SONY Does Bad Things

I've never been a big fan of SONY or its products. I got a SONY stereo for Christmas one year: it broke within six months. I was unduly influenced by a sale at Circuit City and bought a SONY discman: it conked out in about 9 months.

Then I moved to Japan and had similar problems with a SONY Vaio desktop computer that I bought back in 2003. My students let me in on a little colloquial expression around here, 'SONY-time', which means "the tendency to break down two or three times a year".

My experiences with SONY's products were never that bad, but I've made sure to avoid their stuff at all costs. I will happily pay a bit more for a SONY competitor, although the opposite seems to be necessary here in Tokyo, Japan. SONY products are usually more expensive than their competitors products in this town. Why? Excellent question. I suspect that it's because the people over here have been buying SONY incessantly since the late 70's. They also happen to be accustomed to paying top yen for things, so there's little reason for SONY to break the trend.

What has pushed me over the edge now is the crap that SONY has been packing with its CD's. If you weren't awake for the uproar last year caused by the copyright protection software SONY uses, head on over to this article by J. Alex Halderman for some background information.

Here is my boiled-down version of the situation: I tried to listen to Z, an album by My Morning Jacket. Oops. Due to the fact that I am like the vast majority of computer users (i.e. I am stupid and run my computer in administrator mode), my computer automatically ran and installed a number of copy-protection files on my hard drive. Sounds normal, right?

Wrong. The little window asking for my consent didn't show up until after about a dozen files were loaded on my computer. And here's the fun part! Despite assurances to the contrary, you can't uninstall these files, and they tend to act a lot like spyware. Furthermore, some of the cloaking software (which is worse than it sounds) used by SONY was proving to be pretty effective cover for viruses written by some of the more computer-savvy among us. And wouldn't you know it, the software also manages to garble music from SONY-produced CD's that you may be trying to play on your iPod (or in iTunes).

After two and a half hours of reading and researching, I was able to uninstall the files completely (I think). There is currently a mammoth-sized Class Action Lawsuit going down in the states. If you would like to opt out, you should do so soon. Everyone else has until the end of the year (12.31.06) to file for compensation under the Class Action suit. Compensation maxes out at a few free digital albums which is not very helpful if (like me) you're not a big Mariah Carey fan. I think they have around 175 titles to choose from. I haven't seen the list.

I have no problem with companies attempting to protect their intellectual property rights, and those of the artists signed with said companies. However, SONY installed files that report information about my system and possessions back to its partners without my permission. In addition to breaking the law, SONY has hereby earned itself several more years without any of my money. And to think that I was this close to buying a new SONY Ericsson cell phone!

SONY Does Bad Things

No Exercise on Fridays: Tipness and Other Gyms Don't Play Fair

My gym is closed every Friday. Not just my gym actually; many gyms are closed on Fridays. Why? Good question.

I've asked a couple of times, and the answer is different depending on who you talk to.

The end result is that you are required to pay for a month of membership, but you don't actually have a full month of access to the facilities.

Pretty clever, huh?

For the record: I used to belong to Renaissance, but now I'm a paying member at Tipness. Both are chain gyms, and both run a little over 10,000 yen per month.

No Exercise on Fridays: Tipness and Other Gyms Don't Play Fair

Japanese Banks

The banks here are better than they used to be. At least tourists can now find an ATM that will tolerate their foreign cash/credit/debit cards (sometimes). When I first came here in 2001 it was a little bit more of a challenge.

There are still some challenges though. One of the biggies is the fact that major banks close at 3pm. That basically means that if you miss the ATM during your lunch break, you miss the fee-free withdrawal window (if you're the working type). The witching hour may vary by branch, but that's beside the point.

Sometimes it feels like the banks have manipulated the situation so that the customer is obliged to be thankful for the services of the bank, rather than the bank being grateful for the loyalty of the customer. It is entirely possible, I admit, that my limited ability to read Japanese (kanji) is tainting my understanding of the situation. However, I hardly think that it's appropriate (or necessary) to have to wait 25 minutes just to give the bank my money, or pay an extra fee to use the ATM at my "home" bank (Mitsui Sumitomo or SMBC) just because the bank employees have all gone home.

Japanese Banks

How Gullible Are You?

Are you a free-thinker?
To check your level of gullibility, click here.

How Gullible Are You?

Waseda Big Day Out 2006

I finally had a chance to experience 'kabuki' theater yesterday. It was very interesting, and I would like to see it again. However, I'd like to see it in a true 'kabuki-za'. I think there is one near Higashi-Ginza station.

We also visited the Panasonic Center, and we ended up at the posh Nikko Hotel in Odaiba for a buffet dinner. It was a good time!

One thing led to another, and a few of us ended up watching England smack the piss out of Wales in rugby. I took a taxi home, and ended up in bed at around 3:30AM.

Waseda Big Day Out 2006

Crazy Week

It was a good week for me in terms of acting. I only had two auditions, but I managed to snag three jobs. On Monday I was hired to welcome guests at a media event for the launching of the "NEW" SOKENBICHA. That's a popular variety of bottled tea that is sold in every convenience store here, for those who are wondering.

I don't really think it's new though. I think it's just the same product in a different bottle. Similar to what they do with beer over here. Same product, different color can, big to-do.

Wednesday was an all-day shoot for NTT Flets (TV commercial) that will hit the airwaves some time later this month. I was one of the lead actors in that one.

Today I did a modeling job for a company that imports and sells expensive watches.

It has turned out to be my second best week ever (financially speaking). My best week was the beginning of last November.

I've never had two major commercials airing at the same time, so that's going to be a first. The Canon commercial is still due to run through May.

Crazy Week

Finished My Grading!!!

Holy crap it took forever! It always seems to.
I submitted my grades (for my students) about two hours and ten minutes before the deadline. It takes about two weeks to write the reports that are required for each individual student. It definitely takes a toll mentally!
But I'm done.

Finished My Grading!!!

Food Porn

Ooooh, yeeesss! Those of you who live (or lived) in Japan will probably catch on to what I mean here. Food is appreciated here in a way that many visitors don't quite get. Whole daytime talk shows are devoted to scurrying about the countryside trying out the local cuisine. People scream out in ecstacy at first bite (no matter what they're chewing on). Punishment on game shows is routinely in the form of watching the other team eat something that looks and smells (and sounds!) delicious. I guess you kind of have to come here and see for yourself. Anyway, if you can't beat 'em... So here are my food porn pics. Ooooh, look at the colors!

Food Porn