> -----Original Message----- > From: Stan Zaske > Optical drives are becoming obsolete with hard drive storage > and thumb drives so inexpensive. Optical drives are also much > slower and with the coming of a National broadband agenda and > net neutrality soon to be pushed heavily by our new > administration... Also, you can convert your DVD collection > to iso format and use Demon Tools Lite to mount it in a > virtual optical drive and use your favorite media app to watch them. > AnyDVDHD can also rip BlueRay to disk for the same purpose.
I hope for net neutrality and national broadband, but I can't hold my breath waiting. Comcast just put a limit on total usage. At 250 GB/month, it seems rather generous, but if people start downloading HD content, 250 GB might disappear rather quickly. Second, how do you get your dvd collection converted if you don't have an optical drive in the first place. Kinda a Catch-22! :) You need an optical drive to make your optical drive obsolete? > I bought into HDDVD last year because of the heavier use of > DRM with BlueRay and got burned last February when Hollywood > and Tochiba threw in the towel. There are an increasing > number of BlueRay rentals in my area now but I've been > waiting for the price and compatibility issues to get better. > But even BlueRay's days are numbered if you believe the > articles. They say that if BlueRay wants to succeed it needs > to be as cheap as DVD and I don't think that will happen for > quite some time. I really like to go to the video store and > check out the latest rentals but those places are probably on > the way out. You are buying into the rental philosophy. I still like to own my DVD (or blu-ray when the times comes) disk so I can watch it whenever I want. The idea of downloading it to watch once and having to pay each time does not appeal to me. DRM may be able to stop piracy, but as long as you own the disk, and it remains undamaged, you can play the movie as many times as you want for your initial investment. Besides, it you like to rent, Netflix rents blu-ray movies for only an additional $1 per month. JMO Jim Maki [EMAIL PROTECTED]
