The Man in Blak

Errrr, well, I'll definitely say that Weapon X is an interesting read since, if for no other reason, it's a book where absolutely none of the characters are sympathetic or redeemable. The tone of characters switch from issue to issue and the writing varies from decent to down right awful ("let's make a mutant concentration camp...and have nobody except for X-Force alumni do anything about it!"). If you enjoy odd "bad guy" books that have decent art, but not much else, you should check out Weapon X. Otherwise, save your money (and/or download time).

Are these Gamecube rips actually CD image files (like .ISO or .CUE)? If so, you may be able to use Daemon Tools to dock the image onto your computer without worrying about burning to disc and dealing with cumbersome CD Drive access times. That being said...pirating the Gamecube is a little silly. At least with the Dreamcast, you had the excuse of many of the games having low print runs.

Please tell me there's another way. I don't want to have to spend three days recompiling a kernel just so my graphics card can work.

Now that I've got a new laptop, I want to turn my old computer into a big console. That is, I'd like to be able to just turn it on and boot into a front-end for MAME (or, miraculously, a front-end that covers all of the emulators). No windows crap, no need for a mouse - just a way for my comp to boot directly into the emulation program. I would imagine this would be possible, since I've seen people build arcade cabinets around their PC box, but I've got no idea where to even begin looking. Any insight?

An old man turned ninety-eight He won the lottery and died the next day It's a black fly in your Chardonnay It's a death row pardon two minutes too late And isn't it ironic...dontcha think It's like rain on your wedding day It's a free ride when you've already paid It's the good advice that you just didn't take Who would've thought...it figures Mr. Play It Safe was afraid to fly He packed his suitcase and kissed his kids goodbye He waited his whole damn life to take that flight And as the plane crashed down he thought "Well isn't this nice..." And isn't it ironic...dontcha think It's like rain on your wedding day It's a free ride when you've already paid It's the good advice that you just didn't take Who would've thought...it figures Well life has a funny way of sneaking up on you When you think everything's okay and everything's going right And life has a funny way of helping you out when You think everything's gone wrong and everything blows up In your face A traffic jam when you're already late A no-smoking sign on your cigarette break It's like ten thousand spoons when all you need is a knife It's meeting the man of my dreams And then meeting his beautiful wife And isn't it ironic...dontcha think A little too ironic...and yeah I really do think... It's like rain on your wedding day It's a free ride when you've already paid It's the good advice that you just didn't take Who would've thought...it figures Life has a funny way of sneaking up on you Life has a funny, funny way of helping you out Helping you out

Fine, JERRY Lewis hobbles onto the field and tackles Brady, giving him a concussion. Does it really fucking matter?

And then, in the preseason, during Brady's only series, Ray Lewis slams him into the ground on a sack, giving him a concussion. Or how about tearing an ACL? That'd put him out for most of the season. Maybe if someone came and blindsided him and tore his right bicep in mid-release? Seriously, it's the NFL. Brady is good and he has the opportunity to be something special, but the league is far too volatile for you to have any grounds to declare, without a shadow of a doubt, that he's going to win three more Super Bowls.

Yeah, pretty much what he said. It's evolved into glorified streetball, with the occasional European player attempting to bring actual skill into the game. I'm not even going to touch the officiating, which has degenerated into being a couple steps short of "booking" NBA games. Just embarrassing - Jordan, Bird, and Magic should be disgusted to see the game that they built being reduced to this. Runner-up: NCAA Football, who is somehow the only sport on the planet that refuses to crown a definitive champion.

If they're smart, they'll do everything they can to keep Steve Smith. He was a step short of being a frickin' highlight reel for the NFC playoffs, and it's obvious he's got a rapport with Delhomme.

