M$ Surveys Colour Ideas

M$ Points Quadratically

On Monday, a story broke about Microsoft doing away with the Microsoft Points, which are used to buy games and other products on the Xbox 360. Most people assumed that this would lead to Microsoft going to a system where actual money is used instead of points. However, in an exclusive interview with this outlet, Microsoft Xbox Community Manager Larry Hrb has stated that the new Microsoft Points system will not be based on real money amounts. Rather, the newly titled "Advanced Microsoft Points" system will utilize the Quadratic Equation.


Mr. Hrb said, "We want to reward our customers for their loyalty to our service, as well as frequent use of our service. To that end, we will be using things like Total Points Spent, Consecutive Time Spent Subscribing To Xbox Live Gold, and Gamerscore Points Accrued. This will lead to some customers being charged more for the new Advanced Microsoft Points system, while some will be charged less. In fact, the way that the equation is set up, some of our most loyal customers will be charged next to nothing for the new Advanced Microsoft Points."
I played around with the new Advanced Microsoft Points equation, and the results were staggering. Plugging in my current stats into this equation results in me paying only fifty cents for every one hundred Advanced Microsoft Point. I also ran the numbers in preparation for letting my Microsoft Live Gold subscription lapse in March. This resulted in me paying $9.54 for every one hundred Advanced Microsoft Point.

It will be interesting to see how the gaming public will react to this move. I am predicting the same reaction that gamers have to everything that ever happens to anyone at anytime: White Hot Rage.











Perhaps it is the way that I criticize myself more than I criticize anyone else, but I've noticed over the past couple of weeks that the quality of my blogs has been slipping. Unlike when this has happened in the past, where I require long, exhaustive introspection to find the cause of my loss of quality, I can say right away what is causing this. In addition to my work for The Redertainment Corporation Of America, I have taken on side projects in order to supplement my income so that I can my more and higher qualities of beer.

To this end, I have taken a job as the Communications Director for a politician in my area. Unfortunately, I have taken a job with a politician who's political viewpoints I do not agree with. As a result, this job has required me to say things that require a high level of effort on my part, resulting in the loss of quality of my blogs.

An example of this is the recent survey sent out on behalf of my employer, Utah State Senator Grand Shaw. Grand Shaw is a Republican representing the thirtieth Senatorial district, which is located is the area near Amaron, Utah. This survey reflects what he wants to do as in his capacity as a State Senator, as well as his general world view.

Senator Grand Shaw 2012 Voter Questionnaire  

Question 1: Email Address Of The Respondent
(Email addresses used for Legislative and Party purposes)
 
Question 2: Due in part to our state's efforts to remain fiscally responsible, there is a projected state budget for this year. However, due to the growth in public education and the restraints put on us my Obamacare, our budget will still be tight. Please list the following budget priorities from 1 to 10, 1 being the highest priority:
Fund Growth In Public Education
No Tax Increases
Maintain Roads
Fund Growth For Higher Education
Public Education Teacher Salary Raises
Higher Education Teacher Salary Raises
State Employee Raises
Vigorously Fight Obamacare
Reduce Taxes
Judicial Appeal Of Roe Vs. Wade  

Question 3: The state legislature is set to revisit their approach to the State Alcohol Laws. How would you like to see these laws changed?
Nothing, I'm Happy With The Current System
Harsher Penalties For DUI Arrests
Further Restriction Of Alcohol Sales
Giving Alcohol To Minors  

Question 4: The Utah Legislature has a proposal to remove Utah from the Daylight Savings Time, similar to Arizona and Hawaii. Do you support this?
Yes
No  

Question 5: A bill has been drafted that would have Utah join the National Popular Vote Compact. This compact would compell Utah to have their Electoral College representatives vote for whichever Presidential candidate won the national vote, as opposed to which Presidential Candidate won the vote in Utah. Do you agree with this?
Yes
No  

Question 6: There is a proposal to once again affirm the State of Utah's belief in traditional marriage. What do you think of this proposal?
Yes, Traditional Marriage Is Important To Me
Yes, We Need To Send A Message That Utah Is On The Right Side Of This Issue
No, Message Bills Are An Unnecessary Waste Of Taxpayer's Time
No, I Believe In Anarchy  

Question 7: What do you think of the proposed amendment to the US Constitution asserting that corporations are not people?
I Disagree With It
I Strongly Disagree With It
I Believe In The Power Of Freedom
I Hate Capitalism And Yearn For Socialism  

Question 8: Your Comments

That is the survey that I have been working on for Utah State Senator Grand Shaw. I hope now you understand why the quality of my blog posts have been going down lately, and why I haven't been getting much sleep lately.
 



