Def Leppard Concert Problem - What's On My Leg?

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This Old Debt of Mine

Lego May Move Production From Denmark

COPENHAGEN, Denmark - Struggling Danish toy maker Lego Group, famous for its colorful plastic building blocks, said Wednesday it is considering moving all or parts of its production to Eastern Europe or China.

The privately held group reported a pretax loss of 156 million kroner ($26 million) last week and announced it would move a production factory in Switzerland to the Czech Republic.

In an interview with the financial newspaper Boersen, Lego chief executive Joergen Vig Knudstorp said the Swiss move was a test, and could be followed by a complete or partial move of the company's main production facilities in Billund, Denmark.

"In the long term, I think that everything will be moved," Vig Knudstorp was quoted as saying.

Lego spokeswoman Charlotte Simonsen told The Associated Press no decision had been made, but confirmed that outsourcing production to eastern Europe or China was being considered. She said the restructuring plans would be completed by 2010, and any moves would take place before that.

There are about 3,000 people working at the production facility at the Lego headquarters in Billund.

Simonsen said the company's restructuring program could affect all of its production facilities, including one in Enfield, Conn.

Earlier this year Lego sold its four Legoland amusement parks to U.S.-based private equity group the Blackstone Group for 375 million euros ($457 million). The theme parks are located in Carlsbad, Calif.; Billund; Windsor, Britain; and Gunzberg, Germany.

Apple Launches New ITunes Phone and IPod

SAN FRANCISCO - Apple Computer Inc. Chief Executive Steve Jobs introduced a long-anticipated music-playing cell phone on Wednesday and surprised the faithful with a new pencil-thin iPod.

The phone, called the ROKR and made by Motorola Inc., will come loaded with iTunes software, store up to 100 songs and include a color display screen and a built-in camera.

The ROKR, Apple's first foray into the mobile telephony market, will include built-in dual-stereo speakers as well as stereo headphones that also serve as a mobile headset.

Users will not be able to load the phone with music files over cellular networks, however. They must transfer songs from their computers. That contrasts with popular over-the-air music purchases available in such countries as Japan.

The new iPod, called the Nano, replaces the iPod Mini. In contrast with the Mini, which is hard drive-based, the Nano relies on flash memory, making it lighter and more energy-efficient.

One-third the size of the Mini, the Nano weighs about 1.5 ounces and looks and feels much like a cigarette lighter. Apple says it can store up to 1,000 songs or 25,000 photos.

"Nano is the biggest revolution since the original iPod," Jobs crowed at an event for journalists and invited guests. "It's impossibly small. ... It's thinner than a No. 2 pencil."

Besides music, the Nano features games, photo storage and a calendar. It also has a "screen lock" feature that allows no one except the user to access content.

A 4-gigabyte Nano will retail for $249, and a 2-gigabyte model will sell for $199. The devices will be in stores as soon as Thursday and are likely to be widely available by the weekend, Apple said.

The Nano is a sign that Apple intends with its market-dominating iPod players to rely more on flash memory, which is becoming cheaper, said Susan Kevorkian, a research analyst with IDC.

"Apple is positioning themselves to take advantage of those price drops," Kevorkian said. "Flash is more stable than hard drives, which are in many MP3 players, including the 60-gigabyte iPod."

The ROKR phone will be offered by Cingular Wireless in the United States.

On the phone, music will automatically shut off when a call is received and users can listen to music while text-messaging.

Like the Nano, the iPhone will include flash memory that will preserve battery power, according to Nitin Gupta, an analyst with Yankee Group. Apple said the iPhone will offer up to 9 hours of talk time, and standby time of up to 9 days.

"Using the audio player will not diminish its capabilities," Gupta said. "It's not a realistic concern when using flash-based phones."

The phones, which sell for $250 with a two-year commitment at all Cingular stores nationwide, go on sale Thursday.

In addition to the new phone and iPod, Apple also announced that Acura, Audi, Honda and Volkswagen will offer iPod connectivity with their car stereos for 2006 model lines.

Madonna made an appearance at the event via a video phone call to announce that she would make her music available for download for the first time.

All of the singers' songs will be offered through the iTunes library.

Potter Novels Available as iTunes Downloads

NEW YORK - Break out your iPods: Harry Potter is going digital. J.K. Rowling, once publishing's greatest holdout against the computer age, has made all six Potter novels available for audio downloads.

In a message posted Wednesday on her Web site, Rowling said she was concerned about online piracy, included bootleg editions for which the original text was altered.

"Many Harry Potter fans have been keen for digital access for a while, but the deciding factor for me in authorizing this new version is that it will help combat the growing incidents of piracy in this area," Rowling wrote.

