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* Prices may differ from that shown
The Flip Ultra HD camcorder was made most popular by YouTube. YouTubers (As the video creators are known) often use these inexpensive cameras to produce their videos for a number of reasons and these reasons are the same as many other people too.
The Flip Ultra HD is lightweight, being a pocket camcorder, which means that it can easily be carried around all day without being a nuisance like a more professional camera would be. i have had this camera in my pocket fro the majority of a day and it was not weighing me down - most of the time I forgot it was even in there!
It is reliable. These cameras have outlives many other pocket camcorders I have owned and they have been through some tough situations including rain, downhill biking, rock climbing and a child messing with it (which is probably most dangerous of all!). Throughout these trials, the camera always performed well and no issues ever showed on the output - some cameras, if shaken or moved vigorously (like they are when downhill biking) will jump or produce visual artefacts on the output - the Flip Ultra HD never has for me.
The Flip Ultra HD is... well... HD. For the low price of the Flip, being able to get a HD camcorder without the huge hole it would burning to your wallet without these types of camera is what made them so successful upon their launch a few years ago.
So far so good, but what about the downsides?
The Flip Ultra HD is not perfect by far. Even though the output is 720p HD, it doesn't mean that this resolutions is always made up of any accurate pixels. By that I mean that the colours can be quite a long way off in certain situations and motion can cause some issues with the camera (unrelated to vigorous movement issues). These issues however are all common issues of pocket camcorders and are generally expected for this product type. However to improve and to be able to stand out even more in the market, these issues would need to be improved upon.
The Flip Ultra HD is powered by 2 AA batteries (yes, they still exist). This was my biggest issue with this camcorder and although a new set of these would get a pretty impressive battery life of a couple of hours use, the expensive would soon build up after buying replacement batteries over time - possibly even making it cheaper to buy a better camera with a rechargeable battery.
The focus time on this camera is decent. It is not possible to change the focus depth on the camcorder as it only auto-focuses (making it best for beginners) but this auto-focus will generally readjust within a second or two. I have had camcorders which can take 5-10 seconds to do this (I admit, this was a particularly bad time) so I was pleased when I got this camcorder and it updated so quickly.
In low light, this camcorder performs decently. You will certainly get a fair amount of noise from the low light but it is still generally possible to see what the intended target for the camera is and it generally will not reduce your enjoyment of the video too much.
The build quality of the camera is great, very solid. As I have said, mien has been through some rough experiences and apart from the odd scratch on the casing and screen, it has faired well. The most fragile part of the camera is definitely the flipping USB as this could be snapped off if accidentally retracted. The fact that this only has internal memory means that if this happens, you lose the footage already inside and cannot use the camera again either. Making this, although often its selling point, it biggest flaw too.
I recently went on holiday to Australia with my partner, I went over there for almost a month to see my sister get married and see my 2 nieces. I wanted to get something to take along a record my time with my nieces over and above that of my standard compact digital camera. I tend to do allot of physical activities on holiday and I needed something cheap (so that if it broke I wouldnt be bothered), fairly robust and can be used quick and easily. My parents saw the flip advertised on QVC and suggested I use that.
Dont blame me:
Now a caveat, im not saying that this camera is suitable for everyone, I understood that I would be using this as a one time only thing and I didnt need to have anything fancy. So this may not be for everyone.
In summary- This Camera is great for those people that do not want anything to complicated, too fiddly and do not necessarily care about effects or great amounts of zoom. The trade off for the simplicity and ease of use of this camera is the fact that the picture quality is OK, other more expensive cameras will have better quality, and the most telling factor is that the zoom is pretty lame. It only goes to x4. But on the other side the price is pretty cheap too at £120 on Amazon, but I reakon on QVC you can get it for as much as £90, so keep you eyes peeled.
The cost:
For £90-£120 quid, you get 2 hrs and 8Mb of memory, fairly good visuals , but no effects whatsoever. The sound is quite good, you will be able to pick up most things. But im sure if you get a Sony or Panasonic camcorder it will be much better...you will pay the price though.
The good things:
The advantage here is that the case is rebust, its so easy to use with a simple 4 way cursor, no digital menus, everything is very manual and quick. You have a recorder start stop button in the middle, a big red button, the usb adaptor is inbuilt to the side and flips up with a spring loaded action, so you cant lose the lead. Its easy to zoom, you just press + or - on the cursor. There is also a lock/unlock button to get to the battery pack, which has rechargeble AA batteries included in a central battery unit.
The problems:
My critisisms are that the zoom is pretty weak, you will not get much detail and I really felt this when filming the fireworks at Sydney Harbour. But the colours and sound was very good and the music being played over the tannoy came out rather well, the bass wasnt blurby as you sometimes get.
My only other critisism is that the battery pack doesnt last as long as the memory. I`d say depending on how you use it the battery will only last an hour, so you will have to charge it before the memory runs out. When we were away we had no laptop so had to use my sisters laptop, If you dont have this capability then it could be a problem. You might be able tosolve this problem by getting better rechargeble batteries and putting them into ther battery pack. However, I havent been able to try this yet.
So Id honestly say get this camera if you hate the way modern technology seems to make life harder then it needs to be, but you want to film stuff. If you want better then average quality and are willing to pay the price for that, then you might want to get another camcorder. But as this camera is marketed on its simplicity, it certainly cannot be blamed for misrepresentation.
I bought this Flip Ultra HD for a couple of very specific purposes and the best thing is that it did not cost me a penny as it came out of my departmental budget. I actually paid £109.99 on Amazon for it and never having owned one before I was not very sure what to expect with regards to picture quality and options. So far I have used it to record students delivering presentations as part of the Young Enterprise programme and also a training weekend at Buxton for World Challenge, the idea is to take it away with us this summer to record some footage of the expedition.
The size of this little device is one of its main attractions, it is the size of a mobile phone, all be it a chubby mobile phone that has binged on the mince pies and it weighs a mere 170g so it is ideal for travelling as it takes up little space, the dimensions are 10.8:5.6:3 cm, and can be carried easily in your trouser pockets or attached to a belt thanks to a separate case that I also purchased which is designed to keep it free from dust and sand. This makes it easy to conceal and thus reduce the risk of being a target for bag snatchers and the weight is just enough that you would notice if it was being lifted from your pocket. Plus because of the size it will fit in the zipped pockets of the travel trousers like Craghoppers Kiwi's. The other big attraction is that there are no cables needed to download your films as it has an usb arm that flips up at the press of a button and is located on the side of the video camera.
The video camera itself is black in colour, on the back is a small viewing screen which is 2" in size and has a very clear picture quality, there are then a minimum of buttons, the power on button is one the side of the camera and on the back there is a large red button which acts as the record and stop start button and at the four points on the compass there are smaller icons to operate the rather limited zoom options and also to skip forward and back when in playback mode. There is a separate play button and also a delete button to remove and footage you do not want with the rubbish bin symbol to warn you as to what this button does.
Setting up the camera to start is easy, it comes with a AA NiMH rechargeable battery pack however it will also work off two AA batteries as well, the battery pack comes partially charged however the first thing to do is to charge it fully which takes about six hours. Again just plug it into your laptop using the flip usb and you are away. Now I said that no cables are needed and technically this is true however if like me at work you have an upright PC which means the usb points are located at the top of the machine this means that while plugged in using the flip usb all of the devices weight is on the usb which I figured may not be that good so for work I have invested in a cable. While it is charging you can complete the set up by switching the power on and then setting up the language, time, date and various other settings. Apart from the charge time it takes only a couple of minutes and is easy to do.
So now to the important bits, recording and picture quality, well the first thing to say is that the device does have its limitations, mainly in the fact that the x2 zoom is pretty limited and not very responsive. This is very much a point and press operation and if the objects get too close to you then you have to step back to get them in, similarly it has its limitations on distant objects as well. On the plus side the picture quality is very good, I have been impressed with the quality of the images on my PC, there are pretty crisp and clear with the colour being sharp and well defined. For sure an expert will not be bowled over but it is not designed for that end of the market. The HD picture quality is good and it has an 8GB memory which allows you to shoot plenty of material. Fully charged the battery pack will give you about two hours of shooting time as well however start playing back material and that diminishes fast. I have not yet tried it with separate batteries but no doubt will while in China.
The sound quality is pretty good and the inbuilt mike picks up quite a lot including my out of breath efforts to film and climb at the same time but again it has its limitations but due to the size of the whole thing it is perfect to provide a running commentary of what you are filming or recording a message home to family.
There is built in Flip software to make it easy to transfer your footage to either your PC or directly onto file sharing sites like YouTube and I have found this easy to use and quite quick as well. You can also edit your films using the software something I have only just started to experiment with but it is fairly intuitive and has not presented any great challenges to a complete novice like myself.
Would I recommend this product, well for certain purposes it is ideal, if you are looking to record epic masterpieces of the family holiday to Skegness then maybe not, however if you want something that is very portable and easy to conceal, something that is easy to operate and is in the point and press mode of video filming then this little baby does produce a very acceptable picture quality. It is a hand held device so if you have a shaky hand then you will get a shaky film but for me it was money well spent and has been very useful so far both as a teaching aid and preparing students for interviews.
Thanks for reading and rating my review.
This camera is ridiculously simple. Just point, shoot and share. It's a good first camera to own or give to your kid brother, or for casual use, but that's it.
The Flip is very compact. It's not the best nor most elegantly designed but I like its simplicity and general feel of sturdiness. A record button, directional keys, and play and delete buttons on the back, and a power switch and "flip out" USB port on the side. Some minor complaints though. I nicked the front of the camera and the paint peeled right off. I'm not a big fan of the chrome finish on the sides either - big fingerprint magnets. There is a wrist strap for support, but you can't adjust it to tighten.
