Bruce Almighty, Universal, and WHY I'M ANGRY!!!!!!!!!!!

[NightStalker]

<Start rant>

Please excuse the exclamation marks in the subject, but I am furious!
(oops - there's another one)

Just received Bruce Almighty (from DVDBoxOffice in Canada) and although
I enjoyed the movie, I had to sit through several minutes of bloody
promos/trailers at the start, and every button on the remote was locked
out. Geez - even a VCR will fast forward past those. Now, every time I
want to watch that movie, I have to wait about 8 minutes before the
movie starts, and will have to sit through the same tired old trailers
for movies I don't want.

Surely, some reviewer somewhere, or somebody with some clout, can raise
this point? Fer Chrissakes, I bought the DVD to watch Bruce Almighty -
NOT a load of crap trailers and intrusive advertising.

What next - "A few messages from our trading partners folks" then a
series of ads for eveything from condoms to tampons, with washing powder
somewhere in the middle?

This is a nasty trend starting here, and I'm surprised that I haven't
seen or heard any howls of discontent from people about it yet... or is
Bruce Almighty the first one? It's certainly the first one I've seen.

On the PC, I can use DVD IdlePro to ignore all that lockout stuff,
including the FBI warnings etc, as well as making the DVD-ROM region-
free. But in the home cinema I can't, dammit.

Did I say I was furious, annoyed, angry, pissed off? Huh?

And for good measure:- !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

</End of rant>
--

NightStalker

[Michael S Cox]

NightStalker wrote:

><Start rant>
>
>Please excuse the exclamation marks in the subject, but I am furious!
>(oops - there's another one)
>
>Just received Bruce Almighty (from DVDBoxOffice in Canada) and although
>I enjoyed the movie, I had to sit through several minutes of bloody
>promos/trailers at the start, and every button on the remote was locked
>out. Geez - even a VCR will fast forward past those. Now, every time I
>want to watch that movie, I have to wait about 8 minutes before the
>movie starts, and will have to sit through the same tired old trailers
>for movies I don't want.
>
>Surely, some reviewer somewhere, or somebody with some clout, can raise
>this point? Fer Chrissakes, I bought the DVD to watch Bruce Almighty -
>NOT a load of crap trailers and intrusive advertising.
>
>What next - "A few messages from our trading partners folks" then a
>series of ads for eveything from condoms to tampons, with washing powder
>somewhere in the middle?
>
>This is a nasty trend starting here, and I'm surprised that I haven't
>seen or heard any howls of discontent from people about it yet... or is
>Bruce Almighty the first one? It's certainly the first one I've seen.
>
>On the PC, I can use DVD IdlePro to ignore all that lockout stuff,
>including the FBI warnings etc, as well as making the DVD-ROM region-
>free. But in the home cinema I can't, dammit.
>
>Did I say I was furious, annoyed, angry, pissed off? Huh?
>
>And for good measure:- !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
>
></End of rant>
>
>
Many Sony and Yamaha DVD players include UOP override capbilities in
their advanced mod kits. The UOP (User Operation Prohibition) is the
feature that allows DVD's to disable various control buttons such as
skip, fast forward, menu, stop, pause, audio and subtitle select (to
name a few) in the player. Mod kits with UOP override prevent the player
from reading and enforcing these controls, thus restoring your ability
to skip, fast forward ... etc This is something to keep in mind when
next purchasing a DVD player :)

Oh, and by the way, I too share your wrath and anger at this annoying trend.

MichaelC

[Codswallop]

On Sat, 06 Dec 2003 08:10:19 GMT, NightStalker wrote in aus.dvd:

> Just received Bruce Almighty (from DVDBoxOffice in Canada) and
> although I enjoyed the movie, I had to sit through several minutes of
> bloody promos/trailers at the start, and every button on the remote
> was locked out. Geez - even a VCR will fast forward past those. Now,
> every time I want to watch that movie, I have to wait about 8 minutes
> before the movie starts, and will have to sit through the same tired
> old trailers for movies I don't want.

