TV, Summer Concerts, XBOX 360, more…

Tis been a while since I’ve posted anything, so this one will be of the short, bulleted variety…

• Springtime is finally here! And the top has been down quite a bit! I’m thinking that since gas is so high right now, and expected to be just as high if not higher throughout the summer, that maybe this summer will be more top down, less AC on!
• I’m completely intrigued by no less than 3 TV shows right now:
  “24” is simply the best show on TV… they can’t make a bad episode… although you do have to suspend belief that it all can happen in an episode (or all of it in 24 episodes).
  “Alias” started off this season in a great fashion, and then headed in a disappointing way — well, it’s damn riveting right now. The first episode was phenomenal… it made it seem like the show was heading in it’s old direction… a direction where duplicity was an essential element of the show… unfortunately, that all went away in 2 episodes. And then every episode looked like it would be the “bad guy of the week” show, with little to no ongoing or developing storylines. Well, that got better. There are like 2 episodes left, and I can’t wait to see what happens!
  And as usual, Survivor is fantastic! Tonight’s episode had so much “drama”, that I had no idea who would be voted off — even as late as the reading of the names! Simply great TV! Survivor: Palau will end this Sunday, and you can bet I’ll be watching! My prediction is that Jenn will win, as she’s stayed mostly out of the conflict, although I can certainly see scenarios where any of the 4 will win!
• I bought tickets to see Tom Petty and the Black Crowes for this July at Merriweather Post Pavilion. I’ve seen the Crowes at least 5 times, but have never seen Petty. I’m REALLY looking forward to this one!
• I bought myself a new desktop computer a couple of weeks ago. I got a Gateway with a 3.4 GHz Pentium 4. I finally have a flatscreen monitor. But the part that has most intrigued me (and most interested me), is the inclusion of Windows XP Media Center Edition. I am totally fascinated by the capabilities of the Media Center. First, I have hooked up my cable to the computer — not a cable modem, but the actual cable — I can watch cable on the computer!
  I can also record TV shows, and burn to DVD. There’s a whole “My Music” section where my songs can be retrieved and played. There’s a “My Pictures” section and a “My Video” section. Hell, there’s even a “My Radio” part, where I can listen to FM Radio or internet radio… all through the computer.
  But the best part is the capability to have all of these things go anywhere in my house. With the purchase of a Media Center Extender (which I will NOT be purchasing, however read below for why), you can “stream” all of this material from the computer to my living room. Yep, I can play the songs on my computer through my living room stereo receiver. Yep, the TV shows I recorded on my computer can be played on my TV in the living room, with the sound (in 5.1 Surround, I’ll add) going through my receiver.
  But there’s so much more.. you can rent movies online (streamed quickly)… there’s exclusive content like live music, movie trailers, music videos, news… lots and lots and lots
• Microsoft unveiled the Next Generation of the XBOX tonight. At 9:30 on MTV, they aired a show which announced the impending arrival of the XBOX 360. I’ve always been a Playstation Fan (I bought the original Playstation on the first day it was available), but I must admit that the XBOX 360 looks pretty damn cool.
  All games will be in High Definition (which will be great when I get a HDTV). The controllers are wireless. The graphics are amazing. It’s ready to be networked (adapters built in for wired networks, and I think I read that an adapter can be purchased for 802.11a, b, or g networking — if not, then it’s built in too!).
  But the main reason I’m pondering switching from Playstation to XBOX? Out of the box, the XBOX 360 will also serve as a Media Center Extender. Since I really want to share the Media Center across my whole home, no additional purchase would be necessary — it can cover my gaming as well as my geeky media sharing yen.
  The XBOX 360, although it hasn’t been formally announced, should go on sale in November.
• But, I’m still not sure I’m ready to abandon the Playstation preferences I’ve had. Besides, Sony is expected to announce the details of its Playstation 3 release at E3 next week. Depending on the features of the PS3 (and of course, how cool it looks), I may just stay with the PS3. It looks like (but it hasn’t been announced, either) the PS3 will not go on sale until next year. Timing might lead me to the XBOX direction too. I’m just wondering if I have the wisdom to NOT purchase both systems?