I was disappointed to learn that the Flip can't capture camera stills and can only record up to 720p (the words "Ultra" and "HD" are very misleading). There are no video settings to play around with, so the quality of the video will really depend on the conditions under which your are shooting. Taken outdoors, the videos should come out vibrant and crisp. Indoors and under low light conditions, the videos will appear grainy. Forget about shooting clearly at night.
The camera outputs shaky videos. Say you want a camera that will record well when riding a roller coaster or bike - this is not the camera to get. There is supposed to be an image stabilization feature but I'm not sure if it even works. The Flip also only offers a 2x digital zoom, which I recommend that you DO NOT use as it will only exacerbate to the jitteriness. Of course you can connect the Flip to a tripod for stability, but I don't see the sense in lugging around one when the main selling point of the camera is in its handheld convenience.
Battery life is adequate at 2 hours, which should be more than enough for a lot of people. Charging times are pretty woeful though. Hooked to a USB port, a full charge on a drained battery will take 6-7 hours. Charging from a wall outlet would probably take a lot quicker, but I wouldn't know since an adapter is not included in the package (and I have no plans in getting one). Speaking of accessories, there is no HDMI cable provided, so you have to purchase one if you wish to play videos on the TV straight from the device.
My other complaint with the Flip is that it can't record when plugged to the computer. I planned on using it as a webcam replacement for use on Skype but it looks like I'll have to stick with my laptop's default webcam for a while. Also, it can't pause and resume while recording, which can be a bit inconvenient.
The Flip comes with a software called Flipshare for quick editing and sharing. Don't bother using it if you have an editor already, as it will only perform the most basic of tasks. Also, I don't know if it's only me, but I can't seem to upload HD videos to Youtube directly from the software. I find that I have to export to my 3rd party video editor first and then save it in the appropriate size (720p) for Youtube to recognize that the video is in HD.
All in all, this would be a great starter camera for kids and novices. But if you know what you are doing, save your money and stick to a proper camcorder.
I saw an advert for the Flip Ultra HD on Facebook and really liked the idea but expected a HD video camera of that size to be way out of my price range. I had a look on eBay and found they were averaging about £100 for a brand new one which I thought was good value for money so I treated myself to one for my birthday. In the box along with my Flip I got the battery pack, a wrist strap and a soft case to keep it in along with a quick start guide. I was extremely impressed with the quick start guide as it is only short and all in English so I didn't have to hunt through the millions of other languages before I could find out how to use my new toy.
For those of you who have never seen a Flip before I thoroughly recommend you go to doyouflip.co.uk and find out what all the fuss is about. It is an amazing little gadget. The Flip Ultra HD is a handheld HD video camera that is about the size of a mobile phone (4.25" x 2.19" x 1.17") that weighs 6oz. It is called a Flip because there is a built in flip out USB arm (up to USB 2.0 speed) in the side of the camera that is released when you slide a clip down. It is boasted as the World's simplest HD camera and that is a very true statement. On the opposite side of the camera to the USB arm is the on/off button so you can't get confused and turn it off by accident. The camera takes no longer than 4 seconds to power up and it has a power saver option which automatically turns your Flip off when you have not used it for a while. On the front on the Flip is the lens and at the top of the back of the device is a 2.0" (diagonal) LCD screen which has a resolution on 320 x 240 with Transflective TFT which helps you see the screen in bright day light. Underneath the screen is a red circular button in the middle which is the record and stop recording button. This is surrounded by 4 buttons, the top one is for zooming in or turning the volume up, the bottom for zooming out or turning the volume down, the right is for fast forwarding or moving to the next video in playback mode and the left for rewinding or moving back to the previous video. On the left of these is the play button so you can switch to playback mode and on the right is the delete button (there is a function to lock this too so you don't accidently delete any videos which I think is a great idea). That is it, all there is to it. Idiot proof in my eyes, well I haven't been able to go wrong yet.
The camera has a 2hr recording time with an 8gb internal memory (not expandable) and is currently available in black and white. The video has a resolution of 1280 x 720 and the camera has a ¼.5" HD CMOS sensor (2.2 µm pixels). It has ultra low-light sensitivity (>1.4 V/lux-sec) with automatic low light detection with automatic white balance and black level calibration. The average bitrate is 9.0Mbps (auto-adaptive algorithm) and has Flip video engine 3.5 which is the most up to date. The video has automatic exposure control with dynamic exposure compensation and the videos are saved in MP4 format with H.264 video compression and AC audio compression. The lens is fixed focus (1.5m to infinity) and the aperture is f/2.4 which is apparently a fast lens for great results in low-light environments. The camera has a smooth multi-step 2x digital zoom.
The Flip comes with a AA rechargeable battery pack (1.2 Volt NiMH rechargeable) which can be charged in about 6 hours via a computer USB port or in about 3 ½ hours if you buy the separate power adapter. I bought the power adapter for about £7 on eBay and a pack of 3 USB leads (about £12 on eBay) to connect the two as I was not overly happy about my Flip being left dangling from the plug socket. The reason that I chose the Ultra HD instead of the smaller and lighter Mino HD is because the Ultra HD will also work with 2 AA batteries if your battery pack runs out while you are out and about. The battery pack will last for up to 2.5hrs though which is longer than it will take to use up the memory.
The Flip Ultra HD has a built in speaker and a built in wide range stereo microphone. I found that the sound quality was really good when I was listening to it through the camera and through my PC. You can also buy Mini HDMI cables so you can plug your Flip straight into your HD TV (if you are lucky enough to own one) and watch the videos on the big screen. There is a tripod mount in the bottom of the Flip and I bought a Gorrillapod which has bendy legs so you can attach it to things for £3 brand new on eBay. The Flipshare video software allows unlimited private video emails or video greeting cards and has a facility to directly upload to MySpace and YouTube. You can take still photos from your videos. Automatic and on-demand online software updates are available for both the Flip and the Flipshare software. Minimum computer requirements are:
PC - 3.0 GHz Intel® Pentium® 4 or faster processor, Windows® XP SP2 with 512 MB of RAM or Windows Vista®/Windows 7® with 1 GB of RAM, and USB 2.0 port
MAC®: 1.66 GHz Intel® Core DuoTM or faster processor, 1 GB of RAM, OS X Leopard® 10.5 or Snow Leopard® 10.6, and USB 2.0 port
Official Flip accessories consist of underwater case (about £40), soft pouch (black & silver), USB cables, Power adaptor, battery pack, tripod, HDMI cables and an action tripod. I have also bought a hard case (£10) and a silicon cover (£11) for added protection for my Flip.
I found the Flip USB arm clip really easy to use and the connection seems to be very secure so the arm doesn't feel like it is about to drop off. The screen may not sound very big at 2" (diagonal) but it is big enough to do what it needs to. The video on the camera is clear and easy to see and stays the same way once you have put it onto your computer. All the software, drivers etc are stored inside the Flip so there are no discs to lose. I plugged my Flip into my Vista laptop, a pop up came up, I chose I wanted to install the software and that was it. A few minutes later the software was available for use.
The Flipshare software is extremely easy to use. Along the top you get the normal windows type toolbar consisting of file, edit, view, share, create, playback and help. On the left hand side you get a bar with a list of your films separated in to the month that you uploaded them so it is easy to find the video you want in the future. You can also set up your own files to make finding the correct video even easier. Along the bottom you get a section that tells you if an action is taking place (like a video being transferred from the Flip to the laptop, a video being converted etc), a button to transfer videos from the Flip to the laptop, 3 sharing options and 3 create functions. The rest of the screen is filled up with thumb nails of your videos. There are 3 different options available depending on how big you want these thumb nails to be. I have currently used the email function and the publish videos on the web options. Both of these were really easy as you just drag and drop the video or videos you want to send as an email, type in the email address and click send or drag and drop the videos you want to convert. I have only uploaded videos to Facebook so far so I haven't used the auto upload the MySpace or YouTube options yet. When you want to upload the videos to other websites such as Facebook, Flipshare will convert the videos into .wmv format and puts them into a folder on your desktop which you can name anything you like. The take still photos from your video function is very user friendly as you can stop the video at the desired place and then move frame by frame to get the picture that you want. I did find the photos a little bit fuzzy but they were still viewable. I haven't got around to trying the create movies with titles and music option or the create a DVD of your video function yet but I would imagine that they are just as easy to use. The help section is comprehensive and easy to navigate and the flip website has a fantastic support section if you get stuck with anything. They even have a team of advisors waiting to talk to you via video to help you if you still can't resolve a problem.
When I registered my Flip, I was asked if I wanted a free 2 for 1 family fun days out card sent to me. I don't have children but thought I would say yes as it is free. This card gives 2 for 1 days out at over 200 selected venues such as Flambards, National Seal Sanctuary, paintballing, Royal Marines museum, Camelot theme park and Thomasland (full list available at www.doyouflip.co.co/familyfun). You can use the card as many times as you like until the 31st Dec 2011 and you can even use it to go to the same venue over and over again if you wanted too. The card also entitles you to 1 free lesson in golf, horse riding and football for 5-11 year olds. If you have a family, this card could help you redeem the cost of the Flip without you even realising. It is not redeemable against family tickets or booked parties and you should check with the venue first.
I love my Flip and have it in my pocket now most of the time so I never have to miss out on those golden opportunities. I can't recommend them enough so we have become a 2 Flip family as my 73 year old grandad has bought one after trying my Flip. All of my friends have been impressed with the quality of the videos and the ease of use of the camera. The facility to take still photos would have been an added bonus but I am not greedy.
Not wanting to constantly run down the life of my camera battery by taking and storing video clips I decided to get one of these small hand held video cameras and the Flip Ultra HD was on sale at the time down to £89 which was a good price as I have seen it elsewhere for over the £100 mark.