How To Abuse Google Translate

On Wednesday, stories started circulating about a possible sequel to Square Enix's 2009 release Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days. The reports of this game, rumored to be named Kane & Lynch: Sleeping Dogs, are based on copyright filing as well as a job listing looking for people to work on an unannounced Triple A title. A little digging into this job listing reveals more about this upcoming game.

This job listing was made by a newly created division of Square Enix, Osoroshi Aidea. It appears that this game will be Osoroshi Aieda's first acknowledged title, although it appears that they have also done work on other Square Enix titles. Most notably, Osoroshi Aieda appears to be responsible for the battle system utilized in Final Fantasy XIII.

Upon finding the contact page for Osoroshi Aieda, I reached out to their Director Of Communications about the possible upcoming Kane & Lynch title, as well as other titles this division may be working on. What was sent back to me was a statement in Japanese. Not being adept in reading Japanese, I ran the statement through Google Translate. This is what came back. There may be grammatical errors as well as improper word usage, but that is what usually happens when you use Google Translate.

We at Terrible Idea are proud to bring unique and innovative ideas to our open market in the end. Terrible idea is a game studio and try to achieve a dynamic new ideas to open the minds of the public who share our gaming products. We have games like Final Fantasy franchise and Kane and Lynch, we feel that you can give a shot in the arm in an effort put into them. Square Enix's future leaders in the Terrible Idea that is very excited to see what it can produce a very bright idea is horrible.
Upon research, "Osoroshi Aieda" translates to Terrible Ideas.






 
Visiting The Realm Of Colour
by Hunter Red

I spent some time today in a realm not typical of mine. This is a realm that, while not far removed from mine, seems to live in another world entirely. I spent time in this realm, drinking in the very essence of what was around me. I sat in this realm and was enriched, invigorated, enlightened, just by being there. Being in this place sets my mind at ease in a way that is not possible in the world where I come from.

There are building, diverse in age and design, that challenge the very definition of what kind of building can hold what kind of business, school, or home. There are people here, not bound down by the expectations of who they have to be and what they have to do, who just be in the way that one would be if they could just be. There is art here, diverse in kind, media, and colour, adorning every building, openly displayed on every street corner, imbedded into every place where people can see.

Unfortunately, there comes a time when I feel compelled to leave the realm of the colour, the realm that fills me with such life, culture, and humanity, and go home, go home to the world of gray. The world where all the homes fit neatly and orderly into each other, where all the businesses fit neatly and orderly into each other, where all the people too fit neatly and orderly into each other. Home is a place where nothing is allowed to be, instead they are compelled to be normal.

Perhaps it is the fact that I only visit the realm of the colour that I think of it as so. Perhaps I think of the world of gray as gray because I have lived there for a long time. Perhaps if I visited the realm of the colour more often, or even maybe lived there, the colour would slowly become gray. Perhaps. Perhaps. I may never know if this is so, because, due to circumstances outside yet completely inside my sphere of control, I am stuck living in the gray.

Urine Soaked Parental Search

In my search for the elusive President of The Redertainment Corporation Of America, I first thought of going to the place that Rodger Red calls home. After getting the address from the General Executive Secretary, Liz, I found Rodger's home. It was a modest home, which was shocking given how rich the patriarch of the Red family is said to be. The grass in front of the home looked as if it hadn't been attended to in months. The garden, much longer. The closer I got to the entrance of the home, the more concerned I became. This home looked like the kind of thing you see in a horror film, or so I've been told as I've never partaken in that particular genre of cinema.

The door of the home of Rodger Red was simple. No ornate design or even a window to see to the outside, just a simple door with a simple knock and a simple sign that reads "No Solicitors". I knocked on the door three times, each time I felt the grime that covered every inch of this simple door. I waited for someone to respond. No one did. Then I knocked again, trying to hit the same point as to not collect any more of the door's grime on my knuckles. No response. Then I called out to the occupants of the home.

"Rodger. Rodger! Are you there Rodger?"

I waited a moment for a response. None came. Persisting, I knocked on the door again, this time harder. This time I did get a response but not from the occupants of the home. When I struck the door, it moved. The door opened a tiny crack, small enough for me to peer into but not large enough for me to enter.

I peered into the home of Rodger Red and saw nothing particularly out of the ordinary. It looked like the kind of home that my grandparents kept. The only thing I thought was odd was how little light there was in the home. The drapes on the windows were tightly drawn and none of the electric lights in the home were on. Odd. I called out to the occupants of the home again.

