UPDATE 01/25/2012: Hey, BOTpeeps! Sorry for the delay in getting Tuesday’s strip up – it’s not for lack of trying, believe me. We’re having some technical difficulties with the site which have made it impossible for me to post the latest JEFbot. I’m hoping my tech guru can resolve these issues before tomorrow afternoon at the latest. I’ll keep you guys posted as to any progress (or lack of such) as I know more. Frustratingly yours, Jeff.
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For the past couple of years, the Screen Actors Guild has been making the screeners for many of the SAG Awards nominated films available for download via iTunes, which is great, since I can push the movies to my television via my Apple TV. Unfortunately, I’m kinda fickle, and quick to change my mood and mind quickly, so although it might have seemed like a good idea at the moment, an hour later after these films download I’m either watching something else, playing a videogame, working on JEFbot, or out of my apartment altogether. I’m not sure why the films don’t stream (almost) instantly, the way many other films on iTunes or Netflix do, but if I have to wait more than 10 minutes (realistically, more like 2-5 minutes), I’ll generally catch it another day or time.
How about you readers? Do you download movies often? If it doesn’t download instantly, are you as apt to change your mind as I am? Has all this instant media made us spoiled and impatient? Sound off in the comments below!
I generally dont download unless it’s something I know I wanna watch. and if I wanna watch it that bad that I download, I’m patient enough to wait
true that, Anonymous – i suppose if i actually paid to watch something, i’d be patient enough to wait for it to download. probably. i guess i’ll have to put that to the test sometime.
and, hey! you just achieved the Shades of Firsting! wear them well: movies download right to the lenses of these babies. (just don’t watch and drive.)
😎
I don’t very often, but when I do…they just sit there. I have at least half a dozen of them waiting for me as I type…
that’s exactly what has happened to the rest of the downloadable screeners i’ve yet to watch, ZAD-Man – they’re just sitting there on my hard drive, waiting.
I download movies I realy want to see and didnt catch and wanna keep for rewatching lately.
If one of those criteria isnt present I dont download it. Sometimes Im surprised myself what fits.
Lately though I didnt download anything for lack of time. I know its poor excuse, but…
A poor excuse indeed dude 😀 Got to swing that lightsabre of yours , dont you?
yep, that’s the thing, Maryz – when it’s streaming, it’s easy to just browse content and watch something you might not normally watch, but when you have to wait to download something, you have to stop and think about whether it’s worth the time. (even if “time” only means an hour or so.)
I don’t download too often, mostly for the reason you state above. I do like to Netflix and I find it strange you can’t stream it.
as much as i hated the way Netflix increased their pricing recently, TPC, they’re still the way to go when i need a quick fix of something, too.
Plus, now that they’re getting more stuff to stream I can catch up, or even revisit, old shows. Right now I just started DS9, last year it was Next Generation. Looking forward to seeing what other show I can watch in the future. Plus, the streaming package actually isn’t too bad price wise.
Heh, serves Bot right 😀 I am perfectly OK with SD, dont know what the HD craze is all about, yes, the picture is 2% more crisp, so what, as long as the story is the same I dont give a ….
And I must say there havent been much releases that are worth watching in the theater, the lack of quality these days really saddens me. The last real great I saw was Moon, and that wasnt released in theaters here. (although this lack of quality releases is not only the fault of movie production, but also our theaters that dont show anything but the biggest blockbusters which are mostly just mindless action)
Sad but true.
i’ll agree that the story matters most when watching a movie, Eddie (once i start watching and get into a movie or tv show, it generally doesn’t matter if it’s SD or HD), but if given the choice, i’ll take HD over SD every time. what can i say – i’m a pixel snob. 🙂
There aren’t too many interesting movies out right now. I wanted to see Hugo, but it’s no longer playing at my local theater. I WILL see Underworld 4, though. I’m dubious about quite a few that are supposed to be coming out (like X-men First Class 2). Some NEVER should have existed (Human Centipede series), and some I just don’t care for the genre. BUT I am hopeful for some (JC’s Avatar series) and Marvel Comics Movies (except for the aforementioned FC series).
i’ll be interested to see what Cameron has in store for Avatar, too, KB. it wasn’t one of my favorite movies of his (Aliens probably holds that distinction) but the world he set up was interesting, and i’d love to see what else he does with it.
I netflix most of my movies. If I really want to see it, I’ll find some other way or redbox it.
i keep hearing about Redbox, dj, but i’ve never seen one around my neighborhood. and, yeah: Netflix is pretty cool when i’m looking for a quick fix. just wish they had more newer content.