I don't think they overpaid Davis at all, considering that he was the primary reason that they clinched in the regular season...but I'll admit, he certainly seemed to be lacking a little bit of oomph in the Super Bowl. Carolina's going to have quite a controversy on their hands next year, considering how DeShaun performed down the stretch. As it stands...it's just another kooky win for the Patriots. They did it to the Rams and they did it to the Panthers. My theory is that they're just paying off Karma for being on the receiving ends of one of the most devastating Super Bowl losses of all time. In reality, the Patriots are going to be ridiculous next year, with Colvin healthy and everybody else gaining confidence from this amazing season. Just phenomenal performers on defense and playmakers on offense (including the most underrated corps of receivers in the NFL, in my opinion). On another note, I think this kind of shoots that whole "NFL has too much parity" deal down, considering that this is their second Super Bowl win in three years, and their third appearance in the last ten years. Sure, the game was tight, but if the NFL was truly as random as everybody would have you believe...it would have been the Redskins and the Jaguars in the big game this year. Hell of a Super Bowl...and I'd love to see a rematch next year.

Obviously, this has been a phenomenal success. If you remember, my original post was actually somewhat grounded in the fact that a lot of the crap threads in NHB were taking a toll on the server, in terms of space and bandwidth. But, I'll admit, that doesn't necessarily mean that NHB will be the ultimate solution. Other than that... I appreciate the effort of going through and digging out the great threads from NHB, but I still believe that many of those could exist in General Chat. Am I going to go through each and every single thread and frantically search for any sign of flaming and trolling to prove myself wrong? Er, no. Especially not on a Saturday Night, with a beer in hand. The issue isn't that there haven't been good threads. The contention is that those good threads could have existed elsewhere (though, I admit, I can't really prove that) and that, for every good thread, there's at least ten threads that are garbage. That, however, is a matter of opinion. As it stands, there's no sense in arguing about it. If anybody else has an opinion on it, they'll vote and post accordingly; I, on the other hand, have said all that I need to. The post was originally meant to be a suggestion. I'm not going to type up a 50-page manifesto and storm out just because HD is allowed to exist. I just thought that could be a possible solution to some of the problems...which is why I posted it. If the vote convinces the mods or Dames enough to do something about it, they'll do something. If not, I'm sure they'll say something. Either way, I said my two cents and people reacted, positvely and negatively, which means that it was probably good to bring it up for discussion.

You didn't hear me say this, but if you've got a good broadband connection, just go on DC++ and download some runs of issues from the comics hubs. That's how I've been catching up. Otherwise, there's an absolute crapload of X-Titles out there now. From what I've glanced over, you'll probably want to check out New X-Men (after the Here Comes Tomorrow storyarc comes out...because they're right, it is confusing as hell). Emma Frost is actually a decent read too, even though it's more of a teenage drama than your typical action comic. Other options: Uncanny X-Men (which I believe Claremont is returning to write again), X-Statix (which used to be X-Force) or even 1602 (which is an "medieval Elseworlds" deal for the Marvel Universe that's written by Neil Gaiman). From what I've heard, most of the other books (Agent X, Wolverine, X-Treme X-Men, X-Men Unlimited) aren't worth the paper they're printed on. One thing I'm not sure of: the Ultimates line, which I guess is some kind of ultra-action alterna-verse versions of some of the popular Marvel comics. That could be worth checking out, perhaps.

I'm not saying dump NHB because it lacks intelligent conversation (though I did express disappointment in how it had turned into a troll breeding ground). I'm saying dump NHB because it's redundant. Look at the first post that I made in this thread, Banky. Any of the good threads from NHB could exist just as well in General Chat. Do you even have a response for that? For the love of god, you're not getting censored. A hundred people aren't going to be following you around and telling you how to post at Underground Smarks because that's your place. But if the moderators (and the posters) of TSM feel like the garbage from NHB is entirely unnecessary and that the good elements of NHB can live in General Chat...then they've got the right to get rid of the folder - it's their community too. Question: what is keeping you from doing those threads in GC? It's General Chat. It has had threads like "The Person Above You Thread" - how is it somehow "smarter"? The people who are worried about the stupidity of NHB spreading into the other folders may have a legitimate complaint, but everybody else who is basically saying that TSM WOULD BE BANNING FUN IF THEY BANNED NHB~! are making absolutely no sense. Seriously, take a second, relax, and think about it - give me a legitimate reason why the fun that you have in NHB is somehow unattainable elsewhere.

