Tag: Coffee Talk

Coffee Talk #536: Games and Pro-Wrestling on Sports Television

Yes, you’re getting two Coffee Talk columns today, which makes this…Double Bonus Monday!!!

On a recent episode of ESPN’s Around the Horn, host Tony Reali talked about how the Philadelphia Seventy-Sixers’ “Big Bella” t-shirt canon resembled the spread gun from Contra. This prompted the show’s Michael Smith to recite the famous extra-lives code from the game. It was awesome seeing videogames being treated reverently by adults on mainstream television.

During ESPN’s pre-game show for the Los Angeles Lakers vs. the Los Angeles Clippers, host Michael Wilbon was talking about…more

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, T-Mobile’s amazing $30 plan, dreaming of Lanikai Beach, or coconut sugar, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Yes, you’re getting two Coffee Talk columns today, which makes this…Double Bonus Monday!!!

On a recent episode of ESPN’s Around the Horn, host Tony Reali talked about how the Philadelphia Seventy-Sixers’ “Big Bella” t-shirt canon resembled the spread gun from Contra. This prompted the show’s Michael Smith to recite the famous extra-lives code from the game. It was awesome seeing videogames being treated reverently by adults on mainstream television.

During ESPN’s pre-game show for the Los Angeles Lakers vs. the Los Angeles Clippers, host Michael Wilbon was talking about the storied history of Madison Square Garden. He mentioned events like Ali vs. Frazier I and John F. Kennedy’s birthday taking place at the “world’s most famous arena.” The show’s Bill Simmons — my favorite sports columnist of all time — mentioned that Hulk Hogan vs. The Iron Sheik should be mentioned along with those events, saying that it was one of the biggest matches in pro-wrestling history. Loved it.

When I first started writing about videogames in the ’90s, they were still considered geeky and nerdy. Back then, some people viewed pro-wrestling a “hick” thing. The WWE Attitude Era and the Monday night wars with WCW helped pro-wrestling achieve mainstream status, while the Sony PlayStation made videogames cool. Of course it helps that people like Reali, Smith, and Simmons — people that grew up with videogames and pro-wrestling — now have “adult” jobs. Watching those mentions on ESPN made me appreciate how far these forms of entertainment have come.

That said, the battle isn’t over yet. While many young adults and middle-age people have grown-up jobs in the private sector, there are older people in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives that are out of touch. They still view pro-wrestling and games in a negative light. The good news is that I’m sure that won’t be the case ten years from now.

Anyway, it was nice to see the progress of two of my favorite hobbies realized on ESPN programming.

What are some instances you’ve seen of pro-wrestling and games being taken seriously by mainstream television? Kindly leave some examples in the comments section.

Coffee Talk #535: Make Your Own WWE 13 DLC!

Last week, RPadholic N8R was kind enough to list the upcoming DLC for WWE 13. The list got me thinking, and suddenly I thought up of my own dream DLC packs. It was a fun exercise, though I imagined too many drug-related packs (The Drug Traffickers, led by Jeff Hardy) and way too many packs based on dead pro-wrestlers. Today I’m going to list four of the DLC packs that I came up with and I’d love to see ones from you. In the immortal words of Michael Wilbon, “Let’s do it!”

WWE Diva Playboy Spectacular
Sable — The first high-profile Diva to go nude in Playboy.
Torrie Wilson — The muscular girl next door.
Ashley Masaro — Surprisingly good spread.
Maryse Ouellet — Technically she was in the magazine before her WWE days, but wow…you need to Google these…more

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, the magic of NOALOX, hugging a piece of consumer electronics goodbye, or crushing on Rashida Jones, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Last week, RPadholic N8R was kind enough to list the upcoming DLC for WWE 13. The list got me thinking, and suddenly I thought up of my own dream DLC packs. It was a fun exercise, though I imagined too many drug-related packs (The Drug Traffickers, led by Jeff Hardy) and way too many packs based on dead pro-wrestlers. Today I’m going to list four of the DLC packs that I came up with and I’d love to see ones from you. In the immortal words of Michael Wilbon, “Let’s do it!”

