jmr

It's not just someone highlighting random letters to form a message, as the Joystiq article originally led me to believe. The letters U and R in Super, M and R in Mario, and G, A, and Y in Galaxy all have a star / sparkle on the lower part of the letter.

Good point, but personally if I was to support OCR financially, I'd buy something a little more tangible than a access to a feature on the website, like a shirt or a hoodie.

I'm pretty interested in the possibility of an official OCR blog system, but I don't know if I would be willing to pay for it. I'm always a bit uncomfortable sending money online. Plus, there are plenty of free blogging options, and I'm not sure if just having the OCR name on a blog is worth $15. Would there any other perks? If there's anything else to be gained by using an OCR blog, I MAY be willing to pay for it. Otherwise, I'd only use it if it was free.

Yeah, I saw that, but only because I checked the site to see why there were no updates in my RSS feed reader.

I've been using the RSS feed, and I haven't been checking out this thread that often, so I didn't know about the switch to wordpress / new url. It might be a good idea to make a post on the blogger page notifying everyone who just uses the feed of the change to the new URL.

Personally, I could listen for hours. However, a podcast as long as the original VGF is probably not feesable. It really all depends on what you plan on including in the show. If you have a whole wealth of material to cover, obviously you don't want to be rushing through everything for the sake of a shorter running time. As well, you don't want the podcast to seem slow and dragged out. Pacing is important. Another thing to keep in mind is filesize. Keep it reasonable; you don't want to scare away any people who may still be stuck in the stone age of the internet. With all that being said, I think that anything within one hour would work well.

Can't wait to see this one on the front page.

New version; link in the above post. What do you guys think of the solo?

I also have one svchost.exe that takes up roughly the same amount of memory too, but I've always just ignored it. You can check what service(s) that this particular instance of svchost handles. Note: I'm using 32bit windows, so it may not be the same. As well, there's probably an easier way to check, this is just something I came up with. -Right Click on My Computer, and select Manage -In the left hand pane, select Services from the Services and Applications category. -Take a note of what services are started. -End the particular svchost task. -Open a second instance of Computer Management (just repeat the first few steps), and compare the started services with the started ones in the previous instance. Also, you can control which services run at startup in the computer management window as well, so if you see anything that's running which you think shouldn't be, you can disable it.

I'm planning on formatting my hard drive in the near future, and I know I'm going to end up re-installing quite a collection of software when I'm finished. Since I know that I'm going to be formatting again in the future, I'd like to make the process easier for the next time. I'm wondering if anyone knows of any (preferably free) software for Windows XP that allows me to create a disc image of my hard drive and burn it to a DVD which can be used to restore the hard drive to that state.

My favorites are Kirby's Adventure, Super Mario Bros. 3, and TMNT 3: The Manhattan Project. I'd also recommend checking out DuckTales, Captain Skyhawk, Adventure Island II, and Thrilla's Surfari. I don't see them on many recommendation lists, but I think they're alright games.

While browsing that site, and I stumbled upon the most amazing thing I've ever seen. (Here's the Google video link.) I can't even begin to explain how awesome that is.

Well, if Wikipedia can be trusted, it looks like it's the other way around. The Miguel Migs remix is listed on the track listing for several versions of the 'Stronger' single, which was released in November/December 2000. LeeBro's mix didn't get posted until October 2001. It'd be kinda hard for the Britney remix to have ripped off OCR, don't you think? Now, what danimal cannon said is quite possible; the shared drum loop could have been included with some software or sample pack, where both LeeBro and Miguel Migs found it. However, I'm beginning to think that that's not likely. In LeeBro's mix, he repeats the same 16 second loop throughout the song (notice the chimes that repeat every 8 bars?). The Stronger remix's loop does not have the chimes repeating every 8 bars; they are used elsewhere in the song as well, which suggests to me that they are not a part of the original drum loop, but rather, a separate element. It would be quite the coincidence for two different songs to use the same tempo, same drum loop, and same chimes, don't you think? And now, here's the kicker. At the end of the 8th bar in the Stronger remix, you can hear Britney (i guess) quickly inhale while the next bar starts. In LeeBro's mix, in the same place, you can hear the same inhalation just partially covered up as the loop restarts. (I find it most noticeable at 0:16 and 2:08, it's not as covered up) It seems to me that LeeBro sampled the first 16 seconds of this Britney Spears remix and looped it. I hate to admit it, though, because this OC Remix kind of has a special meaning to me.

