Friday, February 18, 2005
Ask ASCII:
get missing
By Logan Stack
staff writer
Dear ASCII,
When I turned on my comput
er this morning, it started
screaming at me. It was this real
high-pitched, annoying noise. It
stopped when I cleared my
notes, pencils, pez dispensers,
pop bottles and file folders off
the keyboard and started press
ing buttons. What was that all
about? Then, when the scream
ing was over, I realized my
screen was messed up so that I
couldn't see the scroll bar at the
right of my programs when I
maximized them. How do I got
those tools back?
- Slightly deaf
Dear Slightly deaf,
When you press numerous
keys on your keyboard at once,
the computer will beep at you. If
you continue to press them, say
because your drunken roommate
left his half-empty Coors bottle
on your keyboard, the beep may
lengthen into a scream. There's
no harm done, unless you had a
file open. In that case, you may
have some new and repetitive
text in it
The issue you have with the
Should you show a little leg warmer?
By Karalee Miller
Knight Ridder Newspapers
(KRT)
Yes, they're back. But only the young
and hip should attempt this hot fashion
trend. Here's how the fashionistas say to
wear 'em
LEG WARMER DO'S
DO wear them with short skirts
Whether it's mini- or knee-length, the
skirt should not travel lower than the
kneecap when paired with leg warmers.
Short and sweet is key. Trendy moc
casins complete the leg-warming look.
DO pair them with flat, ballet-style
shoes
Fashionable flats work best for this
look. Toss the idea of pairing leg warm
ers with gym shoes or, worse yet, high
heels. "High heels are a big don't," says
Teresa Hunt, wardrobe consultant for
Nordstrom's Personal Touch, the store's
complimentary shopping service. "That
look is a mother's worst nightmare."
Enough said.
DO wear them with pencil-cut jeans
You don't have to show some leg in
order to show off this style statement.
Pull some leg warmers over your
favorite pair of pencil-cut jeans and
you're set. "The more narrow the jean,
the better," Hunt says.
Is Koppel's show nearing the end of the 'Line?'
By Marisa Guthrie
New York Daily News
(KRT)
In a highly unusual move, the producers
of ABC's "Nightline" turned over
Wednesday night's show to "Hotel
Rwanda" star Don Cheadle for a piece on
the genocide in that African nation.
It was a dramatic switch for the Ted
Koppel-anchored show, no doubt. But it
could be the first of many shifts and
tweaks as the newsmagazine heads into its
25th anniversary.
By all accounts,
the show is on the
endangered list, and
guessing what will
remain of
"Nightline" or
emerge in the time
period next season
has turned into a tel
evision parlor game
ABC executives
are saying nothing
record
"There has been an endless amount of
speculation," said ABC News spokesman
Jeffrey Schneider. "We're not going to add
to that speculation except to say that
'Nightline' is a fantastic show and will
How do I
tools back?
scroll bar when your programs
are maximized is likely not a
problem with any software.
What has likely happened is that
the alignment of your monitor is
off by a bit.
Your monitor (if it's not an
LCD) works just like a TV.
There's an electron gun in the
back which shoots at the screen
to make it light up and, if the gun
isn't aimed correctly, the elec
trons may not all be hitting the
screen
To adjust this, every monitor
comes with a couple of buttons
or knobs, usually just under the
screen. These are unique to
every monitor, so if you can't
figure it out by fiddling with
them, you'll have to look it up in
your manual. LCD's don't have
this problem.
This brings up another inter
esting issue. Because computers
no longer have floppy drives,
they are no longer vulnerable to
losing data if exposed to house
hold magnets. Your hard disk
has a sizable magnet in it which
it uses to move parts. In ancient
times (say 1999) when comput
ers used floppy disks, magnets
could erase the information off
the floppies.
definitive on the
clr
;-_)
Although this trend is fun and funky,
realize that not everything in your closet
is. Also, consider that while leg warmers
are cute, "cute" doesn't work in every
setting.
LEG WARMER DON'TS
DON'T wear them with flare-leg jeans
Remember, leg warmers have
changed. "They used to be big and
bulky, like Flashdance." says Lundy
Johnson, also a wardrobe consultant for
Nordstrom.