WWE Diva Playboy Spectacular
Sable — The first high-profile Diva to go nude in Playboy.
Torrie Wilson — The muscular girl next door.
Ashley Masaro — Surprisingly good spread.
Maryse Ouellet — Technically she was in the magazine before her WWE days, but wow…you need to Google these.

Sex-Tape Sultans
Chyna — She’s an adult-film star now, but she made tons of waves with “1 Night in Chyna.”
Sean “1-2-3 Kid” Waltman — Chyna’s costar.
Hulk Hogan — Caught on film sleeping with his best friend’s ex-wife.

The Dog Pound
Junkyard Dog — JYD was awesome.
“Mad Dog” Vachon — A total bad ass, even though his real name was Maurice and he was 5′ 7″.
“The Road Dog” Jesse James — Oh, you didn’t know?!?
“The Dog-Faced Gremlin” Rick Steiner — A total suplex machine in the NWA/WCW days.

Figure-Four Phenoms
“The Nature Boy” Ric Flair — The signature hold of the best pro-wrestler of all time.
“The Nature Boy” Buddy Rogers — Often cited as the inventor of the “figure-four grapevine.”
Greg “The Hammer” Valentine — For many WWF fans that didn’t watch NWA, he was the master of the figure-four.
Jeff Jarrett — Every group needs a bitch.

Those are just four of the DLC packs that I imagined. I’m sure that you could come up with better ones, so give it a go! Please use the comments section to list the WWE 13 DLC packs of your dreams.

Coffee Talk #534: 2012-2013 NBA Action, It’s Fascinating!

It’s only day four of the NBA season and the league is already immensely fascinating. In addition to watching the highest level of basketball played in the world, compelling storylines are playing out in the NBA. If that’s not enough for you basketball fans, the games and events are discussed on the outstanding Inside the NBA — in my opinion, the most entertaining sports show on television. Let’s take a look at why the NBA is so fascinating only four days into the season…more

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, X-Factor results, getting sad while watching middle-age Britney Spears, or Taylor Swift being single again, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

It’s only day four of the NBA season and the league is already immensely fascinating. In addition to watching the highest level of basketball played in the world, compelling storylines are playing out in the NBA. If that’s not enough for you basketball fans, the games and events are discussed on the outstanding Inside the NBA — in my opinion, the most entertaining sports show on television. Let’s take a look at why the NBA is so fascinating only four days into the season.

Problems With the Princeton Offense (Los Angeles Lakers)
Being the self-centered bubble universe that it is, many Los Angeles residents are in panic mode and calling for coach Mike Brown to be fired. At the heart of the matter is the Lakers’ new Princeton offense. People were under the impression that Kobe + Dwight + Nash = Instant Awesome. An 0-2 record shows that isn’t the case. Losing against a Mavericks team without Dirk Nowitzki and a middling Trailblazers team has fans concerned. The defense (Mike Brown’s supposed specialty) is awful, while the new offense looks like it’s being executed by a bunch of guys uncomfortable with a new offense.

I’m sure the Lakers will figure it out, pick things up, and make a decent playoff run. It’s just fun watching the “Lakers are teh doomed!” hyperbole on TV and reading all the knee-jerk articles.

The Harden Effect (Houston Rockets, Oklahoma City Thunder)
To me, this is the most compelling storyline in the NBA right now. The Thunder trading reigning “sixth man of the year” (and will.i.am lookalike) James Harden to the Rockets is a huge deal! It obviously impacts two teams, but the fallout will determine the power rankings of the Western Conference and possibly the NBA finals. There are just so many facets to this story that it kind of reminds me of pro-wrestling in that it blends athleticism and drama. Here’s the breakdown.

Why Break Up a Winning Combination?!? — The Thunder made it all the way to the NBA finals last season, with a fantastic young core of Harden, Kevin Durant, and Russell Westbrook. The three were reportedly close friends off the court, as well as incredibly effective on it. While the trade was done for financial considerations, many are questioning why OKC general manager Sam Presti would break up the core of a team that was on the precipice of winning it all — especially in a sport where chemistry means so much.

When Will Kevin Durant Recover? — It’s only a matter of time before Durant is racking up a gaudy amount of points and contending for his fourth straight scoring title. Despite dropping 23 points on  9-for-18 shooting in his first game of the season, he looked a bit out of sorts. Out of OKC’s core players, Durant and Harden were allegedly the closest off the court. I see a 50/50 chance of Durant having some emotional funks during the first month of the season. Part of it is because a close friend and great teammate was traded, while part of it ties into the next topic.