I rarely download movies, though I do download TV eps from stations I don’t get (Sherlock, Game of Thrones). These often sit on my hard drive for days before I push them to my TiVo, then sit there for more days before I get around to watching them…
Game of Thrones was awesome, DrRandy; can’t wait for Season 2! and i keep meaning to watch Sherlock (as i hear it’s awesome and i love most everyone involved) but just haven’t had a chance, yet.
I don’t download movies, but I received a subscription to the second season of BBC’s Sherlock (which won’t be broadcast in the States until May) for Christmas from a very good friend.
It took about an hour to download each 90 minute ep, but for this show, I’ll wait. At the computer. Watching the seconds count down, popcorn in hand.
There aren’t many movies I’m that excited about that I haven’t already bought on DVD.
i still need to watch the first season of Sherlock, Sarah W! and, hey: nice friend you have there. 😀
If you’re any kind of Moffat and Gatiss fan–Doctor Who, Torchwood, etc., etc.–and I suspect you probably are, watch Sherlock.
I’m not much of a “download-kinda” guy. If I want to see something really bad (after reading all the recaps and reviews and spoilers I can get my hands on! – I don’t watch anything unless I know what’s going to happen beforehand!) I go and rent the DVD. If I do enjoy it, then I buy the best DVD combo available (you know, diamond editions/collector editions/whatever better-than-normal editions) and added it to my collection. The whole download thing… I just don’t see the point of it. Other than sucking the bandwidth limit of my Internet connection.
i’m the same way, Jcb: i can’t get enough spoilers for movies and videogames i’m excited about! sure, sometimes i’ll try not to find out too many details on a project, but for the most part, i just can’t help myself.
Only movies I’ve downloaded are the digital copies that come when I buy the DVD. It’s nice having the mobile version available sometimes, though I don’t get out enough. It makes it easier for me to watch a movie if the TV is tied up. 😀
i download those digital copies that come with the DVD/Blu-rays, too, TCG, although i can’t say i’ve ever actually watched any of ’em on my iPad/computer/cellphone. i always try and DL them right away, tho, cause i’ve found they have expiration dates. 🙁
That or you do like I did and get the Windows Media player version which will only play on one computer. Can’t even stream it to your Xbox. *shrug*
Hah! You are toooooo spoiled. With my UK broadband I tried to download a forty minute TV programme in the evening – said it would take 2.5 hours. Got up at 6.00a.m. next day and it took 4 minutes. Have such a problem with too many people sharing local bandwidth. Even Jefbot can take a minute to clear the strip on the screen sometime – but worth the wait of course!
Likewise, Rod. Likewise.
2.5 hours, rodlane!? yikes! that’s how long it would take when i was, um… “sharing” my neighbors wifi. (this was before i got my own dedicated service. heheh.)
and thanks for taking the time to stop by here, even if/when it takes a while! 🙂
We do Netfilx via our Sony Bravia or PS3, but I don’t like “downloading” films on my computer due to use of disk space, moreso than time.
amazing how many of us use Netflix, Stan! (yet i keep hearing how dire things are for that company after the price hike. amazing how mismanaged things are there.)
I’m a Netflix instant watch girl. I get irritated these days when they don’t have something on instant watch and I have to *gasp* actually wait for the disc to come or go rent it from our local, independent video store. I think we are totally spoiled by how quickly we can feed our whims to watch something. But that’s not a BAD thing, is it? 😉
I love how the Cornfather looks like a kicked puppy in the 3rd and 4th panels. 🙂
heheh. nope, being spoiled isn’t necessarily a bad thing, Shanna! and i totally commiserate over the whole “instant” thing. whenever i run into an item that isn’t available for streaming on Netflix i get totally irritated… then move on to the next thing i’m looking for. 🙂
Oh, here in Europe, I usually just start downloading the damn thing, have a cigarette while it downloads, and then it´s ready.
sounds pretty fast, Anonymous! (depending how long the cigarette break you’re taking is.)
generally speaking i have two methods to watch my flicks: torrents and rapidshare. usually rapidshare is much quicker than torrents, but depending if where i get my movies from, if its not available on rapidshare then itll be somewhere on pirate bay, and vice versa. usually older movies like invasion of the body snatchers or soylent green will be on rapidshare. i believe i had to download STALKER (movie) on pirate bay actually. weird movie, but its a good run through at least once.
hmm. i google’d Stalker steve, and found a 1979 russian sci-fi movie. is this the one you mentioned? synopsis makes it seem worth a look.
yes 1979 is the right version. You’ll want to find one with subtitles though, it doesn’t come with an english dub. Least to my knowledge.
Personally I torrent a LOT. The upside of this is that I have an almost-constant buffer of things to watch. The downside is that by the time I get around to some things, I’m not always interested in watching them any more.
yep, things need to be even more instantly instantaneous, lak!