Do you realize how many times you'd
have to French-roll your jeans (don't
pretend that you didn't do that) to fit the
sleeker leg warmer? And do you really
want to find out?
DON'T wear them with gaucho pants
Everything about this possible look
screams "fashion emergency." "It's the
width of the pant, the length of the pant
- with the leg warmer? It just doesn't
look right," Hunt says. Hopefully, this is
not news to any of us.
DON'T wear them with long skirts
If you're going for this look, why
wouldn't you just wear pants? Just a
thought
WARMER MEMORIES
Some of the most memorable - per
haps regrettable - moments in leg
warmer history came from the 1980 s.
continue to be."
How long, is the big question. Word is
the entertainment and sports divisions at
ABC are making a bid for the 11:30 p.m.
EST slot, while the news division is trying
to hang on to the show.
For example, the sports wing has pro
posed a show much like ESPN's
"Sports Center."
And ABC News staffers are toying with
expanding "Nightline" to an hour or
launching a new live show mixing news
and popular culture. They've already shot
a pilot with Bill Weir and Jake Tapper
yukking it up about
the news of the day.
"Clearly, what
they're looking for is
something that is
much lighter in tone,
that has a different
sensibility, that is not
hard news," said a
source close to ABC
News.
Koppel, whose contract expires in
December, has said he will not do a live
show. "This Week" anchor George
Stephanopoulos has been mentioned as a
possible replacement. But another source
suggested having news and sports pitch
shows was a smokescreen to divert atten-
A record amount of Grammy sins
By Jim Farber
New York Daily News
(KRT)
Sentimental gestures have a
sacred place in our lives. And
deservedly so. Someone dies,
you send flowers. Or make a
condolence call.
You do not, however, award
them a Grammy - or eight.
But Grammy voters Sunday
night bestowed a treasure trove
of trophies on "Genius Loves
Company," the final album from
Ray Charles, who died last year.
Not only is "Genius" not the
Album of the Year, it could be
the least necessary album of
Charles' career.
Cut in the last year of his life,
"Genius" captures a man who's
clearly far from his towering
power. Little of his brilliant
phrasing or rich tone comes
through. Worse, pairing one of
music's greatest stars with a
round of overexposed boomer
bait names from Elton John to
Van Morrison plunges straight
into the heart of marketing
cliche.
This is the most depressing,
and reflexive, Album of the Year
award since Natalie Cole won
for "Unforgettable," her morbid
series of duets with her late
father, 15 long years ago.
The Grammy salute to Ray
was just the cherry on top of a
evening's
worth of
moldy
cake.
John
Mayer's
"Daughter"
as Song of
the Year?
That had to
come from
some sort
of split
vote.
Nobody
thought that
thing would
wi n ,
including
the singer
himself.
Backstage,
Mayer
joked that
he thought
he should
screw off
the top half of the award for
himself and give the base to
Alicia Keys for "If I Ain't Got
You."
Mayer's piece reeks of insin
cerity. An icky ode to good
Here's a look back
-"Fame" Re-MEM-bah, re-MEM-bah,
re-MEM-bah . . Of course, you do. The
table-top-dance-lovin' kids in this 1980
film, and later on the TV show, helped
propel the leg warmer and leotard look
that haunted us for much of the decade.
-"Flashdance" The year was 1983.
After watching Jennifer Beals strut her
stuff in this hit film, fashionistas turned
into maniacs for off-the-shoulder sweat
shirts and leg warmers.
-In 2003, Ms. Busybody from the
Bronx, Jennifer Lopez, decided to pay
homage to Beals - leg warmers and all -
by re-creating the look of the movie in
her video "I'm Glad." We weren't.
-Olivia Newton-John - After her popu
lar 1980 s music video, "Physical," it
seemed people might be hopelessly
devoted to headbands and leg warmers
forever. We love - we honestly love -
that they weren't.
-Jane Fonda - In her zillions of work
out videos, Jane sure was fonda leg
warmers. Feel the bum? No, just burn
the look.
-"Footloose" The credits for this film
showcase several sets of dancing legs
dressed in old-school tennis shoes and
layered leg warmers. They wouldn't
even show their faces. We're just sayin'.
tion from the real plan: shifting "Jimmy
Kimmel" into "Nightline's" slot.