With my player, you can often hit STOP repeatedly as soon as you start
loading the disc. When it stops, hit MENU and you can often skip that
crap.

If it goes straight into the ads when hitting MENU, try playing Chapter
1 Title 1 if your player can do it.

--
- Cods

pbqf_at@ubgznvy.pbz
(un ROT-13 to e-mail)

[Stan Brown]

In article <MPG.1a3c2be3cff4d78e989726@news-50.giganews.com> in
alt.video.dvd, NightStalker <Nightstalker@somewhere.or.other> wrote:
[unskippable commercials]
>This is a nasty trend starting here, and I'm surprised that I haven't
>seen or heard any howls of discontent from people about it yet..

I'm surprised too. They have been very thoroughly discussed in this
newsgroup for weeks.

Of course, maybe you just bopped in and posted without looking at
any previous discussions....

--
Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems, Cortland County, New York, USA
http://OakRoadSystems.com
DVD FAQ: http://dvddemystified.com/dvdfaq.html
other FAQs: http://oakroadsystems.com/tech/faqget.htm

[Oldus Fartus]

NightStalker wrote:

> <Start rant>
>
> Please excuse the exclamation marks in the subject, but I am furious!
> (oops - there's another one)
>

Well deserved rant snipped.

> Did I say I was furious, annoyed, angry, pissed off? Huh?
>
> And for good measure:- !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
>

I agree, and it is one other justification for ripping and copying any
DVD I get, and play the copy.

Try telling a youngster that the five or six minutes at the beginning of
a movie is necessary.

--
Cheers
Oldus Fartus

[Shari]

"NightStalker" <Nightstalker@somewhere.or.other> wrote in message
news:MPG.1a3c2be3cff4d78e989726@news-50.giganews.com...
>
> <Start rant>
>
> Please excuse the exclamation marks in the subject, but I am furious!
> (oops - there's another one)
>
> Just received Bruce Almighty (from DVDBoxOffice in Canada) and although
> I enjoyed the movie, I had to sit through several minutes of bloody
> promos/trailers at the start, and every button on the remote was locked
> out. Geez - even a VCR will fast forward past those. Now, every time I
> want to watch that movie, I have to wait about 8 minutes before the
> movie starts, and will have to sit through the same tired old trailers
> for movies I don't want.
>
> Surely, some reviewer somewhere, or somebody with some clout, can raise
> this point? Fer Chrissakes, I bought the DVD to watch Bruce Almighty -
> NOT a load of crap trailers and intrusive advertising.
>
> What next - "A few messages from our trading partners folks" then a
> series of ads for eveything from condoms to tampons, with washing powder
> somewhere in the middle?
>
> This is a nasty trend starting here, and I'm surprised that I haven't
> seen or heard any howls of discontent from people about it yet... or is
> Bruce Almighty the first one? It's certainly the first one I've seen.
>
> On the PC, I can use DVD IdlePro to ignore all that lockout stuff,
> including the FBI warnings etc, as well as making the DVD-ROM region-
> free. But in the home cinema I can't, dammit.
>
> Did I say I was furious, annoyed, angry, pissed off? Huh?
>
> And for good measure:- !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
>
> </End of rant>
> --
>
> NightStalker

Return the DVD and state your reasons why, and request your money back.
Surely the distributor will get the message eventually if enough people do
it

[ML]

It's hella annoying, but luckily my dvd has a "autoplay main feature"
setting, so when it loads it goes straight to the movie, then i can click
"menu" if I actually want to go back.