About the size of a chunky mobile phone it is easy to carry around as it fits easily into my handbag. It has an 8gb memory which gives you two hours of video storage so ideal for taking on a night out however it does have a couple of drawbacks. The zoom is not very good at all, at a recent concert it did not provide a good picture of the band and we were not that far back from the front of the stage.
The picture quality is ok without really being amazing and you do need good light, in poor light it is not great at all.
On the plus side the camera is so easy to operate, it takes about six hours to fully charge and there are only a couple of buttons that you need to use to operate it, the set up is very short, just loading date information and then you are ready to go. You use the flip usb on the side of teh camera to slot into your PC to charge it up and to download your videos so there is no need for seperate cables. It will also take two AA batteries if you exceed the two hour life of the fully charged battery.
It is super easy to use and also to upload your video as well and using the software you can also load them up straight to YouTube if you want. The big plus with this is that it is so easy to use, the big drawback is that it has some limitations with range however it is ideal for catching close up family occasions like present opening at xmas or friends on a night out.
I got this as I had always fancied a camcorder, just because the idea of making my own little videos seemed fun and interesting. Therefore when I saw this HD device on offer for only £170 I grabbed it.
What a great decision that turned out to be, I use it all the time now (just as much as my normal digital camera) and my facebook account has almost as many videos on as photos, which was never the case before.
This Is a great product because it is easy to use, the controls on the side of the product are extremely easy to use and you barely need to glance over the instruction leaflet to get the gist of what you are doing with this.
The video quality is very high, you can capture amazing videos from any distance with this and the results will always be true to the real life situation.
The flip idea is based around the usb port that flips off of the actual camera, this is where everything happens as the device is charged via USB, videos are uploaded and downloaded via USB too. Therefore a computer is completely necessary but as most people have one this isn't going to cause a problem.
A great little aid is that the product accepts normal batteries too, so if you ever run out of charge whilst on a day trip or excursion you can easily buy some batteries and get the camera running again, although the battery life on normal batteries seems to be considerably lower than that of the normal rechargeable battery.
Overall I advise getting this camera, as it is tiny and fits into your pocket and can capture any even in HD. No hassle camcording, it's great right?
I bought our Flip HD for my son to make his own movies on. It's the first video camera I've bought, and there's a bewildering variety on the market.
The Flip appealed after I watched a friend's home movie complete with backing music and professional-looking fades between shots.
It only takes movies, not stills, & it's extremely simple to use: press the central button to record, with up and down buttons for zoom. There's a Play button to watch the results and one with a dustbin icon for deleting, and that's pretty much it.
To edit the movie or to share through email, YouTube etc, the camera connects to the computer via a flip-out USB arm. It's nifty, although a £100-odd camera dangling from our computer tower makes me quite nervous, so it ends up sitting on a stack of books while connected which ain't ideal.
The big drawback is that with this camera you have to use the Flipvideo editing program - it isn't compatible with Windows Movie Maker, FX Home Effects or anything else we've tried. Flipvideo is very limited: it turns out you can ONLY fade your shots in & out, so a fight scene for example with fast-paced editing is impossible.
The simplicity & stunning picture quality means the Flip is a fantastic camera for certain uses, but for serious home movie-makers I'd get one compatible with better editing software.
My memory of my parents using a camcorder was a rather large cumbersome thing that once the tape had been shot we maybe watched it twice however for lots of family events no one could be bothered to get the thing out and carry it around, this is why the Flip Video Ultra HD is so ideal as it is about the size of a mobile phone but a little thicker in the body however it does fit into the pockets of my cargo pants and it is a great little device.
We have the 8gb version and it cost about £119.00 on Amazon thanks to my Dooyoo vouchers. The 8gb of memory gives you two hours of video that can be stored on the camera and it is so easy to operate. All you need to do is pop in the battery, it is partially charged straight out of the box however it will take about six hours to fully charge it from flat to full charge by simply plugging it into your computer via the usb. Th ebattery when fully charged gives you about two hours of filming however it can also take two AA batteries as well for when you are travelling and cannot get to a pc.
It gets the flip tag because the usb attachment is part of the camcorder, you slide a button on the side and it flips out so is ready to plug in flip and there are without the need for a cable however you can buy one if you want to.
All the controls are on the back of the flip with a large red button in teh centre which acts as the command button and then either side of this are teh forward and back buttons and the zoom in and out buttons are top and bottom, you also have a play button and the delete button when you do not want to keep what you have recorded.
It is super easy to use and also to upload your video as well and using the software you can also load them up straight to youtube if you want however I have not tried that yet.
The picture quality is good and this is an excellent little camcorder to carry around to capture those special moments with your kids. I love this device as it is so simple to operate and is a great bit of design.
The Flip Mino is a great camera with features so basic a child could use them. The camera is not much bigger than a great deal of phones, 1.5'' diagonally, so it indeed a quintessential 'Pocket Camcorder.' It has 4GB of memory, but with a 30 frames per second rate and 1280 x 720 resolution, you only get 1 hour of video capacity. Which is fine if you can find a PC, however if you're on holiday you better find a way of uploading them at an internet café and emailing them home, just to make some room for some more videos. This is because all the memory is internal, so you cannot simply replace the memory card like in other camcorders. The battery life is also internal (lithium-Ion rechargeable to be specific) and it can supply 2 hours of battery life when fully charged. And because they now use this battery as opposed to the 2x AA batteries that the Flip Ultra requires they have managed to save about 2 ounces in weight. However once again I find it a lot more practical to have the AA batteries as they can be easily bought anywhere in the world and on the whole last a lot longer. Both in the short run, as the rechargeable battery pack they give you can last 4.5 hours, and in the long run, as rechargeable batteries, if not charged when appropriate, tend to lose a few minutes here an there from their full capabilities. And the battery in the Flip Mino can not be replaced.
There are a grand total of 7 buttons on the front of the Flip. A huge red button, surprisingly enough that is to record and stop. Theres a button that looks a bit like this l>ll, and that is used, as you might have guessed, to play back videos. There's a button that allows you to bin videos, 2 of the buttons are for flicking through the videos when you're playing them back, and the final 2 to zoom in and out. The zoom is pretty weak, only 2x, but at least the quality remains pretty high when you zoom, unlike with the old Flip Ultra. It's a very simple camera on the whole. Hit the power button on the side, and in about 3 seconds by my counting, you are ready to record. Once you've finished recording you just need to flick the switch on the opposite side, a USB port pops out and you can upload all of your videos direct to your computer in .avi format, which works fine on most PCs. It also allows you to upload direct to Youtube, and edit your videos on Movie Maker providing you have the right codec.
The camera has also received a lot of great reviews from various magazines and websites. For instance Camcorderinfo.com and Cnet both called it the best budget camcorder. The Flip website gives you a list of all the shops selling Flip products, including Tesco, PC World, Comet, Currys etc. although not all of the sell the Flip MinoHD. There is a very broad range in prices, from about £115 - £180, so you best look about these shops. But, if you have some patience, you can look on eBay and find them for a lot cheaper. For instance I bought mine, still in its box, for about £55. So just shop around. However if you can't find any cheap versions of the Flip Mino, there are a lot of cameras on the market that are very similar in simplicity and size, although not all the time in quality. For instance the Creative Vado, Aiptek PocketDV, Disgo, Flip Ultra etc. or you can always just get a phone with a camcorder on. I suggest typing some of these names into Youtube and look at some sample videos to see if the quality will suit your needs.
Flip have also released a couple accessories that can go along with the Flip Mino. USB Cables, a tripod, action tripod, power adaptor and a soft pouch. However, although Flip Ultra has had a few extra accessories released, such as the underwater case, you can come around it by looking elsewhere, i.e. Aquapac provide packs that let you film underwater. The Flip Mino also just comes in 2 colors from most major shops, however if you buy from the website you have the option to design your own pattern or upload a photo, and they'll create your Mino accordingly for the same price.
Overall I think the Camcorder is well worth buying for its simplicity and quality of video. I've tried others such as the aiptek, but have found that they tend to have something wrong with them, i.e. microphone. But the Flip seems be sufficient all around, besides battery life. However I only think it's worth it if you can really afford it or find it cheaper than what most of the big shops are selling it for. So if you're like me and my student's wage, £150 might be pretty steep for a pretty basic camera, when you can get always get phones with a very similar camcorder on.
The Flip UltraHD is a brilliant camcorder. It easy to use and it's all inclusive, so you don't need to worry about extra cables or memory cards, it's all built in.
It's fairly light and looks like your standard mobile phone. Anyone can use it as the buttons are big and are laid out in a really simple way.
Massive 8GB storage, allows you to record up to 2 hours of HD material. I've recorded a copious amount of video and still have lots space left.
The battery can be charged via USB. One bad thing about it is that, it can sometimes generate a lot of heat causing the flip to stop charging. The battery life is good and a great thing about the Flip is that if it's not in use it automatically switches off, so you don't need to worry about accidently leaving it on and draining out the battery.
UltraHD allows you to record in 720p. In a well lit area the camcorder is able to produce high quality videos, but in area with little to no light, it's quite appalling. It's a shame that they didn't include a built in light as that would have made filming in the dark possible.
The flip come with built in software which allows you to edit and compose videos with ease. No need to buy any additional software, just record what you want, plug the Flip into an available USB port, and then produce, save or burn your video.
For £129 the HD Flip is a pretty decent camcorder.


text:
Hernandez throws six solid innings in loss to Jays
By Bill Chastain / MLB.com
PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- The Blue Jays had only two everyday starters in their lineup Thursday against the Rays, but both Colby Rasmus and Jose Bautista hit solo homers -- along with Eugenio Velez -- lifting Toronto to a 3-1 victory.