"Rodger! Rodger, are you okay? Can you hear me, Rodger?"

I could not hear a response, and was concerned by this fact. No one had seen Rodger Red for a couple of days and I was concerned that he was at home, unable to move or respond, on the verge of death. I made the decision right there and then to push into the home. If the cops had any problem with it, I would just tell them that I was concerned about an elderly person I knew and was checking up on them. Also, I don't look like a thief.

I pushed on the door, I heard a sound. A cat meowing in surprise at being disturbed. The more I pushed forward, the more cats I heard. Finally, once I has opened the door just enough to squeeze into the home, I saw the dominant lifeform in this house. The entire house had been taken over by cats, and there were a great many of them. I could not take a step without stepping on, over, or in other ways disturbing a cat. As I ventured further into the house, the smell of the feline infestation became overwhelming. Every kind of cat smell I could think of, and some I honestly had never thought of, was present in the house. The house looked like it hadn't been cleaned in a great amount of time, more time than any reasonable person could stand.

I stood in the kitchen, or what resembled a kitchen, and pulled out my cellphone to use as a light. Instantly, a thousand cats went scrambling, like cockroaches, away from the light. That is when I called out for the occupants again.

"Rodger? Can you hear me?"

The cats reacted to my voice, no human did. Searching around with the small amount of light provided by my cellphone, I found a set of stairs heading upward. I slowly climbed these stairs, clearing cats away on every tread. Reaching the top of the stairs, I found a number of doors. Most of them looked like they hadn't been touched by human hands in a long, long time. One did. The doorknob to one door stood as a stark contrast to the rest of the house. It was clean. Making my way to the door, I felt the need to announce myself before intruding more than I already had.

"Rodger? I'm going to open this door now. I'm sorry if I disturb you, Rodger. I'm really concerned about you, Rodger. Please forgive me."

The response I received was the same as before. Remembering my experience from the front door, I grabbed onto the doorknob, twisted, and shoved the door forward as hard as I could. There was no resistance behind the door, causing the door to fly open, shocking the person inside.

"Aaaah! Who are you what are you doing in my house? Aaaah!!!"

This was not Rodger. I know Rodger, not as well as his family might know him, but I know Rodger enough to know that Rodger Red is not a woman. I tried to apologize for my intrusion.

"I'm sorry miss, I just-"

"Who are you? You're one of those home invasion people the news told me about."

"No, I'm just looking for someone."

"You're just looking for a fix! Well, I'll fix you."

The woman grabbed one of the any cats that were present in her room and threw it at me. I took this as a sign that I should leave, and leave now. Speed was my primary concern as I left this house, not how many cats I stepped on or how many things I knocked over to do so.

I made it out to my car and took a deep breath, grateful that I was out of that house and into a place with clean air. Once I caught my breath, I called the one person in the Red family I knew, Rodger's grandson and my co-worker Hunter. It took three rings for Hunter to answer.

"Hello?"

"Hunter?"

"Yes?"

"This is Julia."

"I know that, I have your number in my phone."

"Listen, I was looking for Rodger, and I went by his home."

"Okay."

"And when I went inside I found all these cats, and there was a woman inside, and the house was just disgusting."

There was a short pause in the conversation before Hunter responded.

"Do you have the address right?"

I didn't know what Hunter meant by that, so it took me a second to respond.

"I, I think I have the address right."

"What address do you have?"

I found the piece of paper with the address Liz gave me and recited it to Hunter.

"1230 South Rockview Boulevard."

"And what house are you sitting in front of?"

I searched the front of the house for a number.

"I can't see a number on the front of the house, but this should be 1230, right?"

"No."

"No?"

"No. The house you went into is the crazy cat lady that lives next door to Rodger."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, she's lived there for years. In fact, when it rains, and the rain hits the north side of that house, the odor of cat piss causes Rodger to have an asthma attack."

I did not need to know that.

"Gee thanks, Hunter."

"No problem."

"So I should go next door and look for Rodger?"

"Actually he's on the news right now."

"What?"

"Yeah, Rodger is on the news right now telling people how he really needs more advertising revenue to keep Redertainment afloat."

The feeling of impotence is something I had never been familiar with untill that moment.

"So, Rodger is okay?"

"He is, now. Once I get a hold of him, it's another tale."

"Okay. I'm coming back to the office."

"Allright. See you soon."

I hung up the phone and started my car. As a pulled away from the home I made a mental note to myself. That note: Thoroughly clean my house, and get rid of my cat, Mr. Fuzzytail.