--
main.luser [ML]
http://tinyurl.com/fbax


"NightStalker" <Nightstalker@somewhere.or.other> wrote in message
news:MPG.1a3c2be3cff4d78e989726@news-50.giganews.com...
>
> <Start rant>
>
> Please excuse the exclamation marks in the subject, but I am furious!
> (oops - there's another one)
>
> Just received Bruce Almighty (from DVDBoxOffice in Canada) and although
> I enjoyed the movie, I had to sit through several minutes of bloody
> promos/trailers at the start, and every button on the remote was locked
> out. Geez - even a VCR will fast forward past those. Now, every time I
> want to watch that movie, I have to wait about 8 minutes before the
> movie starts, and will have to sit through the same tired old trailers
> for movies I don't want.
>
> Surely, some reviewer somewhere, or somebody with some clout, can raise
> this point? Fer Chrissakes, I bought the DVD to watch Bruce Almighty -
> NOT a load of crap trailers and intrusive advertising.
>
> What next - "A few messages from our trading partners folks" then a
> series of ads for eveything from condoms to tampons, with washing powder
> somewhere in the middle?
>
> This is a nasty trend starting here, and I'm surprised that I haven't
> seen or heard any howls of discontent from people about it yet... or is
> Bruce Almighty the first one? It's certainly the first one I've seen.
>
> On the PC, I can use DVD IdlePro to ignore all that lockout stuff,
> including the FBI warnings etc, as well as making the DVD-ROM region-
> free. But in the home cinema I can't, dammit.
>
> Did I say I was furious, annoyed, angry, pissed off? Huh?
>
> And for good measure:- !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
>
> </End of rant>
> --
>
> NightStalker

[Me]

I gotta admit, I love trailers. However I still believe in the idea of
having the freedom to skip them.


"ML" <no@thanks.com> wrote in message
news:6xhAb.41680$aT.30079@news-server.bigpond.net.au...
> It's hella annoying, but luckily my dvd has a "autoplay main feature"
> setting, so when it loads it goes straight to the movie, then i can click
> "menu" if I actually want to go back.
>
> --
> main.luser [ML]
> http://tinyurl.com/fbax
>
>
> "NightStalker" <Nightstalker@somewhere.or.other> wrote in message
> news:MPG.1a3c2be3cff4d78e989726@news-50.giganews.com...
> >
> > <Start rant>
> >
> > Please excuse the exclamation marks in the subject, but I am furious!
> > (oops - there's another one)
> >
> > Just received Bruce Almighty (from DVDBoxOffice in Canada) and although
> > I enjoyed the movie, I had to sit through several minutes of bloody
> > promos/trailers at the start, and every button on the remote was locked
> > out. Geez - even a VCR will fast forward past those. Now, every time I
> > want to watch that movie, I have to wait about 8 minutes before the
> > movie starts, and will have to sit through the same tired old trailers
> > for movies I don't want.
> >
> > Surely, some reviewer somewhere, or somebody with some clout, can raise
> > this point? Fer Chrissakes, I bought the DVD to watch Bruce Almighty -
> > NOT a load of crap trailers and intrusive advertising.
> >
> > What next - "A few messages from our trading partners folks" then a
> > series of ads for eveything from condoms to tampons, with washing powder
> > somewhere in the middle?
> >
> > This is a nasty trend starting here, and I'm surprised that I haven't
> > seen or heard any howls of discontent from people about it yet... or is
> > Bruce Almighty the first one? It's certainly the first one I've seen.
> >
> > On the PC, I can use DVD IdlePro to ignore all that lockout stuff,
> > including the FBI warnings etc, as well as making the DVD-ROM region-
> > free. But in the home cinema I can't, dammit.
> >
> > Did I say I was furious, annoyed, angry, pissed off? Huh?
> >
> > And for good measure:- !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> >
> > </End of rant>
> > --
> >
> > NightStalker
>
>

[Ray Macey]

ML wrote:
> It's hella annoying, but luckily my dvd has a "autoplay main feature"
> setting, so when it loads it goes straight to the movie, then i can click
> "menu" if I actually want to go back.

Just out of curiosity, which dvd player is that?

