The HD Web Akamai has unveiled The HD Web. From this site, you can watch HD programming. You'll need a powerful PC and a smoking fast Internet connection.

Laugh I would like to thank Tony Woodlief for provding me with a good laugh this afternoon.

'24' Season 7 Trailer The trailer for the new season of 24 looks great. Let's hope this season will give this show a jump start. The previous season was dreadful.

Ten Cool Things about Vista WinCustomize: "What makes Windows Vista a much better experience aren't due mainly to the major new features. Instead, it's the hundreds of barely documented improvements to the OS that users notice but quickly take for granted -- at least until they have to go back to using Windows XP for awhile. The big features like a new security layer, integrated search, game & DVD exploring, DirectX 10, backup, Aero, kernel overhaul, better audio handling, Windows Event logging, WDDM, SuperFetch, ReadyBoost, ReadyDrive support, WPF, WCF, and on and on (thousands of new features)."

HD DVD Player Drops Below $200 BetaNews: "Despite the fanfare, the battle for control over the next-generation DVD market is still inconsequential; the DVD version of Transformers sold 43 times more copies than the HD DVD version, which was the best selling title thus far. But that could change this holiday with players finally dropping below $200. Circuit City and Wal-Mart are now selling the Toshiba A2 -- a second-generation HD DVD player -- for $198, over $100 off its original price of $299. The A2 only offers 1080i output, but most new televisions can do 1080i-to-1080p conversions better than players anyway, and firmware upgrades keep it as up to date as current Toshiba HD DVD players."

'King of California' I really liked Michael Douglas' latest movie, King of California. It's sort of quirky and not for everyone, but I thought it was quite uplifting.

'Classmate PC' Details Go here for a detailed look at the new Classmate PC.

Microsoft Revenue up 27 Percent Shocker: "On Thursday, Microsoft reported first quarter earnings of $4.29 billion, or 45 cents a share, on revenue of $13.76 billion. That sum easily beat Wall Street estimates of 39 cents a share on revenue of $12.57 billion, according to Thomson Financial. Revenue was up 27 percent from a year ago–Microsoft’s best growth since 1999. Microsoft got a nice bump from Vista, Office and Halo."

Maybe Vista isn't the new Windows ME?

Radiohead's Experiment Rocks Music Industry MSNBC: "Radiohead released its seventh studio album, "In Rainbows," online on Oct. 10. A British Web site has reported that Radiohead sold 1.2 million copies, a figure thought to be largely based on pre-orders, although the band has not released figures."

It would be pointless for a small band to do this, but Radiohead had nothing to lose, really. At this point it is being heralded as a success. However, the actual sales/earnings/profit numbers are not yet available.

Dvorak Keyboard The Dvorak Keyboard and You - "The standard "QWERTY" keyboard was not designed with ease of typing in mind. Rather, it was designed to keep early typewriters from jamming. 130 years later, in the age of computers, people are still using this awkward, inefficient keyboard layout. Few know that there is a much faster, easier, more efficient, and more comfortable alternative: the Dvorak (pronounced "duh VOR ak") keyboard."

Radiohead Has their music reached the level of being critic-proof? I cannot say. I like the new album and so do the critics. (via Derek C, who should start blogging.)

My favorite tracks are 1, 7, 3 and 8 - in that order.

The Office Season 4 has started strong. However, I must admit that I'm not a fan of the 1-hour format. The good news is that there will only be four long episodes. Then, it will be back to the 30-minute format that I like so much more. Less is more. Instead of being a bit tedious, the 30-minute shows leave me wanting more.

"RIAA Hits a Sour Note" Tony Long, writing at Wired.com, "The RIAA, after all, is the guardian of an industry so antiquated and oppressive that having sympathy for these guys is a little like feeling sorry for a Georgia slaveholder after watching Sherman's troops fire his mansion and scatter his livestock. So when their first victim, Thomas, turns out to be a single American Indian mother of two making a measly $36,000 a year -- latte money for the RIAA boys -- you have a hard time picturing these guys nailed to a cross. But that's the image the RIAA has tried hard to foster since some pimply-faced intern first explained to them what file sharing was. All of a sudden it was, oh, boo-hoo. Poor us. Cry me a river."

XP Better Than Vista? Service Pack 3 for Windows XP will deliver new features. BetaNews asks the question: Is XP SP3 Better Than Vista? (There are many user comments below this post at BetaNews.)

New Radiohead Album I like the new Radiohead album. I also liked their previous album. It should be noted that the new album is far more accessible than much of their previous work.

RIAA R.I.P.? Gizmodo: "Hear that? It's the RIAA quaking in their diamond-coated boots as yet another A-list band gives labels the finger: Pretty hate machine Trent Reznor announced today that "as of right now Nine Inch Nails is a totally free agent, free of any recording contract with any label." Instead of futzing through the hapless middleman of an inept label, Trent's promising "a direct relationship with the audience as I see fit and appropriate," so we can expect more experiments in direct distribution and promotion, probably culminating in an album release not unlike Radiohead's In Rainbows."

Yankees Win That Johnny Damon homerun last night was awesome. The Yankees are still alive, baby!

"If Wishes Were iPhones" Mark Pilgrim, writing about Apple products, "My current theory is that it’s some twisted form of wish fulfillment. “I wish this company understood the value of openness, but they don’t, so I’m going to keep buying their closed, crippled sh*t until they get it.” Yeah, let me know how that works out for you."

Letter to the Cast of 'The Office' Ken Levine offers an Open Letter to the Cast of 'The Office'. Here's one quote from the letter: "Do not quit the show to launch your big-time movie career."

True Image 11 Home Acronis has just released True Image 11 Home - This software is my pick for the best complete PC backup solution for XP and Vista.

Microsoft 'Ultimate Steal' Students may purchase a legal copy of Microsoft Office 2007 for $60 using the Ultimate Steal program. The offer ends in April 2008. You will be required to prove your status as a student to receive this deal.

Baseball The Yankees were slaughtered by the Indians last night. The Cubs are stinking it up, but the Rockies look good.

IE 7 Goes WGA-Free ZDNet: "Microsoft has issued an updated Internet Explorer (IE) 7 release that no longer requires Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) validation in order to download."

RIAA Do you believe that a fine of $220,000 for downloading 24 songs is justice? Does the outcome of this court case make you more likely to buy music, putting money into the RIAA's pockets?

Meanwhile, Radiohead is giving away their new album. This article says the record companies are terrified. "Radiohead's decision is only the latest, if the most damaging, nail in the coffin of the mainstream music business."

Baseball It's now October and that's good news for us baseball fans. The Yankees have made it to the playoffs, winning the wildcard spot in the American League. We could see another Yankees/BoSox playoff series.

I'm pulling for the Colorado Rockies in the National League, and, of course, the New York Yankees in the American League.

Radiohead Radiohead to Give Away New Album - Fans will be able to pay as little or as much as they'd like for the new album. Giddy-Up! (via Derek C.)