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Hi!

Would it be possible to add SQX as a new archive type to the already overwhelming list of supported types?

Thanks!

Hi, thanks for your great Universal Extractor.

I'm having an issue when running the 1.5 installer on my fully patched german XP SP2 system. I'm logged in as Administrator and receive this error when I try to install the application:
http://img489.imageshack.us/img489/3962/erroruh2.jpg

Basically it errors on RegCreateKeyEx because I do not have sufficient permission ?!

Please help.

Streaming (aka, embedded) video has been around since the beginning of the internet, and while it can certainly be a very useful technology, I hate companies and websites that require you to stream the video and don't even offer an option to download it. What if you want to view it multiple times? What if you want to show a friend or co-worker? Tough! You have to stream it (re-download it) every single time you watch it. The only possibly reason for doing this that I can think of is that it supposedly allows the hosting site more control over the video, but it creates a severe inconvenience for users, prevents a number of possible customers from watching it in the first place (eg, if they're not running a "blessed" operating system, browser, or plugin), and exponentially increases bandwidth costs for the hosting provider. Additionally, the very fact that the movie has to be sent to the client to allow it to be played and displayed means that the client still gets a copy and can still save it anyway, just with much greater hassle.

If you want to save a streaming video from a site that doesn't offer a proper download link, you have a few options. Like most things in technology these range from easy but limited to difficult but extremely flexible. For now, I'm going to discuss the easy approach. :-) I'm also going to assume you're using Mozilla Firefox (if you're not, you really should be).

There are a number of Firefox extensions available that can greatly assist with saving embedded/streaming video clips. A simple search for "download video" on the Firefox Add-ons returns 19 extensions. I've personally used VideoDownloader in the past, and it worked well.

If you don't want to install a new extension just for downloading videos, and option is to use Greasemonkey scripts. Greasemonkey is a really powerful extensions that allows users to create or install custom scripts that can change the behavior of any web page. In this case, a Greasemonkey script can analyze the page for embedded video clips, then automatically add a download link to that video; simply click the download link to save the video. Two great scripts for downloading embedded videos are Apple Trailer Download and Download Video (though I use this version of Download Video). Note that you must first install Greasemonkey before you can install these scripts. You can find a lot more useful Greasemonkey scripts on my Mozilla Firefox Tips and Tricks page, as well as a massive collection of contributed scripts on Userscripts.org.

The primary limitation with the extension/script method is that it's often limited to particular sites. Apple Trailer Download, for example, is limited to just movie trailers hosted on the Apple Movie Trailers website. Download Video and VideoDownloader both support a number of different sites (including the most popular, YouTube and Google Video), but are still limited to only sites they "know" about. I'll follow up this article with more advanced techniques and suggestions that should help you save just about any embedded video.

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Introduction

I often hear about various games, movies, products, etc. that sound really interesting, but are still only in developmental stages. While this is nothing new, the problem for me is that I then tend to forget about said item once it's finally released. To paraphrase one of the greatest moves of all time, this is something we shall have to remedy^[1].

In order to help with this problem, I'm going to start keeping track of new and upcoming stuff that I find interesting and/or particular noteworthy. Not only will this help me keep track of what's "Coming Soon", it'll also allow me to share this information with my visitors. Now everyone can see just how geeky I can be at times (though I maintain that I'm still not random!).

Each item will be posted to this page, along with a description and estimated release date. I'm not sure yet how populated this list will become, nor what I'll do with the entries once they're officially released, but I figure this will be an interesting experience regardless. To kick things off, here's the first batch of items.

• ^[1] http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Braveheart#Dialogue

Concerts

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Games

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Movies

Star Trek: The Next Generation: The Complete Series

• Release Date: Tue, 10/02/2007

Yes, I'll admit it. I'm a Star Trek fan. I'm not a die-hard fan or anything, but I've always enjoyed the television shows and movies, going back to The Next Generation. (The Original Series, in case you're wondering, was well before my time and I never got into the reruns.) The Next Generation has been out on DVD for some time now, but it was originally released in season sets while I was still a poor college student. $110/season x 7 seasons isn't exactly affordable. Now that it's being released in a significantly discounted series box set, it's time to finally take the plunge. This is, after all, the TV show that got me into science fiction.

Stargate SG-1: The Complete Series

• Release Date: Tue, 10/09/2007

I've been wanting to catch up on Stargate SG-1 for a few years now, though I guess since it's no longer on the air "catch up" is no longer the right word. I really enjoyed the original movie back in the day, and have more recently been enjoying Stargate Atlantis, but I missed out on SG-1 entirely. At ten seasons, it was just a bit too much for me to borrow from a friend and work through. Now that they're releasing a complete series boxed set, though, for a pretty significant discount over the original releases, it looks like I finally have the excuse I've been waiting for. :-) Complete details of the release can be found here.

Music

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Archived Content

The Bourne Ultimatum

• Release Date: Fri, 08/03/2007

This is another movie about which I'm cautiously optimistic. The Bourne Ultimatum is the third film in a trilogy of films based on the Robert Ludlum books of the same name. I thoroughly enjoyed The Bourne Identity, which came as quite a surprise to me as the trailer didn't excite me very much. I thought it had an intriguing story, a well-executed plot, and a great balance of action and drama. The Bourne Supremacy, however, was a letdown. The production quality seemed to drop considerably, and the provoking storyline was largely dropped and replaced by a number of boring and pointless action sequences. I can only guess that this shift was the result of a new director for the second film. Sadly, the director of the second film will also direct the third. I still find the world and overall storyline created by Ludblum intriguing, and am looking forward to watching the third and final installment of the franchise, but I think I may hold off and read some reviews of the movie before going to see it myself. I'd rather skip it altogether than spend money on another letdown.