Who Will Contain Russell Westbrook? — Westbrook is known for spinning out of control during games. His 6-for-21 performance last night — in addition to a defensive brain fart that led to Tony Parker’s winning shot — was a stellar example of this. One of the few ways Westbrook was able to be contained during his bouts of insane shot selection was Harden. OKC Coach Scott Brooks would have Harden come in during one of Westbrook’s rampages, take over the ball-handling duties, and get everyone to calm the f*ck down. Yes, there were times when even Harden couldn’t contain Westbrook’s irrational exuberance, causing the latter to criminally take more shots while playing with the best pure scorer in the league (Durant). Unless Westbrook manages to add a much-needed layer of intelligence to his game, nobody will be able to stop his detrimental outbursts. (Admission: I’m totally biased against score-first point-guards and really can’t stand Westbrook’s game.)

Can Harden be “The Man?” — Harden was perfect coming off the bench in OKC. His ball-handling and scoring abilities allowed him to complement anyone he was on the court with. His impressive pick-and-roll play even allowed the lumbering Nick Collison to shine. He seemed to relish his role of the occasional game-changer, while Durant and Westbrook received the majority of attention. Some reporters questioned whether his game and mentality would allow him to be the focal point of the Rockets. His staggering Rocket debut — 37 points, 12 assists, 6 rebounds, 4 steals — indicates that he’s up for the challenge. Granted, that was against my beloved (and sucky) Detroit Pistons and there’s no way he’ll keep those numbers up, but there are fewer writers questioning Harden’s mettle than there were before the season started.

The Battle For New York (New York Knicks, Brooklyn Nets)
This is a storyline that will be huge regionally, but ultimately won’t matter because neither the Knicks nor the Nets are a threat to win the championship. It’s just a fun rivalry in the most important city in the world. On one side is a storied NBA franchise that hasn’t won it all in decades and has been a joke in recent years. On the other side is the “little brother” team that never received as much attention, even when it was playing better basketball. The respective stadiums — just a bridge away from each other — are also a great contrast. The Knicks play in Madison Square Garden, one of the most historic venues in America (Ali vs. Frazier I!!!), but also a bit old and crusty. The Nets have the beautiful, new Barclays Centers, a state-of-the-art arena that’s super-charging the economy of one of NYC’s outer boroughs. It’s a natural rivalry in an ultra-competitive city. Players from both teams are talking trash. The owners — one of whom allegedly has ties to organized crime in Russia — are talking trash. The whole thing sounds like an Aaron Sorkin show.

Celtic Pride vs. Miami Vice (Boston Celtics, Miami Heat)
The 2012-2013 NBA season kicked off with a doozy — the defending champion Miami Heat vs. the Boston Celtics. Former Celtic Ray Allen signed with the Heat during the offseason, which some of his former teammates consider a betrayal along the lines of sleeping with your best friend’s sister. Kevin Garnett gave Allen the cold shoulder when the latter tried to greet him. Celtic point guard Rajon Rondo clotheslined Dwyane Wade in the closing moments of the game, which the latter called a “punk play.” There’s a lot of bad blood between these two teams — though more of it from the Celtics’ side — and I can’t wait for them to play again. It’ll be the Heat’s new-wave small-ball vs. the Celtics’ old-school defense-first style. I dream that NBA commissioner David Stern will let these two teams play on a court based on WWE’s Hell in a Cell. That would rule.

The Battle Against Father Time (San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Lakers)
It seems like every year the Spurs are written off as too old and every year they make a strong run through a combination of outstanding fundamentals, great teamwork, and excellent coaching. Surely age will catch up to them this season, no? Screw that! While I don’t think the Spurs will win it all, I do think that they’ll make a strong playoff push. I’m not going to bet against Tim Duncan or Greg Popovich. I will, however, bet against Tony Parker…because he’s French and sleeps with teammates’ wives (again, because he’s French).

Kobe Bryant is one of the most unlikable players in the NBA. Rape accusations and forcing out a lovable giant (Shaquille O’Neal) will color you that way. He’s also old and his knees are held together through a German centrifugal-blood procedure (which I’m pretty sure is a form of sorcery).