Only Rasmus' came against Rays starter Roberto Hernandez, who made his sixth spring appearance and is engaged in a battle with Jeff Niemann to claim the No. 5 spot in Tampa Bay's rotation. He did not do anything Thursday to adversely affect that pursuit, throwing six innings and allowing only three hits.
"Every game is very important for me, whenever I have an opportunity to go to the mound," Hernandez said. "Every pitch is important. Today I think [was a] great game, throwing strikes, keeping the ball down and getting some ground balls."
The veteran right-hander held the Blue Jays scoreless for the first four innings before Rasmus homered to start the fifth. That was all the Blue Jays could muster against Hernandez, although Bautista scored the winning run with a seventh-inning homer against Jamey Wright, and Velez homered against Joel Peralta, charging him with his first run of the spring.
Brett Cecil pitched the Blue Jays out of a jam in the third, taking over for starter Claudio Vargas with two on and two out to face Evan Longoria.
The left-hander, who is out of options on his contract and has a chance to make the Blue Jays as a long reliever, struck out Longoria swinging to end the threat.
Cecil also worked around trouble in the fourth, finishing 2 1/3 innings with one hit allowed, one walk and four strikeouts.
The Rays' only run came after Longoria led off the sixth with a double. Manager Joe Maddon lifted his third baseman in favor of pinch-runner Ryan Roberts, who advanced to third when Toronto right-hander Ramon Ortiz walked the bases loaded and scored on a James Loney single.
Up next for the Rays: The Rays will play split-squad games Friday against the Orioles in Port Charlotte and against the Pirates in Bradenton, Fla. Niemann, competing with Hernandez for the fifth spot in the Rays' rotation, will start against the Orioles, while Alex Cobb will pitch against the Pirates. Niemann's start against the Orioles will be available via an exclusive webcast.
Bill Chastain is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Recap - Sky Defeat New York 87-74
The Sky got a 26-point performance from Elena Delle Donne as Chicago ran past New York 87-74 on Wednesday at Allstate Arena.
The Sky were a 9-point favorite in the win, and managed to turn a profit for their supporters. The combined score went OVER the total, which closed at 151.5.
Chicago got 19 points from Sylvia Fowles and another 14 points from Epiphanny Prince. Elena Delle Donne contributed 6 assists, while Sylvia Fowles cleaned the glass with 14 rebounds.
The Liberty got a 21-point performance from Cappie Pondexter, who was supported by 12 points from Leilani Mitchell. Leilani Mitchell had 7 assists in a losing cause for New York, while Kelsey Bone grabbed 9 rebounds.
Chicago led at halftime, 44-42.
New York won the battle of the boards, outrebounding their counterparts 38-36.
Next game, Chicago takes its act home to face Los Angeles looking for another win. For New York, they head on the road to face Seattle.


text: I think so ,too! I can kind of see her as Tanya, more than Victoria. BUT, I think she did a wonderful job anyway!xxsparklyvampiresxx wrote:This his probably been previously mentioned, but Rachelle doesn't have the right hair color. In the book, it is described as being like a flame; her hair should be red. But she was very "feline-like", as Victoria should be. Rachelle did a nice job.


text:
For those who wonder, I've decided to rework this story, which I've realized had a number of canon errors and some serious inconsistencies in language usages. So, I'll be reposting it, and hope that this time I can get those crucial middle chapters written and thus tie the beginning and ending (which has been written for three or more years!) and so post the whole of it! Some chapters require but little editing, while others need total rewrites, so it should be worth a re-read as it's posted. Thanks! BLS
Throughout the Second Age he'd passed almost unnoticed, a single Elf wandering the shores of Ennor, of the Mortal Lands, his hands terribly scarred by an ancient burn, his laments sending thrills of various sorts through those few who heard them. He sang his grief for those who had died before his eyes, those he believed he'd failed to protect and those who'd died by his hand. He sang of the land of his birth, and how sorry he was that he had left it, driven by a vow he'd given freely at the time but that he'd not pondered with sufficient care before following the lead of his father. He sang of the murders of his grandfather and father, and their estrangements from those who'd cleaved to them. He sang of his own wife and child, left behind to dwell with his mother and remaining grandsire when he and his brothers followed their father to the slaughter of Alqualondë. He sang of the betrayal of his uncles and other kinsmen who'd had to follow over the treacherous ice of the Helcaraxë when he failed to stop his father from burning the ships stolen from the Teleri rather than sending them back as promised to bring the rest of the fleeing Noldor to the shores of Endorë. He sang of the realms he and his brothers had created and held—and then lost due to treachery and the lasting hatred of their foes. He sang of his own foolishness and of his horror at his brothers' betrayal of Finrod and the folk of Nargothrond, and of his and Maedhros's perfidy toward those who'd dwelt in Sirion, and of the horror he'd felt as he'd seen Elwing throw herself out into the stormy sea rather than allow his bloodstained hands to touch the holy jewel she wore by right of inheritance, come to her by the steadfastness of love known by a mere Man for her grandmother. He sang of the dark years of struggle against Morgoth's power and darkness and the loss of his brother's hand as Maedhros was rescued by their cousin. And he sang of his own disbelief that he'd still been driven by the vow he'd made so long ago to betray all and seek to steal the jewels taken by the might of the Valar's forces from their brother's Iron Crown, and of his shock at how his brother had ended his life in fire, casting himself into the depths of the earth to escape the burning of his remaining hand.
Few truly saw him, and fewer still purposely sought word of him. Throughout much of the Second Age Sauron's minions hunted him at times but never found him; by the time Sauron had returned to Middle Earth after the fall of Númenor he was all but forgotten even by the Lord of Mordor. For Sauron the hatred of Fëanor's sons for all who had served the Black Enemy was of far less moment than his own hatred for those who had witnessed his abasement before Ar-Pharazôn and who had continued to defy him on Atalantë, and who had survived the foundering of the Star Isle only to flourish on their return to Middle Earth. What mattered the wanderings of one who had fallen from lordship to an eternity of exile even from among his own kind?
But he who had been named Macalaurë by his mother and who'd been known as Maglor during the wars against Angband never forgot his hatred for Morgoth's former lieutenant who now sought to take his former Master's place as the Dark Overlord of all of the Mortal Lands. From time to time Maglor would disguise himself and enter what Elven lands and settlements of Men he came to, and would sing of ancient enmities, reminding all that although Morgoth might have been vanquished and thrust out of Arda through the Doors of Night, the same was not true of Sauron, who once had been called Aulendil, friend of Aulë, the Smith from among the Valar. Had not Sauron helped to topple the first Lamps set up by the Valar to light the world? Had he not led his Lord's people against the forces of those amongst the Eldar and the Edain and Khazad who'd ever sought to preserve Ennor from Morgoth's darkness? Had he not encouraged others of his own kind to take the forms of Balrogs and vampires and werewolves and other shapes too terrible to imagine and to attack those Morgoth named as his enemies? Had he not taken many prisoners for his Lord, and aided to break them, corrupting their bodies and spirits to create orcs? Had he not enslaved many to work in his mines and fields? Had he not tried many arcane arts too dark to contemplate on Elves and Men and other creatures, and learned somehow to harvest sufficient power from the deaths of his victims to recover from the losses he knew when first his temple to Morgoth was drowned and later he lost his Ring to the shards of Elendil's swore wielded by Isildur?
None might recognize the singer and bard who came and went unseen save when he sang; but his songs served to inspire many to remember that evil still remained within the Mortal Lands and must be opposed ever. And ere he would stand to take whatever harp was being passed from hand to hand to offer his own song for the evening, he would listen closely to the news discussed around him as he nursed his drink, and use it to inspire what he should sing and to craft new songs of warning against the perfidy of Sauron.
And now and then he would find himself facing one of his own kind, usually those who were headed West toward Mithlond who would hear singing north or south of them along the shoreline and who would turn from their path to follow the song to find him. It happened rarely, perhaps but once or twice in five hundred years, but there were a few who would seek him out. Some sought to confront him for the evil he'd wrought. Some begged him to give over that long-ago vow and return with them. Some merely offered to bear messages for him to those who'd remained behind, who'd stayed true to the Valar and Peace, those he'd loved dearly.
He knew that one of his fosterlings had founded his own small kingdom in a hidden and protected vale near the roots of the Mountains of Mist, and that the other had chosen mortality and had founded a great—and now lost—kingdom within sight of Eressëa. He knew that Findaráto, Finrod Felagund, had died and that he'd been among the first of the Noldor exiles to be reborn in Aman. He knew that a remnant of Elros's descendants had returned to Middle Earth and had created great kingdoms here, and that both were threatened by Sauron's forces led by the Nazgűl.
When those few who offered to bear messages came at last home to the Undying Lands, it was always with the same request, that the Valar be implored to send aid against Sauron and his creatures. For had not Sauron proved himself as treacherous and hateful of those who served the Light as had Morgoth? Always Maglor had opposed Morgoth; now he opposed Sauron as he could, which was little enough. No longer would he carry anything more lethal than an eating knife, recognizing that he was far too violent in nature and easily swayed to betrayal to be trusted with weapons of war any longer. So it was the echoes of his songs and his pleas and his hatred for those who would impose Darkness on all that reached the Undying Lands and that were passed unto the Lords there. And at last the day came that he who'd been known as the Friend of Men and past King of Nargothrond prevailed upon his father to seek audience before the Valar themselves, again begging aid for those who dwelt in the Mortal Lands and faced the antipathy and tyranny of the Lord of Mordor.


text:
Discussion in 'Tennis Tips/Instruction' started by sureshs, Nov 5, 2012.
Give me some tips
Its all footwork and prep. I wipe more across the ball against guys with bad footwork and get free points from it. The good players adjust by being ready and just making a few small steps to the side.
That's usually the skidding, low bouncing shot, so stand in, set early, stroke thru the ball, imparting less topspin than usual, since the incoming sidespun ball is bouncing lower.