"There have been a number of incidents where fans have stumbled upon unauthorized files believing them to be genuine and, quite apart from the fact that they are illegal, the Harry Potter content of these can bear very little resemblance to anything I've ever written!"

The digital audiobooks are being released by the Random House Audio Trade Group, her current audio publisher. They can be purchased through Apple's iTunes store, for prices ranging from $32.95 for a single book to $249 for the whole series, which, according to Random House, includes a "full color digital booklet" and "previously unreleased readings" by Rowling.

Neil Blair, a lawyer with Rowling's literary agency, said Wednesday that there are no current plans for Potter e-books.

Rowling's fantasy series, most recently "Harry Potter and Half-Blood Prince," has sold more than 200 copies worldwide in print editions and more than 5 million as audiobooks, narrated by Grammy winner Jim Dale. But up to now the author had only permitted paper and traditional audio releases, making her work a favorite for online pirates, although illegal sales are believed to be relatively tiny.

Helped by the iPod boom, digital audiobooks are already one of publishing's hottest sectors, with sales nearly quadrupling between 2001 and 2003, to more than $18 million, according to the Audio Publishers Association.

"It's very exciting that an audiobook both critically acclaimed and commercially successful is finally available to the very broad audience of people who enjoy downloading," says association president Mary Beth Roche.

Also Wednesday, Rowling said on her Web site that she was concerned by a wave of Potter merchandise with fake autographs for sale on eBay.

"As far as I could tell on the day I dropped in, only one of the signatures on offer appeared genuine," she wrote.

"There seem to be a lot of people out there trying to con Harry Potter fans. The same is true in respect to the huge number of unauthorized Harry Potter e-books and audio digital files that users of eBay have offered for sale to Harry Potter fans," wrote Rowling, who accused eBay of refusing to take responsibility for what it allows to be sold.

eBay spokesman Hani Durzi said Wednesday that Rowling is part of a copyright protection program offered by the online auction giant that allows members to report problems. Durzi estimates that eBay has 55 million listings at any given time and says that "it's the responsibility of the copyright owner to report any listings that violate their rights."

Depeche Mode returns to U.S. after 4-year break

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Veteran electro/pop act Depeche Mode will begin its first North American tour in more than four years on November 2 in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.

The five-week arena jaunt will run through a December 9 show in Fairfax, Va., and includes a rare club show November 26 in Las Vegas. The Raveonettes and the Bravery will alternate as opening acts.

The tour comes in support of Depeche Mode's new album, "Playing the Angel," due October 18 via Sire/Reprise. The first single, "Precious," is due to reach U.S. radio outlets shortly.

Guitarist Buckethead teams with System frontman

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Enigmatic guitarist Buckethead, who never appears in public without a KFC bucket on his head and a mask on his face, has signed to the label run by System Of A Down frontman Serj Tankian.

Buckethead's album "Enter the Chicken" will be released October 25 under the Serjical Strike banner. The 11-track set features guest spots by Tankian on the songs "Waiting Here" and "We Are One."

Buckethead has been releasing eclectic solo albums since 1992. Until his March 2004 departure, he was also doubling as the guitarist in Guns N' Roses and had played on the group's long-festering album, "Chinese Democracy."

cuthbert1776

- kinda

been busy lately

car, work, family, ect

don't get me started on the car -

TheWheelMan dont waste your money on the buzzy feiten system. I have heard (I agree with OCPS470) from guitar manufactures IE fender and Godin.. it does not work. it will also give you tuning issues in the upper register. IT should be call the BS tuning system. a good sign if it works well is if fender or gibson jump on it. Tom anderson Guitars have dropped it and dont even offer it as an option.

rant over..

Re Buzzy, I guess only Vai can afford a technician to make this system work for him LOL He Loves it

Good Morning Satchland...... How are you guys?

Well I had know idea Michelle's brown eyed lady friends would have such a impact on this forum. Michelle....You are the Man...errr .....Women. Yes, I would love to talk to them. Thank you. Meeting them is out of the question due to the geography issue. So.....Please forward pic to : ken@thebluesmavericks.com. I promise I'll talk to them everyday. Just kiddin'....lol......

In other news... I heard on the news last night that snipers were shooting at SBC workers trying to restore communication lines in New Orleans. Come on people get a grip. Also, each victim is to receive 2K in debit cards.

Keniko, your post reminded me of this woman I saw on tv who paints with her...parts. LOL! I found a website, but I don't think it's the same woman I saw. Either way, it's interesting. LOL! I don't really have any pics of my juggies laying about, but maybe civgeek will show you his ;-)

rotflmao!!!

http://www.ebsqart.com/Artists/cmd_2065_profile.htm