Steve Nash is one of the most likable players in the NBA. Being white, having a goofy haircut, and wearing outfits like the one above will color you that way. He’s also old and his back is held together by a Native American procedure (involving mystical cactus needles) that’s exclusive to the Phoenix Suns.

Both players are ultra-competitive. I haven’t seen a player as obsessed with winning as Bryant since Michael Jordan; it’s pathological and a little bit scary. Nash wants his first ring so badly that you can feel it on the other side of the television. For some reason (probably the haircut and outfits), it’s endearing. A lot of people are rooting for this odd couple to win it all because this could be their last chance. I’d love to see Nash get a ring because it would be a fantastic feel-good story. Part of me wants to see Kobe get another ring, because I begrudgingly admire his determination and work ethic. I’d never admit that though. (Oh wait….)

Your Shot
Those are just some of the storylines that have me so into the NBA only a handful of days into the season. Any of you catch NBA fever yet? What’s your take on the Harden trade? Is there any chance Andre Drummond will transform into a player that can return my Pistons to glory? What’s your take on the NBA plots I discussed above. Leave a comment and let me know (please!).

Coffee Talk #533: Who Will Be the Star Wars Chosen One?

Millions of people love the original Star Wars trilogy and consider it a vital part of their nerd identity. Millions of people hate the latest Star Wars trilogy and consider it an affront to something dear to their hearts. With that in mind, there’s a tremendous opportunity for a director and/or writer to “save” Star Wars. At worst, he or she will be celebrated — fairly or unfairly — for not being George Lucas. At best, he or she will be the savior or all nerdkind. Who are some of the people you’d like to see considered for Star Wars Episode 7?…more

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Steve Nash’s injured leg, Bristol Pailin selling her car on Craigslist, or Jony Ive’s new influence on iOS, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Millions of people love the original Star Wars trilogy and consider it a vital part of their nerd identity. Millions of people hate the latest Star Wars trilogy and consider it an affront to something dear to their hearts. With that in mind, there’s a tremendous opportunity for a director and/or writer to “save” Star Wars. At worst, he or she will be celebrated — fairly or unfairly — for not being George Lucas. At best, he or she will be the savior of all nerdkind. Who are some of the people you’d like to see considered for Star Wars Episode 7?

Many sci-fi and comic-book geeks have been throwing Joss Whedon’s name around. The man has a ton of nerd cred between Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly, and The Avengers. Many Star Wars fans were hoping that Timothy Zahn’s novels would be given the big-screen treatment, but RPadholic N8R informed us that won’t be the case. The usual suspects of Christopher Nolan, Darren Aronofsky, and Ridley Scott have been discussed by the sci-fi elite.

Who would you like to see as the director and writer of Star Wars Episode 7? Who will be the chosen one that saves the Star Wars movies? What are the chances of seeing Natalie Portman (in extended scenes) wearing Princess Leia’s metal bikini?

Coffee Talk #532: Disney vs. LucasArts vs. Marvel

When Disney announced that it had snatched up Lucasfilm, most people speculated on the ramifications the acquisition would have on the world of movies. Astute gamers knew that developer/publisher LucasArts was part of the deal too. With a staggering roster of iconic characters to choose from and an established videogame arm, Disney has the potential for some crazy videogame crossovers. What kind of games would you like to see from Disney, now that it has LucasArts?…more

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Verve’s Ethiopia Duromina, the new-look Lakers’ impotent Princeton offense, or whether Taylor Swift is hot/not, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

When Disney announced that it had snatched up Lucasfilm, most people speculated on the ramifications the acquisition would have on the world of movies. Astute gamers knew that developer/publisher LucasArts was part of the deal too. With a staggering roster of iconic characters to choose from and an established videogame arm, Disney has the potential for some crazy videogame crossovers. What kind of games would you like to see from Disney, now that it has LucasArts?

Yesterday, RPadholic bsukenyan mentioned a Marvel vs. Jedi vs. Sith game. Can you imagine a Smash Bros.-type romp with Wolverine, Buzz Lightyear, Boba Fett, and Aladdin duking it out? Do you see an adventure game with (the amazing) Spider-Man helping (and annoying) Indiana Jones? How about the Disney princesses getting a lesson in sass from a coked-up Princess Leia? There’s a ridiculous amount of possibilities!