The Fourth Annual The Four Star Awards

A Statement About SOPA

Before we present to you The Fourth Annual The Four Star Awards, we present to you a statement from the President of The Redertainment Corporation Of American, Rodger Red.

Greetings. I am Rodger Red, President of The Redertainment Corporation Of America. Over the past couple of weeks, my office has been asked about our stance on SOPA. After consulting with our legal department, as well as several different knowledgable individuals about this topic, I have crafted a stance that reflects the viewpoints of not just myself but the entirety of The Redertainment Corporation Of America.

We here at The Redertainment Corporation Of America are proud to say that we support SOPA. It the belief of The Redertainment Corporation Of America that SOPA is something that everybody should use in their everyday life. We have come to this conclusion because we have seen what happens when individuals do not use SOPA. We have seen many individuals devolve into behavior that is destructive for themselves and the communities that they live in when they do not use SOPA on a regular basis.

It is the belief of The Redertainment Corporation Of America that the lives of every human being can be greatly enhances through the implementation and all encompassing application of SOPA. While The Redertainment Corporation Of America does have reservations about the federal government mandating the use of SOPA, we feel that an aggressive public service campaign can make the use of SOPA not only overwhelmingly appealing but almost compulsory.

At The Redertainment Corporation Of America, all of our employees use SOPA everyday. I use Safeguard brand SOPA, Julia Diana Bobbi uses Dove brand SOPA, while our secretary Liz uses Ivory brand SOPA. Our star employee Hunter Red currently uses a Old Spice brand body wash that my daughter, Allison, got him for Christmas.



The Fourth Annual The Four Star Awards

This year we opened up the voting for The Four Star Awards to a wider and more available audience. The Redertainment Corporation Of America made voting available on Facebook, making voting open to everybody that is currently on the largest social media platform in the world. However, much like years in the past, there was very few votes cast in this year's awards.

Three. Just three people voted in this year's awards. Only Hunter Red, Jim Jenkins, and Krystian Skomra took advantage of this opportunity to vote on this year's The Four Star Awards.

Regardless, the awards will move on. This year, all ties in voting will be decided by a coin flip. The winner of The Four Star Award will be decided by die roll. So now, here are The Fourth Annual The Four Star Awards.



TV

Nominees:

American Horror Story
Breaking Bad
The Chicago Code
The Onion News Network/SportsDome
Tosh.0

Only one nominee received votes in this category, so, your winner of The Four Star Award in the TV category is:

American Horror Story



Movie

Nominees:

Attack The Block
Drive
Red State
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Super 8

Only two nominees in this category received votes, Attack The Block and Drive. Now the winner, by coin flip:

Drive



Album

Nominees:

Cage The Elephant- Thank You Happy Birthday
Childish Gambino- Camp
Lupe Fiasco- Lasers
The Nightwatchmen- World Wide Rebel Songs
The Strokes- Angles

The only nominees in this category to receive votes was Thank You Happy Birthday and Lasers. Now, the winner by coin flip:

Cage The Elephant- Thank You Happy Birthday



Video Games

Nominees:

Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
L.A. Noire
Portal 2
Saints Row The Third
Super Mario 3D Land

The winner, with two votes:

Skyrim



Personality Of The Year

Nominees:

CM Punk
GLaDOS
Keith Olbermann
Lady Gaga
Rebecca Black

Only CM Punk and GlaDOS received votes in this category. The winner, via coin flip:

CM Punk



Disappointment Of The Year

On April 20th, 2011, Sony's Playstation Network went down. Initially no reason was given for this outage, leading to a lot of speculation and worry about the nature of the outage, the integrity of the service itself, and whether user's personal information was compromised. Eventually, Sony disclosed that the outage was due to an "outside intrusion" and that user's personal information has in fact been compromised.

The way that Sony handled this crisis, including leaving many users in the dark about what was going on for several days, is generally seen as a giant mistake. In fact, throughout most of this year, the Sony Playstation Network hacking and the way Sony handled it was the frontrunner for this award. However, in August that started to change.

In August, users of Microsoft's Xbox Live started reporting illegitimate charges being made to their credit card accounts. When they dug further, these users found that these charges were tied to content being bought for several Electronic Arts's sports properties, most notably FIFA 12. Despite this issue being widespread and many users, some with prominent video game blogs and podcasts, openly saying that they believed this was an issue with Xbox Live, Microsoft continued to publicly say that the problem was not on their end. Microsoft continued to stress that the problem was on the user's side and that their online architecture was secure. This scandal is continuing to be played out, but another move by Microsoft, as well as by Sony, may impede user's ability to get recourse in matters of this nature.

