release

Blu-ray releases for the week of August 19

This week we have another Oliver Stone film, Nixon, starring Anthony Hopkins as our former president. The first season of the highly acclaimed TV series, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, is available on Blu-ray but unfortunately without the Governator making an appearance. And for the young girls, rabid fans as they may be, Walt Disney has rushed out a Blu-ray compilation, filled with their favorite Hannah Montana moments from her world concert tour. But this time you won't have to throw down three grand on eBay for tickets. The disc includes a behind-the-scenes documentary and a 3D viewing mode. &… Read more

Blu-ray releases for the week of August 12

This week we have Oliver's Stone's The Doors, with Val Kilmer's riveting portrayal of a volatile 60s icon, another Jean-Claude Van Damme film to add to the many other films in his cinematic canon, and Smart People, starring Ellen Page; you know, that actress who starred in that unknown, Oscar-winning indie film (sarcasm) called Juno.

7 Seconds (Sony) Beat the Devil (Blu-ray Only) Belly (Lionsgate) CJ7 (Sony) The Doors (Lionsgate) Elvis: Viva Las Vegas (CMT) Felon (Sony) Half Past Dead (Sony) Kiss of the Spider Woman (City Lights) Last Time I Saw Paris (Blu-ray Only) Maximum Risk (Sony) Prison Break: Season Three (Fox) The Secret (2008) (Walt Disney) Smart People (Walt Disney) xXx: State of the Union (Sony)… Read more

Blu-ray releases for the week of August 5

With the Beijing Olympics opening ceremonies happening this Friday, we're betting most of you will be stuck on the couch all weekend, rooting for your home country (probably the good ol' USA, right?) as they compete in baseball, basketball, football, maybe even synchronized swimming for those select few.

You should, since NBC, CNBC, Universal HD, and most of NBC's channels will be broadcasting the games around the world in gorgeous 1080i. If not, consider picking one of following new Blu-ray releases. Yes, the selection is slim for this week, but one of them did win an Oscar for … Read more

Firefox 3 final inches closer

For those of you waiting with bated breath for Firefox 3, Mozilla has just published Release Candidate 2 for Windows, Mac, Linux and Windows Portable. There are no new features to celebrate or examine: what we're looking at is pure, unadulterated bug fixing. Users can expect a somewhat more stable browser, with the regular mix of security tweaks and otherwise minor changes.

Full release notes can be read here.

Open source better at release management? Maybe not

It's unfortunate that Ubuntu's Mark Shuttleworth doesn't blog more often, because when he does, it's invariably insightful. As a case in point, Mark's post about the superiority of open source at hitting release dates is wonderful. He writes:

Most people would assume that precise release management would depend on having total control of all the moving parts - and hence only be possible in a proprietary setting. Microsoft writes (almost) every line of code in Windows, so you would think they would be able to set, and hit, a precise target date for delivery.

But in fact the reverse is true - free software distributions or OSV's can provide much better assurances with regard to delivery dates than proprietary OSV's, because we can focus on the critical role of component selection, integration, testing, patch management and distribution rather than the pieces which upstream projects are better able to handle - core component feature development.

Unfortunately, it may not be true. At least, not the extent that I'd wish it. … Read more

Revenge of the flacks

If you're still wondering why the media world is getting turned on its head, consider the following anecdote.

A few years back, representatives from the Industry Standard, Wired, and Upside were invited to a public-relations gathering to talk about how they decide what to cover. After they finished their prepared remarks, a young woman in the audience stood up to ask a question.

"You talk a lot about tricks and tips on what we should do," she said. "But I've done all that and I still can't get you to cover my clients." … Read more

Madonna will phone in her next album

You've got to hand it to Madonna. As she turns 50 this year--50!--she's still remaking and evolving herself to stave off irrelevance. And that applies to technology as well, especially where marketing is concerned.

Her latest idea is to make seven tracks from her upcoming album, Hard Candy, available to Vodafone customers before its April 28 release. But don't expect the tunes to be free, GeekSugar says--just early, for bragging rights.

By the way, in case you were wondering, the uber-star's publicist says reports that her marriage is on the rocks are patently false.

Raconteurs to avoid leaks with quick release

Back in the old days (like 2007), the marketing strategy for new albums included a prerelease "rolling thunder" PR campaign. First came a single, followed shortly by the video.

Then a few chosen reviewers would get early copies with "NOT FOR RESALE" imprinted across the front, allowing them to have their reviews ready slightly before or on the release date. Retail outlets would receive promotional matter, like cardboard cutouts of the band standing in front of the album cover. A few warm-up shows would feature songs from the record. Meanwhile, somebody--a reviewer, a disgruntled record … Read more

Get ready for Vista and XP updates

Microsoft has been quietly readying several Service Packs for its operating systems. Windows Vista SP1 has undergone several public release candidates, but CNET Reviews' Rob Vamosi got his hands on a copy of the real deal, not due out until March. The verdict? You'll have to click through to find out.

CNET News.com's Ina Fried got word of private beta testing of Windows XP SP3--that's right, I said Service Pack 3. Although it's nearly six months away from being ready, Microsoft promises that SP3 will contain the usual security fixes, but no word on … Read more