Let’s forget for a second that the early buzz is that Disney is planning to focus on mobile and social games over console games. What kind of titles would you like to see from Disney? What killer crossover possibilities are brewing in your mind? Leave a comment and let me know (please!).

Coffee Talk #531: 5 Major Improvements in Android 4.2

In addition to unveiling the Nexus 4 phone and Nexus 10 tablet, Google released details on Android 4.2. Advertised as “a new flavor of Jelly Bean,” some people are under the impression that this is a minor update to Google’s mobile operating system since it’s not getting a unique codename. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Android 4.2 has several significant updates. Here are five major features in Google’s latest OS…more

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, the glorious start of the 2012-2013 NBA season, TSA horror stories, or why so many female Halloween costumes are slutty, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

In addition to unveiling the Nexus 4 phone and Nexus 10 tablet, Google released details on Android 4.2. Advertised as “a new flavor of Jelly Bean,” some people are under the impression that this is a minor update to Google’s mobile operating system since it’s not getting a unique codename. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Android 4.2 has several significant updates. Here are five major features in Google’s latest OS.

  1. Miracast: This is Android’s equivalent of Apple’s AirPlay, but with potentially broader support. It allows users of Android phones and tablets to wirelessly display their content on televisions. This is fantastic for games, movies, and Brazzers TV shows. Initially, this feature will require a separate box that plugs into a TV’s HDMI port, but there will be upcoming televisions and boxes with Mircast support built in. Enterprising game developers will want to take advantage of Miracast’s independent screen use, allowing the phone/tablet to serve as the controller while the action takes place on a television.
  2. Gesture Typing: As a Swype user, this is the feature I’m looking forward to the most. Gesture Typing is Google’s take on gesture-based keyboard-entry. It allows Android users to trace words on screen. It also uses a prediction engine, bringing up possible words you might use next. Last week I was jazzed to learn about SwiftKey Flow, which offers these same features, but I rather not have to rely on a third-party keyboard at all. With Gesture Typing, there’s a good chance that the stock Android keyboard will have everything I want.
  3. Improved Camera Software: This has long been a weakness with stock Android. Tests have shown that two phones using the same optics will produce different results, with images from phones running vanilla Android coming out worse than those from phones running third-party software. Given the popularity of mobile-phone photography, that’s an inexcusable deficiency. In addition to improved image quality, the new camera software has been tweaked for easier one-handed use.
  4. Multiuser Support: This is a tablet-exclusive feature that’s great for families or households with multiple Android tablet users. Using a simple login system, Android tablets can be customize so that each user has their own unique apps, widgets, backgrounds, and more. While I personally detest sharing my consumer electronics (I consider them extensions of my arm…and soul), I appreciate how useful this feature is for families.
  5. Lockscreen Widgets: Many Android fans point to widgets as one of the biggest advantages Google’s OS has over Apple iOS. Widgets will be even more useful in Android 4.2, since they can be placed on the lockscreen. Being able to see information without having to unlock your phone is a wonderfully convenient feature. Some Android fanboys believe that widgets on the lockscreen also negates the advantage Windows Phone has with its live tiles. While I wouldn’t go that far (live tiles are pretty cool), this is an undeniably useful addition.

Those are just some of the new features found in Android 4.2. How do you guys and dolls feel about the latest and greatest in Google’s new OS? What’s the coolest new feature in your opinion? Leave a comment and let me know (please!).

Coffee Talk #530: Your Daily Driver Videogames

Today I’d like to talk about games you play every day. Sometimes there are videogames we all go back to, either due to a sense of habit or familiarity. There’s nothing surprising about these games (anymore), but there’s something comfortable about these daily drivers. For some people, these games have become a habit along the lines of eating, bathing, and brushing your teeth.

As for me, for most of the last three years, Civilization Revolution for iPad has been my daily driver. The gameplay is always fun for me, even though I know that every game I play will end with Queen Elizabeth conquering the world. Sure, there have been stretches when Civ was ignored in favor of games like Final Fantasy: Dimensions, but…more

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, the San Francisco Giants’ World Series victory, your favorite park, or James Harden going to the Houston Rockets, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Today I’d like to talk about games you play every day. Sometimes there are videogames we all go back to, either due to a sense of habit or familiarity. There’s nothing surprising about these games (anymore), but there’s something comfortable about these daily drivers. For some people, these games have become a habit along the lines of eating, bathing, and brushing your teeth.