Jin Kazama (Tekken) vs. Kung Lao (Mortal Kombat) Rock Howard (Fatal Fury) vs. Vega (Street Fighter) Ken Masters (Street Fighter) vs. Geese Howard (Fatal Fury) Hwoarang (Tekken) vs. Blanka (Street Fighter) Yoshimitsu (Tekken) vs. Iori Yagami (King of Fighters) Heiachi Mishima (Tekken) vs. Raiden (Mortal Kombat) Kyo Kusanagi (King of Fighters) vs. M. Bison (Street Fighter) E. Honda (Street Fighter) vs. King (Tekken) Axel (Guilty Gear) vs. Sagat (Street Fighter) Chun-Li (Street Fighter) vs. Akuma (Street Fighter) Haohmaru (Samurai Shodown) vs. Ryu (Street Fighter) (damn, what a wretched draw for Haohmaru) Mai Shiranui (Fatal Fury) vs. Marshall Law (Tekken) Ky Kiske (Guilty Gear) vs. Wolfgang Krauser (Fatal Fury) Fulgore (Killer Instinct) vs. Rugal Bernstien (King of Fighters) Shang Tsung (Mortal Kombat) vs. Terry Bogard (Fatal Fury) Felicia (Darkstalkers) vs. Kibagami Genjuro (Samurai Shodown)

Dump it. Out of all of the threads in NHB, any "cool" thread that is just based on goofing off could serve just as well in General Chat...which leaves - trolling (which burns up resources and has absolutely no appeal to other members of the board) - circle jerking (which, frankly, is equal to trolling for all of the people who aren't "on the inside") - flaming (which, with all of the rules imposed on the folder, isn't even a worthwhile option) Just trash it, delete the threads started by PBPs, and consolidate the rest into General Chat.

Yep. She was a member of one of the gloriously awful lineups with Captain America, Dr. Druid, the Black Knight, and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.

... Do I even want to ask?

The girl with the lightning bolt is Ms. Marvel, IIRC. The girl in the fire suit is Firestar and the guy jumping in the background is Justice, or Vance Astro - they're both the "reservists" that were recruited from the New Warriors.

A quote from Hardcore Discussion: You seen it. You know you've thought it. And you had to know that it was coming. Again. I think that the mods at TSM should consider closing Hardcore Discussion. Yeah, I see the irony. I realize that waaaaaaaaaay back in the day, I was one of the people championing the return of the flaming folder. Of course, back when we were pushing for it, we were doing it on the assumption that A) Anything and everything would be allowed B) People posting there would be witty as well as funny But I think it's plain to see that neither of those have come to fruition...nor are they going to arise anytime soon. No Holds Barred/Hardcore Discussion will never be what the Flaming Folder was at the Smarksboard. We know that now. The fact that so many rules have been placed upon the folder says that even you, the mods of TSM, know this now. Even when there's been choice flame wars or occasional glimpses of hilarity, a loud section of TSM has been clamoring for NHB to be closed just because of the sheer stupidity of it all. The flaming folder could have been a fun, "uncensored" part of the community. Now it's just a jizz-encrusted wasteland of UGS "feuds" and loveletters from PBPs. It's a glorified troll playground, where half of the threads are spent complaining about how Hardcore Discussion sucks in the first place. Yes, I know the common defense is that "if you don't like it, then don't go in there", but the negative effects of NHB reach farther than just irritating the community here. With the board barfing up SQL errors on a weekly basis due to memory errors and network problems, you've got to drop the bomb somewhere and you might as well blow up the forum that causes you the most problems with very little gain. Move the "classic" threads into the classic threads section, if people are really clamoring for it. Many of the random discussions present there would be right at home in General Chat. And, if people feel the need to do all of the crazy shit that they used to do in NHB, they can go somewhere else (like UGS or even WDI, for example). Considering that you're worried about over-crowding (the registration cutoff), the loss of a couple of people - people who add absolutely nothing to the rest of the board - isn't going to hurt any. Hardcore Discussion exists to give posters an excuse to act like morons and drain board resources in the process...and TSM needs neither of those. Just pull the plug and let everybody move on.