This is not that great, but the best I've heard from you yet. You've made some changes to the melody in places, so at least you're attempting some re-arrangement. Still, you've got the same 50 second loop repeating twice; you should try changing things around so that your song isn't repetitive. Work on honing your arrangement skills. As well, your samples are not that great (well, in my opinion, they're terrible, but I'm trying to be nice ), so look into getting replacements. There are plenty of free samples on the internet. (I THOUGHT there was a 'free samples' thread in the remixing forum, but I can't find it.) By the way, the sudden cut off at the end and the sequencing of the lead instrument make it obvious that you've copied certain elements directly from this midi. You've changed up a few things (an original bassline and semi-original section from 0:38-0:48 ), which is good, but you're still ripping off someone else's work. Midi rips are frowned upon on this site, and if you were to submit something which was obviously a midi rip, it would (most likely) be instantly rejected. Read over the submission standards, particularly the What Qualifies as a ReMix? section.

Yeah, the premise of this project seems oddly familiar... Even if you are serious about starting a remix project like this, now is definitely NOT the time to. There are at least a dozen remixing projects already in progress, and a few other site-related projects on top of that. I'd recommend that you wait until some of these are finished before starting a project. I'd also recommend that you read this thoroughly: http://www.ocremix.org/info/Album_Project_Guidelines By the way, I wasn't too impressed by your "orchestrated" Dedede remix.

NEW: NOW WITH SYNTH SOLO! [MP3 - 3.41MB] jmr - No Choice (public WIP 2) --- Here's something original that I've been working on for some time now. It's my first real attempt at something in this genre, so please take it easy on me. [MP3 - 2.63MB] jmr - No Choice (public WIP 1) I'm using a drum loop from one of the FLMC packs, and I've hardly changed it at all. Before I call this track finished, I plan on changing it up, at least a little bit. The ending is currently in an unfinished state. Everything after 1:22 is obviously incomplete. I'd like to add some sort of synth solo to that section, but the creative juices kinda stopped flowing. I thought it would be a good idea to post what I've completed as of now, just to see if I'm heading in the right direction. Any comments, criticism, and especially suggestions are welcomed.

I'm listening to what you have here for the first time as I'm typing this, and what I've heard so far sounds really amateur-ish. At the 0:58 mark, for a second it sounds like things are going to improve, but then you go and drop a default FL drum loop on top of everything. The fact that you're using FL Slayer... well, the fact that I can tell that you are using it isn't good either. On the plus side, your arrangement shows some promise. The guitar solo in particular is good, but your samples are really bringing it down. I have to echo the sentiments of the judges panel; your samples are too weak. Look into acquiring some new sample libraries, check out the remixing forums for suggestions. You say this track was rejected, I couldn't find a judging thread for it. I would have thought that this would be above the bar for the form rejection letter, but maybe Slayer and DL_DrillNB were too much for the judges.

What you've done so far is pretty interesting, but I'm left with a longing for something more. Nothing really happens; the song has pretty much the same energy level throughout the entire piece. I was hoping some sort of beat to come in at the 1:00 or so mark, and for the rest of the track to "come alive" and turn into a trance song. But alas, I was left disappointed... The forest sounds do work well in this situation, but looped constantly through a 4 minute song, they become, well, annoying. Like SynthesizedStampede said above, everything you have here seems like it's an intro to another song. Personally, I'd recommend turning what you have here into just that: an intro for another, "more involving" song. It doesn't have to be the in the trance genre (but I do think that'd work), just something more than some forest ambiance and sparse instrumentation.