As for me, for most of the last three years, Civilization Revolution for iPad has been my daily driver. The gameplay is always fun for me, even though I know that every game I play will end with Queen Elizabeth conquering the world. Sure, there have been stretches when Civ was ignored in favor of games like Final Fantasy: Dimensions, but I knew I would eventually go back to it and I imagine that will be the case for the next few years. The game just makes me happy and all of us should do something every day that makes us happy. Since it’s probably a bad idea to eat bone-in ribeye steaks every day (and I can’t afford to), I’ll stick with Civ.

Now it’s your turn! Do you have any daily-driver games? If so, please let me know what they are. If not, why isn’t there a game you keep coming back to on a daily basis?

Coffee Talk #529: Where Have All the Jobbers Gone?

One of the few things I hate about pro-wrestling’s rise to mainstream popularity is that it has killed the traditional jobber. I’m talking about guys that looked ordinary or out of shape or ugly. Fancifully referred to as “enhancement talent,” these guys had one purpose professionally: make the stars look superstars. These days, a typical jobber is someone like Heath Slater. He’s a handsome young man with a fantastic physique. In the ’80s, there’s no way this guy would have been a jobber. Sadly, modern television dictates that plain-looking or unattractive people can’t be on the air, even their sole purpose in life is to lose while making their opponent look like Hercules…more

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, how stunning Kiera Knightley looks without makeup, the Tigers’ impotent World Series performance, or LeBron-to-the-Lakers speculation, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

One of the few things I hate about pro-wrestling’s rise to mainstream popularity is that it has killed the traditional jobber. I’m talking about guys that looked ordinary or out of shape or ugly. Fancifully referred to as “enhancement talent,” these guys had one purpose professionally — make the stars look superstars. These days, a typical jobber is someone like Heath Slater. He’s a handsome young man with a fantastic physique. In the ’80s, there’s no way this guy would have been a jobber. Sadly, modern television dictates that plain-looking or unattractive people can’t be on the air, even if their sole purpose in life is to lose while making their opponent look like Hercules.

I didn’t realize how much I missed jobbers until WWE brought some in for Ryback’s push. While those guys were still more polished and better looking than the jobbers of yore, they seemed like a different class of people than WWE Superstars. I miss that. I miss guys like Mike Jackson (video below) that could go toe-to-toe with Ric Flair, but could also be mistaken for a disgruntled accountant. I miss guys like Bill and Randy Mulkey (pictured above) that fought against some of the best tag-teams in pro-wrestling history, but also looked liked brothers that offered landscaping services. While these guys had ring skills, their bodies were “normal” and their facial features were ordinary. Their plainness helped make guys like Flair, Magnum T.A., Lex Luger, and Nikita Koloff look larger than life.

Do you miss classic pro-wrestling jobbers? Who are some of the members of your personal Jobber Hall of Fame? Leave a comment and let me know (please!).

Coffee Talk #528: User Upgradability and You

Starting with the MacBook Air, Apple has been making it harder and harder for its customers to upgrade their laptops. Things like RAM soldered onto the motherboard and non-standard NAND flash modules make it more difficult for tinkerers to tinker. That trend moved onto the MacBook Pro 15 with Retina Display earlier in the year, as well as the recently released MacBook Pro 13 with Retina Display. Are you unhappy with this trend? Or does it not bother you at all?

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, early Windows 8 reviews, Jessica Biel’s pink wedding dress, or Pablo Sandoval crushing it in the World Series, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Starting with the MacBook Air, Apple has been making it harder and harder for its customers to upgrade their laptops. Things like RAM soldered onto the motherboard and non-standard NAND flash modules make it more difficult for tinkerers to tinker. That trend moved onto the MacBook Pro 15 with Retina Display earlier in the year, as well as the recently released MacBook Pro 13 with Retina Display. Are you unhappy with this trend? Or does it not bother you at all?

