Chat from 'nudity in the theatre and in art'
 

THANK you! This is fortuitous for several reasons:

1) My comp can't seem to play 1080p movies without extreme pixellation/stop & start playing
2) File size is much smaller, so less time spent downloading
3) More conducive manner to download thanks to you

I really don't see much of a difference between most 720p & 1080p videos in terms of video quality (when I can play 1080s), so this is just what the doctor ordered. On top of that, this will take a little over 4 minutes to download. Thank you again. :cool:

Who needs videos when thumbnails will do? I'm glad for you, but the video won't be playable in a year when you upgrade to 4K. 720p is 1/8th the size of a 4K monitor. Streaming sites offer a max of 720p (foreign ones mostly), so it's probably best to just check there are forget about files.

Therein lies the issue: I bought my comp in 2008 & am still using a similar OS from then. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. But thanks for the concern.

Dude, you need a new PC. My computer is old, but anything after about 2015 can handle 4K. It's like a whole new world and worth every cent. $200 USD for a new monitor and maybe $100 for a multi-terabyte external HD. Otherwise why bother with files and just stick to streaming? Most streaming sites do 720p. Google up the difference between h264 and h265.

I have a black and white TV from like 1970 that isn't broken, but I don't use it because I enjoy watching films in color.

Think about this. Do you have an iPhone? 720p is like three thumbnails on an iPhone, or any touch device manufactured since about 2010.

I totally agree. I don't think differences between 720p & 1080p justify to spend more and more money with screens, hard drive, internet connection... And there is much to say about the environmental impact...
Don't forget that if you meet problems to read some files (ie h265) you can easily convert them with VLC.

I disagree, but w/e man. Thanks for trying to help.

None of which do me any good considering this is a laptop. D'Oh!

What about movies that are in black & white but are amazingly awesome? Scarface (the original), The Public Enemy, White Heat, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, Casablanca, Wizard of Oz, etc? Or what about a modern movie filmed in black & white, like Sin City? By your logic, those should be dismissed simply because you can't watch them in color. Not the same thing, so once again, I disagree.

Not to mention, the reason you don't watch that tv anymore has nothing to do with black & white vs color and everything to do with the fact that the tech industry, tv broadcasters, regulators & all that mandated that everything be in HD, and your tv is incompatible with that technology. Yes, you could argue that my laptop is "incompatible with the technology to play 1080 videos" except for two things:

1) It's not technically incompatible because it still plays these videos. It's just not ideal.
2) The transition to HD, rendering your tv obsolete, was done against your will.

When all videos released everywhere are 1080 and no 720 or lower videos are ever produced, then the comparison will be valid.

Ugh, no. Hate Apple products.

Look, I see your point. What I have isn't broken, it's just not the "newest, flashiest, brightest & most expensive", and that's what you're advocating for. Sorry; keeping up with the Joneses has never been anything I'm interested in. And the difference in quality between 720 & 1080 that I've seen just doesn't justify the cost of dropping $1,500+ on a new laptop when the one I have is perfectly serviceable and still works but for playing these huge files with marginally better picture quality.

I just got a new car last Sep. It's a 2019 Subaru Impreza, base model with no frills, although I did have them tint the windows. $19k, and still has the original 7yr/100k mile warranty on it. If I followed your logic, I'd have had to go in the hole $34k for a car that goes just as fast and has the same warranty on it, but it's 2 years newer and has ALL the bells & whistles. No thank you.

"'Perfect' is often the enemy of 'good enough'". Not sure who said that, but it applies in a military/tactical situation, so I run with that in my everyday life.

This guy gets it. :cool:

Wizard of Oz is very famously NOT black and white.

A laptop that can handle 4K costs under $500, not over $1500. My old midrange laptop from 2012 can handle 4k.

Don't wish to quibble, but part of The Wizard of Oz IS in B&W - ie, the part in Kansas. Either that, or Kansas is normally like that for most people who've been there! And not disputing the new technology, but I like y2kv2's attitude of sticking to what you know, and for me over the years it's been what you could afford and having to make it last, which may be the case with the current global situation.

Plus, I also like the fact that he mentioned The Ghost & Mrs Muir in those list of movie classics. Respect.

Don't mistake narrative quality and content for visual quality. It just so happens that I have seen several of those films, in higher resolution on a 4K monitor. The stories remain great and the visual experience is better.

I get if you'd rather spend your money on other things (or don't have the money to spend). But you know what's best for the environment, following your chain of logic? Why not buy a typewriter from an old store and just ignore computers all together?

It's time to upgrade when you start begging on a forum like this for someone to provide backwards compatible stuff for you.

Subtext:

Love you too, buddy.

I particularly take umbrage at the suggestion that 720 in general and my computer in particular are "backwards compatible". I used to have a PS3 that was backwards compatible, which meant it could play PS2 & original Playstation games, whereas any other PS3 couldn't play those. My computer DOES play these 1080 videos, I just have to slow the playtime down considerably in order to do it (this actually works to my benefit more often than not since it gives me more time to "savor" the experience, if you know what I'm talking about).

But if we look at this using my metaphor, you have a PS3 & I have a PS2. My PS2 WILL play PS3 games, it just won't be as seamless an experience as yours is, as one cannot play games geared for a newer machine in an older one. As a result, a situation like that would not ever be possible, thus the term "backwards compatible" as you used it is not valid.

On that note, as much as you apparently wish I were, I wasn't begging; this isn't the 1930s and I'm not in the breadline. I can get by perfectly well without the video we were talking about (since our discussion in that thread was pruned and collated to create an entirely new thread in a different section of the website). The video was initially released in 1080. Since you're a bastion of technical proficiency and digital prowess, surely you're aware that nowadays it's commonplace for different quality versions of a video to be made available for everyone's benefit. That's generally understood to be a gesture of common courtesy. Clearly, that got by you.

Simply put, someone posted a video that was only viewable for the "biggest/best/newest" and as much as I would have liked to see that video, I shouldn't have to shell out money for new equipment I don't need or want, nor should I be expected to do so by condescending, smug denizens of the internet (such as yourself) when what I have works perfectly well but for playing those "biggest/best/newest" videos. Not worth it.