay them back in a most unexpected way. Slevin Kelevra (Josh Harnett) finds himself in one such dilemma, but his misfortune is really a case of mistaken identity. The real twist, however, is who gets the payback.
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James Brown Live at Montreux 1981—Eagle Eye Media
Steve Guttenberg  |  Nov 13, 2006
Video: 2
Audio: 4
Extras: 3
James Brown, a.k.a. the Godfather of Soul, is a force of nature. If you’ve never seen his live show back in the day or think that Prince and OutKast are hot stuff, do yourself a big favor and spin the James Brown Live at Montreux 1981 DVD. If the fierce grooves don’t get your mojo working, the sheer spectacle of a sweat-soaked Brown and his 14-piece funk band will. You get a healthy dose of his greatest tunes—“It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World,” “I Got the Feelin’,” “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag,” and “Sex Machine”—packed within the disc’s all-too-short 71-minute running time. The jazz/funk workouts never let up, and, while Brown’s vocal prowess may not match the primal rhythm-and-blues sound he had in the 1960s, in 1981, he was still untouchable.
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