That's why it's used as an approach shot, with some underspin.
No hitting change? Racket angle, trajectory, etc.?
"stroke thru the ball", not brush up the back.
I don't have a problem with sliced side spin. In fact, I return them with sliced side spin or topspin. I should have clarified.
It is the topspin-sidespin combination I am talking about.
Not for me. I hit with a fair amount of slicers.
The one key is when people say "follow the ball", the main thing is to bend your knees and get low with lower sliced/sidespin balls. The whole sit and lift thing basically.
If you prep early, and are ready, when you get low by bending your knees, you can many times attack slices that are not hit perfectly. The slice is a tough shot to hit skidding and low every time, so once you start to punish a slicer, it really gets in their head and gets you more sitters.
The same goes for topspin/side. Its all prep. at the highest levels it can be very tricky to time out for the first few games.
If you want to be real interested in how heavy heavy spin affects pros, watch a guy play Nadal for the first time. I have seen matches like this and usually the first set is the opponent basically just trying to get the timing. By set 2, they have the timing, but it is too late to recover.
Nobody I know has problems with top/slice combo's, as that's the normal high ball shot hit to you.
Play it just like a topspin shot, since it's up in your strikezone.
What LeeD said, except you have to be more alert in anticipating it and keep your feet moving since how the sidespin takes off the court may vary.
I watched an open level player hit with Sam Stosur and he struggled with it. I have video. You can hear the coach even say how hard it is to deal with the bounce at around :26.
I would think most open players see top with side component all the time. After all, almost every topspin shot not hit from chest high would have to have some sidespin added to the topspin. Shell shocked, more likely, like that Canadian open player hitting with Nalbandian.
But overall, a sidespin component changes the way the ball goes thru the air, compared to topspin or flat. The ball slides deeper than expected, and upon bounce, can skidd slightly, then deadball thru the air dropping sooner than it should.
Just gotta play against JimmyConnors to know.
Once again the video speaks for itself.
What I see from that video...
Stosur is hitting with LeeD. LeeD is so shell shocked, he can't hit the ball even once with his strings, so uses the handle and the tip of the racket frame. Looks like he even uses his buttcap, for that wide shot.
Lee that player is 1,000 times better than you on your best day. Get over yourself for once.
hehehe LeeD things facing Fed or Nadal's side spin is like playing with his friends
Yeah and the funny thing is that I am showing a WTA player hitting with a male open level practice partner who is struggling with her side spin.
Also you can really see how hard she wipes across the ball in that video. She really has exceptional groundstrokes in person.
PowerPlayer, I see why we can't get along....
You have no humor whatsoever. You are an engineer, or scientist type.
I'm an artist.
How many times do I have to post that I am a bad 4.0 singles player?
And how many times do I have to post that in the past, I've hit with CeciMartinez, PeanutLouie, MarcieLouie, SusanBrown, and DanaGilbert? Along with a handful of former No1 singles UCBerkeley women's team players?
And short hits, not practice, with IllanaKloss and RosieCasals?
I can hit 10 balls the same as the guy hitting with Stosur you posted. I can miss 7, hit 2 short, and shank one into the player's bench.
Leed the reason we don't get along is you are often wrong in your assumptions, yet act like you have it all figured out.
I made a career out of being an artist. Im not close being a scientist in any way. You just post all the time and argue all the time, trying to be right on every thread.
there is no way in your current state you would even be allowed on the court with Stosur. Nothing personal, but you would look foolish.
once you get a good idea how your swing is, continue to try to improve it. this means none of your joints in the kinetic chain are near the limit but are in the middle of their sweet spot. and it's better if each of those joints has good range of motion. this helps enlarging the contact zone sweet spot. when this is too small it's like using a very small head racquet.
Funny you should mention that just now, PowerPlayer.
Day before yesterday, was hitting the wall at SanPablo and who should ask me to hit for a "little while" was the local 5.0 guy, who plays A/Opens and does OK. We hit for maybe 25 minutes until his partner showed, and I had to pick up the g/f. He volunteered.."thanks, let's do it again maybe next week"..
My reply was, "thanks, but I have no business hitting with you".
I know what you mean that the shot is difficult to play because that shot usually comes from a big cut with a western grip (ball contact way, way, out in front), so if you guess wrong with the side spin, the point is over. I guess the best advice is that you need to pressure the forehand to keep the opponent from having time to hit bombs.
Why the sudden interest in dealing with sidespin suresh? heheheh :twisted:
If it's a solid shot coming to the forehand side, I sometimes use a fh slice, nothing hard but just enough to get it deep. Absorb it if you can.
How many players can hit a side-topspin? are you a DI player? otherwise I would say it is so rare that you can ignore it (most TS strokes have a very light Sidespin component but nothing heavy).
In table tennis (were side spin has a much bigger role than in tennis) they say you should counter spin with the same opposite spin.
btw are you talking about inside out sidespin (as LeeD stated often happens on a high ball) or outside curve spin like in the table tennis video.
the important skill is being able to correctly evaluate what kind of ball is coming your way.
once you´re good at that all that is left is footwork
That is why I am asking about the first sentence
He asked about SIDE SPIN, not slice or topspin.
Once in awhile I hit with huge side spin, when the ball lands it skirts over a few feet.
The key to pick up huge side spin is to WAIT. If you see your opponent cut the ball heavy to the right or left, get in position, wait, then when it goes 3 feet to say your left, move then take it.
It's funny because I think I have this monster side spin, I use it all the time. When I play my son, who's only 12, because he's used to it, he waits, can't trick him anymore
Answer to second quote can be found implicitly in the first quote.
I know about the same spin theory in table tennis and it is used mainly on the serve. The rule is to push back towards the side the server's swing originated. It amounts to playing with the spin, not against it.
The first problem is tennis is that the opponent is too far across and moving to be able to determine the spin from the stroke easily.
Second is that the coefficient of restitution is not high enough in tennis strings to get the ball back without conscious effort. But I see what you are saying and I do try it - e.g., a forehand ball going away from the body with side spin is amenable to a DTL shot, which means going with the spin.
But what is the general solution?
So far what I have got is to read and wait, then to get low and hit through the ball. But the movement of the ball in the air as well as its creeping effect on the strings is bothering me.
Both, but not with underspin
I do that but it seems defensive
Perhaps none of these people have had true side spin, true side spin when it lands scoot 3-4 feet to your left, the key is not how to hit it but your body position.
You can hist top, flat, or backspin, doesn't matter, what matters is being in position if we are talking about the same thing.
hit thru the ball more. angle the face to opposite direction of spin to counter spin.
Sometimes the best defense, is actually the best offense.
LeeD, why are you picking on engineers. We have the best sense of humor as well as refined artistic tastes. Who do you think buys Frank Zappa music?
Lol..thats gold. Haha.
but sureshs..it´s play tennis not talk tennis that let´s you improve
tennis is not a science as much as a sport, go out and do it don´t overcomplicate things
From the stroke of your opponent, if you watch closely enough, you should be able to have a pretty good idea where the ball will kick after the bounce. It's all about your footwork adjustment. To me it's more important to know what will happen to the ball after the bounce rather than during it's flight path.
I don't pick on engineers and scientists. My current g/f is head scientist for the micro biology lab here in AlbanyCa., USDA.
PowerPlayer, who thinks he's an artist, thinks like an engineer. A + B MUST = C, no other possible answer. And, "if I turn 12 degrees left, internally supinate, the ball WILL GO faster and stronger"...
That's PPlayer's thinking. And when he reads a post, he takes it literally. Like I think I can stand in to hit with Stosur. I already said countless times I'm a 4.0. As a 4.0, out of 10 groundies she hits to me, I can shank 3 off the court, hit 4 short and weak back, and hit the net 3 times, just like the guy in the vid did. As can YOU, as can PowerPlayer, as can almost anyone here.
Now if Nalbandian was hitting to me, I'd do twice as badly, because he hits with depth and is not trying to hit easy to start with. I might just shank 7, dump 2 into the net, and hit one long.
NOW, PowerPlayer will come back and say I can't hit 4 back, but in reality, only 3. That's how PowerPlayer thinks, and that's why his thread on his service motion will never be resolved.
the side spin is what i really notice when playing better players. the best advice is be ready, move your feet to put your hands in the position to make the play.
Was this post even necessary? LeeD, you poor soul.
Yeah you don't see much of that at the club level at all. I did not even know that it made such a difference as nothing in tennis teaching prepares you for this.
You have to meet the problem head on
You can't because the spin axis is tilted
Only read the first page so far, but agree with LeeD and Power Player. The thing is, if you have good strokes and movement, then you'll find a way. Even at my level this is not a big problem. Ok, at your level maybe the sidespin can be quite a bit more extreme. Still, I should think that this would not be a major problem ... ie., back to what LeeD and Power Player have said.
Seems to me that you're an experienced player. I trust that you'll find a way to deal with extreme sidespin.
One alternative is to simply not let these spinny players to get into points. But I realize that it might not be that simple.
If it's high, I'll just smash it with top spin. If it's low, I'll use underspin
Is this even an issue?
Could you maybe post a video of what type of shot you're talking about returning?
If your opponent is hitting some kind of federeresque slice drop shot or running forehand just clap your hands and tell him nice shot. If someone can come up with those kind of shots consistently they deserve to win the match.
On most groundstrokes it shouldn't even be an issue.
If it's his serve that has a lot of sidespin, remember to take a compact backswing and just work on your timing. The more times you see that serve, the easier it will be to time.
You shouldn't be worrying about adjusting your racket face angle, or "spin axis" or whatever. Do it by feel. Just move your feet and try to time the ball like you would on any other shot.
You focus way to much on racket face angle. Most people know the right angle just through feel and practice. If you're worrying about something like that in a match, your strokes will break down.
