Bob Caswell

Let’s face it: we all love making comparisons. It’s an easy way to simplify a point. The problem, though, lies in the implicit assumptions and interpretations that go along with a comparison. Meaning, as soon as you make your comparison, it’s as if you’re holding all else equal while at the same time elevating your comparison to a higher level of credibility as compared to any of the unspoken alternative comparisons involving the two things you’re comparing.

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Warner Brothers had come up with a slick promotion to get some much needed buzz around Blu-ray. My consensus: great idea but flawed execution. Here’s how it works (and why it won’t work):

You send in the cover art sleeve (keep the disc) and the UPC from your HD DVD movies. And for $4.95 per movie, plus $6.95 S&H per order, you’ll be sent back brand new Blu-ray copies of any movies you have in HD DVD. There are a few restrictions (only 1 copy per movie and only up to 25 movies per household) but nothing really that prohibitive.

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This week I found myself in the frozen section browsing for ice cream. I’m not even sure how I ended up there and why ice cream, but my subconscious was apparently way ahead of me. Once my conscious kicked in, the comparing started.

There’s, of course, plenty to choose from if you’re in the mood for flavors that put the ice cream in the running for world record of highest calorie density food. My personal favorite in this category: Ben & Jerry’s Half Baked Fudge Brownie & Cookie Dough. So good!

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The first half of my title is taken straight from the title of an email I received from Netflix a couple days ago (see end of post for text of the email). In short, as of December 15, 2008, Netflix will no longer carry HD DVDs. Around the same time I got this email, coincidentally, a friend of mine sent me an email about an online sale offering $2 HD DVD movies.

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Somehow I missed the Craigslist memo. It could have something to do with the fact that I haven’t used even eBay for a while. (I used to be on eBay quite a bit but gave it up a few years ago when Amazon proved to be a worthy replacement with much less hassle.) But we recently moved and found ourselves with a couple of items needing a new home due to space constraints in our new place. Namely: a Yamaha electronic keyboard and a spare fold-a-bed.

So I signed up for Craigslist and posted these items online. Here’s what I found:

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So my HP G85 all-in-one printer/scanner/copier/fax died after nearly five years. Truth be told, though, I had been printer window shopping earlier this summer and was planning on replacing it relatively soon. At the time, I had tentatively decided on HP’s Photosmart C7280 all-in-one. It has everything my G85 had but is smaller, faster, and better (more features). You gotta love technology.

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One of the best things about shopping on Amazon (or most anywhere online) is that you don’t have to pay sales tax. Well, that recently changed for me. Since I now live in the state of Washington, I pay sales tax on any Amazon orders (because Amazon headquarters is here). The funny thing is, though, that I haven’t really given up on shopping via Amazon. Since being here, I’ve used Amazon to buy an Xbox 360 and a GPS device, plus some other odds and ends.

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Back in February, I titled a post “Dear Microsoft: Get Netflix on the Xbox 360 and I’ll Buy One.” True to my word, today I ordered an Xbox 360 following the latest announcement. I’m a huge fan of Netflix and have always had an interest in getting an Xbox 360 (even though I’m more of a PC gamer).

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