I see that you did take a few of my suggestions, and you have made a few improvements. However, some of the notes you've changed in the first 20 or so seconds sound... sour. By the way, what you've used doesn't qualify as an electric guitar. Sounds like Slayer, or one of the Sytrus presets. So in short, you've made a few improvements, but there's still a lot of work left to be done.

To be 'brutally honest', there's not much going for this song. What you've done is simply covered the original arrangement using what sounds to be FL's Styrus. To make things worse, some of it sounds out of tune. But hey, at least you've admitted (twice!) that it sucks. If you are going to continue working on this, here are a few suggestions for you: -In the background, you have what sounds to be some sort of synth string doing arpeggios, but the attack on them is too drawn out, and they're barely done fading in before the next note should start. Adjust the attack, or find another sample which is better suited to quicker notes. -Nearly everything except for the lead instrument sounds too muddy to me; nothing but the lead really stands out. You need to work on this. Replace (or tweak) your samples, and adjust the levels (overall volume, panning, reverb, etc). -Where's the drum track? Needz some beetz, man! (...well, not "beetz" per se...) I'm not sure what would work in this case, though. I always imagine this source with some sort of military-esque snare drum, but I don't really think that'd work with the style you seem to be going for. Just experiment with a few things, and find what works. -Here's probably the most important thing I have to say: if you EVER expect to get a song passed here at OCR, you need to work on your arrangement. What you have here is, as I said above, a cover of the source tune, and that will not do! Add some original sections! Replace a few notes here and there! Change up the instruments every now and again! Anything to keep it from being a note-for-note copy of the original. Good luck, man!

The arrangement shows a LOT of promise, but the sample and overall sound quality is really dragging it down. (And it's mono? What the heck?) At nearly 8 minutes, the song runs kinda long. You might want to try trimming some of the sections. (Cutting of the first 32 seconds might be considered as a step in the right direction.) You really REALLY should look into acquiring some higher quality samples for this song. General Midi samples simply don't cut it. (I wish I could make a recommendation, but I don't really have any ideas... check out the Remixing forums; you may find some answers there.) Alternatively, you could find someone willing to collaborate with you; someone willing to take your existing arrangement and overhaul it with the samples and production quality an arrangement like this deserves.

Without having heard any other examples of songs in the genre, I feel I can safely say that this sounds like an "lo-fi organic drone". I'd like to echo what The Green Tentacle said; if it had some more obvious melody (and perhaps some re-arrangement of said melody), I can see this passing. Don't really think you need any more, uh, drone. What you've got is quite enough for my taste, thank you very much . I think I might check out some of the other artists you've mentioned.

Wow, this is pretty sweet. However, if you were to submit this one as is, I'm not quite sure if it would pass. First of all, it sounds WAY too compressed. Some of the quieter sections don't sound too bad, but through the majority of the song the levels are near flat. Secondly, the arrangement is pretty basic. There are a few sections where you stray from the original, but you never really change up things that much. (I haven't listened to the original in some time, so take those comments with a grain of salt.) You also may want to try boosting the higher frequencies a touch. It could just be my less-than-ideal listening equipment, though. Might want to look for a second opinion on that. Also, while I do think the applause works to some extent, but is 16 seconds of it at the beginning really necessary? I think a second or two would suffice. Same thing for the end; some of that could be cut. I really like the overall style of this one, though. With a few tweaks to the production, and some more re-arrangement, I think that this would probably pass. Looking forward to hearing a revised version!

No, it says $1000 (a grand). So, if he's seeing double, you can't be seeing at all.

Wow, nice. I like it. I really like the source tune a lot, though, so that's a pretty biased opinion. The playing, like you admit, is a little rough in places, but it's not too bad.