I remember reading a great quote from federer where he was asked about his groundstroke technique. He basically said that all the top players look about the same when they make contact with the ball. The differences before they get their are mostly stylistic.
Federer doesn't worry about changing his racket face angle. In fact he tries to keep it the same every time. Your should do the same. Worry about things like timing, prep, and footwork. If you're trying to alter your racket face angle every time you will be an unforced error machine.
i think it´s a case of over-analysing something that should really be solved on-court by playing.
you have to learn to read the incoming ball, and you can only do that by playing. of course many people don´t pay much attention to what their opponent does and focus on their own strokes only.
Separate names with a comma.


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Shaq killed it at the allstar game........he the man
Shaq killed it at the allstar game........he the man
DaTPRiNCE...That EGYPTiAN Fella, #MeloMafia
LOL @ the Starbury references
the big shaqtus is the man
Look at Micheal Jordan's Hand:
Sam Cassell Gunned Down:
Where Un-Amazing Happens (Spurs...suck)
It's not a video, but it's pretty funny:
lol he was probably traumatized. I don't think he'll ever dunk again lmao.
this **** had me rolling, making fun of that Heineken commercial
DaTPRiNCE...That EGYPTiAN Fella, #MeloMafia


text:
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text:
Pryor's office said Wednesday it believes someone fraudulently impersonated a senator to offer the internship.
Pryor denied claims that a summer internship would go to the winner of Joe Francis' show, "The Search for the Hottest Girl in America."
Francis had said the internship would be among the show's prizes after he bid on it during an online charity auction for a California temple last weekend. His website no longer lists it.
Late Wednesday, temple officials said the "private party" that organized the benefit had returned the money. They didn't identify the organizer.


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Discussion in 'Star Trek - The Original & Animated Series' started by los2188, Dec 23, 2012.
Meh, sounds the same.
Sounds the same but the meaning is different.
Trekkies (-ers, -ors, -ists, whatever) are supposed to be the intellligent ones. If you want to be it, be it. Just sayin'.
TNG adopted the suggestion made by "Tribbles" writer David Gerrold in his 1973 book The World of Star Trek that any new series should feature an "away team" (he'd used the term "contact team") because the captain of a starship should not be endangering himself by routinely leading landing parties as Kirk did.
Another major difference, of course, was that Picard didn't repeatedly get involved with alien women (or female androids), as Kirk had.
In those two important respects (and probably some others) TNG was simply more sensible - which could be said to work against it as an entertainment, as some here have suggested.
But you're writing.
That's only because Suzie's best assets weren't on her face. Voice acting ability excepted.
Hm. Maybe. I met her in person at a Creation con, and she's pretty much gorgeous.
btw - saw "Devil's Due" last night on BBC America, with a classic example of my above complaint. Marta DuBois, who just exudes sexiness and classic beauty, with goofy frickin' ridges on her forehead. OY!
Given the potential for battle and ultimate demise, I find it highly strange that there would be children on a starship, especially given the oft sensitive nature of their mission. I know conceptually there may have been reasons for it, to me it just seemed silly.
As for the ships counselor on the bridge, situated beside the Captain, it has always seemed to me to be ridiculous and contrived. But then again it was made in the 80's, and they did allow a kid at the wheel when in reality he should have been nowhere near the bridge, no matter how good we ultimately may have felt about him.
Having pressed those views, I liked TNG for the most part. When they were "on", they were really on.
Main difference for me was that Star Trek was great
And The Next Generation was shit
I love TOS. I love TNG.
There is a school of thought which says that Deanna's role on the crew is actually one of the most important, which is why she gets to sit there with the Captain and the Executive Officer. Look at the number of times Starfleet crews went mad in TOS (Captain Tracey and Commodore Decker being cases that spring immediately to mind, but there were others). The responsibilities of command were such that there was a great emotional turmoil that could engulf the commander, and often times (as with Decker) they could make decisions which were lacking in good judgement. The Counsellor's role is arguably to keep tabs on the Captain's state of mind, and certainly Deanna openly questions Picard on more than a few occasions (sometimes in the Ready Room, sometimes very publically on the bridge). Even as late as Nemesis Picard still declares that a ship's counsellor is a statutory requirement for the effective running of a starfleet vessel, and that just because Troi is running off to the Titan doesn't mean she won't have a replacement.
The role which Troi plays in the character dynamic of TNG was basically played by Doctor McCoy in TOS. But McCoy isn't nominally a bridge officer (although he spends more than enough time hanging around up there -- hasn't he got a job to do in sickbay or something? ), so he isn't theoretically going to always be there beside the Captain in the most high stress situations. Troi is right there all the time.
Main difference for me was the acting, with TNG losing out.
Stewart was great, perhaps the best actor of all the series. Spiner was OK. The rest of them couldn't act their way out of a turbo-lift.
OTOH, Shatner was, well, Shattastic. Nimoy was excellent and more--definitive. Kelley was really good when awake, and more importantly, fun to watch. Doohan was outstanding when given material. As for "the rest", well, Koenig was actually a pretty good actor, and Takei likewise. Nichols was surprisingly strong in her few moments. Majel, well, she was actually better in TNG.
I think you're giving Spiner short shrift, but what I really wanted to comment on was how dead on you are about Doohan. I LOVE early Scotty before they pretty much cut his balls off around the time of his first love interest.
Early on, Doohan plays Scotty with a very authentic (of course) military edge to him. I love it. There a lot of nice little things he does.
re: TNG. The Wesley hate was stupid. Beyond stupid. And once they got him in a real uniform, there was great potential for a relationship between him and Picard as seen in Wesley's final regular ep.
But the real diff is that McCoy-Spock-Kirk are FAMILY. The TNG are professionals. Hell, even Data's funeral has this air of "Shouldn't we be more upset about this than we are? ah well...I never was really close to you all."
Also, at the time (supposedly)* things were very rosy for the Federation. No Romulans, expansion everywhere, Klingons on their side. Life is great!!
*I always viewed the Cardassian War as border conflict, not particularly worthy of the Feds applying the full power of Starfleet.
Tell us how you really feel.
As pointed out above, one thing I liked in TOS was that we were way, way out on the edge of explored space, at least most of the time. In TNG, they go zipping back to earth for any old reason, and I don't recall much exploration or new contacts (at least in comparing TOS' three seasons to TNG's seven).
Over the years I have tried to like Next Gen in the way I grew up loving Star Trek, but I just cant, its all so wussy, so bloody politically correct, Picard for me is an old starch collared geriatric residing over a failed Shatner lookalike and a complete weirdo counsellor who some say is a sex symbol.
James T Kirk would never have suffered a child piloting the ship, or god forbid, an android who wanted to be a human, although Brent Spiner does impress in the role.
In fact, half the malevolent jokers that Picard encountered would have been sorted by James T just delivering a upward headbutt or a double legged drop kick to the chest.
Ships Captains should be prepared to spill blood, punch and be punched for the good of the ship, and the good of Mankind, thats how in later Trek I could empathise with Archer.
Thank you
This is one of the things that really separates TOS from the rest. The feeling that they're out there in the unknown darkness.
VOY only captured this a few times. Much of the time in TNG/DS9 it felt like they were driving through Europe, wall to wall governments, they knew where they were and who they were going to encounter.
Patrick Stewart is a good actor, but I couldn't stand Captain Picard. In fact, I could barely tolerate any of the characters in TNG. Bunch of stiffs, all of them.
And I never thought Marina Sirtis was that hot.
For the record, I enjoy both TOS and TNG...but one thing that always bugged me about TNG was the way it swapped the Klingon and Romulan traits established in TOS. Romulan culture, as portrayed in the TOS episode "Balance of Terror", was as a complex, honor-driven society and it was the Klingons who were hostile, scheming, and warlike. I read an interview years ago with a TNG writer whose name I don't remember who said something along the lines of "we thought it would fun to get creative and swap the traits of the Klingons and Romulans".
I thought it was neither fun, nor creative.
The original series never returned to present-day Earth for reasons explained in The Making of Star Trek and elsewhere. But all of the original-cast feature films (four of which preceded TNG) included at least one scene on Earth. TNG had to follow suit and become more Earth-centric; the reasons for avoiding it weren't relevant anymore.
But yes, I did enjoy that aspect of the original show. For some reason I've never been able to put my finger on, the most "remote"-seeming episode for me has always been "Return to Tomorrow" - and it's not just the captain's log saying how far out they are, or his "risk is our business" speech. It's something more subtle, involving the new George Duning music and (for all I know) the color of the planet.
Separate names with a comma.


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Revision as of 17:34, 26 April 2013
| Wish Upon a Star Shape
First broadcast
English themes
Japanese themes
Wish Upon a Star Shape (Japanese: ピィとピッピとながれぼし! Py and Pippi and the Shooting Star!) is the 246th episode of the Pokémon anime. It was first broadcast in Japan on May 2, 2002 and in the United States on May 3, 2003.
|Spoiler warning: this article may contain major plot or ending details.
The episode begins with everybody playing and taking a break at night. As Ash, Misty, and Brock watch the moon, they spot a shooting star. The star comes out of orbit heading towards them. Ash begins to wonder if it was a UFO. Something shoots out of the UFO and lands on Phanpy. Soon the UFO crashes on the other side of the mountain Ash and the gang are near. Soon it is revealed two mysterious people are watching. A Cleffa is revealed to be the thing that landed on Phanpy.
Ash looks Cleffa up in the Pokédex. Cleffa and Phanpy soon come to like each other. Soon Cleffa points toward the place where the UFO landed longingly. Since Cleffa came from the UFO, the gang thinks it must be a Clefairy spaceship. Ash and his friends decide to get Cleffa back to its pals. Team Rocket is soon watching and decides to get Cleffa. Just then, two people run up to Cleffa and start studying it. They reveal themselves to be Ken and Mary of the Pokémon Mystery Club. They ask to take Cleffa, except Ash thinks they could be members of Team Rocket. Upon hearing this they say Team Rocket is horrible.