Some Apple fans feel that the move is justified. They believe that it’s a reasonable price to pay for Apple’s superbly engineered laptops. Others believe it sucks. Apple charges a premium for RAM and hard drive upgrades. In older MacBooks, you had cheaper options from several third-party vendors. With these newer MacBooks, upgrades are much more difficult.

My current machine is a late 2011 MacBook Pro 15. I swapped out the optical drive and replaced it with a Samsung 830 SSD. This setup allows me to use the SSD as my primary drive and the already installed hard drive as my video editing scratch disc. I swapped out the 4GB of included RAM for 16GB from Ram Experts; this upgrade was a fraction of what Apple would have charged. Setting up a new MacBook Pro with Retina Display in this fashion would be impossible for most users (myself included) due to the upgradability limitations. As a tinkering nerd, I don’t like this trend.

How about you? Do you not care to upgrade your laptop once you have it? Or are you bothered by this trend of laptops that are impossible or extremely difficult to upgrade?

Coffee Talk #527: Your Various Internet Communities

As I mentioned to RPadholic smartguy the other day, I’ve been thinking a lot about the various Internet communities I belong to and how they compare to Internet videogame communities. Obviously I can’t be objective about videogame communities, but for the most part I find them pretty excellent. There are a lot of nice people that love talking about games and I’ve read loads of informative posts by them (you guys and gals are the best of the bunch!). Of course there are trolls and nuisances and racial slurs thrown about, but in my experience that’s mostly the work of young and stupid gamers. I’m not excusing it, but I understand and will naively assume that they’ll grow out of it.

Using videogame communities as a measuring stick, here’s how the other communities I play in compare…

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, getting hyped for the start of the NBA season, Lance Armstrong getting stripped of his Tour de France titles, or Apple continuing to cut off Samsung as a parts supplier, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

As I mentioned to RPadholic smartguy the other day, I’ve been thinking a lot about the various Internet communities I belong to and how they compare to Internet videogame communities. Obviously I can’t be objective about videogame communities, but for the most part I find them pretty excellent. There are a lot of nice people that love talking about games and I’ve read loads of informative posts by them (you guys and gals are the best of the bunch!). Of course there are trolls and nuisances and racial slurs thrown about, but in my experience that’s mostly the work of young and stupid gamers. I’m not excusing it, but I understand and will naively assume that they’ll grow out of it.

Using videogame communities as a measuring stick, here’s how the other communities I play in compare. Naturally, I’d love to hear about the different communities you participate in and how they’re different from gaming nerds.

Tech: In general, the tech communities I play in are civil and informative. Commenters are mostly mature and I’ve learned a lot from them. AVS Forums is a particularly wonderful place that’s mostly free of stupidity. Tech conversations get exasperating when it comes to mobile phones. The Android vs. iOS discussions often devolve into Fandroids vs. iSheep arguments. It’s almost as bad as PS3 vs. Xbox 360 flame wars. Aside from that, the blogs and forums I read are mostly fun, interesting, and civil places.

Boxing: As much as I love boxing, I’ve come to the conclusion that many boxing fans are morons. Promoters, sanctioning bodies, and cable networks make it difficult to be a boxing fan. People that post in boxing forums, like Doghouse Boxing, almost make me want to stop watching the sport. The thing is, boxing isn’t that popular and there aren’t many places to discuss the sport in detail. Doghouse Boxing has some great posters, but it also has an alarming number of idiots that spout all kinds of slurs, can’t string together intelligent sentences, and don’t know how to carry a civil conversation. Too many of the threads there devolve into flame wars between Floyd Mayweather, Jr. fans (FloMos) and Manny Pacquiao supporters (Pactards). These discussions are worse than any PS3 vs. Xbox 360 flame war I’ve seen.

Vaping: I’m really enamored with the vaping community at the moment. The crowd at E-Cigaratte Forum is really knowledgeable and supportive. With vaping tech moving at a rapid pace, it’s great to have lots of people that are familiar the various parts and mods. Since everyone that posts is a former cigarette addict, the environment is really encouraging, especially to newcomers. It’s all about helping people find the right gear and juices that will help them quit tobacco smoking forever. I’m going to write more about this in a future Vaping Diary.

Now it’s your turn! When you have a chance, please tell me about the different Internet communities you participate in and how they compare to videogame communities.