In November 2011, Microsoft updated the End User License Agreement for Xbox Live. Among other changes made to this agreement, language was inserted pertaining to the kinds of legal action users that agree to the EULA can take against Microsoft. This language prevents users who agree to the EULA from filing class action lawsuits against Microsoft. This move follows a similar move made by Sony in relation to the Playstation Network. In addition, there is also the long standing issue of not being able to erase your credit card information off of Xbox Live, and the complete inability to completely erase your profile and profile information off of the Playstation Network.

These moves and the openly hostile stance that both Sony and Microsoft toward it's users in any issue, whether the issue is small and trivial or large and critical, makes one thing abundantly clear: Sony Computer Entertainment of America and the gaming division of Microsoft have a lackadaisical attitude toward protecting the information that their users freely give to them and see those same users, all of them no matter their history or standing as a customer, as a dire and malicious threat to their online architecture and their company as a whole. For this reason, The Four Star Award for Disappointment Of The Year goes to both Sony and Microsoft.


Sony And Microsoft


The Four Star Award

Nominees:

American Horror Story
Cage The Elephant- Thank You Happy Birthday
CM Punk
Drive
Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Sony and Microsoft

Each of the numbers were given to each of the six winners in the categories that came before. The numbers were given out by alphabetical order. The dice roll came up:

Therefore, the winner via dice roll:

Sony and Microsoft

Why Apple Is Frustrating And Awesome

Why Apple Is Frustrating And Awesome

On December 31st, 2011, I tried buying American Horror Story season one through iTunes. I also tried to buy Pan Am Season One the next day. In attempting to download each of the TV series, I encountered the same problem. I received an error message telling me that part of the file was corrupted. After exhaustive attempts to solve the problem on my end, because I sincerely thought the problem was on my end, I contacted Apple Customer Service to try to resolve this issue.

The following is a series of emails sent between myself and Apple Customer Service between January 1st, 2012 and January 5th, 2012. Certain details have been changed or omitted, such as names and other specific personal information. This was done to protect my identity and the anonymity of myself and the person I was messaging with.


January 1st, 2012


First Name : Hunter
Last Name : Red
Email : (My personal email address)
Apple ID (Optional) : Redertainment
Lang_Country : en_US
Product : iTunes Store
Support Subject : Purchases, Billing & Redemption
Sub Issue : Problems downloading TV shows bought through iTunes.
See additional info below
What device did you use to connect to the store? Windows computer (PC)
Which operating system is installed? Windows 7
What version of iTunes is installed on your computer? iTunes 10.5
Choose the iTunes Store or App Store for your country: United States
Item title: American Horror Story- Season 1 Episode 10- Smoldering Children Pan Am- Season 1 Episode 9- Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Details:
I've researched this problem online, tried several different problems to solve this problem on my end with no luck. I'd really like to watch American Horror Story in it's entirety. Is there a different method to solve this problem than the one's I've found online?


January 2nd, 2012


Date: Mon, 2 Jan 2012 02:49:23 -0800
From: (Email for Apple Customer Service)
To: (My Personal Email)
Subject: Re: Purchases, Billing & Redemption; Follow-up: 184580048

Dear Hunter,

Greetings from iTunes Store Customer Support. My name is Vishal and I will assist you today.

I'm sorry to hear that the series "American Horror History" and "Pan-Am" didn't download properly.I apologies for the inconvenience caused by this.I will do my best to get the issue resolved at the earliest.

Hunter, I have posted the series to your account. Please follow these steps to download the items:

Before that, I have also reviewed your account and found some download error's

There are a few things that I would like you to try.

First, make sure you're using the latest version of iTunes. It can be downloaded free of charge from the iTunes website:

http://www.itunes.com/download

Certain types of software can cause conflicts and prevent purchases from downloading properly, even if the software appears to be configured to allow full access to the iTunes Store. This can include firewall, virus-protection, and web-acceleration software. You should be able to determine if you have a software program that is causing the difficulty by using the MSCONFIG utility on your computer. For detailed instructions, please refer to the following article:

Using MSCONFIG to troubleshoot conflicts in Windows Vista and Windows 7
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2292

After making sure you're using the latest version of iTunes, and after temporarily disabling any security software you may be using, try choosing Check for Available Downloads from the Store menu three times in a row. You may be asked to enter your login information each time. Checking for available downloads multiple times can help to force the downloads to start.

