Can’t we all just get along?
I’ve realized, in wanting to move to Australia at some point, that I will have to buy all my shit all over again because of all the different electrical and formatting issues involved with living in different countries.
My beloved flat 32 inch (81.28 cm for those metric folks out there) widescreen LCD television and Sony high-definition DVD player won’t do me much good Down Under. And of course, all my DVD’s will need to go because of the NTSC video system. Everything everyplace else uses PAL. Why the hell can’t the world decide on one format and agree to use it everywhere?
I’m all for the metric system. I loathe math to begin with (which is why I chose the get into nuclear field. I mean, how much math could there possibly be in nuclear physics and engineering, anyway?*). Even I can divide and multiply by factors of 10. Feet to inches? Pounds to ounces? To hell with it.
At least MP3’s and AAC files are universal, so my iPod will make it with me. I know Apple will rape me for a universal power connector for it, but at least I know that I can use it in other countries. But, no, wait… It’s got video output features now. ::Whew:: A quick check on Apple’s site confirms both NTSC and PAL outputs. Hooray.
And my cellphone uses GSM networks, which tends to dominate most of the world’s mobile phone systems, so I can take that, too. I just can’t charge it since it came with the U.S. wall charger. Stupid RAZR phone…
And that’s about it. Everything else uses our electrical outlet connections. So, let me double-check my suitcase. Clothes, toothbrush, iPod, and phone. I suppose that’s all I’ll really need, anyway.
I suppose this is as good a place as any to warn the people of the world. When I become Earth Czar, I will breed an army of mutant minions to thwart the evil tyrants who create and force all the various locations of the world to use different standards and formats. We will unite under the banners of AAC, MP3, PAL, GSM, DVD-R, 1080p, and the metric system. Gone will be Real Player, the English System, and CDMA.
And I will make math illegal. Oh, yes, my poppets, it will be done…
*sarcasm
November 15th, 2005 at 1:11 am
Your posts make me laugh. a lot. Especially your unashamed admittance of love for Titanic. -Steph B.
November 15th, 2005 at 2:02 am
I’ll let you in on a little secret… you can keep your DVDs. Down here we have machines that will play every region, and every format. My own machine, for instance, automatically detects whether the disk is NTSC/PAL and the correct region. I never have to think about it. And it’s a cheap $130 Sony.
And it’s all legal! Pretty much any machine you buy here will do that. Why do the studios even bother with this region shit?
Also on the up-side - your dollar is worth about a third more, so you can buy all your replacement gadgets for less!