Ray

[luminos]

"Stan Brown" <the_stan_brown@fastmail.fm> wrote in message
news:MPG.1a3b5f7ecb390a2898b8d0@news.odyssey.net.. .
> In article <MPG.1a3c2be3cff4d78e989726@news-50.giganews.com> in
> alt.video.dvd, NightStalker <Nightstalker@somewhere.or.other> wrote:
> [unskippable commercials]
> >This is a nasty trend starting here, and I'm surprised that I haven't
> >seen or heard any howls of discontent from people about it yet..
>
> I'm surprised too. They have been very thoroughly discussed in this
> newsgroup for weeks.
>
> Of course, maybe you just bopped in and posted without looking at
> any previous discussions....
>
> --
> Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems, Cortland County, New York, USA
> http://OakRoadSystems.com
> DVD FAQ: http://dvddemystified.com/dvdfaq.html
> other FAQs: http://oakroadsystems.com/tech/faqget.htm

What an unuseful, and stupid, response. Why don't you learn something from
the dvdemystified.com folks, like how to write and how to be useful? And
why do yo pretend to have anything to do with them?

[GDS]

Cods wrote...
>With my player, you can often hit STOP repeatedly as soon as you start
>loading the disc. When it stops, hit MENU and you can often skip that
>crap.

I used to be able to do the stop thing with my old maggy.

G.

[Matt Ferrari]

(mass snippage)
"Shari" <jedi2602@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:3fd19a98$1@news.alphalink.com.au...
>
> >
> Return the DVD and state your reasons why, and request your money back.
> Surely the distributor will get the message eventually if enough people do
> it
>
>
(hopefully I quoted the above correct)

I agree with Shari, If enough people say, "no thanks"
they will stop pulling this crap.

return it. and contact universal and let them know
how you feel about them hacking product that you pay for
to own

http://www.universalstudios.com/home...ct_form.cgi?em
ail_id=10

I already did, as the was the first DVD ive experienced this with.

Matt

[GDS]

ML wrote...
>but luckily my dvd has a "autoplay main feature"
>setting, so when it loads it goes straight to the movie, then i can click
>"menu" if I actually want to go back.

I have the same thing in my new NEC...bloody genius!

And NightStalker...a well deserved rant!!!
Need I mention "Warners On The Gold Coast"?
Who cares?!?!
I, like most people, just wanna watch the movie and "maybe" the s/features if I'm boored.
G.

[ML]

LG 7711p or 1177p or something like that...

--
main.luser [ML]
http://tinyurl.com/fbax


"Ray Macey" <news@cyron.id.au.removethisbit> wrote in message
news:3fd1a85c$0$1747$5a62ac22@freenews.iinet.net.a u...
> ML wrote:
> > It's hella annoying, but luckily my dvd has a "autoplay main feature"
> > setting, so when it loads it goes straight to the movie, then i can
click
> > "menu" if I actually want to go back.
>
> Just out of curiosity, which dvd player is that?
>
> Ray
>

[ML]

The worse thing is they are simple being greedy. I mean it's not like DVD
sales are struggling or anything.

--
main.luser [ML]
http://tinyurl.com/fbax


"NightStalker" <Nightstalker@somewhere.or.other> wrote in message
news:MPG.1a3c2be3cff4d78e989726@news-50.giganews.com...
>
> <Start rant>
>
> Please excuse the exclamation marks in the subject, but I am furious!
> (oops - there's another one)
>
> Just received Bruce Almighty (from DVDBoxOffice in Canada) and although
> I enjoyed the movie, I had to sit through several minutes of bloody
> promos/trailers at the start, and every button on the remote was locked
> out. Geez - even a VCR will fast forward past those. Now, every time I
> want to watch that movie, I have to wait about 8 minutes before the
> movie starts, and will have to sit through the same tired old trailers
> for movies I don't want.
>
> Surely, some reviewer somewhere, or somebody with some clout, can raise
> this point? Fer Chrissakes, I bought the DVD to watch Bruce Almighty -
> NOT a load of crap trailers and intrusive advertising.
>
> What next - "A few messages from our trading partners folks" then a
> series of ads for eveything from condoms to tampons, with washing powder
> somewhere in the middle?
>
> This is a nasty trend starting here, and I'm surprised that I haven't
> seen or heard any howls of discontent from people about it yet... or is
> Bruce Almighty the first one? It's certainly the first one I've seen.
>
> On the PC, I can use DVD IdlePro to ignore all that lockout stuff,
> including the FBI warnings etc, as well as making the DVD-ROM region-
> free. But in the home cinema I can't, dammit.
>
> Did I say I was furious, annoyed, angry, pissed off? Huh?
>
> And for good measure:- !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
>
> </End of rant>
> --
>
> NightStalker

[Geoff]

My solution is to rip the movie (only) with DVDShrink, then burn a DVD-R.