If you still can't download the items in your download queue after choosing Check for Available Downloads three times, please follow the suggestions in this article:

Unable to download purchased videos
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1566

If the suggestions above don't help you to download your purchased items, I suggest testing to see if this issue occurs while you are signed in to a new user account on your computer. To learn how to create a new user account in your version of Windows, please read this article:

Windows 7: Create a user account
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/Windows7/Create-a-user-account

Once you are signed in to this new user account, open iTunes and start the download. If the download progresses without error, you will know that the original issue is with the particular user account that you were using. You may want to consider adopting this new account as your user account and transferring your files from the old account to your new one.

If signing in to a new user account does not resolve the issue, I suggest that you sign back in to your original user account and use Microsoft's MSCONFIG utility as described above to temporarily disable additional startup programs.

Alternatively, if the issue persists, you might consider downloading the item from another computer or location and transferring the file back to your original computer.

If you are still unable to download the items after following these suggestions, please reply to let me know.

Hunter, after trouble shooting, please follow these steps to download the series.

1) Make sure you're using the latest version of iTunes. It can be downloaded free of charge from the iTunes website:

http://www.itunes.com/download

Note: Installing the latest version of iTunes will not affect your library or any items in your account that you haven't downloaded.

2) Open iTunes. From the Store menu at the top, choose Check for Available Downloads. You can also click this link to do the same thing:

https://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZFinance.woa/wa/checkForPurchases

3) Enter your account name and password, then click the Check button.

The serieses should begin downloading and appear in your Purchased playlist. If you receive an error message while downloading, try again after turning off any firewall or web-accelerator software that you may have installed. If the download process is interrupted for any reason, it should resume once you reopen iTunes.

This article provides information about resuming interrupted downloads:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1725

If you don't see the items in your iTunes Library, please include this information in your response to this email:

- The name of your Internet service provider (ISP)
- The type of Internet connection (such as dial-up, cable modem, or DSL)
- Any troubleshooting steps you may have taken
- Any error messages you may have received

I appreciate you valuable time and patience in this.

Please reply to this email if you have any other concerns or issue.I will be more than glad to assist you.

Thank you for choosing the iTunes Store. Apple appreciates your business.

Sincerely,

(Name Of Customer Service Person)
iTunes Store/Mac App Store Customer Support

Please Note: I work Monday - Saturday, 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM CST.

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to assist you.


January 2nd, 2012
This message was sent by me.


I just tried what was suggested in this email. None of them worked, just like they didn't work before I sent the email. Like I said, I tried several techniques that I found online with no luck. Do you have any other suggestions, suggestions other than the ones I find online or are contained in this email? Thank you.


January 3rd, 2012


Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2012 08:17:31 -0800
From: (Email For Apple Customer Service)
To: (My Personal Email Address)
Subject: RE: Purchases, Billing & Redemption; Follow-up: 184580048

Dear Hunter,

Please accept my sincere apologies for the frustration this downloads has caused.

Please follow the steps in this article for error-50

Information about error -50 and downloading videos
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1583

Certain types of software can affect the way a computer sends and receives information from the Internet. Here are a few examples of these types of software:

* Firewalls
* Web accelerators
* Ad filters
* Virus protection software

If you have any of this software, and if you cannot access the iTunes Store, you will need to configure these applications to allow iTunes to connect to the internet.

Please refer to the documentation that came with that software, and if necessary contact the software's manufacturer. You'll need to configure the software to allow these domains to send and receive data from the Internet:

itunes.apple.com
ax.itunes.apple.com

If a web accelerator appears to be causing the issue, please contact your Internet service provider (ISP) or the maker of the software.

Hunter, If you aren't using a firewall or any of the types of software listed above that might restrict your connection to the iTunes Store, please respond to this email with the following:

- the type of Internet connection you use (such as dial-up, cable modem, DSL, or corporate network)
- the name of your ISP

And at least one of the following:

- the order number of one of your purchases
- the last four digits of the credit card used for your iTunes Store account
- the answer to one of your security questions

And two items from this list:

- your birth date
- the billing address listed on the account
- the phone number on the account

Upon receiving your response, Apple will verify your billing address, reset your password, and send you an email with your new password.

I appreciate you valuable time and patience in this.

Please reply to this email if you have any other concerns or issue.

Thank you for choosing the iTunes Store. Apple appreciates your business.

Sincerely,

(Name Of Customer Service Person)
iTunes Store/Mac App Store Customer Support

Please Note: I work Monday - Saturday, 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM CST.

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to assist you.


January 3rd, 2012
This message was sent by me.

I just tried doing what is described in the link you sent me, again. It didn't work and my problem is not resolved, again. Like I said before, I have tried a number of different methods to solve this problem. To this point, I have exhausted all the options I have found online, including the ones you have sent me.