I passed on this one. As I said, I'm a big fan of the original, but thought that the direction of the second film when severely downhill. Since the third was directed by the same as the second, I was nervous about the quality, and sure enough after seen a couple reviews similar to "The Bourne Ultimatum Made Me Sick", I knew this move wasn't for me.

Babylon 5: The Lost Tales - Voices in the Dark

• Release Date: Tue, 07/31/2007

Yes, I'll admit it - I'm a Babylon 5 junkie. The show was phenomenal. The character development and scale and complexity of the main story line is rarely rivaled even today, and in my opinion has yet to be topped. Needless to say, I was delighted beyond words when it was announced last year that he would be developing a new series of direct-to-DVD movies beginning in 2007 entitled "Babylon 5: The Lost Tales", after a 5+ year hiatus from any B5-related projects. There was much rejoicing in the streets (ok, in the homes of sci-fi geeks everywhere).

Voices in the Dark is the first of the series to be released. It features two mini-movies focusing on two of the core characters of the series (John Sheridan and Elizabeth Lochley) as well as a third character from the spin-off series Crusade (Galen). It will be released on July 31, 2007.

Note to self: Look into new soundtrack as well, released by Varese Sarabande.

Now this, on the other hand, was fantastic. The DVD is divided into two halves, each telling a story focused on one of the major characters from the show (Lochley first, then Christopher Franke, the composer for the entire original series. Very good music.

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer

• Release Date: Wed, 07/04/2007

I'm cautiously optimistic about this one. Despite the severe browbeating that the first Fantastic Four movie received by critics, I personally enjoyed it. Overall, it was a fun and enjoyable movie, with a decent storyline and a good cast that, for the most part, really nailed their roles. I'd expect the sequel, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, to be at least as enjoyable as the original, but I'm waiting for a proper trailer before making my decision on this one (the teaser trailer is omits any hint of plot or production quality).

This was pretty decent, but I can't say it lived up to my hopes. Overall the movie was enjoyable and fun to watch, but near the end it began suffering from shear ridiculousness (and yes, I know it's based on a comic book). I don't think I'll pick up the DVD when it's released.

Dream Theater - Systematic Chaos

• Release Date: Tue, 06/05/2007

Systematic Chaos will be the first Dream Theater album released under their new label, Roadrunner Records. Anyone that knows me personally is well aware that I'm a huge Dream Theater fan, so it goes without saying that I'm really looking forward to this. Their last studio album, Octavarium, was perhaps the best of their 21 year career (in my opinion, of course), and I'm eagerly awaiting my next musical fix.

This CD kicks ass. It's definitely not for everyone, but if you're a fan of progressive rock/metal, you definitely need to pick it up. It took a few listens before it really grew on me, but damn, it's hard to listen to anything else now (and I'm writing this about 3 months after it's release). It was so good I also planned a vacation to Chicago around their concert schedule to I could see them live. :-)

Sister Hazel

• Sat, 04/22/2007 - 20:00
• Horshoe Casino & Hotel
• 1021 Casino Center Dr.
• Robinsonville, Mississippi 38667
• 21 & Over, Doors @ 7PM, Hazel @ 8PM, Tickets $20-$25

This concert was awesome. Cheap tickets, short drive, GREAT music, and a fun show. I can't really ask for much more. :-) I strongly recommend seeing Sister Hazel live if they play anywhere near you.

Spider-Man 3

• Release Date: Fri, 05/04/2007

Have you seen the trailer for this? It looks freakin' amazing! I normally don't get this exited over sequels, but the story, action, and effects all look top notch. This is one movie that I will see in theaters this year, without question. Given the extremely high quality production of the previous two films (both of which were better than I expected, especially story-wise), I think Spider-Man 3 will be sure to please.

I don't care what anyone else says - this move was awesome. Yes, there were some weaknesses, as many have pointed out, and I won't dispute that. However, on the whole the movie was extremely fun and engaging, and very much a worthy end to a phenomenal movie trilogy. I highly recommend going to watch it if you haven't already done so.

Dawn of Mana

• Release Date: Tue, 05/22/2007

Secret of Mana, released for the Super NES way back in 1993, was one of my favorite games released for that system. Developer Square (now Square Enix) did an amazing job of blending traditional console RPG elements with action/adventure style gameplay popularized by The Legend of Zelda. I have longed for a sequel for many years, and despite numerous related releases, I never was able to enjoy one (due to Japanese-only releases, the choice of console, etc.).

That's about to change. :-) Square Enix is set to release Dawn of Mana in North America on May 22. Despite my self-imposed ban on buying any new games until I finish playing through all of the older ones that I already own but have not played, I think I'm going to have to make an exception for this. The graphics look pretty amazing (despite the somewhat overly-cartoony style), and if the gameplay and story lives up to that of its predecessor, it should make for a damn fine game indeed.

Well, this one has come and gone, and unfortunately I didn't pick it up as planned. Despite the amazing potential, most of the reviews I read rated game play and control very poorly. As much as I would like to play through it anyway just for the story, I just don't have much time to spend on video games these days, and I'd rather continue working through my backlog of games rather than pick up a less-than-stellar new one that will undoubtedly take many hours to complete. Come on, Square. I expect much better of you. :-)

Someone with too much free time on his hands (not that that's a bad thing) collected a number of scanned test/quiz documents with some rather creative answers. This should make for a rather humorous end to your day (as well as feeling better about your own test grades from school).

Remember, there is an elephant in the way.