And, ironically, Tony Stark would be the deciding vote when the Avengers voted to disband the West Coast half of the team. (The idea to cancel the West Coast branch could probably constitute a thread in itself.) Stark would go on with many of the West Coast outcasts and form Force Works (a.k.a. the Avengers done X-Men style!), which had a pretty good core lineup in its own right: Iron Man, Scarlet Witch, Wonder Man, Spider Woman, USAgent BTW, here's a picture of the Busiek/Perez-era (I believe) Avengers squad:

There's always masturbation. That way, at least you'd get something accomplished. Plus, it's extra practice up for THE BIG MOMENT! Soon, yes, very soon, they'll be no more apple pies for Chave!

Then maybe THIS ISN'T THE REAL WORLD! Why don't you leave the keyboard and go for a little walk. You'd be amazed how beautiful the world is. And here you are turning heel on an internet message board. Oh, how our most beloved heroes let us down. Shouldn't you be getting laid or something? Really. Go get some ass. Give your mother a hallmark card. Watch the History Channel. Play badminton. Please put all that creative wit to use - the world is begging you. But please stop wasting bandwidth by putting yourself over as the best poster in Hardcore Discussion (as if that is actually something to aspire to). Don't you have better things to do?

One of their earlier lineups from around #100 of the original series had: Seven's a good number of members, and all of them (well, maybe all of them but Quicksilver) have important ties to the history of the Avengers. Another very recent lineup had: I think both of those are probably deserve recognition of being considered...though, in reality, there's been far more absolute crap lineups of the Avengers than good.

Just a warning for those of you who search on the internet for cracks and software patches and such. If one of your search engine leads you to a crack from X-Cracks.com, don't click on it. The site is the primary distributor of the Smartsearch.ws spyware deal and it is a BITCH to clean and remove. This thing embeds itself into your Internet Explorer registry, flooding your favorites with Smartsearch junk, changes the prefixes on all of your pages so that Google toolbar searches to go smartsearch.ws, generates fake 404 messages whenever you try to find a page that has the words "smartsearch.ws" and "remove" in it, and (finally) changes the linking on a program (for instance, notepad) so that whenever you open it up, it simply recreates the whole virus all over again. You can download CWShredder here and, for additional support for this spyware (and other CoolWebSearch variants), I'd definitely recommend checking out http://www.merijn.org/ as well. This thing is an absolute pain in the ass, and easily the most annoying trojan/spyware I've ever encountered in my entire career as a Tech. Support guy.

Plus it would finally give the CW division somebody who wasn't a one-note character for once. In terms of talent getting wasted by drugs, Jeff Hardy's right up there with Jake Roberts, in my opinion. His in-ring work was sinking at an alarming rate since his feud with Matt Hardy (and, possibly, even before that), but he was still a popular and recognizable character on Raw. Actually, near the end of his run, Hardy was actually in a fairly compelling storyline (frustrated and keeps wanting to lash out and do heel-like behavior, but is holding onto face ideals...thanks to some pushing from Shawn Michaels). He was getting heat. They were dwindling down with every spot he blew, but he still had a dedicated fanbase. Hopefully, the WWE can build on what's left of his past success, even though Hardy's final month was the very definitely of "fading away." As somebody said earlier, Hardy's past interest with Trish could actually put another interesting kink in the Jericho/Trish/Christian dynamic and possibly rejuvenate Hardy's career. A move to Smackdown could give Hardy more intriguing matchup possibilities (a white trash rival in Jamie Noble over Nidia, for example) and more invigorating workrate possibilities within the CW division. Jeff Hardy can come back and be a force in the midcard. The key to the whole thing, of course, is that he stays clean and motivated. And, in the wrestling business, there's never any guarantees. He may put on the match of his life against Tajiri and end up in a memorial on WWE.com from mixing painkillers with exotic drugs. He may come back for one match, flub a handful of spots, and be promptly shown the door. In either case...at least he's coming back. I'd rather try to give a talented former-midcard guy a chance than bring up another big palooka from OVW who's just as likely (if not more likely) to get hurt or hurt others in the ring.