Some ABC insiders dismissed the
Kimmel move, saying his low ratings
make that move a long shot.
That said, the venerable news broadcast
born during the Iran hostage crisis 25
years ago this May is not likely to survive
in its current form beyond the fall. And the
possible demise of "Nightline" under
scores the dilemma facing television news
organizations everywhere.
"What's really unfortunate is that the
advertising industry is having such an
impact on television programming by
insisting that the demographics of news
programs include more 18- to 34-year
olds," said Joe Angotti, chairman of the
Medill School of Journalism at
Northwestern University and a 20-year
veteran of NBC News.
"I think it's a lack of imagination more
than anything else that would turn it from
a lively, well-watched public affairs pro
gram into a copy of yet another sports or
celebrity or entertainment show," said
Alex Jones, director of the Shorenstein
Center on the Press, Politics and Public
Policy at Harvard's Kennedy School. "We
have no need for more of those. We have a
great need for more serious news broad
casts."
HAHN-KHAYAT/KRT
John Mayer, winner for Song Of The
Year, at the 47th Annual Grammy
Awards in Los Angeles, California, on
Feb. 13.
Honey beat Elvis Costello in
1977 has there been a doozy of a
boo-boo like this. Contenders
Kanye West, Gretchen Wilson
and Los Lonely Boys all have it
over Maroon in innovation, per-
How well do you know
Martin Scorsese?
I.)allasNews.coin
(KRT)
Martin Scorsesess latest film, "The Aviator," recently
received 11 Oscar nominations. How much do you know about
the veteran director?
hisnself to file:milting, Seersese eonsid
trod becemitig a:
A. Doctor
B. Salesman
C. Priest
D. Veterinarian
2. Including this year's nod for "The Aviator," how many times
has &cootie been nominated for an Oscar for directing?
A. Two
B. Three
C. Five
D. Six
3. Scorsese directed the video for which Michael Jackson
song?
A. "Bad"
B. "Beat It"
C. "Billie Jean"
D. "Thriller*
4. Actor John Turtuno made his film debut with a small bit in
which Somme film?
A. "ARC* Doane* eve Here Anymore"
C m / 10 1 00 4 Streets"
C. "Now 'York, New York"
na trA L I I S " au
5. *NUS. did NOT write the screenplay for which film?
A. "The Aso of Innocence"
B. "Casino"
C. "Chxxifellas"
D. "The Last Teruptatioti of Christ"
ANSWERS:
I. C. Prielt
2 • C;Nvo• To,date, he has never won.
.A, *Dad"
• A "Rattail Bull"
S. 1). "The Last Ibillptiktioll of Christ"
••••••••••••••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
behrendbeacon @ aol. corn
rt
r-1
child-rearing, the song seems
like some speech you'd hear on
"Leave It to Beaver" from Eddie
Haskell,
the trap of giving long-running
artists awards for inferior works
just because they felt self-con
scious about ignoring their
always greatest ones.
the guy
who was
sucking up
to his par-
telling
them what
they want
ed to hear.
Not
to he out-
done in this
year's sins,
there's the
"Best New
Artist"
award.
0 f
wrong'?
Not quite. Green Day's
"American Idiot" landed Best
Rock Album. which it certainly
is. And Alicia Keys took four
R&B awards for material that
returns the genre to a golden
Maroon 5. age.
the five
choices
voters went
worst
Not since A
Taste of
Want your
band featured?
Know an
interesting student?
E-mail story
to the Beacon at
The Behrend Beacon I
sonallty and just plain tunes.
Grammy voters also fell into
Both Rod Stewart and Brian
Wilson bagged their first prizes
this year for some of their lousi
est recordings. Rod was honored
for the third of his Standards
CDs, (as Best Traditional Pop
Vocal Album>. Brian Wilson got
the Best Rock Instrumental
Performance trinket for "Mrs.
O'Leary's Cow." The latter is a
novelty throwaway. the former
manages to make Cole Porter
songs seem unsophisticated.
Did voters get everything
But otherwise, Grammy vot
ers brought us hack to the dark
years - that terrifying era when
dross like "We Are the World"
took top honors and Jethro Tull
were seen as the world's greatest
makers of heavy metal.
ideas