When they hear this, Team Rocket reveals themselves and are angry. Then they recite the motto. The PMC is angry and reveals their machine. The machine shoots out a net, and Phanpy runs off with Cleffa on its back. Pikachu uses Thunderbolt creating smoke and Ash, Misty and Brock run off. While Ash and the gang head toward the mountain, Team Rocket cannot find Phanpy and Cleffa, so they use a divining stick to show which way they went. As they begin to head that way, PMC appears and shows another machine. It looks like a satellite. It shows them where Cleffa is. Then they bring out another machine, which bears a certain resemblance to a snowplow. It quickly catches up to Phanpy and Cleffa at a cliff. Phanpy looks around and knocks over a tree as a bridge and walks across it.
PMC tries to use harpoons to get to the other side of the cliff but Team Rocket catches up and blasts away the harpoons. PMC inserts a plunger into the blaster and fires it at Team Rocket. Soon Ash and his friends show up and sneak away while the two teams are fighting. Meanwhile, Phanpy and Cleffa come to a hill. Soon, so does Ash and the gang. They see a spaceship at the bottom. It proves to be the same Clefairy spaceship they saw before. Soon Ash and his friends see Phanpy and Cleffa. Just as Cleffa and the Clefairy are reuniting, PMC shows up!
Soon Team Rocket shows up in the Meowth balloon. It then transforms into a robot and tries to grab Cleffa. Phanpy gets in the way and is just thrown aside. Pikachu uses Thunderbolt but is useless, as the machine is electricity-proof. The Clefairy soon head into the action. PMC unleashes yet another machine. It seems to be a truck with grappling arms. The Meowth robot wrestles violently with the truck. Soon Team Rocket decide to activate a cannon. But the Clefairy are taking apart the machine to build their spaceship. Upon seeing this, PMC is confident but then realize the Clefairy are doing the same to them.
Soon the spaceship is finished and Phanpy rushes Cleffa to the ship as it starts to take off. The ship begins to fall apart! Soon PMC and Team Rocket work together and head toward the spaceship. Pikachu uses Thunderbolt and Phanpy uses Rollout, energizing the ship and blasting off Team Rocket and PMC. The Clefairy ship soon begins to take off, and with Cleffa and Phanpy saying goodbye, Cleffa evolves and goes inside the spaceship. Phanpy begins to cry and Ash cheers it up. Later, PMC finds crop circles created by a Snorlax.
Major events
- For a list of all major events in the anime, please see the timeline of events.
Pokémon debuts
TV episode debuts
Who's That Pokémon?: Voltorb (US and international), Cleffa (Japan)
- Pikachu (Ash's)
- Meowth (Team Rocket)
- Togepi (Misty's)
- Wobbuffet (Jessie's)
- Bayleef (Ash's)
- Cyndaquil (Ash's)
- Totodile (Ash's)
- Phanpy (Ash's)
- Goldeen (Misty's)
- Staryu (Misty's)
- Psyduck (Misty's)
- Corsola (Misty's)
- Onix (Brock's)
- Geodude (Brock's)
- Crobat (Brock's)
- Pineco (Brock's)
- Cleffa (evolves; debut)
- Clefairy (many; one newly evolved)
- Jigglypuff (anime; flashback)
- Snorlax
- The Clefairy are the same group from Clefairy Tales.
- The English title of this episode is a reference to the phrase "Wish upon a star".
- This episode aired in the US exactly one year and one day after its Japanese airing.
- In the previous episode, a child asked if Clefairy come from space. Ironically, this episode is about the Clefairy and Cleffa that came from space.
- When the Clefairy spaceship first shows up, the color of it is a light gray. However, when the spaceship is seen at the crash site, it is yellow.
Dub edits
In other languages
|Mandarin Chinese
|Je Mag een Wens Doen
|European French
|Mystère autour d'une étoile filante
|Vom Himmel gefallen
|פוקימון מעולם אחר Pokémon me'olam akher
|Misteri dal cosmo
|Spadająca gwiazda
|Um Desejo sob as Estrelas
|Uma Estrela Cadente
|Latin America
|¡Un deseo con forma de estrella!
|Pide un deseo a un estrellado


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TUTORIALSCut Lines: Using Apple Keynote as a Motion Graphics Tool by Ben BalserGraphic Thoughts: It's All About the IN! by Lance GrayIN THE FIELDSteadicam Merlin by Michael Y. WongPetrol PCPR-1 Camera Bag by Mark Von Lanken
IN THE STUDIOEpson PP-100 Discproducer by Chris Randall
COLUMNSThe Nonlinear Editor: Object Lessons by Stephen Nathans-KellyThe Gadget Bag: Dealing with the Downturn by Ed WardygaStrictly Business: Sweetening the Pot by Steve YankeeThe Reel Deal: What Women Want by Kris MalandruccoloHD Today: The Next HD Hurdle: Live Video Mixers by Anthony BurokasAmen Corner: Moving Beyond Sound by Tim SiglinThe Moving Picture: Who Loves Vegas, Stays With Vegas by Jan OzerDEPARTMENTSGear & Now: LED Lights--The Shape of Things to Come by Lee RickwoodContinuing Education: Reaching the Next Level--Marketing & Artistry and Sound Design (Vantage Point Productions) by Kris MalandruccoloContinuing Education: The Art of Moving Camera Techniques, Volume Two (Von Wedding Films) by Stephen Nathans-Kelly fast & Fabulous Volume 1 (PixelPops Design) by Stephen Nathans-Kelly To see the Table of Contents from the June 2008 issue, click here. To see the Table of Contents from the May 2008 issue, click here.


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When the Stone Temple Pilots terminated lead singer Scott Weiland with a single-sentence press release today (Wednesday February 27), they allegedly forgot to inform Weiland himself.
"Stone Temple Pilots have announced they have officially terminated Scott Weiland," read the statement issued by the band.
As news of the firing made the media rounds, Weiland fired back with a press statement of his own:
"I learned of my supposed 'termination' from Stone Temple Pilots this morning by reading about it in the press," Weiland said. "Not sure how I can be "terminated" from a band that I founded, fronted and co-wrote many of its biggest hits, but that's something for the lawyers to figure out. In the meantime, I'm looking forward to seeing all of my fans on my solo tour which starts this Friday."
The Stone Temple Pilots' contentious relationship with the band's lead singer have been well documented, primarily tied to Weiland's history with addiction and the subsequent legal ramifications.
During a recent interview with MLive, Weiland promised to roll out Stone Temple Pilots songs from the band's first two albums, Core (1992) and Purple (1994), as part of his 20-city solo tour, scheduled to kick off on March 1 in Flint, MI.
Weiland offers that the songs are something of a consolation for fans, since the rest of Stone Temple Pilots allegedly passed on celebrating the 20th anniversary of Core with a tour performing the album in its entirety.
"The rest of the guys didn't want to do it. So, it was still something that there was a lot of public interest in," Weiland said regarding performing the STP favorites on his tour. "Having that said, the idea was brought up to me through management. I talked to the guys in my solo band, The Wildabouts, and they were totally into it, as were the promoters. It worked out."
-Scott T. Sterling, CBS Local


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Tagged: Armando Galarraga
The Perfect Game That Wasn't: I Like It Better This Way
The baseball world doesn't need another opinion about Armando Galarraga's near perfect game so forgive me for weighing in.
It's true that the Tiger hurler won't be officially listed as the 21st major league pitcher to achieve the monumental feat, but what came out of the controversial incident will ironically have far more impact for the pitcher, umpire Jim Joyce and all of baseball.
Point 1: While a perfect game stands among the most cherished accomplished in sports, many who have done it have their names on the exclusive list, but are mostly forgotten. Mike Witt, Len Barker and Tom Browning come to mind. Galarraga, on the other hand, will always be remembered in baseball lore as the guy who got cheated from his moment of glory. In reality, his name will have a more prominent place in the game than most of the others who actually pitched a perfecto.
Point 2: In the current world of sports, we're plagued with taunting, overall bad sportsmanship and a lack of accountability. The events of the last two days in Detroit showed us that hope is not lost. What overshadowed Joyce's mistake was how everyone handled it from Joyce himself to the betrayed pitcher to Tiger manager Jim Leyland to the fans of Detroit. It was a case study of exactly how we'd like the participants to react in a difficult situation. I know I'm old school, but we needed this to help get us back in the right direction regarding athletic behavior.
So my opinion is that Galarraga will be more prominent in history, Joyce will be lauded as an exceptional man who faced the music–which after all is much more significant than being a perfect umpire–and fans everywhere will benefit from the example of their counterparts at Comerica Park.


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Nova's gem, Grandy's jack get Yanks past Padres
SAN DIEGO -- The Yankees have been hopeful that Curtis Granderson's return will deliver some much-needed thunder into the heart of the lineup. It did on Saturday night, and Ivan Nova certainly appreciated the help.
Granderson belted a two-run homer in the seventh inning to support Nova's gem of a pitching performance, snapping a scoreless tie and helping carry the Yankees to a 3-0 victory over the Padres at Petco Park.Full Game Coverage
SAN DIEGO -- The Yankees have been hopeful that Curtis Granderson's return will deliver some much-needed thunder into the heart of the lineup. It did on Saturday night, and Ivan Nova certainly appreciated the help.
Granderson belted a two-run homer in the seventh inning to support Nova's gem of a pitching performance, snapping a scoreless tie and helping carry the Yankees to a 3-0 victory over the Padres at Petco Park.Full Game Coverage
"It's still interesting," Granderson said. "I've still got to get reps, I've still got to get at-bats. One at-bat felt better than the other. One at-bat felt not as good as the other. But I'll continue to swing."
