To Blu-Ray or not to Blu-Ray...that is the question.

As much as we would like to forget that it is upon us, the Christmas shopping season is here.

That being said, with this column and in the future, I thought I would try to help you with some decisions you may inevitably run into over the next few weeks before Christmas actually arrives.

It is December 25th this year, right?

Since I started seeing Christmas trees and decorations in early October I wasn’t sure.

Anyway. *gets off soapbox*

For this column I would like to tackle the DVD vs. Blu-Ray battle that is going on right now.

When I first replaced my old VHS player with the new DVD technology, I thought it was sent from God himself.

It was like being in an actual movie theater. It had great video quality and wonderful stereo sound.
But like everything else, a newer better experience was just around the corner.

Enter Blu-Ray.

After winning the High Def battle with Toshiba’s HD DVD technology, Sony’s Blu-Ray has stepped in to be the next big thing in the high definition video technology category.

So let’s all run out and burn our DVD players in effigy as we welcome the new, bigger, better and shinier Blu-Ray disks and players!!!

Well, honestly that didn’t exactly happen.

(Though this past weekend I almost flattened my old DVD player when I slipped down the stairs on top of it.)

With DVD players being offered up at an all-time low price and millions upon millions of home users entrenched in the technology, Blu-Ray didn’t exactly take the world by storm.

But the day is coming where you will have little or no choice. Much like VHS in the past, DVD technology will be weeded out in favor of Blu-Ray.

But that could be years from now. What do you do this Christmas? Do you stop buying DVDs and break down and pick up a Blu-Ray player this year?

To be honest, I would consider it. Why you may ask?

Well for one, Blu-Ray players have the ability to play DVDs anyway. So it isn’t like you would just have to scrap your old DVDs at a garage sale and rebuild your movie library again like we all did with VHS.

Plus Blu-Ray players are at an all-time low price point. I saw one at an online site being offered for as little as $69. That is comparable with some DVD players being offered at the exact same site.

Another reason I am all for the switchover to Blu-Ray is that some of the movies you buy are coming with, not only the Blu-Ray disk, but a DVD disk AND a digital copy for you to upload the movie to any of your mobile devices. SCORE!

And finally, I am going to recommend a Blu-Ray experience over DVD because of the resolution of the movie itself. 1080p vs. 480p. Blu-Ray wins hands down. Don’t believe me? Come to my house and watch a Blu-Ray film on my HDTV, especially an animated film. It will knock your socks off how good that movie looks.

Plus there are bonus Apps that some players offer to allow streaming through Netflix or HULU Plus directly to the device. Call it an extra benefit over DVD players.

It is a great time to jump on the Blu-Ray bandwagon. There is plenty of room for you. If not, you still have time to enjoy your DVDs, for now.

Week 1: So the Journey Begins

Long ago a fellow co-worker turned to me and stated, “Gary you should write a column”. To which I responded, “Why”?

For some reason this fellow adventurer of the world felt that I would be able to add some clever insight into the world through my eyes. Unfortunately I don’t know if it will be clever but it will be insight through my eyesight. Whatever that means.

Anyway, so here I am. Writing my first weekly column with absolutely no idea about what to write about, obviously. The main problem I had was naming the column. I had thought of a few and these are the top five that I discarded beyond the current one at present.

Get him to the Geek - A play on words consolidating my geekiness and my love of movies but I already have a movie column.

All the world is a Geek - Combination of my love of theater and my geeky nature.

Get him to the Geek on time. - My Fair Lady + Geek!

The Way It Is - Unfortunately I didn’t want to steal Megan’s title. Plus she is reusing that name in the Boonville Daily News in Boonville, MO.

A Geek lost in Maryville - Like you could really get lost in Maryville. I have tried and have failed several times.

So I decided on Geekology 101. Why? I have no clue. It will probably change several times in the coming months. To the point where you will start to wonder if I have any idea what I am doing. Which, of course, I don’t.

Plus, what do I actually have to offer beyond a love of movies and an attraction to anything that is new and shiny in the tech world.

I know. I could write about my sons...oh wait, Kelley does that. And does it well, I might add. No way do I want to try to live up to the quality of writing that she has already achieved.

Maybe I could write about the further adventures of my Nerd club! What’s up Ben, Chris, Pat, Mike and (last but not least) Fred! But would you really want to hear the musings of a bunch of guys rolling dice, eating bad food, and making crude jokes at each others expenses?

For now I will just have to see where my column will lead me. I am sure it will go from Techie, to comic bookie, and even movie etiquette.

I mean, really, how many times must I get stuck behind the teenie boppers who need to take a flash photo of themselves at the Hangar? It takes about 10 minutes into the movie before the spots disappear from in front of my eyes. I mean, really, are you having so much fun waiting in the dark at the theater that you must preserve it forever on the social networking site of your choice.

But I digress.

Well thanks for joining me this week. I promise that next week will be far better. Or worse depending on your point of view.

And if you get a clever idea for a title of this column, feel free to drop me a line. I am all for reader interaction.

Well Megan. I did it. I hope you are happy.