[NightStalker]

In article <3fd19217$0$13634$afc38c87@news.optusnet.com.au> ,
xocsm@optushome.com.au says...
> Many Sony and Yamaha DVD players include UOP override capbilities in
> their advanced mod kits. The UOP (User Operation Prohibition) is the
> feature that allows DVD's to disable various control buttons such as
> skip, fast forward, menu, stop, pause, audio and subtitle select (to
> name a few) in the player. Mod kits with UOP override prevent the player
> from reading and enforcing these controls, thus restoring your ability
> to skip, fast forward ... etc This is something to keep in mind when
> next purchasing a DVD player :)
>
> Oh, and by the way, I too share your wrath and anger at this annoying trend.
>
> MichaelC

Thanks for the tips there Michael - definitely noted for the next
player.

And - egads!!! - I just watched 2fast 2furious (OK, I know, I know) and
it had the same problem. Also a Universal DVD and also with 4 bloody
trailers! Sheesh - gimme a break. Guess which DVDs are being
returned.....(faulty aren't they??? ;))

--

NightStalker

[NightStalker]

In article <0WhAb.9535$aw2.4532132@newssrv26.news.prodigy.com >, ferrari5
@ameritech.net says...

> return it. and contact universal and let them know
> how you feel about them hacking product that you pay for
> to own
>
> http://www.universalstudios.com/home...ct_form.cgi?em
> ail_id=10
>
> I already did, as the was the first DVD ive experienced this with.
>
> Matt
>
>
>

Well, I guess contacting Universal is a bit like pissing in the ocean,
but I've just sent off a fairly pointed email using that URL - thanks
for that. And yes - the DVDs are being returned (see above post - 2Fast
2Furious is the same as Bruce Almighty).

Here is the text of my message to Universal:

<Begin Quote>

I wish to protest MOST strongly about the use of UOP (User Operation
Prohibition) 'features' at the beginning of the DVDs in question. Being
forced to sit through several minutes of stupid trailers for movies I do
not wish to see, and moreover having this thrust on us EVERY time we
watched the movies we paid for is completely unacceptable.

Both DVDs are being returned tomorrow to the dealer with a request for a
full refund. I bought the DVDs for the movies, NOT for the trailers.
And having all the control buttons locked out by the UOP 'features' is a
complete insult. It is MY home theatre, and I do NOT want unasked-for
trailers and advertising.

Please stop this ridiculous affront before it gets out of hand - you are
already incurring a huge amount of ill will on the DVD newsgroups and
forums, and this is from movie buffs who usually have collections
running into the multi-hundreds if not thousands, as well as some well-
distributed reviewers and feature writers. Once Universal DVDs get the
reputation that this will give you, it can only be bad for sales.

Thank you.

</End Quote>

Bet it doesn't even rate a response.

--

NightStalker

[NightStalker]

In article <3fd1ac74_3@news.chariot.net.au>, sickof@spam.com.au says...

> And NightStalker...a well deserved rant!!!

Thank you :)


> Need I mention "Warners On The Gold Coast"?

Part of that burned down today - maybe somebody fed up of force-fed
trailers? And no - it wasn't moi ;)

--

NightStalker

[NightStalker]

In article <bqsfb1$2vc7$1@otis.netspace.net.au>,
lionshattrick@hotmail.com says...
> My solution is to rip the movie (only) with DVDShrink, then burn a DVD-R.
>
>
>

Good idea Geoff. If I don't get my money back on those two movies, I'll
do just that.

--

NightStalker