That's the plan. The homer was just Granderson's second of the year, having been limited to just 10 games this season due to injuries. Granderson hit a career-high 43 home runs last season for New York, and manager Joe Girardi believes that the slugger can continue to lengthen the order.
"It's always great for a hitter to do that, to get a little work in and then you see the dividends," Girardi said. "He was a part of all three runs tonight. I've talked about how Curtis can change the complexion of a game, really quickly, and that's what he did tonight."
Nova has been starved for run support in his last two outings, sent to tough-luck losses as the Yankees were blanked in both games by the Rangers and Rays, so Granderson's blast off Padres starter Tyson Ross seemed twice as nice.
The Yanks right-hander has been picking up the slack for a rotation that has needed some assistance with CC Sabathia struggling. Nova improved to 4-3 with a 2.08 ERA since returning from the disabled list on May 23, and he owns a 1.66 ERA in his last five starts.
"I've been feeling really good," Nova said. "Like I've said in the past, I don't remember the last time I felt the way I feel now. I'm working hard to try to repeat it every time. I'm trying to go out there and do my job, try to help the team to win games."
David Robertson pitched a scoreless eighth inning and the Yankees gave closer Mariano Rivera an insurance run in the ninth, as Granderson singled and was nearly doubled off at first base on a Lyle Overbay lineout to center field.
Granderson then stole second base and scored on Jayson Nix's RBI single to right field, setting up Rivera's 35th save in 37 opportunities this season, as he pitched a clean ninth inning bathed in a flashbulb display reminiscent of postseason games.
There was some doubt when Nova returned if he'd be able to stick in the Yankees' rotation, but no one is asking those questions now. Nova retired 15 straight batters after allowing a second-inning double and held the Padres to just four hits overall.
"He's been really good since he's come back," Girardi said. "The big thing is that he stays consistent with his fastball. When he does, it just makes everything else that much more effective."
Nova walked one and struck out eight over seven innings, working efficiently in an 86-pitch effort. He has allowed three earned runs or fewer in his last eight outings, six of them starts.
"All my swings and misses were with the curveball," Nova said. "It was really good today, as it has been in the past. I had good command of the strike zone and was working both sides of the plate to righties and lefties. That allowed me to get quick outs."
"He's got good stuff," San Diego's Will Venable said. "He's really a two-pitch guy [fastball, curveball]. But he had good action on the curve below the strike zone. His fastball had good sinking action to it."
As sharp as Nova appeared, Ross matched him through the first six innings. Ross set down the first 13 batters he faced before Overbay notched a fifth-inning single, with Ross striking out a career-high nine.
Granderson shattered that run in the seventh, slugging a 381-foot blast to right-center with Alfonso Soriano aboard -- a rare sight for the Yankees, who have been Bronx Bombers in name only. They rank 14th among the 15 American League clubs with just 92 team homers.
"It was good. Any way to help the team out," Granderson said. "It was a scuffle against Ross out there. He had thrown really well against us. Finally, the third time around we were able to get just a little thing going with Soriano getting the bloop [single] there, and then finally to get a pitch that caught some of the plate."
The Padres threatened in the seventh against Nova as Venable stroked a leadoff double, but Nova responded by retiring the next two hitters via a strikeout and a groundout. After a walk, Nova escaped by catching Nick Hundley looking at a called third strike.
"I cannot let that guy score, especially [with us] not scoring that many runs," Nova said. "I had to keep that game close. I had a lefty coming up, my two-seamer was working really good with the lefties and my curveball was my strikeout pitch again. I said, 'OK, let's go for a strikeout and not let that guy score.'"
Bryan Hoch is a reporter for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @bryanhoch and read his MLBlog, Bombers Beat.


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Weeks projected to return Sunday
By AJ Cassavell / MLB.com
PHOENIX -- Sunday is still Jemile Weeks' projected return date, but A's manager Bob Melvin isn't planning on rushing his second baseman back into action.
Weeks bruised his right shoulder last Friday attempting to turn a double play. X-rays were negative, but he is still having enough trouble throwing and swinging from the right side to warrant a bit more rest.
"We're still kind of hopefully targeting Sunday," Melvin said. "But we're certainly not putting any pressure on him to do that. It's what we thought yesterday, and I wouldn't say that we're off that yet. [Sunday] is probably the earliest."
Weeks is in the thick of a tight second base competition with Scott Sizemore, who returned from a bruised hand on Tuesday, and Jed Lowrie, an interesting option because of his ability to play every infield position. Though he played the majority of the club's games at second last year, Weeks slumped to a .221 batting average.
Melvin said the competition could come down to the very end of camp.
"There's more that goes into it than just 'OK who is playing second base?'" Melvin said. "It might be who's playing second base against a righty? There are a lot of things that could potentially play into it due to the flexibility that we have."
Donaldson goes deep twice after forgetting jersey
PEORIA, Ariz. -- Josh Donaldson might want to get used to the No. 98 A's jersey he wore on Friday.
After the A's third baseman forgot to pack his regular No. 20 shirt and followed that up by hitting a pair of monstrous home runs against the Mariners, Oakland manager Bob Melvin kidded that he may have to force Donaldson to wear No. 98 permanently.
Donaldson wasn't so keen on that idea, but he's open to trying out the number again.
"I don't know if it was the number or not," Donaldson said with a sheepish grin following Friday's game, which was called after 3 1/2 innings because of rain. "But I might give it another shot."
The stats don't lie. While wearing No. 20, Donaldson is just 1-for-20 this spring. But in No. 98, he's 2-for-3 with the two homers and three RBIs.
After the game, Melvin was asked if he would fine Donaldson for the jersey mishap or shake his hand because of the offensive outburst.
"He hit homers," Melvin said, "so we'll shake his hand."
Surprisingly, Melvin didn't seem the least bit taken aback by Donaldson's gaffe. He said Donaldson hadn't forgotten his jersey before, but added, "there has been much worse."
"He needs some help -- we'll put it that way -- with some of the non-baseball stuff," a grinning Melvin said. "The legend grows. It's not a big surprise that he forgot his jersey, but he made a lot of use of No. 98."
Both of Donaldson's homers would have been long gone even if the wind wasn't blowing out as it was on Friday. On a day that saw six home runs between the two clubs, his pair stood out the most.
The first came a few feet shy of hitting the left-center field light pole that rests about three quarters of the way up the grass seating section at Peoria Sports Complex. The second bounced off the base of the scoreboard in left field, at the very top of the grass.
"The biggest thing for me is just getting comfortable in the box," Donaldson said. "The first few at-bats I had here, I just haven't, and today I felt pretty comfortable and got a couple good pitches to hit."
A's catcher John Jaso said Donaldson "looked like he was an A-ball guy brought up and swinging away." He added that if he had been told the story but not been given a name, he would've guessed it was Donaldson in a heartbeat.
The A's play Texas in Surprise on Saturday, and Donaldson doesn't plan on committing to any sort of change just yet.
"I just like the number 20," Donaldson said. "But 98 worked today, so we'll see."
Griffin posts strong outing in rough conditions
PEORIA, Ariz. -- The rain fell on and off, the heavy wind was blowing straight out, and -- because of the A's offensive outburst on Friday -- there was far too much time between his trips to the mound.
But A.J. Griffin wanted no part of any of those excuses.
The Oakland starter battled miserable conditions to toss three very solid innings in which he allowed one run -- a homer to Seattle's Casper Wells in the second inning. He struck out four and walked none.
"Personally, I don't want to be the guy that's like 'Oh, I didn't think I was pitching because it's raining,' and then we go and lose a game we shouldn't lose," Griffin said.
Griffin made an adjustment on his curveball between his starts, bringing his arm over the top of his body more because he felt the pitch was too flat.
"When I started playing catch in the offseason, I probably wasn't getting back to the arm slot that I was [in the past]. It's an easy fix, just something that they brought to my attention, and it just happened to be the thing that helped the most."
To combat the wind conditions, Griffin and catcher John Jaso decided before the game they would pound hitters inside and keep the ball down in the zone more than usual.
It worked for Griffin, who allowed just one run, compared with the 12 runs and six homers surrendered by Mariners pitching in three innings.
"We had a gameplan going into that game -- staying hard in and not letting them get extended," Jaso said. "A.J. executed."
Worth noting
• Melvin on his forthcoming decision on who makes the bullpen out of spring: "The fact that most of those guys are pitching pretty well doesn't make it any easier. My guess is that it's going to play out all the way to the end."
• Because of rain, the A's canceled their on-the-field batting practice at Phoenix Municipal Stadium on Friday, opting instead to send their hitters to take indoor BP at the Minor League facility. They didn't go through any infield/outfield drills either.
• Right-hander Michael Ynoa was slated to throw live batting practice on a back field Friday, but that was washed out by the morning rain. Ynoa hasn't pitched in a game this spring after he missed the first 10 days of camp because of chicken pox.
• Rain prevented right-hander Chris Resop from making his fourth appearance this spring, and Melvin was still deciding how to get the right-hander his usual work. It's likely Resop will pitch Saturday against Texas.
AJ Cassavell is a reporter for MLB.com Follow him on Twitter @ajcassavell. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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A Preventable Death
Kira "Nikki" Gilbert was 22 years old and recently graduated from college. In 2009, she was working at a local orphanage and was planning to go to nursing school. Her biggest health problem was a torn ACL, not exactly a life-threatening condition. Her doctor prescribed her propoxyphene, the generic form of the painkiller Darvon, while she awaited ACL surgery.
Kira died just a few days after she started taking the drug.
Her grieving parents wanted to know what happened and why their precious daughter died so suddenly. They soon discovered that thousands of others had died...