I believe the problem may be on Apple's end. I don't say this because I am some arrogant tech nerd who thinks he knows everything about everything. I say this because I tried downloading American Horror Story Season 1 Episode 10 on my iPad. The download would be nearly complete, stop, and start again from the beginning. No matter how close the download came to being complete, this happened on every attempt I made to download the episode in question on my iPad. Unless you are going to tell me that there is a persistent problem with both my laptop and my iPad, a problem that I cannot seem to solve despite exhaustive efforts to do so, the problem must be on Apple's end.

I have since obtained American Horror Story Season 1 Episode 10, as well as the other episodes from that season, through other means. This means that I no longer have use for the purchase I made. The only reason I bring this up is that this purchase, in addition to Pan Am Season 1, continues to be automatically added to my download cue every time I open iTunes. I cannot seem to find a method to clear these purchases off my download cue outside of completing the download, which is not possible for the two episodes (AHS: Smoldering Children and Pan Am: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang) that are apparently corrupted on your end. I addition, I do not wish to waste my valuable disk space on something I will just delete anyway.

Is there anything you can do on your end to prevent this automatic downloading from happening? I am not asking for a refund, I am asking for the downloads that keep on appearing in my download cue to stop automatically appearing in my download cue.

Stay Care
Hunter Red

(After the message, I included my internet connection, ISP, birth date, and billing address.)


January 4th, 2012


On Jan 4, 2012, at 10:48 AM, (Email For Apple Customer Support) wrote:

Dear Hunter,

Please accept my sincere apologies for the frustration this download has caused. I took the liberty of removing the file(s) causing the issue from your download queue, and refunded your purchase of $34.18 USD plus any applicable sales tax. The credit will be posted to your credit card used to purchase within three to five business days.

Please wait at least one week before repurchasing this title. This will give us time to investigate the issue and make any corrections that may be necessary.

I have added 3 video credits to your account. Please note, however, that the video credits can only be used to purchase TV episodes or music videos. It cannot be used to purchase or rent full-length movies or episodes of a TV Show that are listed as Season Only.

I have also added 2 movie rental credits to your account. You can use these to rent any 2 movies that are rentable on the iTunes Store priced 4.99 USD or lower.

When you sign in to the iTunes Store with this account, the credit(s) will appear by your account name in the upper-right corner of the window. The next time you buy a videos or movie rentals from the iTunes Store, your credit(s) will be used as payment.

If you don't see the credit(s), refresh your account information by signing out and back in to the iTunes Store. The Sign Out and Sign In options are available from the pull-down Store menu in iTunes. If you don't see this menu, you should download the latest version of iTunes from our website for free:

http://www.apple.com/itunes/download/

Thank you for choosing the iTunes Store. Apple appreciates your business.

Sincerely,

(Name Of Customer Service Person)
iTunes Store/Mac App Store Customer Support

Please Note: I work Monday - Saturday, 4:30 AM to 1:30 PM CST.

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to assist you.


January 4th, 2012
This message was sent by me.


I thank you for your assistance in this matter, but I am still experiencing one slight problem. The episodes of Pan Am, which I have also had almost the same problems downloading as I did with American Horror Story, still automatically appear in my download cue. Is there anything that you can do about this? Thanks again for your great help.

Sent from my iPad


January 5th, 2012


On Jan 5, 2012, at 9:04 AM, (Email For Apple Customer Service) wrote:

Dear Hunter,

Can you please mail us the order number for Pan Am series or the names of the episodes of the same. So that I can submit it investigation. because there are lot pending downloads in the queue, I couldn't make out which one.

Thank You.

Sincerely,

(Name Of Customer Service Person)
iTunes Store/Mac App Store Customer Support

Please Note: I work Monday - Saturday, 4:30 AM to 1:30 PM CST.

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to assist you.


January 5th, 2012
This message was sent by me.


I don't have an order number for the episodes of Pan Am that I wanted to download. It was a free download, which is the only reason I wanted to download it. The episode I've been having problems downloading is named "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang", which is the ninth episode in the first season of that show.

Thank You
Hunter Red

Sent from my iPad


January 5th, 2012


Dear Hunter,

At your request, I have removed the items from your download queue. The next time you sign in to the iTunes Store, it will no longer be waiting to download.

If you have any other questions, or if you need help with any other downloads, please let me know.

Thank you for being a loyal iTunes Customer. Apple appreciates your business. Have a great day!

Sincerely,

(Name Of Customer Service)
iTunes Store/Mac App Store Customer Support

Please Note: I work Monday - Saturday, 4:30 AM to 1:30 PM CST.