Bummer! Watching movies online is the way of the future… I pray I’m dead before it catches on! I LOVE movie theatre popcorn!!!
agreed: there’s just no substitute for the experience you get at a movie theater, FunnyShaffer.
Hey there Boteers!
I uh plead the fifth on the grounds that it may incriminate me.
I do have a teeny tiny confession to make. I love cheesy B movies. The cheesier the better. So i will watch them….repeatedly.
morning, Pixie!
cheesy B movies are awesome! (well, some of them, at least. heheh.) i have so many guilty pleasures when it comes to movies that there’s no way i’d ever pass judgment on you. 🙂
“How about you readers? Do you download movies often?”
Nope. I prefer a physical something (DVD, SD chip, Hard drive) that I can hold in my hands and/or put in my DVD collection/SD chip pouch/messenger bag. The last movie that I downloaded was “The Rescuers” from YouTube (don’t worry, I already have a purchased DVD so there was no piracy involved) because it has *stereo* sound and dialogue tracks. For years, I was under the impression that it was recorded in mono, but apparently it was recorded in stereo and released to theaters in mono in the U.S. but released in Britain and other English-speaking countries in stereo. (At least that *seems* to have been the case. The information that I’ve been able to find on how it was recorded is pretty limited. If anyone else has more information on the subject, I’d be grateful for any corrections.)
although i’ve been downloading/streaming more often these days, i prefer physical media too, reynard61 – it’s why i have so many dvds/blu-rays/laserdiscs/vhs tapes! there’s just something about actually “owning” movies rather than feeling like you’re just “renting” them.
btw: thanks for the info about The Rescuers. i had no idea, and that’s one of my favorite animated movies from my youth!
I dont really download at all, but I often search for movies to watch online for free. Its pretty hard to find them, but its worth it!
yeah, it’s really amazing just how much stuff is out there, DAS. i don’t see how anyone with an internet connection and a computer could ever be bored!
This foot of mine is burning red…..
ewwWWwww… hope you get that checked out, Infamous Nefarious.
There’s only one cure. To turn in a full circle on my good foot an bring the inflamed foot in contact with someone elses face at a high velocity.
Being a poor student with little leisure time on my hands, I borrow DVD series when I want to watch them. The fifth season of Doctor Who is sitting on my bedside table, staring at me accusingly…but I just can’t move on to Matt Smith when I haven’t watched the last specials from David Tennant, and none of my friends have them to watch on DVD. So that one might wind up getting Netflick’ed so I can close out my David Tennant Doctor time. (*sigh*)
I think I’ve only ever downloaded a couple movies, only because I couldn’t find them at all. The Pretender movies were the only ones, I think.
i’m still way behind on DW too, T! i really need to just set some time aside and get caught up. of course, i’d need a solid week or two to do that, but that’s beside the point.
It would be a week or two well spent! Once I’m caught up on homework (last semester of school, yay), I’ll spend the time needed to track down the specials. Or bite the bullet and buy the damn things. It would be fitting, that the only modern DW I owe is Tennant (my favorite of the new Doctors so far).
shoulda checked the screening schedules Bot
*sigh* so true.
well, I hate TV
all the commercials, propaganda, biased news, a.s.o. …
therefore I pirate every show, movie, series that I wanna watch, to avoid getting mindfucked every day…
sure, I could buy iTunes as well, but I don’t understand why I should pay for content that is shown in TV for free, just because I wanna keep my mind clean and avoid commercials
btw bot, it takes time to stream them cause HD-movies are big files (usually around 8gb) which means that you need a damn fast connection to stream them live… therefore I would say you should upgrade your bandwidth or plan your entertainment-tasks a bit more stable 😉
yeah, these HD files are way huge, Malkav. i’ve now downloaded most of them in the background while doing other things so i can watch them instantly when i have the time, tho. and i better get to it, cuz i only have like, 7 more days before the ballots are due!
well, to avoid losing them after their temporary license runs out, you could use open-source download-managers like “jdownloader”, or alter them into permanent files with also free available file-converters…
there is a huge variety of converters, compatible with nearly every movie-format…
I’m sure google can help you out.
Meant to comment when it was posted, but I got distracted. Anyway, this was a funny strip. I don’t tend to download things. If I do, however, I always make sure to watch it, and only download things that interest me that I can’t see any other way. Streaming all the way. Or a movie theater or dvd. Those work, too.
thanks, Destructur25 – glad you found the strip funny! yeah, streaming/movie theater/dvd (or blu-ray!) sound good to me. downloading large files is just annoying. 🙂
Aha! You are alive.. was beginning to wonder…
I either watch in the theaters, or buy it on Blu-ray. I prefer paying for my viewing so I know that the people who made it get compensated. I’m the same way with music, though. Everyone thinks I’m crazy.
If they had FiOS like I had, their torrents would be done in minutes or less.