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to assist you.



So that is where the series of emails ended. I have not used the credits that were sent to me, but that is because on Friday, January 6th, 2012, I bought another product that I needed to expend time and effort to make sure was setup and working the way that I thought it was. What is this product?

I bought a Mac Mini which I am using as a Media PC. I do not plan to buy American Horror Story again through the iTunes store as I can now watch it through Hulu and play it on my TV. As far as Pan Am, I only bought it at the time that I bought it because it was free.

Review Of The Four Star Awards Nomination Special Q34T98U89I

Review: N-Control The Avenger Q34T98U89I

There are many products that are especially crafted to assist disabled people in their everyday lives. However, there are few products that can assist disabled people in their everyday gaming. More and more of these products are hitting the market, including the N-Control The Avenger.

The N-Control The Avenger is a controller that is already available and is specially designed to help people with limited hand mobility perform the quick, frequent movements that is necessary when playing many of today's modern video games.

Not wanting to rest on their laurels, N-Control is quickly developing many other products that can help disabled games in their everyday gaming pursuits. Among those products is the N-Control The Avenger Q34T98U89I.

This products has many more apparatuses than the regular the N-Control The Avenger model. These apparatuses assist those disable gamers with limited hand mobility in performing many intricate button presses at the same time. The sheer number of apparatuses available to disables gamers with limited hand mobility far outpaces any other products on the market today.

This is a pic of the N-Control The Avenger Q34T98U89I in action. In this test, we used the video entertainment product Assassin's Creed: Revelations. Through our many exhaustive hours of testing, we were able to slaughter a great number of guards, civilians, and sharks prowling the water areas of this game with relative ease. This was due to the N-Control The Avenger Q34T98U89I's patented thirty-nine point relay system that allows any person, whether you are a disabled person with limited hand mobility or a person without disabilities of any perceivable kind, to perform several button presses at once with just the slightest of manual appendage movement

However, our testing period was not without it's flaws. There were many times where the hand of our testers, both disabled persons and persons without disabilities of any perceivable kind, got their hands caught within the apparatuses of the N-Control The Avenger Q34T98U89I. This matter was quickly resolved after several emails with a representative who was very helpful. This helpfulness was proceeded and followed up with several messages where the representatives questioned our sexual prowess and the validity of our births.

There are two distinct and different models of the N-Control The Avenger Q34T98U89I for both the Microsoft Corporation Xbox 360 computer console entertainment platform...

...and for the Sony Kabushiki Gaisha Playstation 3 computer console entertainment platform. We here at R.C.O.A.: The Four Stars Blog wholeheartedly give this product our highest of honors:

N-Control The Avenger Q34T98U89I: That's Awesome!




Now is the time. The time for the voting to begin. The voting. The voting. Voting for what?

The Fourth Annual The Four Star Awards

The Four Star Awards have changed from years past. No longer will The Four Star Awards honor or dishonor only video games. This year The Four Star Awards honors or dishonors video games, music, movie, television, and personalities.

Also for The Fourth Annual The Four Star Awards, voting has been made incredibly simple. Just go to this link. Yes, this link. What is this link? Not porn. Rather, this link is to the Facebook page for The Fourth Annual The Four Star Awards. There, at this link, you can vote for four of the six awards that will be awarded on January 15th. Voting is open NOW, at this link.

The nominees for the five categories that you can vote for, at this link, are listed below. The other two categories are The Four Star Award, and Disappointment Of The Year. The Four Star Award is an overall best of the year award, and the nominees for this award will consist of the five winners of the categories that you can vote for, at this link. The Disappointment Of The Year will be handled by the lead writer of The Redertainment Corporation Of America, Hunter Red.


The Fourth Annual Four Star Awards


Album Of The Year
Cage The Elephant- Thank You Happy Birthday
Childish Gambino- Camp
Lupe Fiasco- Lasers
The Nightwatchmen- World Wide Rebel Songs
The Strokes- Angles


Movie Of The Year
Attack The Block
Drive
Red State
Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes
Super 8


Video Game Of The Year
Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
L.A. Noire
Portal 2
Saint's Row: The Third
Super Mario Land 3D


TV Show Of The Year
American Horror Story
Breaking Bad
The Chicago Code
The Onion News Network/SportsDome
Tosh.0


Personality Of The Year
This award is for the best personality is movies, video games, television, or music in this year.
CM Punk
Glados
Keith Olbermann
Lady Gaga
Rebecca Black


Go to this link, yes this link, the link that is linked here and vote for The Fourth Annual The Four Star Awards, which is available at this link.